The streetscape in Mapusa today is in a state of chaotic transition. However, individual buildings with heritage value can still be protected. A special focus on North Goa's commercial capital, where the weekend Mhapsa Fest is underway.
Changing Mapusa * By Vibhavari A. Shirodkar According to one tradition, Mapusa derives its name from Map, that is measure and asa that means to fill up, together meaning, a place of measuring and selling goods. While Dr. P.P. Shirodkar believes that, Mapusa is derived from Maha meaning big and push which means to sustain or feed, meaning a big distributing centre for village products. K.S. Singh on the other hand, cites it origins in the Sanskrit word Paisata, which means, a land reserved for the administrative official and granted to him in exchange for the services rendered by him. Therefore, he believes that it must have evolved from Mahapaisata to Mapusa. Mapusa town has been renowned as the most important commercial centre of North Goa. It has also been the administrative headquarters of Bardez taluka (the province considered to be comprising of twelve villages), one of the Old Conquests of Goa, besides Ilhas and Salcete. Early Portuguese influences are seen on society, culture and architecture in these areas in varying degrees. But unlike the headquarters of Illhas and Salcette, Panjim and Margao respectively, the architectural identity of the town of Mapusa has been lost for some reason. Dennis L. Cottinneau de Kloguen, in his book An Historical Sketch of Goa, first published in 1831, described Mapusa as "smaller than Margao, but larger than Panjim. It is clean, well built and has the usual public buildings, church, senate-house, tribunal or court- house, etc". Sharply contrasting this observation, J. M. Richards in his book Goa published in 1982 wrote, "Mapusa in the north is somewhat ramshackle though full of lively crowds when the weekly market takes place on Friday." MAIN STREET: A town is made up of spaces of various kinds, which evolve to meet the needs of urbanization. These spaces serve as historical records and reveal the architectural identity of a town. The main street located in the core area reflects the essential character of the town. According to R. McDuffie Nichols, "In the past, the Main Street has been the center of community activity -- the center of its commerce, banking, government and social life. Main street buildings reflect the pride and aspirations of the community. Built soundly of quality materials, they offer new opportunities for productive use. Communities can establish a competitive and marketable image for downtown by preserving, revitalizing and promoting this traditional core." The street analyzed below is a model for such high traffic streets passing through the central commercial areas of old historical towns of Goa and which face similar pressures. The Hutatma Bala Desai Street of Mapusa has evolved over a period of time as an important 'urban space'. It extends from the Hutatma Chowk circle to the Court of the District Judge at Feira Alta, passing along the Mapusa Municipal Council building. The street is located in the core area of the town and is a part of the main traffic artery, connecting the villages like Assagao and Anjuna in the west, to the villages from Pernem and Bicholim taluka in the north. It also, acts as a connecting spine for the secondary streets in the town. PORTUGUESE TIMES: Taking into account the general development of the town, Mapusa the capital of Bardez taluka, was elevated to the category of a town (vila in Portuguese) on September 14, 1858 by the orders from the Government of Portugal. The older part of the town lies along the base of the hill. The street, which at first was just a way for connecting the town to the northern part of Goa, became important when administrative buildings were located along its side. Jose Nicolau da Fonseca comments the following on the Mapusa Municipality building and the Bala Desai Street, "To the west of the bazaar, on a little eminence stands the Town Hall, which is one of the best buildings in the place. In the apartment to the south on the same floor is located the office of the Administrador das Communidades, and in the other the Camara Agaria holds its sittings. In front of the Town Hall runs the Royal Street, leading to Duler, a ward that consists of beautiful houses newly constructed, and passing through several villages on the northern confines of the territory of Goa." The street was larger compared to the internal streets of the old town. The area had become an extension of the residential area of the older town, but unlike the old town the built fabric was not dense. Later, by Order No. 1911, dated December 29, 1933, the town of Mapusa was designated a city (cidade in Portuguese). POST-1961: After 1961, Mapusa changed drastically. During this phase, reinforced cement concrete construction was introduced. These buildings were relatively simple, and their scale ranged between ground and ground-plus-one structures. But the architectural typology in terms of elements and details varied. Although the form of construction altered, the scale of the street remained the same. The central location of the street in the town meant that most of the plots along the street were designated as Central Commercial Area, i.e. C1 Zone, as per the Zoning Plan. The changed functional requirement of the street posed challenges and created new demands on the old buildings along the street. Consequently, commercial activities were slowly replacing the residential utility on the ground floor, and extensions were made to the old structures altering the character of the buildings. Besides, commercial activities, which were restricted to the market began to overflow into this area. Recently, the new high-rise construction appeared as a complete contrast to the old structures along the street, both in terms of scale and typology. The old administrative buildings in the streetscape have been dwarfed, and the continuity and harmony was broken. The transformation during the Pre-Liberation period was regulated by certain criteria like building usage pattern, climatic adaptation of the building, and alignment of the street edge with the building line. Post-1961, the streetscape transformation took place because of commercialization and alterations of buildings. Encroachment, redevelopment of new buildings, traffic flow pattern, safety and circulation of the pedestrians, parking problems, road widening and infrastructure are the many additional problems that has beset this once stately town. Why did the old buildings get altered? The reasons are many. Functional requirement: Most of the old buildings were altered to accommodate the changed function due to commercialization. Building elements such as balconies and sacada, which were an important element of social interaction, are now used to advertise the shops below. Advertising: Painting the external walls with colourful advertisements, cladding the walls with tiles, and displaying various kinds of signboards has led to chaos. Also there is no uniformity to the signboards in terms of design, its placement, size, colour and graphics. Incongruous colours have replaced the original colours of buildings that break the continuity of the streetscape. Tech advancement: With the introduction of new technology, the importance of the vernacular architecture, which has arisen out of its climatic adaptation and socio-cultural pattern, has been abandoned. Preference for new materials because of their perceived efficiency as well as changing aesthetic taste and unavailability of the older materials and the labour to execute the work are also additional reasons for this trend. Security: The need for security has added extra elements to the buildings like grills, rolling shutters and collapsible gates, and even blocked some of its fenestration. Services: For the functional need to be feasible, services such as electricity, air conditioning etc., needed to be accommodated in the old buildings, due to which the elements in the building facade, like the design of windows and its material are modified. Encroachment: Public spaces are encroached upon, which cause inconvenience and create ugly intrusions. Extensions may just be in the form of projections like canopies, or additions in the form of temporary structures. Often these temporary structures, though small in scale but painted in garish colours completely destroy the harmony of a street. Zoning regulations: The relationship of new buildings with the street in terms of the alignment of the building line with the street edge, has been changed because of the zoning regulations. The relationship of buildings adjoining each other along the streetscape has also changed due to contrasts in the kind of architectural scale and styles. The simultaneous occurrence of both the old and new architectural styles has failed to give a distinct character to the streetscape. Negligence, abandonment and demolition: While some buildings were demolished because of structural weaknesses, certain old buildings are abandoned for no apparent reason. Sometimes cosmetic treatments are given to the facades of the ground floors of old buildings while the top floors are completely neglected. Traffic flow and parking: Increase in vehicular traffic during peak hours imposes unbearable pressures on the pedestrians. Demand on parking requirement has increased. New high-rise buildings are supposed to provide for parking in their plots. But the old buildings converted to commercial requirements lack space and cannot accommodate parking space for vehicles. Road-widening is a doubtful solution to this problem, as it will lead to demolition of old heritage buildings on either side of the street. Diversion of the unwanted traffic is a better option. Street fixtures: The earliest forms of street fixtures were the crosses located along the street or in the front yard of the houses, which gave the street a singular character. Today, the electricity and telephone poles and cables have become the most prominent street fixtures. The randomly placed electricity and telephone poles with their wires criss-crossing the street create an untidy and ugly picture. The streetscape in Mapusa today is in a state of chaotic transition. However, individual buildings with heritage value can still be protected. * The Mapusa Municipal Council Building: In 1836, following the enactment of Administrative Code, a full-fledged Municipality started functioning from 1842. In 1854, Mapusa Municipal building was constructed. * Court of the District Judge: Besides the High Court, there were three courts in Goa of the Juiz de Direito, established during 1937 in the three Comarcas of Illhas, Salcette, and Bardez. Hence Mapusa as a chief town of the Comarca of Bardez gained in stature. * The Communidade Building: The Code of Communidade was revised in 1933 and special Administrators were appointed for the Communidades of Bardez, Ilhas and Salcette. Since agriculture was the main occupation at that time, an institution controlling the agricultural activities of not only Mapusa but also the surrounding villages as well, was considered a symbol of power. * Lyceum Building: Built in the 1930s, this building functioned as one of the two Lyceums in Goa. At present, St. Mary's Convent School established in 1948 is housed here. Earlier, this building was an important military centre in North Goa. The Printing Press building, Hotel Safari building and Adv. Pinto Menezes' house are other important structures along the street. Recommendations: As this main street is an integral part of the town, the decisions regarding the policies concerned need to be taken at the urban level. Also, the decisions regarding the buildings along the streetscape lies with the owners. Hence only certain guidelines can be suggested to conserve the historical identity of Mapusa town while accommodating the inevitable changes. * R. McDuffe Nichols emphasizes that, "Historic preservation does not always mean bringing back a building's original appearance. On Main Street it means managing change in the physical environment by preserving and building on the best of the past and ensuring high- quality design in the future." This change, which is mainly due to functional change, is now irreversible. But this change should not be allowed to happen abruptly and in an uncontrolled manner. If the changes are uniform and monitored, it can still give the streetscape a pleasing character. * Old public buildings give identity to the town and should be maintained; its structural stability should be checked and its authenticity should be preserved. Rehabilitation is a combination of taking care of maintenance problems, repairing existing building elements and replacing missing ones. The lack of maintenance has caused these buildings to deteriorate. n All illegal encroachments should be removed by enforcing existing laws. * Stalls should be relocated and cleared from the vicinity of old public buildings. * Advertising and signboards should be regulated. While designing and installing signboards and advertisements for Main Street commercial buildings, the most important factor to keep in mind is that the signboards should be of the appropriate size and scale for the building. * Colour can form an important element to bind the streetscape. In the first place, the traditional colours used on the old public buildings along the street should be maintained. The colour scheme for the new buildings should harmonize with traditional colour scheme. * The introduction of street fixtures like the electricity and telephone poles and cables has damaged the visual quality of the streetscape. These cables should be laid underground. n The design of public amenities like sidewalks, street-lights, plantings and parking areas should be considered. There is an urgent need to incorporate these guidelines in the existing and future Development Plans for the city. The architectural heritage of the town need not be compromised at the cost of its commercial image. An awareness and respect for the existing heritage is the first step to preserve the architectural identity of the town of Mapusa. --- This article was earlier published in Parmal, the magazine of the Goa Heritage Action Group. It is based on a study carried out by the author for her Dissertation Thesis during Final Year, B.Arch., 2002-03, Goa College of Architecture, under the guidance of Architect-Planner, Ashish K. Sinai Rege. ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
