Rajamahendravaram: Hotel industry seeks sops

Rajamahendravaram: Andhra Pradesh Hotels Association president T Satyanarayana demanded the state government to bring hotel sector under industrial category for its development.

Participating in the meeting of the association here on Sunday, Satyanarayana also underscored the need of some subsidies to hotel sector. Though some hoteliers were expanding their business they were incurring losses, he said and added that the government should encourage hospitality sector which is now part of tourism sector.

He said several people were showing interest to come into hotel business and the government should encourage them by providing some incentives. Association executive secretary M Venkat Rao said the online food delivery companies such as Zomoto were posing threat to hotel sector and underlined the need to bring them under GST purivew.

Moreover, subsidy on power tariff and other sops were also needed for the survival of hotel sector in the state. Many people were depending on the hotel sector for the livelihood, he said and asked the government to liberalise the rules to start hotels in the state.

Rural MLA Gorantla Butchaiah Chowdary assured to extend all necessary help for the development of hotel sector along with seeking solutions to the problems currently being faced by the industry. He said the TDP government had developed hospitality industry during its five years tenure.

Association honorary secretary K Chinnappa Reddy, treasurer Y Venkatesh, Kosuri Subba Raju, Vegesna Suryanarayana Raju and others participated in the meeting.