The International Forum for Cultural Heritage and Tradition (IFCHAT) remembered the Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama on the 519th anniversary of his discovery of the sea route from Europe to India, on Saturday.
It was on May 20, 1498 that Gama landed at Kappad in Calicut and this historic discovery paved the way for increased trade and tourism ties between the two continents. The commemorative meeting was inaugurated at St. Francis Church, Fort Kochi by Rev. N.K. Prasad, vicar of the church.