India's account of the past is divided
into two time periods. The first is called historic period, which
starts somewhere from the time Shakyamuni Siddharth Goutam Buddha was
born in the sixth century BCE. The other or pre-historic period is
the one previous to that. The most insurmountable task that a
historian faces, studying India's history even in historic period, is
lack of any written documents except for few rock inscriptions and
terracotta cealings. Any new archaeological find is therefore most
welcome and throws more light on the dark period.
India's central region has always
remained comparatively undeveloped with its dense forests area.
Chhattisgarh state located in this region is actually 10th largest
state in India, with an area of52,200 sq miles). It is an imortant
electricity and steel-producing state of India with India's 15%
steel prduction coming from the state. About 30 Km from the state
capital “Raipur,” and near the town of Tarighat, new excavations
carried out by Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) have brought to
light remnants of an ancient city believed to be 2,500 year old city
with a rich haul of not only gold and silver coins but also ornaments
and means of amusement- indicating a rich and affluent lifestyle of
several dynasties.
The excavation site at Tarighat, in
Patan tehsil of Durg district of Chhattisgarh, is located on the
banks of “Kharun river.” Mr. J.R.Bhagat, Deputy director of ASI
in charge of the excavation work says: “ Itwas a chance discovery
during my personal visit to Tarighat in 2008, when I found some old
coins, beads, pottery items, bones and some structural features on
the banks of Kharun River. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
has now approved excavation of the area, based on the initial
findings.” He adds further: "The ancient city located 30km
away from the capital was found buried in 2008 in Patan tehsil of
Durg district. Its remains indicate that it was a well-planned
settlement dating back to 2nd and 3rd century BCE. But, there may be
possibility of retrieving settlements dating back as far as sixth
century BCE when we go further deep.”
It is generally assumed that Tarighat
finds date from 5th and 3rd century BCE. This was the period when
the region was ruled by the Kushan and Satavahana dynasties in
central India. An archaeologist from the Deccan College, Pune, says
“It was the end of the period of the 16 Mahajanapadas (loosely
translated to great kingdoms) when the Mahabharata was supposedly
set, and when the Maurya empire had just began.”
There are four 15ft high mounds on the
river bank around which existance of coins and some terracotta
figures have been found. State archaeological department believes
that the area seems to have been divided into blocks which appear
like a market. Many structures were found to be facing the main road
which is clearly visible between the blocks. About six to eight rooms
were found on both sides of the road. Explorers claim that they have
evidence of a 2,500-year-old planned city, complete with water
reservoirs, roads, seals and coins, buried in the city. This
remarkable discovery is being called as Kharun valley civilization.
The objects that have been found so far
include besides coins, means of amusement like dice made of ivory
and terracotta, three fishing nets, sling balls and hub scotch also
called 'billas', few pendant seals made of ivory and stone inscribed
in Brahmi script from Pre-Kushan era. Three gold coins belonging of
5th century AD, pots full of copper coins soiled in clay, terracotta
figurines, gold and copper beads, utensils made of clay including
bowls and basins.
The discovery of such a major urban
conglomerate is of great importance as existance of such human
settlements was discovered only in the Ganga basin in north India so far at
places such as “ Ahichhatra.” There has been very little information known
about any urban structures of this period in regions of central
India where modern-day Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are located.
A member of the excavation team says
that four huge mounds of about 15 feet height from ground level have
been found. A portion of one of the mounds located in the east was
washed away by a river exposing around 15 layers of soils in
different forms indicating existence of structures buried inside. In
the sixth layer, a patch of burnt clay circled around one of the
mounds. This indicates the ancient city might have been completely
burnt and later revived. All four mounds are still intact.
Impressions of a courtyard and common road inside the city are
clearly visible.
There was a mini gold rush, when
villagers around the excavation site learned about the discovery of
gold coins. The archaeology department had to take police help to
strengthen security measures in the site to prevent heist of the
treasure trove.
5th June 2013
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