Trains from North East to Bengaluru, Mysuru fully booked till August

Mysore/Mysuru: Hotels and restaurants in Mysuru are getting back on their feet offering full-fledged service to customers. As the lockdown was relaxed all of a sudden from July 5, some hotels found it difficult to function normally as they faced a serious shortage of manpower. 

Employees from States such as West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha were unable to reach the city in the absence of trains and this was a major impediment. But not to disappoint first customers after months of lockdown, one star-category hotel in the city went out of the way to arrange flight tickets to eight employees from West Bengal and Odisha to Bengaluru and ferried them from there by road. 

It was their flight of a lifetime and all the eight employees have touched down safely and are working in the hotel now. Excited after their boss told them that flight tickets would be booked for them to reach Mysuru within a couple of hours, the hotel staff dressed in their best clicked photos and selfies at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata and also at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru. 

They usually take a train that reaches Mysuru in three days but this time, they flew here in just about three hours and all were hyper and happy, Bharath Devarajappa, Managing Director of the Hotel, told Star of Mysore. 

“This was the only way to start the hotel in quick notice as most of the hotels in Mysuru are dependent on workers from the North and North East. Due to heavy rush, our staff, including chefs and assistants, could not book train tickets and all the trains running to Bengaluru and Mysuru were full and the waiting list went up to 200. Seats were only available in August and we could not afford to wait till then. So we booked the flight tickets and we bore the expenses,” he explained. 

“The Government did not even indicate that they were lifting the lockdown in phases and it was a short notice. It was impractical for us to start operations with new staff as our patrons are used to our quality and taste. We did not want to take any chances and turn away our regular customers nor compromise on quality; so we decided thus and even the staff was eager to get back to work,” Bharath said. 

After they reached Mysuru, RT-PCR tests were conducted on all of them and they tested negative. “I could start the business within a span of four days. RT-PCR tests had to be done as they did not get their jabs in West Bengal due to the political strife there. Now we will have to get them vaccinated here,” he added. 

Despite months of lockdown, the business has picked up well and the patrons are returning to dine-in, said Ajith Devarajappa, who also runs that hotel. “People are coming out and moreover a young crowd is coming to tables and are also going for takeaways,” he revealed. 

Also, many professionals from Bengaluru are working from home in Mysuru and they are fuelling good business at hotels. “Sadly, we have not got any support from the Government though some announcements have been made. The only way out for us is to maintain quality and attract more customers. We are really hoping that after July 19, hotels will be allowed to open beyond 9 pm,” Bharath added.