No headway on locating site or translating records on temples
PANAJI
Seven months after the Committee of Experts submitted a comprehensive list of recommendations to the government on temples destroyed during Portuguese rule, the State government has neither identified a site for a temple memorial nor progressed on translating crucial records that could shed more light on the destroyed temples.
Archaeology Minister Subhash Phal Dessai stated that the department is in the process of finding a suitable site for the memorial but did not provide a reason for the delay.
The Committee, established in January 2023 and granted an extension till December 2023, submitted an interim report during this period and a final report at the end of its tenure.
The recommendations mentioned that since many temples and deities existing in Goa before Portuguese rule were destroyed, a temple memorial (Smarak-Devalaya) be constructed in the erstwhile Old Conquests region, which includes modern Salcete, Bardez and Tiswadi – areas that suffered significant temple destruction.
“Keeping in mind the large number of temples and deities which existed in Goa during the pre-Portuguese period, which was destroyed by Portuguese at the behest of recommendation of the provincial councils, the committee recommends a temple memorial (Smarak-Devalaya) to be built anywhere in the erstwhile Old Conquests consisting of modern Salcete, Bardez and Tiswadi that bore the brunt of temple destruction spree of the Goa Inquisition and colonial policies during which more than a thousand temples were destroyed and re-establishing those deities whose original sites have been usurped by the colonial rule,” reads an extract of the recommendations, copy of which is in exclusive possession of The Goan.
The Committee, chaired by Prof Varsha Kamat, further observed the neglect of immense archaeological evidence and remains scattered across villages in the once “rich in temple culture of Goa.”
“These are lying in neglect. Also, in the process of modernisation we are losing our ancient temple heritage at a faster pace,” it stated.
Another recommendation urged the government to set up a museum exclusively showcasing Goa’s ancient temple heritage. However, sources revealed that no significant progress has been made on this front.
Regarding the translation of historical records into English language, the Committee identified six books as these are primary evidence detailing the destruction of temples. Sources further revealed that the department is in communication with the Department of Goa Gazetteer and Historical Records but the process isn’t expedited.
Another recommendation to formulate schemes to undertake minor and major research projects among researchers and academicians on the temples of Goa – lies in cold storage.
