GUJARAT, INDIA, February 12, 2001: A body of fresh water discovered in the western state of Gujarat may be an ancient branch of Pakistan’s famous Indus river. Recent satellite images taken above the epicenter of last month’s earthquake, in the Rann (literally, “salt desert”) of Kutch region, have uncovered the underground water channels in a barren area of the state known for its high salinity. A leading Indian scientist, Janardhan Negi, said the region had once been a delta for two famed, ancient rivers and that if field tests prove that the water seen in the satellite images is more than 200 years old, it could confirm that a branch of the Indus still flows in India. He said the Indus used to flow through the region until 1819, when a large earthquake — equal in intensity to the one last month — led to the river changing its course.
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