Oyo Hotels & Homes has offered to partner with the Delhi government to offer its 1,000-plus hotels in the state for self-quarantining amid the Covid-19 pandemic, while also holding discussions with other state governments for the same.
Under the terms of the proposed partnership, the SoftBank-backed hospitality chain will allow people to use its hotels as self-quarantining or isolation facilities on a pay-per-use basis. A proposal for the government to subsidise users’ costs is also being discussed.
When contacted, an Oyo spokesperson confirmed that the company had reached out to the health departments of various state governments, but did not provide specifics of any potential partnerships.
“We have made an earnest outreach to health departments of all state governments to understand how we can leverage our network of hotels for providing pay-per-use or self-quarantine facilities for travellers, as advised by any state, central government authorities at a reasonable and affordable price,” the spokesperson said in an email.
A Delhi government official also confirmed that the budget hotel chain had reached out. “Currently, quarantine facilities in Delhi are not completely occupied. The company (Oyo) has reached out to us, and we have requested them to be on standby, in the event of the state government requiring additional facilities,” Shaleen Mitra, officer-on-special-duty for the state’s health ministry, and private secretary to Delhi Health Minster Satyendar Jain, told ET.
The Gurugram-headquartered company, which is present in seven countries, is currently in talks with only state governments in India—its home market.
The number of coronavirus cases in India stood at 415 with seven deaths as of 10.30 am on Monday, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare’s website. Delhi has recorded 29 cases with one death so far.
This comes about a week after the Delhi government asked hotels in Aero City, near the city’s international airport, to manage and accommodate incoming travellers who are asymptomatic of Covid-19 but are required to be isolated as a precautionary measure.
French multinational hospitality chain Accor’s Ibis hotel and Lemon Tree Premier and Red Fox – both owned by Lemon Tree Hotels Ltd – are already being used for quarantine purposes.
The two chains had been asked to allocate a certain number of rooms for incoming travellers, besides capping the tariff at Rs 3,100 including other amenities.
On Sunday, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a complete lockdown to counter the rapid spread of novel coronavirus. The lockdown which came into effect on Monday will continue till March 31.
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