Shutter down for most tea shops in Kerala; Malayali traders hit hard by crisis

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala traders have been hit hard by the LPG cylinder crisis in the country. Many hotels and popular roadside tea shops in southern Kerala remained shut today owing to the crisis. To see the hotels and tea shops without the bustling crowd of loyal customers looked odd. The traders had made it clear the other day that they would not be able to continue beyond a day or two.

With the closure of shops, the streets remained empty, where in a normal case would have been filled with commoners sharing chit chats over tea. With the ambiguity over the crisis continuing, daily wage employees in these shops are going through fear of losing their jobs. Shopkeepers and hoteliers say that their request for LPG from cylinder suppliers has not yielded any results. The worst hit are those running street stalls in Kerala. Switching to a firewood stove comes with dangers and is not safe in the capital city.

Catering service establishments have also been affected by the crisis. Catering service operators say that even those who have booked and paid in advance for various functions are being served with fewer dishes. Many hotels have already stopped serving lunch.

Hoteliers and tea shop owners have no idea when the crisis will end. The lack of permission to bring cylinders for domestic use into hotels for operation is also adding to the crisis.