New Delhi: It’s a couple of days before Eid-e-Milad, the birthday of Prophet Muhammad, and normally such a festive occasion brings thousands to the market at Jama Masjid. But at 2pm on Saturday, the normally crammed Karim’s restaurant presents a forlorn sight, with just six customers partaking of its succulent fare. The reason for this anomaly is easily enough verified. “We do not accept card payments, so fewer people come now,” says Alman, the assistant manager of the eatery. That’s one more frowny face against demonetisation.
Karim’s did arouse itself out its customary adherence to cash to embrace Paytm, but a network problem scuppered even that mode of attracting more customers. “Our business has gone down drastically,” points out Alman, almost needlessly. Reminding itself of the crowds that jostle for tables at such times, the restaurant is now negotiating with banks to install a card swiping machine. But as Alman despairs, “The banks are so busy that they have asked us to wait for some days. Until then, we will not get too many customers.”
