Tamil Nadu CM Stalin Announces $1 Million Prize For Deciphering Indus Valley Script

Chennai: In one of the biggest prizes ever announced for a historical pursuit, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Sunday declared a reward of one million dollars for experts or organisations that succeed in deciphering the scripts of the Indus Valley Civilisation to make them comprehensible to all.

Stalin made the announcement during the centenary valedictory event marking the discovery of the Indus Valley Civilisation by Sir John Marshall. He also unveiled the foundation for a statue dedicated to the late British archaeologist.

“We have not yet been able to decipher the script of the Indus Valley Civilisation, which once flourished. It remains a mystery even after 100 years. Archaeologists, Tamil software experts, and scholars worldwide have been striving to decode it. To encourage further research, my government will offer a prize of one million dollars,” he declared.

Stalin highlighted the striking similarities between the graffiti found on Indus Valley seals and those uncovered during archaeological excavations in Tamil Nadu. He noted that 60% of the graffiti in the seals, which were used for commercial purposes in the Indus Valley Civilisation, resembled those found in Tamil Nadu. Additionally, archaeologists have established that 90% of the graffiti symbols on Indus Valley pottery match those discovered on mud pots in Tamil Nadu.

Justifying the proposed statue of Sir John Marshall, Stalin described the archaeologist’s discovery as a pivotal moment in history that transformed the understanding of India’s past. “Many previously argued that Aryan and Sanskrit were the origins of Indian civilisation. However, John Marshall’s discovery demonstrated that the Indus Valley Civilisation predated the Aryan Civilisation. Furthermore, his argument that the language spoken in the Indus Valley could have been Dravidian challenged this perception,” Stalin said.