NEW DELHI, Mar 10: Two ropeways will be constructed to cover the last leg of the pilgrimage which is currently trekked to reach the hilltop shrines of Kedarnath and Hemkund Sahib in the Himalayan State of Uttarakhand.

The Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs last Wednesday approved the two ropeway projects for the two sites.

The all-weather, faster mode of transport is estimated to cost Rs 4,081.28 crore for the 12.9-km Sonprayag-Kedarnath ropeway and Rs 2,730.13 cr for the 12.4-km Govindghat-Hemkund Sahib ropeway.

At present the journey to these destinations is by trekking, pony or helicopter.

KEDARNATH:

The 12.9-km Sonprayag-Kedarnath ropeway costs Rs 4,081.28 cr. The project will be executed in public-private partnership. It will use the Tri-cable Detachable Gondola technology. The capacity will be 18,000 passengers per day.

The all-weather ropeway connectivity will reduce the travel time from about eight-nine hours to about 36 minutes. It is currently a 16-km uphill trek from Gaurikund, or on pony or palanquins. Helicopter service is also available.

Falling in Rudraprayag district, the shrine opens from April-May to October-Novembe. Over 20 lakh pilgrims visit the temple annually.

HEMKUND:

The ropeway starts from Govindghat. It will be of 12.4 km in length. The cost will be Rs 2,730.13 cr

The Sikh pilgrim centre in Chamoli district is a 21-km uphill trek from Govindghat or by pony or palanquin. The gurudwara opens only for about five months a year, from May to September, because of extreme winter during the rest of the year. Nearly two lakh pilgrims visit the shrine annually.

The project is a public-private partnership. The ropeway will be in two phases, a Monocable Detachable Gondola (MDG) from Govindghat to Ghangaria (10.55 km) and Tricable Detachable Gondola from Ghangaria to Hemkund Sahib (1.85 km).

The capacity of the ropeway is 1,100 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD) and 11,000 passengers per day.