KUTCH

Kutch is a district that lies on the northwestern end of the State of Gujarat in India, along the borders of Pakistan. To the north, lies the desert wastes of the Great Rann and to the south the Arabian Sea.

Some say that the name Kutch has been derived from the word Kachchua, tortoise (that which emerged from the sea) and was, early in time, referred to as Kutchwadeep or Kutchbet which meant Kutch Island.

Deep in the mists of the past, say geologists, seismic disturbances raised the land of Kutch out of the sea…the shell of the tortoise became visible above the waters in the northern most part of the Arabian Sea which later came to be known as the Gulf of Kutch. The land remained surrounded by water for some time, before earthquakes lifted and tilted it once more, narrowing the distance from the mainland. The sea’s arm stretched in from the Gulf on the western end, up across the north western, north, and northeastern side and emerged at the eastern and southeastern end. Continuing land-shifts tilted the land further and drained out the sea, revealing the savage wastes of the Great Rann.