PLACES OF INTEREST

VENGURLE

Vehgurle (Vengurle Peta, 15° 50' N, 73° 40' E; p. 22,778), the head-quarters of Vehgurle peta, lies 200 feet above sea, about a mile east of the month of a swampy creek. [Taylor's Sailing Directory, 391.] The camp lies about a mile inland. Hilly and dry with tall jack, cashewnut, cocoanut, and mango trees, the country is very picturesque. A chain of low hills runs north-east to within 500 yards of the town, and outside of the camp stretches about nine miles south-west as far as Redi.

Port.

Except on the south, Vehgurle bay is sheltered. When, which seldom happens, it blows fresh from the south, small coasting craft run before the wind eighteen miles north to Malvan. [It is high water on full and change of the moon at eleven hours. Springs rise eight and neaps five feet. Taylor's Sailing Directory, 392.] Overlooking the point and creek, 250 feet above sea level, is a white pyramid known as Vengurle Beacon. Close to this, in the fair season when the port is open, two fixed lights twenty feet apart are shown 250 feet above the sea, and visible for nine miles. From May-end till the end of August, the port is closed. [Taylor's Sailing Directory, 392.]

Trade.

Ever since the British conquest, Vengurle has been a rising place. It owed its importance, in the first instance, to its nearness to the military cantonments of Belgaum and Dharvar, with which it was formerly and is even to-day joined by a road crossing the Sahyadri at the Ram pass. The people were vigorous, enterprising and energetic, and took much after the Bombay traders in their liberal and comprehensive views. The opening of the splendid cart road over the Parpoli pass and the erection of a light house on the dangerous rock outside of the port, gave a great impetus to Vengurle, which among Konkan towns ranked next to, though far below, Bombay. Vengurle port has lost its importance as a main exporting and importing centre since the advent of motor transport. Carts arriving from upghats with goods have nearly stopped as goods are transported by railway. Even in the fair season the port is at times most dangerous and in the south-west monsoon it is closed. The chief articles that passed through the town from Southern Maharashtra to Bombay are cotton, gallnuts, coarse cloth, and in smaller quantities tobacco, turmeric, chillies, and spices. The local exports are cocoa-nuts, betelnuts, cashewnuts, oil of Kokam (Garcinia purpurea) plaited palm leaves, coir fibre, and salt. From Bombay came piecegoods, metals and miscellaneous foreign articles. As a rule no grain travels eastward. Except a few local firms of long standing, the trade is carried on between Bombay and Southern Maharashtra merchants, who employ forwarding agents, dalals, in Vengurle to receive and push on consignments by sea or land. Advices are sent by telegrams, and the sole duty of the agents is to arrange for freight and shipment to Bombay, or for land carriage to the Deccan. Bulk is seldom broken, and the goods coming in as on end of the town, pass out at the other within a very few days or hours. Supplies for local use are brought by petty dealers.

Vengurle is connected with Belgaum by two routes, one of seventy-five miles by the new provincial road over the Parpoli pass, and the other a few miles shorter by the old Ram pass. A branch road from the Parpoli line, at Akeri eleven miles from Vengurle, connects Vengurle with Malvan, and also with the main road to Ratnagiri and the northern parts of the district. Vengurle is connected with Kudal and Vengurle-Kudal road joins the Bombay-Konkan-Goa National Highway at Kudal. There is a lighthouse near the port.

There are at present two cashewnut factories at Vengurle and finished products are exported to foreign countries. At Redi a border village between India and. Goa, iron ore is found in plenty and it is mined and exported to foreign countries, especially to Japan. It is a business centre and foreign steamers anchor in the port during the fair season. At Math (a village from the former Savantvadi State) is a Cilica factory. Sodium Silicate is exported to other parts of the country.

Population.

Of the total population of 22,778 according to the Census figures of 1951, the agricultural classes number 6,222 and the non-agricultural classes 16,556. Of the latter, 5,806 persons derived their principal means of livelihood from production other than cultivation, 2,161 persons from commerce, 1,218 persons from transport and 7,369 persons from other services and miscellaneous sources.

Municipality.

Vengurle is a municipal town. Vengurle municipality, established in 1876, has an area of five square miles and is now governed under the Bombay District Municipal Act, 1901. There is a managing committee and a dispensary committee, each with its respective functions.

For the year 1956-57, the income of the municipality excluding extraordinary and debt heads amounted to Rs. 1,34,243; municipal rates and taxes being Rs. 96,245; revenue derived from municipal property and powers apart from taxation, Rs. 15,737; grants and contributions, Rs. 21,564; and miscellaneous, Rs. 697. The expenditure for the same year, excluding extraordinary and debt heads, amounted to Rs. 1,14,086; general administration and collection charges being Rs. 26,391; public safety, Rs. 18,066; public health and conveniences, Rs. 54,383; public instruction, Rs. 11,846; and miscellaneous, Rs. 3,400.

The chief source of water supply is wells. There are many private wells in the town. There are also three public wells and water from one of these wells is used for watering the streets. There is a municipal tank known as Narayan Tank.

There is no drainage system in the town. A natural slope towards the south lets the rain water pass smoothly.

For fire service the municipality has maintained a fire-fighter.

There are three municipal markets one each for vegetable, fish and fodder in a building known as Crawford Market and owned by the municipality.

There are two roads in the town, Parpoli road and Ramghat road. Parpoli road is under the control of the Buildings and Communications Department; it is 3½ miles in length out of which three miles are asphalted. There are 13 miles of metalled roads and two furlongs of un-metalled road.

There is compulsory primary education, managed by the District School Board; the municipality paying its annual contribution. There are three high schools, viz., R. K. Patkar High School, Vengurle High School and Vidya Mandir Kanyashala all in charge of private institutions. The municipality gives a contribution of Rs. 500 and Rs. 300 to the Vidya Mandir Kanyashala and the R. K. Patkar High School respectively. A public library called the Nagar Vachanalaya is given a contribution by the municipality. The Vachanalaya has a valuable collection of books. The municipality maintains a children's park around the library building.

A dispensary by the name ' Candy Dispensary' and a maternity ward are run by the municipality. The St. Luke's Hospital receives a grant-in-aid of Rs. 1,000 from the municipality. This Hospital is run by the American Missionaries and is equipped with all modern medical equipment. It may be said that it stands first in the district of its kind.

Cremation and burial grounds are managed by private institutions.

The town of Vengurle has two bridges within its limits, the Mansi bridge and Sankev Pool. There is a building known as the Dutch factory now used as a Government office. There are two well-known temples, the Shri Devi Sateri temple, and the Rameshvar Mandir.

The market is a two-storeyed central building with a clock tower. The basement hall is divided into two stalls for the sale of fruit, vegetables, and miscellaneous stores, and the municipal offices are housed in the upper storey. Round the three sides of the main building are shops for general dealers in grain and groceries, while at the back and separated from the other buildings is the fish market. The market is conveniently placed in the busiest part of the town, on the side of the main road leading to the Parpoli pass.

At the landing stage, a stone quay and steps have at considerable expense been cut from the hill side. Below the headland and beacon at the north of the harbour are the customs office and a small dwelling built by the salt department. On the hill slope and just below the light house at the port is a traveller's bungalow facing the Arabian Sea. A mile or so inland, at the meeting of the roads to the Parpoli and Ram passes, and surrounded by houses is the traveller's bungalow maintained by the municipality. A mile ahead is the inspection bungalow in the camp area. Half a mile along the upper, or Parpoli road, where stand the main market and the Chief shops and warehouses, is the municipal market, a conspicuous building with a square clock tower and gable roof. Between the traveller's bungalow and the market and to the north of the road is the Post and Telegraph Office. On the lower or Ram Ghat Road are the offices of the mamlatdar and the court of the subordinate judge located in the Dutch factory building. Nearly two hundred yards off is the Candy Dispensary.

History.

In 1638, under the name Fingerla, Vengurle is mentioned as a very convenient haven, where the Dutch had a trade settlement and victualled their ships during their eight months' blockade of Goa [Mandelslo in Harris, II. 360. Before 1641 the Dutch had a fortified factory. Stavorinus, III. 107, Baldaeus (about 1660) says the Hollanders have a stately factory at Vengurle a place very considerable, not only for its plenty of wheat, rice, and all sorts of provisions, but also for its situation near Goa. Churchill, III. 602.]. In 1660, under the name Mingerla, it is mentioned as a large town stretching half a league along the coast, with one of the best roads in India, where all the vessels that came from Batavia, Japan, Bengal and Ceylon, and those bound for Surat, Ormuz, Bassora and the Red Sea, both coming and going anchored, because both the water and rice were excellent. It was famous also for its best of spices, cardamoms, which not being had in other countries, were very scarce and dear; also for its great store of coarse calicuts spent in the country, and great quantities of coarse matting that served for packing goods [Tavernier in Harris, II, 360.]. About this time, Shivaji placed a garrison in the town and a few years later (1664), in punishment of a revolt burnt it to the ground [Grant Duff, I. 200.]. In the next year (1675), it was burnt by the Moghals, the Dutch defending themselves [Orme's Hist., Frag. 53 in 1670, it was said to be the chief storehouse of the Netherlands East India Company. Ogilby, V. 253.]. In 1683, Aurangzeb's rebel son Akbar, meaning to leave India for Persia, took refuge in the Dutch factory [Orme's Hist. Frag. 125.], and in the next year Sultan Muazzam, to punish it for its support of his brother, sacked the town with fury, the Dutch defending their factory from the windows till they brought off the attack [Orme's Hist., Frag. 133; Baldaeus in Churchill, III. 152.]. In 1696, off Vehgurle, seven Dutch and five French ships had an indecisive fight. At this time it is described as once a place of trade, where the Dutch had a factory for cloth, both fine and coarse. In 1696, Khem Savant of Savantvadi [Hamilton calls him Kempason.] overran the country, and under pretence of visiting the Dutch chief, seized and plundered their factory. While held by Khem Savant, Vehgurle is said to have been attacked and plundered by Angre [Hamilton's New Account, I, 248. Khem Savant is described as a soldier of fortune fighting for the chief who pays him best, with 7,000 or 8,000 men and two pirate grabs.]. In 1750, it was the head of 116 villages and yielded a. yearly revenue of Rs. 20,916 [Tieffenthaler, Res. Hist, et Georg. I. 506.]. In 1766, the Savantvadi chief mortgaged its revenue for thirteen years to the Bombay Government to raise the sum of Rs. 2,00,000 wanted to free Redi, the English promising to establish a small factory with the British flag and a few sepoys to guard it [Grant Duff, III. 100.]. This factory was, in 1772, mentioned as collecting a small revenue [Forbes' Oriental Memories, I. 293.]. At the end of the thirteen years (1779), the Savants had failed to carry out some of the stipulations of the treaty and the English refused to give up Vengurle, but it was taken and plundered by the Savants. [Nairne's Konkan, 104.] In 1800, the British forced the chief to give up all British property. [Low's Indian Navy, I. 204.] In 1812, Vengurle was finally ceded by the Rani of Savantvadi. [Hamilton's Des. of Hindustan, II. 221.]

The fort or factory at Vengurle stands behind the swamp. It is a strong building slightly fortified, entirely European, and in appearance, more Portuguese than Dutch. [Taylor's Sailing Directory, 391.] In 1862, it was in good order, garrisoned by a detachment, and with five small guns. Water was abundant, and it was used by the military department as an arsenal and storehouse. [Govt. List of Civil Forts, 1862.]

Nine miles west-north-west of Vengurle he the Vengurle rocks or Burnt Islands, a group of rocky islets stretching about three miles from north to south and one mile from east to west. The passage between the rocks and the mainland, about 2½ miles from the shore, though deep, is dangerous from sunken rocks. Of the islands the highest is about 180 feet. On the outermost of the three larger rocks is a light-house with a white fixed light 110 feet high seen for fifteen miles. [The stone and cement used in building this light-house were taken from the Sindhudurg fort. Nairne's MS.] The three larger rocks are entirely metamorphic, and are composed of numerous varieties of quartzo-micaceous rocks mostly more or less ferruginous, and in many places a good deal decomposed and broken up. The rocks are quite bare, but the crevices everywhere and some few smooth places near their summits are filled and covered with quantities of a coarse tangled jointed grass. The largest of the three is pierced from side to side by a huge tunnel-like cave, and about the middle of the island, owing to the falling in of the roof, a shaft has broken down into the cave. Even in the fair season the landing is difficult. During the stormy months it is rarely practicable. [Mr. A. O. Hume, Stray Feathers, IV. 418-420.]

Rocks.

These rocks are probably Ptolemy's (150), Heptanesia and the Sesikreienai of the Periplus (247). [McCrindle's Periplus, 129, 130; Vincent's Commerce of the Ancients, II. 433.] In 1540, Dom Joao de Castro under the name of Ilheos Qaeimados, or Burnt Islands, describes them as many in number, but ten of them specially large, five at sea and five close to the land. They were called Burnt Islands because they were of bare rock without water or vegetation. [Primeiro Roteiro da Costa da India, 17.] In 1788, they were held by the tribe of Malvanis [Renuel's Memoir of a Map of Hindustan, 31.].

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