MUMBAI: A day after two state ministers, Mumbai Island City Guardian Minister Aslam Shaikh and Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that the deadline for the city’s restaurants and eateries will be restored to 1.30 am and for shops till midnight, the state The government issued an order allowing restaurants and eateries to operate till midnight and shops till 11 pm.
The working hours of these establishments were till now restricted to 10 pm. With the expansion, the timing of the shop is back to pre-Covid times. While the pre-Covid closing time for vegetarian restaurants was 12.30 pm, restaurant and bar owners, who had hoped that the state would restore its 1.30 pm deadline, were left disappointed.
“Many areas like colleges, theaters and amusement parks will reopen this week, and we want to see the impact on cases. We want to give more relaxations, but in a phased manner,” said an official. The district administration can limit the time depending on the circumstances, but cannot give an extension without the consent of the disaster management authority.
‘Extended time to prevent mobs’
The order issued by the state government said that with the extension of time, all other guidelines like 50% capacity for restaurants and requirement of fully vaccinated staff in shops will continue.
“The government observed that in view of the upcoming festive season, there would be more rush in the working hours of establishments like shops, restaurants and hotels, hence it was decided to extend the timings,” the official said.
The district administrations have been allowed to limit the time keeping in view the local conditions, but they cannot extend further without the concurrence of the State Disaster Management Authority.
The hospitality industry realized that time should have gone back to pre-Covid hours.
Pradeep Shetty, Senior Vice President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) said, “We welcome this Maharashtra Government’s decision to extend the hours of operation of restaurants till midnight. The additional two hours will provide much needed support to the beleaguered hospitality industry.
The region has been one of the most affected by the Covid restrictions. However, we wish that the pre-covid deadline was extended till 1.30 pm and considering the beginning of the wedding season, it was accompanied by the lifting of restrictions on banquets, weddings and events. The present limit of 100 guests for weddings and social events is prohibitive and impractical in the present circumstances.”
AHAR president Shivanand Shetty said, “We will follow the order but it would have been better if the timings were extended till 1.30 pm as it is festival time and people like to spend time outside with friends and relatives. Restoring the timings to pre-Covid days will help the industry recover quickly from the state of chaos that has been pushed for the past 18 months. ”
Viren Shah of the Retailers Federation said that though most standalone shops in the city close by 10 pm, the 11 pm deadline will help malls do some additional business.
The working hours of these establishments were till now restricted to 10 pm. With the expansion, the timing of the shop is back to pre-Covid times. While the pre-Covid closing time for vegetarian restaurants was 12.30 pm, restaurant and bar owners, who had hoped that the state would restore its 1.30 pm deadline, were left disappointed.
“Many areas like colleges, theaters and amusement parks will reopen this week, and we want to see the impact on cases. We want to give more relaxations, but in a phased manner,” said an official. The district administration can limit the time depending on the circumstances, but cannot give an extension without the consent of the disaster management authority.
‘Extended time to prevent mobs’
The order issued by the state government said that with the extension of time, all other guidelines like 50% capacity for restaurants and requirement of fully vaccinated staff in shops will continue.
“The government observed that in view of the upcoming festive season, there would be more rush in the working hours of establishments like shops, restaurants and hotels, hence it was decided to extend the timings,” the official said.
The district administrations have been allowed to limit the time keeping in view the local conditions, but they cannot extend further without the concurrence of the State Disaster Management Authority.
The hospitality industry realized that time should have gone back to pre-Covid hours.
Pradeep Shetty, Senior Vice President, Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) said, “We welcome this Maharashtra Government’s decision to extend the hours of operation of restaurants till midnight. The additional two hours will provide much needed support to the beleaguered hospitality industry.
The region has been one of the most affected by the Covid restrictions. However, we wish that the pre-covid deadline was extended till 1.30 pm and considering the beginning of the wedding season, it was accompanied by the lifting of restrictions on banquets, weddings and events. The present limit of 100 guests for weddings and social events is prohibitive and impractical in the present circumstances.”
AHAR president Shivanand Shetty said, “We will follow the order but it would have been better if the timings were extended till 1.30 pm as it is festival time and people like to spend time outside with friends and relatives. Restoring the timings to pre-Covid days will help the industry recover quickly from the state of chaos that has been pushed for the past 18 months. ”
Viren Shah of the Retailers Federation said that though most standalone shops in the city close by 10 pm, the 11 pm deadline will help malls do some additional business.
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