The town of Kokkilai is located on a sand bar between the lagoon and the Indian Ocean.

[1] The lagoon is fed by a number of small rivers, including Churiyan Aru.

The lagoon is surrounded by a densely populated region containing cultivated land, scrubland and open forest.

The lagoon has extensive sea grass beds and small areas of mangrove swamp and mudflats.

The shallow waters of the lagoon attracts a wide variety of water birds including pelican, cormorant, herons, egrets, wild duck, stork, waders and pink flamingoes.