NEW DELHI : It’s now the turn of Union Minister of State for Tourism Shripad Naik, who hails from Goa, to push for the top class hotels not to serve alcohol on their premises, announcing waiver of the alcohol service as essential for the hotels seeking classification in the categories of 4 star, 5 star and classic heritage sector.
The ministry won’t insist on the presence of a bar that serves alcohol on the premises for grant of classification to these hotels, he said, a day after chairing a 2-day meeting of the state tourism ministers and secretaries here to discuss a coordinated push to tourism in the country. He claimed there was a long-standing demand of the hotel industry to leave it up to the hotels to have a bar or not. The industry sources, however, expressed surprise. They have no knowl edge of any hotel ever seeking exemption from running the bar. Naik insisted that this will give flexibility to hotel owners to take a considered decision on having the alcohol service or not in their premises.
Now the higher category hotels will be classified in two categories, for example “5 star with alcohol service” and “5 star without alcohol service.”
A ministry press note said the new provision of classification has come into effect immediately. It is compulsory for all the classified hotels to make known their precise classification on their website as also on their promotional and marketing material, without any abbreviations, the press note added.
In a major relief to the hotel industry, Naik has simplified the hotel classification procedure. The ministry will require only the trade and bar licences from a hotel for classify it. The hotels are placed under various categories with 3, 4 and 5 stars, etc. based on their facilities and amenities.
It, however, does not mean the hotels are exempted from all other licences so far required before classifying them. Instead, the owner will have to just give an undertaking that he has taken all other clearances from the local authorities. The industry sources claim there are more than 15 licences that are required to be secured before a new hotel can be started.
