When did the march to Kanyakumari take place?
Members of the fishing community commenced a march from Kolkata on the east coast of India on April 2, 1989, and from Mumbai on the west coast, on April 3, 1989. The slogan was ‘Protect Waters, Protect Life’. The core team of activists travelled in vans alighting at fishing villages to talk and walk with people en route to St Anthony’s High School in Kanyakumari on May 1. At 3 pm that day, the marchers assembled at the venue and launched a procession towards the seashore. They waved blue flags and banners and shouted slogans. They were greeted by fishermen with banners in boats on the sea. The most spectacular part was the massive participation of women who constituted about three-quarters of the crowd that stood against the backdrop of the Vivekananda memorial. The march to Kanyakumari was supposed to represent the people’s desire to resist dominant development concepts. It was also meant to be a call to start a people’s movement. However, the people’s voice was drowned in police firi
