New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the New Pamban Bridge – the country’s first vertical-lift sea bridge – in Tamil Nadu on the occasion of Ram Navami. PM Modi also flagged off a Coast Guard ship – which passed under the bridge – and the new Rameswaram-Tambaram (Chennai) train. PM Modi, who arrived in Tamil Nadu after a three-day visit to Sri Lanka, also performed a puja at the Ramanathaswamy temple in Rameswaram and laid the foundation stone of various rail and road projects worth over Rs 8,300 crore in the state. According to the Ministry of Railways, the 2.07-kilometer-long bridge, spanning the Palk Strait in Tamil Nadu, stands as a testament to India’s engineering prowess and visionary infrastructure development. Located in the Ramanathapuram district, the bridge connects Rameswaram Island with Mandapam on the mainland. Built at a cost of over Rs 700 crore by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) – a Navratna PSU under the Ministry of Railways – the bridge features a 72.5-metre navigational span that can be vertically lifted to 17 …