Nepal, March 6 -- The Indian government has sanctioned the long-awaited Kedarnath ropeway project, which will cut down devotees' travel time to the holy shrine by a great extent. The 8-9 hour trek or mule ride now will take only 36 minutes. This project is likely to benefit thousands of pilgrims annually.

"The Kedarnath ropeway project will be developed in a Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) mode at a total capital cost of 4,081.28 crore," the government said in a statement. The 12.9-kilometer-long ropeway project may prove to be a boon for pilgrims visiting Kedarnath, as it will reduce their travel time on the trekking route to approximately 36 minutes after spending hours in transit.

The sanction of the Kedarnath ro...