Ski lift in Kalinchowk

By Our Correspondent,Dolakha, Jan. 21: The first model 200 metres long ski lift is about to operate in Kalinchowk in Kuri of Dolakha district.

Uttam Bhattarai, director of the Nepal Mountaineering Training Institute (NMTI) under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA), informed that this ski lift is one of the infrastructures for the adventure centre to be built in Kuri.

The ski lift, built with the financial support of Switzerland's Katrina Experience, has been installed and tested. It is being going to be launched next week. 

The lift's primary work is to bring those who came down from the ski game up again. Those who come down to the game do not have to go up on foot. It is expected to become a means of promoting tourism here.

Its internal support is provided by Ski and Snow Board Foundation and external support is provided by NNMDA. There are 1,310 mountains of over 6,000 metres in Nepal where skiing is possible. If only one of these can be developed into a ski mountain, tourist flow could be increased significantly. 

As this is a model initiative, it is expected that the local levels of the districts where there is snowfall would learn from it. 

The NMTI has prepared the master plan for the construction of an adventure center at a cost of about Rs. 500,000, and the ski lift has been prepared as a component of it, said Bhattarai.

According to the Pass Consultant, the company that prepared the master plan of the project, it will cost about Rs. 280 million including VAT for its construction. The centre would be expanded to an area of 113,000 square meters. 

Alternatives have also been sought to make this viable year-long tourism activity. It receives snowfall for only two months in a year. 

The centre will feature a water tank with a capacity of 100,000 litres, a spiritual meditation center, artificial snow production technology, and ice skating. The master plan also mentions that structures such as artificial wall climbing, quad bikes (seven meters long and 5.5 meters wide) and 700 meters T-bar route will be built.

There will be easy and moderate ski routes for beginners and complex ski routes for experts. 

Being close to the headquarters of Charikot and Kathmandu and having the temple of Kalinchok Bhagwati are its strengths, while lack of water resources, lack of quality roads, and lack of government policies despite the abundant potential of the tourist area are the weaknesses.