The Personality of India: Pre- and Proto-historic Foundation of India and Pakistan c16.s1.53

c16.s1.53

Similarly the large areas of Central Gangetic basin and the Vindhyan and Chota-Nagpur plateaux show a wide distribution of Copper hoards and Neolithic culture with shouldered celts and square axes with contacts and affinities to the Far eastern Copper bronze age civilizations. In view of the fact that we have extensive deposits of copper in the region also, we are on a fairly safe ground in inferring that there was a great epi-centre for a Copper-bronze Age civilization in the Gangetic basin. As we have pointed out already, the clearance of the luxuriant tropical forests of the Gangetic basin and the draining of the marshes, pre-supposes a higher technology. Since we have a vague hint from Hastinapur and other explorations of Lal, we are justified in identifying them as another major element of Indian culture. In this connection, it is very significant to recall that the five eastern kingdoms *Anga, Vanga, Kalinga, Suhma* and *Pundra* belong to the *Saudyumnas* of our tradition. This is the region with a predominance or a strong substratum of Proto-Australoid and Mongolid elements (Gondid of Von Eickstedt). Hence we are justified in supporting the suggestion of Pargiter that Sudyumnas represent the Austric (Munda-Mon-Khmer) group.