Some of the forts in Konkan have been destroyed with time and their existence has remained only in the pages of history. Karli Fort in Malvan taluka is an example of this. Karli is located at a distance of 19 km from Kudal and 22 km from Malvan. Although Karli is said to have existed in history, the fort or its remains are nowhere to be seen today. Not only that, but the elderly people in the area do not even know that there was a fort here. The fort is only a name in the pages of history today. This scenic area on the banks of Karli Bay should be visited at least once. I found mention of Karli Fort in Satish Akkalkot's book Gadkille Sindhudurg District. According to the historical records made by him in this book, during the quarrel between Tulaji Angre and Wadikar Sawant was going on, in 1748, Tulaji Angre started building a fort on the banks of Karli Bay. ... Vitthal Meshram, the caretaker of Sawant, informed the Peshwas about this. He informed that a fort was also built near Malvan, a creek of Karli. This fort with four bastions at each end was created here. Tulaji Angre himself went to Bharatgad and harassed the fort. The fort was destroyed by cannons. The next day, when we thought of descending the Hanmantghat, this news was reported to Angre. Then, Angre left Kudal's and went to Karli's fort with four bastions. This is followed by a second mention in the battle between the Portuguese and Sawant and the third mention in a letter to Bhausaheb Peshwa around 1754. From these three mentions, it is known that there is a fort at Karli but its exact location is not certain. The distance from Karli to Malvan is about 35 km.
© Suresh Nimbalkar