Revisiting Human Migration: Insights from Saurashtra Fossils

Revisiting Human Migration: Insights from Saurashtra Fossils

Sub: Polity

Sec: legislation in news

Why in News

A recent study published in Quaternary Environments and Humans provides groundbreaking evidence challenging the coastal migration model of early human dispersal. Archaeological findings from Gujarat’s Saurashtra peninsula suggest inland routes played a crucial role in human migration.

The Out-of-Africa Theory:

• Homo sapiens evolved in Africa and migrated to different parts of the world over millennia.
• Studies of mitochondrial DNA mutations reveal that humans dispersed from Africa roughly 65,000 years ago.
• Research on indigenous populations (e.g., Orang Asli in 2005) supports the theory of rapid coastal migration.

The Coastal Dispersion Model:

• Findings like mitochondrial and nuclear DNA studies suggest migration along tropical coasts.
• Human settlements in regions such as the Andaman Islands have been linked to coastal routes.
• Criticism: Lack of archaeological evidence along the Indian Ocean coastline. Inland archaeological sites dominate India’s prehistoric records.

New Evidence from Saurashtra:

• Conducted by scientists from the Max Planck Institute, Tübingen University, Maharaja Sayajirao University, and the University of the Philippines.
• Tools crafted from materials like chert, jasper, and bloodstone were uncovered in the Aji and Bhadar River basins.
• Artefacts date back to 56,000–48,000 years ago, placing them in the Middle Palaeolithic Age.
• Evidence supports inland habitation during the Middle Palaeolithic era.
• During the Middle Palaeolithic, Saurashtra was a vast landmass connected to Kutch, Makran, and the Western Ghats.
• This suggests human dispersal occurred via interior routes, not coastal ones.
• No signs of marine food dependency were found in the Saurashtra study.

Relative Dating:

• A technique used by archaeologists to determine the age of artefacts by examining their depth in the earth’s layers.
• Methodology: Older artefacts are buried deeper due to successive layers formed by the accumulation of civilizations. The age of these layers is estimated based on prior studies that use precise methods like absolute dating.
• Researchers in the Saurashtra peninsula used relative dating to estimate the age of artefacts, determining them to be 56,000–48,000 years old, from the Middle Palaeolithic age.

Bhadar River:

• Origin: Jasdan Hills in Gujarat.
• Flows through the Saurashtra region.
• Known for supporting agriculture and as a study site for prehistoric artefacts.

Aji River:

• Origin: Sardhar Hills in Gujarat.
• Flows through Rajkot city.
• Notable for reservoirs and irrigation.
• Key site for discovering Middle Palaeolithic tools.