Srinagar, Dec 17: The Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) has urged the government of J&K to speed up the process of negotiating with the Air India for taking over the Centaur Lakeview Hotel (CLH) on the banks of Dal lake in Kashmir.
 In a statement here today it said the Civil Aviation Ministry has indicated that it is not averse to a deal in which the J&K government will take over the property. “It is high time for the government here to initiate process of negotiating with the company to get back the prized property of the state,” it said.
 It said the KCCI is fundamentally against the takeover of the hotel by any non-state subject regardless of whether the deal is an outright sale or the management contract.
 “We reiterate that the property should be taken over by the state government. And in case the state government is not interested, it should facilitate taking over of the hotel by any local hospitality group having stakes in the well being of the state,” it said.
 The government, it said, has started reacting to the issue in different voices. “Initially it was hinted that since the hotel is not being sold, there is no need of intervention. Now the sate government has stated it is interested in taking over the CLH but there is no clear action from the government as would suggest it is working towards it,” it said.
 The KCCI alleged that the fact is that AI owned Hotel Corporation of India has signed the deal in September, 2010 with a Mumbai-based hospitality firm for taking over CLH for 30 years. “The deal is alive and the HCI has already taken Rs 12 crores,” it said.
 “The ideal indicator of state’s willingness to act in this direction should have been that it should have approach the High Court and claimed a role as a major party,” it said, adding that but unfortunately it has not done that so far.
 “The case initiated by a petition of the CLH employees is pending disposal with the High Court at Jammu. But the employees have not challenged the legitimacy of the deal which falls within the purview of the state government,” it said.
 “The KCCI hopes the state government will take a decision in this regard and start working on it without any further delay,” it said.
 To mention, several trade unions and associations in Kashmir had earlier decided to launch an agitation if government failed to intervene into the matter of selling out of the hotel and compel AI to reconsider its decision of privatization of the multi-crore business establishment.
 The Centaur Employees Union had also organized a seminar here in November against the privatization of the prized commercial asset, which is a part of hotel chains of AI subsidiary, Hotel Corporation of India, situated adjacent to the SK International Convention Center here.
 The program was attended by all the top trade and business organizations including JK Handicrafts Employees Association, Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Association, Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation and body of insurance employees. The two factions of the Employees Joint Action Committee also decided to provide unconditional support against leasing out the hotel.
  Though authorities in the Omar Abdullah-led government have assured “intervention” in the matter there has been no visible action on the ground, the unions had alleged.

Lastupdate on : Fri, 17 Dec 2010 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Fri, 17 Dec 2010 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Sat, 18 Dec 2010 00:00:00 IST