Mumbai will have to wait a bit longer to become the first city in India with a five-star hotel in an airport. The opening of the much-delayed Taj Santacruz has been put off indefinitely because of issues over procuring licenses to run the five-star airport property.
The hotel, the fourth Taj property in Mumbai, was to open on November 8 after a three-year delay arising over several factors -- the most important one being queries raised by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).
The hotel, which spent most part of 2014-15 waiting for permissions, finally received clearance from the BCAS in October.
The BCAS was initially wary of the close proximity between aircraft parked at the operational area and the hotel building, but has now issued the go-ahead after assessing the threat perspective. The hotel then announced that it will throw open its doors for guests on November 8. But there has been an indefinite delay with the licence playing truant.
A Taj spokesperson told Mirror that a new date had not been decided upon yet. "There are certain licenses that the hotel is yet to obtain. This is a regular government process," she said.
Mumbai airport officials said that while obtaining and getting the required permissions and licences was the hotel's job, the airport operator was working towards reorganising the land side of the airport.
"We are concentrating on moving domestic carriers to the integrated terminal T2 at Sahar by February-March. This will decongest the area outside the hotel as well," a senior airport official said. The airport official explained that the existing taxi holding area is right at the entrance of the hotel and it only makes sense in moving it.
17/12/15 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
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The hotel, the fourth Taj property in Mumbai, was to open on November 8 after a three-year delay arising over several factors -- the most important one being queries raised by the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS).
The hotel, which spent most part of 2014-15 waiting for permissions, finally received clearance from the BCAS in October.
The BCAS was initially wary of the close proximity between aircraft parked at the operational area and the hotel building, but has now issued the go-ahead after assessing the threat perspective. The hotel then announced that it will throw open its doors for guests on November 8. But there has been an indefinite delay with the licence playing truant.
A Taj spokesperson told Mirror that a new date had not been decided upon yet. "There are certain licenses that the hotel is yet to obtain. This is a regular government process," she said.
Mumbai airport officials said that while obtaining and getting the required permissions and licences was the hotel's job, the airport operator was working towards reorganising the land side of the airport.
"We are concentrating on moving domestic carriers to the integrated terminal T2 at Sahar by February-March. This will decongest the area outside the hotel as well," a senior airport official said. The airport official explained that the existing taxi holding area is right at the entrance of the hotel and it only makes sense in moving it.
17/12/15 Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
