Saturday
20th Apr 2024
Dhivehi Edition
K. Guraidhoo Guesthouses
Guesthouses from Male’ to Lhaviyani Atoll are full of quarantining expatriate workers from India.
As Gulf countries still have not greenlighted inbound passengers directly from India, Indian expatriate workers have been completing their 14-day quarantine in guesthouses in Maldives before traveling to the Gulf countries.
The owner of a guesthouse in Hulhumale’ informed Dhiyares that all his rooms are now occupied by those who are in quarantine. Although there have been complaints of some guests violating quarantine guidelines, he believes that most have been obeying the guidelines.
According to a person from Huraa, Male’ Atoll, all the guesthouses on the island have been filled with Indians. Some rooms are said to be occupied by three, even four guests, charged between USD 50 to USD 70 per pax daily.
Due to guesthouses in the Male’ area being at full capacity, some Indian expatriate workers have resorted to renting guesthouses in atolls that are farther away. Guesthouse owners from Alif Alif Atoll have stated that Indian workers in Maldives act as intermediaries in sending expatriate workers to quarantine in Maldives.
“An Indian teacher working in a Male’ school called me. Asked to arrange rooms for 20 people. They even said four rooms would suffice”. The guesthouse owner questioned whether this is an appropriate time to allow such things due to the rampant spread of the new Delta variant discovered in India, as such actions may lead to another wave of COVID-19.