Delhi restaurant, pub owners welcome govt nod to remain open till 3 am

Currently, restaurants in Delhi can stay open till 12 am and pubs till 1 am. While a formal order has not been issued as of now for restaurants to remain open till 3 am, officials said it is likely to be out soon.

Zorawar Kalra, owner of Farzi Café, Massive Restaurants, said, “It will have a huge positive impact on the entire industry and the economy of the city as all stakeholders will benefit. The government benefits due to added tax and excise collections. The employees benefit due to added shifts requiring additional people. The customers benefit as they get a vibrant nightlife and the freedom to dine at whatever time they choose. And the industry benefits due to the potential of added revenues.”

Riyaaz Amlani, CEO of Impresario Handmade Restaurants, which runs enterprises like Social and Smoke House Delhi, said the move will not only promote nightlife but also give a boost to tourism. “I think it is a welcome move and it has been in the pipeline for a while. We thank the Delhi government for pushing this through. This will not just mean immediate benefit of better business to a beleaguered industry, especially after Covid, but it will also give a tremendous leg up to tourism and make Delhi a much more attractive destination for people who want to stay,” he said.

“Any city in the world which has fantastic tourism also has an amazing nightlife. The most visited cities in the world, whether it be New York, London, Dubai or Hong Kong, the one thing they all have in common is the nightlife,” said Amlani.

Rahul Singh, Founder and CEO of The Beer Café, said the move had been in the offing for some time and the decision to extend timings was necessary given the policies of the neighbouring states.

“This is what the Excise Policy which came in effect on November 17, 2021 always had but it had not been implemented. This has to be in line with the other states. Uttar Pradesh has the provision to allow operations till 4 am and Haryana has the provision till 6 am which has yesterday been extended to 8 am. If I have Noida till 8 am and Gurgaon till 6 am, what stops Delhi from extending till 3 am?” he asked.

“The entire industry has been battered during the pandemic. This is the only way to bounce back. A lot of people might say what about law and order? There’s provisions to operate 24×7 at airports and railway stations, do you see a law and order problem there? The more people there are on the streets, the more vibrant it is. Law and order problems happen when there are no people on the streets, not the other way around,” said Singh.