New Delhi: For all their glitz, the hotels in Mahipalpur lack proper safety arrangements. And uncontrolled construction poses an additional hazard.
Located opposite the airport, this southwest Delhi village was once a hub for cargo companies that had their warehouses here. But gradually, the warehouses gave way to hotels.
“Initially, the hotels were running on the main road, but as people saw the business booming, they built them on lanes inside where two people can barely walk together. Today, there are over 300 hotels in the village,” said real estate businessman Rajender Sehrawat.
Locals say the village falls under the lal dora line.
Sehrawat said that the majority of the hotels are operated by big companies, which take these on rent from property owners and pay lakhs of rupees every month. The hotels mostly cater to people coming from the airport but do not run rooftop restaurants or bars.
The warehouses were converted into hotels, and temporary partitions were made to create rooms using plastic and other material. While the big hotels are using central air conditioning, others who do not have the means are still using window or split air conditioners with their ducts almost touching the electrical wires hanging outside. Many of the buildings do not have any emergency exits and have other commercial activities running from basements for which pick-up trucks and cabs are parked on the roadside.
Except for hotels located on NH-8, there is no parking space inside and only small four-wheelers can go to a certain distance within the village. In an emergency situation, this could lead to loss of crucial time in which lives could be saved.
16/02/19 Times of India
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Located opposite the airport, this southwest Delhi village was once a hub for cargo companies that had their warehouses here. But gradually, the warehouses gave way to hotels.
“Initially, the hotels were running on the main road, but as people saw the business booming, they built them on lanes inside where two people can barely walk together. Today, there are over 300 hotels in the village,” said real estate businessman Rajender Sehrawat.
Locals say the village falls under the lal dora line.
Sehrawat said that the majority of the hotels are operated by big companies, which take these on rent from property owners and pay lakhs of rupees every month. The hotels mostly cater to people coming from the airport but do not run rooftop restaurants or bars.
The warehouses were converted into hotels, and temporary partitions were made to create rooms using plastic and other material. While the big hotels are using central air conditioning, others who do not have the means are still using window or split air conditioners with their ducts almost touching the electrical wires hanging outside. Many of the buildings do not have any emergency exits and have other commercial activities running from basements for which pick-up trucks and cabs are parked on the roadside.
Except for hotels located on NH-8, there is no parking space inside and only small four-wheelers can go to a certain distance within the village. In an emergency situation, this could lead to loss of crucial time in which lives could be saved.
16/02/19 Times of India
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