SANGUEM
Ignoring the State government’s advisory to people to avoid visiting those water bodies which could endanger lives, a large number of people continue to visit the Selaulim backwaters in Kurdi village to catch a glimpse of the old Kurdi village and to pay respects to Lord Someshwar or at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Chapel.
Even after almost 40 years of evacuation of the original inhabitants from Kurdi village, the edifices of Lord Someshwar temple and Sacred Heart of Jesus Chapel still remain intact in the Selaulim backwaters.
Both religious sites, which recently celebrated their respective annual festivities, will go underwater in a few days and will resurface only in April-May 2025.
With the monsoon having already started in Goa, the open land in Kurdi village which forms the Selaulim backwaters has already filled and water has almost touched the road which is used by visitors to visit the village.
If it rains for another few days, the road will be totally submerged and it will be risky to visit the Selaulim backwaters at this point
in time.
Locals fear that visitors new to the area would be endangering their lives as the road would be slippery and they may not be in a position to gauge the depth of the water.
While police make routine visits to the area to ensure that visitors do not move close to the backwaters, many visitors are found endangering their lives when the police are not around.
