300 tourists rescued after being stranded mid-air for hours as Gulmarg Gondola fails

Hundreds of tourists were left stranded mid-air on Monday (May 25) after the Gulmarg Gondola cable car service in Jammu and Kashmir developed a technical issue amid inclement weather. The high-altitude ropeway, which is widely recognized as one of the highest cable car projects in the world, suffered an operational disruption that trapped around 300 passengers across dozens of suspended cabins, prompting an immediate full-scale joint rescue operation.

The sudden suspension of the cabins created a wave of panic across the mountain site, particularly among groups with young children and elderly members who found themselves trapped thousands of feet above the ground. Passengers waited inside the hanging compartments for a long time, with several videos quickly circulating on social media showing the stranded tourists looking out from the cabins as emergency protocols were activated below.

Emergency response

Emergency personnel from the Indian Army, the Jammu and Kashmir Police, and the State Disaster Response Force were rapidly mobilized to the high-altitude location. A total of 65 cabins were identified as stuck along the cables between the stations, creating a logistically complex extraction challenge across the steep terrain.

Local civil administration authorities, including the Sub-Divisional Magistrate and the Tehsildar of Tangmarg, also arrived at the base and mid-stations to coordinate the response directly. The rescue teams utilized specialized high-altitude rope systems and evacuation equipment to systematically access the suspended cabins and safely lower individual passengers to the ground.

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As many as 116 passengers from 21 of the stranded cabins were rescued by late evening. The Indian Army released a statement noting that rescue operations for the remaining forty-four cabins were progressing in a controlled manner, with personnel working meticulously to ensure that every individual was evacuated safely.

Official monitoring

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah issued a formal statement confirming that the government was closely monitoring the developments. “All cabins are intact and rescue operations to safely evacuate stranded tourists are underway with trained teams on the ground,” he earlier said in a post on X. “The situation is completely under control and there is no cause for panic,” he added.

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He further emphasized that the entire operation was being conducted under strict supervision, stating that the situation was completely under control and there was no cause for widespread panic. Simultaneously, the office of the Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, announced that a coordinated response involving the Deputy Commissioner and the Senior Superintendent of Police was fully underway.

Operation outcomes

The Gulmarg Gondola project operates in two distinct phases, transporting visitors from the base station up to the Apharwat Peak at an altitude of about 14,000 feet. Both phases of the ropeway system have been temporarily shut down by the authorities as a mandatory safety precaution while the rescue and technical diagnostics continue. Initial assessments indicated that inclement weather in the region had contributed to the sudden operational halt, though a comprehensive technical evaluation is required to pinpoint the root cause of the breakdown.

The civil administration has set up holding areas at the base stations to provide medical attention, food, and assistance to the rescued passengers as they are brought down from the mountain. Standard maintenance and comprehensive security checks will be finalized across the entire alignment before the popular tourist attraction is permitted to resume normal public operations.