RAS question
The dockyard in the Indus Valley Civilization was found at:
Correct answer: (D) Lothal.
The dockyard of the Indus Valley Civilisation was found at Lothal in Gujarat.
Explanation
Lothal is the right answer because the Gujarat Tourism page identifies it as an Indus Valley site near Ahmedabad where excavations revealed the world's oldest known artificial dock, connected to an old course of the Sabarmati River. This dockyard measured 218 m x 37 m, and Lothal functioned as a major trade centre linking the Indus Valley Civilisation with Mesopotamia through sea routes. Gujarat Tourism describes Lothal as an important trading city, with canals, dockyards, a market and a dock, and notes artefacts suggesting trade with Mesopotamia, Egypt and Persia. Thus, among the listed Harappan sites, Lothal is specifically associated with a dockyard.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Dholavira is associated here with water reservoirs and a signboard, not with the dockyard asked in the question.
- (B) Banawali is associated here with barley and a toy plough, so it does not match the dockyard clue.
- (C) Surkotada is associated here with horse bones, not with the Indus Valley dockyard.
Concept
This tests the site-feature mapping of the Indus Valley Civilisation, a high-frequency Ancient India theme in RAS prelims. Lothal recurs because it links archaeology with trade, ports and urban planning.