The famous Aguada Jail also known as the Portuguese Jail or the Central Jail at Aguada is synonymous with Goan sightseeing tours. Tourists experiencing the surreal moment of inmates serving life and short term sentences waving at them while they waved back, will now be a thing of the past, as the Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) plans to turn the now empty prison into a tourist attraction soon.
With the prison now lying abandoned for almost a year after the prisoners were transferred to a new jail in Colvale at the end of May 2015, the GTDC’s mega plan to transform it into a museum of sorts is now underway.
GTDC’s spokesperson addressing the topic said, “The 17th century structure has some historical landmarks And Darashaw; Co Pvt Ltd, the project development consultants, have researched and surveyed every aspect of the structure that will need to be given prominence, based on the historical and heritage value,” the spokesman said.
The space will soon house viewing galleries, tourist information centres, amenity zones, activity zones, and revamped temple and chapel areas. It will serve as a memorial to the freedom fighters and the young women and children who gave up their lives to liberate Goa from its then overlords, the Portuguese.
“The old Central Jail at Aguada is very well known not only as a prison but for its history and heritage”, GTDC’s Chairman Nilesh Cabral was reported as saying.
Much like Alcatraz in San Francisco, Charles Street Jail in Boston, Oxford Jail in England, Cellular Jail in Andaman and the Dhagshai Jail in Himachal Pradesh, the latter two of which date back to the British era; the Aguada Jail will too be repurposed to illustrate its pre and post Portuguese history.
“GTDC has requested the government to turn this vacant structure as a tourist spot. The Corporation has started working on a project that will preserve the heritage structure and showcase Goa’s freedom struggle,” Nilesh concluded.
Tourists and locals alike are wait in anticipation for the repurposed Aguada Jail to be open for public viewing in order to experience the insides of the prison much like its inmates did, though in a more convict free and enjoyable setting.
Facts sourced from ‘The Deccan Chronicle‘
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