Hotel Leela importing workers from China

Indian hospitality companies importing interior design and related construction material from China for their hotel projects is something familiar. But the promoters of Hotel Leelaventure Ltd have gone a step further.

They are availing the services of Chinese construction workers to ensure that their showcase five-star luxury hotel at Chanakyapuri in New Delhi opens in time for the Commonwealth Games (CWG) in October.

Company chairman CP Krishnan Nair said work is being undertaken on a war footing to ensure that the hotel is operational by September-October this year. “Our people are working on the project round-the-clock. We have also contracted Chinese construction workers to ensure that the hotel is ready for the Games. A special permission was being sought from the labour ministry to hire 30-odd workers from China,” Nair said.

It seems the hotel’s project development team resorted to hiring Chinese workers because of the non-availability of skilled workers in Delhi. Most of the construction workers were hired by various agencies for completing infrastructure projects for the Games.

A hospitality sector analyst with a global consulting firm said it could be the first time that a domestic hotel company is importing construction workers from China. “This must be a special case as the Hotel Leela management is chasing strict deadlines and speeding work. The approach
(hiring overseas labour) would have also increased the overall project cost,” he said.

Nair said that, post the completion of Chanakyapuri hotel, the contracted Chinese workers will be deployed to finish work on the group’s five-star luxury hotel project in Chennai.

The Leela Palace Kempinski Chennai was to launch in December 2009 but had to be pushed on the back foot because launching the Delhi property had become priority for the Hotel Leela top management. The 390-room Chennai hotel is now expected to be operational some time early next year.

The Hotel Leela promoters had in June 2007 acquired the 3-acre Chanakyapuri plot for Rs611 crore. They had envisaged an investment of Rs1,100 crore for setting up a 311-key hotel that was to be operational under the Leela Palace Kempinski New Delhi banner.

However, details posted on the company’s website show that the hotel plans have now been reconfigured and the overall inventory currently stands at 260 guest rooms and suites. In fact, senior company officials also indicated that the investments would also be significantly higher.

Another significant development post the launch of Chanakyapuri and Chennai hotels is the possible change in the composition of Hotel Leela’s top management. CPK Nair is looking to step down as the company’s chairman next year and the current vice-chairman and managing director Vivek Nair, who is also his younger son, is likely to takeover as chairman.