Lumbini cable car comes into operation

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, June 9: Lumbini cable car has come into operation commercially from Thursday.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ formally inaugurated the cable car amidst a function organised at the bottom station of the cable car in Goalpark Bamghat, Butwal.

The 3-km cable car from Goalpark Bamghat in Butwal to Tinahu Rural Municipality-3, Basantapur in Palpa, built with the investment of IME Group, is the first cable car in Lumbini Province.

With the commissioning of the Lumbini cable car, it will become a religious and tourist destination full of structures such as Bhagawati temple, Ganesh temple, Kailash mountain, Barapipal, Dhunge Dhara and ponds, according to a press statement of the company.

On May 29, the statue of Kamakhya Devi was consecrated in the Kamakhya temple. The Kamakhya temple in Basantpur is built in the style and art of the temple in Guwahati, India.

A tripartite agreement has been signed between Lumbini Cable Car Company, Butwal Sub-Metropolitan City and Tinahu Rural Municipality for the daily operation of the cable car.

Lumbini cable car company will allocate 2 per cent of the tickets fee for the two municipalities.

This is the third cable car to be launched by IME Group. The company said that the cable car, which has 25 gondolas of the monocable detachable system, can transport 6,000 passengers daily.

President of Lumbini Cable Car Chandra Prasad Dhakal said that the operation of Lumbini Cable Car has added a new religious and tourist destination of Basantpur.

Dhakal believed that this tourist infrastructure connecting Rupandehi and Palpa districts will help in the economic and social transformation of Rupandehi, Palpa, Nawalparasi and Kapilvastu districts and the entire Lumbini Province.

He said that this project would prove to be a milestone in making Rupandehi the economic capital of Lumbini Province.

He said that the cable car is a new campaign to build a religious tourism circuit.

He said that if the religious journey is started from Lumbini cable car in Butwal under this circuit, it will be possible to reach Maulakali, Muktinath, Manakamana, Chandragiri, Kalinchowk and reach Pathibhara via this route.

According to the company, the total cost of the project, including cable car and resort is Rs. 5 billion.

In the first phase, Rs. 1.5 has been invested in the cable car.

According to the company, the bottom station is 230 metres above sea level and the top station is 940 metres above sea level.

Top station can be reached within a 10-minute journey from the bottom station.

A five-star hotel and other structures will be built at the top station at a cost of Rs. 3.5 billion with the cable car coming into operation.