Mohali administration identifies 151 acres at Masol village for ASI excavation

Akash Ghai

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Tribune News Service

Mohali, June 7

The Mohali administration has completed the process of identification of land at Masol village to enable the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to undertake excavation operations after finding unique fossils here.

Mohali Deputy Commissioner DS Mangat said 151 acres had been identified at Masol, which had attracted attention after the ASI found the “oldest” fossils of fauna dating back to about 2.6 million years.

“The report on the identification of land will be sent to the authorities concerned soon for action,” said the Deputy Commissioner. However, the Mohali administration has no idea whether the identified land will be acquired or declared a protected site. “The Centre will take a decision in this regard,” said the Deputy Commissioner.

The ASI authorities had written to the Mohali administration in the last week of April, asking it to complete the process of identification of land soon.

Following directions from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the ASI was “processing a proposal for the site at Masol for its unique fossil and tool finds”. 

Earlier, the excavation at the site was carried out by a joint team of Indian and French archaeologists. The team is said to have found nearly 1,500 fossils there. French President Francois Hollande, who visited Chandigarh recently, had shown keen interest in the fossils, placed at the local government museum. 

Before this discovery, the oldest fossils were found at the Rift Valley in Ethiopia, said to be around 2.58 million years old, said sources.