Cox’s Bazar tourism faces another hit by lockdown-2

Cox’s Bazar-based tourism, one of the most Covid-19 pandemic affected sectors, has faced another hit amid the second phase of countrywide lockdown starting from Monday.

The authorities, however, kept closed all the tourist spots of the sea beach from April 1, few days before the lockdown declaration to curb the sharp surge in coronavirus cases.

Initially, the authorities instructed to keep spots closed until April 14.

Sector insiders said they were just recovering from the losses incurred in the last year’s lockdown. Such a restriction yet again in the pick time of the businesses made a threat to their survival.

“All the businesses based on Cox’s Bazar start incurring another big loss at a time when they are just recovering from last year fallouts due to the pandemic that also compelled to shut everything off,” President of Tour Operator Owners Association of Cox’s Bazar Rezaul Karm said.

Declaration of the second-phase lockdown made the situation difficult again for them, he added.

Rezaul urged the local administration to keep open some tourist’s spots on a limited scale with ensuring all safety measure.

“If all the tourist spots are closed, why will people come to Cox’s Bazar and stay at hotels?” he questioned.

An official from Seagull Hotel said that the hotel business in Cox’s Bazar area was comparatively good from December last year to February this year.

With the fresh surge in Covid-19 cases since late March, the tourism business started to fall, he said, wishing not to be named, and added that it was tough to survive maintaining all the operational costs if the situation continued.

Both of them claimed that all sectors get the government stimulus loan but the tourism sector did not.

The tourism business after a rapid fall last year saw good growth with the countrywide vaccination program. People were seen gathered at different sports of the sea beach in the last couple of months.