page_title: Vedaranyam March
section_title: Defiance of salt laws
hierarchical_section_title: Vedaranyam March / The march / Defiance of salt laws
caption_attribution_description: தமிழ்: வேதாரண்ய உப்புசத்தியாகிரகத்தை நினைவு கூறும் வண்ணம் அமைக்கப்பட்டிருக்கும் ஸ்தூபி. மூதறிஞர் ராஜாஜியால் திறந்து வைக்கப்பெற்றது இது.
context_page_description: The Vedaranyam March was a framework of the nonviolent civil disobedience movement in British India. Modeled on the lines of Dandi March, which was led by Mahatma Gandhi on the western coast of India the month before, it was organised to protest the salt tax imposed by the British Raj in the colonial India.
  C.Rajagopalachari, a close associate of Gandhi, led the march which had close to 150 volunteers, most of whom belonged to the Indian National Congress. It began at Trichinopoly on 13 April 1930 and proceeded for about 150 mi towards the east before culminating at Vedaranyam, a small coastal town in the then Tanjore District. By collecting salt directly from the sea the marchers broke the salt law. As a part of the march, Rajagopalachari created awareness among the people by highlighting the importance of khādī as well as social issues like caste discrimination. The campaign came to an end on 28 April 1930 when the participants were arrested by the police. Its leader Rajagopalachari was imprisoned for six months. The march along with the ones at Dandi and Dharasana drew worldwide attention to the Indian independence movement.
context_section_description: Despite numerous obstacles, the group reached Vedaranyam on 28 April 1930, 15 days after setting out. When Gandhi was informed he wrote back: "It is good that our hands and feet are tied so that we can sing with joy. God is the help of the helpless." The police, despite their previous failures, tightened the security at Vedaranyam to prevent the marchers from collecting salt. As soon as the group reached Vedaranyam, Rajagopalachari called for more participants and publicly declared that the salt laws would be broken on 30 April. Pillai offered accommodation to the group by constructing a camp on the shore. On the same day, when Rajaji and 16 others moved to the Edanthevar salt swamp, which was about 2 miles (3.2 km) from the camp. A police force led by the District Superintendent arrived at the spot and asked the group to surrender. When they refused, Rajagopalachari was arrested under section 74 of the Salt Act, and was produced before the district magistrate Ponnusamy Pillai. He was sentenced to six-months of imprisonment and was sent to the Trichinopoly Central Prison.
caption: The memorial at Vedaranyam
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