101-Year-Old Freedom Fighter Recalls Goa’s Liberation

Libia Lobo Sardesai is a 101-year-old freedom fighter from Goa who recently attended the 200th-anniversary celebrations of her old school, Antonio De Souza High School in Mumbai.

She shared her experiences from the 1950s and 1960s when she and her husband, Vaman Sardesai, ran an underground radio station called 'Voice of Freedom' to support the liberation movement against Portuguese rule.

The radio station broadcasted news in Portuguese and Konkani, providing moral support to the people of Goa who were facing food shortages and repression.

Goa was liberated by Indian forces on 19 December 1961.

After liberation, Lobo worked in the tourism department and later practiced as a lawyer.

She was honored with the Padma Shri in 2025.

Lobo, who will turn 102 in three months, was the chief guest at the bicentennial celebrations and expressed her joy in participating in the event.