The prehistoric age in India dates back to the start of the Stone age or the Paleolithic age and then ends with the Iron age just before the Indus valley civilization. The prehistoric period is roughly dated to be from 200000 BC to around 3500-2500BC when the shaping of the first civilization took place. The Paleolithic Age is also known as the Old stone age. It dates from 500,00-10,000BCE. During this period, Indians belonged to the 'Negrito' race. The Lower Paleolithic age was the Ice Age which mainly consisted of hunters and gatherers. Crudely carved out stones were used by people for hunting. The characteristics of the tools used by people in the paleolithic age were very rough and with the end of this period, human beings started making and using fire. The Middle Paleolithic Age was part of the old stone age where human beings started making pointed and sharp tools such as flakes, blades, and pointers. They used specialized tools for killing small animals and also for tearing the flesh from dead, hunted animals. The case was the last phase of the Ice Age when the climate became comparatively warm.