The former Congress president interacted with fish workers and children in Kerala on Day 6 of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
Rahul Gandhi with other Congress leaders on Day 6 of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kerala on 12 September, 2022. (Supplied)
On the sixth day of his 3,570-km Bharat Jodo Yatra, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi preferred to focus on the coastal climate crisis in the Thiruvananthapuram region and the human factors that aggravate them.
As soon as he resumed the march from Vellayani Junction on the southern edge of the Thiruvananthapuram city on Monday, 12 September, several fish workers and their families from the Muthalapozhi fishing harbour joined the padayatra and started interacting with him.
They included the families of four fish workers who died after their boat capsized close to the mouth of the fishing harbour last week.
Rahul Gandhi with other Congress leaders on Day 6 of the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Kerala on 12 September, 2022. (Supplied)
Rahul Gandhi lent a patient ear to their grievances and consoled them using compassionate words.
They told Rahul Gandhi how the faulty construction of a breakwater near the harbour had turned Muthalapozhi into a death trap.
They also handed him a list of over 60 fish workers who died due to the capsizing of boats at Muthalapozhi.
They said the faulty breakwater construction and an adjacent pier had altered wind patterns causing regular deaths.
They told Rahul Gandhi that the state government was not addressing their issue.
In the afternoon, representatives of the Latin Catholic archdiocese of Thiruvananthapuram held talks with Rahul Gandhi, seeking his support for the ongoing fish workers’ strike against the under-construction multi-crore international seaport at Vizhinjam, promoted by corporate giant Adani.
Church authorities told him to direct the party’s state leadership to support the strike as the port project would cause an environmental and livelihood catastrophe, rendering thousands of fish workers homeless.
In the morning and evening outreaches as part of the yatra, Rahul elicited a rousing reception from the residents of Thiruvananthapuram.
Traffic in the city was paralysed when thousands turned up on the roads.
The morning schedule of the yatra ended at Pattom at around 11 am. Several guests joined Rahul Gandhi for lunch at St Mary’s School in Pattom.
Rahul interacted with several schoolchildren and distributed prizes for a painting competition.
Kesavadasapuram in the city witnessed a mega rally with Congress workers from four assembly segments of the Pathanamthitta district joining those from Thiruvananthapuram to express solidarity with the padayatra.
The march ended at Kerala’s IT hub Kazhakuttom, with a rally and a public meeting.
The yatra entered Kerala on Saturday evening with thousands of Congress workers giving him a rousing welcome at the Tamil Nadu border.
On Sunday, the Congress launched its Malayalam anthem of the yatra in the presence of senior leaders KC Venugopal and Jairam Ramesh.
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