Thousands of pilgrims from India and Sri Lanka unite at Katchatheevu island for St. Anthony’s feast, defying borders and celebrating faith.
Newsroom (05/03/2026 Gaudium Press ) For 80-year-old S. Devasagayam, a retired tea estate worker from Passara in Sri Lanka’s Uva Province, the Feast of St. Anthony on Katchatheevu Island was more than a pilgrimage — it was the fulfillment of a six-decade-old dream.
As a young man in the Central Province’s tea hills, Devasagayam had often heard stories about the tiny, uninhabited island in the Palk Strait — a place of miracles and devotion shared by Sri Lankans and Indians alike. After years of waiting, he finally made the journey this year, traveling over 400 kilometers by bus to Jaffna, then waiting hours for a ferry to reach the sacred site on February 27.
“I firmly believe that you have to have an invitation from St. Anthony to witness him at this pilgrimage site,” Devasagayam said softly, a day before the feast. As he prepared for the Holy Mass on March 1, the octogenarian was overcome with emotion. “I am glad. I am blessed,” he murmured.
Record Turnout Surprises Authorities
This year’s feast saw a record-breaking 13,000 pilgrims — including about 4,000 from India’s Tamil Nadu state — converging upon Katchatheevu, a normally deserted isle lying between the two countries. Authorities, who had expected around 5,000 devotees based on previous years, were caught off guard.
Pilgrims arrived from across Sri Lanka — from Negombo, Thalai Mannar, and Kalpitiya — while hundreds more crossed the Palk Strait by boat to attend the once-a-year celebration of the patron saint of fishermen. The crowds were so large that some devotees waited endlessly at the Kurikkaatuvan jetty in Jaffna, unable to find a ferry.
Warnasooriya Fernando Anthony from Negombo described his 24-hour journey as both exhausting and uplifting. “I waited for more than five hours to board a ferry,” he said, urging authorities to improve transport arrangements for future festivals.
Vicar General of the Jaffna Diocese, Father P. J. Jebaratnam, who led the Holy Mass, admitted the unprecedented turnout had caught them by surprise. “St. Anthony asked me, ‘How come you did not expect so many people would come to see me?’” he recounted with a smile. “We have to make necessary arrangements in the future to accommodate all the pilgrims.”
A Symbol of Unity and Reconciliation
The scale of devotion was especially striking given the island’s complex political past. Katchatheevu — ceded to Sri Lanka by India in 1974 — remains a subject of dispute between the two neighbors. Last year’s festival unfolded under the shadow of these territorial tensions, prompting Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to visit the shrine in a show of national solidarity.
Tamil Nadu politicians have continued to call for India to reclaim the island, citing repeated clashes between fishermen and arrests over territorial violations. Yet, on March 1, faith transcended politics.
During the Mass, Father Jebaratnam acknowledged Sri Lanka’s sovereignty while emphasizing spiritual unity. “Even though it belongs to Sri Lanka geographically — sacramentally and spiritually it belongs to all of us,” he told the congregation. His sermon centered on unity, peace, and reconciliation — values that mirror the saint’s enduring legacy.
Pilgrims from India and a Navy’s Support
Indian devotees, nearly 4,000 in number, arrived on 92 mechanized bottom trawlers and 26 country boats under a special pass system arranged by Sri Lankan authorities. The initiative allowed them entry into Sri Lankan waters, underscoring the feast’s rare cross-border significance.
Among them was Joseph John Rajah from Madurai, Tamil Nadu, who traveled with six friends. “I guess we are lucky to secure a permit to attend this year’s feast because only a limited number of pilgrims are allowed from India,” Rajah said. “I have submitted all my prayers and vows to St. Anthony.”
Sri Lankan Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda confirmed that the navy provided logistical, sanitary, and transport support to manage the overwhelming crowd. “We did our best to make it a successful and memorable religious event,” he said.
A Journey of Faith Fulfilled
For the elderly Devasagayam, the long and arduous journey was more than physical — it was a spiritual culmination. “It was a great spiritual experience for someone like me who spent decades toiling on tea and rubber estates high in the mountains,” he reflected.
As thousands departed Katchatheevu after Mass, the memory of the island — suspended between two nations but bound by one faith — lingered. For pilgrims like Devasagayam, St. Anthony’s feast was proof that devotion still bridges the waters that borders cannot divide.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from UCA News
Related Images:
