INDIA, October 16, 2016 (Topyaps, by Aseem Gaurav Sharma): The Saraswati, a river mentioned in the Rigveda and Hindu mythology and so far considered a mythical river, did exist, a government-constituted experts’ committee has found. The expert committee comprised of geologists, archaeologists and hydrologists. “The Saraswati originated in the Himalayas and passed through Haryana, Rajasthan and north Gujarat,” eminent geologist Prof KS Valdiya, who led the panel, said. The report commissioned by the Water Resources Ministry was made public on October 15.
The panel concluded that evidence from palaeochannels — remnants of defunct rivers — suggested that the Sarsuti-Markanda rivulets in Haryana were the water courses of the “eastern branch of a Himalayan river” and the Ghaggar-Patiali channels were the western branches. [HPI note: this is not really a “new” discovery as the Ghaggar had been identified with the Saraswati on 19th century British maps, but it is welcome confirmation.] The Centre and especially Minister for Water Resources Uma Bharati had in 2014 made “finding the missing river” a priority of the Modi government. Even Haryana government was involved in tracing the origin of the mythical Saraswati. Last year, people involved in digging the course of the Saraswati in Mugalwali village of Yamunanagar district found water gushing out when they burrowed to a depth of eight feet.