1954, Dr Gama Pinto PORTUGUESE INDIA, 2 Tangas

1954, Dr Gama Pinto

This a Post Independence stamp of 1954, Dr Gama Pinto 

1954, Dr Gama Pinto PORTUGUESE INDIA, 2 Tangas

1. Motive:  Dr Gama Pinto 
2. Year: 1954
3. Text:  Dr Gama Pinto 2 Tangas 1853-1953 Estado da Índia REPUBLICA Português 
4. Watermark:
5. Perforation:
6. Condition: Ø = used/cancelled
7. Keywords:PORTUGUESE INDIA, Dr Gama Pinto 2 Tangas 1954
8. StampScout: ---
9. MichN
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The currency used on stamps was Rupia, Tanga & Reis

A brief monetary history:

• Rupia = 16 Tanga = 960 Reis, 1881- 1958
• Escudo (6 Escudo = 1 Rupia) =100 Centavos, 1958-1962

The Portuguese Viceroyalty of India (Portuguese: Vice-Reino da Índia Portuguesa), later the Portuguese State of India(Portuguese: Estado Português da Índia), was the aggregate ofPortugal's colonial holdings in India.

The government started in 1505, six years after the discovery of a sea route to India by Vasco da Gama, with the nomination of the first Viceroy Francisco de Almeida, then settled at Cochin. Until 1752, the "State of India" included all Portuguese possessions in the Indian Ocean, from southern Africa to Southeast Asia, governed by either a Viceroy or a Governor from headquarters established in Goa since 1510. In 1752 Mozambique got its own government and in 1844 the Portuguese Government of India stopped administering the territory of Macau, Solor and Timor, being then confined toMalabar.

At the time of British India's independence in 1947, Portuguese Indiaincluded a number of enclaves on India's western coast, including Goa proper, as well as the coastal enclaves of Daman (Port: Damão) and Diu, and the enclaves of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, which lie inland from Daman. The territories of Portuguese India were sometimes referred to collectively as Goa. Portugal lost the last two enclaves in 1954, and finally the remaining three in December 1961, when they were taken back by India after military action (although Portugal only recognized Indian control in 1975, after the Carnation Revolution and the fall of the Estado Novo regime)

Dr Gama Pinto

The 150th birth anniversary of Professor Doctor Claudio Caetana Antonio Julio Raimundo da Gama Pinto was celebrated on 30 April 2003. The son of Francisco Salvador Zeferino Pinto and Mariana Tereza da Gama, both from Cotula in Saligao, Dr. Claudio da Gama Pinto was born on 30 April 1853.

An internationally acclaimed ophthalmologist, Dr. Claudio da Gama Pinto was described by Dr. Jose Cordeiro Blanco from Portugal thus: “He was one of the leading figures among the ophthalmologists of his time and the most eminent Portuguese ophthalmologist of all times.”

Although he left Goa for Portugal at the age of 19, the Goan ophthalmologist Dr. Gama Pinto evinced keen interest in the affairs of his village, and through letters to his loved ones in Saligao, kept abreast of the happenings and goings-on in the parish. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of Mae de Deus Church in 1923, Dr. Gama Pinto advised the parishioners not to waste money on fireworks but to establish a fund for the welfare of the sick and poor. His advice was finally heeded fifty years later, when the Mae de Deus Aged Home, a memorial of the centenary of the Saligao Church, became a reality in Cotula on 26 November 1973. The home was blessed and inaugurated by another great son of Saligao, Archbishop Eugene D’Souza. Another such home came up in Dr Gama Pinto’s neighbourhood later on.

At the time of the laying of the corner stone of the new Saligao Church on 7 February 1867, young Claudio gave his first speech. He was then barely 14 years of age. His father, Salvador Pinto, had worked almost single-handedly to give the village one of the most beautiful churches of Goa, of which every son and daughter of Saligao may be justly proud.

Dr. Gama Pinto studied ophthalmology in Paris and Vienna as well as at Heidelberg University in Germany. In 1880 he was appointed assistant of ophthalmology at Heidelberg University and continued teaching there for five years. In 1886 he published his thesis for professorship titled “A historico pathologica study on the occurrence of kariokynesis in the inflamed conjectiva in men”, and “On the intraocular tumours in retina”.

In 1888, the Portuguese government invited Dr. Claudio Gama Pinto to take charge as director-professor of the Instituto de Oftalmologia de Lisboa, which he accepted. In 1911, after the University of Lisbon was instituted he was appointed professor of the Faculty of Medicine, where he taught ophthalmology until March 1929. Two months after his retirement, the Instituto de Oftalmologia de Lisboa was renamed by the Republican Government as Instituto de Oftalmologia Gama Pinto.

Dr. Gama Pinto desired that the youth of Saligao should channelise their talents and energy towards constructive and fruitful activity. A lover of trees and plants, he requested his family to send him seeds and plants from Saligao. He planted them in his orchard in Lisbon and distributed the flowers and fruits to the personnel of his Institute.

Trusting in Mae de Deus (one of the corridors of the Institute is dedicated to her), Dr. Gama Pinto selflessly committed himself to the service of the sick and poor as well as the aristocracy in his branch of medical science. The celebrated Goan ophthalmologist Dr Gama Pinto passed away in Lisbon on 26 July 1945, at the age of 92.

Postage stamps and postal history

 Postage stamps and postal history of Portuguese India

Early postal history of the colony is obscure, but regular mail is known to have been exchanged with Lisbon from 1825 on. Portugal had a postal convention with Great Britain, so much mail was probably routed through Bombay and carried on British packets. Portuguese postmarks are known from 1854, when a post office was opened in Goa. An extraterritorial British post office also was located in Damaun, selling British Indian postage stamps, between 1854 and November, 1883. British Indian stamps were available from the Portuguese post office at Goa, as well, from 1854 until 1877. A Portuguese post office opened at Diu in 1880.^[15]

The first postage stamps of Portuguese India were issued 1 October 1871 for local use.^[16] These were issued for local use within the colony. Portugal had a postal convention with Great Britain, so mail was routed through Bombay and carried on British packets. Stamps of British India were required for overseas mail.

The design of the 1871 stamps simply consisted of a denomination in the centre, with an oval band containing the inscriptions "SERVIÇO POSTAL" and "INDIA POST". In 1877, Portugal included India in its standard "crown" issue and from 1886 on, the pattern of regular stamp issues followed closely that of the other Portuguese colonies, the main exception being a series of surcharges in 1912 produced by perforating existing stamps vertically through the middle and overprinting a new value on each side.

During the World War I Portugal joined the Allies, which resulted in confiscating 6 merchant vessels (5 German and 1 Austrian) anchored in Marmugao port in Goa. The sailors were provided the status of "War Internees" and were allowed to correspond with their families via postal mail system, with a caveat of censorship of mails, both ways. These "War Internee" covers (Mid 1916 up to end of 1919) bearing censorship marks of Portuguese and French military authorities are considered Portuguese India philatelists' delight.

The last regular issue for Portuguese India was on 25 June 1960, for the 500th anniversary of the death of Prince Henry the Navigator. Stamps of India were first used 29 December 1961, although the old stamps were accepted until 5 January 1962. Portugal continued to issue stamps for the lost colony but none were offered for sale in the colony's post offices, so they are not considered valid stamps.

Dual franking was tolerated from December 22, 1961 until January 4, 1962. Colonial (Portuguese) postmarks were tolerated until May 1962. Portuguese India stamps were available for sale up to December 28, thus the period up to January 4 was an attempt to use up stocks in private hands. After January 4, Portuguese India stamps were completely invalid or demonetised.

Outstanding stocks of charity tax stamps were overprinted for fiscal use, but not used. Portuguese India fiscals were overprinted in early 1962 in paisa and rupees and extensively used.

One of the prominent citizens from Panaji, Mr. Carvalho created several combination covers, using low face value definitives of Union of India and Portuguese India, on each of the days up to January 4 including Christmas Day 1961. Most were readdressed to his daughter in pen. Due to the absence of back-stamps or circular date stamps (CDSs) denoting their arrival, it's unlikely that any of these went through the mail. Several unaddressed envelopes are to be found with similar combinations of Portuguese India and Union of India stamps in this time frame, the challenge being to obtain a postmark from each of the different days. Obtaining covers from late January to May 1962 with Portuguese India postmarks has proved to be quite difficult. These covers are scarce, but they don't command high prices, which is good for the collector, but not for the speculator. Much more scarce are the Prisoner Of War (PoW) covers sent by Portuguese civilian internees from Goa to Portugal between late December 1961 and March 1962. These were free franked covers with appropriate markings and command a high premium.

Portuguese India philately started with combination covers (British India) and ended with combination covers (Sovereign India).

Portuguese Stamp

Portugal's national stamp and postal systems went through a profound series of changes during the 1850s. Portuguese stamp collectors should familiarize themselves with the following terms. The words ''stamp'' in Portuguese is ''selo.'' The word ''collection'' in Portuguese is ''colecao.'' People who collect Portuguese cover stamps should also familiarize themselves with the concept of ''usados'' stamps.During its heyday as a minor European colonial power, Portugal maintained governmental authority over dozens of nations and micro-nations throughout the world. The home government set up postal bureaucracies in these countries, but, unsurprisingly, Portuguese stamp forgeries and corruption abounded. A very good book on the subject of postal malfeasances throughout the Portuguese empire is ''Forgeries of Portugal and Its Colonies,'' a well researched treatise published in 2002 by a man named D. J. Davies.Consider the Azores, one of Portugal's most treasured island possessions. Some of the most interesting postal stamps from the Azores are the ''Vasco da Gama,'' which was printed in 1898 and the ''King Manual'' and ''King Carlos'' issues, which went into printing in the early 20th-century. Azores stamp collectors should be aware that there are three main postal districts which printed stamps during the late 1800s.These three districts sold stamps for approximately 25 reis during the 1890s and early 1900s. You can tell stamps from these districts apart because each stamp series features a unique coloration. Look for the overprinted ''continente'' to tell these districts stamps apart from continental Portuguese stamps. In 1980, the Azores postal service released its first unique set in decades.