Parvatmala Pariyojana: Central Scheme to Enhance Last-Mile Connectivity in NE with Ropeway Projects at Kamakhya Temple and Tawang Monastery

Guwahati: A central government scheme—Parvatmala Pariyojana—with the aim of ensuring last-mile connectivity through ropeways has included two projects in the Northeast, one for Assam and the other for Arunachal Pradesh. The Kamakhya Temple ropeway in Assam and the ropeway from Tawang Monastery to Pangang Teng Tso Lake in Arunachal are the two projects for the NE region.

Maa Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati is an important religious place for Hinduism, and Tawang Monastery is an equally important holy site for Buddhism. Both are also prominent tourist places in the northeastern part of India.

The ropeways will be built under the National Ropeways Development Programme called Parvatmala Pariyojana across the country to improve connectivity and convenience for commuters in hilly regions and to decongest urban areas where conventional modes of transport are saturated or not feasible. Under this program, the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) envisages the provision of safe, economical, convenient, efficient, self-sustainable, and world-class ropeway infrastructure providing first- and last-mile connectivity to improve logistics efficiency in India.

Parvatmala Pariyojana will be implemented by National Highways Logistic Management Limited (NHLML).

According to MoRTH, under Parvatmala Pariyojana, ropeway projects totalling 60 km in length were planned for award by FY 2023–24. Out of these, a 3.5 km ropeway at Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) is under construction. Additionally, 5 ropeway projects of 8.23 km length have been awarded, viz., Bijli Mahadev (Himachal Pradesh), Dhosi Hill (Haryana), Mahakaleshwar Temple (Madhya Pradesh), Sangam (Uttar Pradesh), and Shankaracharya Temple (Jammu and Kashmir).

Bids for 6 projects of 27.80 km length have been invited, viz., Brahmagiri to Anjaneri (Maharashtra), Kamakhya Temple (Assam), Tawang Monastery - PT Tso Lake (Arunachal Pradesh), Kathgodam-Hanuman Garhi Temple, Nainital (Uttarakhand), Tikitoriya Mata Temple (Madhya Pradesh), and Ramtek Gad Temple (Maharashtra).

Further, Expression of Interest (EOI) has been being invited for 2 projects of length 22.1 km, viz. Gaurikund-Kedarnath and Govindghat-Ghangaria Hemkund Sahib Ji. Detailed Feasibility Study is in progress for an additional 16 projects of 54 km length for further assessment. In addition, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with 13 states and UTs, viz., Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Assam, Tripura, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, for the implementation of ropeway projects under Parvatmala Pariyojana in coordination with the state governments and UT administrations.

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