MADURAI: Some people today seem to be scared at the mere mention of Keezhadi, said archaeologist K Amarnath Ramakrishna on Wednesday during the conference on ‘Redeeming India’s history from distortions’ held at The Lady Doak College in Madurai.
Speaking at the event organised by the college’s PG & research department of history in association with the Dravidian Historical Research Centre, Chennai, to commemorate the centenary of the Self-Respect Movement, Amarnath said it is unclear why such fear exists.
“Some sections are attempting to suppress India’s pluralistic identity, and Tamil Nadu stands as one of the foremost examples of this diversity. It is deeply distressing that studies related to the antiquity and history of Tamil Nadu are being prevented from reaching the public domain in their entirety,” Amarnath said.
There is no possibility of altering the Keezhadi excavation report, he added. Once the report is officially released, it will open doors for many more research initiatives and serve as a valuable resource for scholars across disciplines, he said.
“We have grown up listening to epics such as the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, but we have not been trained to understand history in a scientific manner. Had it not been for the British, we would not have known our own history in a systematic way. Scholars such as William Jones were assisted by Brahmins in their research work,” he pointed out.
Ramakrishna further said Tamil Nadu is the only region in the Indian subcontinent where evidence of human habitation dating back nearly 1.5 million years ago has been discovered. Significantly, the scholars who conducted these studies were not all from Tamil Nadu, he noted.
He also stated that the very existence of the Indus Valley Civilization came to light only in 1923. Until then, it was believed to be associated with Buddhism. It was only later established that the civilization predated the Buddhist period, Amarnath said.
“History is a science and must be approached with scientific rigor. Only then will it continue to reveal new truths. One such revelation is the practice of inscribing writing on pottery shards, a tradition found exclusively in TN. This practice does not exist anywhere else in India and clearly indicates that literacy was prevalent among ordinary people,” he added.
K Veeramani, chancellor of Periyar Maniammai Deemed University and president of the Dravidar Kazhagam, inaugurated the conference, while Lady Doak College principal and secretary Beulah Jeyashree presided over the event.