GOA DETECTIVES PRIVATE LIMITED - Key Persons
Aguada Fort stands tall as one of the most known representatives of the Goan history. The fort was constructed in 1612 by the Portuguese afearing an attack from the Marathas and the Dutch. The fort had a fresh water spring that provided for the water requirements of all those who used to pass through the place. The giant fort served as crucial point for all the important operations of the Portueguese.
Dr. Nandkumar Kamat from the University of Goa discovered the prehistoric petroglyphs of Goa. More than 125 forms were found scattered on the banks of river Kushavati in south-eastern Goa. According to Kamat, these are evidence of a prehistoric Goan shamanistic practice. For hundreds of years, the Kushavati rock art of Goa was known locally as Goravarakhnyachi Chitram, or pictures made by cowherds. But people did not know how ancient the works were, nor could anyone interpret them. After thorough study of these forms, scholars have concluded that these petroglyphs differ from those found elsewhere in Goa. Deeper studies and analysis over a period of ten years showed these petroglyphs were an exquisitely carved ocular labyrinth, one of the best in India and Asia. Its ocular nature added to the evidence of prehistoric shamanism.
The studies have shown that the Kushavati culture was a hunter-gatherer culture with deep knowledge of local natural resources and processes - water, fish, plants, game, animal breeding cycles, seasons and natural calamities. The Kushavati culture was greatly concerned with water security, so they set up camps near the streams. The Kushavati found food security in the jungle near the steam. Like every culture, its members confronted the mysteries of illness, death and birth. Kamat believes that this culture dated to 6,000 to 8,000 years ago. On basis of recent DNA-based work on human migration, Dr. Nandkumar Kamat has ruled out the possibility of Kushavati shamans belonging to the first wave of humans to arrive in Goa. They were not negritoes or austrics. Most probably they were the earliest Mediterraneans who had descended the Western Ghats, probably in their search for sea salt on Goa's coast. As the Kushavati transitioned into a Neolithic society, they began the domestication of animals and were in the last phase of using stone tools. The entire realm of shamanism underwent a radical transition. Today evidence of the metamorphosis in masked dance drama Perni jagor can be seen in the same cultural region.
Mahalaxmi Temple situated in Bandora Village of Goa, is dedicated to goddess Mahalaxmi (Goddess of power and strength). The Temple has a beautifully constructed Chowk which is its major attraction. The temple constructed as early as 1413 A.D, is visited by tourists all across the country especially during the Navratri which is celebrated with a great pomp and show at the place.