A new study by the Indian Institute of Technology-Gandhinagar (IITGn) has found fresh evidence which can confirm the dockyard’s existence at Lothal.
- The study has revealed that the Sabarmati river used to flow by Lothal (currently, it flows 20 km away from the location) during the Harappan Civilisation.
- There was also a travel route connecting Ahmedabad, through Lothal, the Nal Sarovar wetland, and the Little Rann, to Dholavira — another Harappan site, according to analysis.
- The study suggests that traders came to Gujarat through the Gulf of Khambhat, probably went to Ratanpura to get materials, and carried them to Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq).
- Since the discovery of Harappan sites at Lothal, located in the Bhal region of Gujarat (on the Gulf of Cambay), in the 1950s, archaeologists have been divided on whether a dockyard existed at the location during the Indus Valley Civilisation.
About Lothal
- Lothal (‘the mound of the dead’ in Gujarati) was discovered under a mound among marshy fields of the Saragwala village by archaeologist Prof S R Rao.
- The warehouse, found here, was divided into 64 rooms of around 3.5 square meters each, connected by 1.2 meter wide passages. Twelve of these cubical blocks are visible today.
- An elaborate sanitary and drainage system, a hallmark of ancient Indus cities, is in evidence everywhere at Lothal.
- The bricks, typical of an ancient Indus city, were usually of a standard size. Kitchens and wells were spread across the upper town.
- The bead factories, situated where the 8th street of the commercial area and the 5th street of the residential area meet, comprised the main industry of the Harappans.
- The fire-altars found in houses and public places at Lothal and Kalibangan indicate that the Harappnas worshipped the Fire-God.
- The cemeteries at Lothal had a unique system of joint-burials in which two individuals were buried simultaneously.
