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HRAWI & HRA- Gujarat meet CM, implore Government to lift night curfew restrictions
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Monday, 18 January, 2021, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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Earlier this week, members of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Gujarat (HRA-Gujarat) along with the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) met with Chief Minister of Gujarat, Vijay Rupani, to bring to his attention the dire situation of the hotel and restaurant industry in the State. In the meeting, the associations explained the extremely precarious situation of the hospitality industry.
Gujarat has witnessed closure of over 40 per cent of hospitality establishments since the lockdown had come into effect. On priority, the industry has pleaded to the CM for lifting the night curfew for hotels and restaurants. The Associations have requested that Hospitality establishments be allowed to remain open after 10 pm for another two hours. The Government has also been requested to lift the restriction on the capacity of guests permitted in a closed venue.
Narendra Somani, president, HRA Gujarat and executive committee member, HRAWI, said, “We are hopeful that the Hon’ble CM will consider our plea and lift the curfew. With the pandemic almost under control, hotels and restaurants in State should now be allowed to go back to the pre-curfew timings. The present 10 pm deadline is costing the industry a monthly revenue loss of close to Rs.500 crores. Also, the current 50 per cent cap on the number of people allowed in closed venues should also be raised. We have appealed to Shri Rupani ji to consider this demand and have assured him about hotels and restaurants maintaining utmost diligence in ensuring guests’ health and safety.”
Pradeep Shetty, senior vice president, HRAWI, said, “Since the lockdown was imposed last year, the hotel and restaurant industry has almost completely collapsed. Restaurants and hotels are either closing or are scaling down operations. Even the New Year Eve celebrations did not bring any respite to the Hospitality industry. The wedding season is here but the night curfew as well as the cap on the number of people allowed at celebration venues has turned our hopes and plans upside down.”
The Associations have also pointed out that there has been a drastic fall in the number of cases in the State and that it’s time to normalise business as many other States in the country have done.
“Even generally, people step out of their houses only sometime after 7 pm and this gives hotels and restaurants only a couple of hours to entertain guests. This is hurting hotels and restaurants. We have requested the Hon’ble CM to consider our plea of allowing establishments to remain open until 12 pm and food delivery services to be allowed all night,” added Somani.
Besides lifting the night curfew, hotels and restaurants have also requested the Gujarat Government to lift the 50 per cent restriction on the number of people allowed at a venue. The associations have asked the Government to consider allowing hospitality establishments to accommodate guests in full capacity.
“Not just the curfew but also the restriction on the number of guests a hotel or restaurant can accommodate should now be removed. Limiting the number of people and the number of operational hours is majorly denting our business. We are effectively being allowed to operate at only 30 per cent of our total capacity. The industry is being pushed to the edge and if the curfew is not lifted, many hotels and restaurants in the State will close down permanently. This will lead to increase in unemployment and also the chances of reviving businesses will become even more difficult,” concluded Somani.
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