RAMANATHAPURAM
Rameswaram–Verkodu Parish, organising pilgrimage for the annual St. Antony’s church festival in Katchatheevu on February 23 and 24, has finalised the list of pilgrims, restricting the number to 2,103.
After the pilgrims submitted applications, the parish, headed by its priest Fr A. Antonysamy, the chief coordinator of the pilgrimage, finalised the list on Monday. “As per the list, 1,693 men, 357 women and 53 children will take part in the festival,” the priest said.
The copies of the list had been sent to the district administration, district police and all security agencies, including Customs, Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard, Coastal Security Group, Intelligence Bureau and Q Branch police, he said.
“The parish has included all those who had applied for the pilgrimage in the list and no application was rejected,” the priest told The Hindu on Tuesday.
Jaffna Diocese, which organised the annual festival, had made an informal request to restrict the number and “we managed to restrict it to around 2,000’, the priest said.
A maximum of 30 pilgrims and five crew-cum- pilgrims would be accommodated in each boat. The parish had already registered 62 mechanised boats, including two spare boats, he added.
Last year, 5,015 pilgrims had registered for the festival, but they could not undertake the pilgrimage after the local fisherfolk boycotted the festival, in protest against gunning down of fisherman K. Britjo, allegedly by Sri Lankan Navy, and forced the parish to call off the pilgrimage.
During the pilgrimage this year, Rameswaram fishermen would carry a 35-foot-long teak flag mast and a 4-foot-tall fibre statue of St. Antony to be presented to the newly built St. Antony’s church in the islet on behalf of the parish. After Jaffna Diocese had consecrated the new church in December 2016, the fishermen offered to donate the flag mast and the statue.
