Excavation begins at Sivagalai

The excavation process started with adequate personnel in the presence of R Sivanandam, Deputy Director, Department of Archaeology. Many local residents in Sivagalai felt that the first official excavation would uncover rare artifacts of historical and cultural significance. The archaeological excavation was earlier scheduled to take off in March this year. But owing to the outbreak of COVID-19 it got delayed, sources said.

Addressing the media, the Deputy Director said that the process would go on till September. He further said that there could be a lot in store for people as Sivagalai is situated next to Adichanallur, which exposed the historical treasure of ancient Tamil civilization.

C Santhalingam, a Madurai based retired archaeologist and founder of Pandya Nadu Centre for Historical Research, said after many local people emphasised upon the need for excavation, the Department of Archaeology conducted exploration survey that showed urn rings, pieces of broken clay pots and iron slag in some portions at Sivagalai.