Pakistan’s Mohenjo-Daro Damaged by Heavy Rain

ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN—Al Jazeera reports that 55 inches of rain in southeastern Pakistan have caused significant damage to Mohenjo-Daro, a 4,500-year-old city of the Indus Valley civilization that was discovered in 1922 and named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. “The original structure is safe by and large, including the stupa at the site,” said Abdul Fatah Shaikh, director of archaeology and museums for Sindh province. “However, the protective layer, also called mud slurry, that we deployed suffered a lot of damage, causing exposure of the original walls.” The ancient city’s drainage and water management systems helped to protect the site from accumulating standing water, he added. Conservation work has begun to protect the ancient structures from irreparable damage. To read about the burial of a Harappan couple that was unearthed in northern India, go to "A Plot of Their Own."