Mumbai: In what is likely to become the world’s longest skywalk, Chikhaldara, a hill station near Amravati in Maharashtra, is all set to get a 407-metre-long skywalk. According to reports, the skywalk, which will have a 100-metre glass deck in the middle, is expected to be ready by July 2023.
The Chikhaldara Skywalk, which is one of many firsts, will also be the world’s first single-cable rope suspension bridge, to cost Rs 35 crore.
According to a report in The Times of India, the Glasswalk (skywalk), which is the second in India after Sikkim, will be taller than the skywalks of Switzerland – 397 meters and China – 360 metres.
World’s longest skywalk bridge to be built in India
According to CIDCO executive engineer Devendra Jamnikar, quoted by The Times of India earlier this year, pillars of the project have already been erected at Toofan Point and Goreghat Point in Chikhaldara Valley. The project is 70 per cent complete and as per reports, the contract for construction has been awarded by CIDCO on a sublet to Epicon Construction.
In January 2022, the state’s forest department approved the Chikhaldara Skywalk project. However, approval from the Ministry of Environment is awaited.
The Chikhaldara Skywalk project will reportedly pass over the buffer zone of the Melghat Tiger Reserve and provide a breathtaking view of the tiger reserve and the rich flora and fauna of the region.
The Chikhaldara Skywalk project will provide a bird’s eye view of the Melghat Tiger Reserve, which is home to over 900 species of plants, 35 species of animals and 295 species of birds.
Chikhaldara is the only hill station in the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra and is close to the Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway.