# Pamban

Pamban is a town in the Rameswaram taluk of Ramanathapuram district, Tamil Nadu. It is at the west edge of Pamban Island and is a popular fishing port. The town gives its name to the whole island. Pamban railway station is the first station on the island for pilgrims travelling to Rameswaram.

## Demographics

As per the 2011 census, Pamban had a population of 37819 with 19163 males and 18656 females. The sex ratio was 974 and the literacy rate was 85.16%.

## Climate

Pamban has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen climate classification As) with hot summers and cool winters. Unlike most locations in India with this climate, most rainfall occurs in autumn and winter, with the heaviest rain falling from October to December, and very little rain in the summer months of June to August.
Climate data for Pamban (1991–2020, extremes 1902–2020) :
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 33.6 (92.5) | 34.5 (94.1) | 35.7 (96.3) | 38.0 (100.4) | 38.8 (101.8) | 37.2 (99.0) | 37.5 (99.5) | 37.5 (99.5) | 36.9 (98.4) | 36.5 (97.7) | 35.4 (95.7) | 33.9 (93.0) | 38.8 (101.8) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 29.2 (84.6) | 30.7 (87.3) | 32.9 (91.2) | 34.3 (93.7) | 34.2 (93.6) | 33.6 (92.5) | 33.4 (92.1) | 33.1 (91.6) | 33.0 (91.4) | 32.3 (90.1) | 30.3 (86.5) | 29.0 (84.2) | 32.2 (90.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 24.2 (75.6) | 24.2 (75.6) | 25.3 (77.5) | 27.3 (81.1) | 28.1 (82.6) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.2 (81.0) | 26.8 (80.2) | 26.7 (80.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 25.0 (77.0) | 24.4 (75.9) | 26.1 (79.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | 17.0 (62.6) | 17.0 (62.6) | 19.4 (66.9) | 20.3 (68.5) | 19.8 (67.6) | 20.2 (68.4) | 20.7 (69.3) | 20.0 (68.0) | 20.6 (69.1) | 20.0 (68.0) | 19.5 (67.1) | 18.2 (64.8) | 17.0 (62.6) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 46.4 (1.83) | 17.9 (0.70) | 12.6 (0.50) | 46.4 (1.83) | 44.1 (1.74) | 6.9 (0.27) | 5.5 (0.22) | 19.6 (0.77) | 41.4 (1.63) | 217.7 (8.57) | 306.9 (12.08) | 187.4 (7.38) | 952.7 (37.51) |
| Average rainy days | 2.3 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.7 | 8.7 | 13.1 | 8.3 | 43 |
| Average relative humidity (%) (at 17:30 IST) | 74 | 71 | 68 | 69 | 75 | 75 | 74 | 75 | 77 | 77 | 79 | 79 | 74 |
| Source: India Meteorological Department ||||||||||||||

## Transport

Pamban Bridge is a 2,064 metres (6,772 ft) long railway bridge which connects the town of Mandapam in mainland India with Pamban Island, and Rameswaram. Opened on 24 February 1914, it was India's first sea bridge, and was the longest sea bridge in India until the opening of the Bandra–Worli Sea Link in 2010. The rail bridge is, for the most part, a conventional bridge resting on concrete piers, but has a double-leaf bascule section midway, which can be raised to let ships and barges pass through. Pamban Railway Station was a Junction on Madurai-Rameswaram railway Meter Gauge Line & Dhanushkodi railway Meter Gauge Line untill 1964. In 1964, a deadly Super Cyclone 1964 Rameswaram cyclone destroyed Pamban Bridge & Rameswaram Island demolishing the town of Dhanushkodi. Since 1964 onwards Pamban-Dhanushkodi railway Meter Gauge line vanished completely & Dhanushkodi city became a ghost town. In 1965 status of Pamban Railway Station was changed from Junction to Normal halt station. Until 1988, the Pamban bridge was the only surface transport that connected Tamil Nadu's island of Rameswaram to the mainland. In 2004-2007 period, a single Broad Gauge railway line was laid with Maximum Permissible Speed(MPS) of 20 kilometres per hour (12 mph) for passing trains. In December 2018, the bascule of this bridge was damaged, which suspended transportation on the bridge for 3 months. Rail movement was again restored on 27 February 2019.
In 1988, a road bridge was also constructed parallel to the rail bridge. This road bridge is also known as Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge. The Annai Indira Gandhi Road Bridge is a connects the National Highway (NH 49) with the Rameswaram island. It stands on the Palk Strait and between the shores of Mandapam (a place on the Indian mainland) and Pamban (one of the fishermen town in Rameswaram island). It was inaugurated by former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on 2 October 1988. This 2,340 metres (7,680 ft)long bridge took close to 14 years to be completed.
Since 2021 onwards, post CoViD19 period, Indian Railway had been constructing a New Vertical Lift Bridge 2,304 metres (7,559 ft) long to connect Rameswaram by railway with Fully Electrified Double Line section. While the New Pamban bridge has been completed in 2024-25 period, inspection & trials exposed many faults leading to delaying of bridge inauguration by atleast a year till 2026.
The Pamban Lighthouse, along with 23 other lighthouses along the eastern, southern and western coast of the Indian peninsula, comes under the administration of the Chennai Lighthouse District, In accord with the Lighthouse Act of 1927 and the Lighthouse (Amendment) Act of 1985.