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Nine ITDC hotels up for sale

Nine more hotels owned by the India Tourism Development Corporation Ltd (ITDC) are up for sale or long term lease.

ITDC, which put eight other hotels up for sale in December, plans to privatise all of its 26 hotels phases. It currently operates six luxury, 15 budget and five comfort category hotels across India.

Of the 26 hotels, 24 incurred a collective loss of Rs 450 million.

The sales are part of India's drive to raise Rs 100 billion through the sale of state-run firms in the current year to March. But stiff opposition from trade unions and differences within the ruling coalition have hampered progress. Currently, the disinvestment ministry is overseeing the sale of government stakes in 30 state-run firms in industries ranging from airlines to hotels and metals firms.

Eight hotel properties are being offered for sale while one hotel in New Delhi is being offered on a long-term lease and management basis, it said.

The properties for sale are located in New Delhi, Udaipur in the state of Rajasthan and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. The bidders are required to have a net worth in the range of Rs 120 million to Rs one billion depending on the hotel property.

Lazard India Ltd are advisors to the central government on the sale.

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