Chennai’s IT corridor set for a reboot as firms prepare to start up again

Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR), Chennai’s IT corridor, is slowly waking up from the pandemic-induced hibernation. As tech giants and startups prepare to ask employees to work from office, scores of eateries and retail showrooms that dot the 45km stretch have refurbished interiors and started to call back staff in the hope that pre-Covid crowds will return.Right now, hotels, shopping malls and other commercial establishments on OMR say they register just 40% to 50% of pre-Covid sales.
Vehicular movement at toll plazas on the stretch is gradually increasing; around 60,000 vehicles pass through the stretch every day now.
KT Srinivasa Raja, managing director of restaurant chain Adyar Ananda Bhavan, said, “Though we barely break even now, we were glad that more people dined at our OMR outlet than expected. Most come to restaurants after the day’s work or shopping and it takes 30-45 minutes to serve one table.”
“Many non-vegetarian restaurants on OMR recorded 90% of pre-Covid sales. So if the government allows us to serve dine-in customers till 11pm instead of 9pm, these businesses are confident that they will start making profits once again,” said Raja, who is honorary president of Chennai Hoteliers Association. Even smaller restaurants, currently functioning with threefourths of their workforce, have begun to call back chefs and other employees who left for to their native places ahead of the total lockdown in May.
At malls, retailers and promoters have ensured that all their workers are vaccinated so customers can enter the places confidently. Mohammad Mukrim, CEO and director of Marina Mall in Navalur, said, “More people are coming to malls now compared to September or October 2020 (relaxations after Covid 1.0 lockdown) and majority are genuine shoppers. Earlier one in 10 came to malls for shopping.” Interactions with customers suggest that they feel malls are safer than crowded street-side markets as Covid protocols are followed better at malls. Footfalls and sales are expected to reach pre-Covid levels after seating curbs in food courts are relaxed and theatres reopen, he added.
Even hostels and paying guest accommodations for working professionals are preparing for IT firms to reopen. “Tenants now prefer single rooms or maximum double-sharing as they prioritise hygiene and safety. So we have converted bed arrangements in a way that all SOPs can be followed,” said R Vijayan, who runs a PG accommodation in Thoraipakkam.
Metropolitan Transport Corporation, which runs less than two dozen buses now, says patronage remains low even after relaxations and plans are on to increase it in the coming month with more IT firms reopening.