On a cloudy September morning, 5 childhood associates of their late 60s gathered at Nagapattinam port in Tamil Nadu, their laughter reducing by way of the ocean breeze. For over 4 a long time, they’d travelled throughout India collectively, however that day was completely different. They had been boarding the Nagapattinam-Kankesanthurai ferry between India and Sri Lanka for the primary time. When requested the aim of their go to, retired headmaster, C. Sugumaran, who was a part of the group, mentioned with a large grin, “Only for enjoyable.”
The ferry service had been restarted on October 14, 2023, after an almost 40-year hiatus. In video messages, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the then Sri Lankan President, Ranil Wickremesinghe, had hailed the diplomatic effort and highlighted the significance of launching the service between the 2 nations. Calling it a “new chapter in diplomatic and financial ties between India and Sri Lanka,” Modi mentioned that the service would assist strengthen cultural, industrial, and civilisational ties between between India and Sri Lanka. Wickremesinghe mentioned the ferry was an vital step in enhancing connectivity.
Nevertheless, authorities quickly suspended service after only a week, citing technical points and tough climate.
On August 16 this 12 months, service was resumed, with assist from the Exterior Affairs Ministry. The demand was initially low, forcing the operator to scale back frequency from seven days to a few days every week. When curiosity grew once more, the operator, IndSri Ferry Providers Non-public Restricted, added a fourth day. In latest weeks, there was an encouraging rise in occupancy, with a median of 80 passengers per journey. Ticketing businesses mentioned this was on account of optimistic suggestions, largely by word-of-mouth.
A ferry experience to a different nation
The ferry accommodates 165 passengers and crew and consists of 27 premium seats. The value of a ticket is ₹5,000 for financial system and ₹7,500 for premium. Passengers are allowed 23 kilogrammes of baggage at no cost. They’ll carry as much as 50 kg of baggage by paying ₹50 for each further kg. The ferry leaves Nagapattinam at 8 a.m. and reaches Kankesanthurai at midday. It leaves Sri Lanka at 2 p.m. and returns to India by 6 p.m.
The captain of the passenger ferry, Sivagangai, was J. Baskar. He defined that the vessel would function at 18 knots with strict anti-smuggling protocols and can be monitored by authorities from each nations all through the journey.
“Either side can examine the vessel at any time. It’s necessary for us to supply data on all facets of the journey, together with passenger numbers and nationalities, for transparency and safety,” Baskar mentioned. He added that the ferry was outfitted with life jackets, life rafts, and a rescue boat.
A bunch of 5 households within the ferry was excited to discover Sri Lanka’s cultural and historic ties with India. They aimed to go to locations linked to the Hindu epic, the Ramayana.
S. Shanthi, who was travelling together with her husband and son, was delighted. “We’re going to see the land the place Sita (from the Ramayana) was imprisoned,” she mentioned.
The identical day, R. Sugitha, a librarian from Jaffna within the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, used the ferry service to journey to Tamil Nadu. She mentioned it supplied a extra reasonably priced various to flying. “Travelling by air prices 60,000-70,000 Sri Lankan rupees (₹12,000-16,000), however the ferry is barely 31,000 rupees (₹8,600) to go throughout the Palk Strait and are available again,” she mentioned.
Throughout the journey, Sugitha and her fellow passengers fashioned a WhatsApp group known as ‘Ship Pals’. They promised to remain in contact after the journey ended.
Reflecting on her return from Sri Lanka, Shanthi mentioned, “We visited temples and noticed remnants of the conflict. However what stood out was the heat of the native Tamils who handled us not as guests, however as household.”
Whereas the passengers loved the experience, additionally they had options for enchancment. “Whereas a lot of the journeys are clean, tough seas can sometimes trigger bumpy rides. A bigger ferry might present a extra snug expertise in such circumstances,” famous a senior crew member.
Prabhakaran V., an environmental activist from Chennai, who was travelling together with his spouse, Akshaya, mentioned that the couple had initially deliberate to go to Sri Lanka for his or her honeymoon, however the delay in resuming the service had compelled them to delay their go to.
Passengers en path to Kankesanthurai, Sri Lanka, from Nagapattinam, India.
| Picture Credit score:
Nacchinarkkiniyan M.
“There could possibly be extra meals choices,” Prabhakaran complained, referring to the packets of instantaneous noodles and ready-to-eat meals that had been out there for buy within the ferry. “They may additionally supply higher facilities on the ports, a smoother connection to Jaffna, and a assist desk for the aged on the Kankesanthurai terminal.” Jaffna is positioned 21 kilometres from the port. As buses are uncommon, auto rickshaws are the one mode of transport to the capital metropolis of the Northern Province.
Many merchants mentioned that whereas the service is helpful, the luggage allowance could possibly be elevated to not less than 100 kg per passenger. F.A. Rohan, a dealer from Colombo, imports ready-made clothes from Tamil Nadu utilizing the ferry service. Regardless of the comparatively low fares for the ferry, Rohan mentioned that the margins in his commerce are skinny, and he must save as a lot on journey prices. “Extra baggage allowance would assist,” he mentioned.
Rohan additionally felt that the immigration course of in India was time-consuming and the officers unfriendly.
Historic connections
The hyperlinks between India and Sri Lanka are historic. Author and writer Ok. Sachithananthan famous that the Tamil textual content, Chola Mandala Sathagam, refers to a famine in Jaffna within the thirteenth century. “Sadayappa Vallal, the patron who supported Kambar in writing the Tamil epic Kambaramayanam, is claimed to have despatched a thousand boats of rice to the king of Nallur in Jaffna,” he mentioned.
Sachithananthan highlighted the flourishing tobacco commerce by way of the Kankesanthurai port, which thrived till the Nineteen Fifties, particularly with Kerala. The Jaffna Malayalam Tobacco Exporters Affiliation performed a key position on this commerce, he added.
R. Kulasingam, a Tamil author from Paruthithurai in Jaffna, defined the importance of the ports of the Northern Province, corresponding to Kankesanthurai, Oorkavalthurai, Paruthithurai, and Valvettithurai. His grandfather, a ‘Thangayal’ (sailor) on the Paruthithurai-Nagapattinam route, witnessed the area’s prosperity, he recalled. Nevertheless, former Sri Lankan Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike’s nationalisation efforts led to the shutdown of many operations, he mentioned.
Highlighting the area’s shipbuilding historical past, B. Meenakshi Sundaram, son of a shipbuilder from Valvettithurai in Jaffna, spoke of the prominence of those areas in producing expert sailors. His father constructed the ship, Parvatha Pathini, throughout British rule, which was later bought to Pakistan. Although smuggling elevated after the ports ceased functioning, Sundaram mentioned many sailors from these areas proceed to work globally, conserving the legacy of their craftsmanship alive.
The British, too, established formal transport hyperlinks between India and Sri Lanka. Within the late Eighteen Eighties, the Boat Mail Categorical linked Talaimannar and Rameswaram by way of a collaboration between the Sri Lankan and Indian Railways, permitting for seamless journey and the motion of products. Below British colonial rule, Indian Tamils, often known as ‘hill nation Tamils’, had been dropped at Sri Lanka to work in plantations and constructed a lot of the island nation’s early infrastructure. The ferry service was operational till 1964, when a cyclone worn out Dhanushkodi on the southern tip of Pamban island in Tamil Nadu, shifting the path to Rameswaram. The service continued till the Sri Lankan civil conflict in 1983 compelled its suspension. In 2011, an try was made to revive the Thoothukudi-Colombo ferry service, however it was short-lived.
S. Rathinamani Ammal, 88, from Matale within the Central Province of Sri Lanka, fondly recollected over a telephone name her journey on the ferry in 1965, from Talaimannar on the northwestern coast of Mannar Island to Rameswaram within the Ramanathapuram district of Tamil Nadu. She spent 10 days at her ancestral residence in Karaikudi and visited temples in Srirangam and Madurai.
“If the rice cooked at residence in Matale was packed in leaves, it will nonetheless be scorching after we landed in Rameswaram,” she mentioned. Ammal mentioned that her household would typically journey to India to handle their land and pray at temples.
Since then, there have been many efforts to renew the ferry service throughout the Palk Strait. S. Niranjan Nanthagopan, managing director of IndSri Ferry Providers, who has lengthy championed stronger India-Sri Lanka ties, was amongst these main the initiative. Throughout colonial rule, Nanthagopan’s ancestors operated ships between Jaffna and Vedaranyam city in Nagapattinam district, transporting passengers and items.
In accordance with him, tourism can reconnect the Tamils on each side of the Palk Strait and open up new alternatives. “Connectivity is the primary precedence,” Nanthagopan mentioned. “As soon as that’s established, different aspirations can comply with.”
Financial and strategic ties
Highlighting the necessity for stronger connectivity between India and Sri Lanka, Sai Murali S., the Consul Normal of India in Jaffna, defined that the Indian authorities has been overlaying a part of the prices of the ferry service. “The intention is to decrease consumer prices and strengthen bilateral ties,” he mentioned.
The Sri Lankan authorities plans to develop the Jaffna Worldwide Airport and introduce new routes to Tamil Nadu and diaspora hubs. Sai Murali mentioned that the Indian authorities would additionally bear a part of the prices of the growth of the airport. Because of the success of the Chennai-Jaffna route by air, there are actually IndiGo flights between India and Sri Lanka on daily basis.
“India may also be managing renovation prices at Kankesanthurai port; work is ready to start this 12 months,” he mentioned. “Prime Minister Modi’s imaginative and prescient consists of restoring the Talaimannar-Rameswaram route too. There are feasibility research beneath solution to reconstruct the traditional land bridge between Dhanushkodi and Talaimannar, with India overlaying a lot of the price.” Sai Murali added that discussions are additionally ongoing with extra ferry operators to pitch in and in addition to enhance the standard of service between Kankesanthurai and Nagapattinam. Passenger suggestions is predicted to assist the authorities resolve points.
Ok.D.S. Ruwanchandra, Secretary of Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Ports, Transport, and Aviation, acknowledged India’s very important position in enhancing connectivity. A bilateral committee oversees ferry operations, although challenges stay, particularly in securing vessels with cargo capability.
“We have now applied safety measures at Kankesanthurai port. Customs and immigration officers are working alongside Sri Lanka’s Ports Authority safety and Naval officers,” Ruwanchandra mentioned, stressing the significance of stopping unlawful actions.
A boon for the Tamil neighborhood
Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in India mentioned they like the ferry over flights because it has a bigger cargo capability. R. Manikandan, 25, was born within the Devakottai particular camp in Sivagangai district in Tamil Nadu as a refugee. He lately returned to Sri Lanka by the ferry and obtained citizenship for the primary time in his life. “I felt a deep connection. Every part appeared so close to, each bodily and emotionally,” he mentioned.
The ferry service has been hailed as a boon for the Tamil neighborhood. M. Piiratheepan, an Performing District Authorities Agent in Jaffna, highlighted the deep cultural and religious ties between India and Sri Lanka. He emphasised plans to create a tourist-friendly surroundings with correct services, together with data centres and assist for motels and guides.
R. Jeyasekaran, President of the Jaffna Chamber of Commerce, confused the necessity for enhancing the ferry service and introducing cargo companies. “India might provide 75% of our day by day wants, which would scale back our reliance on China,” he mentioned. Jeyasekaran defined {that a} 500-tonne cargo ship might decrease prices, develop Jaffna’s market, and cut back dependence on Colombo.
S. Narasimman from the India-ASEAN-Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce and Business, added, “We’re very watchful of the ferry growth. Whereas the present patronage seems to be low, the introduction of a cargo service within the close to future might actually seize our consideration.”
Scepticism and concern
Nevertheless, fisherfolk on each side had been sceptical that relations would enhance by way of the ferry service. Cautiously hopeful about future relations between the Tamil fishermen of Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu, N.V. Subamaniyam, former president of the Northern Province Fisher Individuals’s Unity, highlighted the affect that India’s backside trawlers had on Sri Lankan fishermen. “They lower our nets and take away our livelihoods,” he mentioned.
Subamaniyam recalled the time when the fisherfolk from each side would share meals and luxuriate in camaraderie at sea. “They might watch Tamil films like Pattikaattu Ponnaiya and Thanga Padhakkam in Rameswaram through the Nineteen Seventies,” he mentioned. “However these days are lengthy gone.”
R.M.P. Rajendra Nattar, President of the Indian Nationwide Fishermen Union, echoed these considerations. “We face assaults from the Sri Lankan Navy and our authorities stays silent when our boats are seized,” he mentioned. Regardless of the challenges, Nattar confused that Indian fishermen bear no in poor health will in the direction of Sri Lankan fishermen, as lots of them proceed to wrestle post-war.
Ahilan Kadirgamar, senior lecturer on the College of Jaffna in Sri Lanka, welcomed the renewed connectivity, however emphasised that it’s only a part of a extra complicated image. Whereas Tamil Nadu’s financial system has flourished, Jaffna stays largely rural, he famous. “Will Jaffna actually profit from this financial relationship or merely grow to be a marketplace for Indian items, which is able to undermine native manufacturing?” he mentioned.
Kadirgamar was additionally anxious about how tourism would affect the fragility of the area, and the potential over-reliance on India. “The Northern Province is now seen by way of New Delhi’s strategic lens,” he mentioned. “The India-Sri Lanka relationship is more and more centred on safety and geopolitics moderately than cultural ties.”
nacchinarkkiniyan.m@thehindu.co.in
Printed – September 28, 2024 03:32 am IST
