A steep Himalayan climb just got a little easier for thousands of devotees. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday, September 24 announced the inauguration of a ropeway service at the revered Siddhpeeth Maa Surkanda Devi temple in Tehri district, built at a cost of ₹5 crore to make the high-altitude shrine accessible to elderly pilgrims, women, and children.

Posting on X, CM Dhami wrote: 'Tehri janapad mein sthit Siddhpeeth Maa Surkanda Devi mandir mein shraddhaaluon ki suvidha ke liye ₹5 crore ki laagat se ropeway seva shuru ki gayi hai.' ('A ropeway service has been launched at the Siddhpeeth Maa Surkanda Devi temple in Tehri district at a cost of ₹5 crore for the convenience of devotees.') He further noted that the launch has already triggered a 'notable increase' in footfall at the temple.

Why Surkanda Devi matters to Uttarakhand's pilgrimage circuit

Perched at roughly 2,757 metres in the Tehri Garhwal hills, the Surkanda Devi temple is one of Uttarakhand's most venerated Shakti shrines, drawing large crowds especially during the Navratri festivals. For most of its history, reaching the sanctum meant a stiff uphill trek — manageable for the young and fit, but a genuine barrier for older pilgrims and families with small children. The ropeway bridges that gap in minutes.

Uttarakhand's wider ropeway push in the Himalayas

The Surkanda Devi project is not an isolated gesture. Uttarakhand has been systematically expanding ropeway and aerial-tramway connectivity across its high-altitude temple corridors and tourist sites — a strategy that tackles two challenges at once: the physical inaccessibility of Himalayan terrain and the need to grow religious tourism as a revenue stream for the state. Projects linking pilgrims to shrines at altitude have become a signature infrastructure play for the state government under CM Dhami.

The ₹5 crore investment at Surkanda Devi is a relatively modest outlay by infrastructure standards, but its social dividend is pointed: it gives elderly devotees and young families a dignified, physically viable route to a shrine many had simply given up attempting. That the footfall has already risen — by CM Dhami's account — suggests demand was suppressed, not absent.

What the footfall surge signals for Tehri's economy

Increased pilgrim numbers at a shrine this prominent feed directly into the local economy of Tehri district — from tea stalls and prasad vendors at the base to guesthouses in nearby towns. Religious tourism is among Uttarakhand's top economic drivers, and improving last-mile connectivity to key shrines is one of the most direct levers the state government can pull. Tourism officials and district administrators will be watching whether the Surkanda Devi ropeway sets a replicable template for similar sites across the state.

For a state that wears its Himalayan heritage on its sleeve, the message is straightforward: geography should not be a tax on devotion.