Ancient town planning including mansara and mahamata shilpshastra

1. ANCIENT TOWN PLANNING
PRINCIPLES AND TECHNIQUES
EVOLUTION OF SETTLEMENT AND PLANNING
PROCESS
PRESENTED TO :-
DR. NIMRITA MEHROTRA
PRESENTED BY:-
PRAGYA CHATURVEDI

2. INTRODUCTION
• The planning of towns, cities, and villages was done on a scientific footing
in India has existed since the civilisation came into existence and even in
Vedic times. Some principles and theories of town planning are contained
in the literature of ancient times such as Rig Veda , Atharva veda , Yajur
Veda , Puranas , Samhitas , Shilpa-Shastras , Niti-shastra , Smriti-shastras ,
etc. It is quite clear that principles underlying the planning of an ancient
Indian village more or less resembled those of the mordern garden cities.
• The nature and growth of towns and cities were governed by the site
conditions. The towns were generally situated on river banks , by the sea
shore or by the side of a big lake. A flowing stream was always preferred
for sanitary requirements. The towns on river banks usually were of oblong
shape to take maximum advantage of the river.
• In vedic period i.e., upto 400 B.C., the scientifical town planning was done.
The town planning principles are mentioned in sacred Hindu texts.
• In ‘Mansara Shilpa-Shastra’ some of the aspects of the planning aspects
are likely to study soil, climatic condition, wind direction, orientation of
building to get maximum advantage of sun, topography, etc, are mentioned

3. INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION
(3300-1900 B.C.E.)

4. • The Indus Valley Civilization (IVC) was a pre vedic phenomena and in
fact, it is referred to as the Harrappan Civilization. It was spread over an
area of 13 lakh sq. km. It has five ports namely Lothal, Kuntasi, in India
while rest three Bagalkot, Sutka-Gendor, Sutkoi lie in Pakistan.
• The IVC originated in the bronze age i.e. when there was no iron. It was
also an urban civilization and for an urban civilization to flourish, there
needs to be surplus agricultural production. To create this surplus, it is
necessary to have effective agricultural instruments. Without iron, only
wooden plough was effective in soil in semi arid conditions, thus site near
Indus was appropriate.
• The major cities flourished were:-
Harrapa
Mohenjodaro
Lothal
Kalibangan
Rangpur, etc.

5. TOWN PLANNING CONCEPTS
• Sophisticated & advanced urban culture
• Streets in perfect grid patterns in both Mohenjo-Daro & Harappa
• World‟s first sanitation system
• Individual wells and separate covered drains along the streets for waste
water
• Houses opened to inner courtyards & smaller lanes
• Impressive dockyards, granaries, warehouses, brick platforms & protective
walls
• Massive citadels protected the city from floods & attackers
• City dwellers – traders & artisans
• All the houses had access to water & drainage facilities

6. DEVELOPMENT OF CITIES
• Cities grew out of earlier villages that existed in the same locality for <100
yrs.
• Grew in size & density and surrounded by numerous towns & villages
• Cities interlinked by trade & economic activities, religious beliefs, social
• relations etc.
• Vast agricultural lands, rivers & forests by pastoral communities , fisher
• Folk and hunters surrounded each city.
CLASSIFICATION OF TOWNS
• Small villages / hamlets – 0 – 10 hectares
• Large towns – 10- 50 hectares
• Cities – 50 hectares

7. MOHEN JO-DARO

8. MOHENJO-DARO
• The city is located on two mounds. The
estimated population was 40,000-
60,000. the city was divided into 12
blocks by 9m wide street. The length
and breadth of each block 365mX244m
resp.
• The streets were divided into grid iron
plan.
• Houses were constructed with brick
walls and of varying sizes and storeys.
• Every house contained central open
space.
• No direct entry was provided from
main road. A common well was
provided between the blocks.
• An effective and sound drainage system
was provided on either sides of roads
with sufficient number of manholes.

9. MOHENJO-DARO
• The roads were wide. Market halls,
granries, college, offices were
systematically planned.
• No fortification
• Major streets in north south direction.
• Intersection at right angles.
• Streets within built up areas were
narrow.
• Distinct zoning for different groups.
SETTLEMENT DIVISIONS
• Religious, institutional & cultural
areas – around monastery &
great bath in the western part
• North – agriculture & industries
• South – administration, trade &
commerce

10. MOHENJO-DARO

11. GREAT BATH
• 12x7x3 m in dimensions
• Earliest public water tank in
ancient world.
• Ledge extends for the entire
width of pool.
• Watertight floor – thick layer of
bitumen.
• Floor slopes in south west corner
with a small outlet.
Connecting to a brick drain
Rooms located in the east

12. GREAT GRANARY
• 50x40 m in dimension, 4.5 m tall
massive mud brick foundation
• 2 rows of six rooms along a
central passageway [7m wide &
paved with baked bricks]
• Each room 15.2x6.1 m has 3
steeper walls with airspace
between a wooden superstructure
supported in some places by large
columns would have been built on
top of the brick foundations, with
stairs leading up from the central
passage area.
• Small triangular openings – air
ducts for fresh air beneath hollow
floors
• The large size of the granary
probably indicates a highly
developed agricultural civilization

13. SATTILITE IMAGE

14. HARRAPPA

15. HARRAPPA
• Citadel mound and lower town
surrounded by a massive brick wall.
• Citadel had square towers and
bastions.
• Large open areas inside the gateway
may have been used as a market or
checkpoint for taxing goods coming
into the city outside the city walls.
• A cluster of houses may represent
temporary rest stops for travellers
and caravans no division of the
society is reflected in the layout of
the city. Since large public buildings,
market areas, large and small houses
as well as craft workshops have been
found in the same neighbourhood.
• Barrack-like group of single-roomed
tenements were for poorer classes.

16. LOTHAL

17. • Lothal is believed to be 3,700 years old and is the only major port-town of
the IVC, discovered so far. The site itself is small, at 7 hectares, and is 18
times smaller than Mohenjo-daro. It displays many of the features that
make the Harappan Civilization distinct, like the division of the town into
two sections – the Upper Town and Lower Town – and advanced town
planning.
• The town has thick peripheral walls, which are 12 to 21 metres long.
These were probably built to protect the town from tidal floods, which
ravaged the city periodically. It is believed that these floods may have
ultimately destroyed it. What really sets Lothal apart is its dock.
• At the northern end of the town is a basin with a vertical wall, an inlet and
outlet channels. This has been identified as a „tidal dockyard‟. Satellite
images show that the river channel, now dry, would have brought in
considerable volumes of water during high tide. This would have filled
the basin and facilitated the sailing of boats upstream.
• The basin exhibits a remarkable knowledge of hydraulics and tides, which
further supports the assumption that this was a dock and not an irrigation
tank, as some archaeologists contend.

18. • Archaeologists have also identified the remains of stone anchors, marine
shells and seals, which can be traced to the Persian Gulf. These, along
with a structure identified as a warehouse, strongly suggest that Lothal
was a port with a dock.
TOWN PLANNING
• The Upper Town or the citadel is located in the south-eastern corner and
is demarcated by mud-brick platforms 4 metres high instead of a
fortification wall. Within the citadel are wide streets, drains and rows of
bathing platforms. These suggest a planned layout. In this enclosure is a
large structure identified as a warehouse with a square platform and
whose partly charred walls retain the impression of sealings.

20. SATTILITE IMAGE

21. VEDIC CIVILISATION
(1500-500 B.C.E.)
• India is country which passes huge ancient knowledge in the form of
Vedas. “Vedas”.
• There are four Vedas in ancient wisdom.
Rig-Veda- Termed as stuti of gods.
Samavda- Describes about how to pronounce mantras.
Yujurveda- It describes how to perform Yagya.
Arthaveda- It describes art of living.
• Vedas are further divided in various branches and Vastu Shastra is one of
them. It comes from Sthapatya Veda- where stapthya means to establish
and veda means knowledge therefore.
• “ Vastu can be defined as knowledge of establishment”

22. EVOLUTION
PHYSIOGRAPHIC CHARACTER
• Temperature was moderate, around Northern and southern part of Vindhyas.
• There was no earthquake and land was plain.
• Wild life was abundant in foothills.
• Cultivation was easy and no need for irrigation.
• Supply of snow-fed water.
• Land between Hindukush, Suleman Hills, the Himalayas and the seas to the
south were
• secured.
• The Gangetic plains were probably a marshy land.
POWER AND POLITICS
• No need to defence against other communities or invasion.
• Hence, communities were small, little need for political or economic
leadership.

23. SOCIO- CULTURAL MILIEU
• Little or no social stratification.
• There was no need for any division of labour for production, defence
administration and storages.
• Agriculture gave surplus and spare time to spend. So Art, Philosophy, Science,
Ethics and religion developed.
• Religious life was influenced by saints and sages.
• Philosophic thinking nurtured.
• Science developed : Astronomy, integers and zero was invented.
ECONOMIC
• The economy was principally agriculture: security of life did not need to develop
storage of food grains.
• No specific economic leadership.
TECHNOLOGY
• No industries, no need of defence, hence no major construction
• Little need of heavy transport.
• No need of utilities and services as the settlement were closer to water bodies

24. VARIOUS ASPECTS FOR
DEVELOPEMENT
POWER AND ADMINISTRATION ASPECTS
• People around his area were more aggressive and had repeated invasions
• Political leadership was the focal point.
• Insecurity in life increased the importance of religion- belief and looking
towards the divine for security.
SOCIALASPECTS
• The invasion led to social stratification – conqueror and the defeated.
• The defeated as captives and slaves were put into agricultural works and
clustered around religious centers.
• The conqueror were higher castes and not into agriculture
• One leader – political cum storage in charge – at some central location –
surrounded by higher caste people engaged in defense in administration
• Another leader – Religious leader – another central location-surrounded
priests and people of higher castes.

25. ECONOMIC ASPECTS
• Economy was principally agricultural
• Agriculture is space extensive
• Granary and storage was important – This space needed protection
hence was located near the defense leader‟s area at the centre.
TECHNOLOGICAL ASPECTS
• Hardly any industrial activity
• Impact of straight and parallel lines were derived by the terracing of agricultural
land and the dams which was the origin of the ziggurats.
• Transportation was on foot . Inter settlement transportation was on water.
• Level of water In the rivers change and hence special protection wall were
needed.
• The river and the spine of transportation divided the settlement into two parts..

26. VEDIC ERA PLANNING
• The Indo Aryan planning is explained in the Shilpa-Shastra and in Puranas.
Vastushastra or Vastuvidhya- the “science of abode” forms a sub division of
ShilpaShastra.
• Town planning in Ancient India is evident from various ancient texts and
puranas. Various vastu shastra text like artha sastra of kautilya and Sukra
Nitisara. These texts illuminate the development of civic art. According to
these texts ancient tows are categorized on the basis of size, shape and
purpose.
ACCORDING TO SIZE
• Rajdhani - The capital of the king.
• Sakhanagra – All other categories of town besides Pura.
• Karvata - Smaller Town
• Nigma - Smaller then Karvata
• Grama - Smaller than Nigma

27. • Mansara Shilpashastra deals with many aspects of town planning such as study
of soil, climatic conditions, topography, fixing orientation to get maximum
advantage of the sun and wind, and layout of various types of town plans such
as Dandaka, Swastika, Padmaka, Nandyavarta, Prastara, Chaturmukha,
Karmukha.
• According to Mansara, the probable site for the proposed settlement was to be
examined and its fitness was determined from its smell, colour, shape,
direction, sound and touch. For example:
1. The ground should be smooth and levelled.
2. It should produce a hard sound.
3. The odour of site should be agreeable when dugged to the depth of man, with
his arms raised above his head.
4. Temperature of site should be moderate.
5. Any site which does not possess such qualities is not fit for habitation.

28. • According to Mayashastra (another Vastu treatise),
1. The ground must slope towards North-East.
2. It should be fertile for all kinds of seeds.
3. The earth of the site should have white, red, yellow or black colour.
4. It should have a variety of tastes and should have a mixture of sand.
5. A southward slope was said to bring death; south-west brought suffering;
and if town is built on western slope, it would lead to war.
6. The predominant wind direction in India is from SW to NE direction.
7. If site slopes towards this direction, the houses will be exposed to storm
and rain.

29. DANDAKA
• Literally means a phalanx or a staff.
• It is usually a rectangular or square.
• Its streets are straight and cross each
other at right angles.
• No. of streets vary from one to five
running parallel to each other.
• Streets at extrems have single row of
houses and streets at center are lined
with double row of houses.
• Town offices and panchyats are
located in the eastern portion of the
town.
• This type of town is considered
auspicious for Brahmins. It may
contain 12,24,50,108,or 300 Brahmin
families.

30. NANDYAVARTA
• It may be square or Oblong.
• It is divided in 4 main vitthis.
• The town has four large streets along
the sides..
• There can be three. Five or seven sets
of such streets, with a row of houses
on each side.
• The lanes which are traverse between
the main roads should have no
houses.
• Vithis is a streets which is lined with
houses.
• Marga is a streets which is devoid of
any houses.
• Small roads are at interval of six or
seven rajjus (1 Rajju = 10 dandas =
60 feet).

31. PADMAKA
• This type of plan was practiced for
building of the towns with fortress all
round and gates on four sides.
• The pattern of the plan resembles the
petals of lotus radiating outwards from
the center.
• The city used to be practically an island
surrounded by water, having no scope
for expansion.
• Its Length and Breadth are made equal
while the enclosing walls are circular or
it can be quadrangular, hexagonal, or
octagonal.
• The divide edifice or council house
should be at the center.

32. KARMUKHA
• Literally means a Bow.
• Its shape is semi circular or semi
elliptical, like a bow.
• This type of plan is made near
waterbody mainly rivers and sea shore.
• Towns like Pattana, Kheta, or Khavarta
are planned in this manner.
• Pattana has preponderance of viasyas.
• Kheta is generally inhabited by Traders
and Laborers.
• It has two car streets and one principal
streets.
• If bow faces west then one car streets
runs from south to east and other from
north to east and principal street runs
from west to east and other runs from
north to south.
• No. of traverse streets can be from
one to five.
• Houses range on both side of
them.
• It may have desirable no. of gates
and circumvallation is optional.

33. PRASTARA
• Literally it means a village resembling
a couch
• This town is either square or oblong.
• Space is divided into 4, 9, or 16 wards
by a network of streets.
• These streets vary from 6,7, 8, 9, or 11
dandas.
• In wards roads are planted in chess
board system. But they are not divide
in equal no of plots division was
according to degree of rank or wealth
of the person.
• The village is enclosed walls and
ditches with four principal gates on
south andsubsidiary ones in the corners

34. SWASTIKA
• Based on mystic figure swastika.
• There are two streets passing through
center.
• Traversing streets are planted in clock
wise direction.
• Ramparts defend the village and a ditch
is to enclose these rampart.
• There were eight gates.
• Temple at the center.
• Temples of durga and ganesh in four
directi.
• The outer most road is lined with single
row of houses while other streets have
double row of houses.
• The site need not be marked out into a
square or rectangle and it may be of any
shape.

35. SARVATOBHADRA
• Literally means bliss full for all
• This type of town plan is applicable to
larger villages and towns, which have to
be constructed on a square sites.
• According to this plan, the whole town
should be fully occupied by houses of
various descriptions and inhabited by all
classes of people.
• The temple dominates the village.
• Hamlets for vaisyas and shudras should
be allotted towards the south.
• Drapers and weavers have their quarters
in between west and the south west.
• Tanks and reservoirs should be
constructed either in south or in the
intermediate quaters.

36. CHATURMUKHA
• It is square or oblong in shape lying
east- west.
• There are four car streets on four sides.
• Two large streets crossing at right angles
in the center dividing the whole site into
four blocks or wards.
• Four principal gates are raised placed on
the terminus of two roads and no. of
supplementary gates at corner.
• Each ward is planted with four smaller
roads crossed by same no. of them.
• The south eastern ward is alloted for
Brahmins.
• South- western for ruling class.
• North- Eastern and North- western to
traders.
• Sudras or artisians and labour class are
relegated to the extreme borders.

37. CHANAKYA’S ARTHASHASTRA
• Congested town, should be freed of surplus population.
• „Sangrahan‟ (collection register / tax collector) - 10 villages, „Sarvatik‟ among
200, „dronamukh‟ (chief) among 400 and „Sthaniya‟ among 800 Migrated
people in new settlement exempted from payment of taxes for some years.
• NEW VILLAGE – higher proportion of agriculturists and shudras.
• Market - sale of goods received from traders on highways.
• Dams - constructed over rivers nalas.
• Temples and gardens should be provided.
• Arrangements for the aged, the children and informal persons.
• Cereals and wealth will grow if the agriculturists are kept busy. Attempts
should be
• Made to protect and increase quarries, forests and canals.

38. CHANAKYA’S ARTHASHASTRA
• A city - located centrally to facilitate
trade and commerce.
• The site - large in area, and near a
perennial water body .
• Shape - circular, rectangular or
square as would suit the topography.
• Separate areas for marketing
different goods.
• Wall around the town, - 6 dandas
high and 12 dandas wide. Beyond
this wall there should be three moats
of 14„, 12‟ and 10‟ wide to be
constructed four arm-length apart.
Depth – 3/4th of width. Three-east
west and three north – south roads,
should divide the town.
• The main roads should be 8 dandas
wide and other roads 4 dandas wide.
• 1 well for 10 houses.

39. VARANASI

40. ORIGIN
The city originated with the creation
of Manikarnika ghat.
• Lord Shiva and Parvathi made
Vishnu to handover “Kashi”
• “Who so ever should have died in
Kashi shall reach salvation”- myth in
Vedas
• Lord Vishnu created pool
(Manikarnika Kund) and filled it with
his sweat as ordered by Lord Shiva &
Goddess Parvati.
• The name Manikarnika refers to the
jewel of Lord shiva‟s ear ring.
• The ear ring was studded with a
pearl “MUKTA”- so the sacred place
“tirtha” should confer “ MUKTI”

41. GEOMORPHIC ORIGIN
• City develop along the concave bank but not along
convex bank in spite of fact, that the concave bank
is vulnerable to erosion.
• On the concave bank, the water of the channel flows
touching the lower part of the bank/natural levee,
hence water is accessible easily.
• On the other hand, the water along the convex bank
recedes (away from the settlement after once it is
established) along with the progradation of the bank
due to continuous depositional process. This is
exactly the reason why large habitations develop
over the natural levees along the concave bank.
• The concave bank is erosional and the convex bank
is depositional in nature.
• The concave bank can cave in and cause destruction
and the convex bank prograde by continuous
deposition preventing easy accessibility to water .
• That means the early habitations like Varanasi
developed along the concave banks with a clear
understanding of river channel processes.

42. SPATIAL CHARACTERSTICS
• The city‟s profile consisted
of three mounds resembling
Lord Shiva‟s trishool and
those three mounds are still
considered sacred.
• Areas located in near
proximity to river were
considered significant and
thus upper class used to
reside there.

43. ARYAN SETTLEMENT
Due to dried bed of the Sarasvati river
Aryan group marched towards the east
clearing dense forests and establishing
"tribal" settlements along the Ganga
and Yamuna (Jamuna) plains between
1500 and ca. 800 B.C. By around 500
B.C. and reached the bank of the
Sadanira (Gandaki) river.

44. ARYAN SETTLEMENT• “Permanent settlements and agriculture led to
trade and other occupational differentiation.
As lands along the Ganga were cleared, the
river became a trade route, the numerous
settlements on its banks acting as markets.
Trade was restricted initially to local areas,
and barter was an essential component of
trade, cattle being the unit of value in large
scale transactions, which further limited the
geographical reach of the trader” – (Singh
Rana,2009).
ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES
• Based on karmukha plan
• Burnt bricks, limestone, Concrete, mud and wood.
• Open spaces between adjacent houses and
segregating lanes.
• Wells situated close to the buildings
• Most of the houses had three to four rooms and an
inner courtyard
• Ditches &Drains near the house blocks indicated
functioning sewerage system

45. GUPTA ERA
Gupta Period was know as golden age
• Time of Great Religious Vitality and transformations
• The Vaishnava tradition of Hindu Religion was introduced
• Cults like Skanda, Surya and folk were given recognition
• Evidences of business, educational institutes and importance of forest could be
found
• In literature the theology, symbolism and manifestations of Shiva became
prominent and the earliest Puranas like the Vayu, Markandeya, and Matsya were
written.
• The Varanasi Stone Pillar Inscription of Buddhagupta, (CE 478), found in Rajghat,
promoted the establishment of religious monuments
• The use of burnt brick for building of storehouses, temples, and shrines
• The main road ran north-south, parallel to the Ganga with buildings on either side,
was regarded one of the main road passing through the heart of the city
• The association of the Shivlingas and a ghats was given religious meaning and
ritual
• Was thickly populated, prospering, and combination of congested houses separated
by narrow lanes, gardens and groves, and water pools with lotus flowers.

46. JAIPUR

47. PLANNING
• It is a model of town planning the first
planned city in India. It is based on
Hindu systems of townplanning and
followed the principles prescribed in
the Shilpa-shastra, an ancient Indian
treatise on architecture .according to
this shastra the site should be divided
into grids or mandalas ranging from 2x
2 to 10 x 10.
• Planned according to the Prastara type
of layout, which gives prominence to
the cardinal directions.
• Thus plan of jaipur is a grid of 3x3
with gridlines being the city‟s main
streets

48. • The central axis of the town was laid from East to West between the gates of the
Sun(Suraj pol) and the moon(Chandpol) .
• This was crossed by two roads at right angles dividing the town into nine almost
square, almost equally sized blocks, which were further sub divided by lanes and
alleys all at right angles.
• By building the western boundary of the city right up to the hill‟s southern apex,
it provided a continuous line of defense.
• The mandala could not be complete in the NW due to the presence of the hills.
• On the other hand in the SE an extra square has been added that plugged the gap
between the city and the eastern hills.

49. • South of the main road were four
almost equal rectangles.
• The rectangle opposite the palace
has been broken up into two equal
and smaller rectangles by the
Chaura Rasta. Thus altogether there
are now five rectangles on the
south of the main road called
Chowkris.
• On the North of the main road from
West to East are the Purani Basti,
the Palace and Ramchandraji.
• The principal bazaar leads from the
western gate in the city wall,
• The Chandpole, passing in front of
the Tripolia Gate, to the eastern city
gate, the Surajpole.

50. • The palace building covered two blocks, the
town six and the remaining ninth block was not
usable on account of steep hills. So this North-
West ward was transferred to the South-East
corner of the city, making the shape of the plan
as a whole asymmetrical rather than square.
• The city‟s division into nine wards was also
conformity with the Hindu caste system, which
necessitated the segregation of people
belonging to different communities and ranks.
• Even the lanes were named after the
occupations of inhabitants such as
Maniharonka Rasta, Thatheronka Rasta many
others.
• Following the directions of the Hindu Shilpa
shastra, width of the main streets & other lanes
were fixed. Thus the main streets of the city
were 111ft. wide, secondary streets 55 ft. wide
& the smaller ones 27ft. wide.

51. ROAD NETWORK
• Jaipur‟s road network follows
a definite hierarchy. The
major east-west and north
south road ,form the sector
boundaries and are called
Rajmarg as they lead to the
city gates. These measure
33m. wide.
• Next there is a network of
16.5m wide which runs north-
south in each sector linking
the internal areas of the
sectors to the major activity
spine.
• An orthogonal grid of
8.25mx4.00m roads in the
prastara-chessboard pattern
further divide sectors into
Mohallas.

52. THANK YOU