CAMPO DO MANUEL PORTUGAL E CASTRO - CAMPAL.

(Mr. Prajal Sakhardande – VP, Goa Heritage Action Group)

COMPILED BY:- SANJEEV V. SARDESAI – sanscritic@sify.com

CAMPAL AVENUE:
This is a beautiful, cool and a pleasant precinct of our capital city, lined with the samania samans, casuarinas – down the sandy asopolavs and the rustic shields, creating for you the Avenida Craviera Lopes in the late 20’s and the early 30’s.
From Palacio de Maquenezes (old GMC) of 1702 to the La Campala Colony, runs this lovely promenade like precinct, laced with the Mandovi in the backdrop - this precinct is a historians and heritage lovers delight.
Nature bestowed her choicest gifts since time immemorial with sand dunes, its vegetation and the marshy landscape and water everywhere.
The years 1827 – 35, saw Goa under the governance of the far-sighted PortugueseViceroy Campo do Manuel Portugal e Castro, who initiated the programme of reclamation and leveling the area. In 1829, the Viceroy ordered the construction of a culvert and a bridge called “The Minerva Bridge”, (recently renovated by the Panjim Municipal Council under its Beautification of Panjim campaign & still existing behind the GMC Complex) with a Roman style arched masonry work and ornamental columns. He also built another bridge, on the Military Hospital side, leading to the St. Inez area. In fact, both these bridges are welcome arches to Campal. These culverts and the one after Bal Bhavan, speak of the original marshy character of the precinct.
The first three decades of the 20 th Century saw the beautification of Campal, and that is when the ‘Rain tree Avenue’ came into existence, during the tenure of Craviera Lopes (1929 –36).
In the cool evenings, the spread of the tiny yellow flowers at the Campal avenue, lanes, and by-lanes create a yellow carpet, which is extremely beautiful to look at.
In 1929, the centenary year of the famous Goan patriot and 1 st Goan ParliamentarianFrancisco Luis Gomes, saw the completion of the “F. L. Gomes Jardin”, where his statue was installed in a ceremonial manner. This garden has a pergola band stand, with a distinct Graeco-Roman style (Ionic Columns).
In the backdrop of this garden area lined the beautiful 20 Indo-Portuguese style villas viz. residences of the Rebello’s, Barros (Villa Savitri), the Pinto’s, the Sequeira’s, The Leao Fernandes, Mesquita’s, Gonsalves, Afonso, Peregrino da Costa, Zizinha Costa,
The oldest resident of the area, Mrs. Ermina Carvalho Fernandes (Birth: 23 rd November 1902) turned a centenarian and her birthday was recently celebrated in the F. L. Gomes Garden, in a befitting manner by all the residents of the Campal area.

THE CANNON AT CAMPAL (Cannon de Banastarim):
The cannon, mounted here, opposite the F. L. Gomes Garden and facing the Reis Magos Fort was brought here from the Adilshahi Fort of Banastarim. This cannon played a major role in history and was used in the famous ‘Battle of Banastarim’ fought in 1512 between the Portuguese and the Adilshahi garrison, following the Portuguese Conquest of the Tiswadi island in 1510 by Afonso de Albuquerque.

THE PRINCE HENRY NAVIGATION MEMORIAL:
The Prince Henry Navigation Memorial, constructed in 1960, during the tenure of Vassalo da Silva, to mark the 500 th Death Anniversary of the Portuguese Prince Henry, who revolutionized the arena of exploration, by starting the ‘Sagres School of Navigation’, which ultimately led to the discovery of the sea-route to India by Vasco da Gama in 1498, and opened up colonization in Asia & Africa.

THE CAMPAL PROMENADE:
The Campal Promenade, running along the river-front with a balustraded esplanade and the Pergola, with a boat shaped structure (motif) with the Reis Magos in the background, especially at sunset, is a treat to the eyes. Similarly the Campal stretch facing the river front and the mouth of the River Mandovi, at Verem, gradually merging with the sea, with two forts – Reis Magos & Aguada, the line of swaying casuarinas and the tall light-house on the beach is a feast to the eyes.

CHILDREN’S PARK:
The Children’s Park, managed by the Forest Department at Campal on the banks of River Mandovi was originally called as ‘Jardim Dr. Oliveira Salazar’ and was inaugurated on 3 rd May 1952 by Saramento Rodrigues, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Portugal.

OTHER PROMINANT STRUCTURES IN CAMPAL:
Campal has a Military Hospital, the prestigious Kala Academy Complex, a composite annexure for sports lovers comprising the Bandodkar Football Stadium, an international standard indoor badminton stadium and swimming pools, a cricket ground & an athletic track of the Sports Authority of Goa.

MEU DE LARANJ:
An aesthetic canopy, seen outside the Bandodkar Football Stadium, was constructed in 1967 by the Indian Heritage Society led by Percival Noronha, as a leisure evening sit-out.

EMINENT PERSONALITIES:
Campal has had the fortune of having as its resident many a great personalities, who have at some time have played an important part in the shaping of the history of not only . To name a few of these personalities, we have the late Dr. Jack de Sequeira (1 st Opposition Leader of free Goan Assembly and an architect of the Opinion Poll for a separate identity of the GoanState), Late. Dr. Pacheco Figuereido (1 st Dean of GoaMedicalCollege), Late Erasmo Sequeira (Industrialist), Dr. Emidio Afonso, Dr. Alvaro de Noronha, Mrs. Patricia Pinto (Civic & Environment Activist).