Lockdown impact on hotel industry: 15 lakh workers starve; Curfew and oppressive conditions hurt hoteliers’ finances
- Curfew, parcel service alone has hurt the finances of hoteliers across the state
- Fifty thousand, nearly fifteen lakh workers in the hotel
- As the debt burden of many grows, it is time for them to go into debt.
The state-wide curfew, which only allows parcel services, has hurt the finances of hoteliers across the state. The majority of the workers are in the mindset of returning as there is a big problem of over fifteen lakh workers in the hotel. The specialty is the plight of the newcomers to the hotel business and the time has come for them to go into debt.
Also Check: Gold rate fall today: gold became cheaper, Gold prices fell today due to profit-taking
The hotel business is very large in the state. In addition to five-star and seven-star hotels, there are a large number of small and large restaurants, restaurants, and eateries. Since this number is over fifty thousand, the number of workers working there is also large. In this, along with other states, workers from different parts of Maharashtra are working. The curfew has put the hotel business in trouble. This is because the hotel has only parcel service and the business is becoming unaffordable due to lack of response.
Parcels are currently allowed until 8 p.m. Basically, people don’t have the mentality of bringing a parcel home and eating it. The hotel has to close as parcels are not allowed after eight. So even if the parcel is allowed, it is of no use as the time is wrong. Originally the hotel was closed for about six to seven months last year. So the owners had to bear the brunt of the financial blow.
The situation of hoteliers has increased after the curfew was announced. Although parcels are allowed around the clock in some places, this is not the case everywhere in the state. Lack of customer response has led to limitations on revenue. However, it has become difficult to keep the hotel afloat as the salaries of the workers and all other expenses have remained the same. Hotelier Mohan Mulherkar said that the government needs to provide some subsidy along with paying the interest on the loans of these entrepreneurs.
Many have ventured into the hotel business in the last two to three years in the state. Some have invested in lakhs and some in crores. However, the time has come to close the business and now only the parcel facility has been allowed. As the debt burden of many grows, it is time for them to go into debt.
As the hotel business is in trouble, the government should reduce house tax, water bill, trade tax, and other taxes. Because now the income is nothing and we have to pay taxes, our problems have increased.
Ujwal Nageshkar, President, Kolhapur Hotel Owners Association
