Cuncolim Chieftains Memorial Committee members handing over a memento to Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai during his visit to the memorial on Thursday.
Photo Credits: Santosh Mirajkar
MARGAO
Saying that Cuncolim is a place of historical importance, Governor P S Sreedharan on Thursday said proper history is not available on pre-Liberation era of Goa primarily because of the autocratic and cruel rule of the Portuguese rulers.
The governor descended on the Chieftain’s Memorial at Cuncolim on Thursday noon to pay tributes to the Chieftains who fought valiantly the Portuguese rulers before being massacred under the pretext of signing a peace treaty.
He was welcomed at the memorial by Cuncolim MLA and Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao, Cuncolim Municipal Chairperson Laxman Naik, Councilors and delegation of Cuncolim Chieftains memorial committee comprising of president Oscar Martins, Vijay Kumar Kopre Desai, Sripad Desai and others.
After paying his tributes, the governor said Cuncolim is a place of historical importance, adding that the history should be preserved and handed over to the coming generations.
“Compared to the British rule in India, the Portuguese rulers were autocratic and cruel. That is why proper history is not fully available. Whatever that is available has been handed down to generations,” he said.
He added: “History, according to me, is like a flow of water. If people are not preserving it, it is a loss forever. Through my village travel and visits, I had the occasion to study history and experience many things.”
The governor also unveiled plans to pen a book or two on Goa and on his visits to the villages.
The Cuncolim Chieftains Memorial Committee Chief Oscar Martins and Vijay Kumar Kopre Desai later handed over a memento to the visiting Governor. The duo also raised the issue of inclusion of the historic 1583 Cuncolim revolt in the history books, drawing the governor’s attention to the resolution tabled by Cuncolim MLA Yuri Alemao in the Goa Legislative Assembly and accepted by the government on the inclusion of the historic revolt in the school curriculum.
