The government is planning to hand over the management of the iconic Lalitha Mahal Hotel to private players.
The government will take a final decision in the cabinet sub-committee meeting to be chaired by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on June 14.
The palace building was under the custody of Ashok Group of the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) till 2018. The union government then made a futile attempt to hand it over to private parties.
But the state government took over the building later and it is now under the custody of Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR).
According to sources, the government is now planning to hand it over to private players.
Lalitha Mahal was built for the stay of viceroys and other state guests.
The palace is modelled on St Paul’s Cathedral in London. The building was equipped with a hand-operated heritage lift imported from England in 1921.
However, the palace was converted into a heritage hotel in 1974.
The iconic structure entered its centenary year without any celebrations due to continuous rainfall and outbreak of Covid-19, according to M Appanna, chairman of JLR.
A slew of programmes were planned in November for the celebrations, but they could not be held, he said.
The chairman said it has been planned to instal Krishnaraja Wadiyar’s statue in front of the palace and a proposal has been sent to the government in this regard.