Mizoram inks deal with Polo Hotels to transform Aizawl's tourist lodge into 4-star hotel

Aizawl, Jul 7 (PTI) The Mizoram government on Tuesday signed a concession agreement with Shillong-based Hotel Polo Towers Ltd for the construction and operation of a 4-star hotel at the state-owned tourist lodge in Aizawl's Chaltlang area under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model, officials said. The hotel will feature a minimum of 60 guest rooms, with the capacity to expand by an additional 40 rooms. It will also have facilities such as a 24-hour multi-cuisine coffee shop, a specialty restaurant, a lounge, an executive health club, a gym and a spa. The project is being planned to meet standards that would enable it to be upgraded to a 5-star hotel in the future, officials said. The project, titled "Development of 4-Star or Higher Category Hotel at Tourist Lodge, Chaltlang, Aizawl, Mizoram on Design, Build, Finance, Maintain, Operate, Manage and Transfer (DBFMOMT) Basis," is aimed at strengthening Mizoram's hospitality infrastructure and boosting tourism by replacing the existing lodge with a premium hotel. Under the agreement, the initial concession period is 30 years, with provisions for two extensions of 10 years each. The initiative was conceived by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) in collaboration with the state's Planning and Programme Implementation Department, according to officials. The agreement was signed at the Chief Minister's Office by Tourism Secretary Vanlaldina Fanai and Chief Financial Officer and Whole-time Director of Hotel Polo Towers Ltd Prashant Gupta. The state government will hand over the project site to the company within 45 days of the signing of the agreement, officials said. Officials clarified that while Hotel Polo Towers Ltd. will have rights to develop and operate the property, ownership of the land will continue to remain with the Mizoram government throughout the concession period. PTI CORR NN