November 2025

ICHR under MoE

The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), an autonomous body under Ministry of Education, launched "The Arya History & Culture" project to compile new, evidence-based research on Aryans, covering 10 key areas 1. historicity, 2. linguistics, 3. literary traditions, 4. archaeology, 5. archaeometry (astronomy and astrology), 6. geology, 7. society and culture, 8. the river Saraswati, 9. genetics, and 10. environment.

6 months

The Council has set up a timeline of six months for the project.

Aims to beyond the existing theories

Aiming to move beyond outdated colonial theories like the Aryan invasion, it will publish a volume covering diverse aspects, bringing together scholarly works to advance a nuanced understanding of early Indian history and culture.

Objectives to compile all possible perspectives

Our objective is to compile all possible perspectives on the history of the Aryans, not simply present a counter-argument to colonial interpretations.

Include works of scholars

The project is likely to include the works of scholars of ancient civilisation and archaeology, including David Frawley, an American writer on Hindu traditions; Kapil Kapoor, an Indian scholar of history, linguistics, and literature; archaeologists Vasant Shinde and Sanjay Manjul; and Indologist Michel Danino, among others.

Invasion theory

The invasion theory is considered a colonial-era hypothesis, which claims that a group called the Aryans invaded the Indian subcontinent around 1500 BCE. They overpowered or displaced the people of the Indus Valley Civilisation and introduced Vedic culture, Sanskrit language and early Hindu religious traditions. the invasion theory, were framed to suggest that “Indian culture was borrowed”.

River Saraswati's origin challenging Max Muller's chronology

The Rigveda describes the Saraswati as an ever-flowing river, while geological and archaeological studies show it had dried up around 2000 BC. “There is scientific data supporting this, which means the Rigveda must have been composed before 2000 BC.” This challenges German philologist and Orientalist Max Müller’s chronology, which dated the Rigveda to around 1200 BC and formed the basis of the Aryan migration narrative.

Cultural continuity of Harappans, indicates no invasion

There was cultural continuity from the time of the Harappans, suggesting that the Harappans themselves may have authored the Rigveda, indicating there was no invasion.”

No evidence of warfare or invasion

there is no evidence for warfare or invasion, and described the theory of “Aryan migration” as a myth.

Tourism theory

The “tourism theory”, which is relatively colloquial one, suggests that the Aryans did not invade or permanently settle in India but visited the subcontinent periodically for trade, cultural exchange or seasonal movement.

The Indigenous Aryans Theory

The Indigenous Aryans theory, which claims that the Aryans were native to India and migrated from here to different parts of the world.

Changes made to 12th History book

Incorporate findings from DNA studies

last year, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) revised its Class 12 history textbook to incorporate findings from DNA studies from skeletons at Rakhigarhi, one of the largest ancient city sites of the Indus Valley Civilisation, located in Hisar district of Haryana.

Added new information

The text added new information that says Harappan genetic continuity dates back to 10,000 BCE and persists in present-day South Asians, suggesting that the Harappans and early Vedic people may have been closely connected, rather than the Aryans being external migrants.

Aryans = Vedic people

The Aryans and Vedic people are interchangeably mentioned in historical texts. Print