Girnar ropeway still awaiting for Sanction

The Girnar ropeway project which was first cleared in 1996 is still awaiting approval of the National Wildlife Board. The government, however, has decided to give Usha Breco, which is building the ropeway, an extension till September 2011, said state tourism minister Jay Narayan Vyas, while replying to a question by Visavadar MLA Kanubhai Bhalala.
Congress MLAs and Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee chief Siddharth Patel also told the house that they had pressurised the Centre to clear the project with immediate effect.
Officials in the state forest department said that the cliffs of mount Girnar were providing nesting and roosting sites to three species of endangered vulture species. Apart from the vultures, the area had been declared a sanctuary as there was a sizeable population of lions there.
Experts feel that the construction of ropeway,movement of trolleys throughout the day, waste and noise that will be generated in the constructional and operational phase will surely affect this very critically endangered bird species. There were 121 vultures and 30 nests in this area and construction of this ropeway would hinder their conservation efforts
The NWBI in its meeting in July 2009 decided that the clearance to the project would be given after site inspection. However, the matter is still pending, said Vyas. Reacting to this, Siddharth Patel said that he and leader of Opposition Shaktisinh Gohil had met senior Congress leaders and made representations for the early clearance of the project.
Vyas in the reply said that the ropeway project was cleared by the state government on January 17, 1996, at the project cost of Rs 89.31 crore and the contract was given to Usha Breco.
He said that the Junagadh ropeway would carry about 1000 passengers in a hour and would have 38 cabins. He added that the Gujarat pollution control board had cleared the proposal and sent to the central government on June 6, 2009.