SHAH ALAM, 14 Jan: It has been found that the cable car facility construction which should have been completed at the Sri Subramaniar Temple in Batu Caves is not suitable to be built in the area.
This was the findings in the early report from the consultants appointed by the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS) to conduct soil stability studies around the temple complex.
MPS president Mohd Azizi Mohd Zain said the report, which was tabled last Thursday at a meeting attended by the Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim, Selangor Economic Action Council (MTEN) and other council representatives, found that certain areas in the temple vicinity were unstable.
“The cable car line consists of a lower station near the foot of the temple staircase and an upper station near the hilltop temple.
The report shows that the lower station is stable while the upper station is unstable. If the cable car project is built on unstable land, it might risk public safety,” he said, quoted from Astro AWANI.
Mohd Azizi said the council is currently waiting for the full report to be tabled, before they can proceed with giving recommendations to the temple’s contractors.
The cable car project was put to a stop by MPS after the council issued a stop-work order on June 6, citing that several buildings within Batu Caves were built without permits.
Mohd Azizi confirmed that they received the building plans sent by the temple management but they still have to await the full report of the soil stability studies before taking any action.
“It was never the council’s intention to stop the cable car project. This is not about denying facilities to the rakyat. This is about public safety,” Mohd Azizi said.
The cable car was initially scheduled to be completed by this month, in time for the Thaipusam festival which falls on Jan 17.
The project, worth RM10 million, was contracted to the Calcutta-based company Damodar Ropeways.
