THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Government’s nod to reopen ayurveda resorts and spas has come only as a partial relief to the wellness industry which contributes 30 per cent of revenue to the tourism sector. People running the centres say operations cannot resume until restrictions are relaxed
After being closed down for months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, ayurveda resorts and spas have reopened after getting a nod from the state government last week, provided safety norms are followed. However, resort and spa owners are skeptical about the revival of the wellness industry since a majority of their clients are foreign tourists.Thiruvananthapuram and Varkala together account for more than 1,000 ayurveda resorts and spas which cater to a large number of tourists every year. However, since the Covid-19 outbreak last March, spas and resorts closed while hospitals and clinics were allowed to give treatment.
According to the industry stakeholders, the permission to open the ayurveda spas has come as a partial relief for the industry. However, with no foreign tourists and the number of those seeking wellness treatments having fallen drastically, the industry stakeholders are looking for ways to revive the sector which generates to almost half of over `40,000 crore annual revenue from the tourism sector.
Operations yet to resume
Elizabeth P K, general manager of Mekosha Ayurveda Spasuites Retreat, said, “About 90 per cent of clients are foreign tourists and the business touches `80,000 to `1 lakh through the year. However, this year we could hardly make any profit. “The retreat offers ‘panchakarma’ treatment, weight loss programme and also includes detox packages besides treatments for specific ailments which are tailor-made after consultation with a doctor. Usually, foreign tourists between 40 and 90 years are more keen on ayurveda. The packages are usually for seven, 14 or 21 days,” said Elizabeth who thinks it would take a few more months to open the retreat.
“We will be able to resume operations completely only if we get half of the occupancy like before,” said Dinesh R of Beach and Lake Ayurvedic Resort. Dr Priya P, ayurveda consultant, said, “Foreign tourists, especially Europeans, account for a large chunk of those seeking ayurveda treatments which are primarily panchakarma, kizhi and virechana. The patients are required to stay in the centre during the course of the treatment. However, we will have to make changes in the procedure as well due to the restrictions.”
Demand for quarantine relaxation
Although the government has lifted restrictions on the wellness and tourism sector, stakeholders have demanded to waive the current quarantine norms for visitors from outside Kerala. The rule which mandates seven-day quarantine causing hurdles to the wellness industry, they say.
According to E M Najeeb, president of The Confederation of Kerala Tourism Industries (CKTI), 30 per cent of the income from the tourism sector is generated from wellness tourism. “Since there is no clarity on reopening the state for foreign tourists, we are focusing more on domestic tourists to revive the sector. But, the mandatory quarantine policy is discouraging people from visiting the state,” said Najeeb.
He added that the government should remove the quarantine rule for those coming with prior booking with an ayurvedic centre. He said, “People with a Covid-19 negative certificate obtained less than 48 hours prior to the arrival should be excluded from the seven-day quarantine.”