As many as 23 pilgrims, including six children and two differently-abled persons, got stranded midair for four hours after their rope car developed a technical glitch halfway to the famous Palani Lord Muruga hill shrine.

 

The  pilgrims were travelling in two cabins when they got stuck at different heights  20 feet and 100 feet after the cable car came to a halt at 8 am on Wednesday on way to the Sri Dhandayuthapani Swamy temple, officials said.

 

All the pilgrims were rescued after a four-hour battle by the fire service personnel who used rope ladders and bamboo baskets to bring them down. "We got panicky when the cabin got stuck. But the fire service personnel's encouraging words that we will be rescued soon eased the anxiety to large extent," Vijayakumari, one of the devotees, said.

 

The rope car, being operated by a private company, takes two and half minutes to cover the 323 metre- distance from the base station to the temple.