BackCovid impact: Delhi Banquet group urges Kejriwal to forgo water,electricity bill
Banquet halls were closed in March after the nationwide lockdown was imposed in the city, due to which the economy was severely hit the countryRepresentatives of various banquet hall associations raised the problems faced by owners and the business losses suffered by them due to the lockdown
PremiumNEW DELHI : Representatives of various banquets hall associations in the Delhi have urged chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to waive electricity and water charges incurred by these facilities during the period they were closed because of the covid-19 pandemic.
The chief minister on Monday held a meeting with these representatives and thanked them for their cooperation in combating the pandemic in the national capital.
"During the meeting with the chief minister, representatives of various banquet hall associations raised the problems faced by owners of such facilities and the business losses suffered by them because of the lockdown," said Krishna Jain, who represented the East Delhi Banquet Halls Association.
About 30 people from the Delhi Banquet Association and various other banquet hall groups were present at the meeting, he said.
Banquet halls were closed in March after the nationwide lockdown was imposed in the city, because of which the economy was severely hit.
"We have suffered so much losses. Our facilities were shut during the lockdown and many are still not in a position to resume operations. So, we requested the chief minister to at least waive charges for electricity and water incurred during the period they were shut," Jain said.
Jain, who runs a banquet hall with a seating capacity of 600-700 in Shalimar Bagh, said various representatives also requested Kejriwal to increase the permissible crowd limit to "50% of the total capacity" of a hall.
The government had imposed a limit of 50 people at events held in banquet halls to ensure implementation of social distancing norms in view of the covid-19 situation.
"The chief minister heard our problems and said a new standard operating procedure will be issued soon in this regard," he claimed.
The members of the associations also said that several labourers have left the city because of lack of work in the hospitality industry and they can come back if opportunities arise again.
The associations thanked the Delhi government for allowing opening of banquet halls and suggested various measures to revive the banquet hall industry.
"The banquet halls have opened in states where the covid-19 cases are higher and remain shut in Delhi where the cases are lower. Then, they (Centre) permitted us to open the banquet halls after 15 August," according to a statement quoting the chief minister.
Kejriwal said the suggestions of the banquet hall associations will be implemented and measures will be adopted to revive the industry in Delhi.
During the phase of rise in coronavirus cases in June, the associations had cooperated by letting their establishments to be attached with the covid-19 dedicated hospitals.
Recently, the government had issued an order to delink all such facilities, in view of the "improved covid-19 situation" in Delhi.
Delhi recorded 1,061 fresh coronavirus cases on Monday, taking the tally in the city to over 1.62 lakh, while the toll in the city from the disease mounted to 4,313, authorities said.
There are a total of 644 containment zones in the city, according to the Delhi health department bulletin issued on Monday.
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This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.
