Human skeletons, said to be around 150 years old, have been found in a farm here and the authorities are seeking a study by archaeologists to determine whether they relate to a mass burial of freedom fighters during the British rule.
“We have recommended that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) study the case as people of the region related the mass burials to pre-Independence era when freedom fighters declared Mohammadi tehsil a free state and fought a pitched war against the British troops somewhere between 1856 and 1858,” a senior official said.
“Human skeletons in large numbers were found buried in Badhera village, 30 km from here,” the Circle Officer of Mohammadi, Subhash Chandra Gangwar said, adding the bones, skulls and skeletons seem to be around 150 years old.
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The police have sent a report to the District Magistrate seeking a survey of the area and analysis of the remains by the ASI.
Officials are puzzled over the recovery, as in their records there was no burial ground from where the findings were made while the farm was being dug under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme a few days back.
“We were taken aback as this is not a place recorded as graveyard,” the Mohammadi tehsildar said.
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“It is not possible to count the exact number of skeletons lying buried in the field but certainly dozens of skeletons are there,” Mr. Gangwar said.
The administration has stopped further digging till investigations are over.