Congress raises questions on safety of Dharamsala-McLeodganj ropeway

Dharamsala, January 27, 2022: Congress national secretary, former minister Sudhir Sharma has raised questions on the hasty inauguration of the Dharamsala-McLeodganj ropeway and now its closure after a couple of days operation.
He said, “When the ropeway was not fully ready, why was the life of the passengers put in danger by getting it inaugurated.”
He said now when its operation has been suspended it is clear that the ropeway was not 100% fit for traffic. It was running at low capacity and had failed the test which was mostly kept hidden.
He said that the company knew that it would have to be closed to fix the rope joint, which they kept a secret.
He disclosed further that there was a condition in the agreement with the ropeway company that 1000 people would travel in an hour in it, whereas the ropeway only has a capacity of 650 people.
He said, “It being mandatory to give 75% employment to the local people in all the projects in the state, people from outside have been recruited in this ropeway project. The work of parking at the take off point has not even started yet.”
He added that there have been huge irregularities in the essential agreement between the government and the ropeway company, about 75% percent more area than the commercial area that the ropeway company was supposed to use, has been given to the company.
All these things show that while on one hand the negligence of the company has been there, on the other hand the government has not taken such a big project seriously except for just putting their inauguration stamp boards, whereas  the lives of many people have been put at stake due to such a big negligence.  
Dharamsala Skyway was inaugurated/ launched on 19th Jan 2022 by Jai Ram Thakur, Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. Construction of the project started in January 2018, in the difficult terrain spanning Dharamsala City.
The new ropeway is called Dharamsala Skyway. The length is around 1.7 kilometers and cost was approximately Rs 207 crore. The ropeway brings in a scenic aerial view from McLeodganj to Dharamsala.  The base station of the Ropeway Terminal at Dharamsala is situated close to the main bus stand and the  Return Station opens right at McLeodganj Temple Road – the heart of the hill town and in proximity with the Dalai Lama Temple. It is a 1700 meter long journey which takes just 10 minutes a side, otherwise it is a 45minutes journey by road.
According to a press note from Tata Group the Dharamshala Ropeway Limited, better known as Dharamsala Skyways, is undertaking a Planned Maintenance Shutdown from 25th Jan 2022 to 1st Feb 2022.  Disclosing this the management said, "During this period the Ropeway will not be available for Passenger Service. A team of international experts will carry out the planned maintenance."