Rebati Adhikari
April 28: Due to the decline in number of tourists, retailers and wholesalers of Thamel, one of the major tourist areas in the capital, say that their business is almost nil. The local entrepreneurs and vendors complained that their business was halted since 2020, after the emergence of COVID-19 in the country.
Prabin Giri, owner of Felt Mart Industry in Thamel, said, “The business is nil. I opened a shop to spend my free time since I have no other works to do. Showroom of Felt Mart Industry at Thamel used to do transaction of Rs 12,000 to Rs 15,000 a day before COVID-19 hit the business. Along with decline in retail transaction, the export volume has also gone down. Its current export accounts for 30 percent of the previous export volume.
Germany, Denmark and the UK are its major export markets. The two factories of Felt Mart Industry located at Sitapaila and Gwarko have also cut down production following the drop in the demand from the foreign countries. Previously, those factories used to provide employment to 60-70 people, which has now been reduced to 20.
Thamel area, which would otherwise be filled with foreign tourists, now wears a deserted look. Most of the shutters are pulled down and a very few tourists can be seen on the roads.
It has been more than a year since the country suffered from more than four months of protracted lockdown. Although the other sectors are gradually bouncing back with fear of second of wave of coronavirus, Thamel area is still reeling through the extreme impacts of COVID-19. Until and unless the number of tourists goes up, the business of Thamel shops is not expected not pick up pace.
A report of Nepal Rastra Bank states that 32,997 tourists came to Nepal in the last three months of 2021. This gradual surge in the number of tourists had made the shop owners in Thamel enthusiastic but it was short-lived.
“The streets of Thamel had also witnessed some tourism-related activities with the rise in number of tourists, but it could not last long,” said Giri.
In the year 2020, Nepal welcomed 230,085 tourists, according to the data provided by the Department of Immigration.
Madhu Dhungana, owner of Chomolungma Outdoor Gear Pvt Ltd, said if this pandemic exists for some more months, we might have to exit from the market. He further opined that lockdown is not the solution to this crisis. He suggests all people should take necessary measures.
If it were the normal times, Dhungana would have been busy selling outdoor gears for trekking. This is the peak time for the trekking and mountaineering expedition in the country. He is sustaining his business so far selling trekking items on sale to the local customers.
According to the Department of Tourism, 82 expedition teams have been issued permits for the spring season of 2021. Meanwhile no permits were issued in the year 2020.
Nepal Book Depot, a book shop which is located besides Kathmandu Guest House, the oldest hotel of Thamel, also shares a similar story.
“We used to do daily transactions of Rs 20,000 Rs 30,000 daily at the peak time which is nil now,” says Ganesh Karki, adding, “Foreign tourists are our major customers, and domestic customers rarely come here to purchase books.”
