Question

Which of the following sites of the Indus Valley Civilization is known as the Manchester of Harappan Civilization for its cotton trade?
A) Kalibangan
B) Rangpur
C) Ropar
D) Lothal

Answer 1

Hint: This city is also known as the oldest port city of India. It had a dockyard made of baked bricks which proved that this site was the centre of maritime activity of the Harappans. Instruments for measuring angles were also found at this site.

Complete answer:
Harappan Civilization, also referred to as “Indus Valley Civilization”, was part of the Bronze age (and the beginning of the Iron age too) and flourished between 3300–1300 BCE. It is one of the largest Ancient Civilizations known today. It was widespread as it covered parts of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Now let us look into the given options:
Option A) Kalibangan: The site was discovered by Luigi Pio Tessitori, and was further excavated by A. Ghosh in 1953. The word Kalibangan literally means “black bangles'', and it is named so because of the dense distribution of the fragments of black bangles discovered at its mound’s surface. It is situated along the left bank of the dried-up bed of river Ghaggar, Rajasthan which was referred to as river Saraswati in the Rig Veda. Thus, it is an incorrect option.
Option B) Rangpur: This is an ancient site and is located in Gujarat, around 80km from Lothal. It was found by M.S. Vats in 1931 and excavated by S.R.Rao in 1957-58. Rangpur is actually a post-Harappan site. Therefore, this option is incorrect.
Option C) Ropar: This is an Indus Valley site that is known for its oval burial pits and the tradition of burying the dogs with their owner after their death. Its buildings were made of stone and soil. A steatite seal was also found here with the typical Indus pictogram. Therefore, this option is also wrong.
Option D) Lothal: Situated in Gujarat, the site was excavated by S.R. Rao in 1957. The word Lothal refers to the “mound of the dead”. It is situated between the Bhogavo and Sabarmati rivers near the Gulf of Khambhat, Gujarat. It is referred to as Manchester of Harappan Civilization because of its expansion of the cotton trade. Thus, it is the correct option.

Thus, the correct answer is Option (D) i.e, Lothal.

Note: Harappa and Mohenjo–Daro – the two major sites of this civilization – are among the earliest and finest examples of urban civic planning. They had a well-planned network of roads, houses and drainage systems indicating the planning and engineering skills that developed during those times. The civilization was discovered in 1921 at Harappa in the Punjab region and Mohenjodaro was discovered in 1922, near the Indus River in the Sindh (Sind) region and both sites are located in present-day Pakistan.