Himachal hotel gets national heritage tag

Himachal Pradesh’s picturesque Chail Palace hotel, built in 1891 and popularised in the blockbuster film “Three Idiots”, has been granted national heritage status, an official said Friday.

The union tourism ministry has included the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation-run hotel in Chail, 45 km from here, in its list of heritage properties, a state government spokesperson said.

The status has been granted on the basis of the report of a three-member committee constituted by the ministry, which inspected the property in January 2011.

The Chail Palace once belonged to the Patiala royals. It was built in 1891 by Maharaja Bhupinder Singh and became his summer resort.

In 1972, the state government took control and converted the royal residence into a hotel.