Following their reopening post lockdown, most restaurants in Delhi and Gurgaon have witnessed good footfall, especially on weekends. With diners returning to restaurants, Anurag Katriar President, National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), has urged all members to exercise caution. “While we do understand the critical situation that the industry finds itself in, as responsible businesses, we need to ensure that orders issued by the authorities are strictly enforced at our respective establishments. Any attempt to circumvent the guidelines will ultimately hamper the recovery for the entire industry in the long run. I therefore appeal to all our fraternity members to be cautious while reopening and sincerely urge you to strictly follow the COVID protocols. This will help the country in its fight against COVID and the resultant relaxations on operating dynamics will also help in the restaurant industry’s recovery,” he stated in a message to all the members of NRAI.

Adding that the restaurant industry is one of the hardest hit sectors during the pandemic, he continued, “While there was some hope of revival after the first wave last year, the more devastating second wave dealt a crippling blow to most of the industry. Rapid reopening of lots of sectors and general failure of people and businesses to adhere to the necessary COVID protocols were perhaps two of the biggest contributory factors for the second wave.” He warned that now that restaurants are slowly opening up – with strict restrictions on seating capacity and operating timings – “authorities are monitoring implementation of COVID Appropriate Behavior as per orders, and are also initiating very strict action against defaulters – including shutting down of businesses/malls/markets.”