Ropeways Looking Up: With 8 Projects Expected to be Ready by 2026, What the Future Holds for Cable Cars

At the ropeway symposium last month, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had said that more than 200 projects have been identified. (PTI)

nth,It is economical, faster, environment-friendly and suits challenging terrains, but despite these factors, ropeways in India have not been developed to its full potential.

The journey through the ropeway in India started in 1968 and, as of date, only 65 km distance is being covered through these cable cars. With the focus shifting to ropeways, a number of projects are underway at various stages and at least eight of these are expected to be ready by 2026.

While presenting the 2022-23 Union Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the National Ropeways Development Programme on PPP mode. Currently, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways looks after the development of ropeways. Last month, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari had said that more than 200 projects at a cost of Rs 1.25 lakh crore have been identified. According to the documents accessed by News18, at least 30 projects, with a collective length of 120 km, are under various stages.

Under the National Ropeways Development Programme, the government not just aims to connect difficult, challenging and sensitive terrains, but also congested urban areas, where conventional mass transit systems are not feasible.

INDIA’S FIRST URBAN ROPEWAY PROJECT

India’s first urban ropeway project is coming up in Uttar Pradesh’s Varanasi. This will also be the first completed project under the programme. Connecting Varanasi Cantt and the busy and crowded Godowlia Chowk, this ropeway will allow tourists, pilgrims and residents of Varanasi to have easy movement between the railway station and the Kashi Vishwanath temple. The travel time will come down to just 16 minutes from the current 45 minutes.

In March 2023, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of this passenger ropeway with an estimated cost of Rs 650 crore and it is expected to be ready by March 2025. This nearly 4-km route will have a monocable detachable gondola with 29 towers. It will have five stations, including Vidhya Peeth, Rath Yatra, and Girja, and can carry nearly one lakh passengers per day.

DHOSI HILL ROPEWAY PROJECT

The next project, which is expected to be ready by December 2025, will be in Haryana – from Kultajpur Village to Dhosi hilltop in Mahendragarh. The journey, with two stations nearly 900 meters apart, will reduce the travel time to just three minutes from the current one hour. Based on bi-cable jig back technology, this ropeway will carry more than 5,000 passengers per day. The hill is an ancient Vedic site and an extinct volcano.

SANGAM ROPEWAY PROJECT

In January 2026, the ropeway in Uttar Pradesh’s Sangam is expected to be ready. This 2-km-long bi-cable detachable gondola ropeway will operate between Shankar Viman Mandapam and Triveni Pushp in Prayagraj and will carry around 30,000 passengers each day. Currently, the distance between the two points takes 30 minutes to cover, but with the ropeway, it will be just seven minutes.

ROPEWAY FOR MAHAKALESHWAR, KAMAKHYA & BIJLI MAHADEV

By July 2026, three projects, all connecting temples, are expected to be ready. One will be for Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga in Ujjain, another will be in Assam for Kamakhya temple. Himachal Pradesh’s Bijli Mahadev temple will also be getting ropeway connectivity by July 2026, Ministry documents show.

The ropeway for Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga will start from Ujjain railway station and will connect Triveni Museum and Ganesh Colony, covering nearly 2km. The monocable detachable gondola will be able to carry around 65,000 passengers per day and ease the journey for pilgrims by reducing the travel time from 20 minutes to just six.

The ropeway in Assam will connect the Kamakhya temple and the Kamakhya railway station. This nearly 2-km monocable detachable gondola will help decongest the road between the two destinations. It will be able to carry more than 20,000 passengers per day.

For Himachal Pradesh’s Bijli Mahadev temple, trekking is the only mode available – not feasible for all. With a new 2.5-km ropeway, the journey that takes over an hour will be completed in just seven minutes. The monocable detachable gondola will start at Nature Park in Mohal and will offer a panoramic view of the Kullu Valley.

KATHGODAM-HANUMAN GARHI PROJECT

The authorities are aiming to complete the Kathgodam-Hanuman Garhi temple ropeway connectivity in Nainital in Uttarakhand by September 2026. This 15-km ropeway will have six stations and will carry about 60,000 passengers per day.

ROPEWAY FOR SHANKARACHARYA TEMPLE

By December 2026, the Shankaracharya temple in Srinagar will also get ropeway connectivity that will reduce the travel time to just five minutes from the current 30 minutes. It will not just ease the journey but will also offer a panoramic view of Dal Lake.

ROPEWAY FOR KEDARNATH & HEMKUND SAHIB

Among the other projects that may take a little longer, but are critical include the Gaurikund and Kedarnath ropeway project. It is expected by 2029 and will reduce the travel time to around 30 minutes from the current eight hours. This nearly 10-km route will have a total four stations and will carry 36,000 passengers per day. The tri-cable detachable gondola will provide the much-needed last mile connectivity to Kedarnath.

Ropeway connectivity to Hemkund Sahib will be another important project that will reduce the travel time from Govind Ghat to just three hours from the current three days. Expected in 2029, this 12-km ropeway will have the potential to carry 22,000 passengers per day.

The development of ropeways has huge potential in India. Building ropeways involves lower land acquisition costs and is economical than other modes.