News Analysis India

Tag: Ropeway accident

  • PM Modi hails heroic efforts of those involved in Deoghar rescue operation

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the entire country applauds the heroic efforts of those involved in the rescue after a ropeway accident in Jharkhand as he interacted with the personnel of various agencies and civil society members who took part in the operation.

    Over 60 tourists were trapped in cable cars midway for over 46 hours at Trikut Hills, about 20 km from the famous Baba Baidyanath temple in Deoghar in Jharkhand since Sunday after a ropeway malfunction that resulted in trolleys colliding.

    They were evacuated by combined teams of the Indian Air Force, Army, ITBP, NDRF and the district administration. Three persons died in the tragedy.

    Modi said the country is proud that it has such a skilled force in the form of Army, Air Force, National Disaster Response Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police and police force, which have the capacity to bring the people of the country out of every crisis safely.

    The prime minister interacted with the personnel involved in the rescue operation and sought to know about their experience. The entire country applauds heroic efforts of those involved in the rescue operation in Deoghar, he said.

    Modi expressed sadness that the lives of three persons could not be saved and said, “Our deepest sympathies are with the families of the victims.” He also wished a speedy recovery to those injured.

    “For three days, round the clock, you completed a difficult rescue operation and saved the lives of many people of the country,” Modi told the rescue personnel.

    Home Minister Amit Shah, who was also present during the online interaction, said various agencies worked in coordination to complete the rescue operation with minimum harm.

  • Carry out safety audit of all ropeway projects: MHA to states and UTs

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: In the wake of the Deoghar ropeway accident, the Centre on Tuesday asked all states to carry out a safety audit of each ropeway project and put in place standard operating procedures to deal with such emergencies.

    In a communication to all states and Union territories, Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also said that for each ropeway project, a maintenance manual and programme must be in place so that the safety standards conform to good industry practices and such incidents do not recur.

    The entity operating the ropeways must maintain a record of all the activities undertaken as part of the maintenance programme, he said in the communication.

    “The state government must engage an experienced and qualified firm or organisation for carrying out a safety audit of each ropeway project. The entity operating the ropeway must comply with all the issues arising out of the audit,” the communication said.

    Three people were killed while being rescued from cable cars in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district after the ropeway connecting a hill malfunctioned on Sunday afternoon.

    The home secretary said BIS standards prescribed for the operation and maintenance of ropeway projects need to be scrupulously adhered to.

    He said the necessary guidance in this regard may be taken from the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation (NHIDCL), which is the nodal organisation under the Ministry of Road, Transport, and Highways, Government of India.

    Asking the states and union territories to review the condition of all the ropeway projects in their respective state, Bhalla said SOPs and contingency plans for operation and maintenance of ropeways, and system of safety audits must be put in place.

    “It should also be ensured that mock drills, mock exercises for handling contingency situations involving ropeways are periodically conducted,” he said.

    The home secretary advised the states and UTs to designate a senior officer of an appropriate level to regularly review the preparedness measures in respect of ropeway operations as per the SOPs and contingency plan.

    The mishap in Trikut Hills in Deoghar in Jharkhand occurred on April 10, leaving 18 trollies carrying over 60 people stranded in the air.

    After the efforts made by Indian Air Force, NDRF, Indian Army, ITBP, and local administration, the trapped people were rescued.

    However, three lives were lost during the rescue operation.

    “This incident has highlighted the need to have a detailed SOP and a contingency plan on ropeway operations, so as to prevent the occurrence of any such incident in the future,” the communication said.

  • J’khand ropeway accident: 2 dead, 15 remain trapped mid-air as rescue ops halt

    By PTI

    DEOGHAR: A man was killed on Monday after falling off a helicopter during a rescue operation following Sunday’s Jharkhand ropeway accident, while 15 people trapped inside cable cars will have to wait out one more night before they are brought down to safey, officials said.

    A woman, who was injured in the accident, had succumbed on Sunday night.

    Thirtytwo people have so far been rescued, winched up by two Indian Air Force helicopters, or by sliding down the nylon ropes, more than 28 hours after two cable cars collided mid-air, stalling the ropeway, around 20 km from the temple town of Baidyanath Dham in Deoghar district.

    A woman was killed and 12 people were injured in the accident. The rescued passengers were airlifted with the help of two IAF choppers, Deoghar Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri said.

    Dramatic visuals showed fidgety people inside the cable cars that hung in air against the backdrop of a rocky hill cliff that overlooked a densely-forested valley. Helicopters whirred overhead, winching up people stuck in the gondolas overnight, after the accident.

    A woman tied to a chair slid down a rope dangling from one of the cable cars, while a little girl made it to safety the same way.

    Everything appeared moving smoothly until a man being winched into a helicopter began swinging dangerously, apparently losing his grip over the rope, his only potential link to life.

    Seconds before he could be pulled inside the aircraft, he lost his grip and plunged hundreds of feet into the valley.

    “Thirty-two people were rescued with the help of choppers, while 15 people are still trapped mid-air in the cable cars suspended at varying heights, the maximum being nearly 1,500 feet. The rescue operation had to be stopped after sunset and will resume tomorrow,” Additional Director General of Police R K Mallick told PTI.

    Mallick said there is heavy security deployment in the area and the rescue effort by joint teams of the Air Force, Army, ITBP and NDRF will recommence early on Tuesday. He also said a man fell from a chopper in the course of rescue and was rushed to hospital, where he died.

    According to Deoghar Civil Surgeon C K Sahi, he succumbed to injuries after falling from a considerable height. Local BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, however, claimed three people were killed in the accident that took place around 4 pm on Sunday.

    Drones were used to supply food and water to those trapped in the cable cars.

    Expressing sorrow over the incident, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren said rescue and relief operations are being conducted on a war footing.

    Governor Ramesh Bais said,”The accident on the ropeway built on Trikut mountain of Deoghar, a world-famous religious place, is very sad and painful. I express my deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and pray to Baba Baidyanath for the speedy recovery of the injured.”

    Health Minister Banna Gupta said an inquiry will be conducted and action taken against those found guilty of negligence. Bhajantri said the accident occurred due to a fault in the ropeway system.

    The 766-metre-long Trikut ropeway, according to the Jharkhand Tourism Department, is India’s highest vertical ropeway. The ropeway was being run by a private company. Operators running it fled shortly after the accident.

    A visibly relieved Sandip, who was stuck in a trolley for 19 hours, said, “I feel Baba Baidyanath (Lord Shiva) gave me a second life. I can’t explain the harrowing experience of hanging in a trolley overnight. It was frightening.”

    Devang Jaipal from West Bengal said he wanted to enjoy some time in the lap of nature with the ropeway ride. “Who knew that I would be hanging in a trolley for a whole night? With no food and water, we had a sleepless night on Sunday. On Monday, we were given some food and water with the help of drones,” he said.

    BJP national vice-president and former Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das accused the state government of being inactive, even after such a major accident, and claimed that ministers hailing from the region did not visit the spot.

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah is keeping an eye on the entire incident, he said.

    A cable car accident in the ski-resort of Gulmarg two-and-a-half years back saw a family of four and three tourist guides crash to their death after the ropeway snapped. Another ropeway accident in January 2019 in Jammu had caused the death of two workers.

  • Jharkhand ropeway accident: One dead, operation on to rescue 48 others stranded mid-air

    By PTI

    DEOGARH: At least one person has died while 48 others lay trapped mid-air in a row of 12 ropeway trollies that collided with each other at Trikut hills, close to Baba Baidyanath Temple, in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district, a senior official said on Monday.

    According to the official, 10 tourists sustained serious injuries in the collision that occurred around 4.30 pm on Sunday, and one of them died late in the night.

    Two airforce choppers have arrived for evacuation, he said.

    “All efforts are being made to airlift the tourists to safety. An NDRF team working since Sunday night has rescued 11 people. Locals, too, are helping with the rescue operation. Ten people have sustained serious injuries in the incident, of which one of them died late last night,” Deoghar Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri told PTI over phone.

    Asked about the reason that led to the accident, the DC said the entire district machinery was at present involved in the evacuation exercise, and a probe would be initiated only after the operation got over.

    Prima facie it seemed that a technical snag caused the accident, the DC maintained.

    He also said that the ropeway was being run by a private company.

    Operators running the system fled the area shortly after the accident.

    The Trikut ropeway, according to the Jharkhand tourism department, is India’s highest vertical ropeway with a maximum lens angle of 44 degrees.

    The ropeway, situated around 20 km from Baba Baidyanath Temple, is around 766-metre-long, while the hill is 392-metres-high.