IIT calendar on ‘Aryan invasion myth’ is ‘just the tip of the iceberg’: professor

Claims made in calendar came in for severe criticism on social media from writers

The Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur’s 2022 calendar on the theme of “evidence” for “rebutting the Aryan invasion myth”, which caused a controversy when it became public last week, was “just the tip of the iceberg”, with scholars abroad planning to hold workshops on the topic, according to the professor behind the calendar’s concept.

The calendar, titled “Recovery of the Foundations of Indian Knowledge Systems”, covers the topics of “recognition of the secret of the Vedas” and “reinterpretation of the Indus Valley Civilisation”, apart from the portion on the ‘Aryan invasion’.

The claims made in the calendar came in for severe criticism on social media from writers and those who have been engaged with the issue. Author of the book Early Indians Tony Joseph commented on Twitter on December 26 about “the distressing transformation of centres of excellence”. He cited the 2019 genetic study ‘The Formation of Human Populations in South & Central Asia’ which, he stated, was an example of the “strong, multi-disciplinary evidence for migration of Central Asian Steppe pastoralists into the Indian subcontinent between 2,000 and 1,500 BCE”.