The hike in the rate of commercial LPG cylinders has left hoteliers sulking. Every time the cylinder cost went up, the hoteliers hoped it would come down at least in a few days. Now, the increase of cylinder price by ₹266 at one go has impacted the daily investment in food production beyond their imagination.
A commercial LPG cylinder costs over ₹2,000. “I require at least 10 cylinders a month. The investment in fuel will be over ₹20,000 a month. I don’t know how to manage with this situation”, said Prakash Shetty, who runs an eatery on Salagame Road in Hassan. The cost of vegetables, cooking oil and other items has been going up, reducing the profit margin.
Normally, hoteliers revise the rates on their menu once a year, considering the expenses, increase in rent among other parameters. Given this situation, those in the hotel industry have to revise the price multiple times in a year. “But, we cannot revise price multiple times. We have to bear the brunt and face the loss”, said Shailesh, manager of a prominent hotel in Hassan. His hotel requires four-five cylinders a day. The hike in the price of the cylinder increases the investment by more than ₹1,000 a day. “If we revise the price of food items, we will lose the trust of regular customers. Similarly, we cannot reduce the number of employees, considering the loss. Unless we hire a sufficient number of people both in the kitchen and for food service, we cannot run the show”, he said.
Apart from the cost of essential commodities, the demands of employees have also gone up. To keep the employees the owners have to increase their salary regularly. “The hotel industry is not doing well these days because of various factors. Following the COVID-19 restrictions, we had no business for several months. When the business is resuming, the price rise is hitting us”, said Jagadish, who runs a non-vegetarian hotel in the city.
The worst-hit are those who run roadside eateries. “We have to look for innovative ways of reducing the food production cost. From now I will reduce expenditure on vegetables and I am also thinking of reducing the quantity of food per plate. As we cannot hike the price suddenly, we have to manage with such tricks”, said a hotelier, who wished not to be named.
