KOCHI: Trench number 67 at Pattanam, which wore a deserted look until Wednesday, is today a hive of activity with researchers along with workers resuming excavation. The work resumed after the Delhi High Court stayed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) decision withdrawing the approval given to Dr P J Cherian for excavation at Pattanam sites in Ernakulam.
According to Dr Cherian, director of Pattanam excavations, the judgement was passed on a plea filed by him challenging a letter by ASI which retrospectively revoked the approval granted to him for excavation at certain sites in Kerala. “The excavations at Pattanam and Mathilakam sites in Ernakulam and Thrissur districts, which have been recognised as an integral part of the Muziris port, began way back in 2006,” he said.
“It should be noted that the 111 acres of land at Pattanam is an archaeological mound. Research works have been going on for the past 40 to 50 years and all materials point towards the fact that these sites hosted people from around 40 different civilisations,” said Dr Cherian. According to him, the digging, which resumed on Wednesday, yielded another artefact. “The South Italian (Campanian) Amphorae fragment was found in trench No. 67 from a depth of 87cm. The volcanic ash inclusions in them prove that hundreds of ships sailed to Muciri Pattinam from several ports of the Mediterranean region from BC 1,” he added.
The excavations that began in 2006 had continued till 2015. “The digging was carried out under the aegis of Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR). I was the director, besides being the director of the excavations, of the council,” said Dr Cherian. “But in 2016, I was removed from the post of KCHR director. After that, the excavations all but came to a standstill. All this while, we had been doing the excavation with the approval from ASI and had retrieved valuable evidence of the Muziris being a vibrant hub of commercial activity,” he added.
After he left KCHR, a group of like-minded academicians approached him and together they formed a non-profit educational trust -- PAMA Institute for the Advancement of Transdisciplinary Archaeological Sciences -- to continue the work. “PAMA was formed in 2018 and in 2020 we applied for a licence to excavate the sites. We were given the approval and we carried out excavation works which dragged due to pandemic,” said Dr Cherian. The team applied for approval yet again in 2021 and were granted the same by ASI.
“The approval was to end on September 30. So, we resumed the digging, which had got delayed due to Covid and monsoon, again in the first week of September. We also wrote to ASI seeking an extension of the deadline,” said Dr Cherian.
“But as we were into the 10th day of the 11th season, the ASI sent a letter withdrawing approval,” said Dr Cherian who added that the area is a treasure trove of ancient history. “Excavation at every 10cm depth led us to relics that date back to another 100 years. The sedimentation process during the past 3,000 years has led the relics and other items of yore to accumulate at different levels, up to a depth of around four metres.”
According to Dr Cherian, when ASI revoked the approval, he was not given an opportunity to be heard. “The withdrawal of the approval is in violation of natural justice and was done on the basis of baseless allegations. The ASI said it withdrew the permission for excavation citing alleged unauthorised use of its logo and collection of internship fees,” he said. Following this, Dr Cherian responded terming the allegations as having no factual basis. He then moved the Delhi High Court against the revocation letter. Cherian in his plea prayed for the continuation of the permission to carry out excavation in the meantime as per the order dated June 4. The matter will be further heard by the HC on October 6. The excavations at Pattanam and Mathilakam in the delta region of the Periyar and Chalakudy rivers in Kerala are being undertaken as a part of a project called ‘PAMA Excavations at Pattanam and Mathilakam in Kerala’.