ID proof must for booking rooms

NEW DELHI: In the wake of the twin blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad and now as a part of preparations for Independence Day, city hotels are in a tight security jacket. Times City has carried out a reality check across various hotels in the city. Hotels in Daryaganj resemble nothing less than fotresses, while those in Paharganj and Connaught Place are almost under seize.It's not just identity cards, some hotels are playing by the book and demanding passport-size photos from boarders.
Unbelievably, eager cops have stepped inside hotel premises to plug all holes in security. As a first step, cops are actually getting hotels vacated in the walled city.
"We are taking no chances. As a common practice, we are asking visitors to vacate hotels bodering Jama Masjid, it being a sensitive area. No visitors are being allowed entry inside the Red Fort and security akin to that provided to the PM has been put into place," says a senior police officer, stationed near Jama Masjid.
Times City finds that the first thing that visitors are being asked in most hotels is identity cards. As a Times City reporter approaches a hotel in Daryaganj for accommodation, hotel owner Mohammed Salim (42) says, "You have to submit identity proof and passport size photos." Pointing to CCTV cameras in the reception area, he adds, "The overall situation is not very good, so appropriate measures are a must."
Things are not different in Paharganj either. The reception manager of Hotel Parkway Deluxe says, "Security is not just because of August 15 or the blasts. The hotel anyway has records of every visitors for the last 10 years. Metal detectors are an added measure. You can't ascertain intentions all visitors."
However, exceptions are there. A Times City reporter finds he is able to book a room in a Paharganj hotel without identity proof. Says the reception manager of the hotel, "Though there are restrictions, accommodation is available, even sans identity proof."
The security cover is much lighter in south Delhi. A hotel owner in Nehru Place says, "Because of Independence Day the measures are a bit stronger. These will of course be relaxed thereafter."