The 17th century witnessed the involvement and interference of European powers in the trade, commerce, and everyday life of the Indian people. The severe competition between these European powers to control India’s resources ed the local establishment to prepare themselves to defend and attack. One such mammoth edifice is the Fort Aguada, built on the shores of Goa.
Strategically located at the confluence of the Arabian Sea and the Mandovi river, it was built in 1612 by the Portuguese to protect itself from the Dutch and is one of the largest freshwater reservoirs in Asia. Fort Aguada is not only a heritage structure but also a testament to the Freedom Struggle of Goa. It was converted into a prison during the Portuguese Dictator Salazar’s regime when he used it to jail his political opponents. At the peak of the Indian Independence Movement in 1946, the fort was the jail for several freedom fighters who fought for India’s freedom from the British and Goa’s liberation from the Portuguese in the post-independence period. Two of its cells are dedicated to T B Cunha and Ram Manohar Lohia (two brave nationalists), who were imprisoned during the Portuguese regime. An annual ceremony is held on June 18 to remember those who sacrificed their lives for Goa’s freedom. Goa’s Freedom Struggle Museum is also housed in the Central Jail of Aguada Fort.
Source: Indian Culture Portal