ABSTRACT
Most summaries of the prehistoric evidence for subsistence from India and Pakistan emphasize the introduction of crops from Southwest Asia (wheat, barley, peas, lentils and flax) or from Asia and Africa (rice and the millets). This chapter concentrates on the former set of evidence, making only brief comments on how such plants are presently used and how far these uses provide some window on the longer-term past. Several species of winter cereals, legumes and other crops were domesticated in Southwest Asia (Smartt and Simmonds 1995), and several of these are found at Mehrgarh, Pakistan (seventh millennium bc). A major subsistence change almost equal to the use of Southwest Asian crops for winter cultivation and crop rotation was that brought about through the use of African crops. African sorghum and millet culture played an important role in the agricultural history of India following the opening up of opportunities for rainfed agriculture and mixed (crop cultivation and animal husbandry) farming systems.
