Hakra River
The Hakra is the dried-out channel of a river in Pakistan that until about 2000 BC - 1500 BC was the continuation of the Ghaggar River in India.
Many settlements of the Indus Valley Civilisation have been found along the Ghaggar and Hakra rivers.
The Saraswati dispute
The Ghaggar/Hakra rivers are often identified by Hindu Nationalists as the Vedic Saraswati River. However, most secular archeologists - and most archeologists of non-Indian origin - reject the identification of the Hakra with the Saraswati. The location, and even the historicity and existence of the Saraswati is disputed. The Saraswati, if it existed, is most likely the Arghandab river, which was called Harahwati in ancient Avestan.
External links
- Hijacking India's history from Kai Friese, New York Times
- A Hindu Quest for Some Holy Water, Washington Post