Overview

• In Parliament on July 21, Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said the ASI has neither rejected the Keezhadi report nor asked the Tamil Nadu archaeology department for a revised submission.
• Subject experts flagged issues with the report’s 8th century BCE chronology, village maps and stratigraphical details and shared their comments with archaeologist Amarnath Ramakrishna.
• The ASI stressed that excavation reports undergo expert vetting and are only released as Memoirs of the ASI after suggested corrections are incorporated.
• Tamil Nadu leaders continue to accuse the Union government of political interference, citing Ramakrishna’s recent transfer as evidence of pressure on the excavator.
• Findings at Keezhadi include evidence of a sophisticated urban settlement dating to the 8th century BCE, featuring Tamil Brahmi inscriptions and terracotta pipelines.