Wednesday 31 October 2012

Cable car project proposed

Cable car project proposed

DEVOTEES going up the Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani hilltop temple in Jalan Kebun Bunga, Penang, will get to enjoy a panoramic view and have a tireless journey up the temple following a proposal for a cable car project.

Temple committee chairman P. Kuvenaraju said the proposal was raised following the closure of the road up the temple and concerns about the elderly devotees having problems walking up the 514 steps.

He said the project would cover 500 metres from the foot of the hill up to the temple.

“Besides serving as an alternative way up the temple for the devotees, the cable car will also be helpful in daily needs such as getting bananas and food up the hill as we do not have enough manpower to help out,” he told a press conference before visiting the proposed cable car project site in Jalan Kebun Bunga recently.

Panaromic alternative: The proposed cable car project will be built at the foothill of the Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani hilltop temple in Jalan Kebun Bunga, Penang.

Kuvenaraju said the committee had received an offer from a foreign company to install the cable car.

However, he said Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was eager that there be an open tender for the project.

“The whole project, including the tender matters and other relevant procedures, is expected to be completed in the next one and half years,” he said.

Lim, who was also present, said the company carrying out the project, would be chosen based on the best profit sharing percentage offered to the temple, the shortest leasing term and most importantly, experience in installing, managing and operating the cable car.

He added that the selected company would have to bear the cost of construction but it would make its revenue through the sale of tickets.

Lim said the state was expected to announce the chosen company for the project in January.

The RM9mil hilltop temple completed in June this year, is believed to be the largest Lord Murugan temple outside India.

~News courtesy of The Star~

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