In a move to provide relief to the beleaguered hospitality industry in the state, the Kerala government has decided to ask banks in Kerala to stop all revenue recovery and property attachment proceedings for the next couple of months. This was announced during a press briefing by Pinarayi Vijayan. The government will also direct the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) and Kerala Water Authority (KWA) to stop collecting penalties and dues of consumers for next two months. The direction is significant as the individuals and the businesses are grappling with the negative effects of the Covid19 pandemic.
The Travel and tourism industry in the State had raised the issue of revenue recovery proceedings and attachment notices from financial institutions in recent months at a time when the business and industry in the State is facing an existential crisis due to the global pandemic. The industry had observed May 1 as Black Day and one of the key demands of their #SaveTourism campaign was the immediate termination of all recovery proceedings by financial institutions.
As the Covid-19 infection test positivity rate is one of the highest in the country in Kerala, the Chief Minister said that the State will use the services of the lodges and hostels in the State for Covid care. The Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC) has already started the process of letting out its hotels in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi to private hospitals to accommodate quarantine patients.
