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Gandhi to Open Gulmarg Gondola
India's Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, is scheduled to open the
POMA built upper section of the gondola above Gulmarg ski resort
in India on April 8th. This is the latest of dozens of dates given
for completion over the past few years but given the heavyweight
guest list, looks likely to be met.
The lift, which has been planned for 20 years and
in various phases of construction since 1990, will be the fourth
highest in the world and the highest to serve a "proper" ski area.
The 2.5km long lift connects the bowl-shaped Kongdoori Valley with
the 4,390-metre Afarwat.
Engineers kidnapped
The major problem dogging construction for
the past two decades has been political unrest in Kashmir and Gulmarg's
location next to the Pakistan border. Indian troops have been billeted
there and there is an Army training base nearby. Pakistani shells
have landed in the vicinity and terrorists have kidnapped and murdered
Western tourists in the area. POMA engineers were amongst the first
to be kidnapped by terrorists when work on the project first began.
The lower section of the lift was completed in 1998.
Pakistan and India have officially currently at peace and the Indian
government hopes that tourism will recover in the area, but terrorists
are still making sporadic attacks.
Highest lifts in the world
Higher lifts include the Chacaltaya surface lift in Bolivia, the
world's highest; the cable car (tram) above Merida in Venezuela;
the funicular railway to Pike's Peak in Colorado and the Leitner
gondola to Jade Dragon in China. Only the Chacaltayta lift, which
operates sporadically, serves a (small) ski area however Jade Dragon,
which currently does not have any official skiing, may develop a
ski area in the future and is believed to have the potential to
do so.
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