Fort Aguada/ फोर्ट अगुआड़ा, Fort Aguada Rd, Aguada Fort Area, Candolim, Goa.

This visit to Fort Aguada, Candolim, Goa, was a part of the Goa Heritage walk to the temples and Heritage sites, organised by Aatrupadai, from 5^th December 2025 to 7^th December 2025. Thanks to திருச்சி பார்த்தி for organising the Heritage walk.

AGUADA FORTRESS (UPPER) CANDOLIM

Fort Aguada, built in 1612, comprises a lower fort with bastions all around and an upper fort. It skirts the seashore and ascends the summit of the bare rocky uplands called Aguada Point. The upper fort was built as a vantage point to serve as a fort and a watering station for the ships, while the lower fort offered a safe berth to Portuguese ships.

The upper fort comprises a moat, an underground water storage chamber, light house, gun powder room, and bastions. It also has a secret escape passage to use during an emergency.

Moat with an entrance bridge

Moat

Moat

Moat

The word 'Aguada' means watering place in Portuguese. The storage capacity of the water tank is 23, 76,000 gallons. It has five divisions with a support of 16 huge columns and a staircase to descend. A lighthouse at the initial stage used to emit light once every seven minutes. In 1834, it was updated to emit light, creating an eclipse every 30 seconds. However, it was abandoned in 1976.

UPPER FORT, AGUADA

In 1510, Affonso de Albuquerque conquered the city of Goa (Old Goa) with its natural harbours and navigable rivers by driving away the forces of Ismail Adilshah (1510-1534), the Sultan of Bijapur. After their firm establishment in Goa, the Portuguese faced much opposition from other European invaders like the French, the Dutch, and the English. The Dutch, who started coming to India in 1599, became the major threat to the Portuguese colony in Goa. That necessitated the construction of a fort on the mouth of the river Mandovi for keeping a strict vigil. Therefore, a fort with an extensive circumference around the Aguada plateau was constructed in the year 1612 during the tenure of governor Ruy Lourenco de Tavora (1609-1612). It was named "Aguada", meaning 'a place of water' in Portuguese. Constructed in two segments, viz. the upper and lower, the upper fort Aguada was known as "Fortaleza Real", i.e., the royal fort, while the lower fort Aguada was called "Praca da Santa Catharina".

Shaped like a star, the upper fort Aguada stands at a height of 260 ft. above sea level. Covering an area of 95,768 sq. mts, this fort is located at a prominent geographic location forming a triangle with the promontory of the forts at Cabo and Mormugao, respectively. The fort is surrounded by a dry moat from three sides, which is attached to the mainland measuring 6.5 mts in width, 5.20 mts in depth, and is cut directly into the laterite hillock, and the laterite removed from it was used for the construction of the upper fort Aguada. The fort consists of structures like the gunpowder room, the house of the captain of the fort, the water tank, and the lighthouse, which are covered with a cell parapet wall. The two long stairways originating from the seaside of the upper fort Aguada connect it to the fortification of the lower fort Aguada.

THE WATER TANK

This flat rectangular platform with small windows, in the encircled area of the parapet wall, is an underground water storage chamber/tank. The storage capacity of this water tank is 23,76,000 gallons. There are five divisions inside the tank with a support of 16 huge columns carved in the bedrock. A small staircase is provided at the entry gate to descend. It was used for the storage of sweet water collected by the rain. The flat surface all around the tank was given a slope towards the inlets, and small waterways were provided for collecting the rainwater. This water was then drained to the tank through underground pipes in the lower fort tank, which also had natural springs. This sweet water, so collected, was supplied to the ships anchored at the bay through the pipes. This system of drinking water supply at Fort Aguada holds a distinct place in the fort architecture of India. The laterite quarried for both the cisterns was used for the construction of the fortress.

The fort is being maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India.

The water tank is in front of the Light House

THE DEVELOPMENTAL WORK AND VISITOR AMENITIES UNDER NCF-IOF PROJECT AT AGUADA FORT, GOA

The Gracious Presence of Dr. Pramod Sawant, Hon'ble Chief Minister of Goa, was inaugurated by Shri. G. Kishan Reddy, Hon'ble Minister of Culture & Tourism and Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India, On 4th December 2021, in the Exalted Attendance of Shri. Shripad Yesso Naik, Hon'ble Minister of State for Tourism and Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Government of India, Shri. Chandrakant Kavlekar Hon'ble Deputy Chief Minister, Government of Goa, Shri. Michael Lobo, Hon'ble Minister for Science & Technology Waste Management, Ports and Rural Development, the Government of Goa, and Shri. Dayanand Sopte Hon'ble Minister of Legislative Assembly Chairman, GTDC Goa. 

TIMINGS

The fort will be open to visitors from 09:00 hrs to 17:30 hrs, Tuesday to Sunday, and closed on Monday, which is a holiday.

LOCATION OF THE FORT: CLICK HERE

 The new Light House

 Bottom Fort

Basilica Bom Jesus

--- OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---

Reis Magos Fort/रेस मागोस फोर्ट, Nerul - Reis Margos Rd, beside three kings church, Bardez, Verem, Nerul, Goa.

This visit to the Reis Magos Fort, Nerul, Goa, was a part of the Goa Heritage walk to the temples and Heritage sites, organized by Aatrupadai, from 5^th December 2025 to 7^th December 2025. Thanks to திருச்சி பார்த்தி for organising the Heritage walk.

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE FORT

The Mandon, unlike the Ganges, is a quiet flowing river. But in the 16th century, when Alfonso de Albuquerque made his entry into its waters in February 1510, he got the feel of the might of a small fortified outpost built by the king of Bijapur. Yusuf Adil Shah, on the southern side of Bardez taluka. This little outpost reached out into the narrowest point of the river and had strategic significance. On this occasion, Albuquerque secured the port town of Ela (later known as Old Goa), some ten kilometres from where the Mandovi debouches into the Arabian Sea. This town, however, was soon reconquered by the Sultan of Bijapur. With the fast approach of the monsoon, Albuquerque had no other recourse but to anchor his fleet in Mandovi waters, where the outpost again caused heavy damage to his forces.

On the 25th of November of the same year, (after securing reinforcements from Portugal). Albuquerque reversed his defeats. He assaulted the outpost and again stormed the port town of Old Goa. Once the new territories of Bardez and Salcete were added in the 1540s, the defence of the Mandovi river was further strengthened by the building of the Reis Magos Fort, whose construction began in the early 1550s. The Fort was built in stages.

Dramatically rising over the steep slope of the headland, the Fort, built a little above the old outpost, had a defensive system capable of curbing the crossing of enemy ships through the Mandovi waters. A walled corridor connected the main fortress with the river anchorage, while a passage connected the rooms which ran along the river. The high walls are topped at vantage points by cylindrical watch turrets. The Fort had the advantage of a perennial source of water from a nearby spring.

The Fort of Reis Magos was of great strategic importance because it served as a first line of defence to the port town of Old Goa. To make it more effective against the Dutch incursions, the Portuguese built in 1595 another fortification on the opposite bank of the Mandovi River on land belonging to a nobleman named Gasper Dias.

The two Forts were capable of crossfire. Soon, however, it was realized that these two strong forces were not an effective way of obstructing the Dutch ships in their daring attempts to cruise the Mandovi waters. This prompted the Portuguese to realize the importance and necessity of raising strong Fortifications on the mouths of the Mandovi and Zuari rivers at Aguada. Cabo and Marmagos, respectively. Notwithstanding this fact and due to the strategic importance of the Reis Magos Fort, a new buttress was built in the early eighteenth century during the time of the Viceroy Caetano de Mello e Castro. The Viceroy also ordered a plaque to be placed at the main entrance of the Fort. At this stage, the Fort was defended by 33 guns of different calibres.

During the Maratha incursion in 1739. The Fort of Reis Magos and its counterparts, the Fort Aguada, could hold valiantly while the province of Bardez was occupied by the Bhonsles (allies of Marathas). It was only in 1741 with the arrival of the new Viceroy. Marquis de Louriçal, the Bhonsles retreated back to Pernem. The British occupied Goa from 1799 to 1813 during the Napoleonic Wars. In 1808, they used the Fort of Reis Magos to lodge their soldiers.

The threat of naval attacks decreased by the 19th century, as the Portuguese power in the East had declined. The relevance of the Fort also declined. In the 1940s, the Reis Magos Fort was converted to a subjail to lodge short-term convicts; it was also used to lodge some of the Freedom Fighters working for the liberation of Goa when the movement intensified in the 1950s. The Fort functioned as a jail till 1993, and during this period, a number of modifications were carried out. Once abandoned, the Fort fell into decay.

 Prision

Death Hole

In 2007, a tripartite agreement was signed between the Government of Goa, INTACH and the Helen Hamlyn Trust to restore and re-use the Fort as a cultural centre. The restoration was sponsored by the Helen Hamlyn Trust. The Fort was thrown open to the public on 5th June 2012.

TIMINGS

The fort will be kept open for visitors from 09.30 hrs to 17.00 hrs, from Tuesday to Sunday, and Monday is a holiday.

LOCATION OF THE FORT: CLICK HERE

Water way

--- OM SHIVAYA NAMA---

Calangute Beach, Goa, Calangute Beach Rd, Umtav Vado, Calangute, Goa.

This visit to the Calangute Beach, Goa, was a part of the Goa Heritage walk to the temples and Heritage sites, organised by Aatrupadai, from 5^th December 2025 to 7^th December 2025. Thanks to திருச்சி பார்த்தி for organising the Heritage walk.

A 7-kilometre-long beach, Calangute Beach, situated along the Goan coastline, is a vibrant and captivating destination that beckons travellers from across the globe. One of the most popular beaches, not just in Goa but across the country, the beach witnesses huge crowds and is often the first destination for travellers arriving in Goa. Known as the “Queen of Beaches,” Calangute offers a delightful blend of natural beauty, historical significance, and modern-day allure. Bay watchers are stationed with surf throughout the length of the beach.

LOCATION OF THE BEACH: CLICK HERE

Fishing by a foreigner

Bay watcher 

All in a Quee

Pulling the boat to shore

The catch

When father and mother becomes Children

Dayanand Bandodkar, the first Chief Minister of Goa, 1963 - 66

A Portuguese period House

--- OM SHIVAYA NAMA ---