Worli Fort

The Worli Fort is an ancient British fort in Worli area in Bombay, India.cite book | last = Murray | first = John | title = A handbook for India. Part ii. Bombay | publisher = | date = 1859 | location = Original from Oxford University | pages = Page 272 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=Vg0IAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA272&dq=%22Worli+Fort%22&as_brr=1&ie=ISO-8859-1 | doi = | id = ] The fort, often mistakenly referred to as being built by the Portuguese, was actually built by the British around 1675. The fort, built on the Worli hill, overlooked the Mahim Bay at a time the city was made up of just seven islands. It was used as a lookout for enemy ships and pirates.

The upkeep of the fort has been impossible due to its inaccessibility, as the roads leading to it are completely blocked by illegal hutments that have cropped up over the years, only to be overlooked by the local authorities for the sake of electoral gain and bribes paid for allowing illegal constructions. The fort is completely in ruins today and a slum has enveloped the edifice, making it a den for illegal activities like the brewing of illicit liquor within its confines. A bell tower peeps out of the ruins and the ramparts are used to dry clothes. Historians have often called for the protection of the area but their efforts have fallen on deaf ears. This in spite of an NGO claiming to have adopted the Worli Village, where the fort is located.As on 28-11-2007, the Worli Fort seems to be getting a face-lift,but honestly, the face-lift is giving it the look of a "Disneyworld artificial creation" rather than a "Historical edifice".The "Original decrepit fort" had "History" written all over it but was neglected due to various reasons and finally public recognition through letters have forced the government to renovate the ruins.The fort premises contains a "SUICIDE WELL" which at present is completely filled with muck, hope the same is dredged and the well preserved in its ancient form.

One ray of hope is the new Bandra-Worli sea link that will skirt around the Worli peninsula, bringing the fort back into the public eye, and hopefully, will lead to some action from the government.

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External links

* [http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&om=1&z=18&ll=19.024436,72.816814&spn=0.003641,0.005032&t=k&q=Mumbai Worli Fort Satellite image ] in Google Maps