The site proposed for Ratnagiri oil refinery and petrochemical complex in Barsu village of Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri district is at the centre of a row over whether it might damage ancient rock carvings found in the area.
Key points
- The rock art, or petroglyphs (geoglyphs), estimated to be 20,000 years old and classified as protected monuments by the state archaeology department and the Archaeological Survey of India, have been added to the tentative list of UNESCO’s world heritage sites.
- The petroglyphs are scattered across several villages such as Barsu, Rundhe, Devihasol, Devache Gothne, Ukshi, Chave and Kasheli.
- Geoglyphs are rock art produced on the surface earth either by positioning rocks, rock fragments or by reduction technique.
- Petroglyphs are drawn by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving or abrading.
- Ratnagiri district has more than 1,500 petroglyphs, also called katal shilpa, spread across 70 sites.
- The carvings are in the shape of human figures, birds, animals and geometric forms, though they vary in shape and size.
