Panaji

Panaji is the capital of the Indian state of Goa. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi estuary, in the district of North Goa. With a population of 65,000 in the city and approximately 100,000 in the metropolitan area, Panaji is Goa's third largest city after Vasco da Gama and Margao. Panaji means “Land that never floods”. Panaji is the capital of Goa and headquarters of North Goa District, located on the left bank of the Mandovi River, piled up against terraced hills, a jumble of concrete buildings with whimsical balconies and red-tiled roofs, bleached clean churches and a riverside promenade, with red-roofed houses built in Latin style. It also has modern houses, well laid gardens, statues and avenues lined with gulmohar, acacia and other trees. The Baroque church of the Our Lady of Immaculate Conception located overlooking the main square known as Praça da Igreja, pretty villas, cobbled streets and interesting buildings give Panaji a Portuguese ambience
Panaji was annexed by India with the rest of Goa and the former Portuguese territories, in the invasion of 1961. Panaji became a state-capital on Goa's elevation to statehood in 1987. Between 1961 and 1987, it was the capital of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu. A new Legislative Assembly complex was inaugurated in March 2000, across the Mandovi river, in Alto Porvorim. Panaji is also the administrative headquarters of North Goa district.