Almost a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, hotels and restaurants in Andhra Pradesh are trying to bounce back amid safety guidelines. The food and hospitality industry was among the worst-hit by the pandemic, and though things are slowly limping back to normal, the situation remains grim for establishments in Andhra Pradesh.
According to the Andhra Pradesh Hotels Association (APHA), there are over 8000 restaurants and hotels in the state. Until March 2020, these used to be a source of employment for about 1.2 lakh to 1.6 lakh people. However, the changed market situation has resulted in at least 40-50% of them losing their jobs, as managements resorted to layoffs to cut costs.
Speaking to TNM, A V Ramana Murthy, President of the APHA said, "The situation for the hotel industry was not good even before COVID-19, but the pandemic made it worse because of massive layoffs and the burden of debt falling on owners. Allied trades such as the supply chain of poultry and poultry products, meat and milk is affected too."
He added, "Attempts to increase footfall to the eateries in the last three months are not yielding results, because COVID-19 is a concern among people. They have reduced going outside and especially reduced eating out. Social activities are limited either by choice or government restrictions. Recreational places like malls and theatres are not seeing great footfall either, which also indirectly impacts restaurants as well.”
Many restaurant chains have shut down some of their franchises in the absence of business. In Vijayawada, the 500-plus hotels and restaurants employed around 40,000 people before the pandemic hit, according to the Vijayawada Hoteliers’ Association. (VHA). Of these, at least 40% of the employees hailed from states like Assam, Odisha, West Bengal and Bihar. Due to losses incurred by the pandemic, at least half of the 40,000 employees were laid off, with the migrant population being most affected, according to the VHA.
In Visakhapatnam’s 8,000 hotels, which used to employ over 80,000 people, migrant workers made up at least 20% of this number.
Ramana Murthy of the APHA pointed out, “Restaurant and hotel owners could have managed if the lockdown lasted only three months, but given the nature of the pandemic, the restrictions on eateries are prolonged. Footfall has decreased; we had to pay power bills, property taxes, rent, trade licenses and interest on loans despite business being non-operational for a good one year."
Ramana Murthy demanded that the state government should provide exemptions from property tax, rent and power bills, which owners have to pay despite facing financial difficulties.
Vijayawada Hoteliers Association (VHA) President Ravi Pravataneni told TNM, "Since the pandemic hit, there has been a major shift in perception about eating food outside. Many hotels are either limiting their services or closing down."
Both Ramana Murthy and Ravi Pravataneni are of the opinion that only government measures like extending operation hours and tax exemptions for the coming year can boost the industry. Murthy shared, "Hotels and restaurants, which are important for tourism development, are being treated as an unorganised sector. If the government considers recognising hotels as industries we would get some institutional support such as reduction in power charges and financial assistance from banks."