Early closures of hotels and restaurants in Andhra Pradesh are causing distress among food lovers and taking a toll on the hospitality industry. The failure to properly implement the government’s directive, which permits hotels to operate late at night, is severely affecting the vibrant nightlife in major cities across the state.
The hospitality industry in the state has been facing a challenging period since the Covid-19 pandemic, with approximately 10 lakh people relying directly on hotels and restaurants for their livelihoods. Unfortunately, the situation has worsened due to police authorities insisting on early closures, with establishments being required to shut down by 10.30 pm. This restriction is severely impacting their business. The Andhra Pradesh Hotels Association (APHA), representing approximately 28,000 members, has expressed their concerns about how these operational limitations are adversely affecting their businesses.
“People often come to hotels and restaurants in the evenings and late night hours to spend some quality time. But we are unable to attract the customers with the restrictions imposed by the government. Most of our business starts at 8 pm and continues till late night. But we are forced to close at 10.30 pm considering law and order issues,” said APHA president RV Swamy.
Furthermore, he mentioned that the alteration in the operating hours of popular food destinations like Eat Street and roadside food courts is also negatively impacting the hotel business.
“Eat street used to start at 10.00 pm and function till 2.00 am. Their working hours didn’t clash with big hotels and restaurants. Post Covid-19, they started opening food courts at 7.00 pm and functioning till 11.00 pm. The food court is started with the motive of providing food to the public late at night. But they are not serving the purpose with change in business timings,” Swamy added.