To work with Portuguese authorities to access manuscripts, copper plates
PANAJI
In a bid to reclaim scattered fragments of Goa’s colonial-era history, the State government on Friday announced a plan to retrieve and digitally preserve archival records currently housed in Portugal, placing historical recovery at the centre of its heritage roadmap. Presenting the 2026–27 Budget in the Goa Legislative Assembly, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said several historically significant documents related to Goa are preserved in public and private archives in Portugal, particularly at the Overseas Historical Archives in Lisbon.
He said the government intends to begin efforts to access, digitise and repatriate copies of these records to strengthen research and public understanding of Goa’s past. “Several records related to Goa are available in public and private archives in Portugal. The Overseas Historical Archives in Lisbon contain extensive documentation, including valuable information and historically significant manuscripts related to Goa. Similarly, copper plates from the period before Portuguese rule are also available in Lisbon. Recently, the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, indicated that the Government of Portugal is willing to facilitate the exchange of such records, which will help the State access more information related to the Portuguese period in Goa,” the CM said.
Heritage preservation gets major push
PANAJI: The CM announced that 2026 will mark the 80th anniversary of Goa Revolution Day with a special exhibition on the liberation movement. Files on unpublished cases involving freedom fighters will be made public, while the Goa Gazetteer Department will publish a coffee-table book on memorials linked to Goa’s liberation struggle.
Sawant also said work on the Koti Tirth Corridor, planned at sites of temples destroyed during the Portuguese era, will begin this year to promote spiritual tourism. The 2026–27 Budget allocates Rs 59 crore to the Archives, Archaeology and Goa Gazetteer Department — Rs 31 crore for revenue and Rs 28 crore for capital expenditure.
He said the government has notified the Goa State Heritage Policy-2025, described as the country’s first state-level heritage policy, providing a framework to conserve Goa’s tangible, intangible and eco-cultural heritage with community participation and sustainable use.
Under it, the Goa Heritage House Conservation and Adaptive Reuse Assistance Scheme will provide financial aid to privately owned heritage houses over 100 years old not protected by the ASI. The Budget also proposes Local Heritage Conservation Committees at panchayat and urban local body levels to identify and safeguard local heritage assets with community participation.
Sawant announced the Goa Archives Survey Scheme to survey manuscripts of national importance and create a database to preserve documentary heritage. The State will also launch the Goa Knowledge Treasury Conservation Scheme to support digitisation and scientific preservation of valuable manuscripts in private collections.
As part of its digital heritage vision, Goa will establish the National Destination Digital Knowledge Grid – Goa, aligned with the Union government’s plan for a national digital repository of heritage sites. The government also proposes a Goa State Record Retention Policy to ensure systematic preservation of government records over 20 years old across departments.
