Goa liberation day Celebrations from Dec 17

Dec. 15, 2010 - PRLog -- The Portuguese were the first European power to arrive in India and the last to depart, the effort to dislodge them by those, whose land they had conquered and occupied was a long process that was fought with bloodshed, grief and sacrifice. This process began from the day the Portuguese set foot here in 1510 and was completed on 19 December 1961, when they were driven away. It was only in 1926, when Portugal, after a short spell of Republican Government, came under the iron grip of dictatorship, that the people of Goa began to chafe. The suppression of liberties in Goa and the intolerable conditions created by the dictatorship brought the great Indian socialist leader, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia to Goa. At a public meeting in Margao, he launched a movement for civil liberties which set in motion a mass movement for freedom from the Portuguese rule.
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On 18 June 1946, which remains a memorable and sacred day in the history of Goa, Dr. Lohia truly kindled the flame of freedom in the hearts of the Goan people, as a result of which, all shops and business establishments put down their shutters and expressed their solidarity with cause. From then on men, women and even children came out in processions, expressing their deep desire for freedom. The Government of India strictly followed its policy of peaceful negotiations with Portugal and made attempts to solve the problem of Goa from 1947 to 1955, without the use of force. But every such attempt was turned down by the Portuguese. From 1955 to 1961, the Goans and the Indian political parties organised public meetings and adopted resolutions condemning Portuguese rule, giving wide publicity to the happenings in Goa and made the people in India aware of the terrible conditions prevailing in Goa.
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And so on 18-19 December 1961, the Government of India adopted a plan called Operation Vijay to liberate the Portuguese colonies in India. By 11 December 1961, Indian forces were placed at Belgaum, Vapi and Una, for attacks on Goa, Daman and Diu, respectively. The Portuguese for the naval defence of Goa, deployed four frigates each equipped with three 120mm guns and four multiple pompoms (automatic rapid firing guns), which patrolled the sea areas of all three enclaves. These ships were Afonso de Albuquerque, Bartholomeu Dias, Gonsalves Zarco and Joao de Lisboa. However, when the action took place, it was found that only Afonso de Albuquerque was available for the naval defence of Goa, the other three having sailed earlier, for Portugal.

Goa will usher in the golden jubilee year of its liberation with a 3-day celebration beginning December 17, 2010. The inaugural function of the golden jubilee year of liberation will be held at Azad Maidan, Panaji, at 7.30pm on December 18.

Addressing a press conference, chief minister Digambar Kamat said the celebrations will start with a daily martial arts festival (Shourya Utsav) at the Ravindra Bhavan, Margao at 7 pm from December 17 to December 19. The festival will be presented by the Western Zone Cultural Centre.
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On December 18, a torch-light procession (mashal yatra) will start from three locations in Panaji- Joggers' Park, Altinho, Kala Academy, Campal and Babasaheb Ambedkar park, KTC stand. The three processions will culminate at the Azad Maidan where the participants will pay tributes at the matyr's memorial. This will be followed by the formal inaugural function. Later, a cultural programme, Sugam Sangeet, by Sumedha Dessai and group will be held. Kamat said freedom fighters, school and college students will take part in the torch light procession. The freedom fighters who will light the torch include Naguesh Karmali, Flaviano Dias, Laxman Govekar and Alvaro Pereira.