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Not
for nothing India was considered a golden sparrow during the middle ages. The
riches of the country – cultural, political and economic – had spread its fame
right across the then civilized world. Virtually every sea-faring nation of
Europe in those days was aiming for a piece of the rich cake the country
offered. Portugal was one of the first European countries to hit the Western
shores of India. It has left a major footprint in the shape of Vasai Fort about
50 kilometres north of Mumbai.
The
Fort at Vasai – also known as Bassein or Bacaim – is all that remains today of
the Portuguese possession near Mumbai in the Palghar District of Maharashtra.
It is known as the Fort of St. Sabastian of Vasai. The Portuguese had
penetrated the Konkan coast and the control over Vasai gave them the possession
of several islands that constitute Mumbai today. These are, among others,
Colaba, Mumbai, Mazagaon, Worli, Matunga and Mahim. In addition Portuguese used
to control Salsette, Daman, Diu, Thane, Kalyan etc.
The
Vasai Fort is a Monument of National Importance. It is mostly in ruins except a
few watch towers with their stairs in good usable condition. Many of the
structures inside the Fort have fallen off but some of the walls remain
standing to tell the current generation of their floor plans. The Fort
currently has become a popular shooting destination of the Bollywood. Numerous
films are shot here every year.
We
took the route up north from our Worli residence and covered the distance in
about an hour and a half. Wandering around we found little evidence of
Portuguese occupation except the fort and a few names of places. An important
legacy, however, is the presence of East Indians, the Catholic Christians, in
the area whom we encountered also in Gorai. Maybe, some influences have been
left behind in the cuisine and the way of life of the local people. Otherwise,
unlike Goa, nothing much is left of the Northern Court or Corte da Norte,
second only to Goa, functioning as the capital of the North from Vasai. Perhaps
the reason is the hand-over of the Portuguese possessions of the region to the
English by way of dowry for Princess Catherine of Braganza
This
was our last outing in Mumbai except a minor one to Elephanta caves. I had
completed four peaceful years of my tenure and it was now time to move. Soon I
got a call from my friend TK Tochhawng, PMG North East, intimating that I had
been posted in his place. He wanted me not to maneuver to have the orders
cancelled. I assured him I had no such intentions. Obviously he did not want to
continue further in Shillong though he was a Khasi.
Soon
the round of farewells commenced, not by senior or junior colleagues but by the
trade unions of the Maharashtra Circle. We had progresses to three regular
unions – one each for every shade of political opinion. The oldest, of course,
was the National Federation of the Postal Unions; the next was the National
Union supported by the Indian National Congress and the third was the
departmental union of Bharatiya Majdoor Sangh. All of them gave memorable
send-offs for quite inexplicable reasons. When I was transferred out of
Ahmedabad in the beginning of my career we had only one union that is the one
that was Leftist.It too gave me a massive send-off.
We packed and sent our stuff and the car by a
truck right across the country from West to East and a day later we took a flight
to Guwahati via Calcutta. We spent two pleasant years in the North East about
which I have written separately. And, again, on completion, this time, of an
abbreviated tenure of two years I was posted to the headquarters of the
Department in-charge of matters relating to personnel. The only snag, reportedly,
was the Secretary – an officer of our cadre – who was considered rather
boorish. But things turned out in an entirely different way. He became very
fond of me particularly because of the way I worked. I had surprisingly a very
happy time with him though I did have to put in pretty hard labour.
