Hyderabad street food joints feel the heat of LPG price hike

Hyderabad: With the recent increase of the price of commercial LPG gas cylinders by Rs 105, eatery industry, particularly street food joints, are facing fresh trouble. Even as they are just recovering from business loss after the Covid third wave, the fresh gas price hike has come as a bolt from the blue for them. Owners of these joints point out that many small hotels have experienced pandemic losses, as they were shut during the lockdown. Now they are reeling under the pressure of gas price hike and also of oil by 20 per cent. To manage their monthly payments a few joints have reduced the staff.

B Jagadish Rao, secretary, Telangana Hotels Association said, "With the price rise of commercial cylinders, without having any choice, we will be forced to increase prices of items. I don't know when this price rise will end. This sudden hike is due to the Ukraine-Russia war. Already the Covid pandemic affected us badly. Slowly the hotel industry has been picking up. But this rise has broken our back; don't know if essential commodities will cost more."

According to Vinod Kumar, owner of Jyothi Tea stall, Secunderabad, "First of all due to the current pandemic situation there is a rise in prices of many essential commodities. During Covid we faced lack of customers and travel restrictions. With this hike in commercial gas cylinder for the past two days there is a footfall in customers."

Keshav, owner of Hungry Junction, Hitech City said, "Commercial gas prices have left us in a dilemma; after the lockdown slowly, our business was coming on track. The cost of essential items keeps increasing every day. Don't know in the long run how I will be managing expenses. Suddenly we can't increase prices in the menu, as consumers will not turn up."