Passenger Ropeway

Views:

India /West Bengal /Darjeeling /Darjeeling

Sight Address : Darjeeling Rope-way is 3 Km From Darjeeling Railway Station, Darjeeling, India Edit

Detail InformationEdit

Darjeeling Rope way is a rope way in the town of Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. The rope-way used to be a popular tourist destination in the town. It consisted of sixteen cars and plied between the “North Point” in the town of Darjeeling and Singla on the banks of the Ramman river. The journey on the rope-way offered beautiful views of the hills and the valleys around Darjeeling.The rope-way, which was started in 1968 and revamped in 1988, was stopped in October 2003 after four tourists died when the cable snapped causing two cars to plummet down the hill. In 2005, the state forest and public works department (PWD) ministers formed a three-member committee to oversee safety issues. The committee, which included a PWD engineer and two Kalyani Government Engineering College teachers, found the services unfit after a trial run.The rope-way was reopened on 2 February 2012.The rope-way was started in 1968 by the forest development department and comprised only a single car which ran one way. Later, it was upgraded to 16 cars and went to and fro.From an elevation of 2,134 m (7,001 ft) in Darjeeling’s North Point (Singamari), this bicable rope-way descended to 244 m (801 ft) at Singla on the banks of the Ramman river, which with Little Rangeet, meets the Great Rangeet. Stopping at Tukver, Burnesbeg and Singla tea estates, it took 45 minutes to reach Singla Bazar, 8 km away. The rope-way passed over dense forests, mountain ridges, water falls, flowing rivers, green valleys and tea gardens.The Great Rangeet flows from the glacial elevation of Kabru, in the lower regions of the Kanchenjunga, meeting first the Ramman and then the Little Rangeet further down. Singla offers is a fascinating view of the lovely valleys of these two streams. The Little Rangeet flows across the lush green Bijanbari valley. While the Little Rangeet is overflowing with trout, the valley has wildlife, flowers and butterflies.The passenger rope-way was operated as a joint venture of the West Bengal Forest Development Corporation and the Conveyor and Rope-way Services Private Ltd. It had been revamped in 1988.

Passenger Ropeway

HistoryEdit

Darjeeling Rope-way was started by Forest Development Department of West Bengal in 1968 and revamped in 1988, was stopped in October 2003 after four tourists died when the cable snapped causing two cars to plummet down the hill. In 2005. Darjeeling Rope-way was jointly operated by West Bengal Forest Development Corporation and the Conveyor and Rope-way Services Private Ltd. with just one gondola (cable car) running just one way – downhill from Darjeeling. The Rope-way requires 26 member technical and functional staff to maintain and run this venture.

Must SeeEdit

Attraction

Visiting TimeEdit

10 am to 12.30 pm and 2 to 6.30 pm.

Closed OnEdit

N.A.

Best Season to VisitEdit

Winter (December to January)
Spring (February to March)
Summer (April to June)
Autumn (September to November)

Best Time To VisitEdit

Morning , Afternoon , Evening.

Time Required for SightseeingEdit

N.A.

Ticket Required : Yes Edit

Individual National Adult Rs. : Adults Rs 40/- & Family Ticket : Rs 110/

Kids Rs. : Children upto 110 cm height no fee

Individual Foreigner Adult Rs. : N.A.

Kids Rs. : N.A.

Still Photo Camera Rs. : N.A.

Video Camera Rs. : N.A.

Guide Required : No Edit

Approximate cost: N.A.

Dress Code (If Any) : No Edit

Dress Require: N.A.

Restaurants NearbyAdd / Edit

N.A. ; N.A. ; Ph/M – N.A. ; Food Serve – N.A.

How to ReachEdit

Taxi : Intra-city transport is mostly by hired taxis. The private taxis or cars are essentially of two types – small cars like Maruti Vans or Santros, and large ones like Scorpio, Tata Sumo etc. While you can always take a private taxi/car from outside the station or airport, negotiate the rates and move for Darjeeling, it is always advisable to take one from the Pre-Paid taxi counters located inside the station and the airport.

Bus : You will get buses only from the Tenzing Norgay Central Bus Terminus located on Hill Cart Road in Siliguri. It is about 8kms from NJP station. The usual route is by Hill Cart Road and the travel duration is about 4 hours. Bus fare from Siliguri to Darjeeling Via Hill Cart Road: Rs. 50.00 per person Bus fare from Siliguri to Darjeeling Via Mongpu: Rs. 80.00 per person. The Mongpu route is taken in case the Hill Cart Road is closed. After getting down at the bus stop, you can take an auto-rickshaw, or hire a taxi to reach the destination within the city.

Train : New Jalpaiguri is the nearest major railway station. New Jalpaiguri is well connected to major Indian cities, especially Kolkata. The diesel engine hauled toy train leaves NJP station at 9am and takes about 7 hours 15 minutes to reach Darjeeling. You can also board the train from Siliguri Town Station or Siliguri Junction Station that are 5kms and 8kms away from NJP respectively. There are also toy trains available from Siliguri Junction and Darjeeling for joy rides. These are steam engine hauled toy trains. Check out Darjeeling Toy Train Services for current status and schedules.
NJP to Darjeeling (1st Class): Not operational since Sept 2010 due to track damage
NJP to Darjeeling (2nd Class): Not operational since Sept 2010 due to track damage
Darjeeling to Ghoom & back Joy Ride (First Class): Rs. 270.00 per person if booked through IRCTC website. This two hours ride includes entry fee for the DHR Museum at Ghoom.
Siliguri Junction Station to Tindharia & back Joy Ride: Rs. 496.00 per person. After getting down at the railway station, you can take an auto-rickshaw, bus or hire a taxi to reach the destination within the city.

Air : Darjeeling does not have an airstrip. The nearest airport is Bagdogra airport (IXB), near Siliguri, which is a 3-hour (approx. 90 km) drive from Darjeeling. Indian, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines are the three major carriers that fly to Delhi, Kolkata and Guwahati from Bagdogra. Indian Airlines (2254230; Chowrasta) (10am-5.30pm Mon-Sat). Pineridge Travels (2253912; pineridge@mail.com; Nehru Rd; h10am-5pm Mon-Sat) For domestic and international flight tickets. After getting down at the airport, you can take an auto-rickshaw, bus or hire a taxi to reach the destination within the city.

Others : Toy train are also available for this destination.

Things to CarryEdit

Carry bottle of drinking water.Sun-screen, sun glasses, tissue-rolls, roll of duct-tape, extra batteries, torchlight, water, energy-bars are ‘must-carry’ along with a First-aid kit.
•Medicines to carry when you are travelling to a new place or when you’re away from home town (which must be approved and prescribed by your physician or medical practitioner) are:
• Painkillers
• Anti-inflammatory
• Wide-spectrum antibiotic
• Anti-diarrhea
• Anti-constipation pills
• Mild sleeping pills – just in case you feel very overwhelmed by the altitude and atmosphere because of which you are unable to sleep.