06-05-2025
Post Pahalgam attack, Gondola rides in Gulmarg plummet
Footfall of tourists availing Gondola ride, the world's second highest cable car service in Gulmarg that acts as a barometer of Kashmir tourism, has plummeted in the face of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Over 40,000 cancellations in two weeks have resulted in the loss of around ₹15 crore to the Jammu and Kashmir Cable Car Corporation so far.
These days, the noisy red and yellow airway cabins of Gondola Park silently close ahead of the scheduled timing of 6.30-7 p.m. Officials said the popular rope way shuts by or before 5 p.m. because of cancellations. Just a month ago, the Gondola ride, which goes up from 8,694 feet to 13,780 feet in altitude, was sold out completely.
'Footfall has dropped significantly. We get around 1,000 tourists against an average of 4,000 to 5,000 per day. There is a fall of 75%,' Syed Qamar Sajjad, Managing Director of the J&K Cable Car Corporation, told The Hindu.
With the government directing the corporation to refund tickets in the wake of the Pahalgam attack, over 40,000 tourists cancelled their rides and cost the corporation around ₹15 crore.
'We expect the Gondola rides to go up from the second and third week of May. Many who have booked their rides for later in May have not completely cancelled it. This gives us hope that tourists are sticking to their scheduled trip to Kashmir,' Mr. Sajjad said.
Gulmarg is one of few popular destinations of Kashmir that is close to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, less than five kilometers from the Line of Control (LoC). Since the Pahalgam attack, day travellers have been advised to leave the Gulmarg meadow before sundown 'as a precautionary measure'.
Officials said the Army had fortified security of the tourist hotspot and also carried out drills recently to safeguard Gondola from any terror threat. Gulmarg saw a major terror attack in October last year where two soldiers and two civilians were left dead.
