Dhanushkodi 1964 Cyclone Survivor

From a completely deserted location sixty years ago, Dhanushkodi has now become a vibrant tourist attraction after the extension of the road to Arichal Munai

Rani recounts the terrible night when she experienced the devastation of Dhanushkodi as a nine year old

Rani was not yet ten when the terrible cyclone struck Dhanushkodi late that night in 1964. She was a class four girl. Her appa ran the family based on fishing business. Standing next to the tank from where the steam engine of the Boat Mail express was filled with water, Rani now 69 looks back at that horrendous night for her family and the residents of Dhanushkodi “It was past 3am.  My neighbour came shouting that water was entering the homes. My appa ran out. In a matter of minutes, our house was filled with water. My two brothers, my amma and me stayed back in our home while my appa went outside to see what was happening.”

Later that morning, when we came out, we found that all our relatives were gone. The train too sunk and all the passengers passed away. Passengers would get down here at this end point and immediately board the boat that was waiting for them to take them to Lanka.  But that night was the final trip of that train that did not see through to its end point.

She is grateful to Collector Natarajan “He initially offered us land in Mandapam but those that survived refused that as our fishing work was all here in Dhanuskodi. He then gave all of us land a few kms from here. We are all grateful to him for helping us with our livelihood by giving us a roof over our head.”

                                      1964 Railway Track

That place came to be known as Natarajapuram after the collector. The last remains of the railway track can still be seen near Dhanushkodi as can be the water tank. It will be sixty years next year. Rani has been one survivor who is still alive to recount that disastrous night. She fought bravely and has managed to live a cheerful life. 

                 The last remains of the 1964 water tank to fill water for the steam engine

The erstwhile Truck Drive on the sand Dhanushkodi to Arichal Munai

Auto driver Maheshwaran is 35 years old and for over 15years he drove visitors on a jeep till on thick sand.  This writer went on that truck drive in 2006 along with 20 others on a lone drive. There were no others in that region that day. He charged Rs. 25 from each of the visitors for that drive that brought one to the confluence of Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal. The sand was pure white and the sea pure blue. It was unchartered territory. Only the brave hearted chose to visit the southern tip with Sri Lanka just seven nautical miles away. There were boatmen asking if one would want to make the trip to the Northern point of Lanka but all the visitors chose to return to Dhanushkodi by that truck ride that took 45 minutes each way for about 4kms. The driver had to use card board and metal plates below the tyre every hundred yards to get the truck to move through the thick beach sand. 

Maheshwaran told this writer on an auto ride from Rameswaram to Dhanushkodi that for over a decade he made good money on every truck trip on the sand from Dhanushkodi to Arichal Munai on the Mahindra Jeep that he owned “The Chatram Check Post was the final point by road. From there, without the strenuous drive through the thick sand, the visitors would not have been able to go to the confluence of Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal. It was my drive through those last 4 kms that helped them reach the tip of the country. Most people feared getting on to the truck. There were absolutely no human habitation after the check post. It was a most tiring drive and took a lot of my physical energy but it gave me great satisfaction when I saw the happiness on their faces on getting down from the truck at the Southern tip. Each one of the visitor was thankful for driving through an almost impossible final few kms when there was no road.”

Outside of the repair expenses that amounted to Rs. 2lakhs every year (because the salty conditions rusted the truck), he made about Rs. 25000 per month.   

Road Extension to Arichal Munai

In 2017, PM Modi launched the newly built road that extended right down to Arichal Munai. “This killed the decades long service that we offered on the rugged truck. And I moved from truck ride to taking the visitors on my auto to the final point of Dhanushkodi. The crowd has increased manifold after the extension of the road to Arichal Munai.”

From being scared to take the last few kms through the sand drive, visitors are now thronging this final stretch of four kms. “There are at least 300 visitors who take to the Arichal Munai past Dhanushkodi on a week day. This has become a big tourist attraction.”

Rani endured the devastation of Dhanushkodi in her childhood but she fought through the disaster and has survived sixty years living a cheerful life. Maheshwaran was the one who took visitors to the confluence of Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal when no road existed and now he takes them from the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram on his new auto through the 24 kms road trip. 

For a decade he had the joy of driving them through the sand and now the demand for his auto service is high as Dhanushkodi has turned into a most sought after tourist destination. On the return journey, he takes them to the historical Kothandarama temple that will soon see a massive renovation and reconstruction.

A four people share auto from Rameswaram to Dhanushkodi including to Rama temple will cost Rs. 800.