A file photo of an inspection of the Viceregal Palace by then archaeology minister Subhash Phaldessai and Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar in July 2023.
VASCO
The Old Palace Hotel building, popularly known as the Viceregal Palace, located within the Mormugao Port Authority (MPA) premises, has remained caught in a maze of official correspondence, security objections and delayed decisions for over seven years.
According to government records placed before the Goa Legislative Assembly, the issue surfaced during an unstarred Legislative Assembly Question (LAQ) tabled by Aleixo Lourenco, seeking details of steps taken to declare the structure an archaeological site.
In its reply, the State government traced a long trail of attempts by the Department of Archaeology to secure access, inspection and eventual conservation of the heritage structure.
As early as March 2018, the Department of Archaeology sought a joint site inspection to determine whether the Viceregal Palace could be notified as an archaeological site. However, the MPA, through its chief engineer, declined permission, stating that the structure lies within notified port limits in a restricted customs-bound operational area, where entry and exit are regulated due to safety and security concerns.
Despite the refusal, the department continued engagement with the port authority. In July 2023, it formally initiated the process for handing over the Viceregal Palace to the Department of Archaeology, followed by a reminder in January 2024.
The effort drew a response in February 2024, with MPA stating that restoration of the building would be taken up in consultation with the Department of Archaeology under a public-private partnership mode. The matter then moved to higher levels. In November 2024, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant wrote to the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, requesting initiation of the process to hand over possession of the Viceregal Palace ruins to the Government of Goa.
A key meeting was held on January 22, 2025, under the chairmanship of the MPA chairman at Headland Sada, where the issue of handing over the structure was discussed. Following this meeting, MPA conveyed two options to the Department of Archaeology for consideration.
The path forward appeared clearer on March 6, 2025, when a meeting chaired by the Secretary (Archaeology) decided to proceed with an agreement between MPA and the Department of Archaeology for restoration and maintenance of the Viceregal Palace. The department has since received a draft memorandum of understanding from MPA, which is currently under scrutiny and will be forwarded to the Law Department for vetting.
Replying to the Assembly, Chief Minister and Archaeology Minister Pramod Sawant clarified that the Old Palace Hotel building is still under examination to determine whether it qualifies as a structure of archaeological importance. The government also categorically stated that no proposal has been received to demolish the building.
For now, the Viceregal Palace remains standing within port limits — a heritage structure waiting for paperwork, permissions and political will to finally converge.
The Viceregal Palace, also known as the Old Palace Hotel, is reportedly the oldest standing non-religious building in Mormugao, which was constructed sometime between 1702 and 1705. According to information, this historic, four-storeyed building had served as a Portuguese viceregal residence, a hotel for sailors, and a WWII intelligence site.
