Ram Setu will not be damaged: Government to SC

New Delhi: The Centre on Friday informed the Supreme Court that the “Adams bridge” or “Ram Setu” will not be damaged “in the interest of the nation” for implementing the Sethusamudram ship channel project.

Ram Setu is a stretch of limestone shoals running from Pamban island near Rameswaran in South India to the Mannar island near the northern coast of Sri Lanka.

Acting on BJP leader Subramanian Swamy’s petition, the apex court in 2007 had restrained the Centre from cutting or damaging Ram Setu and had asked the government to explore alternative alignment.

Initially, the UPA government filed an affidavit stating that the “Ram Setu” has no religious sentiments attached to it as Lord Ram never existed and Ramayana was only a fiction. However, after widespread public protest the Centre withdrew its affidavit.

In the revised affidavit in 2013, the UPA government had said that considering the fact that Rs 766.82 crores had been spent on the project, it intended to pursue and implement it. The NDA government in Friday’s affidavit said that given the advantages of the project, the government intended to implement it and would explore alternative alignment to continue the project.