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Chapter -1

Introduction and Objectives of the Research

Part I: General Introduction

1.1 Introduction

The research area is the Jonk river basin, one of the major tributaries of the upper

Mahanadi. In order to assess the prehistoric potential of the river; four seasons of

intensive field investigation was carried out in the western highland of Odisha and

eastern Chhattisgarh. The basic aim of this research project was to undertake the

micro-regional approach to find and study Palaeolithic sites in different geological

contexts. In addition, the research has also aimed to understand the regional

archaeological structures, prehistoric strategies and their adaptation to the local

Quaternary landscapes and environments by analysing the different lithic assemblages

and associated sedimentary contexts. The research carried out in the river basin

resulted in the discovery of 15 Acheulian, four Middle Palaeolithic, 39 Microlithic,

one Neolithic and three new Early Historic sites. In order to understand the region, the

latest research methods, field archaeology, possible scientific archaeology and

modern analytical methods were applied to comprehend the collected data.

The thesis is divided into four chapters. The first chapter is divided into three parts;

the first part discusses the research objectives and methodology, the second part

introduced the region and briefly gives background information about the river

system, environmental setting, geology, geomorphology, flora and fauna of the region

while the third part discusses previous research and highlights the major lacuna and

methodological considerations for further research. The second chapter of the thesis is

presents the results of field investigations, settlement pattern, site formation process,

river section description and the application of remote sensing to understand the

geomorphology of Palaeolithic sites. The third chapter presents the detailed analysis

and interpretation of collected data. This chapter is again devided into three parts,

Acheulian, Middle Palaeolithic and Microlithic which discusses about the

organisation of lithic technology and raw material exploitation and settlement pattern

in the river valley. A discussion of the results and presentation of the conclusions

comprises the fourth chapter of this thesis.

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1.1.1 Reasons for selection of the Study area

The study area is selected because of the following reasons. The study area lies

between the Nuwapada hills range and the Chhattisgarh Plain is an important

geographical part of western highland of Odisha and Chhattisgarh. The Jonk and its

catchment areas must have formed an equally important region in the past due to its

strategic location, geography and suitable geology for the prehistoric settlements.

Pandey (1982) correlated the prehistoric cultural sequence of the region with that of

neighbouring rivers and other tributaries of Mahanadi in order to understand the

archaeological potential of the area. The area presently supports a population, some of

whom still exploit the abundant wild plant and animal resources. Raw materials such

as quartzite, limestone, quartz, chert, chalcedony, dolerite and others, are easily

available in the form of river pebbles and cobbles and also in the adjoining hill slopes

in the form of blocks and slabs. These must have provided adequate raw materials for

the prehistoric settlers in the river valley throughout the Pleistocene period.

1.1.2 Aims and Objectives:

The present work was undertaken in the specified study area for the pre-historic

investigations with the following objectives:

1. The main objective of the present research was to locate Palaeolithic

sites in their various geological contexts to develop a regional

archaeological picture to understand the nature, occurrences and

expansion of prehistoric settlements.

2. To understand the geology, geomorphology, and geo-archaeology of

the Jonk river basin.

3. To locate and discern the prehistoric raw material exploitation

4. To develop an understanding of the lithic assemblages by analysing

various means of statistical methods in order to understand the typo-

technological and morphological variability.

5. To understand the inter-regional and intra-regional variability in the

lithic assemblages.

6. To get some idea about the relative chronology of the Stone Age

cultures in this region.

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1.1.3 Methodology:

The basic methodology followed for the study was to carryout field work and

collection of information from several sources to understand the previous research

works on the subject. The intensive exploration was carried out to find prehistoric

sites followed by their detailed documentation. The lithic assemblages from these

sites were studied by applying several statistical methods to comprehend the lithic

variability, evolution in terms of typology, technology and stratigraphy. In order to

understand the geology, geomorphology, land scape and distribution pattern,

extensive use of satellite based imageries and remote sensing data was applied. Along

with the Phd, two separate research projects were undertaken to understand the

ethnography of Nuwapada district: a. Hunting- gathering traditions among the ethnic

groups of Nuwapada district (Padhan 2008) b. Understanding Saora Tribal art and

rock art of Bhimbhetka, Central India, an ethnographic approach (Padhan 2010,

2012). In order to understand the stone tool technology lithic experimental

archaeology was carryout by making flakes and large cutting tools. Experimental

archaeology was also applied for microlithic blade productions by using hard hammer

techniques and its effect on different raw materials. However the experimental

archaeology is not included in this thesis. The detailed methodologies followed are

discussed in the respective chapters.

Part 2: Environmental Background

Various environmental factors such as climate, relief, lithology, and vegetation play a

very important role in the development of any drainage basin. Watershed

geomorphology helps in understanding the physical and hydrological behaviour of the

river regime.

The western part of Odisha and the eastern part of Chhattisgarh region are

characterized by non-perennial streams, which actually are rain-fed rivers. They carry

water only in the periods of rain and immediately after rain (annual seasonal

monsoons), and water can be seen in the stream till the months of January-February.

During the dry season which generally begins February onwards (and remains until

the beginning of the rainy season), these remain dry. Clearly, watersheds with a

higher proportion of area drained by non-perennial streams will tend to have lower

soil moisture retention and water harvesting capability than those areas where

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perennial streams pre-dominate. Each stream has its characteristic channel, based on

the topographical obstacles encountered, as it seeks the `path of least resistance' in its

journey towards the sea. Stream patterns may develop randomly on uniform soils, or

in response to weaknesses in the underlying geology.

In parts of Odisha and Chhattisgarh, most of the drainage pattern has been structurally

guided, and arises from the presence of hard underlying rocks, as well as pronounced

zones of faults and fractures. In other words, the channel form is generally controlled

by geology, the flow is confined within rock outcrops, and the channel morphology is

determined by the relative strength and weakness of the bed material. Dendritic

pattern is found in areas of relatively uniform geological structure in the river valleys.

Trellis pattern usually develops on alternating bands of hard and soft strata.

Rectangular patterns are common in areas with right-angled faults and/or joints, such

as in granitic bedrock areas.

1.2 River Systems

1.2.1 River Mahanadi

The Mahanadi river originates in the Amarkantak plateau and drains the entire eastern

part of Chhattisgarh. Raigarh, Bilaspur, parts of Raipur district, eastern Balaghat and

south-eastern Mandala district fall within the Mahanadi catchment area. The portion

of Mahanadi Basin located in Chhattisgarh is further divided into a few more smaller

basins. The Chhattisgarh basin lies in the central districts, in the north are the Raigarh

basin, Hasdo-Rampur basin and the Korba, and in the south is the Kanker basin. The

Chhattisgarh Basin, formed by the Mahanadi and its main tributary Seonath, drains

the central districts of Rajnandgaon, Durg, Raipur and southern Bilaspur, and is the

most extensive and agriculturally rich region in Chhattisgarh. This river system

collects almost all the rainwater of the basin and carries it to the Bay of Bengal. Most

of the tributaries of Mahanadi join to from the western and northern side. The major

ones among these are Maini, Kelo, Mand, BaroiandHasdo. Of these, the Hasdo is a

powerful river and the second most important tributary of Mahanadi after Seonath.

The river Jonk joins the Mahanadi in the northern side. The plains to the northwest of

Seonath are entirely dissected by a large number of streams emptying into the main

river.

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The river Mahanadi becomes very wide in some regions and extends up to 1-2 km in

the upper area. Its width is about 0.76 km in the gorge area, while in lower Mahanadi

it is 3-4 km wide. In its upper part, the width of the river has a flat bed and low banks.

The geomorphological character of the rivers suggests that they were over-loaded.

The river has frequently turbulent and torrential floods of height intensity due to

which river bank has been eroded and show less alluviation along the main rivers

whereas a heavy blanket of alluvium has been piled up along the tributaries.

The different types of land surfaces, elevations, aggradation and erosional surfaces are

characteristic features of eastern Indian rivers. These are caused by tectonic

movements or climatic fluctuations, such as active monsoons or weak monsoon or

may be because of the kind of sediments it is carrying from its source area.

Mahanadi river and its catchments are characterized by Precambrian granites,

gneisses and schists of the Eastern Ghats, with local basic intrusive and volcanic

lithologies; limestones, sandstones, and shales of the Gondwanas; and recent deltaic

alluvium deposits at the river mouths on the Bay of Bengal (Chakrapani and

Subramanian, 1990a). It has been estimated, for example, that in the Mahanadi River

basin, the general lithology consists of 56% Precambrian rocks, 22% sandstone and

shale of the Upper Gondwana, 17% limestone and shale of the Lower Gondwana, and

5% coastal alluvium (Chakrapani and Subramanian, 1990a).

The central Chhattisgarh basin is characterised by two major landform types, the

gently sloping Chhattisgarh Plain and the undulating rim land. The elevation of the

plains ranges from about 250 m on the eastern margin to about 330 m in the west. The

gentle gradient of the Chhattisgarh Plain is largely due to its geological structure with

flat to gently dipping Cuddapah sedimentary formations. Around this plain, the land

rises steeply in almost every direction except the southwest, where it merges

gradually into the granitic and gneissic peneplain of north western Bastar district. In

the east, the Chhattisgarh Plain narrows down into a corridor between the Raigarh

Hills on the north and the Raipur Uplands on the south, through which the Mahanadi

flows eastwards (Singh 1971). The south-eastern parts of the central belt, Nagri block

of Dhamtari district and Garyaband, Mainpur and Chhura blocks of Raipur too are

more rugged with higher gradient. Similarly, Pithora and Kasdole in the adjoining

district of Mahasamund have a more hilly topography.

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1.2.2 Jonk River System

1.2.2.1 River Jonk

River Jonk, a tributary of Upper Mahanadi originates from the Sunabera plateau

(20°29'59.66"N; 82°26'35.08"E) in the Koraput district of Odisha at the altitude of

660 masl. After crossing rocky terrain, the river enters into the Maraguda Valley,

which is now flooded by a huge water reservoir built at Dharmabanda, near the

village Patora, (locally known as Patora Dam), as part of the Upper Jonk irrigation

project. The Jonk River is a tributary of the River Mahanadi located in the western

part of Odisha and eastern part of Chhattisgarh. The river flows north, and forms the

inter-state boundary between Chhattisgarh and Odisha (Map-2). The river flows

through the Nuwapada, and Bargarh districts of Odisha and Mahasamund and Raipur

Districts of Chhattisgarh. The total length of the river is about 210 km. The river is

fed by a number of small and big tributaries such as Silda, Bhandar, Kandajhari,

Kolar, Machka, Chirar, Bagh, Bhuisa, Ama, Kantara, Karmel, Lamhar, and Maokha.

These tributaries originate in the surrounding hills and plateaus and flow for distances

up to about 35 km.The Jonk river passes through several mountain ranges of variable

sizes throughout its course. The great Gandhamardan Hill and Jharband Hill are

situated on the eastern side of the river. Just after the Jharband hills, there is a fault

intersecting and separating the Jonk river basin from the Ong river basin.

The river has a maximum width of 660 m at Seorinarayan, near its confluence with

the Mahanadi. In the middle Jonk, its width varies in between 230 to 440 m. Some

meandering points have maximum width where the river cuts into its older deposits.

In the Nuwapadaghat area where the river is cutting the bedrock, its width varies

between 100-120meters. In the lower part of the river, after flowing through a narrow

rocky channel at the foot of Nawapara Hill, the width of the river progressively

becomes wider after cutting through the bedrock zone and it joins the Mahanadi near

Seorinarayan(21°42'43.42"N;82°34'34.03"E) at an elevation of about 234 masl.

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Map: 1.1 Location of Study Area in the Map of India

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Map: 1. 2 - ISRO- Satellite image of study area showing the Jonk River in the centre

in blue colour and district boundary in red colour

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Map: 1.3 Drainage system of River Jonk

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1.2.2.2 Silda Nala

The Silda Nala originates from the Lodra Reserve Forest after crossing a distance of a

few kilometers and joins Jonk near village Parkor. Here, it is locally known as

Kharkharanala. The nala flow nearly 25 km of distance and has five sub tributaries.

Two microlithic sites have been found near a seasonal nala carrying rain water during

the monsoon and retain some water in its channel/bed until January. However,

because of the Upper Jonk irrigation project, the nala now retains water throughout

the year. The river has preserved a section of 1 m - 2.5 m at some places. Its upper

part is mostly forested and the surrounding soil is red to brown in colour; from its

lower part the soil is mostly sandy silty and grey-to-white in colour.

Figure: 1.1 Elevation cross section of the Silda Nala

1.2.2.3 Machka River

The Machkariver is one of the major tributaries of the Jonk. The river originates from

the Hatigarh Reserve Forest near the town of Bagbahara at the elevation of nearly 330

meters and flows up to 35 km distance from its source area. The river is a little

different in nature from other tributaries of Jonk as it does not carry much sand and

the river has exposed a significant section in the lower Machka. Two microlithic sites

are found on the river at Chuhia and Jagdala. The river has an elevation gain/loss of

144 - 195 m and the maximum slope is 5.7% to 4.6 % and average slope is 1.0- 0.9%.

Figure: 1.2 Elevation cross section of the Machka River

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Plate: 1.1: Lower Machka river section near to its confluence point

1.2.2.4 Kandajhari Nala

Having a total distance of 11.2 km, the Kandajharinala originates from the hills of

Teka Reserve Forest. Three nalas comes from different parts of the Taka forest and

join together near Darbekera and from there it is known as Kandajhari Nala. The

river carry a lot of sand from its source area. The river section is mostly sandy, flat

and at some places sections are preserved upto 1-2 meter in height. The river section

is devoid of any gravel or artefacts and the soil is very loose and pale yellow in

colour; clay can be observed at the bottom-most layer at some places near to its

confluence.

Figure: 1.3 Elevation cross section of Kandajhari Nala

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Map: 1.4 Topographic map of Kandajhri Nala

1.2.2.5 Bagh

The Bagh River is a non-perennial rain-fed stream. It carries water immediately after

the rains and water can be seen on the stream only until January-February. The river

has its origin from the Rampur Reserve Forest part of the Nuwapara hills range near

village Rampur, and forms one of the major tributaries of the Jonk. On the upper

stream, the river is known as Sukha Nala and it joins with Muraidhowa Nala; from

near Pithora the river is known as Bagh River. After crossing a distance of about 35

km, the river joins the Jonk near the village Chikhli. The river has alluvium deposits

on both banks and carries lot of sand from the granitic hills which suggest that the

granitic hills are weathered and release sand. Both banks are mostly sandy in nature

and the river silt can only be seen after 10-20 m away from the river. However, on its

upper part, the river is narrow and has preserved sections of 1-2 m at some places.

The river is seasonal and during the monsoon and post monsoon (up to December),

water flows continuously and then the river remains dry throughout the summer. The

river is wide in some places such as in the middle and lower parts, which have 90-120

m channel width, but it has a narrow confluence. Bagh is 61 m wide at its confluence.

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1.2.2.6 Kantara

The Kantara Nala forms one of the major tributaries of Jonk which joins into the left

side of the river. The nala has its origin from the Kantara Nala Reserve Forest. On its

upper part, the nala flows through rock and a narrow channel, and starts widening just

near the Kurkuti Village. The nala has got 16 small streams most of which join in the

left side of the nala. The Kantaranala joins into the Jonk near the RikoKalan village.

Throughout its course the nala carries a lot of granitic sand. Because of thick alluvium

cover near the present nala bed, only Holocene deposits can be observed. Due to its

strategic location, repeated explorations were conducted on the bank and hill slope on

around but the investigator did not come across any cultural material.

Map: 1.5 Topographic map of Kantara Nala

1.2.2.7 Karmel

Karmel is one of the biggest tributaries of the Jonk which flows more than 40 km

from its source area. The Nala has its origin from the Bagmala Protected Forest and

the Purshottampur Protected Forest. The Karmel Nala is joined by seven other small

tributaries. Pandripani Nala and Chhipri Nala are the two bigger and important nalas

of Karmel. After crossing the mountainous tract, the nala joins into the Jonk river near

the village Karmel. Two Early Historic fortified sites are located in the Karmel valley.

The site Ghargaon lies on the upper Karmel, which is a rectangular mud-fortified site

and the second fortified site, located near its confluence at Narega, is a circular mud-

fortified site. No Palaeolithic sites have been found on the vicinity of this nala.

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Figure: 1.4 Elevation cross section of Karmel Nala

1.2.2.8 Natal Nala

The nala originates at an elevation of 380 AMSL from the Murpat Reserved Forest near the

Khurdodih. The nala flows up to 13 km distance and joins its mother river near the village

Khalna. The stream has an elevation gain loss- 40.0 – 95.9 m and the average slope is in

between 0.7- 1.2%. Rock weathering is noticed at some places near to the nala bank.

The rapid change in temperature during the summer from hot days to cold and the

humid climate lead weathering of the granite rocks.

Map: 1.6Location of Natal Nala within Google Earth image with elevation cross

section

1.3 Climate

The climate of Nuwapara, Mahasamund and Raipur districts is monsoonal and is

characterised by the a hot summer with high humidity and well distributed rains

during the monsoon.

Rain starts during mid- June and the study area falls within the hot and moist climatic

belt with an average annual rainfall of 1200-1600 mm. Occasional heavy rainfall in

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some years leads to floods which forces the villagers to shift to a higher elevated areas

near the river. Generally the wettest months are July-September. The relative

humidity is high during the south-western monsoon and post monsoon period. The

cold season starts from November, and December and January are the coldest months

of the year. Winters are generally cool and dry with temperatures ranging between

maximum 28˚C in the day falling to 6 ˚C at night. Farmers of this area start the

paddy harvest during this winter season. The region experiences a hot summer every

year (from March to mid -June) and temperature as high as 48 ˚C have been recorded

in this area. The air becomes gradually dry thereafter and the summer comprises the

driest months of the year. During the summer, most of the rivers and streams, small

ponds and pools get dried up. Water is found only in the deep gorges along the river.

1.4 Vegetation

The region is characterised by dry or moist deciduous type vegetation. By about the

middle of February, it appears quite bare as most of the trees, shrubs and climbers

shed their leaves. Scrub forest generally exists between open treeless cultivation and

closed continuous forests. It includes flat grassland and paddy fields and a large

number of Mahua trees, which are encouraged and protected due to their production

of edible flowers. Elements of sal and teak interrupted by mixed type vegetation are

the characteristic feature of this area. In some areas, tropical dry deciduous to semi-

evergreen /evergreen types are seen (Basuet al. 1995: 367-369; Gaursenet al 1995).

During recent years, a rapid rise in human settlements with subsequent colonization of

this area has resulted in the deforestation and conversion of natural forest into

Savana/scrubland type forest. This has led to several changes in the soil property. The

tribal people of this area exploited leaves, fruits, flowers, roots and bark of many

forest species. A table of the commonly exploited species is given below:--

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Local name Scientific name

Antamul Hemesdesmusindiacus

Aonla Phyllanthusemblica

Arjuna TerminilaArjuna

Asan Terminilatomentosa

Ashok Sarakaindica

Aswatha Ficusreligiosa

Athandi CombritumDecandrum

Bahada Terminaliabelerica

Barakoli Zizphus jujube

Bel Aeglemarmelos

Bija Peterocarpusmardupiums

Bhalia Semepercupusanacardium

Bhurkunda Hymenictyonexcelsum

Bichauti Mucunapruriens

Bnkapasia KydiaCalycina

Bnkhira Xyliaxylocarpa

Champa Micheliachampaca

Champati Polyalthiacerasioides

Chara Buchananialactifolia

Charla Holoptelliaintergrifilia

Devadaru Polyalthialongifolia

Dhaw Anogeissualatiflia

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Dom Sal MiliusaVelutina

Eksira Schreberasweetenioides

Gaisira Aspargusracemosa

Gamhari Gmelinaarborea

Gilo Entadascndens

Girdhani Sterculiaurens

GudiKoim Mitragynaparviflora

Guhiria Acacia bucophace

Harda Terminaliachebula

Jam Euginiajambolanasynsyziginm

Jautha Artocrupuslakoocha

Jia Lanneagrandis

Jinjal Barringtoniaacutangula

Kadam Anthocephalus

Kalmeg Andrographispanculata

Kamalangudi Mallotusphillippinensis

Karanja Pongamiaglababara

Kasaphal Terminaliachebul

Kasi Brideliaretusa

Kath Kusum Garuapupinuata

Kuchila Stychnosnux-vomic

Kultha Grewiatilliae

Kusum schleicheratrijuga

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Lodha Symplocusracemusa

Maya Psidium guava

Mohul Madhuccalatifolia

Kendu Diospyrosembryopteris.

Neem Azadirchtaindica

Phalsa Buteafrondosa

Simuli Cochlospermumgossypium

Sal Shorearobusta

Sahaj Terminaliatomentosa

Sisu Delbergialatifolia

Teak Tectonagrandis

Table: 1.1 Local and scientific name of flora found in the region

1.5 Fauna

The forest of the eastern Ghats support a large number of wild animals, most of which

are found in the highland of the Nuwapada district as well as in Mahasamund and

Raipur Districts.

The following table gives the details of fauna in the study area.

1.5.1 Mammals and Birds

Animals Birds

Local Name Scientific Name Local Name Scientific Name

BanaBiradi Falischaus Kua Cervussolondus

Bilua Canisaureus JangaliKua Cervusmaororhunch

Hanuman Presbyis entellus Koili Andunamyascolopacea

Barha Sus cristatus MachaRanka Pelargeopsiscapensis

Bhalu Melursusursinus Kala Para Coulumbalivia

Thekua Lepusnigricollis Hara Crocupuspcnicopterous

Jhinka Hystrixindica Dahuka Rallusacvatious

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Khuranta Bandicotindica HaladiBasanta Gvanopusasiotica

Gadhia Hyaenahyaena Kopota Streptopeliachinensisscopoli

Sambar Cervius unicolor Sua Psittaculakrameriscopoli

Harina Axixaxix Baga Bubuliouscoromondos

Bagha Panthratigris Titer Francolinussp.

Krusnasara Antilopecervicapra Jangalikua Corvusmacrorhynchos

Chita Pantharapardus Badudi Ptropusmedicus

Mankada Maccamulatta Para Columba indermidia

BanaKukura Cuonalpinus Harada Crocopusopeepicoptea

Bajrakopta Vaulpesbengalenesis

Gaur Bosgaurus

Hati Elephasmaximusindicus.

Godhi Varanusbegalenesis

Table: 1.2 Local and scientific name of the fauna of the region (Mammals and Birds)

1.5.2 Reptiles

Ajagar Python molurus

Bamhunisapa Natrixstolata

Banded krait Ranabungarusfasiatus

Conbra- Tampa Gokhara- Najanaja

Common aquatic tortoise Kechugatectum

Dhamana Ptyasmuscosus

Domundiasapa Eryxconicus

Swa scaled viper Echiscarinatus

Table: 1.3 Local and scientific name of the fauna of the region (Reptiles)

1.5.3 Fish

The deep pools in the river beds, the tanks and other reservoirs also carry in them a

variety of fish. Fishing continues to play an important role in the subsistence activity

of the modern tribal people.

Fishing is basically done by the Keut or Dhibarcaste who exclusively live on fishing;

other tribes also practice fishing, however, in their leisure time as a secondary

activity. They go for fishing in local streams, ponds and pools and fish either

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communally/collectively or individually. Furthermore, people cannot rely upon fish

always due to the drying up of springs and other water resources and the

consequential absence of the fish. There are various types of fishing nets and bamboo-

made traps designed by the Konds for fishin. The rivers, ponds, and lakes in the study

area contain varieties of fish. The aquatic food has high degrees of nutritional value as

fish is rich in fat, vitamins calcium, phosphorus, iodine, and common salt, and most of

these food values are also retained in the fish, which are sun dried and consumed later

(Nagar 1982).

There are varieties of fish found in the ponds, lakes and river water. Among the big

fish are the Ruhi, Mircallly, Bhakur, Balia, Seul, Karpilish, and among the small fish

are thePutia, Thuro, Bairi, Jhani, Jarda, and among the prawns, chingudi;different

species are found in fresh water. The following table gives a list of fish exploited by

the tribes of the Nuapada district.

1.5.4 Crabs

Fresh water crabs are found commonly in the hilly areas and in the paddy fields and

also serve as one of the import items which is exploited during the rainy season in the

study area.

1.5.5 Molluscs

There are a variety of molluscs and bivalves found in the streams and pond. These are

frequently eaten by the local people and their shells are also used as knives for

removing the skin of many fruits, espeacially mangos.

1.6 Geology

Geology is one of the most important aspects of any of the prehistoric studies to

understand the resource utilization of the prehistoric hunter gatherers. The prehistoric

man must have a good knowledge about the availability of the suitable raw material in

the locality. Therefore geology plays an important role for the prehistoric studies.

Rock formations ranging in age from Archaean to Cainzoic are exposed along the

river valley. The oldest rocks in the area are represented by Eastern GhatSupergroup

and Bengpal Group of Archaean age (>2500 m.y.).

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Eastern GhatSupergroup is comprises various types of gneisses, khondalite, calc-

granulite, maficultramafic granulite, Charnockite granulite, amphibolite (pillowed

meta-basalt), biotite schist, quartzite and phyllite, and.magnetite quartzite.

Rocks of Bengpal Group occur as remnant inliers within the

BundelilDongargarhgranitoids and compromise grey granite gneiss, biotite gneiss and

migmatite with enclaves of quartzite, amphibolite, banded magnetite quartzite,

anthophyllite schist, quartz-mica schist pyroxene granulite, high grade meta-

sediments and meta-gabbro.

The rocks of Sonakhan Group of Palaeo Proterozoic age comprising meta-volcanics

and associated meta-sedimentariesunconformably overlie the gneissic. Sonakhan

Group is further classified into three formations viz. Baghmara, Arjuni and Bilari.

Baghmara formation comprises metaultramafic, amphibolite, banded ferruginous

chert, meta-rhyolite and tuff. Arjuni Formation comprises meta-conglomerate, meta-

greywacke with minor volcanics, meta-argillite with banded ferruginous chert and

alternate sequence of meta-basalt and meta-rhyolite &metatuff. Bilari Formation

comprises meta-conglomerate, meta-greywacke, meta-argillite, metabasalt with

basaltic conglomerate and agglomerate, meta-rhyolite with dacite and meta-tuff. The

volcano-sedimentary sequence of the Sonakhan Group is intruded by a large gabbroic

complex of variable composition like peridotite, pyroxenite, anorthositic gabbro and

gabbro (Source of information Geological Survey of India DRM Map).

These formations are occurs in the form of outcrops, boulders, cobbles and pebbles of

varying sizes. All most all the Acheulian artefacts were made on quartzite, rest are

made on pegmatite, sandstone, quartz and banded chert. The water-worn river pebbles

or flakes detached on them were used as blanks for the artefacts. Outcrop of dykes

and veins are observed in the study area. Dyke of Meta Basalt, Bended chert, siliceous

limestone, quartz and vein of quartz in the granitic zone is observed. Bedrock geology

comprises quartzite, granite, sandstone and shale from upper Gondwana formation,

most of which are capped in low lying areas by tertiary and quaternary ferricate and

ferricretized gravels. Ferriccretes are found over the Orissa and Chhattisgarh, and

form under a hot climate with strongly seasonal rainfalls. In the wet season, iron is

22

dissolved from the underlying bedrock, and then precipitated in the dry season as iron

compounds. Gravels that are ferricritized have undergone the same process and are

also rich in iron compounds.

23

Figure: 1.5 Lithology and stratigraphy of the Study area

24

Map: 1.7 Geological map of the Study Area (source; DRM Map Geological Survey of

India 2004)

25

1.7 Geomorphology

Physiographically, the study area exhibits mostly the landform of structural plains

with structural hills and valleys, denudational slopes, denudational hills and valleys,

pediments/pediplains and flood plains along the course of major river systems i.e.

Mahanadi, Kharun and Seonath, Jonk and Hadso. The land forms in the area can be

broadly divided into three physiographic divisions 1) Riverine plain, 2) the rolling

upland, 3) the Hill systems.

The mountainous tract extending almost to the entire western part of the Nuwapara

district from north to south contains a broad plateau varying from 650-250 meters in

height, cut off from the plain below by range of precipitous hills (Senapati and Kuanr

1980:1-34).

Geologically upper part of the river is surrounded by the Sunabera Hill Range, the

river has its origin from the Rasdunguri and Gatibehera Protected forest, just crossing

a few Kms from its source area, creating gorges and waterfalls and among them

Baniyadas waterfall is 24 m. Gaudhas fall 45 in Gaudhasnala, Kharldhas fall 50 m in

Jonk are important. Just after the Manikgarh protected forest the river forms the

Maraguda valley surrounded by the Ranimal protected forest at the eastern side, the

south eastern side is covered by Buraharas Parbat and Lodra reserved forest areas.

Most of the part of Nuwapada Plain lies in east- west direction, which has fluctuating

elevations between 335-295 masl. The Nuwapada Plain is surrounded by hill and

plateau containing a large variety of rocks. The plain starts just below the Lodra

reserved forest, and it is surrounded by the Ghati Reserved Forest, Bosani Protected

Forest on the eastern side, on the western side the plain is surrounded by Bundali-

Kantangtarai protected forest and Beldihi, Sagaur Protected Forest.

26

Map: 1.8 Geomorphology map of the Jonk in Mahasamund and Raipur district

27

Map: 1.9 General Topographic Map of the study area (Google Map)

Map: 1.10 Google Earth Satellite image of the study area showing important rivers

and hill system

28

The upper part of the river Jonk is well known for the early historical remains.

Maraguda valley which is well known for its cultural importance of early historic

remains also is an ideal valley for the prehistoric habitation. The area is now

submerged under the dam reservoir, constructed in the year 2000.

The river can be divided into three parts, Upper, Middle and Lower. The upper Jonk

covers the rocky and mountainous area of the Manikgarh and Ranimal protected

forest, Lodra reserved forest upto Daharmabandha reservoir. The Middle Jonk can be

considered from Nuwapada plain starting from the Dharmabandha reservoir to the

Bundeli protected forest near to the confluence point of the Machaka river and on the

right side it is surrounded by the Katangtarai- Protected Forest. The lower middle part

can be considered from Machka to till the starting point of the Nuwapara hill range.

The Lower Jonk starts from Nuwapara hills range till the confluence point of Jonk at

Seorinarayan.

The upper Jonk is dominated by the upper level structural plateau of Proterozoic rocks

and part of it is the lower level structural plateau of the Proterozoic rocks. When it

comes down on the foot hills the pediment surface is dominating over the landscape.

In the middle part of the river within the few km away some structural hills are placed

on the landscape which creates the basin divide between the river Jonk and its

sister/parallel river Ong. In the lower Jonk the river comes across the several

structural hills and valleys of the Nuwapada hill range (Map:1.10).The banks of the

Jonk River and its tributaries are covered with the flood plain deposits and at some

places it is filled in with older river channel deposit. “Three landforms categories are

found clustered together and usually a landform that has been exposed to prolonged

denudation tend to exhibit these types of residual features, namely, hummocks and

rolling plains. An undulating topography is found in the southern parts of

Mahasamund and of Raigarh districts. An extension of this undulating landform

stretches southeast wards bordering the valleys and the level region of the central

Chhattisgarh basin” (Konhausera et al 1997:259)

29

1.8 Soil

The genesis, type and distribution of soils in turn depend on genesis and distribution

of different types of landforms. About 24.65 per cent of Chhattisgarh is covered by

soils that are coarse in texture. Much of the highlands and the ridges constitute coarse

loamy to loamy sandy and skeletal loamy soils, mixed with pebbles and gravel, and

areas such as rocky outcrops are devoid of any form of soil cover. The central plains

and the intermontanecolluvial plains comprise alluvial and colluvial soils. About

24.56 per cent of the state comprises the fine and clayey soils, and it is mainly

concentrated within the central belts of the state in the Chhattisgarh sub-basin area.

The older plains have heavy soils of clayey to fine textured soils underlain by

kankar(hard) pan. The distribution of the dominant matasior sandy loamy soil in

Mahasamund district is far more even. Alluvium is some places mixed with laterite

gravels or pellets and sometimes with calcretic nodules. As a whole they are very

loamy and rich in organic elements. Thus the soils of Orissa can be broadly classified

into seven groups: red soil, laterite soil, alluvial soil, black soil, forest soil, hill soil

and mixture of red and black soils

1.8.1 Laterite soil

This soil is a coarse-textured, red sandy-gravelly soil, found on upland tops and often

in wastelands. Laterite is quite sterile for agricultural purpose, being low in plant

nutrition. The laterite is thin and gravelly and not very retentive of moisture and is of

little importance agriculturally. This soil is red brown or dark in colour heavily loamy

to clayey in nature and retain moisture.

1.8.2 Red soil

It is red loamy soil commonly developed in humid tropical climate. It usually does not

contain laterite within the profile and are uniformly red in colour. Red soils are

generally deep, medium textured, friable and well drained. They are moderately acidic

and are neither rich in organic matter or in nitrogen. They are found in the Dhabha

area of Bargarh district and red soil is also noticed at Dharmabandha in Nuwapada

District. Some patches of red soil is also seen in the Bargbahara area of Mahasamund

district.

30

1.8.3 Alluvial Soil

These soils have variable characteristics and the colour may range from high grey and

pale yellow to deep grey and the texture may be coarse sand to clay depending of the

site formation process. Soil reaction is slightly acidic in nature. Alluvial soils are

observed in limited areas of the river, in some places nearly around 300 meters of

alluvial deposits can be observed on the both bank of the river. Besides, its major

tributaries such as Machka and Bag have also accumulated a lot of alluvium on both

of their river banks. The alluvial zone of Jonk and Mahanadi begins after crossing the

Nuwapada range.

1.8.4 Black Soil

This kind of soil contains high amount of clay. The colour may range from dark

brown to deep black and texture may be loamy to clayey. The occurrence of such type

of soil is noticed near the Sarbong bridge, river section at Beltukuri, and Girna.

31

Map: 1.11 Land capability map of study region

In the study area, the lower Jonk is good for agriculture and most part of its

mountainous areas are moderately suitable for agriculture and many parts of land with

severe limitation of agriculture is only suitable for the forestry and animal grazing.

Some hilly tract areas also have severe limitation of agriculture.

1.9 Populations and ethnic Communities

The state of Odisha has a total of 93 scheduled castes and 62 scheduled tribes, out of

these 13 tribes are declared as primitive tribes, also called as forest tribes.

Chhattisgarh has a total of 43 schedules caste and 42 groups of peoples are declared

as secluded tribes. In Nuapada district, the tribal population is about 35 % of the total

32

population. In Raipur District, the total number of Scheduled castes population is

72,296. Among them Dom, Ganda and Chamar are the dominating ones. The total

ST population in the district is - 184 221, and out of them following three are the most

numerous, Gond is 121,142, Sharbar, 20,927 and Saora are 9056.The district has

22.1% permanent houses, 72.1 semi-permanent and 5.9% temporary houses.

Jonk river valley and its neighboring area is home to several tribes such as Gonds,

Halbas, Parjaj, Batraj, Kamar, Bhunjia, Saura, Bijhdar, Baigasa and Uraons. Of

these Gondsare the dominant tribe in the area.

Total population of Chhattisgarh as per 2011 census is 25,540,196. Among them the

male and female are 12,827,915 and 12,712,281 respectively. In 2001, total

population was 20,833,803 in which males were 10,474,218 while females were

10,359,585. 585 (www. census 2011.co.in).

1.10 Economy

Since agriculture is solely dependent on rainfall, and there are rich forest resources,

people generally find hunting and gathering as a supplementary activity for their

livelihood. The gathering of plant and animal foods, hunting and fishing along the

streams can be carried out through the dry months of the year. During the monsoon, a

rich variety of green leafy vegetables and edible mushrooms are available in the

forests. In the early summer season, nature brings a variety of plant foods such as wild

fruits, berries and flowers, all of which are easily available and provide important

nutrients. Big game hunting is rare because of the official government ban, but small

game hunting is still commonly practiced.Today, only a few scattered ethnic groups

pursue the ‘hunting and gathering’ way of life, and they often do so either by

engaging in mutualistic cultural associations with agriculturalists and pastoralists, or

by practicing horticulture or tending of animals (Behura 1990: 12-13). These hunters

and gatherers are especially confined to economically and geographically

marginalized places in Odisha and Chhattisgarh.

1.11 Language

It is interesting to note that the Jonk river serves as the interstate boundary between

Odisha and Chattisgarh states, but in Nuwapada district near Khariar Road and

Dharmabandha and Sarabong, which are border towns, most of the people speak

Chhattisgarhi (Laria) and few people speak Sambalpuri (major regional dialect of

33

Oriyas). But in the Sankra area- until the neighbouring area of Raipur, most of the

people speak Sambalpuri rather than Chhattisgarhi.

34

Plate: 1.2: A- Gond men demonstrating traditional firing method, B- Children with fishing

stick, in River Jonk near Beltukri

35

Plate: 1.3: A-Tribal men on his may during hunting deer with his bow and arrow in

Patharpunji forest, B- Close up of Bow and arrow.

36

Part -III Previous works

1.12 History of Archaeology in the Jonk River Valley

The first palaeoliths reported from the Jonk River valley are two handaxes collected

by Singh Deo , (2000: 418) during his field visit to nearby Maraguda Valley in 1973.

These handaxes are now kept in the Museum of Sambalpur University, Odisha.

Pandey (1982) explored the river Mahanadi and its tributaries for his doctoral

dissertation. Pandey’s study brought to light the region’s Lower and Middle

Palaeolithic and the Mesolithic traditions in the Mahanadi (Pandey 1982: 72; 2002).

Additionally, evidence related to the Middle Palaeolithic and Mesolithic has been

recovered from the Seonath and the Hasdo areas. Evidence of the Mesolithic culture

was found in the Jonk valley. Pandey also looked into the various geological

formations, soil cover, landforms and other works on the geoarchaeology of the Upper

Mahanadi River and described several fluvial sections in the Mahanadi and its

tributaries in his work. He described two river sections on the Jonk, one at Girod and

the other at Arjuni (Pandey 1982, 1980, 1987). An important centre of prehistoric

habitation had also been reported from the neighbouring areas of Bastar in

Chhattisgarh (Cooper 1983).

1.13 Prehistoric studies in Odisha: An Appraisal

The history of prehistoric research in Odisha has previously been reviewed by

Mohanty (1992); Mahanty and Tripathy (1998), Basa (1994; 2000; 2005) and Padhan

(2006).

Palaeolithic sites have been recorded since the 19th century in Odisha. Valentine Ball

in the late 19th century initiated prehistoric research in Odisha in a systematic manner.

He is credited with being the first prehistoric investigator in the state of Odisha

(Mohapatra 1962: 26). He collected a few artefacts from Bhursapali in Kuchinda

subdivision of the Sambalpur district, Kaliakata and Harichandanpur near Talcher in

Angul district of Odisha in 1875 and published a small description of the same in the

‘Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal’ (Ball 1876:120-121). While the

number of tools found was only four and description of the tools and the sites was

sketchy, this work was of great significance as it brought the prehistoric sites of

Odisha on the scene for the first time. However, Ball’s work did not immediately

37

inspire others to take up similar research in Odisha. After him, it was only in 1923-24

that Acharya discovered some polished stone celts in Baidipur village, Mayurbhanj

district of Odisha.

Acharya and Worman discovered the site of Kuliana in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha

in 1939 and subsequently Bose and Sen of Calcutta University also started

investigations there. This work also included excavations at some selected localities at

the site, results of which have been published in a monograph entitled, ‘Excavations

in Mayurbhanj’ (Bose and Sen 1948). The cultural correlates of this site included

choppers, handaxes and cleavers. The site of Kuliana was not only the first excavated

site in Odisha but also in India. Despite this historical significance, prehistoric

research in Odisha is still in its infancy as no detailed work on any prehistoric site in

Odisha appeared after Kuliana.

The excavation at the site of Kuliana was followed by a number of explorations by

Calcutta University in 1950s. These surveys brought to light a number of prehistoric

sites inMayurbhanj district and the surrounding areas such asAmisikara, Baripada,

Brahmagaon, Bhuasuni, Buramara, Kalaberia, Kamta, Kendudiha, Koilisutra,

Kuliana, Mundaboni, Nuaberi, Pariakoli, Patinja,Pratappur and Sandim. These sites

are situated within a radius of around 30 km from Kuliana and are spread along the

banks of the Burahabalang. These sites belonged to a single physiographical and

cultural unit (Ghosh and Basu1969:234). At Kuliana, five important sections were

observed: the surface layer was yellowish sediment and mixed with fragments of

laterite and it is noticed that the proportion of the same increases along with depth.

Underneath there was a very compactlayer in its lower level were the quartz

fragments are very rare and devoid of any artefacts. In the exposed sections the lowest

bed was of yellowish/greyish white clay, sticky in nature (Ghosh and Basu1969).

Mohapatra (1962) made systematic surveys in the districts of Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar,

Sundergarh, Sambalpur and Dhenkanal bringing to light a wider range of Palaeolithic

remains and discovering sites from Budhabalanga, Baitarani, Brahmani and Mahanadi

valleys. He also made a distinction between the Lower and the Middle Palaeolithic

on the basis of stratigraphic and typo-technological grounds.

The stone tools of the early Stone Age collection of Mohapatara comprised of

handaxes, cleavers, scrapers, cores, points, flakes and irregularly flaked pebbles.

38

Handaxes predominate in his collection and cleavers were strikingly few and scrapers

were mainly found in miniature varieties. He suggested that this culture might have

belonged to the tradition of bifacial tools in which flakes and pebbles form an integral

part of the assemblages. Stratigraphically these occurred either in the coarse gravel at

the bottom of the sections or in the loose gravel beds of the rivers, on the surface

slopes of the hills or in the secondary laterite gravel quarries. (Mohapatra 1959, 1962,

1972, 1990).

Mohapatra (1962) reported that stratigraphically the Middle Stone Age tools occurred

in a layer of fine gravel above a layer of clay or red silt. These red silts distinctly

separate the fine gravel from the coarse gravels yielding the tools of the early Stone

Age. Scraper, borer, burin and scraper-borer were the regular tool types, and utilised

flakes, nodules, cores and blades occurred in suitable proportions. These tools were

manufactured on fine grained quartzite, chert, jasper, opal, or occasionally on

chalcedony.

After Mohapatra’s work, in 1962, Thapar excavated the site of Kuchai located at a

distance of about 8 km to the north of modern Baripada district (IAR 1964, 1976).

The site revealed a thick (40-45 cm) occupational deposit and yielded Neolithic

artefacts together with a coarse grit-tempered red ware and an orange-brown ware.

The stone artefacts unearthed included rounded butt-end axes, facetted hoes, chisels,

mace heads, pounders, and grinding stones. The lowermost deposit, composed of

gravel mixed with greyish earth and loose laterite, revealed a microlithic industry of

non-geometric nature that included blades, scrapers, points, burins, and flakes. Chert,

quartz and chalcedony were the main raw material used for the manufacturing of

these tools. No pottery was recovered with these tools. The discovery of this

microlithic industry was not an isolated one as quite a few microlithic sites were

reported during the late 1950s and early 1960s such as from Kaneha in Talcher sub-

division by Ghosh (1958-59: 36), from Baramandr, Bonaikela, Danguapsi in

Keonjhor district by Mitra (1961-62: 36-37), from Tel (and its tributaries) and from

the district of Bolangir, Ganjam, Kalahandi by Raghunath (1963-64: 27). In addition

to these industries, microliths have been reported from Bolangir by Mukherjee (1968-

69:68).Ratha and Bhatacharya (1988) discovered a Lower Palaeolithic site, with

handaxes made on pebbles, cleavers and a chopper element in the site, along the river

Kharala near Kuchinda in Sambalpur district.

39

Tripathi carried out intensive explorations in the Tel basin in 1970 and reported the

presence of 27 microlithic sites from the districts of Bolangir, Kalahandi and

Sambalpur (Tripathy 1972, 1973, 1977, 1980; Tripathy and Mohanty 1972). In

addition to the discovery of these microlithic sites, Tripathi (1980) surveyed the

southwestern part of Odisha and reported the presence of three sites belonging to

pebble-tool industry and flake industry. Thus, Tripathi’s study also threw light on

both the Lower Palaeolithic and Middle Palaeolithic cultures which correlates with

the research carried out by Mohapatra (1962). Nanda (1984) carried out a systematic

exploration between 1975 and 1978 in Indravati valley and brought to light a large

concentration of Mesolithic sites (85 in total). The open air sites were located both on

the top and, slope and foothills; and also on the plains and elevated waste land. The

height of the hillocks varied from 10 m to 250 m above the general ground level. Off-

sites occurred uniformly in the range of one to seven km, from the main river course

as well as its tributaries (Nanda 1984; 2000). Nanda also attempted to explain the

occurrence of these sites by taking both ecological and ethnographic data into

consideration. Nanda not only reported the presence of microblades in high

proportions but also the predominance of backed bladelets both in geometric as well

as non-geometric forms. In addition, Nanda (1984) excavated the site of Girla which

yielded crescents as the most common tools in the assemblage. The microlithic

industry of Odisha was generally considered to be non-geometric type before this

excavation. However, this excavation changed the scenario and brought to light on the

geometric type of tool assemblage. According to Nanda (1985:163), the proportion of

finished and simple tools was almost the same in both the surface collection and in the

excavated material. He found the proportion of flake tools was much higher in the

surface collection compared to the excavated material.

Ota (1982-83, 1986) carried out a comprehensive survey of Mesolithic sites in

Phulbani district of Central Odisha, which constitutes the eastern-most outliers of the

Eastern Ghats, and fall within the Mahanadi river system. His explorations brought to

light a total of thirty open-air Mesolithic sites. Most of these were located on the bank

of the Bagh and Maharani rivers and also in the foothills.

Ota also conducted trial excavations to understand the phenomenon of the Mesolithic

culture in the region. He laid two trial pits at an open air Mesolithic site (20°47’ 35”

N, 83°5. 55” E) at Khomananta near the village Kalarajhuli, to comprehend the

40

undisturbed microliths cultural sequence in a stratigraphical context. The artifacts

were found scattered in an area of 30,000 sq. m. Surface exploration also yielded a

few polished stone celts of dolerite.The trial pits were dug on the eroded surface of

rain-gullies and exposed a 1.35 m thick deposit of red soil resting on laterite. The

upper 80 cm thick portion of the sediment was sterile, the cultural material was found

in the bottom portion of sediment measuring 55 cm in thickness. The principal raw

material for artefact production used was quartz, chert, chalcedony and quartzite. The

assemblage consisted of simple artifacts and retouched tools were small in numbers.

The latter consisted of triangles, backed blades, retouched blades, and crescents.

Heavy duty tools were found along with this assemblage comprising of horse-hoof

cores, choppers and pointed tools, unifacial pebble tools, large flakes, ring stones,

anvils, and hammerstones.

Mohanty’s (1989) intensive explorations in different regions of Keonjhar district in

North Odisha, which is generally seen as an extension of the Chotanagpur region, for

seven seasons, brought to light a total of 58 Mesolithic sites. A large number of these

sites were associated with granitic outcrops while a few were found to be located in

the foothills lying close to streams of Baitarani River. Most of these sites appear to be

localities occupied for a short period of time. Mohanty (1988-89, 1989, 1993, and

2000) classified the sites into three types- sites: 1) yielding microlithic implements

only, 2) sites yielding both microlithic and heavy duty components and 3) sites

yielding both microlithic and heavy duty tools but predominated by heavy duty

components. According to him, all these three types, while representing the lithic

industry, might reflect the different functioning of the sites.These heavy-duty

implements consisted of choppers, horse-hoof scrapers, picks, knives, limaces and

flakes, all made of dolerite. Some of these sites have also yielded celts finished by

grinding and polishing. His study has repeatedly shown the association of the heavy

duty tools with the microlithic components, a regional phenomenon that is not

common elsewhere in India. Mohanty studied these sites from the perspective of

settlement patterns and also tried to reconstruct the subsistence pattern of the

Mesolithic hunter- gatherer on the basis of his work on the Juang tribes from adopting

an ethno-archaeological view.

Singh (1982, 1988, and 2000) carried out intensive field survey in Dhenkanal and

found fifty-three Lower Palaeolithic sites, six Mesolithic sites and nineteen Neolithic

41

sites in Central Odisha. Of his collection of 1599 artefacts, the Lower Palaeolithic

industry was characterised by handaxes (1302 in numbers), cleavers (128), discs (25),

choppers (88), scrapers (33), flakes (14), and points (9). Typologically, his collections

were dominated by handaxes and cleavers. Except choppers, the other tools types

were fewer in number and are not typical of any particular stage in the Indian

Palaeolithic. The majority of the handaxes collected by Singh were made on flakes

and 75% of cleavers were made on flake (Singh 2000:106-108).

Chakarabarti (1990) discovered eight Lower Palaeolithic sites, three Middle

Palaeolithic sites and a few Mesolithic sites in secondary contexts from the area

around Kiching in Mayurbhanj District. Choppers and handaxes form the major types

of the Lower Palaeolithic assemblage. Scrapers, borers, and points constituted the

Middle Palaeolithic types. Typical Upper Palaeolithic tools such as burins, borers,

points, knives, scrapers and notches, were reported by Chakrabarti (1993) from

Kalapathar. The microlithic evidence, especially backed bladelets of various forms

and debitage represented the Mesolithic industry in his assemblage.

Sharma (1994) reported Palaeolithic finds in and around Burla and attempted to study

the Palaeolithic assemblages of the site Burla which is located on the Sambalpur

University campus and its adjoining area. Sharma’s explorations in the Burla area was

carried forward by further explorations by Behera et al. (1996) in and around the

Mahanadi , Burla and Dari Dunguri region of Sambalpur, which revealed 684 finished

Palaeolithic tools. They studied the Acheulian artefacts in detail and provided the

typo-technological analysis of the lithic assemblages. Their collection included a total

of 141 handaxes and 44 cleavers, which constituted the largest number of tool types in

the assemblages. The Daridungri hills located near the Mahanadi yielded 94 handaxes

and 21 cleavers. Handaxes forms from these sites included cordiform, limande, ovate,

sub-triangular, discoidal, a typical micoquian and irregular and or partial handaxes.

The cleavers from these sites have large cutting edges with their butts being ‘U’ and

‘V’ shaped.

Behera (1989) conducted intensive explorations for his doctoral research in

Brahamani valley and its tributaries in the Sundergarh district and brought to light

many Lower and Middle Palaeolithic and microlithic sites. Behera also undertook two

42

trial trenches in Brahamani Valley and revealed the presence of a full-fledged blade

industry.

Microlithic tools have also been recovered from a rock shelter in the Delga hillsto the

west of the Landimal forest reserves in the Rairakhol subdivision and on the right side

of the KhalbalaNullah that perennially feeds the river Tikra, a major tributary of

Brahmani (Behera 2000-2001a).

Behera (2006) also undertook explorations in the Middle Mahanadi valley between

two river bank towns of Hirakud and Binka and brought to light several sites. The

details of seven major microlithic concentrations i.e. Burla, Hirkud, Kirba, Durgapali,

Jharpali, Kardola and Bajpur, were subjected to detailed artefact analyses. These were

open air sites occurring with varying concentration of microlithic scatters of

temporary and factory-cum-base camp sites. According to Behera (2006: 3), “They

are represented by both geometric and non-geometric microliths and heavy-duty

artefacts like various types of pebble-cobble choppers, retouched thin pebbles, querns,

hand-stones, ringstones, anvils and hammers”.

Ray (1997) carried out systematic explorations in and around Malayagiri hills in

Dhenkanal district and took a trial trench at Jamsara, dug out upto 160 cm in depth.

She collected 434 tools both from the surface and trial trench. The main lithic types

were choppers, handaxes, cleavers, knives, point, cores, unretouched flakes and a

variety of scrapers. While her surface collection was dominated by scrapers, the

excavated material was found to be dominated by handaxes. Tripathy’s (1996-1997,

2000, 2001) work in the Mahanadi and Salunki river valleys brought to light 15

Mesolithic sites. All of these sites revealed only the typical microliths comprising

both geometric and non-geometric forms but did not yield any heavy-duty artefacts. A

large number of ringstones were also found to be associated with microliths from both

river valleys.

Mohanty et.al.’s (1997) work in the Kharua river valley in Mayurbhanj district

revealed four Lower Palaeolithic and nine Mesolithic sites. According to them, “most

of the lower Palaeolithic sites occurred on the lateritic terrain whereas the Mesolithic

sites occurred on the compact red soil, foot hill regions and granitic outcrop”. Higher

grounds was possibly occupied to not only have a commanding view over the

landscape but also for temporary and seasonal occupations. The dense forest and hills

43

around these areas must have provided different varieties of wild fauna and flora for

their subsistence.

Sahoo's (2000) intensive explorations in Darpan Tehsil of Jajpur district in coastal

Odisha brought to light six microlithic sites, some of which were found to be

occurring with Neolithic celts. Sites reported by Sahoo contained a variety of blades

and flake cores, simple blades, backed blades, lunates, borers, points, awls and

scrapers.

The occurrence of similar types of microlithic industries have also been reported form

the Ong valley (Panda 1996) and from lower Ong and Suktel (Gadtia 2000), the

middle Mahanadi valley (Sethi 1998), lower Bheden valley (Naik 2002), Raul valley

(Patel 2002), Ong river valley and Girsul river valley (Mindley 2012). Likewise,

microlithic industries have been reported in the lower Jira valley by Seth (1995-96)

are important because for first time such intensive surveys were conducted in the

lower and upper part of Jira valley. In addition, their studies reported sizable

collections from a number of sites in this region. The above review of numerous

previous efforts shows the existence of a large number of microlithic sites in different

ecological and geomorphological conditions.

The Neolithic culture phase appeared after the Mesolithic culture phase and was

initially recognized on the basis of a profound change in lithic technology,

particularly the production of the grinding and polishing stone axes. Additionally, the

Neolithic is also seen as a major transforming phase related to the subsistence

activities (appearance of agriculture and animal domestication) and settlement pattern

(Fuller 2008).

The Neolithic culture of Odisha has been described by Das (1987, 2000) and Behera

(1989, 1992, 1992a, 2000, 2006). Recent excavations at GolbaiSasan in Khurda

district brought to light rich cultural remains of ground stone tools and crude and

polished bone tools with ceramic assemblages (Sinha 2000). Das (1987) also made an

extensive survey of the Neolithic culture in Odisha. His research highlighted the typo-

technological aspects of the collected Neolithic assemblages and on the basis of this

study; he observed five different phases of technological evolution in the Odishan

Neolithic. Behera’s (1989; 1992; 2000) work to understand the Neolithic culture of

Odisha is also significant and he worked extensively in the Brahamani river valley.

44

On the basis of his study, he suggested various stages of lithic manufacturing

techniques and made a detailed typo-technological analysis of Neolithic cultural

complex of Banaigarh in northern Odisha. He observed three different types of

Neolithic sites:

1) Numerous small to medium sized clusters of artefacts, located mostly on the foot

hills and meant for micro-chipping and finishing tools.

2) Large scale production site (such as Sulabdihi) for manufacturing semi-finished

celts.

3) Habitation sites close to the Brahamaniriver.

The mass production of celts or polished axes particularly chisels was carried out at

the major workshop site of Sulabdihi perhaps for long distance trade. The contingent

evidence also proposes that while the large scale manufacture of semi-finished chisels

with a medial rectangular cross-section was intended for local consumption, bar

chisels with triangular cross section were contrived by the knapper of Sulabdihi with

an intention to supply them to their far located ‘customers’ (Behera 1992). In their

paper “Neolithic culture of Pallahara, central Odisha” Basa, Das and Mohanta (2000)

emphasize the manufacturing evidence of Neolithic artefacts around Pallahara. They

also mention two types of pottery-- coarse red ware and black and red ware (Basaet

al. 2000).

1.14 History of rock art research in Odisha

In addition to the lithic evidence, it is also important to briefly understand the

associated rock art evidence in the region. It was Jayaswal (1933) who for the first

time in the history of rock art research of Odisha reported and rock engravings from

the Vikramkhol rock shelters in the present Jharsuguda district of Odisha.C.W.

Anderson had also reported rock paintings from the adjoining area in Raigarh district

of Chhattisgarh (Anderson 1918:290-306). Rajaguru (1950)reported Gudahandi and

Singh Deo (1976) reported the Jogimath rock shelter in Kalahandi district. Later on,

Behera (1992) and Neumayer (1992; 1993) reported the discovery of five painted rock

shelters at Chhengapahad in Sundergarh districts. All of these discoveries inspired

Pradhan (2001) and his students, whose painstaking exploration in and around these

reported sites and adjoining areas brought to light 40 more new rock art sites in

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different parts of Odisha. Pradhan (2001) documented 2241 specimens of individual

paintings and 3534 specimens of individual engraving from 55 rock shelters.

The rock art sites of Odisha are mostly confined to the western highlands (17˚15’,

22˚24’N and 82˚27’, 86˚25’E) in the districts of Mayurbhanj, Sundargarh, Sambalpur,

Kalahandi and Koraput (Pradhan 2001). There is broad uniformity over the whole

area in respect to the subject matter, technique, style and pigments used in making

these paintings. The rock shelters by virtue of their strategic locations seem to have

attracted people during different periods of time for dwellings as is aptly attested by

the findings of microlithic stone tools in the floors and paintings in the engraving on

the ceilings of the rock shelters.

According to Pradhan (2001), most of the paintings were in mineral of dark red,

purple red, light, yellow blue and black. Moreover, the paintings appeared as a jumble

of indefinite and enigmatic geometric and non geometric patterns and forms. The

unique character of Odisha rock art is the complete absence of hunting and chasing

scenes commonly depicted in the central Indian rock art. Pradhan (2001) has

tentatively assigned three chronological phases for the rock art of Odisha. The subject

matter in these paintings are human forms, animals, birds, lizards, frogs, tortoises,

butterflies, human palm and foot prints, and a variety of geometric patterns, diamond

patterns, phytomopus, serpentine, dots. In addition to the rock paintings, cupules are

also known.

1.15 Discussion on the Previous Work

1.15.1 Discussion on Palaeolithic- Mesolithic

It is clear from the perusal of the above accounts that a large numbers of field

investigations have been carried out in Odisha (see, Mohanty-1992; Basa; 1992;

Padhan; 2006). However, these data are not sufficient to understand the prehistory and

associated human remains and archaeological deposits of this part of India. In Odisha,

prehistoric research is still in its infancy and we do not have detailed work available

from any of the prehistoric sites. Although Kuliana is the first excavated Acheulian

site in India, no further significant work has appeared on the scene related to the

Lower Palaeolithic evidence of Odisha. “The numbers of excavated sites are

inadequate considering the vast archaeological potential of Odisha right from the

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Lower Palaeolithic onwards” (Basa 2000: 43). Kuchai was excavated by Thapar

(1964) but a detailed report has never been published.

The Middle Palaeolithic and Upper Palaeolithic phases in archaeology of Odisha have

also not been understood properly. Only reporting of surface scatters has been done

and therefore their stratigraphic occurrences and details typo-technological

examination is not known. These aspects, which have been neglected until now, are

also vital to understand the real prehistoric picture of the considered region.

After Kuchai, no proper excavation of microlithic sites is yet done so far in any part

of Odisha. Therefore, a systematic excavation is urgently needed for detailing

stratigraphic sequences and dating of the site and their remains. The associated

geological background and features near the site is also very important to know and

understand the prehistoric settlement pattern.

Microlithic sites have also been reported from the coastal areas of Odisha but sporadic

evidence of microliths have been found elsewhere because of the absence of

availability of the raw material in the areas. The occurrences of microliths is isolated

in a few places and in a conventional sense their significance of interpreting them

with the Mesolithic cultural system cannot be entirely ignored (Thomas 1975; Foley

1981- as quoted in Mohanty 1992).However, this sporadic evidence suggests that

most of the coastal area was occupied during the late Pleistocene to early Holocene by

the microlithic hunter-gatherers. Either, it was seasonal or it might be due to the limit

in the use of blade tools. There is even a possibility of transport or trading of stone

tools in some of the coastal parts of Odisha (Pers. Com. P. K. Behera).

1.15.2 Heavy-duty tool assemblages with microliths

The presence of heavy duty tools with microlithic sites and also with the polished

stone tools is a much debated issue in the late Pleistocene archaeology of Odisha.

While it is known that the heavy duty tools formed a component of some microlithic

assemblages, the question as to whether these belong to the transitional period

between the Middle Palaeolithic and microlithic industries is yet to be determined,

primarily due to the absence of absolute dates. As most of the sites reported from all

over Odisha are from surface context, the mixing of earlier assemblages with the

younger microlithic ones cannot be ruled out. Also there is no record of heavy duty

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tools from the excavated context, except for the trial digging by Ota (1983, 1986) in

Pulbani district. It has also been seen that in some of the microlith sites, Lower

Palaeolithic or Middle Palaeolithic tools were picked up and reused by during the

Mesolithic as raw material nodules, cores, and scrapers to fulfil their techno-

functional requirements.

The heavy-duty tools might have a similar function as that of Neolithic axes, for

cutting vegetation including trees. Presumably, the terminal Pleistocene and early

Holocene occupations in these woodland environments could not have come into

existence without some forest clearance. If the modern ethnographic practices are any

guide, one might expect that fire was as effective a tool in the past as it is today

(Panda 2003).

Alternatively, the heavy duty tools might be cores to produce flakes, implying use of

flake blanks as well as blade blanks for tools in the microblade assemblages where

heavy duty tools occur. It is also possible that these tools were being used by the

Neolithic-Chalcolithic population for clearing the forest or also might have been used

during the shifting cultivation. The mystery of association of heavy duty implements,

however, still remains unsolved. These artefacts are not associated with microblades

everywhere in Odisha. Heavy duty tools are absent from Birhanpur(Lal 1958) in

Bengal and from Chhattisgarh. There is some evidence of such association from

south India. Further work can be done to delineate the areas in which micoliths occur

with heavy duty tools.

Numerous microlith sites have been reported occurring with Neolithic implements, so

further attempts should also be made to understand their position in stratigraphic

sequence as these two cultures have close proximity in time, which belong to a

transitional period cannot be denied.The occurrence of heavy duty tools, therefore,

suggests that it has to do something with the adaptation of specific type of ecological

settings or it has to do something with the particular type of food processing activity

which could have been limited to certain regions. Specific uses of these tools for

manipulating special type of food stuff either plant or animal, using firing technology.

The heavy duty tools might also belong to the late Middle Palaeolithic or as a part of

the earliest microlithic stage. The association of heavy duty tools with the geometric

microliths is also unclear until further investigations are carried out.

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1.15.3 Discussion on Neolithic

The research on the Neolithic of Odisha has certainly made progress to understand its

preceding lithic cultural stages in terms of reporting sites, as a number of researches

have been carried out in different parts of the state. Neolithic sites have been reported

from a variety of ecological zones. It has also been observed that microlithic blades

also spatially occur along with the Neolithic tools from Kuchai and GolbaiSasan. This

suggests that the Mesolithic technological phase was succeeded by the Neolithic

technological phase without a major cultural gap between the two. Additional surface

evidence coming from the Kendujhar district reports the existence of microliths with

Neolithic polished stone tools, suggesting a possible transitional phase between these

hunters-gatherers and early agro-pastoral community. Nevertheless, no problem-

oriented work has yet been initiated to understand this aspect. Even the blade tools

which are occurring with the Neolithic polished stone tools are a matter for further

research. It will help us to understand, how the evidence is exactly different from the

Mesolithic blade industries. At southern Indian Neolithic sites, particularly the ash

mound sites of Bellary districts of Karnataka, it is observed that chert blade industries

were flourishing then. Additionally the large blade technology appears to have been

‘rediscovered’ in the Neolithic and which is quite different from the Upper

Palaeolithic and Mesolithic blade technology (Paddayya 2012).The large and

elongated Neolithic celts and ring stones from the Mayurbhanj area, which are

exceptionally large comparing to any other part of the subcontinent is a remarkable

and distinctive character of the Neolithic cultural trait of Odisha. The celt

manufacturing industrial sites in Banaigarh as reported by Behera (1992) and the

occurrences of small celts in GolbaiSasan, Hikudi and others reported sites from

central Odisha are probably the more evolved ones. The large fertile valleys of the

Mahanadi, Tel, Rusikulya, Burhabalanga, Indrāvati rivers and their tributaries most

probably indicate the most suitable place for the early agro-pastoralists and hunter-

gatherers of the region. The author believes that the concept of occupying only major

river valleys in eastern India is possibly not true as the minor tributaries have less

flooding activity. On the other hand, the major rivers were most possibly occupied in

the high alluvial deposited zone of the river which might have been seasonal.

In Odisha we do not have evidence of any kind of wheat, barley, lentil and peas as

most probably these crops were not adopted in the wet areas of this region. For the

49

Neolithic culture, there are very few radiocarbon dates, and no studies on palaeo-

landscape, paleoecology, paleobotany, and pollen and phytolith evidence have been

carried out. Similarly, no ethno-botanical research has been carried out so far to

understand the Neolithic culture in a holistic manner.

Harvey et. al. (2006: 30) hypothesises that there were two different kinds of Neolithic

traditions, one associated with the coastal plain and major river valleys and another in

the foothills and upland tribal dominated area. Their preliminary work of however,

were unable to shed light on the early agricultural practices of Odisha and only

speculated about the settlement pattern of the upland Neolithic sites of Odisha. Until

now, we also do not have any strong evidence of the process and species of animal

domestication in the Neolithic cultural levels. The early farming culture of Odisha can

tell us a lot about the development of agriculture and its spread in eastern India. For

example, the Jaipur plateau which has more than 1100 variety of wild rice has been

recorded.

1.15.4 Discussions on rock art

It is noteworthy to mention that the primary work of SadasibaPradhan is really

remarkable for bringing about 105 rock art sites (see Pradhan 1994, 1995-96, 2000,

and 2001). The subject matter in the painting are human form, animal, bird, lizard

frog, tortoise, butterfly, human palm and foot prints, variety of geometric patterns,

diamond patterns phytomopus, serpentine, dots, cupules, triangles resembling vulva

and so forth (Pradhan 2001). As we have seen above, the rock art of Odisha is

different in nature than the Central Indian rock art. On the contrary, it is more or less

similar to the south Indian rock art occurring in the form of both engravings and

paintings, or even sometimes paintings occur over the engraved figures or motifs.

The spatial association of microliths within the painted caves and rock shelters of

Odisha does not automatically mean that these rock paintings and engravings were

done by the Mesolithic people. Unless and until we excavate any of these shelters, it

is too early to assign any absolute chronology to these rock engravings despite

association between the paintings and the lithics. It is always possible that these rock

paintings were either done by the previous settlers in these caves who did not leave

any lithic evidence behind or it might be that these were painted later on during the

protohistoric or Early Historic phases. Unfortunately thus far, the rock art of Odisha is

50

observed and interpreted from the Central Indian rock art’s perspective. Therefore,

there is an urgent need to look at this evidence independently and from a regional

perspective. Various forms of tribal arts and local traditional arts of modern day’s

Odiya population are more or less historically and culturally associated with the rock

art of Central India. For example, why does the Lanjia Saora tribal art have many

similarities with Central Indian rock art rather than the rock art of Odisha? Therefore,

there is an imperative necessity to do a rigorous research and analysis of all these

tribal arts. It is also necessary to interview the people for a better understanding of all

the ritual procedures and cultural behaviour in order to understand the tribal art forms

in a wider context. The Odishan rock art is has a large number of geometric and

nonfigurative designs whereas engraving is also very commonly found. Detailed

investigations can definitely provide us with more insight into the depth of the

unknown reality of relations between the rock art and modern tribal art in Odisha

(Padhan 2012: 83).

1.16 Recent Field Investigations

Despite being in the History Department of Sambalpur University which has several

limitations in terms of archaeological research, for many years P.K. Behera and his

team (including M. A. and M. Phill. students) against many odds have been carrying

out pioneering work in the discipline of archaeology. He has been undertaking

explorations of the Bargarh upland covering the Barapahad hill slopes, foot hills and

all along the river valley of Jira, Girsul, Danta, river and of middle Mahanadi . The

hillslopes and foothills of the Barapahar is a pedimented slope surface which has been

undergoing large scale erosion of the surface soils and exposing the Acheulian-

artefact yielding gravels across the landscape. The field investigation has resulted in

the discovery of hundreds of sites and findings of thousands of artefact from the

Bargarh uplands. As a result, several Lower Palaeolithic sites have been discovered

e.g. Barpadar, Srarsara, Rohania, Dhanger, Khuntapali, Jamkitikra, Launsara,

Baramkela, Deogaon, Beherapali, Urduna, Urduna(B), Rasali., Duanpali, Kharmunda,

Jamchhapar, and Gopalpur (Pers. Com. P. K. Behera). The Acheulian artefacts belong

to the Large Flake Acheulian tradition having large numbers of handaxes, cleavers,

flake tools, different varieties of cores and some manufacturing debris. Behera and his

students are systematically doing all the detailed mapping, systematic collection of

artefacts, labelling of collected artefact and trial digging. The exploration of these new

51

localities in a scientific manner will certainly give a new and comprehensive

dimension to the study of the Palaeolithic archaeology of Odisha.

Most of the Acheulian sites are also found with a good number of microliths which

include large numbers of flakes, blades, bladelets, points and scrapers. Many backed

tools and other geometric tools also appear in the microlithic assemblages. The

microlithic site of Burla in middle Mahanadi valley needs special mention as the site’s

associated with microlithic bearing layer with the Toba tephra. Behera (2006) had

carried out trial excavations here between 2005 – 2010. However, the detailed reports

and technological studies on the lithic assemblages from the excavations are still

awaited. A detailed study of its stratigraphy from geoarchaeological point of view is

also needed to be done at the site as it is under heavy threat of the dam water and all

the sediments preserving the artefacts and the Toba tephra appear to be getting

washed away gradually.

1.17 General comments

In addition to the above review, there are quite a many fruitful researches that have

been conducted in the form of doctoral dissertations (see Mahapatra 1962; Tripathy

1972; Nanda 1984; Mohanty 1989; Behera 1989). However some of the research

reports and comparable publications, based on the prehistory of Odisha, have not

given adequate metrical details of the stone tool assemblages, technological aspects,

proper photographs or drawings, proper sedimentary contexts, descriptions of the

river section and stratigraphy, geoarchaeological details about river basin in the form

of maps, site distribution maps, and raw material analysis. This consequently limits

our understanding only to the findings of tools types and their total numbers. Due to

the above mentioned factors, what we often find is an incomplete database which

makes it impossible to venture into more specific questions about the settlement

pattern, nature and characteristics of the sites and their lithic assemblages.

Some surface reporting has been done by a few scholars. However, most of the work

is existing in the form of M.A. and M.Phil dissertations which are again limited to just

reporting of sites and devoid of any systematic sampling and detailed study of the

collected artefacts. Furthermore, many of these degree based investigations remain to

be published and thus are not easily available to the archaeological community. In

addition, a few river valleys of Odisha were just randomly surveyed and several

52

others were surveyed by amateur archaeologists. Their findings needed to be

reinvestigated by professional archaeologists and detailed studies of the collected

microlithic assemblages need to be done.

In spite of availability of modern techniques, methods and instruments in India, we

are still unaware about the major research questions as far as the Palaeolithic culture

of Odisha is concerned. To date, we do not have any absolute dates for any of the

Palaeolithic sites of Odisha. As far as the application of multispecialty aspect such as

geoarchaeology, settlement pattern, site formation process, detailed site mapping and

plotting are concerned; none of the prehistoric site has been subjected to a detailed

study. Therefore, there is a clear need to undertake further intensive surveys in order

to locate primary sites, followed by systematic multidisciplinary research and

comprehensive publication. On account of the acidic soil of the region, no biological

remains have so far been recovered nor has there been any evidence from which a

precise date could have been obtained. This unfortunate lack of osteological remains

is also a serious disadvantage with regard to the reconstruction of the economic and

social systems operating in the past (Cooper 1983: 81) in addition to Pleistocene

biostratigraphy. Detailed horizontal excavation of sites is required to get any absolute

dates either on any organic material or to date the sedimentary levels through

thermoluminescence (TL) or optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) methods.

"Dating is necessary to understand the cultural system, chronology of the culture,

functional and seasonal groupings of sites, relative roles played by hunting and

gathering activities in the food economy, extent of organic materials in the

manufacturing of tools as weapons and the internal pattern of the major sites”

(Mohanty 1992: 229). As most of the evidence is coming from surface contexts, there

is a clear need to undertake further intensive surveys, detailed multidisciplinary

analyses of lithic material found at the sites and scientific excavation of select sites

and their detailed material examination. Even use-wear analysis, traceology and

experimental archaeology can be undertaken to understand subsistence patterns and

early human food habits. Use of detailed petrographic analysis is also necessary to

know the exact spot and area of raw material utilisation (i.e. raw material

provenience). In addition, this reconstruction of the process of lithic manufacturing

can also be undertaken by understanding the reduction sequences of the Palaeolithic

and microlithic technology. If this is done, it will definitely provide a full-fledged

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understanding of the material culture and adaptation according to the local

environment and ecological condition in parts of Odisha.