House arrest, Lockdown, Quarantine, Self-isolation and Janta Curfew are few terms that we are familiar with today or rather have become our lifestyle today. A very good friend of mine introduced me to the theory of Survival of the fittest by Charles Darwin, which in a nutshell says that nature will evolve, nature will go through the process of upgrading itself, only the one who is strong and has the will to survive will reach the finish line. In today’s world we are facing a pandemic COVID 19 of which everyone is aware. Be it a kid or a Grandpa.
Before we go ahead lets us first get to know what is Corona Virus is also known as by COVID-19 & SARS-CoV-2. Viruses, and the diseases they cause, often have different names. For example, HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. People often know the name of a disease, but not the name of the virus that causes it. International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) announced “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)” as the name of the new virus on 11 February 2020. This name was chosen because the virus is genetically related to the coronavirus responsible for the SARS outbreak of 2003. While related, the two viruses are different. WHO announced “COVID-19” as the name of this new disease on 11 February 2020, following guidelines previously developed with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The word Corona means crown and has given the virus its name. This is because of the crown-like spikes on its surface when viewed under a microscope. At this very moment when I am writing this blog there are around 1.4 million positive cases around the world and still counting with more than 82,000 people have lost their lives to this deadly virus.
Now as we all know how dangerous this virus is and how easily one can get it, some say its airborne, because of which everyone is following the rule of social distancing and have been asked to stay home so that it doesn’t affect others.
Now after knowing the drawback & the main reason behind the spread of pandemic whom do you think will be affected the most, the people whose livelihood depends on crowded place and moving crowd, closest one can think of is Malls and Restaurants, theatre’s, Gym. Malls and restaurants is the only business which differs from the other business model, restaurants cannot take money in advance for 6 month or year and commit the other party of providing their business through, its business model depends on daily revenue and now after COVID 19 where people have been asked to remain indoors and follow social distancing.
Restaurants are already facing the wrath of Lockdown as revenue for 21 days have been lost already, and because of social distancing people are also scared to order anything online or go out and buy things
There has been a considerable dip of up to 15-25% in footfall based on the area throughout our eating places. Malls have been the worst hit," says Zorawar Kalra, founding father of Massive Restaurants Pvt. Ltd, on the effect of COVID-19 on the restaurant enterprise. His business enterprise owns a couple of top-rate retailers like Farzi Café, Pa Pa Ya and Masala Library in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, in addition to international dining hubs like Dubai and London.
With the World Health Organization declaring the COVID-19 outbreak a virus, there may be panic within the air. In India, greater than 5200 cases of COVID-19 have been reported and the numbers are growing steadily and around 149 people have lost their lives to it with 402 recovered from it.
Not only the restaurants but also business which involves banqueting have been damaged enormously. Event cancellations have brought to profits woes. Wedding events and company activities have been canceled. The canceled occasions might have raked in ₹1 crore inside the months of March and April. Even reservation numbers are dwindling.
Anurag Katriar, president of the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), says: “Malls and company hubs are tailored enterprise hubs for top-rate eating due to the fact they assure steady walk-ins. But the general public is warding off crowds as a safety measure and offices have carried out work-from-home practices”
While larger restaurant brands can also tide over the slump, the actual subject is for smaller retailers located within the food courts of department shops and theatres. On 24th March, the government ordered lockdown in the entire country for 21 days. Eateries like Royanna Military Canteen and Chicken Man, located in Bengaluru’s tech parks, have lost 50-60% sales, in line with their founder Amit Roy. The restaurateur and F&B representative also run Watson’s chain of pubs in Bengaluru, Chennai, and Goa. The restaurant enterprise is already experiencing a downswing due to the monetary slowdown, and this provides a brand-new assignment. “Goods and offerings tax (GST) is likewise killing us proper now,".
Most agencies are looking to enforce value-slicing measures. There are discussions inside the restaurant fraternity at the want to rationalize rents. “In this kind of scenario, landlords and eating place proprietors need to work collectively. But we have no instantaneous plans to reduce our personnel as a price-cutting measure,"
It’s not just about human beings staying away from crowded locations. Some customers are also maintaining faraway from meat, or maybe Chinese delicacies. There’s a trending hashtag on Twitter called #NoMeat_NoCoronaVirus. A Mint article, published in the first week of March, mentioned a fifteen-20% drop in demand for non-vegetarian dishes at a Noida-primarily based speedy food outlet, even though there may be no evidence of the virus spreading via cooked meals.
“When news about the worldwide epidemic kicked in approximately a month ago, there was a huge effect on eating place orders as human beings shifted to vegetarian alternatives, however now things are greater balanced. A delusion-busting announcement released by using the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in February which states, “Poultry has now not been determined to be concerned inside the transmission of 2019-nCoV to humans to date in any file globally."
Online meat shipping emblem Licious, which retails eggs, chicken, seafood, mutton, and cold cuts, offers a distinctive perspective. “We have earned our stripes with strict standards of hygiene and as clients pay greater attention to the supply and dealing with of their meals, organized players will preserve to record favorable sales numbers," says a Licious spokesperson.
In the primary week of March, NRAI despatched out precautionary pointers issued by means of WHO to its 800-member stores, which encompass mass chains like Domino’s and Chaayos and top-rate dining eating places controlled by means of Olive Hospitality Group and Massive Restaurants Pvt. Ltd. Some of those groups, inclusive of Massive Restaurants, have introduced extra precautionary measures like infrared (IR) thermometers at their restaurants. They test the temperature of their guests in addition to the staff. They rolled out an internal advisory inside the first week of February and brought hand sanitizers, surgical gloves, and mask for all personnel.
“Patrons have indicated that they are suspicious of Chinese food,“. There have been reviews of diners staying faraway from the Chinese meal’s Last month, some restaurants stated a 50-60% dip in customers. “Chinese restaurants in the country in large part are running empty,” says a Chinese-origin businessman from Kolkata who produces prepared-made sauces for Chinese in addition to Indian eating places. His business had already taken success owing to the slowdown within the economy and COVID-19 has simply added to the hassle.
The exact news is, stricter hygiene practices are already entering play for the benefit of the overall meal’s enterprise. “But the present situation is not to be taken lightly and one has to find approaches to work around it,"
Between all this, we forget about those who were there when no one was there for us, the hunger savior for common man, tasty and faster than QSR’s the Food stalls or vendors on Street, before the pandemic the street used to be filled with people, lined up in front of this amazing street magicians, but now after the lockdown and social distancing reform to avoid the spread of this dangerous virus, the future of this coveted culinary artist looks a bit hazy.
