ARCHAEOLOGY
The Archaeological Survey of India is responsible for the protection and conservation of ancient and historical monuments and archaeological sites and re- mains of national importance. Its activities also include explorations, excavations, maintenance of ar- chaeological site-museums, architectural survey of temples and buildings, epigraphical research, running of a school of archaeology and publications, besides re- peating export trade in antiquities and art treasures.
I. PROTECTION OF MONUMENTS AND SITES The total number of Centrally-protected monuments and sites under the charge and maintenance of the Ar- chaeological Survey as per protection notification entries is 3483; the number exceeds 5000, since some of the groups of monuments are listed as single units. In addition to these, the Survey has taken under. its protection during 1982-83 Gauri Sagar Tank at Sibsagar (Assam), Darapur Gate, Kalupur Gate, Premabhai Gate and Sarangpur Gate at Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Ancient site at Banwali Sotra (Haryana), Ancient Palace at Leh (Jammu and Kashmir), Siva temple at Chemmathala, Siva temple complex at Tiruvanchikulam, Siva temple complex at Peruvanam and Tenkailashnath temple at Trichur, (Kerala), Rock-cut caves at Panhale Kazi (Maharashtra), Ancient mound at Gilund (Rajasthan), Megalithic burials at Mottur (Tamilnadu), Talib Khan's Tomb, Tomb of the grandson of Abdul Gafur Shah and Mosque and Tomb of Abdul Gafur at Azampur (Uttar Pradesh).
II. CONSERVATION The conservation work carried out during the, year 1982-83 has been eventful. The Survey completed its part in beautification of Delhi for the IX Asian Games by extensive systematic structural conservation and chemical treatment of monuments and landscaping, apart, from floodlighting of the monuments at Jantar Mantar, Lodi Tomb complex and Safdarjung Tomb. The Survey also conserved fully and made in a presentable position the three dilapidated monuments which are under the Delhi Administration and situated in the vicinity of Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The facelifting work was completed right in time. The next important event during this year is launching of conservation of the well-known Bagh Caves in Madhya Pradesh which are in a decayed state due to leakage of water and weathering action, Rotary drilling and then grouting the drill holes with liquid cement are being carried on the periphery of the caves. The work is in progress.
Apart from these, the Survey continued to main- tain, preserve and carry out major structural repairs to centrally-protected monuments during the year 1982-83. The well-known monument undergoing major structural repairs are : Rambagh Gate at Amritsar in Punjab; Buddhist site at Harwan, Sankaracharya temple, temples at Avantipur, Wangath and Pandrethan in Jammu and Kash- war: Jagannatha temple at, Puri and temples at Bhubanes- war in Orissa; Siri Fort near the ASIAD Village Complex, steps at Qutab Minar, Yantras at Jantar Mantar, Humayun's Tomb, Lodi Tomb and Purana Qila in Delhi, Taj Mahal and monuments in Agra fort, Sikandara and Fatehpur Sikh complex, Chaurasi Gumbad at Kalpi, Rani Lakshmi Bai Palace at Jhansi and Nirvana Stupa at Kushinagar, in Uttar Pradesh; Dwarakadhish temple, Baba Lauli Mosque and fort wall at Champaner in Gujarat; the famous churches at Goa, 'temples' and 'fortification wall at Chittorgarh Fort in Rajasthan; Bibi-ka-Maqbara, Raigarh fort, and Kondivte caves in
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Maharashtra; fortification wall at Bekal, St. Francis Church and Mattancherry Palace at Cochin in Kerala; Cave temples at Kunnakudi, Thenkaialasanatha Swamy temple at Gangaikondacholapuram, Chandramoulesvara temple at Natteri and Venkaramana temple at Gingee in Tamilnadu; Papanatha temple at Pattadkal and Kesava. temple at Nagamangala in Karnataka; Gopalji temple at Kalna and Hazarduari Palace at Murshidabad in West Bengal, Shershah Suri Tomb at Sasaram, excavated remains, at Antichak in Bihar; and fort-wall at Burhanpur and Stupa at Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh.
Large-scale horticultural operations have also been carried out to monuments at Delhi, Hampi, Agra, Sarnath, Bharatpur and Srirangapatna.
Extensive chemical preservation such as cleaning, treating of murals and strengthening of paintings have been carried out at Bagh Caves, temples at Khajuraho, Diwan-i-Khas, Rang Mahal, Jantar Mantar and Lodi Tomb complex in Delhi and the churches at Goa. The Survey has also set up its monitoring station and chemical laboratory in Agra to combat air-pollution in and around Agra.
III. EXPLORATIONS AND EXCAVATIONS
Explorations In the course of explorations in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, West Bengal, Pondicherry and Sikkim, a large number of sites representing various periods from Lower Palaeolithic Age to the medieval times have been discovered. The most outstanding dis- coveries are the find of 36 rock-shelters containing paintings ranging from prehistoric time to medieval period at Kishanbilas (District Kota, Rajasthan), a Neolithic site near Chernakurthi (District Guntur, Andhra Pradesh), late Harappan sites at Kholaj and Methi (District Dhule, Maharashtra), a cluster of megalithic burials at half-a-kilometre away from Karempudi- Peddakodamagundla Road (District Guntur, Andhra Pradesh), a Buddhist complex at Bineka on Bhopal-Hoshan- gabad highway in Madhya Pradesh and seven rock-cut caves belonging to early centuries of Christian era at Nayasimar village in Diu (Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu).
Excavations During 1982-83 further excavations have been car- ried out at Fatehpur Sikri (District Agra, Uttar Pra- desh), Gufkral (District Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir), Hampi (District Bellary, Karnataka), Hulas (District Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh), Ramapuram (District Kurnool, Andhra. Pradesh), Sarai Mound at Nalanda. (District Nalanda, Bihar), Semthan (District Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir), Khajuraho (District Chhatarpur. Madhya Pra- desh) and Sringaverpur (District Allahabad, Uttar Pra- desh).
These excavations have brought to light a house complex including living rooms, kitchen, courtyard doorways, shops and hamam of the medieval period at Fatehpur Sikri; a three-fold sequence of cultures having three subperiods in the earliest period with a well- defined aceramic neolithic level at Gufkral; a huge structural complex with pillared corridor and other impressive structures at Hampi; a mud brick wall along with successive mud-brick floors and steps made of wedge-shaped burnt bricks besides some painted potsherds having pre-Harappan tradition at the easternmost site of Harappa culture at Hulas; a rare evidence of brick structural complex at Khajuraho; six-fold sequence of cultures having the find of post-Harappan ceramic traditions at Semthan; enclosure wall running along. a circumbulatory path and a number of sculptures at Sarai Mound, Nalanda; a massive burnt brick tank, 198 metre. in length, with a channel cut in the natural soil, besides plan of a medieval township with streets running in north-south direction and residential complex at its either side at Sringaverpur; Phase III at Ramapuram is marked by the introduction of iron technology and different burial customs, i.e. (i) single urn, (ii) double urn, (iii) oblong cist and (iv) pit burial.
Village to Village survey of the antiquarian Remains
In continuation of last year's work, the Archaeo- logical Survey of India and various universities carried out explorations in 24 districts in different States.
Exhibitions Ann exhibition entitled 'Village to City in An- cient India' was put up in the British Meseum during the Festival of India,1, 1982.
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IV. ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUMS The Museums Branch of the Archaeological Survey of India looks after site-museums built in different parts of India. This Branch with its headquarters at Calcutta functions through four Regional Offices located at Delhi, Madras, Sarnath and Velha Goa. Recently, the Branch has initiated the programme of setting up four more museums-Aihole and Badami in Karnataka, Mattancherry Palace at Cochin in Kerala and Kalibangan, the Harappan site, in Rajasthan. Of the four museums mentioned above, the work at Badami and the Mattancherry Palace has already started. Thus, with the addition of these four museums, the, number of site-museums under the Survey will come to twenty-five. The work of constructing the museum-building at Ratnagiri in Orissa has also commenced.
During the period under review the Taj Museum at Agra and five galleries of the Indian War Memorial Museum at Red Fort have been thrown open to the public. The work of setting up the Archaeological museum at Lothal in Gujarat is in its final stage. Furthermore, a new gallery has been set up in the Fort Museum at Madras displaying the prints drawn by English artists in the eighteenth-nineteenth century. Similarly, the gallery No. 2 is being organized at the Archaeological Museum at Vaishali. The part of the original railings of the Bodh-Gaya temple has now been arrayed in the inner courtyard of the Archaeological Museum at Bodh-Gaya. The programme of documentation of museums' collections made considerable progress, while steps have been taken to organize regularly various education programmes at selected museums.
V. ARCHITECTURAL SURVEY The two branches for architectural survey of temples of the north and south and another branch for the survey of secular and domestic architecture are, carrying out their work. So far the work has been completed in respect of Gave Temples of the Pallavas, Temples of Kerala, Cave Temples of the Deccan and Tem- ples at Khajuraho. The two Temple Survey Branches are currently engaged in finalising reports on the Ganga temples of Karnataka and Partihara temples of.. Central India.
VI. EPIGRAPHY There are two wings of the. Epigraphy Branch, one for Sanskrit and Dravidian inscriptions and the other for Arabic and Persian inscriptions. The Branch is engaged in copying, deciphering and editing the epigraphical material throughout the country.
VII. SCHOOL OF ARCHAEOLOGY The School of Archaeology with one-year post- graduate diploma course under the Archaeological Survey of India is having its 24th session since its opening in 1959. The aim of the School, with an emphasis on prac- tical training, is to provide a sound footing to, those interested in archaeology as a profession. In addition to fresh post-graduate students from the universities, the School also imparts training to in-service person- nel, both in the States as well as in the Centre. Short-term courses on conservation of monuments are also organised by the School to develop adequate expertise amongst the officials of the, State who are engaged in the work of conservation. The same course is also meant for special refresher training to the officials of the Survey.
The School I has been of special attraction to specially-sponsored trainees from the neighbouring countries.
VIII. EXPEDITION ABROAD A team of nine members from the Archaeological Survey of India visited Kampuchea in February, 1982, to prepare a project report on the conservation of monu- ments. The team had also to establish two Iaboratories, one chemical and the other photographic, for which equipments and materials had already been, sent by India. During the period of, its stay in, Kampuchea for four months the team concentrated its attention
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on the temple of Angkor Wat, which is of international importance. A comprehensive report an th preservation of the monument, both structural and chemical, has been prepared by the. team.
Besides a report on conservation, the team also availed itself of the. opportunity to prepare photo- graphs of a good number of monuments in; Kampuchea. The two laboratories were also established and the offi- cials, of the chemical and photographic branches impart- ed training.
IX. PUBLICATIONS The Archaeological Survey has a long tradition of bringing out authentic and, well-illustrated publica- tions incorporating the latest researches in different fields of archaeology, art, architecture and epigraphy. These, publications are brought out departmentally. Scholarly memoirs and journals apart, publications, on important archaeological sites, 'monuments and museums for knowledgeable public, both in English and Hindi are, brought out. Steps have also been initiated to bring out their translation in other Indian languages. To cater to the demand of tourists, and visitors, coloured and black-and-white picture-postcards and folders on S. important monuments, lid museums are brought out, During the IX ASIAD the Survey brought out a multi- coloured pictorial map of Delhi showing its important monuments.
During the period under review, the Survey brought out three parts of Volume XXXVIII and two parts of Volume XXXIX of the Epigraphia Indica, besides reprint- ing five issues of its earlier volumes (Volumes XI to XV). The Annual Report on Indian Epigraphy for 1971-72 and 1972-73 and Volume XXIV on South Indian Inscriptions have also been published.. The issue for 1974 of the Epigraphia Indica-Arabic and Persian Supplement has been released for sale. In-the Memoirs series, Volume I of Ratnagiri (1958-61) was. printed off, while Kaye's Astronomical Observatories of Jai Singh was reprinted in view of the selection of the Jantar Mantar, as, the logo of the TX ASIAD. of the guidebooks printed, during the period, special mention may be made of the Delhi and its Neighbourhood, Old Goa, Mandu Dig and the Taj Museum. The Hindi versions of the Archaeological Works Code, and. the Conservation Manual came out during the period
Among the publications which are in the press, are : Karandai Inscriptions of Rajendra Chola Volume II of Ratnagiri (1958-61), Volume II of Lothal, Indian Archae- ology 1979-80-A Review, Part 2 of Paramara Inscriptions, Annual Report on Indian Epigraphy 1973-74 and 1974-75, Epigraphia Indica-Arabic and Persian Supplement 1975, parts of Volumes XXXIX and XL of the Epigraphia Indica and Volumes XXII, XXV and, XXVI of South Indian Inscrip- tions.
X. ANTIQUITIES AND ART TREASURES The Antiquity, Section is mainly concerned with the implementation of Antiquities and Art Treasures Act 1972 and allied matters. Registration of antiquities was carried out in the country through Governments of the States and Union Territories besides the Archaeolog- ical Survey of India as in the previous years.
During the year, i.e., till October 1982, 15164 certificates of registration of antiquities were issued, and 8769 applications for registration of nonregistered antiquities were received.