Taj-GVK to invest Rs 100 crore
Business Standard — December 26, 2006

The Taj-GVK Group of Hotels and Resorts has embarked on a Rs 100-crore expansion plan for its Taj Deccan hotel. The group, which rechristened its business hotel Taj Residency as Taj Deccan on Sunday, intends to add more rooms to the existing 150 in the next two to two-and-a-half years. Besides a new name, the business hotel has also got a new look with an upgraded lobby, lobby lounge and reception, and a new all-day dining restaurant called Arena.

Briefing media persons here on Sunday, Jamshed Daboo, chief operating officer (business division) of the Taj Group of Hotels, said: "We have already invested around Rs 20 crore in upgrading the hotel in the first phase. In keeping with the demand, we are planning to add 180 to 200 rooms and renovate the existing rooms, besides adding a new high-energy bar, a noodle-and-grill restaurant with Teppanyaki counter, two new banquet halls and a renovated Blue Flower restaurant in the next phase of upgradation at a cost of Rs 100 crore. The construction work will start soon."

According to Veer Vijay Singh, director (operations), Taj-GVK Hotel and Resorts, and general manager of Taj Krishna, the group will be adding 150 more rooms to Taj Krishna. "We are also restoring and upgrading the Falaknuma Palace in a systematic way," he said. Outside Hyderabad, the Taj-GVK group operates a hotel in Visakhapatnam, and is set to open a 100-room hotel in Vijayawada by July 2007. "We are also seriously considering the possibility of expanding into other parts of the state by setting up our Taj Gateway chain of hotels," he said.

"The market is huge and there is room for competition. The group's endeavour is to raise the bar and increase its footprints across the state. The total investment in Andhra Pradesh will be pretty significant," he added.