If a ship has to go from Chennai to Kochi, it has to go around Sri Lanka rather than crossing through the Palk Strait because it is too shallow for the ships to cross.Currently, the ships coming from the west coast of India and other western countries with destination in the east coast of India and also in Bangladesh, China, etc. have to navigate around the Sri Lankan coast because the existing waterway (in the form of the Palk Strait) is shallow and not sufficient for the movement of the ships. This is due to the presence of a shallow region known as Adam’s Bridge, chain of limestone shoals, located south-east of Rameswaram near Pamban, which connects the Talimannar coast of Sri Lanka. The Sethusamudram Shipping Channel Project was started to cut short this distance.