Come January 15, pilgrims can take escalator to Shimla's Jakhu temple

Shimla, December 16

In a first in the capital city, an escalator will be made operational to Jakhu temple which will benefit the pilgrims as it will considerably reduce the travel time.

The project was to be completed and handed over for public use on December 31 but some work is still pending in the final phase. More than 90 per cent of the work to make the escalator operational has already been completed, say officials.

Talking to The Tribune, Munish Sahni, Deputy General Manager, Ropeway and Rapid Transport System Development Corporation (RRTSDC), said, “We were about to finish the work by December 31 but some final touches are left and some parts of the escalators had to be ordered again. The installation of these parts has started now. We are expecting that after trials and testing, we will be able to hand over the escalator for public use from January 15.”

The project cost is fixed at Rs 7.94 crore and there will be two escalators with a length of 23.23 m each (total length is 46.46 m) and width of 1.65 m. The speed of escalator will be around 0.5 metre per second and it is expected to drop pilgrims at the temple within two or three minutes.

“Pilgrims won’t have to take the stairs now. Apart from benefitting pilgrims, the escalator facility will be helpful for the elderly and differently-abled people,” said an official of the RRTSDC.