Since Surat was an important port in medieval times, Surat-Burhanpur became an important trade route. The goods arriving at the port were sent to Khandesh via Surat-Songad-Nawapur and from there to Burhanpur and other places. Being a trade route, it was necessary to have a facility for traders to stay safely on this route and this facility was completed by building a structure at Doswad. After seeing the forts at Surat and Vyara, while going to see the Songad fort in Tapi taluka, we got information about the fort at Doswad and our ride turned towards Doswad village. Doswad village on Surat Songad highway is 18 km from Vyara town and 3 km from the highway. Distance from Doswad to Songad is 11 km. Although it is a tourist area, there is no bus facility to go to the village, so private rickshaws should be used to go to and from the highway. ... Although the dam area of Doswad is famous for tourism, not many people know about the fort located here. After entering Doswad village, a road leads towards the dam. Doswad fort stands on the left side of the main road next to the road near the dam wall. Originally it was not a fort but a medieval inn on a trade route. This square-shaped inn is surrounded by ramparts on all four sides and is built on about 2 acres. The main gate of it is on the south side and another small ruined gate is on the north side. Inside the door there are room for guards on both sides and there is a minaret with two domes on the upper side. On entering, on both sides of the door, there is a stairway built into the ramparts to reach the top. The interior of the inner has been converted into a garden and an old well can be seen in the garden. A total of 28 rooms have been built along the south, east and west ramparts. Verses from the Quran in Persian are painted on the arches of the four halls on the east side of this. Apart from this, as there is not much to see, our visit is completed in 15 minutes. Currently this place is maintained by a private organization although, they have no information about it.
© Suresh Nimbalkar