Panaji, Dec 11 (IANS): Legendary cartoonist Mario Miranda, who died Sunday, was due to inaugurate a newly-renovated fort of Reis Magos near here on the 50th anniversary of the liberation of Goa Dec 19, a close aide said.

Gerard D'Cunha, curator of Miranda's works, said the 85-year-old cartoonist and illustrator who passed away after a long illness, was due to inaugurate the historic fort, located across the banks of the river Mandovi from Panaji.

"It was one of his (Mario's) dreams to see the Reis Magos fort come back to life. It is a great tragedy that he passed away only a few days before the inauguration," said D'Cunha, a renowned architect.

The 16th century fort would have been thrown open to the public in 10 days after nearly four years of renovation done by the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), he said.

Built in 1551 by the Portuguese, it was formerly an outpost of the erstwhile empire of the Adilshah of Bijapur and the INTACH project worth nearly Rs.4 crore was funded by the Britain-based Helen Hamlyn Trust.