To visit Dativare Kot, take the local train of Western Railway to Safale station. S.T. buses and private rickshaws are available from Safale station to Dativare. Datiware Kot is 16 km from Safale railway station and 35 km from the Warai fork on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway. As there are 2 forts in Datiware village, the locals misunderstand the place while talking about this kot. The second fort is the Hiradongari fort which is in the form of a hill outside the village and the Dativare fort is located in the village itself. As no one has much information about this fort including the locals, one should take full information before going there. The locals call Dativare Kot as Madi or Madi's bastion. Dativare fort is a semicircular wall with a bastion. ... This fort must have been a bastion built by the Portuguese. It should be around 15 to 20 feet in height. Lead stone, clay, lime, conch shell, rice husk have been used in the construction of this bastion. According to Dr. Shridatta Raut, a few years ago, there was some structure in front of the bastion which has been destroyed with time. In the Vasai campaign of Chimaji Appa, in 1739, Datiware Kot came under the control of Marathas. This fort played an important role in Chimaji Appa's conquest of Arnala fort. While reading the details of the Vasai campaign, it is mentioned that the Maratha army landed at Dativare port and its environs on the way to Arnala Dativare. From its overall structure, it should be a battle tower and it should be used for intercepting ships with long-range artillery. The Dativare area in North Konkan is referred to as Dattamitriya in Mahikavati's Bakhar. The current condition of the kot is very poor and 10 minutes is enough to see the entire kot. Visitors to the fort are likely to flock here. Those who want to see the Portuguese outpost on the sea trade route and its geographical importance must visit this place.
© Suresh Nimbalkar