There are a variety of theories about what brought about the end of the Indus Valley civilization.
At around 2000 BC, land elevation occurred as a result of diastrophism (movement of the earth's crust) in the Indus delta district, causing the rivers to flood and the river flows to change. As each city was closely linked to the river, the changes in the river flow had an extreme and negative impact on the cities' activities. Repeated flooding may have led to an accumulation of salt in the soil decreasing agricultural productivity.The Ghagger Hakra River dried up and people were forced to abandon many of the cities such as Kalibangan and Banawali located along it's banks. During the last years of Mohenjodaro, people started to reside in the citadel of the site instead of in the lower town, which suggests the formation of slums in these affluent cities. The control mechanism that had been managing the cities for hundreds of years was no longer functioning properly. However people continued to live in the cities.
© The British Museum |