Indian Archbishop urges officials to avoid offensive intervention in heritage areas

Archbishop Filipe Neri Ferrão of Goa-Daman urged government authorities to avoid “any undue or offensive interventions, even by legitimate stakeholders in and around the monuments that can have grave consequences and attract the derecognition of the World Heritage status, which would be a tremendous and severe loss to Goa.”

Archbishop Ferrão was speaking during the feast of St Francis Xavier at the Bom Jesus Basilica in Old Goa, in the Western state of India, on December 3.

Old Goa, ten kilometers away from Panjim, the state’s capital, is a holy place and a world-renowned heritage area recognized by the Indian Government’s Archeological Survey of India (ASI) and UNESCO.

Archbishop Ferrão, the president of Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI), strongly appealed to those in authority “to refrain from acts and decisions which are illegal and detrimental to the preservation of the religious and heritage sanctity of Old Goa.”

People across religious lines are protesting the allegedly illegal construction in the proximity of the heritage site at Old God. Protesters are on a hunger strike, undertaken by the Save Old Goa Action Committee, demanding the demolition of a structure built in violation of heritage norms.

Archbishop Ferrão expressed solidarity with those protesting “against some obnoxious activities in the heritage site,” promising support from the Church in Goa.

The prelate expressed that the archdiocese of Goa is grateful to the protestors and extended support to the cause.

The archbishop called on the government authorities to respect the holy heritage site and save it by avoiding taking decisions that compromise the preservation of the sanctity of the place.

Archbishop Ferrão invited people to pray through the intercession of St. Francis Xavier to deliver us from the possible evil that can descend on us and keep us away from the fear that is arising from Omicron, the new Covid-19 variant.

Bishop Emeritus Aleixo Dias sfx of Andaman, Bishop Alwyn Barreto of Sindhudurg and Basilica Rector Father Patricio Fernandes SJ were among the eminent persons present for the feast mass.