Tata group retains Delhi’s iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel

Tata group has been able to retain the iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel in Lutyens' Delhi after a fierce auction against rival group ITC, in the bidding for the hotel in an auction by the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) on Friday after years of litigation, an official said.

The auction began at 11 am and ended at 4 pm. The auction was pending since the lease had expired in 2011 and the Tata group was operating the property on temporary extensions.

The lease for the hotel will be granted to the group for 33 years at double the license fees.

"The Tata group's Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL) has retained the property at a license fee of Rs. 7.03 crore per month including GST or 32.50 per cent of the gross turnover of the property. Earlier, they were paying Rs. 3.94 crore per month as license fees," a senior NDMC official told PTI.

The NDMC had last month decided to relax the eligibility criteria for bidders and reduce the minimum number of bids required after failing to auction the luxury hotel in two attempts.

The auction had to be put off twice as it got less than the required number of bids for the five-star property to go under the hammer.

"We are delighted that the iconic Taj Mahal, New Delhi which has been an important part of the cultural and historic fabric of the national capital, will continue to remain a part of the IHCL family," Puneet Chhatwal, managing director and chief executive officer, IHCL, said.