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Islamabad, July 12 (Online Int’l): The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) has asked the government to allow the reopening of restaurants at the earliest with minimum 50 percent seating capacity under the strict SOPs set by the government.
In a meeting with the Provincial Minister for Industries, Commerce & Investment, Mian Aslam Iqbal along with the delegation of restaurants and marriages halls owners and FPCCI President Mian Anjum Nisar urged the authorities to announce a date for reopening of the eateries, as the government has assured the restaurant owners several times of reopening, which was not implemented so far.
He observed that the countrywide lockdown in the wake of the COVID19 pandemic has officially been lifted for a long time as gyms, salons, shopping malls, markets and almost every business has been allowed to reopen except restaurants, which is not fair.
Mian Anjum Nisar said that every business took a hit during the lockdown period while restaurants also incurred heavy losses, as the industry employs hundreds of thousands of workers across the province, who might go jobless if the current situation persisted for a long time. The restaurants’ bodies’ representatives have met with government authorities many times, apprising them of their plight and suggested SOPs they could take while resuming operations.
He demanded that marriage halls and marquees should also be allowed to reopen and operate at 50% capacity up to a maximum of 300 guests, duly following the SOPs as approved by government. He suggested that the restaurants should be allowed to operate during timings from 12:00 pm to 12:00 am.I
Mian Anjum Nisar recommended that the rent of restaurants established at government owned properties and parks should be waived off at 50%. He said that during the closure period restaurants have incurred operational expenditure without any revenue from their own resources including payroll, salaries, utility bills, rentals etc. Therefore, financial assistance package is required for restaurants by way of working capital facility of up to Rs.10 million as soft loan without markup.
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