![Vaishno Devi Shrine illuminated on Navaratri festival, in Katra. [File]](https://gumlet.assettype.com/greaterkashmir%2F2022-10%2F98f11dd8-6c33-4616-96b3-76799455c257%2F20220926275L.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&fit=max)
New Delhi, Feb 17: In order to ease the travel for Mata Vaishno Devi shrine pilgrims, who need to trek 12 km, the central government has started a ropeway project in Jammu and Kashmir.
Bids were opened on Wednesday for the Rs 250 crore, 2.4-km ropeway project consisting of a gondola cable car system.
The shrine is located in the Trikuta Hills, at an altitude of 5,200 feet.
Officials said that after completion, the ropeway - starting at Tarakote and finishing at Sanjichat, close to the temple - will decrease the journey to just six minutes for pilgrims from current 5–6 hours of trekking.
The government expects the project to be completed within 3 years.
The shrine already has a ropeway from the temple in Trikuta Hills to the Bhairon Temple on another hilltop which was inaugurated two years ago.
