Adam's Bridge: Difference between revisions

Government of India has constituted 9 Committees before Independence and 5 committees after Independence for suggesting alignments for Sethusamudram canal project. Most of them have suggested land based passage across Rameswaram island. None of them have suggested alignment across Adam's bridge. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sethusamudram_Shipping_Canal_Project#Suggested_Alignments_by_earlier_committees].<ref>http://sethusamudram.gov.in/History.asp Most of the earlier committees have suggested land based passage across Rameswaram Island. None of them suggested Adam's bridge</ref>Due to shallow waters, Adam's Bridge presents a formidable hindrance to navigation through the Palk strait. Though trade across the India-Sri Lanka divide has been active since at least the first millennium BCE, it has been limited to small boats and dinghies. Larger ocean going vessels from the West have had to navigate around Sri Lanka to reach India' eastern coast.<ref name = Francis>{{cite book|last=Francis, Jr.|first= Peter|title=Asia's Maritime Bead Trade: 300 B.C. to the Present| publisher = University of Hawaii Press| year = 2002| isbn=082482332X}}</ref> Eminent British geographer [[James Rennell|Major James Rennell]], who surveyed the region as a young officer in the late eighteenth century, suggested that a "navigable passage could be maintained by dredging the strait of Ramisseram [sic]". However little notice was given to his proposal, perhaps because it came from "so young and unknown an officer", and the idea was only revived 60 years later.<ref name = Rennell>{{cite journal |last=Rodd |first=Rennell |authorlink= |coauthors= |year=1930 |month=April |title=Major James Rennell. Born 3 December 1742. Died 20 March 1830 |journal= The Geographical Journal |volume=75 |issue=4 |pages= pp. 289-299 | url=http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0016-7398%28193004%2975%3A4%3C289%3AMJRB3D%3E2.0.CO%3B2-W }}</ref>

 

 

A more detailed marine survey of Adam's Bridge was undertaken in 1837 by Lieutenants F. T. Powell, Ethersey, Grieve and Christopher along with draughtsman Felix Jones, and operations to dredge the channel were recommenced the next year.<ref name = "Gazeteer 1886"/><ref name = "Dawson">{{cite book|last=Dawson|first= Llewellyn Styles|title=Memoirs of hydrography| publisher = Keay| year = 1885 |pages= pp. 52}}</ref> However these, and subsequent efforts in the 19th century, did not succeed in keeping the passage navigable for any vessels except those with a light draft.<ref name= EB/>