Tamil Nadu plans archaeological excavations in 8 locations this year

Archaeological excavation in Keeladi, a Sangam Era urban settlement which is at least 2,600 years old, and its cluster sites near Madurai is likely to resume next month provided the Union Government approves a proposal from the Tamil Nadu government.

The state government, which has been quite proactive in digging into the lives of ancient Tamils, has sought permission to continue excavations in Vembakottai in Virudhunagar district, Thulukarpatti in neighbouring Thoothukudi district, and Gangaikondacholapuram, a town built by the famed Chola king Rajendra-I, in Ariyalur district.

Besides, the Centre’s nod has also been sought to launch excavations in four new locations – Kilnamandi in Tiruvannamalai district, Porpanaikottai (Pudukkottai), Boothinatham (Dharmapuri), and Pattaraiperumbudur (Tiruvallur). The excavation will be conducted by the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology (TNSDA).

“We have sent a proposal to the Central Advisory Board for Archaeology (CABA) seeking permission to conduct archaeological excavations in eight locations. While four are old places, the remaining four have been added to the list. Excavations in Pattaraiperumbudur will be conducted after a gap of six years,” a top government source told DH.

The cultural deposit at Pattaraiperumbudur found in 2016 can be divided into Stone age period, Iron age period and Early historical period, the TNSDA said.

If CABA grants permission, archaeological excavations in Keeladi and its cluster sites of Konthagai, Manalur, and Agaram, will enter the ninth phase, while it will be third phase in Gangaikondacholapuram, and second phase in Vembakottai, and Thulukarpatti.

The source said the permission from CABA is expected by mid-January after which Chief Minister M K Stalin will launch the fresh round of excavations by February. “The excavations will go on till September 2023 following which the work on report writing will start,” the source added.

The state is also planning to rope in private agencies to conduct archaeological excavations in Pattanam (Kerala), Thalakadu (Karnataka), Vengi (Andhra Pradesh), and Palur (Odisha) as part of its efforts to trace the journey of ancient Tamils with support from respective state governments.

Archaeological excavations at seven locations in Tamil Nadu during 2002 yielded nearly 8,000 artefacts of which 2,200 are from Keeladi and cluster sites, Vembakottai (2,985), Gangaikondacholapuram (900), Perumbalai (315), Thulukarpatti (800), Mayiladumparai (415), and Sivakalai (191).

In Gangaikondacholapuram, remains of a palace built by Rajendra I and further traces of ancient trade links with China were the highlights of the excavation done in 2022.

The DMK government, after assuming office in May 2021, has been providing “generous allocation” to the archaeology department for excavations with Stalin himself announcing in the Assembly that his administration will take every step to scientifically prove that India’s history will have to be rewritten from the Tamil landscape, in the light of findings in Keeladi and Sivakalai.

A grand museum, which is being built in Keeladi at a cost of Rs 15 crore to showcase the artefacts found since 2014, is likely to be thrown open next month.

Carbon dating of artefacts found in the fourth phase in Keeladi show they belong to 600 BCE, pushing the Sangam Era behind by three centuries than it was thought and making it contemporaneous with the Gangetic Plains Civilization of north India.

Detailed analyses of plants and soil from Keeladi, collected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) which conducted the first three phases of excavation before backing out, have also shown that surplus production of rice in the area might have paved the way for increase in trade 2,000 years ago. Paddy husks found in a burial urn in Sivakalai in Thoothukudi district establishing their age to 3,200 years old.

These findings have created a huge buzz with researchers in Tamil Nadu calling them significant as they “narrow down” the gap between the Tamil urban settlements and the Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC). However, many experts outside Tamil Nadu have rejected the Keeladi-IVC link theory, calling it “too premature.”