Goa (Fides Service) - Two of the oldest Latin churches built by the Portuguese in the 16th are in danger of being abandoned. The church of Nossa Senhora das Brotas (Our Lady of the Springs) rebuilt in 1729 stands on the four and a half square kilometre island of Anjeediva, today uninhabited but once a prosperous fortified city of the Portuguese colony. The island is 4 km off the coast of Karwar facing the city of Goa. This national shrine risks demolition owing to the central government's decision to build a strategic naval outpost at Karwar and entry to the island will be prohibited. Besides the church dedicated to Our Lady, on the same island there is also an old church built in honour of St Francis of Assisi today only a ruin. Devotees make two annual pilgrimages to the island churches, February 2, Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and October 4, feast day of Saint Francis. Bishop Raul Gonsalves told Fides Service that the churches are part of the history of the Catholic Church in India and they must be safeguarded. "I have written to the Ministry of Defence to say that we are ready to obey government instructions but we ask permission to restore the churches and to continue to worship in them. I met with some good will and hope for a reasonable solution". PA (Fides Service 14/2/2003 EM lines 24 Words: 314)