Devotes visiting Haridwar may soon use ropeway to travel between Har Ki Pauri and Chandi Devi Temple, the two important religious places in the holy City.
The Uttarakhand Metro Rail, Urban Infrastructure and Building Construction Corporation Ltd (UKMRC), last week invited bids from private parties to build, maintain and operate a ropeway project from Har Ki Pauri to Chandi Devi Mandir at Haridwar.
The “Har Ki Pauri – Chandi Devi Ropeway” shall be approximately 2.3 km in length and will be developed with an investment of Rs 160.80 crore.
The ropeway will start near the Deen Dayal parking area and upper endpoint will be near Chandi Devi Temple, at the junction of pedestrian path way to Chandi Devi and Pathway to Anjana Mata Mandir.
The ropeway will have a minimum capacity to carry 1,800 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD) with a total operation time of 16 hours per day. However, if concessionaire wants to install higher capacity ropeway, then he may do so.
The concessionaire shall construct the ropeway project in 730 days and will have the exclusive right, to operate and maintain the Project for a period of 30 years.
Necessity
Being one of the seven holiest cities in India, Haridwar often bustles with devotees. Its propitious location near the holy River Ganga has made it to gain more popularity.
Haridwar is also one of the four places where Kumbh Mela occurs after rotation of every twelve years and Ardh Kumbh Mela is organised after six years of every Kumbh.
The proposed ropeway will provide world class connectivity to Chandi Devi Temple — a Hindu temple dedicated to Goddess Chandi Devi and situated atop the Neel Parvat on the eastern summit of the Shivalik Hills, the southernmost mountain chain of the Himalayas.
The project once complete will allow devotees to reach Chandi devi Mandir in eight minutes from Har ki Pauri which is a major and popular ghat on the banks of Ganga river in Haridwar.
The dedicated personal rapid transit system will not only make the journey comfortable and time saving, but it will also be eco-friendly and energy efficient.
