No conclusive proof of Ram Setu: Modi govt says in Parliament

• The ‘Ram Setu’ has been at the heart of a debate about whether the Ramayana is based on historical facts or a mythological tale for years
• Ram Setu, described in the Indian epic Ramayana that has fomented a debate about whether it is mythology or history, can’t be “accurately” proved to have existed: Union Minister
• The Ram Setu issue was raised by an Independent MP from Haryana, Kartikeya Sharma, in Rajya Sabha

In a serious development, the Narendra Modi government informed Parliament that there is no conclusive evidence of Ram Setu, also known as Adam’s Bridge.

Satellite images of the region between India and Sri Lanka where the mythological Ram Setu is thought to have existed have captured islands and limestone shoals but they “cannot be accurately said” to be the remnants of a bridge, the government told Parliament on Friday.

The BJP aggressively raised the issue to target the Congress after the UPA government– led by Congress – had earlier set up a committee under environmentalist R.K. Pachauri to examine an alternative alignment for the Sethusamudram project that involves digging of an 83km stretch to allow a navigational route through the chain of islands. The BJP had opposed it citing people’s belief that Lord Ram had created a path to reach Lanka to rescue Sita and that it should be protected.

The issue was raised by an Independent MP from Haryana, Kartikeya Sharma, in Rajya Sabha. In reply to his question, the government said, “If it is said in simple words, it is difficult to say that the real form of Ram Setu is present there. However, there are some indications which suggest that the structure may be present there.”

Kartikeya Sharma asked whether the government is doing any scientific research on “India’s glorious history as the previous governments continuously did not pay attention” to this issue. Union Minister Jitendra Singh replied, “I am happy that our MP raised a question regarding Ram Setu. We have some limitations regarding this because this is the history of about 18,000 years ago. The bridge we are talking about was about 56 km long.”

He said the islands captured through satellite imagery showed “a certain amount of continuity in location through which some surmises can be drawn”.

“So, what I am trying to say in short is that it is difficult to actually pinpoint the exact structure that existed there, but there is some kind of an indication, direct or indirect, that those structures have existed,” Singh said.

The ‘Ram Setu’ has been at the heart of a debate about whether the Ramayana is based on historical facts or a mythological tale for years. It was also the subject of an eponymous film starring Akshay Kumar earlier this year.