Mysuru hotel threatens legal action over PM Modi’s unpaid bill

A Mysuru hotel has threatened legal action as bills amounting to over Rs 80 lakh have yet to be cleared by the Karnataka State Forest Department. Prime Minister Narendra Modi stayed at the Radisson Blu Plaza hotel during his visit to Mysuru in April 2023 and  inaugurated the 50 years of Project Tiger event, organized by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF).
As per media reports,the State Forest Department was instructed to conduct the event from April 9 to 11. The budget for the event was initially set at Rs 3 crore, with the State Forest Department assured of 100% Central assistance. However, due to the event being organised at short notice, the actual cost doubled the initial estimate.The Centre released Rs 3 crore, but the remaining balance of Rs 3.3 crore is yet to be released, report said.
It is said that the General Manager of Finance at Radisson Blu Plaza wrote to the Deputy Conservator of Forests on May 21, reminding him of the unpaid bills “even 12 months after the utilisation of our hotel services”.It further stated that a delayed payment interest of 18% per annum would be applicable to the outstanding dues, with an additional sum of Rs 12.09 lakh for the delayed payment, to be included when payment is made.The hotel management has threatened legal action if the dues are not settled by June 1, 2024.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre on Saturday said that the hospitality bill of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who arrived in Mysuru in April last year, which runs up to Rs 80 lakh, will be settled amicably."The cost of the three-day event last year was Rs 6.33 crore. Out of this, Rs 3 crore had been received and still Rs 3.33 crore are due from NTCA," Khandre’s office said in a statement.The minister said that NTCA had actually said that they would bear the entire cost of the programme. "The NTCA has not paid this amount (hotel cost) even though the officials of our department have written many letters and spoke about this over the phone. Now the matter has come to my knowledge. I will try to resolve it amicably," Khandre said.

( State Correspondent)