Work on Rs 200 cr Bijli Mahadev ropeway to begin in 3 months

Abhinav Vashisht

KULLU, FEBRUARY 16

The construction work of the proposed ropeway for Bijli Mahadev in Kullu will begin in three months.

Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Chief Parliamentary Secretary (CPS) Sunder Singh Thakur met Union Minister Nitin Gadkari recently regarding the ropeway work. The CPS said Gadkari had given the approval for the ropeway project. The work on the ropeway will start within three months.

Base point proposed at Pirdi

• The base point is proposed at Angora Farm at Pirdi, 4 km from Kullu town. The 2-km-long ropeway will cover the distance in five to eight minutes which generally takes hours on foot
• At present, one has to travel for an hour in a vehicle to reach the last motorable point near Chansari, then trek for 2 km to reach the Lord Shiva shrine on the top of the hill adjacent to Kullu

“Now the NHAI will construct the Bijli Mahadev Ropeway at a cost of Rs 200 crore. Earlier, the government had given this project to Usha Breco Company but due to sluggish work of the company, the government has now handed over the project to the NHAI,” the CPS said.

The team of National Highways Logistics Management Limited (NHLML) and the Ropeway Corporation had inspected the site in January where the construction is to be done. The team also held meetings with the CPS and officials of various departments. The team visited the construction site at Angora Farm near Pirdi and inspected other sites in the area like Pechha in the hills of Bijli Mahadev and explored the possibilities of starting the construction work.

Director of Ropeway Corporation Ajay Sharma and Col Anil Jain (retd), Zonal Officer of NHLML, were also accompanied the team. The central team also took feedback from the local panchayat representatives about the project.

The CPS had stated that earlier this project was worth

Rs 170 crore, but now after some changes and making some additions like boarding and de-boarding points in Pechha to connect Kharhal valley, an additional amount of Rs 30 crore will be spent.

The final route of the ropeway will be decided after a survey by the NHAI along with the Forest and Revenue Departments. It will be built at a distance of 70 m from the temple premises to its maintain sanctity. After setting up the ropeway, the journey to the holy spot will become convenient. This will also give a boost to religious tourism. The ropeway from Kullu to Bijli Mahadev Temple will also generate employment opportunities for locals.