MUMBAI, India — Doormen in white suits and black turbans greeted visitors to the Oberoi with a bow on the eve of the hotel’s reopening three weeks after it was targeted in a militant rampage.
Security was noticeably tighter Saturday as guards scanned bags and sniffer dogs patrolled the grounds outside.
Armed policemen stood watch among bunkers of sandbags outside the entrance to the hotel’s Trident portion, where the owners said 100 rooms would reopen today, just weeks after 10 suspected Islamic militants stormed sites across India’s financial capital.
Inside the Oberoi, private security guards staffed all lobby entrances, passing bags through metal detectors and X-ray scanners.
Journalists’ ID cards were checked against a press list, and reporters and photographers were patted down by hand — a far cry from the relaxed atmosphere at the luxury Oberoi before the attacks.
Militants from the banned Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba are accused of staging the attacks that killed 164 people over the course of a three-day siege and paralyzed much of Mumbai. Nine of the alleged gunmen were killed, and one is in police custody.
Two of the most high-profile targets were the sleek, sea-front Oberoi and another luxury hotel, the majestic, 105-year-old historic Taj Mahal Palace and Tower.
With Christmas approaching, both hotels have rushed to reopen sections to guests — with tighter security. The Taj Mahal Group said the tower wing of its hotel would reopen with a ceremony this evening.
The main areas of the Oberoi and the Taj — left in tatters after shooting sprees and a 60-hour standoff with police — are expected to remain closed for months.
The Oberoi’s Trident will be outfitted with upgraded surveillance systems and new X-ray baggage scanners. All vehicles will be checked thoroughly, and security guards will require guests and visitors to show ID, Trident Hotels president Rattan Keswani told reporters Saturday.
“I think all of us are concerned about a complete deterrent” to any future attacks, he said at a news conference. “We need armed presence, and we are adding to it.”
