The Palk Strait connects the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the Jaffna District of the island nation of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province. It connects the northeastern Bay of Bengal to the southwesterly Palk Bay. It is 64 to 137 km broad and 137 km long, with a minimum depth of less than 9.1 m. Several rivers feed into it, including the Tamil Nadu Vaigai River. The strait’s narrow waters and reefs make passage difficult for large ships, although fishing boats and small craft conducting coastal goods have navigated it for generations. Large ships must circumnavigate Sri Lanka. The construction of a shipping canal through the strait was initially presented to the British government of India in 1860, and the plan has been considered by a number of commissions up to the current day.
