In a major relief to city restaurants during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Delhi government on Wednesday said that these establishments will be allowed to operate round-the-clock and requirement of tourism licences will also be removed. The government also announced other measures such as initiating a process to abolish police licences and health trade licenses from local bodies for restaurants to end 'permit raj' in the industry, according to a statement.

The decisions were taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and it was attended by restaurant owners. The Delhi government said such steps will help the industry generate more employment through higher demand. This will set an example of the 'Delhi Model' of ease of doing business, it said. "On the request of restaurateurs to allow 24x7 business, it was agreed that restaurants will be allowed to operate at all hours subject to the condition that they submit an undertaking that they will take care of the health and security of their entire staff," the statement said.