Skiing enthusiasts may soon be flocking to the ice-topped mountains of Kashmir.
An Indian company at Gulmarg is hoping to establish the area as a major tourist attraction and is building a spectacular cable car system there.
The project is progressing following a ceasefire in the conflict between India and Pakistan, which have been squabbling over the ownership of the region for decades.
Reuters news agency said the cable car system would be one of the world’s longest and highest. The region was once called the Switzerland of the East, and the project’s backers are confident visitors will flock there.
Farooq Ahmad Shah, head of the state-run Jammu and Kashmir State Cable Car Corp, told the agency: “The grass-covered, even slopes here are considered among the best in the world. But the lack of a cableway to reach the top did not allow skiers to use them fully.
“We will attract lots of foreign skiers as it will cost a fourth of what it costs to ski in the Alps. Last season, even before the project was completed, we had skiers from Scotland, England and Malaysia.”
The scheme is expected to be completed by October.
