Newly Completed Pamban Railway Lift Bridge – 2 Photos 1914
Two rare 1914 photos of the newly completed Pamban Railway Bridge. The Scherzer rolling lift bridge was officially commissioned in the British era in 1914. The first photo shows a ship passing through the opened rolling lift bridge. It was also the inaugural run of the first Boat Mail Train or the Indo-Ceylon Express Train.
The train is shown here crossing the new railway bridge. It was colloquially known as the Pamban railway bridge, later renamed, “Annai Indira Gandhi Bridge”. It is India’s first rail sea bridge. Built on the Palk Strait, the bridge connects mainland India to Rameshwaram Island and Dhanushkodi. The second image shows the bridge opened for a ship to pass through.
The boat mail began its service in 1914 after the Pamban Bridge was completed. The train service was from the Egmore Station in Madras (Chennai) to Rameshwaram and Dhanushkodi. At Dhanushkodi a ship awaited the passengers to ferry them to Talaimannar on the Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) side.
But later the railway route bypassed Rameshwaram and extended to Tuticorin (Thoothukodi), from there passengers then boarded a ship to Ceylon. However, the journey was considered longer and tedious. After a huge cyclone hit in 1964 giant waves swept away the train at Dhanushkodi killing several people. The rail service was then again terminated to Rameshwaram.
See more on Dhanushkodi.
Did you know – the service existed primarily to ferry Tamil labourers to the Sri Lanka side to work for the tea and plantation estates, since Sri Lanka had a shortage of workers.
From the collection – M. Suriyamoorthy Charcoal On Paper Beautiful Lady (#6)., Life In British India Horseshoe Work – Old Photo 1890., British Restaurant At Pune, Old 1900 Postcard., Rioting In Southern India – Old print 1921.
