Elephant Pass

Elephant Pass controls access to the Jaffna Peninsula, therefore it is referred to as the Gateway to Jaffna. It is very crucial as it is on the isthmus connecting the peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland, and to territory in the Southern Jaffna peninsula. Elephant Pass connects the militarily significant town of Chavakacheri in the Jaffna peninsula to the Sri Lankan mainland. ==History==

Elephant Pass is described by Indian author Kalki Krishnamurthy in his Tamil language novel Ponniyin Selvan. Elephant Pass has been a strategic military base since 1760, when the Portuguese built a fort in the area, which was later rebuilt and garrisoned by the Dutch in 1776 and later the British. A modern military base was built in Elephant Pass by the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) in 1952. At a certain point, the base and its outlying camps expanded to cover an area long and wide. The pass was eventually recaptured by Sri Lankan Army in the Third Battle of Elephant Pass in 2009, as part of a campaign that led to military defeat of the Tamil Tigers. Post-war developments Before the war, the Elephant Pass saltern produced 60,000–80,000 metric tons of salt production per annum and supplied 30–40% of the total salt requirement of the country. However, due to the civil war, saltern operations were abandoned in 1990. Since the liberation of the area by Sri Lankan military forces, the government has shown interest in rebuilding the salterns in the area, due to its immense potential for exporting salt. De-mining in the area has been completed by Delvon Assistance for Social Harmony (DASH) with the support of the Australian Government. Under the phase I programme which covered 330 acres, it was expected that the reactivation of phase I would lead to a production of 20,000–25,000 metric tons per annum of salt production. The second phase of the Elephant Pass saltern of 447 acres commenced in 2015 and is expected to be funded under Treasury funds. An additional 30,000 metric tons are expected and the total employment opportunities generated will be over 3,000. After completing the entire infrastructure development of the saltern, it is envisaged that the salt production will be around 70,000 to 100,000 metric tons of salt per annum. Under the reactivation of Elephant Pass Saltern Project, the construction of sea water intake canal, renovation of reservoir outer earth bunds, rip rap protection of reservoir, renovation of flood protection earth bunds, construction of spillways, electrification, renovation of buildings and purchase of tractors and trailers, tools and accessories are being carried out. ==Transport==

• Elephant Pass railway station == See also ==