RadheDham Ashram: Business Continuity Post Disruption

This case highlights the challenges faced by the Religious Tourism sector due to sudden disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the disruptions affected every trade, the unorganized and budget hotels at various religious destinations in India faced an extended impact. The case is about RadheDham Ashram, an affordable stay offering a religious and spiritual experience at Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh province of North India. Pandit Shiv Kumar Tripathi, the owner of RadheDham Ashram, was concerned about managing its probable receding operations amidst the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. RadheDham Ashram was a popular destination to stay in because of its affordability and proximity to the famous Sri Krishna Temple. However, things had changed with the COVID-19 pandemic and predicted lockdowns. As a result, the temples were supposed to close, and the influx of tourists at Ashrams would reduce consequently, as pilgrims would avoid the crowded destinations. Tripathi was worried about the occupancy of the Ashram. His concerns ranged from matching the Ashram service capacity with the uncertain demand to managing yield by adopting strategies such as differential pricing, capacity planning or overbooking when the tourist footfall was uncertain. Due to low customer influx and high demand variability, it was a tough time for Tripathi. He had to select the best possible alternative to bridge the gap between service capacity and demand. The selected alternative must ascertain sufficient yield to RadheDham Ashram along with retention of its goodwill and its loyal customers. All these thoughts made him anxious about the business continuity of his RadheDham Ashram in the upcoming days.