Salsette Island

Coordinates: 19°12′N 72°54′E / 19.200°N 72.900°E / 19.200; 72.900
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Salsette
Tuluvas/Kannadigas
(2%)

Salsette Island (Portuguese: Salsete, Maharashtri Konkani: साष्टी, sāṣṭī, Sashti) is an

Mira Bhayander and a portion of Thane district lie within it, making it very populous and one of the most densely populated islands in the world. It has a population of more than 20 million inhabitants living on an area of about 619 square kilometres (239 sq mi).[citation needed
]

Location

Salsette is bounded on the north by

seven islands of Mumbai, which were merged by land reclamation during the 19th and early 20th centuries to form the city of Mumbai, are now practically a southward protruding peninsula of the much larger Salsette Island.[1]

The island of

Borivali National Park, also known as Sanjay Gandhi National Park. The city of Thane is at the northeastern corner, on Thane Creek, while the western suburbs of Mumbai which stretches from Bhayandar in the northwest corner to Bandra which lies just before the Mumbai City district lies on its western side while the eastern suburbs of Mumbai that stretches from Thane to Kurla lies on the eastern half of the island. Both suburbs are separated by the Borivali National Park till the neighbourhood of Powai in Andheri. Politically, the Mumbai City district covers the peninsula south of Mahim and Sion while most of the original island constitutes the Mumbai Suburban district. The northern portion lies within Thane district, which extends across Thane creeks onto the mainland.[2]

History

Aagri people of Salsette (c. 1855)

The word Sasashti (also shortened to Sashti) is Maharashtri Konkani term for "sixty-six", referring to the original "sixty-six villages" on the island.

Bombay East Indian Catholics, the Aagris & Kolis.[4]

109

Sultan of Guzerat
.

In 1534, the

Eastern medicine
of its time.

Nine churches were built on Salsette island by the Portuguese; Nirmal (1557), Nossa Senhora dos Remédios (1557), Sandor (1566), Agashi (1568), Nandakal (1573), Papdy (1574), Pale (1595), Manickpur (1606), and Nossa Senhora das Mercês (1606). The

(1632) in Mazagaon and the remnants of a church in Santa Cruz are the sole places of worship that have survived to the 21st century.

In 1661, the seven Bombay (Mumbai) islets were ceded to

Mahratta Confederacy
in the 1750s.

The British occupied Salsette in 1774,

South Bombay, with an area of 435 km². Railway viaducts and causeways were built in the 19th century to connect Bombay Island to the mainland via Salsette. The channels separating Mumbai from Salsette and Trombay were bridged by the Sion Causeway in 1803.[7] Accessibility considerably increased after construction of this causeway.[8] Mahim and Bandra were connected by the Mahim Causeway in 1845.[9]

These railway lines and roads encouraged wealthier merchants to build villas on Salsette. By 1901, the population of Salsette had increased to 146,993 and the area began to be referred to as

Greater Bombay
.

Geography

1893 map showing the island
1929 Map Salsette Land Records Office

Salsette is dominated by a central mass of hills surrounded by tidal flats. A number of much smaller islands lay on its western flank. These included

Versova, Marve Island, Dharavi Island and Rai Murdhe, all with a knoll
core and fringing wave-cut platforms and sandy beaches. These islands seem to have remained separate until as late as 1808.

At the time of writing of the old Gazetteer of Thana in 1882, these islands could be reached during low tides by walking across the tidal inlets in between, except for the island of Dharavi in present-day

Borivali National Park on the northern reaches of the island.[10] This national park
is the world's biggest within city limits.

Geology

The island is at the confluence of a number of fault lines.[11] This makes the area earthquake-prone, up to a magnitude of 6. The island is mostly composed of black basalt rock. Since it is along the sea coast, it has a sandy belt on its western coast. The southern region of Old Mumbai is mostly at sea level. However, the parts which were erstwhile shallows are below sea level. Many parts of the city are hilly.[citation needed]

Other natural formations

Lakes

There are three major lakes on the island: Powai Lake, Tulsi Lake and Vihar Lake. The latter two supply part of Mumbai's water requirements. Numerous other smaller ponds and lakes are present.

Rivers

The Mithi River (Mahim), Poisar River, Oshiwara River and Dahisar River originate in the national park and empty into the Arabian Sea. The Mithi River originates at Vihar Lake. Vasai and Thane creeks are estuarine distributaries of the Ulhas River.

Creeks

A number of saline or

brackish
creeks extend inland from the coastline. Mahim Creek separates the city from the suburbs in the west. Further north on the western coast, the Oshiwara river empties into Malad (or Marvé) Creek and the Dahisar River into Gorai Creek. The eastern waterfront also has many small creeks.

Wetlands

The small southern part of the eastern waterfront of Salsette forms Mumbai Harbour.

North of this region lie vast amounts of protected

Sewree, home to migratory birds. The northern and northwestern part of the island and parts of Mahim River have government-protected marshlands. These swampy regions form massive, dense mangrove
forests.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Geography - Salsette group of Islands". Maharashtra State Gazetteer, Greater Bombay district. 1987. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  2. ^ "2.17.1 Existing Situation" (PDF). Mumbai city Development Plan 2005. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  3. ^ India. Census Commissioner. (1901). Census of India. Government Central Press, Bombay. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  4. ^ "Populations. Christians. history" (PDF). Bombay Gazetteer. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  5. .
  6. .
  7. .
  8. .
  9. ^ "City by the sea". Dance with Shadows.com. Archived from the original on 11 September 2004. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  10. ^ "Geography - Salsette group of Islands". Maharashtra State Gazetteer, Greater Bombay district. 1987. Retrieved 25 March 2012.
  11. ^ "The Seismic environment of Mumbai". Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. Retrieved 24 March 2012.