Gulmarg’s gondola shuts for a week over repairs, French firm audit

SRINAGAR: Gulmarg’s gondola will remain suspended for a week to install a new gearbox after a snag halted operations of the cable car on Monday.

More than 300 tourists were trapped for up to seven hours, triggering panic and a large-scale rescue operation by J&K police, the Army and State Disaster Response Force. Some were left dangling nearly 500 feet (150 metres) above the ground in cabins suspended along the cable line.

J&K govt has ordered two parallel inquiries. One committee, headed by manager (operations) of J&K Cable Car Corporation, will investigate the cause of the fault. A separate panel will conduct a technical audit of the cable car system, including an independent assessment by French engineering firm Pomagalski (POMA). The gondola was commissioned in 1998 as a joint venture between J&K govt and POMA. It is among the world’s highest ropeways.

“We detected a snag in the gearbox at Kangdoori. We were in touch with POMA through video conferencing. We had two options --- repair the gearbox or replace it with a spare one. The 3.6-tonne spare gearbox will now be installed while the damaged unit will be sent to POMA for servicing. All this will take about a week,” Syed Qamar Sajjad, MD of the cable car corporation, said.

The first phase of the gondola has 63 cabins, each with a capacity of six, and carries tourists to Kongdori at an altitude of 8,530 feet. The second phase, with 34 cabins, operates from Kongdori to Apharwat, reaching an altitude of 12,293 feet. The snag had developed in the first phase, leading to suspension of operations in both stages of the cable car for safety.

Farooq Ahmad Shah, NC legislator from Tangmarg, where the gondola is located, said CM Omar had ordered a comprehensive technical audit for the cable car that undergoes daily and weekly maintenance assessments, besides an annual POMA evaluation.

“Such a snag has never occurred in the past 28 years. The gearbox failure should not be viewed as a maintenance issue. That is why a POMA assessment is necessary,” said Shah, who has previously served as MD of the cable car corporation.