BHUBANESWAR: A team of researchers recently discovered two rock shelters on Dummaguda hill near Rayagada town. The team comprising Lokesh Durga, who is pursuing PhD in History from Delhi University, Damayanti Bag, an independent researcher and Pratap Kumar Biswal, a PhD scholar of Utkal University, found one rock shelter 30 metre away from the bottom of the hill and another 200 metre away from it. There is a stone platform leading directly to the second rock shelter.
The researchers took up the exploration in Dummaguda after The New Indian Express published a report on discovery of rock shelters near Anjipenta hill in Rayagada town earlier this year. Bag, who led the exploration had found stone tools consisting of sandstone, granite, chondrolite, quartzite, chisels, handaxes and blades from the Anjipenta rock shelters. Shelters of Anjipenta are smaller than those found at Dummaguda.
“The Dummaguda rock shelters indicate habitation as well as existence of pre-historic people. We found some artefacts from the first site which included scrappers, cleavers and a handmade axe made from a variety of rocks such as sandstone, granite, condolite, quartzite, basalt, etc. The height of these artefacts is not more than 15 cm and their width is over 10 cm. We got only one artefact from the second rock shelter that is of one feet height and 10 cm width,” Lokesh said.
The researchers said no official study or exploration has so far been done to reveal the pre-historic habitations near Nagavalli river valley of Rayagada district. “The State archaeology or ASI should conduct explorations in this area,” Lokesh added.