Archaeological Survey of India begins work on Keeladi excavation report

Five years after it wrapped up excavation in Keeladi in Tamil Nadu’s Sivaganga district, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has set in motion the process to write a detailed report on the findings in the first two phases of the exercise, during which over 5,800 artefacts were unearthed.

The ASI, which successfully conducted the first two phases in 2015 and 2016, had announced in 2017 that the third phase yielded “no significant findings” leading to an uproar in Tamil Nadu, where allegations of the Union government trying to “bury the past glory of Tamils” flew thick and fast.

A PIL was filed in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court as the ASI’s declaration came after the superintending archaeologist who oversaw the first two phases was transferred to Assam and a new person was brought in.

The court then asked the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology (TNSDA) to take over the excavation from the fourth phase in 2018. The TNSDA has now sought permission for conducting the eighth phase of excavation in Keeladi from the Central Advisory Board for Archaeology (CABA).

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K Amarnath Ramakrishna, the superintending archaeologist who discovered the Sangam-era site and transferred out, is writing the report along with his team of archaeologists since he is now back in Tamil Nadu as Superintending Archaeologist, Temples Survey Project, Chennai Circle.

“The documentation, classification, and analysis of the first two phases of the Keeladi excavation carried out by the ASI have begun. This will be followed by a detailed report on the excavation. It is a work in progress, and I can’t give a timeline on when it will be over,” Ramakrishna told DH.

The ASI also came under criticism in the past for not publishing the reports of the excavation, which created a huge buzz in Tamil Nadu.

The report, once published, will throw more light into the excavation at Keeladi and findings, with experts maintaining that the Sangam-era site will throw up more surprises with continued digging and detailed analyses of the artefacts unearthed.

Although seven phases of excavation in Keeladi have been completed, a detailed report for only the fourth phase has been released in the public domain. The TNSDA, which conducted the fourth phase, released its report in 2019 pushing back the Sangam era further behind by at least 300 years, based on carbon dating of artefacts found during the session.

Ramakrishna also said the ASI has collected over 80 samples to be sent for carbon dating. “Ten samples have been sent to Beta Analytical Lab in Florida in the US for carbon dating and this is being sponsored by the Tamil Nadu government. Twenty samples will be sent to Inter-University Accelerator Centre (IUAC) in New Delhi for detailed analysis,” he said.

Tamil Nadu government has been sending carbon samples for dating to the Beta Analytical Lab. While the samples sent from Keeladi were found to be 2,600 years old, those from Sivagalai dated back to 3,200 years.

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Researchers and archaeologists in Tamil Nadu call the findings significant as they “narrow down” the gap between the Tamil urban settlements and the Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC). However, they say “more evidence” should be forthcoming before arriving at a definite conclusion.

The findings in Keeladi encouraged the TNSDA under the then AIADMK government to launch the excavation at many sites. The new DMK government gave much-needed impetus to the TNSDA by allotting “enough funds” and pushing for more excavations in the state to “dig deep into the past glory” of Tamils.

TNSDA has now sought permission to resume or start excavations in seven locations in 2022. Once the approval is received, the excavation will start in January.

Permission has been sought for resuming the excavations in Keeladi (eighth phase), Sivagalai (third phase), Gangaikondacholapuram (second phase), and Mayiladumparai (second phase). The previous phases in these sites ended in September this year after which permission for resuming the excavations was sought, a top TNSDA official said.

The Keeladi cluster includes Agaram and Konthagai, a habitation and burial site, respectively. Sediments scrapped from the burial urns and skeletons found from the site have been sent for carbon dating and DNA analysis for further studies.

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