Dhanushkodi to be fully connected by roadways in less than a year.

The bumpy and uncomfortable ride over sand dunes to reach Dhanushkodi, the south-eastern tip of Tamil Nadu’s Pamban Island, will soon be history. Work on a 5-km last mile road connectivity is on full swing and is expected to be over in eight to ten months.

Dhanushkodi, from where Sri Lanka is around 20 miles, was devastated in the 1964 cyclonic storm. The Bay of Bengal mixes with the Indian Ocean at this spot.

The Rs. 25-crore project from Muhuntharayar Chathiram to Dhanuskodi taken up by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is important on two counts. It will provide transport to thousands of tourists and pilgrims visiting Dhanushkodi every year and help in development of the fishermen hamlet. IIT Madras designed the road project, which is part of the 186-km Madurai-Ramanathapuram-Rameswaram-Dhanuskodi work costing Rs. 1,212 crore.

Sankar Sharma, 63, a pundit, who visits Dhanushkodi every other day, is happy with the progress of the road laying work. However, jeep driver Ibrahim is sad as he will lose business when the road is completed and buses start plying on the road.

For now passengers shell out Rs. 100 to Rs. 150 for the fare by jeep or van. Over 500 people visit the place daily and the number goes up to thousands during festival days.

'We have been praying for this road for many years. The jeep and van ride is really painful. Many times, we need to walk a long distance when the sand dune is filled with backwater,' said Sharma.

Pilgrimage to the holy city of Kashi in North India is incomplete without worshipping at Rameswaram, including the ritual bath at Dhanushkodi, said Sharma who has been doing the rituals for nearly four decades, he said.


HBL