NATIONAL MARITIME HERITAGE COMPLEX AT LOTHAL

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will review the site work progress of the National Maritime Heritage Complex at Lothal, Gujarat on 18th October 2022 at around 5 PM via video conferencing.
• This will be followed by his address on the occasion.
• Lothal was one of the prominent cities of the Harappan civilization and is known for the discovery of the oldest man-made dockyard.
• A maritime heritage complex in Lothal is fitting tribute to the city’s historical legacy and heritage.
• National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal is being developed as a one of its kind project to not only display India’s rich and diverse maritime heritage and also help Lothal to emerge as a world class international tourist destination.
• The boost to the tourism potential through this project will also augment the economic development of the region.
• The complex, work on which started in March 2022, is being developed at a cost of around Rs 3500 crore.
• It will have several innovative and unique features such as Lothal mini recreation to recreate Harappan architecture and lifestyle; four theme parks –
• Memorial theme park, Maritime and Navy theme park, Climate theme park and Adventure and Amusement theme park;
• world’s tallest lighthouse museum;
• fourteen galleries highlighting India’s maritime heritage starting from the Harappan  times till now;
• Coastal states pavilion displaying diverse maritime heritage of states and UTs; among others.

National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC)

• It is one of the major projects under Sagarmala scheme of MoPSW which has an edutainment approach.
• It is a first of its kind complex in India that will showcase India’s rich and diverse maritime heritage.

Lothal

• Lothal was one of the southernmost sites of the ancient Indus Valley civilization, located in the Bh?l region of the modern state of Gujar?t.
• Construction of the city is believed to have begun around 2200 BCE.
• Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), discovered Lothal in 1954.
• It had the world’s earliest known dock, which connected the city to an ancient course of the Sabarmati river on the trade route between Harappan cities in Sindh and the peninsula of Saurashtra.
• It  was a vital and thriving trade Centre in ancient times, with its trade of beads, gems, and valuable ornaments reaching the far corners of West Asia and Africa.
• The techniques and tools they pioneered for bead-making and in metallurgy have stood the test of time for over 4000 years.
• The Lothal site has been nominated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its application is pending on the tentative list of UNESCO.

SOURCE: THE HINDU, THE ECONOMIC TIMES, PIB