In this hour of direst need, all, barring one, shrank when a sacrifice was sought. As Kashmiri students from different countries, mostly Bangladesh, started returning to Srinagar in mid-March following the coronavirus outbreak, the government approached different hotels in Srinagar, asking them to house them for the mandatory 14-day quarantine. As expected, the owners refused, conjuring a deadly cocktail of contamination and future loss of business. The popular Centaur Hotel, for example, cited risk to staff, who lodged a pre-emptive protest. All except one man--45-year-old hotelier Irshad Mirza, who put his hand up and asked the government to use his property.
바카라śI told them my hotel is available,바카라ť says Mirza, who owns Shah Abbas hotel on Srinagar바카라™s Dal Lake. 바카라śIf the virus can be contained due to quarantine and other isolation measures, it will save Kashmir; if Kashmir is safe, my family is safe,바카라ť reasons Mirza lucidly. His offer was gratefully accepted.
바카라śAfter the first batch had completed quarantine in my hotel, I told the administration they can continue to use the facility for the same purpose,바카라ť Mirza says. He scoffs at other hoteliers바카라™ argument that this would devalue the property, pointing to examples in Italy and Spain where hundreds of hotel rooms were converted into isolation wards.
Mirza바카라™s noble gesture was quickly acknowledged and Srinagar deputy commissioner Shahid Choudhary took to twitter thus: 바카라śTiger zinda hai!! Let바카라™s clap for Mr Irshad who came all the way to offer keys of his hotel to help us바카라ť.
Established in 1982, Shah Abbas is one of Srinagar바카라™s well-known hotels with 88 well-furnished rooms. 바카라śWe handed over all our rooms and provided our usual service to the students,바카라ť Mirza discloses.
That Mirza proved an inspiration became apparent when other hoteliers across Kashmir offered their facilities for quarantine. Even in picturesque Pahalgam, hoteliers followed Mirza바카라™s lead. Indeed, a senior official says Mirza showed the way and 바카라śhelped erase misconceptions about the virus바카라ť.
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