Skip to main content

India mulls feasibility of bridge over Palk Straight to Sri Lanka

India will carry out a feasibility study on a road link between Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu state and Thalaimannar in Sri Lanka, a federal government minister has said. "It needs the consent of both countries,” said Union minister of state for road transport, highways and shipping, Pon Radhakrishnan. “The project needs to be discussed at various levels," according to a brief report by India’s Hindu newspaper. Radhakrishnan told the reporters that federal government had begun consultations to carry out a
October 27, 2015 Read time: 2 mins
India will carry out a feasibility study on a road link between Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu state and Thalaimannar in Sri Lanka, a federal government minister has said.
 
"It needs the consent of both countries,” said Union minister of state for road transport, highways and shipping, Pon Radhakrishnan. “The project needs to be discussed at various levels," according to a brief report by India’s Hindu newspaper.

Radhakrishnan told the reporters that federal government had begun consultations to carry out a feasibility study on various possibilities.

Palk Strait is named after Robert Palk, a British governor of Madras Presidency during the 18th century.

The strait connects the Bay of Bengal in the northeast with Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar in the southwest. However, at its narrowest point, it is studded with a 30km chain of low islands and reef shoals collectively called Adam's Bridge. One of the Indian islands, Rameswaram, is linked to the mainland by the 2km Pamban Road Bridge that opened in 1988. It runs parallel to the much older Pamban Rail Bridge, which was built in 1914.

In June, Mumbai-based dna newspaper reported that a proposal for providing road and rail link bridging the divide across Palk Strait had been submitted to the Asian Development Bank, for a pre-feasibility study and subsequent financing.

A “makeshift ferry service” now connects the two closest points. Union minister for road transport and highways at the time, Nitin Gadkari, said the link could be a combination of bridge and sea tunnel, dna reported.

Related Content

  • Chennai Ring Road Project stage 3
    May 7, 2025
    $3.2 billion Chennai Ring Road Project stage 3 underway.
  • Construction of Fehmarn Belt Link could start in 2019
    February 27, 2018
    Construction of a Fehmarn Belt Link could start a year from now – more than a year ahead of schedule, according to Danish media reports. The timing was put forward by Holger Schou Rasmussen, chairman of Femernbælt Development, and Kristian Pihl Lorenzen, the Liberal Party spokesman for traffic issues. They reportedly said that a pending environmental court case in Germany that has stalled approval by German authorities won’t hold up construction of the 18km crossing as much as had been feared. As late as
  • Funding programme for Sri Lankan rural roads
    November 21, 2019
    A new funding package has been agreed to help pay for Sri Lanka’s rural road development programme.
  • Road projects for India’s Karnataka State and Maharashtra State
    September 6, 2018
    New road projects are being planned for India’s Karnataka State and Maharashtra State. A US$228.56 million contract has been awarded to Sadhbav Engineering for the Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway. The route will be access-controlled and the deal was awarded by the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation.