Karnataka: CM Bommai Lays Foundation For Nandi Hills Ropeway Project, Set To Be Operational In Next 36 Months,

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday (March 27) laid the foundation for construction of a 2.93-km ropeway to Nandi Hills, on outskirts of Bengaluru, to be taken up at a cost of ₹93.40 crore.

Speaking on the occassion, CM Bommai pointed out that late cine actor-director Shankar Nag had envisioned a ropeway in Nandi Hills. Despite the idea finding favour with the then CM Ramakrishna Hegde, the project never took off. Bommai said that he was happy that the current BJP government could revive the ropeway project.

In February this year, the Karnataka state tourism department inked a concession agreement with Dynamicx Ropeway Private Limited for the project.

The company was awarded the ropeway project under DBOT (Design, Build, Operate, Transfer) Model with a concession period of 30 years.

The project is estimated to cost ₹ 93.40 crores. The 2.93km long proposed ropeway will comprise 18 towers. Each round-trip will take 28 minutes. It will come up at the height of 300 metres. Around 20 pillars will be laid from the foothills to the end point and the tallest pillar may be 35 metres tall.

The proposed ropeway will have provision for 50 cabins where passengers will be seated. In one cabin, 10 people can be accommodated.

The project will be taken up on 12 acres of land, of which 10 acres are under the revenue department, where the work will start. The tourism department is awaiting clearance from the forest department.

The ropeway is expected to be operational by March 2025.

Nandi hills, located in the Chikkaballapura district, is 60 km from the city and is among the preferred weekend getaways for residents of Bengaluru. The hill and its surrounding are famous for their rich biodiversity, trekking, viewpoint and historic Bhoganandeshwara temple.

The ropeway will reduce the time to reach the hilltop. It is expected to curb pollution due to heavy traffic on the hill. The ropeway is also likely to provide a further boost to tourism.

Kapil Mohan, Additional Chief Secretary, Tourism Department, said, “A fast and environment-friendly transportation facility like ropeway will save the time taken to reach Nandi Hills and reduce pollution in the area, apart from offering a scenic aerial view of the surrounding area.”

In Feb 2022, the Karnataka Cabinet gave the go-ahead for constructing a ropeway at Nandi Hills under a public-private-participation (PPP) model paving the way for bids to be invited for the project.

The state government had roped in AarconInfra, a company with good experience in executing ropeway projects worldwide and has installed 64 ropeways in different states in India and abroad, to do a feasibility study for the project.

Karnataka plans to develop ropeway infrastructure in three other places -Jog Falls, Kemmanagundi and Chamundi Hills. While ropeway projects have been proposed regularly, it has failed to take off due to forest regulations and ecological concerns.

In 2021, an ambitious ropeway project proposed at Chamundi Hill faced strident opposition from environmental groups who claimed that the project would spoil the environment and disturb the sanctity of the religious destination. The ropeway project in Chamundi has been put on hold by the government.

Even the proposed ropeway Nandi hill faces opposition from environmental activists, ornithologists, conservationists, and forest department officials on the ground that it is an ecologically sensitive forest area that is already under enormous pressure due to the rapid urbanisation of Bengaluru. However, the state government is inclined to execute the project.