Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday, 25 May 2026, commended India's disaster response forces for successfully rescuing 300 tourists who were stranded mid-air in cable cars at Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir, calling the operation a demonstration of valour and skill.

Posting on X, Shah wrote: 'Applause to India's disaster response forces for safely rescuing 300 tourists stranded mid-air in cable cars in Gulmarg, Kashmir. The disaster response teams comprising the SDRF, NDRF, Army personnel, local police, and the administration swung into action and rescued all the passengers stranded in 65 cable cars through a six-hour-long operation. The nation salutes the forces for their valour and skill.'

Context

Gulmarg is one of India's premier high-altitude tourist destinations, known internationally for its gondola cable car system — among the highest and longest in Asia. The cable cars ferry thousands of tourists and skiers up the Apharwat ridge every season, making them a critical piece of the region's adventure tourism infrastructure. An emergency of this scale, with passengers suspended mid-air across 65 cars, required immediate multi-agency coordination in challenging mountain terrain.

The rescue operation, completed within six hours, brought all stranded passengers safely to the ground without reported casualties, drawing praise from the Union Home Minister who oversees both the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and broader internal security coordination.

Policy Backdrop

India's integrated disaster response framework draws its statutory foundation from the Disaster Management Act, 2005, which established the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and gave legal backing to the NDRF and state-level SDRF units. The Act mandates coordinated response protocols between central and state agencies, a framework visibly activated in the Gulmarg operation.

The NDRF, which functions under the Ministry of Home Affairs, has built specialised capacity for high-altitude and technically complex rescues. The Jammu and Kashmir SDRF complements this with local terrain knowledge and rapid first-response capability. The Indian Army, with a permanent presence across Jammu and Kashmir, routinely integrates into civilian disaster operations under established civil-military protocols.

Stakeholders and Impact

The most immediate beneficiaries are the 300 tourists rescued, many of whom would have faced serious risk from exposure at high altitude, particularly if the situation had extended into nightfall. The Gulmarg tourism economy, a significant revenue driver for Jammu and Kashmir, also stands to benefit from a demonstration that emergency response infrastructure is robust and reliable.

For the J&K administration, the operation reinforces confidence in the region's safety systems at a time when the government has been actively promoting tourism in the Union Territory. Broader stakeholders include adventure tourism operators and the hospitality sector, whose business depends directly on tourist confidence in safety standards.

What's Next

The successful rescue is likely to prompt a review of cable car safety protocols and emergency preparedness standards at Gulmarg and comparable high-altitude tourist sites across Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and other Himalayan states. Discussions around expanding NDRF battalion presence in mountain tourism zones are expected to gain momentum ahead of the next monsoon preparedness cycle and budget consultations. The incident also underlines the case for mandatory real-time monitoring systems and faster evacuation mechanisms at high-footfall aerial installations.