Human inhabitation  in the Indian subcontinent is traced to the Paleolithic  and Neolithic period. Dated from about 2500 to 1500 BC. This civilization is considered to be at par with the other civilizations of the world .

Sir John Marshal, the director general of archaeology with his team excavated sites at Sind and Punjab. The ruins at Mohenjodaro in the Larkana  district of Sind in the lower Indus and at  Harappa on the banks of the Ravi has brought to light the existence of the Indus valley civilization. These excavations were further supported by the discovery in 1931 at Chanhudaro near Mohenjodaro. Traces of the Indus valley civilization was discovered at Rupar in Ambala district and Rangpur, and Lothal in Saurashtra, Bharatpur in Rajasthan, Kalibangan in the Burdwan district of West Bengal are a proof of the existence of the Indus valley civilization. Harappa being the main source of knowledge about the civilization historians also call  this civilization as the Harappan culture.