During the 2002-2004 Peace Accord, the then Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, asked India to help build what he called the ‘Hanuman Bridge’.

[1] In June 2015, Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways of the Republic of India, submitted the proposal to the Asian Development Bank, which agreed to finance the construction.

[8] That study was initiated by India in January 2024, and will evaluate technical, economic, and environmental aspects to determine the project's viability.

[11] There is some longstanding opposition to the project in Sri Lanka, with concerns around customs and immigration enforcement, tourism capacity, and the undermining of their independence.

[12][13] Sri Lankan nationalists worry that the bridge would facilitate illegal immigration from the neighboring Indian state of Tamil Nadu, as poor workers arrive in search of better-paying jobs.