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"The coronavirus pandemic has left Chandigarh Industrial Tourism and Corporation (Citco) teetering on a financial precipice, imperiling the future of its around 1,200 employees. The agency has no funds to pay its staff working in different units, pushing the UT administration to ask the ministry of finance of the central government to issue a one-time grant-in-aid of Rs 27 crore to Citco, in a first of its kind bailout request. A copy of the application said, “One-time grant-in-aid of Rs 27 crore for Citco due to Covid-19 for meeting salary expenses of its employees and on account of compensation due to waiving-off licence fee.”“We were forced to waive off the licence fee of our commercial establishments given on rent at different locations due,” said an official. Citco shells out Rs 5 crore every month in salaries to its employees who are permanent, contractual and from outsourced agencies, according to the records.The financial crisis gripping Citco has squeezed its fixed deposits (FDs) too. Citco has spent Rs 24 crore from its FDs in the past few years, leaving it with no other financial means to run the department. Earnings from hotels, tourism and restaurants have dried up since the pandemic broke out.“We used to earn a significant amount of money from our hotels, boating and shops at Sukhna and other eating outlets outsourced on monthly rent in different parts of the city. But the business is ruined because of the Covid-19 outbreak,” said the official. “Since the matter has been discussed at the highest level and all the officers are convinced about our plea, we are quite hopeful that the central government will help us out,” he added.Day 1: Nearly Rs 2L in pocketCitco earned Rs 1.64 lakh from boating at Sukhna Lake on its first day on Sunday. All precautionary measures — guidelines issued by the ministry of health and family welfare and UT administration — are being taken before allowing people to hit the waters, sources said. “We are sanitising boats, life jackets and other related items regularly. All customers are also checked for fever,” sources saidFollow and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin"
<https://hospitality.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/travel/admn-hopes-for-inr-27cr-bailout-to-let-citco-pay-1200-staffers/78991633>