CM to launch Sholingur temple ropeway today
Stalin will be inaugurating the cable car facility built at Rs 8.34 crore and other amenities such as waiting halls, toilets and a lift all constructed at Rs 12 crore.
Sholingur rope car facility being prepped up for virtual inauguration by Chief Minister MK Stalin
RANIPET: Chief Minister MK Stalin is set to virtually launch the ropeway facility at Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple on Sholinghur hill on Friday, bringing to reality the decades-long dream of devotees.
Stalin will be inaugurating the cable car facility built at Rs 8.34 crore and other amenities such as waiting halls, toilets and a lift all constructed at Rs 12 crore.
While the state government bore the bill for the ropeway, expenses for other facilities were taken care of by a six-member group of philanthropists, including state handlooms minister R Gandhi. “No donations were collected as the donors provided all funds,” sources revealed.
The ropeway project completed after many trials and delays is a boon for devotees as climbing 1,305 steps of the steep hill is a challenging task, forcing elderlies to depend on around 70 dolis. HR&CE minister PK Sekarbabu and minister Gandhi inspected the facility during the trial run of the ropeway on February 24.
Officials said that charges for taking the ropeway services will be announced on Friday. “The speed of the gondola lifts has been set such that a trip up the hill from the bottom takes 4 minutes, even though it can ideally reach atop in half the time,” an official said.
“A total of 400 devotees can be transported down in the 4 cars that are going to introduced initially,” the official added. With the new rope car facility, officials expect a significant jump in the number of devotees visiting the hill shrine, located 105 km from Chennai.
Even as the new facility is set to provide immense help for the devotees, it also jeopardises the livelihood of nearly 70 doli carriers who depend on earnings they get carrying the elderly up the hill. “The doli carriers have submitted a request seeking jobs in the temple once the ropeway starts functioning,” said C Gopal, who represented Sholinghur Assembly segment and Arakkonam LS constituency in the past. The former legislator also wanted the government to promote the Anjaneya temple, atop a hill located nearby, demanding the construction of a bridge to access the shrine, which at present can be reached after climbing 603 steps.