News Analysis India

Tag: hotels

  • Budget hotels struggle, upscale ones enjoy business boom

    Express News Service

    SRINAGAR/CHANDIGARH/GUWAHATI: The hospitality industry in hill stations is witnessing a change in pattern in the aftermath of the pandemic. High-end hotels in Kashmir, Shimla and Shillong are having heavy occupancy, while budget hotels are hardly getting visitors. With many foreign destinations closed, wealthy tourists are going to these places and staying in upscale facilities. But budget tourists are still to start holidaying, leaving the hotels dependent on them struggling.

    In Kashmir, all five and four-star hotels are booked, said Abdul Wahid, president of Kashmir Hotels and Restaurant Owners Federation. He added that this rush was noticed as soon as Covid-19 restrictions were lifted. Deluxe houseboats in Dal Lake, too, are sold out. In July and August, over 98,500 tourists visited Kashmir. Only 275 were foreigners.

    An official of the 5-star Khyber Resorts in Gulmarg said all 85 rooms of their hotel are booked and they are continuously getting enquiries. “Due to suspension of international flights, high-end Indian tourists are visiting Kashmir, which is a cheaper tourist destination for such kind of travellers,” he said.

    Wahid said budget tourists are still hesitant to travel because of the situation. “There were people who cancelled their scheduled visits.” The hotels and houseboats this class of tourists prefer are recording just 20% to 30% occupancy. Abdul Rashid, general secretary of Kashmir Houseboat Owners Association, said 80-85 deluxe houseboats are witnessing high occupancy, but the rest of the 800-odd houseboats are clocking just 10% to 20%.

    A tour and travel operator blamed hoteliers for budget tourists not coming to the Valley in large numbers. “With the income of middle and lower middle class families hit by Covid, rise in hotel rents is deterring prospective tourists,” he said.

    In Himachal Pradesh, many budget hotels are on the verge of closure. Only upscale hotels and home stays are doing business. “Five-star properties are having occupancy of around 40% to 50%, which has come down from 80%. Budget hotels those used to have 70%-80% occupancy are getting around 30%,” said Sanjay Sood, president of Shimla Hotel and Restaurant Association. “We demand that the hotel industry be given relief by the government. Electricity and water should be charged in domestic category and not commercial. We are in dire straits,” pleaded Sood.

    A number of hotels in Shimla, Dharamsala and Manali that charge between `2,000 and `7,000 for a room per day are on sale. “Most of the hoteliers have taken loans from banks. For two years, there have hardly been any business. Many hotels have been declared non-performing assets due to non-payment of loans. About two dozens hotels in Dharamsala area have been issued takeover notices by banks. We urge Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur to stop the banks from taking such measures,’’ said Ashwani Bamba, who is the president of Upper Dharamsala Hotel Association.

    It’s not different in Meghalaya. Tourists mostly go to Shillong and adjoining areas such as Cherrapunjee and Dawki on the Bangladesh border. Parambir Singh Sehdave, president of the Federation of Shillong Hotels, said hotels and guesthouses rely much on budget tourists who are yet to arrive. “High-end hotels are getting more customers. Tourists mostly from rich and upper middle class families are coming. Very few budget tourists have arrived so far. Hope the situation changes,” Sehdave said.

    Kashmir

     Five-star hotels: Fully booked
     Budget hotels: 20-30% occupancy
     Deluxe houseboats: High occupancy
     Ordinary houseboats: 10-20% occupancy
    Himachal Pradesh

     Five-star hotels: 40-50% occupancy (down from 80%)
     Budget hotels: 30% occupancy (down from 80%)
    Meghalaya

     Hotels charging less than Rs 2,000 a day: Under 10% occupancy
     Hotels charging between Rs 2,000-Rs 3,000 a day: 15% occupancy
     Hotels charging more than Rs 3,000 a day: 25% occupancy

  • On World Child Labor Prohibition Day, awareness program was conducted to prevent child labor in various shops, hotels, factories and markets located in the district.

    On the guidance and direction of Rajesh Srivastava District and Sessions Judge/Chairman District Legal Services Authority, Durg, with the joint combination of Labor Department, Women and Child Development and Police Administration, awareness program was conducted to stop child labor at various places of Durg district.
    Shri Rahul Sharma Judicial Magistrate / Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, Durg informed that every year on 12th June, World Child Labor Prohibition Day is celebrated all over the world. Its main objective is to make people aware of the education of children below 14 years of age by not making them work. The Constitution of India, through various Articles of Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles of State Policy, states that no child below the age of 14 years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or in any other hazardous employment. will be appointed. Children will be given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner, in independent and respectable conditions and childhood and youth will be protected from moral and material abuse.
    The Child Labor (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986 This law prohibits the employment of children below the age of 14 years in 13 occupations and 57 practices which are considered to be injurious to the life and health of children. The Factories Act 1948 Act: A juvenile between the age of 14 to 18 years can be employed in a factory only if he has a fitness certificate from an authorized doctor. The law has fixed working hours of four and a half hours every day for children in the age group of 14 to 18 years and banned them from working at night.
    Any person who employs a child below the age of 14 years or employs a child of 14 to 18 years in any hazardous occupation, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to six months to two years, and shall also be liable to a fine of Rs. Fine up to Rs 50,000 may also be imposed. The parents/guardians of the children cannot be punished for allowing their children to work in contravention of this law but if any child below the age of 14 years is made to work for the purpose of occupation or otherwise If a child between the ages of 14 and 18 is made to work in a dangerous occupation or process, this immunity does not apply and can be punished. Apart from these laws, there are other such Acts (such as Factories Act, Shipping Act, Motor Transport, Labor Act etc.) under which there is a provision of punishment for employing children but prosecution for the offense of child labor is done under the Child Labor Act. Will be under
    A bond of hope was also filled from the traders and contractors from the people. In future, they will never get the work done for children below 14 years of age and if anyone sees them doing work for children below 14 years of age, they will be stopped and complain will be made.
    The most important way to stop child labor is to spread awareness against child labor so that people understand that child labor is playing with the future of the country. They have to be told that the future of India, which lies in the children of India through child labor, is becoming mentally and physically weak. Another way to stop child labor is the promotion of education because the illiterate person does not understand child labor. If education is spread, then child labor will be stopped and people will be aware of child labor. Shri Lokesh Patel, Judicial Magistrate First Class, PLV of District Legal Services Authority, Labor Department officers and police officers were present in this event.

  • Hotels, restaurants, clubs and bars will be able to open till 10:00 pm: Lockdown will continue every Sunday

    Collector and District Magistrate Shri Doman Singh has declared the appropriate area under Mahasamund District as a Containment Zone, according to the order issued in full. In view of the present situation, he has issued an order today to continue the reasonable restrictions on public movement and other activities. According to the order issued by Collector Mr. Singh, the following activities will be strictly prohibited till further orders.
    All swimming pools, cinema halls/theatres, water parks, theme parks and places of mass gathering will be strictly prohibited for the general public. Schools and colleges will remain closed for the students. Only students who take the exam will be allowed accommodation in the hostel. Coaching classes and all other educational activities will remain closed except for all examinations permitted by the government. All types of gatherings, rallies, processions, dharnas, demonstrations and social, political, sports, cultural and religious events will be strictly prohibited. Places like Chapati will not open.
    All types of permanent and temporary shops, shopping malls, commercial establishments, super markets/super markets, fruit and vegetable markets/markets, grain markets, showrooms, clubs, liquor shops, handcarts, except prohibited activities as per clause (1) , Salons, beauty parlors, spas, parks and gyms, etc., can be opened from 06:00 PM till their current time on other days except Sundays.
    Hotels, restaurants, clubs and bars will be open till 10:00 pm. Outside dining will also be allowed but no more than 50 percent of their meeting capacity will be allowed in the dining hall / room. Hotels, restaurants will give priority to home delivery and take-away on online/telephonic orders. The delivery time from club-restaurants, hotels and restaurants will be up to 09:00 PM and the maximum time for home delivery till the residence of the general public / customer will be till 10:00 PM. Use of hotel kitchen / own restaurants will be allowed for in-house guests in hotels.
    Matrimonial programs will be allowed to be organized in residence, hotel or marriage hall on the condition of strict adherence to the Kovid-19 protocol. According to the order number 40-3/2020-DM/1(A) dated 29.04.2021 of the Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs, the total maximum number of persons attending the event will be 50. Similarly, the maximum number of persons who will be involved in the funeral, dashagatra etc. death program will be 20. During a single event in a hotel / marriage hall, all parties will be able to join a maximum of 50 persons, subject to a limit of 50 percent of the capacity of the marriage hall, the list of which will be maintained by the marriage hall operator. Wearing of masks and strict adherence to physical distancing will be mandatory during the event.

  • From today saloon-parlor, gym, park and liquor shops will open, home delivery from hotels, restaurants till 10 pm,

    The saloon-parlor, gym and park will open from today in the direction of unlocking Chhattisgarh. Liquor shops have also been allowed to open from today. There will be a night curfew from 6 am to 6 am. 50 people have been allowed to attend weddings and 20 people at funerals. Along with the discounts, new guidelines will also have to be followed.
    Please tell that after stopping the pace of corona infection, Raipur district administration has issued an order for unlock. As per the directive issued by the administration, all the marriage hall swimming pool theaters will remain closed. Schools and colleges will remain closed for students, while students will be allowed to stay in hostels.
    At the same time, except educational permission from the government, all educational activity will be closed. Demonstration demonstrations will cease. Marital events will be held with permission in the marriage hall and hotel, which can accommodate a maximum of 50 guests.
    All types of permanent temporary shops will be opened, Thela Gumti, Super Market, Super Bazaar, Liquor Shop Salon will open till 6:00 pm. Home delivery from the restaurant hotel can be done till 10:00 pm. Restaurant hotel takeaway will be allowed until 9:00 pm. All shops will be closed after 6:00 pm and there will be total lockdown on Sunday.
    All the country liquor shops of the country have been opened from today, although home delivery option has been kept in foreign liquor shops through online. Alcohol will not be given to people without masks, it will also be compulsory to follow social distancing outside shops. A sufficient number of duty of security personnel has also been imposed outside the shops. Let us know that there are more than 700 domestic and foreign liquor shops in the state .. out of which the number of domestic liquor shops is less, but the sale of country liquor is the highest especially in rural areas … Excise Minister Kavasi Lakha said That we have opened only domestic liquor shops, decisions will be taken in view of the situation of infection in the coming time.

  • Pune traders, hoteliers oppose Maharashtra govt’s COVID-19 guidelines

    By PTI
    PUNE: An apex body of traders in Pune on Tuesday opposed the Maharashtra government’s directive to shut shops selling non-essential commodities and services till April 30, amid rise in COVID-19 cases.

    The Federation of Trade Association Pune (FTAP) said it will write to the Prime Minister, chief minister and other authorities to register its protest against the decision.

    “There is discontent among traders over the decision of shutting all shops except those selling essential commodities in the city. If you see, the shops selling essential commodities draw large crowds and others have no rush,” said Fatechand Ranka, the president of FTAP.

    The decision will severely affect small traders, he said.

    Meanwhile, the members of the United Hospitality Association, a body that represents hotels, restaurants and bars, staged a protest outside the Pune Collectorate Office.

    ALSO READ: What services will remain open and what will be closed?

    “We staged a silent protest outside the Collector’s office, asking the government to roll back the decision of the lockdown,” president of the association Sandeep Narang said.

    Instead of imposing a lockdown and asking traders and hoteliers to sit at home, the government should ensure that the healthcare facility is strengthened and patients can get beds, he said.

    “As per the new guidelines of the Pune Municipal Corporation, home delivery is allowed till 6 pm. I want to ask the government, who orders food before 6 pm,” he said.

    Darsshan Ravalh, secretary of the association, said they were already following the 50 per cent seating capacity norm, so closing down the business was not a solution.

    “Home deliveries should be allowed from 11 am to 11 pm. There is no harm in continuing the delivery services as a contactless system is being adopted,” he said.

  • COVID-19: Last warning, follow rules, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray tells hotels, restaurants

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday ordered hotels and restaurants in the state to ensure strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols in their premises and not force the state to enforce drastic measures like lockdown.

    Speaking at a virtual meeting attended by representatives of hotel and restaurant associations, shopping centre groups, the CM said a “lackadaisical” attitude towards outbreak norms had crept in lately.

    “Do not force us to impose a strict lockdown. Consider this as the last warning. Follow all the rules. Everyone has to realise there is a difference between self-discipline and restrictions,” Thackeray said.

    The CM pointed out that crowds had increased in most places since activities resumed in a phased manner from October, and safety rules were not being followed and this had resulted in a steep surge in cases.

    Incidentally, Maharashtra on Saturday recorded 15,602 COVID-19 cases and 88 deaths, taking the tally to 22,97,793 and the toll to 52,811.

    “Last week, a Central team visited Mumbai and one of the members told me no one was wearing masks or following social distancing at a hotel they visited. Initially, hotels, restaurants were adhering strictly to COVID-19 norms, but now everyone has become lackadaisical,” he said.

    He said his government was not in favour of a lockdown to tackle the latest surge and asked people to cooperate to avoid having to take such a drastic decision.

    Mumbai municipal commissioner IS Chahal suggested that the hotel and restaurant associations can organise flying squads to check if outbreak norms were being followed.

    These association said member establishments not adhering to rules will be removed, while shopping centre representatives said they could deploy “COVID marshals” to check people in malls, while entry into food courts will be restricted.