Rameswaram

Rameswaram (IPA: [ɾaːmeːsʋaɾam]; also transliterated as Ramesvaram, Rameshwaram) is a town in the Ramanathapuram district of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is situated on the Pamban Island, separated from mainland India by the Pamban channel and is about 40 kilometres (25 mi) from Mannar Island, Sri Lanka, across the Gulf of Mannar. Rameswaram has been administered by a municipal body since 1994. It covers 53 km² and hosts a population of 44,856 as per the 2011 Census of India. Tourism and fishing are the primary sources of employment for its residents. Rameswaram is the terminus of the railway line from Chennai and Madurai. It is one of the significant places in Hinduism—one of the four Hindu temples in the Char Dham pilgrimage tradition. According to the Hindu epic Ramayana, the deity Rama is believed to have built a bridge from the vicinity of Rameshwaram across the sea to Lanka to rescue his wife Sita from her abductor Ravana. The Ramanathaswamy Temple, dedicated to the Hindu deity Shiva, is at the centre of the town. The temple and the town are considered as holy pilgrimage sites for Shaiva and Vaishnava sects. Geological research suggested that the shoal chain Adam's Bridge, also known as Rama Sethu, was formerly a land connection between India and Sri Lanka. The Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project, the border disputes over Kachchatheevu, Sri Lankan Tamil refugees from the Sri Lankan Civil War and genocide, and the capturing of local fishermen for alleged cross-border activities by Sri Lankan Forces, are some of the major controveries related to Rameshwaram.