Kolkata: In a bid to realise her childhood dream of crossing the seven seas, ace swimmer Bula Chowdhury would set about to conquer the last frontier by swimming the Palk Strait in Sri Lanka on August 20, claiming that she would make a woman's world record if she succeeded in her mission.

In a bid to realise her childhood dream of crossing the seven seas, ace swimmer Bula Chowdhury would set about to conquer the last frontier by swimming the Palk strait in Sri Lanka on August 20, claiming that she would make a woman's world record if she succeeded in her mission.

Chowdhury, who would be leaving for Sri Lanka tomorrow (Aug 12, 2004), said that she was confident of successfully negotiating the 40km stretch of the Strait between Talaimanar in Sri Lanka to Dhanushkodi in 10-12 hours.

''No other woman in the world has been able to cross the seven seas. In India, Mihir sen is the only male swimmer to have done so,'' Chowdhury told a press meet in Kolkata today (Aug 11, 2004).

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has already wished Chowdhury success in her endeavour. ''I'm delighted to learn that Bula is setting forth to break yet another record by crossing the Palk Strait,'' the Prime Minister said in a message to the swimmer.

The 34-year-old swimmer, who conquered the sixth hurdle - the Cook Strait in New Zealand - in March 2003, had to wait for 16 months for permission to swim the Palk Strait due to bureaucratic delays.

Chowdhury, who has received financial support in her Mission Palk Strait from her employer Sahara India, said, ''I want to savour the moment of success in Indian waters. That's the reason I've decided to start swimming from Talaimanar.''