Wednesday, December 2, 2009

The Islands off Jaffna Peninsula

தீவகம், யாழ்ப்பாணம்

The cluster of islands off Jaffna peninsula, known as "theevakam" in Tamil language, is of great importance in many aspects. They are considered as the home for the ancient tribes of Nagas, and in the pre-colonial era they were the stop-over places for seafaring kings and traders of South Asia. The glory of these islands is still well existent thanks to the successful entrepreneurs and leading professionals who hail from these small islands and have proven themselves all over the world.

PaNNai Causeway (பண்ணை வழி)

Among the islands, MaNdaitheevu, VelaNai and Punkudutheevu are connected with the mainland via PaNNai causeway, while Karaitheevu (Karainagar) is connected via Ponnaalai causeway. Ferry services are available from the Kurikadduvaan jetty of (Punkudutheevu) to reach Nainatheevu and Neduntheevu (Delft) islands.

MaNdaitheevu (மண்டைதீவு)

VElaNai (வேலணை)

Punkudutheevu (புங்குடுதீவு)

The above photos were taken during the rainy season caused by the North-East monsoon (blowing from bay of Bengal). The paddy cultivation in these tiny islands depends entirely on this seasonal rainfall as there are no rivers or enough ground water deposits for large scale irrigation.

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