As lockdown drags on in Delhi, budget hotels continue to struggle

The Covid-19 pandemic has hit the hospitality industry very hard. After a brief recovery during the months of unlocking in late 2020 and early this year, the sector is again in the ICU under the impact of the second wave.

The Covid-19 pandemic hit India at a time last year when the country’s economy was already in the doldrums. The second wave of Covid-19 pandemic crippled it further. Most of the states have been under lockdown for a few weeks, with some attempting reopening in a phased manner. Malls, shops, hotels, restaurants and other services are suspended in major states as Sars-2 coronavirus spread fast to impact life and livelihood of a huge number of people adversely. The Covid-induced lockdown has taken a toll on businesses. The hospitality sector is among the worst-hit by Covid-19. After the early lockdown shock of 2020, the sector took fledgling steps towards recovery, particularly after September 2020, when cases started to drop significantly. But since March-end, the sector is shell-shocked again. Budget hotels, in particular, are teetering on the edge of closing down.