October 7: If the fuel crisis that started following an unofficial blockade imposed by the Indian government continues, hotels will have no option but to shut down, representatives from Hotel Association of Nepal (HAN) have said.

A delegation from the association met Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, Industry and Commerce Minister Mahesh Basnet and Tourism Minister Kripasur Sherpa separately on Tuesday to voice their concerns.

“We conveyed our problems to the PM; the embargo is forcing us to shut down hotels,” said HAN Secretary General Binayak Shah. According to him, bookings were already affected due to the April 25 earthquake, and the embargo has added pressure on the hotels. “Till now we have been able to manage cooking gas, and we may do that for five more days,” he said. “If the shortage continues, we will have to shut down our hotels.”