Who is he?

• Devasahayam Pillai, who embraced Christianity in the 18th century became the first Indian layman to be declared a saint by Pope Francis during a canonisation ceremony at the Vatican.
• With the completion of the process, Devasahayam, who took the name “Lazarus” after embracing Christianity in 1745, became the first lay person from India to become a saint.
• Devasahayam was born on April 23, 1712, as Neelakanta Pillai into a Hindu Nair family, at Nattalam in Kanyakumari district (present day Tamil Nadu), which was part of the erstwhile Travancore kingdom.

What is Canonization

• The process of declaring one a saint in the Catholic Church is called canonization. The canonization process is a canonical (Church law) procedure by which the Church through the Pope.

Some of the canonized saints of India

• • Saint Gonsalo Garcia (born in India but  Portuguese parentage)- considered to be the first Indian saint
  • Father Kuriakose Elias Chavara
  • Sister Alphonsa
  • Mother Teresa

Reference:

1. https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/devasahayam-pillai-becomes-first-indian-layman-to-be-declared-saint-by-pope-francis/article65416757.ece