Kanyakumari: The coastal town, which usually gets busy on the last few days of the summer holidays, wore a deserted look on Friday. Vehicles have disappeared from the roads and people remained indoors; only police personnel could be seen everywhere. Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the iconic tourist destination for his three-day visit and a meditation session at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial, as part of his usual exercise before the Lok Sabha polls.
Meanwhile, the police are busy doing thorough background checks of the guests who have booked even at the hotels here. The police department is trying to ensure foolproof security measures in Kanyakumari in the light of Modi’s visit. Last month, PM Modi was at Kanyakumari for the election campaigns.
Extensive security measures have been arranged in the seas too, surrounding the meditation site. The boats of the Indian Navy and the ships of the Coast Guard are patrolling the waters. Vivekananda Rock Memorial The memorial building was built in 1970, in honour of Swami Vivekananda who had sat on meditation for three days upon the rock.
The social reformer is believed to have meditated here on December 23, 24 and 25, 1892 and attained enlightenment. The monk had requested the fishermen to ferry him to the rocks. However, he couldn’t afford the price that the fishermen had charged.
So, Swami Vivekananda apparently swam across the seashore to the rock to meditate there. Former President Ramnath Kovind too had visited the Viv.
