Dam it! in Selaulim

What would be your reaction if you planned a trip, charted the route, packed the essentials and drove two hours to a breathtaking view, only to find security guards who say, NO CAMERAS ALLOWED… well yes… Dam it! Ironically, it was the Selaulim dam that was the target this time. 🙂

Thanks to digital camera technology (and cell phone cameras), I did manage to get a few shots from afar…

I read that the Selaulim dam ranks as one of the ten best dams in India… and not surprising. As we walked along the perimeter we were drawn towards a 10 meter high water spray.

It was the famed “duckbill spillway” of the Selaulim dam. Water that is released makes its way to over 50% of Goa’s population that includes Salcete, Marmagoa and Quepem Talukas.

Unable to brave too much of the scorching afternoon sun, we moved on… and took a short detour to another archaeological treasure — a ‘transplanted temple.’

The 11th century Mahadeva Temple is a little distance away from the Selaulim dam.

Originally located on the banks of the river Selaulim. The construction of the dam across the Selaulim river threatened the submergence of this temple hence it was systematically dismantled and reconstructed at this place with a similar topographical setting!

The triptych displays the complexity of reassembling a work of art — a couple of female devotees on either side of the door jamb, markings on every single stone of the sanctuary and the lintels and drains on the walls

We had spanned the ancient with the modern and it was time to return home.