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Covid curbs in Chandigarh: Ailing hospitality sector staring at another blow
It was only after June 2021 that the hospitality sector started to get a semblance of normalcy. Seven months later, restrictions have once again returned in Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana
Yet to recover from pangs of past pandemic restrictions, city’s hospitality industry is facing another struggling time with the UT administration imposing fresh curbs in view of the rising Covid-19 cases.
In 2020, the sector was completely shut down for around three months and thereafter allowed to reopen partially, causing many units to close down and leaving hundreds jobless.
It was only after June 2021 that the hospitality sector started to get a semblance of normalcy. Seven months later, restrictions have once again returned in Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana.
On Thursday, the UT administration had imposed night curfew from 10pm to 5am and mandated that all bars, cinema halls, multiplexes, malls, restaurants, spas, museums, etc., operate at 50% capacity with fully vaccinated staff.
Gatherings for any purpose have been restricted to 50 persons for indoor and 100 persons for outdoor events. Besides, the total number of persons should not exceed 50% of the venue’s capacity.
Further, the Chandigarh district magistrate on Friday, under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), directed that kitchens of restaurants, eating places, hotels, and food joints in various malls will run only at 50% capacity and close by 10pm. The last order can be accepted till 9pm.
Similar restrictions were imposed by the Punjab and Haryana governments earlier.
Smaller units worst hit
“Every time Covid cases go up, the hospitality industry is made a scapegoat. The industry has not even recovered from the deadly collapse in 2020 and now this,” said Gurpreet Singh Virk, head, Punjab and Chandigarh chapter of the Hotel Association of India.
Stating that the industry will not be able to sustain if the restrictions stayed for long, Manmohan Kohli, chairman, Hotels and Restaurants’ Association, Chandigarh, said, “We are with the administration on bringing the Covid cases down, but if the curbs stretch out for more than 10 days, many units in the industry will collapse, especially the small and medium establishments. Their large workforce will also lose their jobs.”
Another hotelier, on condition of anonymity, said, “The governments are so lax when it comes to political events where large crowds gather and Covid protocols are ignored. Governments should focus their energy on controlling these mass spreader events. The hospitality industry, in contrast, already maintains high discipline with regard to safety protocols. This should be kept in mind while imposing restrictions.”
‘Allow relaxations’
Hoteliers have also demanded “scientific approach” by the government for restrictions.
Virk said, “Time has little relevance in terms of Covid. Hotels and restaurants should be allowed to operate till 11pm, instead of 10pm. Also hotels should be allowed to rent all available rooms, as each customer is fully vaccinated and remains in their room, which is a bubble arrangement in itself. Gatherings at banquet halls should be as per their size. On the other hand, night clubs and lounge bars may be asked to close as there is zero possibility of maintaining social distance there.”
He added that with cases rising, people were already putting off their dining-out plans, and with the new restrictions, the sector was staring at another major crisis.
