CCEA approves Kedarnath, Hemkund Sahib ropeway projects; Cabinet okays livestock disease prevention programme

Both ropeway projects approved on Wednesday will be implemented under the National Ropeways Development Programme – Parvatmala Pariyojana, Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting, said while briefing the media on the Cabinet decisions. Kedarnath is situated at an elevation of nearly 12,000 feet in Rudraprayag district while Hemkund Sahib is at an elevation of 15,000 feet in Chamoli district.

The Sonprayag to Kedarnath ropeway is proposed to be 12.9 km long and will cost Rs 4,081.23 crore, and the Govindghat to Hemkund Sahib ropeway is proposed to be 12.4 km long and will cost Rs 2,730.13 crore, as per a Union Cabinet press release. The development of both ropeways will be in public-private partnership mode and will be based on the monocable detachable gondola and tricable detachable gondola (3S) technology, the Cabinet release stated.

“The ropeway project will be a boon to the pilgrims visiting Kedarnath as it would provide an environment-friendly, comfortable and fast connectivity and reduce travel time in one direction from about 8 to 9 hours to about 36 minutes,” the Cabinet release stated. Currently, pilgrims cover the 16-km trek from Gaurikund to Kedarnath on foot, on horseback, and in palanquins and helicopters. As for Hemkund Sahib, a 21-km uphill trek is involved from Govindghat to the site where the tenth Sikh guru Guru Gobind Singh is believed to have meditated.

The Hemkund Sahib ropeway will have a Govindghat to Ghangaria section, which serves as a gateway to the Valley of Flowers National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and Ghangaria to Hemkund Sahib section.

“The total construction time for the ropeways will be four to six years,” Vaishnaw said. To questions on the environmental impact of the ropeways, he claimed that the government had carried out consultations and the carrying capacity of the region will be taken into account.

Under the livestock disease prevention programme, Rs 3,880 crore will be allocated for 2024-25 to 2025-26, including a provision of Rs 75 crore to provide good quality and affordable genetic veterinary medicine under the Pashu Aushadhi component.

“Productivity of the livestock is impacted adversely due to diseases like Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), Brucellosis, Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF), Lumpy Skin Disease, etc. Implementation of the LHDCP will facilitate reduction in these losses by preventing diseases through immunization. The scheme also supports doorstep delivery of livestock health care through the subcomponents of Mobile Veterinary Units (ESVHD-MVU) and improving availability of generic veterinary medicine- Pashu Aushadhi through network of PM-Kisan Samriddhi Kendra and Cooperative Societies,” a Cabinet press release stated.