1. Annex 1: NASA’s considered views and ISRO
Resource Satetllite information
The NASA statement in its entirety is given below which show that its selected
excerpts at the end of paragraph 27 actually DO NOT represent NASA's considered
view. The excerpt about tombolos is taken by the respondents from the following
source and is a good example of suggestion falsi and suppressio veri (suggesting
falsehood and suppressing truth):
Shuttle Mission STS-056 Date taken: 1993-04-17 Photo ID: STS056-78-083
Title: STS-56 Earth observation of a sun-glinted ocean along the coast of Somalia
Description:
STS-56 Earth observation taken aboard Discovery, Orbiter Vehicle (OV) 103, is of a
sun-glinted ocean along the northeastern coast of Somalia. The small island of
Xaafuun is connected to the mainland by a well-developed double tombolo-two sand
bars. Between the two toombolos a lagoon is formed which gradually fills with
sediment and becomes a flat sand bar. Better known double tombolos include those
of Gibraltar, the now-partially submerged giant tombolos forming Adam's Bridge
(Palk Strait) connecting Sri Lanka to India, Monte Argentario in Italy, and Long
Island, New York. Such tombolos usually indicate a constant sediment source and a
strong unidirectional or bi-directional (monsoonal) long shore current. In this case,
sediment is provided by the plumes of the major African rivers debauching into the
Mozambique Channel. The sediment is carried predominately to the northeast along
the coast by the swiftly moving monsoonal Agulhas Current. Visible in this scene are
internal waves, shear
http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/luceneweb/caption_direct.jsp?photoId=STS056-78-083
It is clear that the description principally relates to the observation made in April
1993 of “a sun-glinted ocean along the coast of Somalia”. Subsequent to this date,
many earth observations have been made not only by NASA but also by ISRO.
It is also clear from the following observations that these views of NASAcited by the
deponent, are NOT NASA’s considered view.
“Tombolo is an Italian name—accent on the tom—derived from the Latin for burial
mound. A tombolo is a pile of sediment that, unlike any other formation on a beach,
leads straight offshore from the mainland to an island (or sometimes from one island
to another).“ http://geology.about.com/cs/gorgeous_pictures/a/aa082999.htm
From the geological and geotechnical surveys done so far, it is clear that Rama Setu
is more than a tombolo. It contains 1.5 to 2.5 m layers of coral rocks transported
from the shore.
Reports by NASA specifically about Rama Setu (Adam’s Bridge) clearly refer to it as a
land-bridge.
Date: 1989-11-25 STS033-74-74
1

2. Date acquired: February 2000 PIA06670 Shuttle Radar
Topography Mission reports: “Sri Lanka is shaped like a giant
teardrop falling from the southern tip of the vast Indian
subcontinent. It is separated from India by the 50km (31mi)
wide Palk Strait, although there is a series of stepping-stone
coral islets known as Adam's Bridge that almost form a land
bridge between the two countries. The island is just 350km
(217mi) long and only 180km (112mi) wide at its broadest,
and is about the same size as Ireland, West Virginia or
Tasmania.” http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/srtm/srilanka.htm
2

3. Gemini XI, Image 193
quot;This photograph from an altitude of 410 miles encompasses all of India, an area of
1250 000 square miles,quot; GEORGE M. LOW, then the Deputy Director, Manned
Spacecraft Center, NASA, notes. quot;Bombay is on the west coast, directly left of the
spacecraft's can-shaped antenna New Delhi is just below the horizon near the upper
left. Adam's Bridge between India and Ceylon, at the right, is clearly visible. A
cloudless region surrounds the entire subcontinent. Differences in color, green near
the west coast, and brown inland, delineate regions of heavy vegetation and
semiarid areas.quot; http://history.nasa.gov/SP-168/section3b.htm
The Encyclopedia Britannica describes the bridge thus, 'Adam's Bridge also called
Rama's Bridge, chain of shoals, between the islands of Mannar, near northwestern
Sri Lanka, and Rameswaram, off the southeastern coast of India.'
3

4. Proposed Navigational Channel Alignment – Sethu Samudram Project- Drilled
Borehole Locations.
See the articles by Dr. S. Badrinarayanan, Retd. Director of Geological Survey of
India (Pages 22 to 24 of Rama Setu book), V. Srinivasan, Geologist (Page 26 of
Rama Setu book) and Dayananda Saraswati (Page 27 of Rama Setu book)
Badrinarayanan reports: “In all about 10 boreholes have been drilled along this ridge
upto the international boundary. Out of the ten boreholes six boreholes were in the
sea. The result” of the bore logging clearly showed about 1.5m to 4 m marine sand
followed by 1.5 to 2.5 m of boulders of calcareous sand stones and coral followed
again by marine sand to various depths end at continuous compact formation. It is a
well known fact that the coral reefs can only form in clean and unpolluted water and
these being marine organisms required firm and compact formation as foundation.
The presence of loose marine sand below these clearly indicated that these are not
natural and are transported. Unless somebody has transported and dumped them
these could not have come there. Some of the boulders are so light they could float
on water. Apparently whoever has done it has identified it as light and strong
boulders to make it easy for transportation. Since the boulders are strong they can
withstand lot of weight. There are corals that are present on land in Rameswaram,
Pamban and Tuticorin areas. A study of them and dating them clearly show that the
age of the coral is about 7300 years and the sea level at that time was 4 m above
the present day level. Then there has been a lowering of sea level and between 4 to
5 thousand years Before Present the sea level was about 1.5 m above present day
sea level. The 1.5 to 2.5 m. thick zone of corals and rock presently occurring at
shallow depths in the sea atop the crustal portion of the Adams Bridge appeared to
be an ancient causeway.”
4

5. Many research documents during the British colonial period refer to it as Rama’s
bridge. Many maps in Schwartzberg South Asia Atlas of Univ. of Chicago, refer to it
as Setubandha or Setu or Setuka and in some cases with Adam’s Bridge in
parenthesis. The 1788 map of Hindoostan or Mogul Empire calls it Ramar Bridge. A
1747 map drawn by Netherlands calls the tip on Indian side as Ramarcoil I.
1799 Asiatic Researches Transactions of Asiatic Society specify that the bridge was
inhabited and with trees growing on it. Until 1480, it served as a land link between
Sri Lanka and India, when a cyclone caused some breaches. A cyclone in 1964 led to
the submergence of Dhanushkodi.
The word Setu in Tamil means ‘man-made bund’ according to Abhidaanakos’am
(which translates it as ceyar-karai). A Setu is a bund and distinguished from anai
(dam) or paalam (with pillars creating a bridge).
5

6. Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS) launched in December 2002 has also
produced an imaging showing Rama Setu, using GLI (Global Imager) at 250 m
resolution. This image is dated February 2003.
International Space Station Expedition 6 February 23, 2003 shows the land bridge
linking Dhanushkodi and Talaimannar.
6

7. ISRO Resource Satellite image of Oct. 2003 also shows the Rama Setu (Adam’s
Bridge)
7

8. Annex 2: Copper plate inscription of Parantaka Chola
refers to ‘Setu’
Copper plate inscription of ca. 900 CE of Parantaka Chola refers
to ‘setu’
There is remarkable epigraphical and numismatic evidence authenticating the
tradition of referring to Rameswaram as Setubandha Rameswaram, that is, as the
place from where the Setu was built to link Bharatam and Srilanka in the days of Sri
Rama.
The earliest epigraphic reference to Murukan in Tamilnadu is found in the Tiruttani
(Velanjeri) plates of Pallava Aparajitavarman (c. 900 Common Era). Subrahmanya
who was probably the original mūlavar in the Tiruttani temple at the time of
Aparājitavarman, but now kept in the prākāra of the main shrine (c. 9th cent. AD).
This is 'early Chōla' according to L’Hernault F. (Nagaswamy R. 1979. Thiruttani and
Velanjeri Copper Plates. State Dept. Of Archaeology, Tamilnadu. Madras. See:
L’Hernault F. 1978. L’Iconographie de Subrahmanya au Tamilnad, Institut Francais d’
Indologie. Pondichery, p.111, ph. 63.) The copper plates indicate that
Aparajitavarman went to Setutirtha.
Translation of Section 14 of Velanjeri copper plate of Paraantaka Chola I issued in
the 25th year (that is, about 930 Common Era) is as follows:
“This ruler (Paraantaka) performed tulaabhaara with gold acquired by his valour, at
the beautiful Sriraamatirtha, where the ablest of monkey flocks built the bridge; at
the Kanyaatirtha which subdued the southern quarters, and at Srirangam beautiful
by the areca groves, where Sri Vishnu reclines on his serpent couch.”
Sanskrit text in grantha script of this section reads as follows:
“ramie sriramatirthe kavivara nikaraih baddhasetu prabandhe kanyaatirthe
jitaanaamadaritamapi dis’e mandane dakshinasyaah srirange
caahis’alyaas’ayitamurabhidi s’yaamapoogaabhiraame hemnaaviryaancitena
kshitipatikarot yastulaabhaarakarma”
8

9. Udayendiram plates of Cola king Parantaka I (AD 907-955) refer to his adoption of
the title Samgramaraghava like Rama.
9

10. Annex 3: Evidence of Ramayyan Ammanai an ancient
manuscript printed under Madras Oriental Series, references
to Rama’s Bridge, Setu
10

11. 11

12. 12

13. 13

14. Annex 4. Cartographic evidence for Nalan, Ramarcoil
The following map clearly shows that in the 17th century, the bridge
was inhabited with specific place names shown all along the bridge
between Mannar and Dhanushkodi.
Map of 1656 - 1725
Ceylon
drawing
coloured drawing
75 x 73 cm
15 Duitse mijlen = 158 strepen; [1 : 726.170]
Ceilon
http://www.nationaalarchief.nl/AMH/preview/velh0326.jpg
14

15. Map availability confirmed by Sally Smith, Secretary/Webmaster Murray Hudson
Antiquarian Books, Maps, Prints & Globes 109 S. Church St PO Box 163 Halls, TN
38040 1-800-748-9946 731-836-9057 731-836-9017
FAXmapman@ecsis.netglobemanintn@yahoo.com http://www.murrayhudson.com
In this map, Ramanakoiel is clearly marked southwest of Nagapatam along the
Coromandal coast.
15

16. Map of South India and Laccadives, Bowen 1747 Names are sometimes followed by
letters D (Dutch), F (French), and/or E (English) Source: David Rumsey collection
http://www.maldivesculture.com/history/Malabar_Bowen_1747.jpg See also:
http://www.maldivesculture.com/history/thareekh_tariq_maldives_history_chapter0
3.htm
16

17. 17

18. quot;A Map of India on the West
Side of the Ganges, Comprehending the Coasts of Malabar, Cormandel
and the Island Ceylonquot; by Emanuel Bowen, published about 1744. The
original is a copper engraved map measuring 23 x 32 cms, with later
hand colour.
http://stock-images.antiqueprints.com/stock/india-maps.html
Nala Setu in an ancient map
This map of 1700 -1800 from Netherlands showing the bridge between
mantai (Mannar) and Dhanushkodi clearly establishes the authenticity
of the reference to Nala Setu in the Mahabharata (another name for
Rama Setu, Nala being the architect, son of Vis’wakarma who built the
‘nalan’
bridge). On this bridge, the bridge is clearly named
Vedavyasa refers to Nalasetu: nalasetur iti khyāto yo 'dyāpi prathito
bhuvi rāmasyājñāṃ puraskṛtya dhāryate girisaṃnibhaḥ MBh. 3.267.45
.... which even today, popular on earth as Nala's bridge, mountain-
like, is sustained out of respect for [Lord] Rama's command. (Nala was
son of Vis’wakarma) Kalidasa's Raghuvams’a (sarga 13): Rama, while
returning from SriLanka in pushpaka vimaana: quot;Behold, Sita, My
Sethu of mountains dividing this frothy ocean is like the milky way
dividing the sky into two parts.quot;
Kaart van het gedeelte van Mantotte en Nanatan te Ceylon, deel F
18

19. -
1700-1800
tekening
ingekleurde
tekening
84,5 x 114 cm
van 500
Rijnlandse roeden = 158 strepen; omgerekende schaal [1 : 11.917]
-
voc
plattegrond /
kaart, landerij / plantage
-
-
Titel catalogus Leupe (NA): <Kaart van het gedeelte van Mantotte en
Nanatan, dat uyt de Reuse tank bewaterd kunnen werden>.
Bijzonderheden: de kaart is in 6 stukken gesneden (3 x 2), dit is stuk
2. De schaal voor de gehele kaart staat op stuk 3.
www.atlasofmutualheritage.nl/preview/vel0934f.jpg
http://www.atlasofmutualheritage.nl/detail.aspx?page=dafb&lang=nl&id=3151
19

20. Annex 5. Numismatic evidence for Setu: Pre-modern
coinage of Srilanka (Ceylon)
Setu is a word inscribed on some coins, clearly indicating that the ruler was expected
to safeguard the setu ‘Rama’s bridge’.
Traditional design of Lanka standing King Type copper massa of the Jaffna Arya
Chakravartis circ 1284-1410, of Codrington SETU type I (1)
SPECIFICATIONS
One
Denomination
massa
Alloy Copper
Type Struck
Diameter 18.2 mm
Thickness mm
Weight 4.0 gms
Shape Round
Edge Plain
DieAxis O°
Codrington 88 ;Mitchiner #860
Obverse : Standing king with hanging Lamp or trident on left and group of spheres
on right, surmounted by crescent.
Reverse : Seated king on left facing right with Tamil legend SETU vertically below
his arm.
Setu coins were previously atributed to the Setupati princes of Ranmnad. Codrington
attributes them strongly to the Jaffna Arya Chakravartis. This type I(1) is allied to
the late Chola copper coin with Tamil Setu being substituted for the Nagari
Sri Rajaraja
See also other SETU type I (3) coin and later during decline of kingdom - 1462-1597
- type II (6) coin.
Text edited from
* Ceylon Coins and Currency: H. W. Codrington, Colombo, 1924.
Chapter VI Medieval Lanka - quot;Setuquot; Coins - Type I(1), Page 75
* Oriental Coins: Michael Mitchiner, London, Hawkins Publications, 1978.
The coin was scanned at 600dpi and displayed at 300dpi. It was obtained in 2000
August from Rajah Wickremesinhe an Author and collector in Colombo, Lanka.
http://lakdiva.org/coins/medievalindian/setu_I-1_massa_cu.html Traditional design
of Lanka standing King Type copper massa of the Jaffna Arya Chakravartis circ 1462-
20

21. 1597, of Codrington SETU type II(6)(iii)variant a debased Type with several
variations indicative of the decline of the kingdom.
SPECIFICATIONS
Denomination One massa
Alloy Copper
Type Struck
Diameter 19.0 mm
Thickness mm
Weight 4.03 gms
Shape Round
Edge Plain
DieAxis O°
Codrington 95 ;Mitchiner #868
Obverse : Standing king with crown consisting three dots, line and dot ; body broad,
arms raised. Below body a line following the contour at each end of which is a dot.
Below and separated from this line hangs the Dhoti To the left two semicircles with
dot above each disposed virtically ; to right lamp, the stem of which consists of a
large ball between two smaller balls, and the head of a horizontal line curved
upwards at either end enclosing a flame. On either side of figure two dots. All within
cicle of dashes.
Reverse : Bull couchant facing left. Crescent and sun above. Tamil legend SETU
below ; large kombu. To right and left of bull a group of three dots.
See also earlier SETU - 1284-1410 - type I (1) coin and type I (3) coin.
Text edited from
* Ceylon Coins and Currency: H. W. Codrington, Colombo, 1924.
Chapter VI Mediaeval Lanka - quot;Setuquot; Coins - Type II(3)(iii)-Varient, Page 77
* Oriental Coins: Michael Mitchiner, London, Hawkins Publications, 1978.
The coin was scanned at 300dpi and displayed at 300dpi. It was obtained in 2001
December from O. M. R. Sirisena an expert collector in Colombo, Lanka.
http://lakdiva.org/coins/medievalindian/setu_II-6_massa_cu.html
Sethu Bull coins
In the book, ‘Yaalpana Iraachchiyam’ (1992), Prof. S. Pathamanathan in his
article on ‘Coins’ notes:
21

22. Early kings of Jaffna, sometimes referred to as Ariyacakravarti, used names such as
Segarajasekaran and Pararajasekaran, and used the epithets Singaiyariyan (Lord of
Singaingar, the earlier capital of the Kingdom of Jaffna), Setukavalan (Guardian of
Setu or Rameshavaram) and Gangainadan (belonging to the country of the Ganga).
Their emblems were a recumbent bull -nanthi-, a Saiva symbol, and the expression
Setu, indicating the place of their origin, Rameshvaram. The term setu was also used
as an expression of benediction. http://www.rootsweb.com/~lkawgw/jaffna.html
Several types of coins categorised as Sethu Bull coins are found in large quantities in
the northern part of Sri Lanka. Three types of this series are illustrated below. The
obverse of these coins have a human figure flanked by lamps and the reverse has
the Nandi (bull) symbol, the legend Sethu in Tamil with a crescent moon above. The
obverse is similar to the contemporary Massa coins issued by the Kalinga and
Pandyan rulers of the central Sri Lankan kingdom of Dambadeniya. The reverse of
the Massa coins have the image of a seated man with the ruler's name such as
Vijayabahu, Nissankamalla, Parakramabahu etc in Devanagari characters.
The reverse of the
The reverse of the Setu coin
A Setu coin A Setu Bull coin
Setu Bull coin
The reverse of the Setu Bull
A Setu Bull coin
coin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaffna_Coinage
22

23. Annex 6: Evidence for concerns expressed during the British
Rule for the archaeological importance of Rama Setu
23

24. 24

25. 25

26. Annex 7: Textual evidences for Rama’s bridge or
Setubandha
Marco Polo, 1854, The travels of Marco Polo, the Venetian: the translation of
Marsden revised…, H.G. Bohn, p.380, foot note 3. (Title of the Marsden’s edition
was: “The travels of Marco Polo, a Venetian, in the thirteenth century; being a
description, by that early traveler, of remarkable places and kings in the eastern
parts of the world. Translated from the Italian, with notes, by William Marsden, FRS,
London…”
Rama’s bridge is also called Setu-bandha is clear from the reference to Setabund-
Rameswara in the following account of the formation of the bridge:
Thomas Horsfield, 1851, A catalogue of the mammalian in the Museum of the Hon.
East-India Company, East India Company Museum, p.5
26

27. That Rama’s bridge was used as a reference point to define the expanse of Bharatam
(as in the log Aasetu Himachalam used by Survey of India) is clear from the
following quote:
William Jones, 1801, Discourses delivered before the Asiatic society, p. 29; also
mirrored at: Asiatick Researches: Or, transactions of the society instituted in Bengal,
for inquiring into…, Calcutta, Asiatic Society, p. 423
Arnold Hermann, 1833, Historical researches into the politics, intercourse, and trade
of the principal nations of antiquity, Translated from the German, Oxford University,
p.89
William Yates, 1846, A dictionary of Sanscrit and English, designed for the use of
private students and of Indian colleges and schools, Baptist Mission Press, p.821
The entry, samudraaru or samudraarah is given the meaing: Rama’s bridge.
27

28. William Fordyce Mavor, 1807, Universal history, ancient and modern, Oxford
University,
p.216
A.J. Valpay, 1825, The Classic Journal, Vol. XXXI, Cl.Jl., No. LXII, Oxford, p.26
Charles O’Conor, British Museum, Earl of Bertram Ashburnham, 1819, J. Seeley,
p.107
Clements Robert Markham, 1862, Travels in Peru and India: While superintending
the collection of chinchona plants and seeds in…, J. Murray, p.423
28

29. Charlotte Speir Manning, George Scharf, 1856, Life in Ancient India, Oxford
University, p. 117:
Lodovico de Varthema, George Percy Badger, John Winter Jones, 1863, The travels
of Ludovico di Varthema in Egypt, Syria, Arabia Deserta and Arabia Felix, in Persia,
India…, Published for the Hakluyt Society, (Translated from the original Italian
edition), p.185
29

30. Annex 8: Evidence for objections raised against the
Project alignment as early as September 2005
30

31. 31

32. 32

33. 33

34. 34

35. Annex 9: Possibility of restoring the land-link
between Bharatam and Srilanka restoring the
Rama’s Bridge or Rama Setu
35

36. 36

37. Annex 10: Setu Channel passage: 34 Lankan experts
call it eco disaster
Sunday Times, Colombo, May 20, 2007
Sethusamudram project: Verdict of experts handed over to Cabinet
The report of an expert group set up by the Government to study the implications of
the Sethusamudram Ship Canal Project (SSCP), was handed over to the Cabinet last
Wednesday.
The inter-ministerial committee which appointed the expert group will now study the
report and decide on how best to address Sri lanka's concern regarding the project,
Science and Technology Minister Tisssa Vitarana who is a member of the ministerial
committee said.
The expert committee headed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Education
Ariyaratna Hewage handed over its report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs late last
month and it was presented to Cabinet on Wednesday.
The expert committee consisted of people drawn from various areas relating to
marine science as well as a representative of the Sri Lanka Navy. One of the main
concerns of the committee was the adverse environment impact the project could
have on Sri lanka.
The Sethusamuduram project involved linking the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar
to the east coast of India by creating a shipping canal through Rameswaram Island,
providing a continuous navigable sea route around the Indian peninsula within
India's territorial waters.
The ministerial committee headed by the Foreign Minister includes the Ministers of
Environment and Natural resources, Ports and Aviation, Fisheries and Aquatic
Resources, Defence and Science and Technology.
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/070520/News/nws11.html
Controversial Sethusamudram canal dredging project
Lankan experts caution against eco disasters
By Ravi Ladduwahetty
http://www.nation.lk/2007/04/22/lankan.jpg
An eminent 34- member advisory group of Sri Lankan professionals have cautioned
that the Sethusamudram canal dredging project could have disastrous environment
impacts, particularly, maritime environment, for Sri Lanka.
What is most disconcerting is the absence of any response from the Indian
Government to the Lankan concerns.
37

38. The Group, after a year's study, submitted their report to Foreign Secretary Dr.
Palitha Kohona, earlier this month.
The Experts Group comprised Secretary, Education Ministry Ariyaratne Hewage -
Chairman, Peradeniya University Professor of Geography Shantha Hennayake -
Deputy Chairman, Special Advisor, Technical Planning & Development, Sri Lanka
Ports Authority, Prasanna Weerasinghe and Systems Advisor, Sethusamudram Ship
Canal Project (SSCP), Tikiri Jayatilleke.
The Advisory Group was supported by sub committees from the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs headed by Assistant Director Sugeesawara Gunatunga, on hydrodynamic
modeling headed by Moratuwa University's Prof of Coastal Engineering Samantha
Hettiarachchi, on Environmental Measures for Sustainability headed by the Director,
Institute of Technological Studies, Dr Aziz Mubarak, including IUCN Ecologist Dr.
Channa Bambaradeniya and Head of Oceanography, NARA, K. Arulananthan, on
Fisheries Resources & Livelihood, headed by Head of Marine Biological Resources,
NARA, Dr Champa Amarasiri and on Navigational Emergencies headed by
Commander Y.N. Jayaratne, Sri Lanka Navy.
The primary concern for Sri Lanka is that the initial dredging, the infinite
maintenance dredging and subsequent shipping through the channel, could have
negative impacts on Sri Lanka's maritime and environment resources, sources in the
Advisory Group told The Nation yesterday.
Another major Sri Lankan concern which also relates to environment resources, is
that the Indian studies have not taken into account the single environment impact on
the Sri Lankan side of the international boundary, they said.
The Advisory Group is of the view that, despite the SSCP being located only one mile
away from the Indian side of the maritime boundary, the impact is unlikely to remain
only on the Indian side and that, Sri Lanka's concerns have become even more
significant, in the light of insufficient attention paid to minimise the environmental
aspects on the Lankan side of the boundary.
The Advisory Group has also noted that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
carried out by India is inadequate for a number of reasons.
The Nation in its edition of January 7, 2007, exclusively reported that, despite the
Indian assertion (Commercial Counsellor, Indian High Commission, Colombo, Sanjay
Sudhir refers) that it has shared the Ahamedabad based Indian National
Environment & Ecological Research Institute (NEERI) report with Sri Lanka, is
insufficient justification to prove that there will be no adverse impact on the
environment. Simply because, the NEERI report by itself, was flawed and was
sufficient legal justification to put the entire NEERI repot into scientific question.
For example, the NEERI report is yet to explain the sedimentation issue, silting
possibilities and underwater ocean currents, when the canal is constructed.
According to Sudharshan Rodriguez, a Chennai based conservation analyst, the EIA
report furnished by NEERI, has used secondary data going back to 1976. quot;Hence,
how can a project, which will pass through a biological hot spot, with so many likely
impacts, be assessed on the basis of secondary data?quot; is the next most logical
question.
38

39. The Convenor, Indian Coastal Action Network, Ossie Fernandez has alleged that the
NEERI EIA report is also a re-hash of the preliminary report and that, many activists
and professionals are querying the data sources, including the bio diversity readings.
Furthermore, there would be increased turbidity, which has never been studied by
NEERI, which has neither studied the possibility of a tsunami through the canal water
flow, due to the deep water channel linking the Indian Ocean and the Bay of Bengal.
The United Nations Law of the Sea mandates that neighbouring States need to be
consulted and sufficient safeguards and guarantees provided.
Fishery resources
There is also concern of the lack of concern on the Indian side, of the unique,
biologically rich resource areas linking two Marine Eco systems in the Gulf of Mannar
and the Palk Bay. Unless accurate forecasts are made of the mitigation effects, it
could eventually destroy this fragile marine eco system. This is all the more
significant in the light of the Northern and North western communities in Sri Lanka
being heavily dependent on the fisheries resources of this area.
The concerns that Sri Lanka has expressed are protecting the endangered species,
protecting the fisheries resources, the coastal and maritime eco diversity system,
integrity of the eco system in the seas around the island and immediate and long-
term ecological stability.
According to research done in Jaffna, by Sri Lanka born Monash University's
Professor of Systems Ecology and UNDP Consultant Prof. Ranil Senanayake, fresh
water fish such as Dandiya (Rasbora Daniconius), Tittaya (Amblypharygnodon
Melenittus) and Amblypharygnodon Melenittus, migrate down towards underground
caverns and chambers, during dry weather and surface when it rains. This also
demonstrates the existence of massive underground freshwater caves off Jaffna,
with which the salt water of the Palk Straits would mix, if the dredging continues.
This is a shallow area which is highly productive, biologically. As a consequence to
the dredging, rare species of mammals, dugongs and fish and invertebrates such as
the guitar shark and cone shells would become extinct. One cone shell (Conus
Zonatus and Conus Gloria Maris) is worth around US$ 3,500 apiece.
Dredging will also reduce the photosynthetic rate, resulting in the collapse of the
fishing industry.
Ecological and archaeological concerns
Among a host of serious problems, one major issue is that the canal is to be dug
through vesicular limestone, which is a formation of limestone, consequent to the
myocene sea encroaching upon parts of Northern Sri Lanka and Southern India. This
entails Mannar and Jaffna on the Sri Lankan side and Tuticorin and Rameswaran on
the Indian side, which means that the groundwater on both sides of the channel,
would be affected.
39

40. It is also salient that no maritime archaeology has been conducted on this site.
Scientific evidence, in a paper presented by Prof. Senanayake, indicates that 13,000-
years ago, the area around the Kalpitiya lagoon, up to Mannar, was forested. Even
today, stumps of old trees are found underwater.
There are innumerable stories in Sinhala history, regarding noblemen and royalty
living underwater.
Navigational Emergencies
Sri Lanka has proposed that a plan to ensure vessels that cause pollution and oil
spillage are identified and necessary compensation mechanisms put in place, is
established. Sri Lanka should, invariably, be involved in the preparation of
contingency plans for oil spills, including modalities to work out the cost of marine
pollution and other navigational emergencies and how they be met.
Recommendations
Sri Lanka has also proposed the sharing of information on existing studies and
collaboration on further studies and assessments and the setting up of a common
database. Also that a Joint Environment Management Plan for impact assessment
and monitoring of the project area be established.
Both Sri Lanka and India will be tremendously benefited if the recommendations are
implemented to minimize the adverse environmental impacts of the SSCP, the
Advisory Group has pointed out.
http://www.nation.lk/2007/04/22/newsfe3.htm
Setu Channel passage: 34 Lankan experts call it eco disaster
Sunday Times, Colombo, May 20, 2007
Sethusamudram project: Verdict of experts handed over to Cabinet
The report of an expert group set up by the Government to study the implications of
the Sethusamudram Ship Canal Project (SSCP), was handed over to the Cabinet last
Wednesday.
The inter-ministerial committee which appointed the expert group will now study the
report and decide on how best to address Sri lanka's concern regarding the project,
Science and Technology Minister Tisssa Vitarana who is a member of the ministerial
committee said.
The expert committee headed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Education
Ariyaratna Hewage handed over its report to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs late last
month and it was presented to Cabinet on Wednesday.
The expert committee consisted of people drawn from various areas relating to
marine science as well as a representative of the Sri Lanka Navy. One of the main
40

41. concerns of the committee was the adverse environment impact the project could
have on Sri lanka.
The Sethusamuduram project involved linking the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar
to the east coast of India by creating a shipping canal through Rameswaram Island,
providing a continuous navigable sea route around the Indian peninsula within
India's territorial waters.
The ministerial committee headed by the Foreign Minister includes the Ministers of
Environment and Natural resources, Ports and Aviation, Fisheries and Aquatic
Resources, Defence and Science and Technology.
http://www.sundaytimes.lk/070520/News/nws11.html
41

42. Annex 11: Historic Waters Agreement between India
and Sri Lanka
The Governments of the Republic of India and the Republic of Sri Lanka agreed on
June 26-28, 1974, to delimitation of a boundary through the quot;historic watersquot; of Palk
Bay. The agreement, which came into force on July 8, 1974, has been printed in the
Government of India's Notice to Mariners, Edition No. 9, Notices 133 to 156, April 15,
1975. The full text of the agreement is as follows:
AGREEMENT BETWEEN INDIA AND SRI LANKA ON THE BOUNDARY IN
HISTORIC WATERS BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES AND RELATED MATTERS
The Government of the Republic of India and the government of the Republic of Sri
Lanka, Desiring to determine the boundary line in the historic waters between India
and Sri Lanka and to settle the related matters in a manner which is fair and
equitable to both sides, Having examined the entire question from all angles and
taken into account the historical and other evidence and legal aspects thereof,
Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1
The boundary between India and Sri Lanka in the waters from Adam's Bridge to Palk
Strait shall be arcs of Great Circles between the following positions, in the sequence
given below, defined by latitude and longitude. Position 1: 10° 05' North, 80° 03'
East Position 2: 09° 57' North, 79° 35' East Position 3: 09° 40'.15 North, 79° 22'.60
East Position 4: 09° 21'.80 North, 79° 30'.70 East Position 5: 09° 13' North, 79° 32'
East Position 6: 09° 06' North, 79° 32' East
ARTICLE 2
The coordinates of the positions specified in Article 1 are geographical coordinates
and the straight lines connecting them are indicated in the chart annexed hereto
which has been signed by the surveyors authorized by the two Governments,
respectively…
ARTICLE 5
Subject to the foregoing, Indian fishermen and pilgrims will enjoy access to visit
Kachchativu as hitherto, and will not be required by Sri Lanka to obtain travel
documents or visas for these purposes.
ARTICLE 6
The vessels of India and Sri Lanka will enjoy in each other's waters such rights as
they have traditionally enjoyed therein…
ARTICLE 8
This Agreement shall be subject to ratification. It shall enter into force on the date of
exchange of the instruments of ratification which will take place as soon as possible.
FOR THE GOVERNMENT FOR THE GOVERNMENT
OF THE REPUBLIC OF OF THE REPUBLIC OF
42

43. INDIA SRI LANKA
Sd/- Indira Gandhi Sd/- Sirimavo R.D. Bandaranaike
New Delhi 26 6.74 Colombo 28.6.74
…Note…Palk Bay, an inlet of the Bay of Bengal, is bordered by the Indian peninsula
on the west, the - 4 island chain of Adams Bridge on the south, and the island of
Ceylon on the east. The principal access to the Bay of Bengal is through Palk Strait,
north of Sri Lanka. The bay measures approximately 74 nautical miles along its
north-south axis and 76 nautical miles on the major east-west axis. Many islands are
situated within the eastern quandrant of the bay. However, the dimensions preclude
the inclusion of all waters within claimed 12-mile territorial seas measured from the
baselines of the two states.
The question of historicity of Palk Bay was resolved by the decision rendered in the
Annakumaru Pillai v. Muthupayal case, heard in the Appellate Criminal Division of the
Indian High Court in Madras in 1903-04. At this time, both Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and
India were under various forms of U.K. administration. The suit involved rights to
chank beds and pearl grounds in Palk Bay and the adjacent Gulf of Mannar (Manaar).
According to the decision, Palk Bay was quot;landlocked by His Majesty's dominions for
eight-ninths of its circumference ... [and] effectively occupied for centuries by the
inhabitants of the adjacent districts of India and Ceylon respectively.quot;
The Court added that quot;[w]e do not think that Palk's Bay can be regarded as being in
any sense the open sea and therefore outside the territorial jurisdiction of His
Majesty.quot; Further, British occupation had, according to the Court, received quot;the
acquiescence of other nations.quot;
Although the current boundary agreement concerns only Palk Bay, the Gulf of
Mannar was also deemed by the decision to be an quot;historic bay.quot;…
III. SUMMARY
The delimitation reflects a selective, i.e. modified, application of the principle of
equidistance. As noted, the maritime boundary divides the historic waters and the
seabed of Palk Bay. Traditional fishing rights of both parties, however, are preserved.
The boundary agreement further serves to settle peacefully the Kachchitivu island
dispute and to delimit the India-Sri Lanka boundary in the Adams Bridge region. - 6
It is understood that further negotiations between the two States have begun to
extend the maritime boundary eastward into the Bay of Bengal and southward
through the Gulf of Mannar. The waters of the latter are also deemed to be quot;historicquot;
by India and Sri Lanka.
43

44. 44

45. Source: Limits in the Seas, No. 66, Historic Waters Boundary: India-Sri Lanka, Dec.
12, 1975 http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/61460.pdf
45

46. Annex 12: Sethusamudram shipping canal project
and the eternal silence of the Indian earth scientists
(CP Rajendran)
Sethusamudram shipping canal project and the eternal
silence of the Indian earth scientists
C. P. RAJENDRAN
Centre for Earth Science Studies,
Akkulam,
Thiruvananthapuram 695 031, India
e-mail: cp_r@vsnl.com
CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 89, NO. 2, 25 JULY 2005
The controversial Sethusamudram project excavating the 56-km-long shallow sea
between the Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar and creating a narrow shipping passage linking
the east and west coasts of India received a formal go-ahead signal from the Union
Cabinet recently, according to press reports. This project (estimated to cost currently Rs
2233 crores) has been under fire for being unmindful of possible environmental impact.
A note, critical of this project, by Ramesh (incidentally a medical practitioner, not a
geologist or oceanographer) was published in Current Science (Ref.1). The major
scientific objections raised by him regarding this project are: (a) The National
Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nagpur, which had been entrusted with
the environmental impact assessment (EIA), has not taken recent studies on the
sedimentation dynamics of the project area into consideration; therefore their conclusions
are questionable. (b) The impact assessment studies have neglected the role of cyclones
(not to speak of the rare incidences of tsunamis) in dispersing the dredged material, a
major risk factor of the region. (c) The EIA has only looked at the sedimentation
dynamics of a small area, but ignored the adjacent portions, including the Palk Bay strait
- an area noted for unusually high sedimentation rate. (d) The nature of the substratum of
the region is not known: is it soft or hard? This information is important to decide on
whether to dredge or blast the sea bottom and to plan for safe disposal of the dredged
material. (e) The EIA study is ambivalent in identifying sites for safe disposal of dredged
material, without creating an environmental mess for the organisms living in the sea (Sri
Lanka has a major stake here). (f) The impact of changed bottom topography as a result
of dredging or blasting on the movement of currents is not known. Ironically, the medical
practitioner who is affiliated to an NGO has registered all the afore mentioned objections
46

47. (see his full report in http://www.geocities.com/sethuship canal), and I am yet to see any
geologist or oceanographer raising any concern on this project.
Personally, I believe all the objections raised remain valid unless and until these issues
are resolved by an independent group of experts. Have we considered other dangers, for
example, the prospect of grounding or straying, from the canal alignment, of a rogue ship
containing coal or oil or even a collision of such ships, and the ensuing ecological
disaster? On the other hand, if ships are going to be guided by tugs, there will certainly be
a huge toll that would work out to be more expensive than sailing around Sri Lanka (see
Ramakrishnan, K. S., The Hindu, 21 December 2004). Finally, only the Indian Navy will
essentially use this route! Another issue is whether we have worked out a realistic cost-
benefit analysis of this project? In a recent statement, the Union Minister for Shipping,
Ports and Highways mentions that this canal will have a 'dissipating effect' on tsunamis,
if they strike the east coast (The Hindu, 6 June 2005). He further states that the Ministry
is now ready with scientific data to answer any questions on this project (including a
tsunami model of deep seawave propagation in a post-project scenario).
I am curious to know how our scientists (not the ones who are doing EIA for the
sponsors) respond to such projects, which obviously require an interdisciplinary
approach. What is appalling is the complete silence from the earth sciences community of
the country. I think here we have an excellent geological problem and an area where we
can effectively intervene. Are we to leave all these important decisions to some
influential bureaucrats and politicians who are clever enough to hide under some
technicalities and poorly whetted reports? What about the national academies and other
professional bodies of Indian scientists?Are they not supposed to take their positions on
such important issues based on considered opinions of independent experts; in this case,
particularly from the earth scientists? Sethusamudram, as the name suggests, is part of an
ocean that is being constantly bridged by natural sedimentation processes, and nature has
been at this work for hundreds of thousands of years. I am sure, going by the rates of
sediment build-up, in hundred of years there would be a land bridge connecting
Rameswaram with Sri Lanka. Why disturb this process for questionable purposes? The
technical, scientific and economic credibility of this project must be convincing and it
should not be another disaster in the making. The concerned Ministry and institutes must
present their results in an open forum consisting of both national and international experts
on such matters as well as other concerned persons and stakeholders.
Reference:
1. Ramesh, R., Curr. Sci., 2005, 88, 536-537.
Note:
47

48. The views expressed here are my own and not necessarily of the institute that I am
affiliated to.
http://www.sethusamudram.in/htmdocs/Articles/cp_
rajendran1.htm
48

49. Annex 13: Reports on the Press meet held by Min. of
Science and Technology on June 2, 2007 in New
Delhi offering samples for testing
Anyone can test Sethu rocks: UPA
New Delhi, DH News Service:
Anybody can (take) samples from that area and test it to find out its age.
We will happily provide the samples, Union Science Minister Kapil Sibal said
without taking anybodys name.
Countering BJP’s objections to the ambitious Sethusamudram project that seeks to
connect India and Sri Lanka through a shorter sea route, the UPA government on
Monday has asked “anybody” to test the rock samples from the Adam’s Bridge for
settling the antiquity issues.
“Anybody can (take) samples from that area and test it to find out its age. We will
happily provide the samples,” Union Science Minister Kapil Sibal said without taking
anybody’s name.
Not objecting to the Rs 2,233 crore project directly, the former BJP president Dr
Murli Manohar Joshi had demanded protection of the mythological Ram Sethu (may
be the Adam’s Bridge).
After visiting the area almost three months back, the former science and
technology minister had raised the issue in the Parliament.
However, scientists say even carbon dating of the rocks will not help in finding out
the antiquity of the bridge as there were too many natural upheavals and churning in
that area to arrive at any conclusion.
“So parameters are missing to determine whether the bridge was actually
constructed during the Ramayana period. It is worse than finding out a needle in the
haystack,” said a scientist from the department of science and technology.
Ecological concern
Clarifying the ecological concerns raised by environmentalists, N K Raghupathy,
chairman and managing director of Tuticorin Port Trust(TPT) said, the proposed
channel completely bypass the biosphere reserves in the Gulf of Mannar. The nearest
island in the gulf, Shingle, is 20 km away. TPT is the implementing agency for the
project.
The dredging work is being carried out along the 34 km stretch in Palk Bay and in
another 54 km at the other end of the channel.
There will be no dredging anywhere close to the Gulf of Mannar which is also
India’s largest marine biodiversity park.
49

50. http://www.deccanherald.com/Content/Jun32007/national200706025323.
asp
Ram Sethu: Centre offers samples
Pioneer News Service | New Delhi (June 3, 2007)
In the midst of strong demands raised by the BJP to safeguard the so-called Ram
Sethu, the Centre on Saturday offered to provide rock and soil samples from the
Adam's Bridge region of the controversial Sethusamdram project for carrying out
scientific tests.
quot;There is an open offer. We will provide samples collected from the area to persons
wanting to carry out tests independently,quot; Minister of Earth Sciences Kapil Sibal told
reporters.
Sibal said the present alignment of the Sethusamudram project has been arrived at
after detailed scientific and environmental tests. quot;The present alignment is the best
we can have,quot; he said.
Sibal said utmost care has been taken to in the planning and execution of the project
to ensure the least impact on the coasts of India and Sri Lanka.
quot;The Sethusamudram Ship Channel is located at a distance of more than 20 Km from
Shingle Island of Gulf of Mannar near Dhanuskodi,quot; NK Raghupathy, Chairman and
Managing Director of Sethusamudram Corporation Limited said making a
presentation on the project here. The total length of the channel is 167 km, 12m
deep and 300 meters wide at the bottom.
Raghupathy, who also heads the Tuticorin Port Trust, said the project managers will
not use blasting technology for dredging activity along the entire length of the
project.
He said there will be a restriction on the size of ships passing through the channel.
The BJP has all long demanded a change of alignment for the canal to prevent
destruction of the Ram Sethu while the Government has claimed that the bridge was
only a series of sand shoals created by sedimentation and there was no evidence of
any manmade structure.
http://dailypioneer.com/indexn12.asp?main_variable=NATION&file_name=nt1%2Etx
t&counter_img=1
Sethu samples for independent tests
New Delhi, Jun 2: Centre today made an open offer to provide rock and soil samples
from the Adam's Bridge region of the controversial Sethusamdram project for
carrying out scientific tests.
quot;There is an open offer. We will provide samples collected from the area to persons
wanting to carry out tests independently,quot; Minister of Earth Sciences Kapil Sibal told
reporters.
50

51. Sibal said the present alignment of the Sethusamudram project has been arrived at
after detailed scientific and environmental tests.
quot;The present alignment is the best we can have,quot; he said.
Sibal said utmost care has been taken to in the planning and execution of the project
to ensure the least impact on the coasts of India and Sri Lanka.
quot;The Sethusamudram Ship Channel is located at a distance of more than 20 Km from
Shingle Island of Gulf of Mannar near Dhanuskodi,quot; N K Raghupathy, Chairman and
Managing Director of Sethusamudram Corporation Limited said making a
presentation on the project here.
The total length of the channel is 167 km, 12m deep and 300 meters wide at the
bottom.
Raghupathy, who also heads the Tuticorin Port Trust, said the project managers will
not use blasting technology for dredging activity along the entire length of the
project.
He said there will be a restriction on the size of ships passing through the channel.
(Agencies)
http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?NEWSID=%7B538DFCAA-
C6BB-4C4E-B52B-4D7274791201%7D&CATEGORYNAME=TAMNA
Sethusamudram project is based on scientific studies: Sibal
From our ANI Correspondent
New Delhi, June 2: Union Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal said here
today that the Sethusamundram Ship Canal Project (SSCP) across Palk Bay got its
final nod only after careful scientific studies.
The project was cleared only after taking into consideration the facts received from
the bio-diversity and the fragile eco-system of the area falling between Palk Bay and
the Palk Strait, Sibal told reporters here.
He added that the Indo-Lankan Maritime interests between Point Calliner and Jaffna
were taken into account before giving the final nod for the project.
The Centre has no intention of hurting the sentiments of any community, Sibal said.
On May 16, the Lok Sabha was adjourned after Bharatiya Janata Party MPs raised a
furore over the construction of the project.
BJP MPs and the Vishva Hindu Parishad are demanding that project must be
scrapped, as it would destroy the mythological bridge built by Lord Rama of
Ayodhya.
The Sethusamundram proposes the linking of the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar
between India and Sri Lanka by creating a shipping canal through the shallow sea.
51

52. This would provide a continuous navigable sea route around the Indian Peninsula.
The project involves digging a 44.9 nautical mile (83 km) long deepwater channel
linking the shallow water of the Palk Strait with the Gulf of Mannar. Conceived as
early as 1860 by Alfred Dundas Taylor, it recently received approval of the
Government of India.
http://www.dailyindia.com/show/146256.php/Sethusamudram-project-is-based-on-
scientific-studies:-Sibal
52