Around 50-55 million years ago, in the geological past, a triangle of rocky land broke off from East Africa, drifted north in the Indian Ocean, and crashed into Eurasia. The immense force of the collision crumpled the Eurasian Plate, pushing up the landmasses to form the mighty Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau.

This collision continues to this day, contributing to the ongoing growth of these awe-inspiring mountain ranges. While the Himalayas rose in the north, the Deccan Plateau in central India was formed due to volcanic activity. The remaining forces sculpted the diverse landscapes of peninsular India. Over millions of years, rivers like the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra carved fertile plains and deltas, nurturing life and shaping the unique geography of the subcontinent.
 
 The first attempts to study the Stone Age in India, though begun over 150 years ago were of a casual and fragmentary character. India has progressed greatly in Prehistoric studies. After the proclamation of independence in 1947 there were great changes in the Archaeological studies of the Stone Age in India. In recent decades indigenous Archaeologists have been trained and an Indian school of Archaeology with its methods of investigation has been established. Today there exists a wide range of Archaeological Institutions in India along with a large number of Research Centres and Museums, coordinated by the Archaeology Department of India.
 
India is the home of one of the world's 'great' civilizations - its social structure as it exists today can be traced back thousands of years and empires of great size and complexity existed here far earlier than anything comparable. Even the mightiest of India's ancient civilizations did not encompass all of modern India and today it is still as much a country of diversities as of unities. Beyond India's history and development, its role as the birthplace of two of the world's great religions is enough to ensure its historical importance.