Country Sri Lanka DS Division Mannar Province Northern Province | District Mannar Local time Sunday 12:53 AM | |
Weather 25°C, Wind E at 11 km/h, 80% Humidity | ||
Talaimannar (Tamil: தலைமன்னார்; Sinhalese: තලෙයිමන්නාරම) is a settlement in Sri Lanka located on the northwestern coast of Mannar Island.
Contents
Map of Talaimannar, Sri Lanka
Transport
Prior to the severe destructions by a cyclone in December 1964, it was the terminus of a ferry service to India across the very shallow Palk Bay. The ferry service was part of the Indo-Lanka Railway service, where passengers were ferried between Talaimannar and Dhanushkodi on Rameswaram island in India. The pier was served by a station of the Sri Lanka Government Railway. The train services are currently discontinued and the track abandoned up to Medawachchiya junction. Presently, work is being done to resume the service by rebuilding the rail line from Talaimannar to Medawachchiya.
The town can be reached by a road from Mannar which links the island to the rest of the country through a causeway.
Development
Being a windy location, Talaimannar is a kitesurf and kiteboard destination. The government proposed a wind farm but was opposed by the local community as the area is a bird sanctuary.
Border to India
Talaimannar is about 18 miles East of Dhanushkodi. The Ram Sethu, a chain of sand shoals between Talaimannar and Danushkodi, has the only land border between India and Sri Lanka, which is the smallest in the world, being just 50 yards in length on a sand dune. The dune is approximately 100 feet high and 2 feet wide.