Owners not pleased at Delhi govt's decision to turn hotels into hospitals: Report

File image: Reuters/Danish Siddiqui

The hospitality industry is unhappy with the Delhi government's decision to convert hotels into hospitals to treat novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, patients.

Hoteliers are of the view that they do not have the required infrastructure for the facilities, and that they are being treated unfairly during the COVID-19 outbreak, Mint reported.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the story.The Delhi government has already ordered conversion of at least 30 hotels into temporary COVID-19 hospitals, including properties belonging to Accor, Hyatt, Radisson Hotels, InterContinental Hotels Group, and the iconic Taj Mansingh Hotel.

The government is trying to increase the number of beds available as active cases continue to rise in the national capital.

The hotels will be connected to the nearest hospital and will be used for treatment of COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms.

"In the case of Taj Mahal Delhi, the hotel is in the midst of a major renovation, which commenced much before the nationwide lockdown, and is uninhabitable especially for patients and doctors. However, we will continue to cooperate with the government during these challenging times," a spokesperson for Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) told the newspaper.

There is also a lack of clarity from the government on crucial aspects such as room and service charges, cost of protective equipment for patients, and Goods & Services Tax (GST) on room tariff, industry experts told the publication. 

"Fundamentally, hotels are not designed to accommodate medically ill patients due to sanitisation challenges. In Delhi, a 10,000-bed facility is being created in Chhattarpur. After that comes up, the government might allow hotels to resume regular business," the article quotes Ankur Bhatia, Executive Director, Roseate House, as saying.