The  new restrictions triggered by the spread of Omicron variant  have led to panic and last-minute cancellations of bookings on tourist buses and private rentals. Train bookings, however, have not reflected any changes yet. “Post-Diwali, the industry was recovering, with business leading to 70 per cent buses on roads as all of them were getting good bookings. The trend continued till last weekend. The crashes began this week with over 80 per cent bookings cancelled now,” Harsh Kotak, secretary of the Mumbai Bus Malak Sangathan said.

“As soon as restrictions are imposed, the first industry that gets affected is tourism which impacts the passenger transportation industry in a big and negative way as bookings get cancelled or postponed and all our calculations go for a toss. Due to this, EMIs and other payments also get disrupted with operators having to bear the losses,” said Astad Khadiwala, a Sangathan committee member.