 Ever since
the Delhi-Lahore bus service resumed I desperately wanted to visit
Pakistan. No, not so much for the cricket matches held there but for
the little ancient-history bug that plagued me since my college
days. Mohenjodaro and Harappa- the two prime Indus valley urban
centers par-excellence, beckoned me unendingly –so close
yet so far. But disappointment awaited me this time
too!
When my husband walked
in that evening he found me in a dismally dejected frame of mind- my
hopes dashed again. Keen to make amends- although none of his was
truly his fault, he suggested a weekend trip to
Ahmedabad. |
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Aghast I stared at him trying
to fathom whether it was some crude joke - Ahmedabad in place
of the Indus sites were hardly any compensation. Little did I know
what he had in mind and that I would be proved more than just
wrong. |
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‘This is great,’ I gasped. As
our car whizzed past little buds of light green foliage that broke
through the winter harshness in a celebration of life, I absorbed
the warmth of the buffeting, morning winds and stared at the puffs
of white cotton clouds set in deep blue March skies. The world was
beautiful and I should enjoy every small salutation of it – I mused.
At Ahmedabad a surprise bunch of relatives descended – at the behest
of my dearest hubby. My sorrow and chagrin of not being able
to ride beyond that elusive border by now had more or less
evaporated. I was all set to enjoy the unfolding
expedition. |
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The first stop was at Adlaj
step well,17 kms north of Ahmedabad. By car it was an hour’s ride
through a dry dusty sandy scrub, dotted with tiny villages.
Surprisingly the villages were sufficiently well equipped with
electricity and water. A sudden impromptu decision cruised the car
to a halt and a hearty meal in a village dhaba at Radhanpur
was a delight of the senses. A somewhat dilapidated structure with
dozens of spotlessly clean copper and steel vessels were lined up
with a delicious fare from the finest dals to the
mouthwatering khakra - we ate it all. Stuffed to the core
we proceeded to the Adlaj step well, built in 1498 by Rani Roopba,
wife of Vaghela Chief Rana Veer Singh. The edifice was exquisite-
with richly carved pillars. The leaves, flowers, birds and other
fauna carved painstakingly was a tribute to conservation and
preservation of the nectar of life – water. But although I wanted to
linger on longer the odour within was overpowering. Wondering what
to attribute this horrific smell to, I found a few local men working
on restoration. They seemed to be treating the pillars to some kind
of an acidic scouring to remove algae. I marvelled at their capacity
of being closeted with the acrid stink, as I quickly beat a retreat.
Their health hazards apart, I was heartened by the fact that we
still have a few good men who lovingly keep our heritage
alive. |
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Next we wandered on to locate
Surkotada. Although a pamphlet by Gujarat government says that this
is a must see place, we neither found any pointers on the road nor
did anyone seem to know the right way to it. So, we wandered on,
determined to unearth this elusive haunt. Luckily the weather wasn’t
too bad – a recent shower had cooled things including our rising
tempers. Ultimately a teenaged local boy turned out to be our
pathfinder. He grinned from ear to ear, cheekily asked for a ride
and promised to guide us to location. What began as a good road,
biforkated at every odd interval to turn into slush with the recent
rains. The area was deserted and the thorny brambles so unkempt that
they almost interlocked over the road. Our Gypsy groaned and moaned
its way through this tortuous route to arrive at a lone
Archeological Survey of India (ASI) plaque declaring the site to be
protected and anyone causing damage would be liable to imprisonment
etc. etc., – a crude joke we thought. I wonder if ASI would even
realise it was missing, had anyone decided to carry the entire site
off. Remains of rope were supposedly found here indicating ship
building activity. Comparing notes with the neglected site in front
of me to the visuals of the splendidly maintained ones elsewhere I
was indeed dejected. |
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Next was the final touchdown
at Dholavira. Piling back into our dusty automobile we hit the road
again. In the four hours that we travelled, traditionally clothed
men and colourfully bedecked women dotted the roads with unerring
frequency, walking to their destinations and munching their locally
grown roasted peanuts. Everywhere were the telltale signs of the
recent earthquake with walls and structures growing over cracked and
broken ones. |
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As the highway led us to the
Little Rann of Kutch a sea-like lake rose before us with a
burst of activity – the flying flamingoes. Some patches seemed
to be covered with snow, but was white sands in reality, glinting
against the bright sunlight. It would have been breathtakingly
beautiful had we not spotted a few dead flamingo chicks lying by the
salt waters. We were told that a mystery disease was killing the
flamingoes here and something needed to be done urgently to save
them. |
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As we moved on we came to
Khadir, an island in the Rann. It was definitely more fertile than
the surrounding areas, with green fields and freshwater sources. On
this island was our coveted destination. As we neared it, it seemed
like the sets of some National Geographic archeological series, with
tents and formally attired personnel sifting through material,
marking and making finds. |
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Dholavira is a relatively
recent find with this Indus city being excavated by the ASI since
1989. Habitation at the site began well before 3000 B.C. and
continued for more than a millennium. The city’s unique stone
architecture is partly responsible for the remarkable preservation
of its Citadel or Acropolis, Middle and Lower Town, all surrounded
by gigantic water reservoirs that were cut into the
bedrock. |
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The site of Dholavira locally
known as kotada, stands apart in its remarkable planning and
enormity of area and deposit. It was probably the metropolis of the
entire Kutch or even a larger area. Dholavira enjoys the unique
distinction of yielding ten large-sized inscribed signs in Harappan
script. A variety of funerary structures is yet another feature of
importance throwing light on the socio-religious beliefs, thereby
indicating the presence of composite ethnic groups in the Indus
population of Dholavira. |
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Dholavira presents a splendid
Harappan city measuring about 600m on the north-south axis and 775 m
on the east-west accounting for 48 hectares. The acropolis and the
middle town had been further furnished with a defense-work of
gateways, built-up areas, street-system, wells and large open
spaces. Besides, there are extensive structure-bearing areas outside
the fortifications, an intimately integral part of the settlement.
Put together, the total area of the centre goes well beyond 100
hectares in expanse! |
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The acropolis |
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Considerable pre-planning
seems to have gone into the layout and construction of the Citadel.
It is the most carefully guarded as well as impressive. The towering
‘castle’ stands majestically at 16 meters in fair insulation and is
splendidly defended by double ramparts. Near the centre of each of
the eastern, western and northern sides of the double defense a big
gate is provided to give access to the ‘castle’ through a flight of
steps. |
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Middle Town |
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A wall surrounds the
embattled Middle town with two or three gates in the enclosure,
which facilitated intercommunication with the Lower town in the east
and the open spaces on other sides. The streets here are neat and
regular. |
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Lower Town |
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The built-up area of the
Lower town occupies nearly two third of the eastern half of the
fortified city. Like the Middle town this too reveals a constructed
area having several built-up projections and open recesses at least
on the northeast and south where the latter merges with the general
open area, which runs around the city. This was the place where
ordinary people lived and made things like beads and ropes and
farmed the adjoining fields. Beads are found plentifully and every
home seems to be equipped with some sort of bead making
machinery. |
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Endnote |
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The Dholavira experience was
enriching and unexpected. After visiting the site we were mesmerized
by the magnanimity of the remains here. Dholavira is a site, which
far outweighs Harappa or Mohenjodaro, where most of the relics are
encased in museums. In the end visiting Gujarat was not such a
comedown after all. |
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