Rains bring down portion of Sakhali fort (ToI)

Rains bring down portion of Sakhali fort Rajendra Kerkar , TNN | Jun 10, 2013, 02.21 AM IST KERI: A major portion of the Sakhali fort collapsed on Sunday following continuous rain. Locals said government apathy towards preserving it also led to the collapse. Bicholim mamlatdar Shripad Majik said, "A portion of fort collapsed this (Sunday) evening and shopkeepers who have constructed shops at the foot of fort have expressed fears that if the rains continue a further portion of the fort could collapse. We have informed people in the vicinity to be cautious." The fort remained in a state of disrepair for long. Former Sakhali municipality councillor Vijaykumar Verekar said, "I had proposed the beautification of the fort a long time back by denotifying it as it is in ruinous condition. The proposal did not materialize." Speaking to TOI, Sachin Madge who has written extensively on forts said, "The directorate of archives and archaeology has not taken any steps for protection and conservation of the fort. The apathy of government and community resulted in the collapse of the portion of fort. The fort is on the verge of crumbling altogether." When contacted, archives and archaeology director ML Dicholkar said, "There was a proposal from Sakhali municipality to denotify the fort from the list of protected monuments but it has not been denotified so far. I have given directives to the contractor to undertake repair work Monday onwards." The fort that stands on the left bank of the river Valvonti was conquered in 1746 by the Marquis of Alorna and was regarded as an important military point till 1817. The fort had eight guns. The fort has been also the residence of the 'administrador fiscal' of Sattari, a customs house, and a bazaar. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Rains-bring-down-portion-of-Sakhali-fort/articleshow/20513269.cms