Bookings cancelled, hotels count losses

Parveen Arora

Tribune News Service

Karnal, August 27

The local hotel industry has suffered a lot due to the violence and tension following the conviction of Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, as people have cancelled their bookings between August 25 and September 5.

It is the second occasion in one-and-a-half years that hotels have suffered financial losses. The industry had suffered losses during the Jat stir in February 2016. Protesters had vandalised, looted and burnt several hotels and restaurants located on the National Highway-1 and violence-hit districts last year.

“I have two hotels, including a five-star hotel, in Karnal and had several bookings for fortnight. But people have cancelled their bookings, leading to heavy losses,” says Col Manbir Choudhary (retd), state president of the Hotel and Restaurants Association Haryana.

“A wedding planned for August 27 has also been cancelled,” he adds. “I have talked to most of my association members and they have informed me that around 80 per cent of the bookings have been cancelled due to fear of any untoward situation in Haryana,” he says.

Moreover, hotels are suffering losses due to cancellation of weekend parties, he adds.

Similarly, Gulshan Kumar, manager of a hotel, says even engagement and kitty parties have been cancelled.

“I applied for a new broadband connection on Saturday as mobile phone internet service has been banned for 72 hours in Haryana,” a businessman told to The Tribune.

Meanwhile, the demand for the land line broadband service has increased after the ban on the mobile phone net service for 72 hours, which has been extended.

Harsh Kalra, an agency holder of a private telecom company, says customers have been approaching them for broadband services. “I have been without mobile phone internet for the last 72 hours and hence I went to a broadband company for its service,” says Bhavay Nagpal, a student.