Indus River Valley, an Ancient Civilization in Pakistan and Western India

UNGKIT.COM - The Indus River Valley is one of the world's oldest ancient civilizations, flourishing around 3300–1300 BC in what is now Pakistan and western India. This civilization was pioneered by the Dravidian people, with two main urban centers: Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa.

The Dravidian people, or speakers of the Proto-Dravidian language (ancestors of Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam), who are thought to have founded this ancient city, are still debated among archaeologists.

Their history remains elusive. Their language and script, as found in artifacts found there, have been little deciphered.

Uniquely, no religious buildings or signs of a caste system, such as temples or large, imposing monuments, have been found in the city.

This has led researchers to speculate that the people of Mohenjo Daro and Harappa were civilizations that relied entirely on science (having abandoned religious practices) and possessed a high philosophy of life, as evidenced by the absence of a caste system in the social hierarchy.

Based on the remains discovered, they were an advanced civilization, with evidence of standardized weights and measures, stamp engravings, stamps, pottery, and knowledge of metal smelting techniques such as copper, bronze, and tin.

Furthermore, Mohenjo Daro and Harappa were thriving cities, with many houses equipped with wells, bathrooms, and a complex underground water system.

The collapse of these civilizations is believed to have been caused by the drying up of the Saraswati River in Veda around the end of 1900 BC due to high levels of solar radiation, which affected rainfall in the surrounding valley.

Climate change at that time caused the Little Ice Age, resulting in drier dry seasons, negatively impacting agriculture. This led the civilization's inhabitants to relocate to small villages in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Furthermore, at the same time, the Indo-Aryan civilization arrived, bringing with it more sophisticated tools. These Indo-Aryans are suspected of attacking the Indus Valley communities, as skeletal remains have been found around the former cities, strongly indicating an invasion.

Archaeologists have revealed that the Indus Valley civilization is the most extensive ancient civilization discovered after the sites of Mesopotamia and Egypt. The Indus Valley civilization was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1980. (*)