Tag Archives: HRAWI

The Hotel & Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) thanks the BMC and the Government of Maharashtra for the 3-month waiver on property tax for the industry. However, it has requested to grant waiver to all hotels as well as restaurants for a six-month period, during which they were asked to remain shut. Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, President, HRAWI, adds, “We have not been paid for the cost of operation borne by us towards quarantining essential workers.”

The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) has made written representations to the Hon. Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman, the Hon. Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur and to the Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Shaktikanta Das, I.A.S. requesting for an extension of moratorium for additional three months. The hotel industry has made no progress in terms of bookings even after several states unlocked and where hotels resumed operations. The industry has registered average occupancy levels at 10 to 20 per cent. With rental and salary bills, statutory payments and other establishment costs, hotels are finding it unviable to carry on running businesses. FHRAI has informed the Ministry that an extension of moratorium at this time could help hotels restructure existing loans since the process of restructuring is time consuming. Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, Vice President of FHRAI and President of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI), says, “For more than four months, hotels and restaurants have remained shut and have earned no revenue throughout the lockdown. There is no improvement in forward bookings and wherever hotels and restaurants have opened, the footfalls are negligible. In addition to the monthly outgoings and the statutory levies, we now have to spend more on employing hygiene and safety measures to follow the SOPs and guidelines issued by the Central and State governments. On account of all this, the debt restructuring plan announced by the RBI for the stressed MSMEs is not going to help the sector. Therefore we have urged that the moratorium be extended by a further three months.”

The Hotel & Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) has announced the launch of a public campaign to highlight the looming collapse of restaurants in Maharashtra. Launched as #KhadyagruhaWachva (#SaveRestaurants), the campaign will act as the voice of the industry, especially the small and medium-sized eateries that serve the working class of Maharashtra.

Gurbaxish Singh Kohli, Vice President, Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) and President of HRAWI, has said that the association’s hospitality institute has launched new courses that were to start from March 2020. He says, “We have an institute called FIHM, which is short for FHRAI IHM in Greater Noida and keeping the demand for shorter courses in mind and so many new trends emerging, we have introduced short-term courses on FOSTAC and FSSAI that involve skill development. This is also something that the government is pushing. We have these courses ready and they were due to start immediately but now we have kept it on hold because of the unfortunate coronavirus situation. We will start them as soon as it comes under control. Apart from short-term courses, we also have the regular courses but we have stressed in these short courses as that’s the need of the hour. There will be guest lecturers and visiting facility for this as well.”

Having sought advice from experts on the subject of use of plastic products, the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) in the interest of its members and the industry, has recently conducted a seminar on the subject in Mumbai. It had invited Dr Sangita Hasnale, Assistant Municipal Commissioner, Nodal Officer of Plastic Ban, MCGM to share her insights. “The industry is in agreement with the decision to do away with the use of plastic. The use of materials that disturb the ecology and which eventually may cause irreparable damage to our ecosystem has to be abandoned. The urgency in implementing this ban is understandable but it has repercussions for businesses. We are looking for all possible options to regularise the day to day functions without the use of plastic,” says Dilip Datwani, President, HRAWI. “One of the more significant consequences of the ban has been the disruption in managing food deliveries. While budgeting expenses, hoteliers and restaurateurs take into account all its revenue sources. Additionally, adopting eco-friendly materials has cost implications which will raise the prices on the menu and may not be appreciated by the customer. We are seeking the most constructive way to cope with the change and hope to come out with a win-win solution,” concludes Datwani.

The Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) has announced plans of hosting its 18th Regional Convention in Colombo, Sri Lanka. HRAWI, for the first time ever, is going to host the Regional Convention overseas. Scheduled to take place from June 27-30, 2018, the convention will integrate business sessions on specially curated topics for hospitality professionals with evening gala over cocktails and dinner. With over 300 participants expected to gather at one place, the convention will offer business networking opportunities for industry players. As an added attraction, HRAWI will also organise post-convention tours for delegates to unwind and relax in the paradise beach destination of Sri Lanka.  

In response to a request made by Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI), the State Excise Department has granted permission to hotels and restaurants for extension of operation timings on December 24, 25 and 31. Dilip Datwani, President, HRAWI, says, “The HRAWI thanks the authorities for obliging. This permission allows liquor serving establishments to continue serving patrons until 5 am in the morning of the indicated days. Having received this clearance, now we await the permission from the police. We have submitted a letter to Satish Mathur, Director General of Police requesting for the same and hope that we receive the police clearances at the earliest.”

Lauding the Maharashtra Government’s notification allowing shops and establishments to remain open 24*7, Dilip Datwani, President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI), said, “This is a welcome move and a sign of progress. The biggest benefit of this decision will be employment and it holds the potential to increase employment opportunities by 25 per cent in the State. This is a definite boost to tourism and economy and will help the hospitality sector to emerge even stronger. Although, we would have wished for the act to be extended to bars too. HRAWI appeals to the Government to consider allowing bars operational at least up to 3am, if not 24*7.”

Hotels and restaurants have welcomed the government’s move to reduce Goods and Services Tax on all restaurants from earlier 18 per cent to now 5 per cent. Dilip Datwani, President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI), said, “Reduction of GST rate to 5 per cent for all restaurants has come as a pleasant surprise. This is a big boost for the industry which has been reeling under a slowdown for quite sometime. Now irrespective of whether the restaurant is air conditioned or not, the consumer will have to pay a uniform GST rate of 5 per cent. This will definitely encourage the consumer to eat out again. “However, denying the ITC benefit on the grounds that we have not been passing on benefits is unfair. As of now, none of our vendors have reduced prices and there has not been any reduction of prices in raw materials for us. In fact, post introduction of GST the costs of operations and raw materials have actually gone up. The move to remove ITC amounts to double taxation and is inflationary. It also goes against every tenet of ease of doing business. We wish that the GST Council had considered that rent and interest attract 18% GST. However, overall we welcome the developments. We understand that something as revolutionary as GST will bring some disruptions in the initial stages. We just hope that going forward, Input Tax Credit will be restored,” he added.

The Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) certified 13 hotels in Maharashtra under new norms which are more contemporary and global in standards as compared to existing ratings. As per the new norms, hotel properties will be classified, rated or graded under six categories listed as Budget, Classic, Premium, Luxury, Deluxe Luxury and Primo Luxury, and will be uniform for both domestic and foreign tourists. “The objective behind developing the IHQS is to educate our members on modern quality standards as well as reduce the burden of the Ministry of Tourism (MoT). The Government can now focus on improving and promoting tourism, while, we from the industry, are doing our bit to support the initiative,” says Dilip Datwani, President, HRAWI. The Shalimar Hotel, The Fern Residency, Golden Swan Beach Resort, The Emerald, Peninsula Grand Hotel, Sun-N-Sand Hotel, Holiday Inn Mumbai international Airport, Waterstones Hotel, T24 Residency, Hotel Transit, Hotel Meluha, Renaissance Mumbai Hotel and Convention Centre and Hyatt Place are among the first hotels to have been audited as per the new classification standards and have been officially certified as of October 25, 2017.