संवाद # 11: Scientist Dr Niraj Rai explains why days of Aryan Invasion/Migration Theory are numbered

Dr. Niraj Rai is a senior scientist at Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow. He did his PhD from Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad. Dr Niraj was one of authors of consequential paper published in 2019 in one of the world’s most prestigious publication (CELL). It was based on the DNA successfully extracted by Niraj and his team from a 2500 year old woman’s skeletal found in Rakhigarhi, Haryana which was the largest site of Indus-Sarasvati Valley or Harappa Civilisation. 0:00 Intro 1:15 From Africa to Rakhigarhi 3:42 What does Rakhigarhi DNA tells us 10:18 Harappans discovered agriculture independently 11:10 ‘Out of India’ migration in 2500 BC 13:48 How DNA traces ancestry 14:50 R1a1 gene - Aryan or Indian? 26:41 From Harappa to Vedas: Sanskrit, Saraswati, Jati-Varna 30:35 Why ancient DNA is hard to find in India 33:23 Ancient DNA samples from Ladakh 34:41 One DNA sample is good enough 36:32 Ancestral North Indians & Ancestral South Indians 38:00 Why no R1a1 in Rakhigarhi DNA 41:25 How old is R1a1 gene 42:02 DNA, mutations & Covid-19 origins 44:15 What Harappans used to eat and drink 45:55 Greek DNA from Roopkund, Uttarakhand 48:26 Rakhigarhi people ate meat 50:45 Did Harappans eat beef? 53:35 What diseases did Harappans suffer from? 55:03 Dr Niraj’s upcoming research papers 59:30 DNA of Indians castes 1:02:31 Ill effects of marrying within castes for generations 1:05:50 Why inter-caste marriages on mass scale are critical for Indians 1:08:40 Funding for DNA research 1:10:52 What areas Dr Niraj wants to research on in future 1:13:30 Conclusion