Employees of the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation staged a protest in Dharamshala last week, pushing back against the state government’s plan to hand over eight of the corporation’s hotels to private operators under an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) model.
The demonstration was organised outside the HPTDC headquarters by the HPTDC Employees Union, affiliated with the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS). Employees from across the state participated. The union submitted a formal memorandum to the state government through HPTDC’s Managing Director, demanding that the administration withdraw the outsourcing proposal.
Shashi Pal Sharma, Executive President of the Employees Union, said the protest was triggered by a decision taken at the recent state executive meeting of the BMS. “These hotels are the crown jewels of Himachal Pradesh,” Sharma said, asserting that privatisation would undermine both the corporation and future job opportunities for local youth.
The union’s opposition rests on two key arguments. First, it alleges the government’s move contradicts earlier assurances that only loss-making units would be considered for outsourcing. Many of the eight hotels earmarked for transfer are, according to the union, currently generating satisfactory revenue. HPTDC management has itself cited an annual turnover of around ₹110 crore. Second, the union is pushing the state government to instead release a long-pending financial assistance package of approximately ₹50 crore, which it says would allow the corporation to modernise its properties and turn around any underperforming units without private intervention.
The proposal under consideration involves handing eight HPTDC units to private players under the O&M model. An earlier version of the plan reportedly covered 14 units, but was scaled back after earlier rounds of employee opposition. The union has also flagged concerns about students enrolled in government-run hotel management institutes, saying that privatisation of the corporation’s properties would reduce employment opportunities upon graduation.
This is not the first time HPTDC’s privatisation plans have run into employee resistance. The Himachal Pradesh Congress government, which now backs the outsourcing move, had itself opposed a similar initiative under the previous BJP administration. That history has sharpened the union’s critique, with critics pointing to what they see as a reversal of a stated political position. HPTDC has separately denied any intention to fully privatise its hotels, stating that only the operational management of select units is under review.
The state government is yet to formally respond to the memorandum. Tourism and hospitality remain among Himachal Pradesh’s primary economic drivers, with HPTDC managing a portfolio of properties across hill stations, wildlife zones, and pilgrimage routes.
