The 50 billion Nepali rupees ( 714 million US dollars) tourism industry has received a body blow to its present and future prospects from the 19-day general strike called by Seven Party Alliance, Hotel Association Nepal said in Kathmandu Thursday.

A report issued by the association said that over 90 percent cancellations were registered during the strike. Hotels registered a loss of over 760 million rupees (10.8 million dollars) from over 600 hotels and resorts in the capital Kathmandu Valley during the general strike on April 6-24.

Each day 30,000 tourists arrive to Nepal on an average. During the strike, it came down to about 3,000 a day, a drop of 90 percent, according to the association.

The tourism industry alone generates 33 percent of total revenue for the government annually. Of the total foreign currency earnings, 24 percent is generated by the tourism sector alone, president of the association Prakash Shrestha said.

The number of rooms at hotels run under the association comes to be 22,000 across the country and the number of beds stands at 45,000.

Restaurants that give employment to over 37,000 people across the country lost over 475 million rupees (6.78 million dollars) over the 19-day strike.

The number of restaurants stands over 2,500 across the country. However, only 100 restaurants are associated with Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal (REBAN).

According to president of the REBAN Dilhendra Rasa Shrestha, on an average, 15 people are employed in each restaurant.

Total investment in restaurants comes to more than 1 billion rupees (14.2 million dollars).

Source: Xinhua