Reeling under losses amid the COVID-19 outbreak and lockdown, National Restaurants Association of India (NRAI), a body of restaurant owners, has asked the Haryana government to come to its rescue.
In a letter to the Haryana's Excise Department, the NRAI has pointed out that the current situation had a massive negative economic impact on the restaurant industry, almost endangering its existence.
“We employ lakhs of people in Haryana, and are responsible for their and their families’ livelihoods and it is incumbent on us to safeguard their well-being. Our business, more than any other, is dependent on cash flow management and any stoppage of revenue will wipe out the livelihoods of millions and cripple our industry permanently. Our industry is driven by discretionary spending, and in times of crisis we are the first to fall and last to recover,” read the letter.
Urging the State government to provide relief to the industry, the NRAI has demanded extension of time for licence (L4/L5) renewal till June 30. Also, it has asked the government to extend the tenure of the current licences without any additional fee.
Inderjeet Singh Banga, the NRAI chapter head of Gurugram, in the letter also demanded complete and immediate deferment of Value Added Tax (VAT) for a period of six months. “This will leave the businesses with some cash flow to take care of more pressing expenditures like wages, payment to contractual labour and small marginal suppliers such as farmers of vegetables etc,” he wrote.
