Monday, 02 May 2022 | PNS | New Tehri
The pilgrims would be able to reach the temple in 10 minutes from Kaddukhal
The pilgrims visiting the famous temple of Surkanda Devi in Tehri district can now avail the facility of ropeway. The chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the 500 meter long ropeway on Sunday.
The CM also offered prayers at the famous temple which is a Siddh Peeth for the happiness and prosperity of the people of the state. He also directed the District Magistrate (DM) of Tehri Iva Ashish to earmark a piece of land for a helipad in the area.
Speaking on the occasion, the CM said that the ropeway would help in easy access to the temple and it would help in increasing the source of earning of the local people. He said that the state government is promoting religious and adventure tourism in the state. Terming ropeways as an efficient mode of pollution free transport, Dhami said that the state government is setting up ropeways at places with the help of the union government’s Parwat Mala Project. He said that water sports activities are being undertaken in the Tehri lake which is spread in an area of about 42 square kilometres. He added that a plan to start other tourist activities in this lake is being prepared.
Dhami said that Uttarakhand is taking rapid strides in the path of development under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said that in the year 2025 when the state would celebrate 25 years of its creation then at that time Uttarakhand would be among the leading states of the country. The CM said that lakhs of pilgrims are expected to come to the state for Char Dham Yatra and the state government has taken all measures to providing facilities to them.
The culture, PWD and tourism minister Satpal Maharaj said with the start of the ropeway in Surkanda Devi, the number of pilgrims visiting the temple would witness a major increase. He also added that the religious and adventure tourism is being promoted in the state. The Dhanaulti MLA Pritam Singh Panwar, Tehri MLA Kishore Upadhyaya, secretary tourism Dilip Jawalkar, Tehri DM Iva Ashish, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Tehri Navneet Bhullar and others were present on the occasion.
The ropeway
The 502 metre long Surkanda Devi ropeway has been constructed at a cost of Rs five crore. This is the first major ropeway in the state completed by the Uttarakhand tourism department after the creation of the state. By using the ropeway the pilgrims can reach the famous Surkanda Devi temple in five to ten minutes from Kaddukhal.
