 "An attendant holds a trolley loaded with the luggage of a guest at the reception area of a hotel in Ahmedabad May 5, 2012. Photo: Reuters")
After a period of 35 years, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) has decided to hike the licence fee of two five star hotels — Le Meridien and The Lalit.
The civic body is supposed to renew the licence fee every 33 years as per the licence deed, which is for 99 years.
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However, that period had expired in March, 2014.
While the Le Meridien used to pay Rs 2.68 crore per annum, the hotel will now have to pay over Rs 3 crore per month to the civic body. Similarly, The Lalit currently pays Rs 1.4 crore annually, but will now have to cough up Rs 4.4 crore per month.
A decision in this regard was taken at a council meeting on Tuesday. The revised licence fee has been decided considering the area of the two hotels. Le Meridien is spread over 4.29 acres, while The Lalit sits on a 6.04 acre plot.
“The actual licence fee for the hotels will be decided by NDMC’s financial advisor SBI Cap, however, as an interim measure, the council has decided to set the fee at Rs 3 crore and Rs 4.4 crore per month for Le Meridien and Lalit respectively,” a senior NDMC official said.
