Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh was in Switzerland recently to primarily get a better understanding of what will be required as the Shillong Ropeway project gets going.
Speaking to reporters, Lyngdoh said that the project will take off by August with the start of the tendering process and that, it is hoped, work on the ground will begin in December. The work is expected to take two years.
Terming it as an ambitious project of over Rs 140 crore funded by the Asian Development Bank, the minister said that the project is going to be the largest ropeway project in the North East with the government having high expectations of heavy tourist footfall.
Referring to the growth of tourism in the state, Lyngdoh said that where once a house owner in Sohra could earn Rs 3,000 a month in rent, they can now earn Rs 3,000 per room per day.
He added that the invitation to travel to Switzerland came from that country’s government and there he met three senior officials of the local government with the whole intention of implementing the project of European standards in Meghalaya.
