The Patnitop Gandola has resumed services after remaining suspended for nearly a month due to the Covid-19 restrictions, officials said on Friday.

The Gondola is India’s highest [in terms of ground clearance] international class ropeway. It was ESPPL’s first step towards setting a benchmark for responsible tourism and green mobility as it eliminated a 45-60 minute road journey to Patnitop from the Chenani-Nashri Tunnel by way of a breathtaking and picturesque gondola ride of over 2.8 kms of inclined destination in/to just 10-12 minutes.

The cable car will be open at Sanget-Patnitop for visitors only on weekends from 1100 hrs to 1700 hrs.

Spread over 22 acres in the panoramic Sanget valley and Patnitop in Udhampur, Jammu Province, it is just a 90 minute drive from the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine in Katra; it takes a 2-hour drive from Jammu on the four-lane highway, crossing four spectacular tunnels, to reach this picturesque destination; less than 45 minutes from Udhampur and just 3 km from the Dr Shyama Prasad Mukherjee [famously known as Chenani Nashri] tunnel.