Pavagadh, Panchmahal: Six people were killed on Saturday when the goods ropeway at the revered Mahakali Shaktipeeth in Pavagadh collapsed after its cable snapped. The dead include two lift operators, two labourers, and two others present at the site.
Panchmahal District Police &nbsp;Superintendent Harish Dudhat confirmed: &ldquo;Six fatalities have been recorded in this incident. Further investigation is underway. The bodies have been shifted to the government hospital for post-mortem.&rdquo;
Officials said the mishap occurred when a cable of the goods ropeway&mdash;used exclusively to ferry construction materials from Manchi to the hilltop temple&mdash;gave way. Strong winds forced authorities to suspend the passenger ropeway, used by devotees, as a precaution.
Local fire brigade teams rushed to the spot and launched rescue operations. Several people were reported injured, though officials said the situation was being brought under control. MLA Jaydrathsinh Parmar of Halol also reached the site to oversee relief measures.
Residents recalled that the shrine had faced a near disaster earlier, on 25 August 2023, when a technical fault derailed the passenger ropeway from its track. Panic gripped hundreds of devotees left dangling mid-air for nearly half an hour. Then too, negligence was alleged against Usha Breco, the company managing the facility.
Saturday&rsquo;s tragedy has revived questions over safety lapses and repeated technical failures. &ldquo;This could have been avoided with stricter maintenance checks,&rdquo; said one local devotee at the site.
Authorities have shut down both passenger and goods ropeways until further notice.
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Rescue teams at Pavagadh ropeway collapse site

Goods ropeway cable snaps at Pavagadh shrine, leaving six dead and several injured

Pavagadh ropeway collapse kills six workers

Goods ropeway cable snaps at Pavagadh shrine, leaving six dead and several injured

September 6, 2025 | 23:43 IST