Archaeological discoveries and proposed excavations at two sites — Mrugavani National Park near Hyderabad and Vaishya Tekri in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain have drawn attention to India’s rich heritage, with the potential to deepen historical understanding and strengthen heritage tourism.
At Mrugavani National Park in Chilkur, historian Dr Satyanarayana Dyavanapalli has identified four deep rock grooves near the Banda Juvvi Watch Tower during a safari visit. The discovery was brought to attention by B Anand Kumar, administrative officer of the Forest Department in Rangareddy district.
Each groove is approximately one foot long and two to four inches deep. They are located on a plateau-like rock surface overlooking valleys and near water sources that may have supported prehistoric hunting and gathering communities.
Dyavanapalli said the grooves may have been repeatedly used to grind or sharpen stone implements, including axes and other tools. The grooves, the surrounding landscape and nearby ochre rock paintings warrant detailed scientific investigation, he said, urging the Telangana Department of Archaeology and Museums to conduct a systematic survey in collaboration with the Forest Department.
Meanwhile, a proposed excavation at Vaishya Tekri in Ujjain could uncover a Buddhist stupa believed to date to the third century BCE, when Ashoka was associated with the region as governor of Avanti, before becoming emperor.
Studies conducted around 90 years ago by archaeologists of the erstwhile Gwalior state, under Superintendent Archaeologist M B Garde, indicated that the mound concealed a stupa with a base of about 350 feet and a height of 100 feet considerably taller than the 54-foot Sanchi Stupa.
Madhya Pradesh Additional Chief Secretary for Culture Sheo Shekhar Shukla has sought Central government support for the excavation. Although the site is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India, around 15 hectares of surrounding private land may need to be acquired at an estimated cost of Rs 40 crore.
Earlier excavations reportedly uncovered smaller stupas and remains of 32 skeletons, now housed at the Anthropological Survey of India museum in Kolkata. Historian Nayanjot Lahiri has also pointed to possible links between Ujjain and Pataliputra predating the Mauryan period.
The proposed excavation could expand understanding of Ujjain’s Buddhist heritage beyond its established Hindu pilgrimage sites, potentially attracting Buddhist visitors from Japan and Southeast Asia. Together, the sites underline the importance of systematic archaeological research and conservation in bringing lesser-known chapters of India’s past to wider attention.