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Hartal hits aviation, hospitality business

STAR BUSINESS REPORT
Hardly recovered from dull business during recent floods, the country's aviation and hospitality sectors are now facing another shock from last week's grenade attacks on a public rally of main opposition party.
Occupancy rate in hotels and number of incoming passengers in international flights have come down sharply amid travel warnings issued by some foreign missions in Dhaka that discourage potential visitors to come to Bangladesh.
An official of Singapore Airlines said though the airline has not cancelled or rescheduled any of its flight, the passenger load has been very low since the August 21 attacks on Awami League rally followed by a series of nationwide hartals.
He said the current situation has panicked passengers. "As foreign exchange endorsement and other banking and travel-related services are hardly available, passengers avoid hartal time for any trip to Bangladesh, especially business trips."
The US, British, Australian and Canadian embassies in Dhaka on August 24 advised their citizens to carefully monitor events and avoid non-essential movement in Dhaka in the
wake of the grenade attacks that killed 19 people.
President of the Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh MA Muhaimin Saleh said the latest incidents have come as a big blow to travel agency business. "Ticket sales and booking for international flights have come down to half after the incident."
"We get some booking for outward journeys but return ticket booking is very low. If the situation continues to prevail it will be difficult for 550 active travel agencies in Bangladesh to meet their office expenses," he said.
The travel agents represent 15 foreign airlines operating directly in Bangladesh and 18 others having offline services here. "We are still recovering from dull business of this year's devastating flood," Muhaimin added.
Although hartal does not affect Biman's international flights, most of the domestic flights are often cancelled or rescheduled especially during hartal. "Biman is experiencing loss in domestic operations due to hartal," a Biman official said.
He however said there is little visible drop in international passenger volume of the national flag carrier Biman, which
flies to 26 international destinations. It operates eight international flights a day on average.
An official of GMG Airlines said during full day hartal usually the morning flights are cancelled and evening flights are operated on schedule. During half-day hartal, the morning flights are rescheduled to noon.
"Sometimes we are forced to cancel flights as passengers cannot go to airport due to hartal," said the private airline official. "Hartal causes huge loss to our business," he added.
Chairman of Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation (BPC) Mahbubur Rahman said the August 21 incident and subsequent hartals are severely affecting the hospitality business of BPC, which runs four hotels, 15 motels and eight restaurants.
As some foreign countries have issued travel warning it will take long time for the country's hospitality sector to recover from the shock, he said.
Since August 22, fourteen out of 38 bookings in Bogra, five out of 39 bookings in Chittagong and 42 out of 84 bookings in BPC's Rajshahi motel have been cancelled.
Besides, all 13 bookings in Cox's Bazar, three in Rangamati and two each in Dinajpur and Mongla were cancelled, BPC
sources said.
Sadique Ahsan, president of Bangladesh Hotel and Guest House Owners Association, said occupancy in hotels and guesthouses across the country have come down to half after the grenade attacks and series of hartals.
"Travel warnings discouraged tourists to come to Bangladesh after the blast incident, which resulted in a sharp drop in foreign guests," he said.
Mahbubur Rahman, marketing and communications manager of Dhaka Sheraton Hotel, said room occupancy and booking for conference hall, banquet hall and other halls have fallen significantly after the attacks on AL rally.
The hotel management has beefed up security at the hotel engaging Rapid Action Battalion and private security agency personnel.
A high official of Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel said room occupancy got halved after the incident and all booking for conference room and hall room were cancelled from Saturday to Tuesday last week.