The journey
of man animation on the Bradshaw foundation site shows how man reached
various continents moving out of Africa starting around 150,000 years back.
According to the journey, humans reached India around 85,000 years back and went
to Sri Lanka and Indonesia. Then, around 74,000 years back, there was an
eruption in Toba in Sumatra called the Youngest Toba Tuff (YTT) which resulted
in an ice age and volcanic ash covering India. It is believed that the volcanic
ash flung into the atmosphere blocked sunlight resulting in a nuclear winter.
There was also a population reduction and according to one model, present day
humans are descendants of few survivors of the
Toba
catastrophe.
Investigation of the Toba ash deposited in an Andhra Pradesh village called
Jwalapuram in Kurnool district has revealed that
the
blast was not that catastrophic and that some of the hunter gatherers of
India survived. Stone blades and other tools as well red ochre used
in cave paintings were found both above and below the ash layer indicating that
whoever lived at that time survived and there was technological continuity.
These tools were also similar to the ones used to the ones found in Africa
around the same time indicating that Indians
had
closer affinities to African stone age traditions than European ones. It
also validates the theory that humans took the route from Africa, through Arabia
into India and that India was populated much before Europe. The best evidence to
seal the argument would be the discovery of fossil evidence, either human or
Neanderthal, but none has been found.
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