12-29-2008, 08:48 PM
Myth to reality: Sarasvati is set to flow again
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->That myth may now be laid to rest forever as plans are afoot to revive a part of the course taken by this ancient river. The Haryana government has acquired almost 20 acres of land and work is under way on a 50 km-long channel in Kurukshetra, through which the river will flow again.
  âThe revival of the Sarasvati will benefit countless people in the region as it will augment ground water resources,â says Darshan Lal Jain of the Sarasvati Nadi Shodh Sansthan, which is working with the government on this project. The plan is not to line with the riverâs course with bricks so that water can permeate the ground. With ground water levels dipping to as low as 150 feet, the riverâs revival may be a boon for parched Haryana.
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<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Incidentally, the debate about the existence of the Sarasvati has been continuing for a long time although lately, most historians have begun to concede that the river perhaps did exist. However, they still continue to debate the name by which the river was known, the route that it took and the reasons for its disappearance. âThere is no doubt that the Sarasvati river existed. However, opinion is divided on whether it was known as the Sarasvati or the Ghaggar,â says S Kalyanraman of the Sarasvati Research and Education Trust (SRET).
  The idea that the ancient Sarasvati might be the modern-day seasonal river, Ghaggar, is not a new one. It was first put forward over 100 years ago by CF Oldham, an English engineer who observed that the dry bed of the Ghaggar appeared too broad for a seasonal river. Oldham believed that the Ghaggar was, in fact, flowing on the bed of a bigger river that existed before. Archaeological excavations of the Indus Valley sites have also revealed numerous settlements along the Ghaggar, lending further credence to this theory. <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Science and technology has debunked the hollow claims of linguists/philologist from Harvard.
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->That myth may now be laid to rest forever as plans are afoot to revive a part of the course taken by this ancient river. The Haryana government has acquired almost 20 acres of land and work is under way on a 50 km-long channel in Kurukshetra, through which the river will flow again.
  âThe revival of the Sarasvati will benefit countless people in the region as it will augment ground water resources,â says Darshan Lal Jain of the Sarasvati Nadi Shodh Sansthan, which is working with the government on this project. The plan is not to line with the riverâs course with bricks so that water can permeate the ground. With ground water levels dipping to as low as 150 feet, the riverâs revival may be a boon for parched Haryana.
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin-->Incidentally, the debate about the existence of the Sarasvati has been continuing for a long time although lately, most historians have begun to concede that the river perhaps did exist. However, they still continue to debate the name by which the river was known, the route that it took and the reasons for its disappearance. âThere is no doubt that the Sarasvati river existed. However, opinion is divided on whether it was known as the Sarasvati or the Ghaggar,â says S Kalyanraman of the Sarasvati Research and Education Trust (SRET).
  The idea that the ancient Sarasvati might be the modern-day seasonal river, Ghaggar, is not a new one. It was first put forward over 100 years ago by CF Oldham, an English engineer who observed that the dry bed of the Ghaggar appeared too broad for a seasonal river. Oldham believed that the Ghaggar was, in fact, flowing on the bed of a bigger river that existed before. Archaeological excavations of the Indus Valley sites have also revealed numerous settlements along the Ghaggar, lending further credence to this theory. <!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Science and technology has debunked the hollow claims of linguists/philologist from Harvard.