Swine Flu: Hotels on high alert, keep tab on spread

MUMBAI: Swine flu couldn���t have come at a worse time for the Indian hospitality sector. Industry watchers see H1N1 hitting the hotel business badly. Hotels fear a drop in business travellers and tourists till the situation normalises. The swine flu scare has resulted in most of the hotel companies focusing on domestic packages to improve profitability during the period.

Even as the sector was hoping for better days ahead, the swine flu scare has struck. This has forced hotel majors, such as The Taj, Hyatt, Mariott, Oberoi, Four Seasons, Le Meridien and Leela to implement all preventive measures.

These include educating employees about the virus and its spread, frequent checks of food handlers and specific operational procedures for hotels like gloves, masks etc if confronted with confirmed cases of swine flu. Hotels are monitoring the situation worldwide and following the advice issued by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and similar entities.

So far hotels have not received any directive from the Indian government. ���Internally we have started taking up precautionary measures and are following advice of our in-house medical practitioners,��� said a Oberoi official. Most hotels have a team of doctors who are frequently briefing the employees and guests about the situation.

���At national and international level, we continue to monitor and abide by the guidelines issued by bodies like WHO, the health ministry and other such authorities about handling the endemic.

At regional level, in all cities and resorts where our hotels are located, we are in regular liaison with local health authorities,��� a Taj spokesperson said. In India, all Taj employees have been issued instructions to report any relevant symptoms immediately.

Hotels are also urging guests and employees to stay informed, vigilant and follow precautionary measures. ���The health and safety of guests and employees is the highest priority,��� said a senior Hyatt official.