Uma Bharti on fast over Sethusamudram project

Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh), July 25: Bharatiya Janshakti Party President Uma Bharti has begun a week-long fast to protest against the 'Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project' (SSCP) that would link the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

Several Hindu leaders believe the project would end up demolishing a mythological bridge linking India and Sri Lanka. Legend has it that the 'Ram-Sethu', a 48-kilometer chain of limestone shoals, was created by Lord Ram, the King of Ayodhya.

Bharati said her fast was aimed at saving the mythological bridge and awaken Hindu society.

Meanwhile, supporters of Bharati have started a walkathon from Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu to Ayodhya.

According to the Central Government, research has shown that the Ram Setu was a series of sand shoals created through sedimentation.

Work on the project, first proposed almost a century ago, was started in 2005.

The 560 million dollar project will se the dredging of a channel in the shallow portion of the sea off the southern tip of India, so that vessels of up to 30,000 tons, including Indian Navy patrol vessels, do not have to circumnavigate Sri Lanka.

It would reduce sailing time between India's east and west coasts, and could trigger development of ports in the region.

Once finished, freighters sailing from one side of India to the other will no longer have to detour south around the bottom of Sri Lanka, saving up to 730 km and 36 hours of travel.

Environmentalists have warned that the project could have disastrous consequences for Sri Lanka's marine and coastal ecosystems.

The Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, T.R. Baalu, recently told the Rajya Sabha that as per the Detailed Project Report (DPR), the project is scheduled to be completed by November 2008.

There is no scientific evidence regarding the existence of any ancient man-made structure in the proposed Sethusamudram Ship Channel alignment. As per the information available, no heritage site has been declared in the project area, Baalu added.

ANI

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