Tag Archives: FHRAI

FHRAI has initiated #GoDirect campaign requesting patrons to book their hotel stays #BookDirect or order their food directly from restaurants #OrderDirect. This is in order to eliminate intermediaries and reduce the burden of exorbitant commissions levied by online travel aggregators (OTAs) and food service aggregators (FSAs).

In response to the request by Confederation of Kerala Tourism Industry (CKTI) and FHRAI to allow reopening of spas and Ayurveda centres in the state, Kerala government has said that the same will be allowed to operate with strict compliance of COVID protocols and guidelines, to help overcome the crisis faced by the tourism industry.

FHRAI has appealed to Government of India to aggressively promote domestic tourism in 2021. The association has emphasized on the need to encourage local tourism under the Ministry of Tourism’s (MoT) Dekho Apna Desh Pledge campaign. The association has also recommended incentivising domestic tourism by offering tax exemption under 80C of up to Rs 50,000.

India’s apex hotel association, FHRAI has appealed to Government of India to aggressively promote domestic tourism this year, and recommended that incentivising domestic tourism by offering tax exemption under Section 80C of up to Rs50,000 to Indian nationals will encourage them to travel, thus helping achieve the goal.

Sharing his expectations on the impending Budget, Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, Vice President, FHRAI, says, “We request Nirmala Sitharaman and Prahlad Singh Patel to bring tourism under the Concurrent List of the Constitution along with granting industry status to the hospitality sector. Lack of adequate support is impeding survival and revival efforts.”

Himanshu Talwar, Assistant Secretary General, FHRAI, has been given the additional responsibility as the Additional Director at FHRAI Institute of Hospitality Management (FIHM), Greater Noida. Management of FHRAI has bestowed the new responsibility on Talwar, where he will be working under the guidance of the Secretary General, FHRAI.

FHRAI has asked the government to provide soft loans with low interest rate to hotel and restaurant players to help cover working capital requirements and help them sustain themselves. This, the Federation says, can support the industry until it reaches the pre-pandemic business levels.

FHRAI has welcomed FSSAI’s enforcement rules making registration mandatory for home-cooked food sellers, whether operating from home or from dark kitchens. “FSSAI has responded to our plea and is taking to task any such unregulated and illegal dark kitchens. Quite a few of these are actually funded and run by the Food Service Aggregators (FSAs) to escape responsibilities attached to operating restaurants legally,” says Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, VP, FHRAI.

Tarun Bajaj, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, during a webinar organised by FHRAI, shared his view on moratorium extension and debt restructuring. He said, “Extending the moratorium is not a solution as it is only postponing it; it is better to get restructuring done so that you know what is to be paid and in how much time.”

The Principal Economic Advisor, Ministry of Finance, Sanjeev Sanyal, said during a webinar for FHRAI members, “We have, through the one-time loan restructuring option, offered to alleviate the financial burden on businesses. If for any reason this provision is not working, then the government wants to take your feedback and work on an action-plan to make it work. If this means that the banks, for some reason have displayed inhibition in co-operating with the businesses trying to avail of the government’s scheme, then we will take necessary action to rectify it.”