Hasmukh Dhirajlal Sankalia (English: Hasmukh Dhirajlal Sankalia, born- 10 December, 1908, Mumbai; died- 28 January, 1989, Pune) was an Indian archaeologist. In 1974, he was awarded ‘Padma Bhushan’ by the Government of India in the field of administrative service. He was considered an expert in ancient Indian history. The cheerful Dhirajlal Sankalia is said to have pioneered archaeological excavation techniques in India, with several important discoveries from prehistoric times to his credit.
Hansmukh Dheerajlal Sankalia was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra in a family of lawyers hailing from Gujarat. He did B.A. with Sanskrit subject. degree. At the age of fifteen, cheerful Dheerajlal Sankalia read Lokmanya Tilak’s Gujarati translation of Arctic Home in the Vedas. Although he knew little about this book. In 1966, he received ‘Ranjitram Suvarna Chandrak Award’.
