THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Goa’s liberation from the clutches of Portuguese through Operation Vijay marked a highpoint in the feeling of patriotism and nationalism in the country, said Governor Rajendra Arlekar. He was speaking after felicitating 24 families of the state who participated in the Goa Liberation movement of 1961.

The governor said that it took nearly 14 years since Independence for Goa to be formally integrated in the Indian Union. India’s Independence of 1947 remained incomplete until Goa’s integration in the Indian Union. People from all parts of the country cutting across the region, language and community participated in this glorious movement.

Collective aspirations of the people that put pressure on the Centre ultimately paved the way for the Liberation of Goa, Arlekar said. “By honouring the freedom fighters who participated in the Liberation of Goa, we are recognising the great patriots’ contributions and transmitting the cultural underpinnings of the freedom movement to percolate into every layer of society,” he said.