Gondola services in Gulmarg resumed on Thursday after remaining suspended for nearly a month due to a technical fault. The services were restarted after Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah visited the site, reviewed the system and checked the safety arrangements.
Omar said the government chose to prioritise safety rather than rush the reopening of the Gondola.
After inspecting the system, he said the interim report had been received and the repair work had been checked in detail. He said the repair work was examined thoroughly and the service maintenance procedures were also certified. According to him, the gearbox had been replaced by the Cable Car Corporation within four or five days, but the government did not want to restart operations in haste. He said the decision to resume services was taken only after officials were fully satisfied with the safety checks.
Last month, the Jammu and Kashmir government had formed a five-member committee to carry out a detailed inquiry into the technical fault in the Gulmarg Gondola. The malfunction took place on May 25 and left more than 300 tourists stranded mid-air for several hours.
According to Jammu and Kashmir Police, a total of 286 people were safely rescued. Of them, 148 were evacuated from one side of the system and 138 from the other, as rescue operations were carried out in phases.
Officials said out of 65 cable cars, 62 were affected by the malfunction, while three were not operating at the time. Among the affected cabins, 52 had passengers inside and 10 were empty.
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