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पणजी/Panaji
—  capital  —
पणजी/Panaji Location of पणजी/Panaji in Goa and India
Coordinates	15°29′N 73°50′E / 15.48°N 73.83°E / 15.48; 73.83Coordinates: 15°29′N 73°50′E / 15.48°N 73.83°E / 15.48; 73.83
Country	India
State	Goa
District(s)	North Goa
Mayor Commissioner	Vaidehi Naik Sanjit Rodrigues
Population • Density	65,000 (2001[update]) • 1,821 /km2 (4,716 /sq mi)
Time zone	IST (UTC+05:30)
Area • Elevation	36 km2 (14 sq mi) • 7 metres (23 ft)
Codes • Pincode • 403 001 • Telephone • +0832 • UN/LOCODE • IN PAN • Vehicle • GA-01, GA-07

Panaji /ˈpʌnədʒiː/ (Konkani: पणजी Panaje, pronounced [pɔɳɟĩ], [pɵɳɟiː] ( listen), Marathi पणजी, usually known in English as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi estuary, in the district of North Goa. With a population of 65,000 in the city and approximately 100,000 in the metropolitan area, Panaji is Goa's third largest city after Vasco da Gama and Margao.

Panaji means “Land that never floods”. Panaji is the capital of Goa and headquarters of North Goa District, located on the left bank of the Mandovi River, piled up against terraced hills, a jumble of concrete buildings with whimsical balconies and red-tiled roofs, bleached clean churches and a riverside promenade, with red-roofed houses built in Latin style. It also has modern houses, well laid gardens, statues and avenues lined with gulmohar, acacia and other trees. The Baroque church of the Our Lady of Immaculate Conception located overlooking the main square known as Praça da Igreja, pretty villas, cobbled streets and interesting buildings give Panaji a Portuguese ambience.

Etymology[link]

Se Cathedral in Old Goa.

The word Panaji is etymologically derived from the words panjani and khali, which mean a boat and a small creek respectively, in Sanskrit. Thus the modern word Panaji is a corrupt form of the old world Panjakhali as inscribed on the copper-plates found, belonging to the rule of Kadamba king Tribhuvanamalla.^[1]

The official name is Panaji. The Portuguese name was Pangim. The city is called Panjim in English. It has been spelt as Panaji since the 1960s. The city is called paṇaje or Ponnji in Konkani.

Earlier a small village on the river front, in 1843 the city had been renamed Nova Goa (Portuguese for New Goa) when it officially replaced the city of Goa (now Old Goa) as the administrative seat of Portuguese India, though the viceroy had already moved there in 1759.

Geography[link]

Panaji is located at 15°29′N 73°50′E / 15.48°N 73.83°E / 15.48; 73.83.^[2] It has an average elevation of 7 metres (23 feet). Panaji has various vadde or sub-divisions, some of which are São Tomé, Fontainhas, Mala, Portais, Altinho, Cortin, Praça da Igreja, Tar (near the ferry wharf), Bazar, Japão (near Don Bosco), Boca da Vaca. Some areas outlying it are Campal, Santa Inez, Chinchollem, Batulem, Patto. Besides lying on the banks of the river Mandovi, Panaji is bounded by two creeks, locally called pői in the singular, namely Ourem and Santa Inêz creek.

History[link]

Panaji was annexed by India with the rest of Goa and the former Portuguese territories, in the invasion of 1961. Panaji became a state-capital on Goa's elevation to statehood in 1987. Between 1961 and 1987, it was the capital of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu. A new Legislative Assembly complex was inaugurated in March 2000, across the Mandovi river, in Alto Porvorim. Panaji is also the administrative headquarters of North Goa district.

Demographics[link]

As of 2001^[update] India census,^[3] Panaji had a population of 58,785. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Panaji has an average literacy rate of 81%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 85%, and female literacy is 77%. In Panaji, 9% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Climate[link]

Panaji features a tropical monsoon climate. The climate in Panaji is hot in summer and equable in winter. During summers (from March to May) the temperature reaches up to 32 °C and in winters (from December to February) it is usually between 28 °C and 20 °C.

The monsoon period is from June to September with heavy rainfall and gusty winds. The annual average rainfall is 2932 mm (115.5 inches).

Landmarks[link]

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church.

The heart of the city is the Church Square or Municipal Garden with the Portuguese Baroque Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church, originally built in 1541. Other tourist attractions include the old and rebuilt Adilshahi Palace (or Idalcao palace), dating from the sixteenth century, the Menezes Braganza Institute, the Mahalaxmi Temple, the Jama Masjid mosque, the Chapel of St. Sebastian and the Fontainhas, area in general which is considered to be the old Latin Quarter, as well as the nearby beach of Miramar. Hanuman Mandir at Mala on hill top (altinho) and its annual zatra in February is a major attraction of Panaji. Panaji also currently hosts the relics of Saint John Bosco (also known as Don Bosco), albeit temporarily till the 21st August, 2011, at the Don Bosco Oratory.

The Carnival celebrations in February include a colorful parade on the streets. This is followed by the Shigmo/ xigmo, or Holi. The Narkasur parade on the night before Diwali in the city is very colorful.

Well-known places in Panaji are the 18th June Road (a busy thoroughfare in the heart of the town and a shopping area for tourists and locals), Mala area, Miramar beach and the Kala Academy cultural center known for its structure built by architect Charles Correa. Kala Academy is a place where Goa showcases its art and culture.

Other attractions[link]

Dona Paula.

Inside the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary.

Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary is a bird sanctuary named after the orthinologist Dr Salim Ali. The sanctuary, located in the village Chorão, near Panaji, plays host to rare and endangered bird species — both migratory and resident.

Miramar, Bambolim, Dona Paula Beach: Goa is famous for its beaches, and Miramar, Bambolim, Dona Paula are three popular beaches located near Panaji.

Also located near Panaji, is the Goa Science Center which was opened to the public in December 2001.

Dona Paula:

Dona Paula is the meeting point for two of the Goa’s famous rivers. These two rivers meet at Arabian Sea. The official residence of the Governor of Goa, Known as Cabo Raj Bhavan is situated on the westernmost tip of Dona Paula.

Miramar Beach:

This beach is located near Panaji. This is one of the crowded beaches in Panaji, which remains full with local and international tourists throughout the year.

Education[link]

The renovated building of Goa Medical College.

Some prominent educational Institutes in Panaji are

• V. M. Salgaocar College of Law, Miramar.
• The Progress High School.
• Goa Medical College
• Santa Cruz High School, Santa Cruz
• Don Bosco High School.
• Goa Institute of Management.
• Dempo College of Commerce and Economics, at Altinho.
• Dhempe College of Arts & Sciences, at Miramar.
• Sharada Mandir at Miramar
• Mary Immaculate Girls High School at San Tome/Fontainhas.
• Peoples High School at Mala
• Mushtifund Saunstha
• Goa College of Pharmacy
• Goa Polytechnic Panaji
• Goa College of Fine Arts
• Dr. Hedgewar High School
• The Rosary High School Miramar
• Our lady of Rosary (Green Rosary) Donapaula
• Taleigao Chess Academy devoted to promote chess as learning tool

Besides this, the only university in Goa, the Goa University is situated at Taleigao Plateau on the outskirts of Panaji.

Research centres[link]

The National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) is situated at Dona Paula, on the outskirts of Panaji city. It does research in fields related to marine sciences.

Transport[link]

Panaji Circle under the Mandovi bridge links Panaji city to the road going to Ponda, Ribandar and Marcela.

The nearest airport is Dabolim Airport which is 30 km away.^[5]

Government offices[link]

The Goan government, as well as the Indian government, has its major offices in Goa.

• Passport Office, Panaji
• Junta House houses government offices.
• Industrial Development Corporation Goa
• Goa Education Development Corporation
• Sports Authority of Goa
• Bombay High Court - Goa bench
• Press Information Bureau (Government of India's Press Office)
• All India Radio, Altinho
• Doordarshan Complex, Altinho

The Goa Assembly is situated at Alto Porvorim, some two kilometres away from Panaji. The hillock called Altinho houses some major central government offices and the residences of prominent officials and politicians.

Politics[link]

The Member of Legislation (MLA) for Panaji is Manohar Parrikar of the Bharatiya Janata Party,who is also the current chief minister of the state. The C.C.P. (Corporation of City of Panaji) administers the city and its mayor is Vaidehi Naik. The Governor of Goa, stays at the Raj Bhavan (Cabo Raj Nivas), at Dona Paula around 8 kilometers from Panaji.

Gallery[link]

See also[link]

Goa portal

• Basilica of Bom Jesus
• Shanta Durga temple
• Dudhsagar Falls
• The Pool (2007 film)
• The 1961 Armed Liberation of Goa
• Old Goa

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Panaji

• Panaji travel guide from Wikitravel
• Government of Goa
• A Travel Guide on Panaji from IndiaTravelCompanion

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Title page of Garcia de Orta's Colóquios. Goa, 1563.

Garcia de Orta (1501 or 1502–1568) was a Portuguese Renaissance Sephardi Jewish physician and naturalist. He was a pioneer of tropical medicine.

Life[link]

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Garcia de Orta was born in Castelo de Vide, probably in 1501, the son of Fernão (Isaac) da Orta, a merchant, and Leonor Gomes. He had three sisters, Violante, Catarina and Isabel. Their parents were Spanish Jews from Valencia de Alcántara who had taken refuge, as many others did, in Portugal at the time of the great expulsion of the Spanish Jews by the Reyes Catolicos Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain in 1492. Forcibly converted to Christianity in 1497, they were henceforth classed under the despised names of Cristãos Novos (New Christians) and marranos. Some of these refugees maintained their Jewish faith secretly.

He studied medicine, arts and philosophy at the Universities of Alcalá de Henares and Salamanca in Spain. He graduated and returned to Portugal in 1523, two years after his father's death. He practiced medicine first in his home town and from 1526 onwards in Lisbon, where he gained a professorship at the university in 1530.

Perhaps fearing the increasing power of the Inquisition, and fortunately evading the ban on emigration of New Christians, he sailed for India in 1534 as Chief Physician aboard the fleet of the Viceroy Martim Afonso de Sousa. He travelled with the Viceroy on various campaigns, then, in 1538, settled at Goa, where he soon had a prominent medical practice. He was physician to Burhan Shah I of the Nizam Shahi dynasty of Ahmadnagar, and concurrently to several successive Portuguese Viceroys and governors of Goa: one of these granted him a lease of the island of Bombay, though he never lived there.

Garcia de Orta married a rich New Christian relative, Brianda de Solis, in 1543; the marriage was unhappy, but the couple had two daughters. In 1549 his mother and two of his sisters, who had been imprisoned as Jews in Lisbon, managed to join him in Goa. According to a confession by his brother-in-law after his death, Garcia de Orta privately continued to assert that "the Law of Moses was the true law";^[1] in other words, he, probably in common with others in his family, remained a Jewish believer. In 1565 the Inquisition was introduced to the Indian Viceroyalty and an inquisitorial court was opened in Goa. Active persecution against Jews, secret Jews, Hindus and New Christians began. Garcia himself died in 1568, apparently without having suffered seriously from this persecution, but his sister Catarina was arrested as a Jew in the same year and was burned at the stake for Judaism in Goa in 1569. Garcia himself was posthumously convicted of Judaism. His remains were exhumed and burned in an auto da fé in 1580.^[2] The fate of his daughters is not known. During his lifetime, de Orta had been protected from the Inquisition by his friend and patron, Martim Afonso de Sousa, Governor-General of Portuguese India from 1542 to 1545.^[3]

His Work[link]

Orta's libri dell' Historia dei Semplici aromati

Garcia de Orta's busy practice evidently prevented him travelling beyond the west coast of India, but in the busy market and trading hub of Goa he met spice merchants, traders and physicians from many parts of southern Asia and the Indian Ocean coasts. He was confident in Portuguese, Spanish, Hebrew, Latin, Greek and Arabic; his work shows that he also had some knowledge of Persian, Marathi, Konkani, Sanskrit and Kannada. Correspondents and agents sent him seeds and plants; he also traded in spices, drugs and precious stones. He evidently kept a laboratory and botanical garden.

His remarkable knowledge of Eastern spices and drugs is revealed in his only known work, Colóquios dos simples e drogas he cousas medicinais da Índia ("Conversations on the simples, drugs and medicinal substances of India"), published at Goa in 1563. This deals with a series of substances, many of them unknown or the subject of confusion and misinformation in Europe at this period. He was the first European to describe Asiatic tropical diseases, notably cholera; he performed an autopsy on a cholera victim, the first recorded autopsy in India. Garcia de Orta reveals in his writings an unusual independence in face of the usually revered texts of ancient authorities, Greek, Latin and Arabic.

The book happens to include the first published verses by his friend the poet Luís de Camões, now counted as Portugal's national poet.

Garcia de Orta's work was soon recognized across Europe when translations appeared in Latin (then the scientific lingua franca) and other languages. Large parts of it were included in a similar work published in Spanish in 1578 by Cristóbal Acosta, Tractado de las drogas y medicinas de las Indias orientales ("Treatise of the drugs and medicines of the East Indies").

Notes[link]

1. ^ See fuller quotation (Boxer, 1963, p. 10) citing Inquisition records initially quoted by Silva, 1934, pp. 74 and 159.
2. ^ Silva, 1934, pp. 72-84; Révah, 1960.
3. ^ S.K. Pandya, Medicine in Goa – a former Portuguese territory, J. Postgrad Med. [serial online] 1982 [cited 18 September 2009];28:123. Online here
4. ^ "Author Query". International Plant Names Index. http://www.ipni.org/ipni/authorsearchpage.do. 

References[link]

• Boxer, C. R. (1963), Two pioneers of tropical medicine: Garcia d'Orta and Nicolás Monardes, London: Wellcome Historical Medical Library 
• Carvalho, Augusto da S., Garcia de Orta. Lisboa, 1934.
• Ficalho, Francisco M. de, Garcia de Orta e o seu tempo. Lisboa, 1886. (Reprinted, Lisboa: Casa de Moeda, 1983.)
• Roddis, Louis (1931), "Garcia da Orta, the first European writer on tropical medicine and a pioneer in pharmacognosy", Annals of medical history 1 (n. s.) (2): 198–207 
• Révah, I. S. (1960), "A família de Garcia de Orta", Revista da Universidade de Coimbra, Vol. 19.