Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Aug 3: Thirty nine days after tragic crash left seven people including four tourists and three local guides dead, Gulmarg Gondola in North Kashmir’s Baramulla district was today re-opened for tourists after reinforcing the necessary safety measures.
An official said that local legislator, Mohammad Abbas Wani, Secretary Tourism and Information, M H Malik, Managing Director State Cable Car Corporation, Shamim Ahmad besides other officers of the Tourism Department and SCCC were present on the occasion.
The Gondola was closed for the visitors on June 25 this year after a tree uprooted by high-velocity winds, fell on the cable car’s ropes killing seven persons. Speaking at the reopening of Cable Car, the Secretary Tourism said that although it was made operational the same day the tragic accident happened but “we didn’t open it for public until we ensured that all the necessary safety measures are reinforced”.
He claimed there was no technical snag in Gondola which led to the tragic deaths. “It was an accident and no one could have foreseen it,” he said. The top official said that the experts from the French firm – Pomagalski, which had initially set up the facility at Gulmarg, inspected the project and were satisfied with the safety measures reinforced by the State Cable Car Corporation.
He said the tourists visiting Gulmarg were especially feeling disappointed for not enjoying the Gondola ride and the tourist arrivals at the resort had also declined because of non-functioning of Gondola. “It had also resulted in several locals having been rendered jobless,” Malik added.
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