On a windy and wintry Januarymorning, I eased the handbrakeof my car, shifted gears and point-ed the bonnet towards Mumbai.In the rearview mirror, I could seethe guards dragging shut thedoors to the city of Dholavira. Mywife, Srividhya and I were totallyenthralled by the magical city ofDholavira and the Great Rann.The reader is well advised to wearthe proverbial imagination cap,for you are about to visit an ar-chaeological site where thestones talk to you.

Dholavira is where the remainsof a part of the Harappan civilisa-tion exist. The city is located onan island called Khadir Bet and isconnected by an umbilical cord ofa road which streaks across to themainland. On either side of theroad, lies the Great Rann ofKutch. The topography of theland is unforgiving. People adoptvarious kinds of vehicles for mo-bility, the discomfort surmountedwith a stoic smile and the superwhite of their clothes.

The inhabitants of Dholavirawere master water conservation-ists. No signifi��cant rivers werefl��owing by, just two rivulets —

Mansar and Manhar. Nine reser-voirs were built around the city tostore water. The city itself is divid-ed into three parts — the Citadel,the Middletown and the Lowertown. A ramp which runs forabout 30-40 feet turns left intothe citadel. On the right of theramp is a large tract of open land,which has been identifi��ed as a sta-dium. On either side of the stadi-um, one can still fi��nd remains ofspectator stands.

Remains of the dayAs you enter through the hal-lowed gates of the Citadel, younotice raised platforms on either

side and a rectangular chamberon the right. Ten mysterious al-phabets on a wooden board in-trigue you. Archaeological Surveyof India (ASI) has taken an im-print of the alphabets on a blueboard which is carefully placedon the rectangular chamber.

You reach a fl��at piece of landon which several houses stood.Children would have played inthe courtyard. On the far left, twopillars embedded in the groundscream for attention.

Jaimal Makwana, our guide,said that they still do not have any

clue on its purpose.There is a well, which is now

closed by an iron grill. At itsmouth, there lies a massive stoneslab with cuts — some thick, andsome thin. Our guide said the ASIteam was stumped when they ex-cavated the well and tried to ima-gine how the water would havebeen drawn. They used two typesof ropes — the thick varthad, andthe thin varthadi. Big water bagswere used to draw water from thewell, and bulls pulled the ropes.These practices have been passedon to succeeding generations.

Reservoirs are built partly onstone beds, and partially masonmade. The tanks are fed by aquaducts which collect water fromvarious parts of the city. The re-servoir consists of two levels. Thehigher level will hold the cleanwater, and the lower level, whichis like a step down, will allow sedi-mentation to happen, whereinthe dust will settle at the base ofthe reservoir.

Ancient waterconservationistsOn the east side of the site lies theMiddle town and the Lower town.The Middle Town consists of acentral street running down aslope with houses/shops on eith-er side. Well-laid drainage sys-tems are seen, and ‘save everydrop of water’ is the centraltheme. Earthen pots were foundembedded in the ground, and inone peculiar case, on a raisedplatform covered in soot.

The Lower Town was populat-ed by the working class. There areremnants of many houses. Naturebound the inhabitants to stay, andlater Nature willed them to mi-grate. Who knows, dear reader,your ancestors would have been apart of the huddle over the bon-fi��re.

The immortals of

HARAPPAAncient citadels, dry well and intriguing scripts...Dholavira is a magical ghost town mirroring acivilisation that thrived here millennia ago

:: Sridhar Balasubramanian HOW TO GET THEREThe nearest railhead is Bhuj ifyou want to visit the RannFestival, and if you wish toenjoy the solitude on the East,then you need to alight at anyof the three stations, vizSamakhiali, Bhachau orGandhidham. From thesestations, you can drive down toDholavira. Fly to Bhuj or Gandhidham,depending on the side of theRann you want to visit. WHEN TO GOThe best time to visit is fromOctober to March. Summers arescorching, while till September,the Rann will be slushy. Yourequire at least two days to dojustice to the Rann and itssurroundings. Dholavira can be wound up inone hour or it will take up aday or two. It depends onwhether the stones talk to you!Do not forget to visit the fossilpark.WHERE TO STAYThere are several options inKutch, but none of them arebudget accommodations. Westayed in the Rann Resort. The rooms are clean andperfect for family stays. Thehosts are extremely courteous.

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