Engineers and the Historical Neglect

It is not enough if you did it, it is important that others know you did
itAnonymous

The Ram Sethu controversy has many dimensions. While we can leave faith
arguments to religious pundits (theists and atheists), politics to politicians,
historical aspects to historians, strategic implications to strategic analysts,
and judgment to courts, the technical aspect of the issue has been ignored just
as structures and engineers have always been ignored over the centuries.

It is sad that all the players in the controversymedia, historians,
politicians, theists, atheists, foreign affairs and political analystsrefer to
the structure as Ram Sethu. According to Valmikis Ramayana, the Sethu was built
by Nala, the son of Viswakarma. So, the correct way to refer to it would be Nala
Sethu. Unfortunately, the tradition of not crediting engineers or builders
continues even to this day. This column will attempt to examine if it is
engineers fault to not claim credit or historians are responsible for not
acknowledging engineers/scientists achievements.

There are several engineering marvels across India. Unfortunately, no information is available about the engineers who were involved in making these structures. The only available knowledge is, probably, of the kings who ordered these structures. However, an exception to this is the Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple, where there are statues of the builders along with the deities, and their names are also recorded in every mandapam. The information about the architect who laid out the plan is also available.

Engineering Acumen

Lost in the debate over Nala Sethu (Ram Sethu) is the amazing engineering
acumen of our ancestors. It is amazing that the city of Trichy has a
2,000-year-old rock dam that functions to this day! Called Kallanai (Kall means
stone or rock and Anai means dam in Tamil), it diverted water to avoid flooding
and distributed water to various areas that eventually led to the creation of
the agricultural belt of the Cholas. That this dam has never been considered for
the Seven Wonders of the World is strange.

While historians credit it to Chola King Karikala Peruvalathaan, who ordered
the building of the dam, no one knows who actually built it. Probably, it is
recorded in one of the historical narratives, but it has been ignored. That this
structure has no religious connotation and is just a marvelous feat of
engineering built to avoid flooding in the Cauvery Delta region is probably the
reason for it being ignored for over 2,000 years.

Textbook Problems

Knowledge of who built these structures is not common because most school
textbooks ignore this important piece of information. However, when publishers
are confronted with the question, they defend themselves by saying that they
have to stick to what is put forth in the syllabus determined by the educational
boardbe it NCERT, metric, or state board. This problem can only be solved if
educational boards broaden their syllabus to include such details. But, in this
information age, school textbooks are not the only source of information and
many children tend to use encyclopedias and the Internet.

But, the flaws remain even in encyclopedias like Encarta, which contains
articles written by historians based abroad. So, it is not surprising that
Microsoft Encarta 2005 carries an article on the Chola history and limits it
between the tenth and thirteenth centuries, when King Raja Raja Cholan and his
heirs ruled. It is absurd to say this is how long the Chola dynasty lasted. This
also effectively wipes out the existence of Kallanai, which has been dated
scientifically during the British rule and was also recorded in narrativesoral
and writtenover the ages. Kallanai is left out, as it doesnt fit into the
period between the tenth and thirteenth centuries, the period when historians
claim the Cholas existed! Imagine, having to go back more than 2,000 years and
tracing the Chola dynasty. If Valmikis Ramayana or even Ravanavaaliya (written
by the defeated Lankans and containing their version of what happened) is
accepted as historical narratives, then the Cholas did exist at the time that
goes back several millenniums.

Maybe it is all right to ignore this engineering marvel as it doesnt fetch
votes for politicians, doesnt prove to be a threat to foreign affairs as it is
located in the middle of Tamil Nadu, and does not interest historians as it
doesnt fit into their version of history. But, can techies, especially Indian
engineers, ignore these achievements while we stare in amazement at Burj Dubai
in the UAE, Petronas Towers in Malaysia, or the construction of the air walkway
that extends right into the center of the Grand Canyon?

Historical Neglect

Historians should stop writing about the Aryan invasion theory, especially
now when we have evidence to the contrary. In 2005, BBC accepted that this
theory was concocted by Max Mueller in the nineteenth century at the behest of
the East India Company. Even if historians dont correct this flaw, at least
engineers should step in and put a stop to this nonsense, as scientific evidence
prove that Max Mueller tried to create a Rwanda in India based on physical
appearance.

It is time for historians to record history from engineers viewpoint,
especially with the help of structures that exist, including the cities of
Dwarka and Kaveripoompatinam, which were discovered underwater a few years back.
For those who are not aware of Kaveripoompatinam, it is a central city that is
referred to in the Tamil epic of Silapathikaram. Geologists have dated both
Dwarka and Kaveripoompatinam to be over 10,000 years old.

This discovery will turn the world history on its head as this means the
Indian civilization outdates western scientific theories of human civilization
by about 8,000 years. It will also mean that Harappa and Mohenjadaro came much
later, which explains their engineering excellence of having two floor buildings
and pavements 5,000 years ago. One wonders why the media does not cover it but
chooses to give a blow-by-blow account of the Nala Sethu issue.

EngineersReclaim Our History

We are taught in schools that Indians invented the number system and the
first world university existed in the Indian subcontinent. Astronomy and mapping
of stars were also done here. However, these are general statements that are
pooh-poohed as urban legends by the people of other regions. This is why, as
techies, we need to re-examine what historians claim is our history. In fact,
engineers are required to reclaim our history.

As engineers, scientific temper is necessary to approach any issue or solve
any problem. It is important to re-examine what we have been taught in schools,
especially since we have structures existing and functioning that prove
otherwise. This is true for every piece of history. It is time we research and
publicize the names of builders and engineers who created these magnificent
structures, and, thus, reclaim our history of engineering excellence across
India. Apart from demystifying various narratives, it will also create awareness
about techniques in mathematics and engineering used by the ancient people. This
will create a stronger India, as each region feels disconnected from the other
except for our common colonial history.

Maybe with research, we can correct the historical neglect of engineers who
created these marvels, and get a more objective history of humankind.

Deepa Kandaswamy

The author is the founder-moderator of the IndianWISE e-group.

(c) Deepa Kandaswamy. First serial rights, CyberMedia 2008.

Any quotes or reprints from this article must link to this article and credit
author Deepa Kandaswamy and Dataquest.

This article may not be distributed in any manner without written consent from
the author.