Beautiful life stories

Agassaim ,is a village located in North Goa district of Goa. It is situated in the midst of the state and links northern and southern Goa together. The village has the capital city Panjim to its north, Margao city to the south,Vasco city  to the west and Ponda city to the east. Agassaim also known as Agaçaim,  is nestled on the northern banks of the Zuari river. The river demarcates Agassaim from the neighbouring village, Cortalim. The Zauri river bridge built over the Zuari river connects Agassaim with Cortalim and is an important landmark in the village. The scenic beauty of the Zuari river, catches the eye of every traveler who travels on this bridge. Pilar ,village, lies on the south of the Agassaim.

In ancient times, Agassaim was a port city. The Gopakpattan port, through which trade was carried on during the pre-Portuguese times, was located near the place. Recently some remains of the collapsed laterite wall of the port has been found on the Agassaim beach. Nowhere else such a good evidence of the existence of this ancient port has been found. These findings have sparked the interest of archaeologists and researchers all over the world. It is believed that, during the ancient times Goa traded with countries like Greece, Rome, and Persia through this port. Another interesting archaeological finding in Agassaim is a sixth century cross with unique features and inscriptions in Persia’s Pahlavi language. This small granite cross is now considered as a proof of existence of Christianity in Goa before the advent of the Portuguese. This cross is now kept in the Pilar museum. It was found by Fr. Cosme Jose Costa in May 2001,on the banks of Zuari river. The village has been part of important movements in the history of Goa like the Konkani language agitation in 1986 and Save Goa Campaign. Today Agassaim is undergoing a period of rapid development due to the construction of the eight-lane cable-stayed bridge over the Zuari river. This new bridge is the longest span cable bridge designed in India .An art gallery and a viewing gallery would be built on the two towers of the bridge. The uniqueness of the new bridge would attract tourists, both international and national to this place .Therefore Agassaim has grabbed the interest of businessman  and investors as a prospective investment. Each and every day some or the other shop ,hotel or other business is starting in this area. Thus it is estimated that soon this village will turn into a township.

Even though, a small village ,Agassaim is well equipped with all necessary facilities and amenities. The Agassaim market bustles with activity at all times. The village has two supermarkets, supplying a wide variety of items of daily use. There are also plenty of pharmacies, internet cafes, bakeries, cloth and furniture shops in Agassaim. The only educational institution in the village is the, St.Lawrence High school. The school has been educating young minds from 1967.It is an aided school run by the St.Lawrence church of Agassaim.

One can also find a number of restaurants serving delicious dishes in the village. Hotels offering a wide variety of cuisines from authentic Goan to Manglorian, Udupi and international food can be seen. With the present influx of investments, shops and hotels in Agassaim are increasing day by day. Goan sausages or chorizoes of this area are famous all across the world. The fame of the Agassaim sausages dates back to the Portuguese times.  Sausage making is a traditional occupation carried out by many families; however this profession is slowly dying out due to the changing interests of the younger generation of these families. Most youth prefer to migrate to foreign countries or do some other job than continuing with the family profession. However even today, sausages in Agassaim-Goa Velha area are considered to be the best in Goa.

The main crops grown in Agassaim are rice, brinjal, sweet potatoes, ladies finger, green chillies and   red and green leafy vegetable .Earlier on both sides of Agassaim-Goa Velha bypass ,villagers selling their produce from the field could be found. Now the number of vendors have decreased but still fresh, organic vegetables can be brought from here. Agassaim has a different variety of brinjal, which is of bigger size and has fewer seeds than other brinjals. The brinjals and sweet potatoes of Agassaim find high demand in the local markets. Many of the fields in Agassaim have been leased out by the field owners, as they have settled abroad.

Majority of the population of village is Christian. Other communities residing here are Hindus and Muslims. The harmonious existence of all the religious groups, contributes to the beauty of the village. The main place of worship for the Christians in Agassaim is the St.Lawrence church. The St.Lawrence church also known as Agassaim  church, stands  on a hill ,overlooking the picturesque beauty of the village market place .Built in sixteenth century ,by Jesuit priests ,this church is dedicated to St.Lawrence the Martyr or Sao Lourenco, the patron saint of poor and cooks. The church is an exquisite example of Portuguese style architecture. It has a two storey bell tower and a huge porch with arches and balustrades. The mere sight of the church fills one’s mind with serenity and tranquillity .The church feast is celebrated on August 10, every year with devotion and reverence. A major event that takes place on this occasion is the, All Goa Coconut Breaking Contest. Every year, participants from all across Goa come to take part in this event. This competition has been organized regularly for the last 47 years. The game is played in pairs. The players stand opposite each other in an open field, the first player rolls a coconut on the ground in a medium speed; the other player has to break it using another coconut, when the coconut reaches near him. This game, was a popular Goan outdoor game in the past, it has now been much forgotten . However the association, Young Stars of Dugrem, tries to keep this tradition alive by holding a state level competition for this game. Even though in recent years, other Goan villages are also organising this contest, Agassaim was the first to start it.

The chief place of worship  for Hindus of Agassaim is the ,Chamundeshwari  Temple. Goddess  Adi Shakti or Durga Maa ,is the presiding deity of the temple. Festivals such as navratri and shivratri are celebrated with great pomp and fervour by the temple. During shivratri festival, the utsav of the temple is held. Men and women dressed in traditional Goan Hindu outfits gather in the temple and showcase their devotion by giving offerings and singing devotional songs together. The idol of Maa Chamundeshwari is taken in a palanquin ,borne by the devotees  ,through the village. The devotees sing, dance and play traditional musical instruments as they carry the palanquin. Various cultural programmes are also organised in the temple auditorium during this time.Agassaim has only one mosque, named Masjidus Salam, which is located on the Agassaim-Pilar road. There are not many Muslims in the village, hence only one mosque exists in Agassaim.

The people of the Agassaim  are very friendly and hospitable .A new concern  in the village is large scale migration, half of the population is either abroad or outside Goa. The positive side of migration is that it has offered better jobs and salaries for the people ,but on the other side it has lead to many empty homes in the village and has denied the place of  its valuable human resource. Many traditional occupations like sausage making, agriculture etc. are now slowly dying out due to the lack of people to carry on the work.

 

Agassaim village in a few years will turn into a tourist town. The construction of the new eight lane bridge over the Zauri river is progressing at a fast rate and it is estimated to be completed soon. Even though the bridge would bring prosperity and development into the village, it comes at its own costs. Today it can be seen that large scale deforestation is taking place in Agassaim , all over the place only cranes and construction equipments can be seen. The air is also becoming polluted with dust from construction sites. Therefore the charm of the village is now lost, however the people of Agassaim have not lost hope and believe that the good days of their village will come soon. The villagers are waiting for the bridge construction to get finished and even though not so happily have accepted the change that would occur in the village.

Tags: Agassaim village,St.Lawrence Church ,Agassaim market, All Goa Coconut Breaking Contest