Paragliding pre-world cup in Kangra

Seventy-four foreigners will take part in the pre-world cup paragliding tournament to be held in the scenic Kangra valley from November 6.

"The four-day pre-world cup tournament would be held at the Bir and Billing venues, 220 km from here," the state tourism minister, GS Bali, said here.

"Over 90 participants have already registered with us for the event. There will be participants from the UK, the US, France, Bulgaria, Spain, Australia, Japan, Indonesia among others," Bali told Business Standard.

The event is being organised by the state tourism department in collaboration with the Para-gliding World Cup Association (PWCA) based in France, and with support from the Central government and the Western Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (WHMI), Manali.

The organisers are taking extra safety measures this year following the death of a para-glider recently in the Kangra valley.

The Himachal Pradesh High Court had intervened then and even banned the sport until proper safety measures were adopted.

"PWCA has deputed experts and observers for the event. The rescue and retrieval operations will be handled by WHMI," the minister said.

"Besides, compulsory insurance for the participants and thorough checks will be carried out by our experts to ensure safety," Ashok Thakur, state tourism secretary, told Business Standard.

"The Federation Aviation International (FAI) recognises the event and has granted it a category II status in international ranking," Thakur said.

"World record holder Xavier Redmond is the chief observer for the event," he said.

Redmond, the current record holder, flew for 132.5 km continuously here last year.

"The weather at Bir and Billing is excellent and ideal for para-gliding," he said

"If the event goes well, we will make a bid to hold the para-gliding world cup," Bali said.