Team L&M
The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has welcomed the approval of Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena to allow restaurants, hotels, drug shops, transport and logistics services etc open 24 hours a day. It will help about 30 per cent growth in trade in Delhi, says CAIT secretary general Praveen Khandelwal, adding that night life has become an integral part of every metropolis and Delhi being the national Capital had been deprived of it since long.
As per the order by the Delhi LG VK Saxena, over 300 establishments in Delhi, including hotels and restaurants, facilities like pharmacy stores and online delivery platforms, will be able to to conduct business through the day and night from next week. The LG has asked the state government to issue a formal notification on the same at the earliest. A proposal regarding the same was moved by the Delhi Labour Department, and was put before the LG through the office of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
In furtherance of the order, the metro services should also run 24 hours in Delhi as also the pubic transport facility like buses, he remarks. Coming before Diwali, the order is a big bonanza for Delhi residents and traders, and as a special case people selling Diwali related items should also be allowed to open their shops 24 hrs till Diwali, says Khandelwal.
Retail shops would benefit the most from night life because till now people had to depend on online delivery for any goods requirement at night, but now hotels, restaurants, transport etc. will open at night also and therefore people will be able to easily go to the place of their choice for purchase. “But the government needs to strengthen the security system to help people feel secure at night. In Delhi, where there are black spots due to lack of light, it is necessary to make adequate lighting arrangements so that undesirable elements can be prevented from taking any action,” he says.
“Night-time economy is a serious economy. It should have been done way before. Many people working in IT companies and other sectors who are busy during the day may come out in the night, and the restaurants may not face a crisis of customers during the night. It will create more jobs as well,” said Riyaaz Amlani, former president of National Restaurant Association of India.
