Sant Chatwal to invest Rs 5,000cr in India

New York-based Hampshire Hotels and Resorts, owned by NRI Sant Chatwal, has proposed to invest Rs 5,000 crore to build hotels across India in a span of four years.

"We would pump in Rs 5,000 crore in the Indian hospitality sector during the next four years for building up a new chain of hotels," Sant Chatwal, chairman and CEO, Hampshire Hotels and Resorts, told reporters here today.

Out of the total investment, Rs 1,000-2,000 crore has been earmarked by the company for setting up a hotel in Punjab, he added.

Chatwal, a non-resident Indian, was here to attend an NRI conclave organised by the Punjab government today.

A major portion of the proposed investment would be dedicated for building new hotels in south India. "We plan to set up new hotels under the brand of Hampshire Plaza and Dreams Hotels in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Chennai," he said.

"Out of these hotel projects, one hotel in Hyderabad is being set up at an investment of Rs 125 crore and another hotel is being constructed in Kochi with an outlay of Rs 200 crore," he said.

On his investment plans in Punjab, Chatwal, who hails from Faridkot district of the state, said: "I have proposed the Punjab government for converting the Gobindgarh Fort in Amritsar to a seven-star heritage hotel cum museum, which would showcase the history of the Punjabi culture and tradition."

When asked about the response of the state government, he said the state had shown keen interest in his proposal. "If things do not get materialised here, my investment would flow to other states of the country."