New Delhi, Jan 6 The Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Tuesday issued a fact check, declaring as “misleading” a video of a swinging gondola of the upcoming Varanasi Ropeway shared on social media with allegations of it being unsafe.
Though the service is not open for public use yet, the social media video caused concern among citizens who mistook the claims that the swaying mid-air gondola was unfit.
Countering the misinformation propagated by a social media user, the Pess Information Bureau (PIB) said, “The swing observed in the video is part of the testing process to ensure safety norms compliance.”
“The swing/sway observed in the circulated video is within the permissible limits specified under the CEN standards and is duly accounted for in the system design,” it said, dismissing allegations by the video uploader that the over Rs 800 crore spent on the 3.85 km ropeway in Varanasi had gone down the drain.
Elaborating on the swinging gondola visible in the social media video, the official statement said, “The Gondolas have been applied with emergency brakes during testing carried out by the OEM team to check the maximum longitudinal sway as per permissible limit.”
These sway/swing movements are controlled and absorbed by the spring-loaded support arrangement of the gondola and are minimised within the limits specified in the applicable codes and standards, including CEN and BIS, it said.
The statement clarified that the provision of flexibility in the suspension system is intentional and essential to accommodate dynamic operational forces, wind loads, and acceleration–deceleration effects during normal operation and stoppage of the ropeway.
The swing of the Gondola does not indicate any structural, mechanical or operational deficiency and is to ensure checks for safety of passengers in all conditions during operations, it said.
The ropeway is being built to connect Varanasi Cantonment Railway Station to Godowlia to cut travel time from about 45 minutes to 15 minutes. The ropeway may be launched in May this year.
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