Bet Dwarka

Bet Dwarka or Shankhodhar is an inhabited island at mouth of Gulf of Kutch situated 3km off the coast of Okha, Gujarat, India. The island is measured northwest to southeast in 13km with an average 4km in east-west direction. It is a strip of sand and stone situated 30km north of town of Dwarka.HistoryBet Dwarka is considered a part of the ancient city in Indian epic literature Dvārakā, the abode of Krishna, found in Mahabharata and Skanda Purana. Gujarati scholar Umashankar Joshi suggested that Antardvipa in Sabha Parva of Mahabharata can be identified as Bet Dwarka as Yadava of Dwarka said to travel to it by boats. It derived its name Shankhodhar as the island is a large source of conch shells (Shankh). Archeological remains found under the sea suggest the existence of settlement during Late Harappan period of Indus Valley Civilization or immediately after it. It can be reliably dated to times of Maurya Empire. It was a part of Okha Mandal or Kushdwip area. Dwarka is mentioned in the copper inscription dated 574 AD of Simhaditya, the minister of Vallabhi under Maitraka. He was the son of Varahdas, the king of Dwarka.