Five days after a fire in Kamala Mills compound claimed 14 lives, restaurants and hotels on the premises are in the process of resuming operations. A handful of restaurants opened on Wednesday, but saw low footfall.
Managers of the eateries said that it would take a couple of months before patrons returned. On New Year’s Eve, only three restaurants had remained open. Narayan Poojari, managing director of Shiv Sagar, said, “It will take time before people return. The tragedy is still fresh their minds.”
A staff member of South High Restaurant & Bar said, “The footfalls have not yet reached the levels it used to be before the fire. It will take at least a month for things to return to normal.”
The manager of another prominent eatery in the compound said that office-goers still frequented the restaurants during lunch hours, but the premises wore a deserted look after sunset. He said, “The place empties out at night. Once the office crowd goes away, very few people come here for dinner.”
‘Bandh to blame too’
Staff members of other eateries said that the Maharshtra bandh had also contributed towards low footfall. The manager at a popular diner said, “This weekend will be the first one after the fire, so it will give us a better picture of our business prospects.”
Ivan Pinto, the manager of Goan restaurant Lady Baga, said, “We intend to start operations tomorrow. It wouldn’t have made sense to open today given the protests by members of the Dalit community.”
