Fighting for Ram SetuOnline

Whether Ram is a mythical figure or a historical entity is more
a question of faith than a matter for scientific contemplation. The streets of
India have erupted in anger against the affidavit filed by the
Archaeological Survey of India that deliberated on the above contention, leading
to some hasty volte-face by the government. At the center of the debate lies a
chain of limestone shoals, some 40 km long and connecting Rameswaram in India
and Mannar in Sri Lanka. Referred to as the Ram Setu by most Indians, and
Adams Bridge by most else, that will be sacrificed for the sake of progress.

The Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project (SSCP) proposes linking
the Palk Bay and the Gulf of Mannar between India and Sri Lanka by creating a
shipping canal through the shallow sea sometimes called Sethu Samudram, and
through the island chain of Ramas Bridge, also known as Adams Bridge.
People are angry, as the project would destroy the Ram Setu that according
to legends from the Ramayana, was built by Lord Rama and his monkey army when
they set out to rescue Sita from the clutches of Ravana. The man-made bridge or
natural rock formation is a hotly debated issue, both on the ground and in
cyberspace.

In fact, the whole debate got stoked thanks to some NASA images
uploaded on the website. Indian journals and newspapers picked up the
photographs and splashed it all over. The satellite photographs taken from
Gemini XI and other missions, display the land bridge in all its natural beauty.
As the debate played on the streets, so it did on the cyberspace as well.

As of now, numerous websites have sprung up trying to drum up
support for stopping the SSCP. Websites like Hindujagruti.org, Ramsethu.org,
Bridgeofram.com and others. These websites more or less provide the latest
update on the issue and also provide a means to register the protest.
Surprisingly, one of these websites is also asking for donations, one really
wonders why?

There are a lot of Indians that are also taking to petitioning
online to express their opinions. On the website Petitiononline.com,
an appeal by Shachi Rairikar addressed to the President of India has till now
attracted over 10,200 signatures (not really a huge number). But the same
petition has been in top ranks for the past few days. It would seem that Indians
indeed believe in the power of the Internet. Even on Orkut, there are numerous
communities that talk about the issue, with members ranging from a thousand to a
single user. Not surprisingly there are numerous blogs on the issue, ranging
from scholarly to absolute drivel, one good instance is Dharmagraha.blogspot.com
that gives the historic perspective on the issue though in a biased way. There
have even been some videos that have been uploaded on Youtube.com on the same
subject.

Meanwhile, you also have the SSCP project (Sethusamudram.gov.in)
that is providing the latest update on the issue, even the amount of dredging
that has been completed on a day-to-day basis.

Thus, the Cyberspace is alive with debate on the issue. Little
wonder as there are 42,000,000 Internet users as of Jun 07, 3.7% penetration,
per IWS. It brings to mind one of the most famous online campaigns in the US
that started in 2002; Notinmyname.net. Started by a few anti-war protestors, it
really caught the imagination of the world. There is no surety whether the
current movement will become large or sizzle out. But one thing is sure, the Web
has very much become a part of life for Indians, be it shopping or chatting or
protesting.

Shashwat DC


shashwatc@cybermedia.co.in