Terrorists attacked Taj Mahal likely to be fully functional by end 2009

Indian Hotels on Sunday said it expects to partially open Taj Mahal Palace in February and the entire hotel by end of 2009.

"The north block of the Heritage wing of the hotel is expected to be ready by February 2009 while the south block will be ready by end of next year," Indian Hotels Vice Chairman R K Krishna Kumar said.

On November 26, terrorists attacked Taj hotel and occupied the fifth and sixth floor of the Heritage wing.

The south side of the hotel came under heavy fire. "The fifth and sixth floor have been damaged by the attack. The Wasabi and Harbour Bar have been completely gutted," he said.

The company is in talks with four interior decorators out of which one would be selected for renovation of the hotel.

"This gives us an opportunity to work on it and redefine the Presidential suite. There would be new facilities and new designs and would bring something new to the world," Kumar said.

"The tower wing which opened for guests today has been cleansed of evil among other things. All the rooms and the kitchen have been fully cleaned and sanitised by an international agency," he said.

Religious rites of various faiths have been performed inside the hotel, he said.

The Taj hotel has an insurance cover of Rs 1,000 crore and the first instalment has been received without the company claiming for it.

"Our hotel is widely covered. The renovation would be below the limit of the insurance cover. Even before a formal claim was made, we received the first instalment cheque," Kumar said.

All Taj employees have undergone counselling sessions post the attack. In addition to this, the employees have also been trained to be on alert, he said.

The artwork in the hotel would be restored. "Curators have looked at the artworks. About 90 per cent of the artwork is untouched and the remaining have been damaged due to bullet marks but are not beyond redemption," Kumar said.

One piece of art with a bronze framework, 'Tree of Life' which is about seven feet high and had been placed on the sixth floor has not suffered any damage.

"The artwork would now be placed at the lobby of the hotel as a memorial and the names of the 31 persons who lost their lives in the hotel would be engraved on it," Kumar said.

With regard to security in the hotel, Kumar said the company would ensure that it has better security measures than airports in the country which had turned into fortresses.

"We would not be 100 per cent secure but we would be technologically smarter and better trained," he said.

Metal detectors have been installed and baggages will be thoroughly checked. "At the instance of (Tata Sons Chairman) Ratan Tata, we had approached the most premium agency in combating terrorism for advice regarding security measures," Kumar said, refusing to divulge the name of the agency.

"Taj has been legendary for its rooms and restaurants since 105 years now there will be a third dimension to it- security," he said.

Kumar further said that in September a general alert had been issued to all hotels in the city following which certain security measures had been taken, but there was no specific time period given about the attack.

Metal detectors were installed following the alert with baggage checks and frisking of guests at the entrance of the hotel.

"After two months, we reduced the security due to complaints of inconvenience from the guests," Kumar said.

When asked if the hotel would prohibit entry of guests from any other country, Kumar said, it cannot operate in isolation but in compliance with what the government decides.

Source: Agencies