27 Jul 2022 | 04:31am IST
Remembering Percival, an encyclopedia of heritage, history & the heavens
Percival Noronha was an esteemed historian, heritage conservationist and the founder of Goa’s first astronomy club, Friends of Astronomy, in 1982. Having served the Portuguese administration, he was a prominent officer in the Indian administration. He is fondly remembered as we move into his birth centenary year
Elvidio Miranda
A perfectionist to the
core, late Percival Noronha was widely acknowledged for his sincerity, integrity
and probity in the travails of Goa. Born on July 26, 1923, he was a
multi-tasked bureaucrat, he oversaw seven departments during his tenure as
under-secretary. A strict disciplinarian, his stint as bureaucrat might be
termed as a golden era in the history of Goa. Under his stewardship, high
standards of supervision and government to people relationships were the order
of the day. A workaholic, he used to burn the midnight oil in order to achieve
his tasks that were carried out with utmost diligence.
After his retirement
from government service, he devoted much of his time to historical pursuits
that made him famous even in foreign countries like Portugal, Spain, Italy,
Germany, Japan and Macau, where his impressive colour slides lecture
presentations drew the best of attention from historians as well as students in
those countries.
In his glittering
career, he was bestowed with at least 17 international awards, prominent among
which were the United Nations Peace Medal in 1972, the Ordem do Merito Comendador,
Portugal’s highest civilian honour and the Clube Militar de Macau medal for his
superlative and widely attended lectures.
In his stellar
contribution to Goa, he was instrumental in initiating the Carnival floats
parade which became a global tourist attraction. He was also responsible for
founding the Association of Friends of Astronomy because of his penchant for
the cosmos with the setting up of an astronomical observatory on the terrace of
Junta House equipped with a telescope which was popular amongst the star gazers
to witness celestial spectacles.
His contribution to the
environment in Goa was significant as it was under his stewardship that
casuarina trees were planted from the Children’s Park in Campal to the Miramar
beach so as to prevent erosion. These conifers still stand today as a testimony
of his contribution to the environment.
His house at Fontainhas,
Ajenor, during his lifetime was a veritable library of reference books and
volumes of literature, thus becoming a star attraction to the young and the old
who sought his guidance, be they foreigners, Indian nationals and even the
intelligentsia and the students’ fraternity to whom he was known as an
encyclopedia.
Percival will be long
remembered by all those who sought his expertise, not only in history but also
in literature. Percival fondly acknowledged the late Padma Bhushan awardee, Dr
Jose Pereira, whose magnum opus, Baroque India, he appreciated for its
crystalline prose, geometric descriptions and mathematically enthralling
literature.
Percival’s ‘A walk through Old Goa’ was a
comprehensive guide to the United Nations-recognized World Heritage site,
embellished with all historical facts including architectural genres and
impressive description of the monuments in the holy city.
