The ancient Indus Valley Civilization had sophisticated town planning principles between 15,000-3,000 BC. Cities were located along rivers for water and fertile soil. Streets were laid in a grid pattern divided into blocks. Central open areas and underground drainage systems served groups of houses. Later Indian texts from 6th century AD elaborate detailed rules for ideal city layout, architecture, and classification of settlements. Mohenjo-Daro exemplified these principles with planned streets and drainage. Town shapes recommended included square, rectangle, circle, and ellipse to align with cosmological beliefs.

1. ANCIENT INDIAN
TOWN PLANNING

2. History Of Human Settlement
2

3. History ofTowns in India : IndusValley
Civilization
(15000 B.C to 3000 B.C)
• Settlement along Indus and Saraswati river
• Settlements were located in good alluvial soil near a
water body of a tank, canal, river.
• Independent culture, wheels, use of metal, arithmetic , art of
expression, architecture.
• Knowledge of geometry, angles etc was known.
• Circular tubes for drainage and water supply.
• Based onVastu purush Mandala

4. TOWN PLANNING FEATURES
• A city has to be at the central portion of the country to facilitate
trade and commerce.
• Different types of goods need different market.
• The town should be divided into 3 east-west roads and 3 north
south roads.
• The main road should be 8 dandas wide and others 4 dandas
wide.
• The palace should be at the centre and all 4 varnas should be
living. Should not face north and east.
• One well in group of 10 houses.
• The houses of priest and ministers should face south – east.
And traders in the east, artists , army commanders etc in south.
• 3 Moat walls of 14 feet , 12 feet and 10 feet would surround
the city with a depth should be ¾ of the width of the wall.

5. • Street of 9m width divided the city in 12 blocks each of 365m x 244m.
• Layout of street was based on ‘grid-iron’ pattern.
•Series of houses were arranged around open-to-sky central court.
•They dependent fully on ventilation and roof lighting.
• Houses with G+1 storey made of kiln-brick with complete bathing establishment.
• City had effective system of drainage.
• It had a great bath of 7m width, 12m length and 2.4m depth made of bricks at bottom and was made
waterproof by providing layers of bitumen and it formed to be part of ritualistic bathing forming part of
hindu temple.
TOWN PLANNING FEATURES

6. • ElaborateTreatise ofTown Planning of ancient India (6th A.D.)
• Chapters onTown planning, Building Construction was linked to astrology.
Sthapatya Veda - part of Atharva Veda
Smriti Shastra - layout of a city
Arthashastra - treatises on architectural planning, construction and design;
Manasara Shilpa Shastra
Ancient building code Vaastu Shastra street layouts (micro & macro)
• Designing houses
• Planning cities and communities
• Deals with architecture and spatial organisation of residential quarters.
Soil Study
Climate
Topography
Orientation
Layouts of towns

7. Silpasasthras refers to four distinct categories of habitation settlements within the forts and fortified cities;
1. Janabhavanas : houses for common mass.
2. Rajbhavanas : palaces and gorgeous mansions for ruling class.
3. Devabhavanas : religious shrines.
4. The public buildings such as public rest house, public gardens, public libraries, public tents, reservoirs,
and wells.
Samaranganasutradhara – “architect of human dwellings”
has given a list of 50 establishments including administrative and domestic structures.
Mayamata – Viswakarma - Grama Vidhana & Nagara Vidhana
Vaastu Purush Mandala A traditional city designed according to the principles of
sacred geometry was based on cosmological theories.

8. MOHENJODARO
(1) The construction technique was very well advanced, buildings were made of sundried bricks.
(2) Buildings ranged from two rooms to mansions of many rooms.
(3) Underground drainage and sewerage systems were also provided to the houses.
(4) The principle buildings were the monastery and bath, indicating the influence of religion as the main source of the
development of the culture and defence was felt not as important.
(5) There was an all round development of arts and craft, science and technology.Thus the ruins show an excellent way of
adjusting to the contours.
(6) Trade and commerce flourished during this time.
Above indicates a very advanced civilization.

9. Vastu Shastra recommends five shapes of a town
1. Chandura; square 2.Agatara; rectangle 3.Vritta; circle 4. KrittaVritta; elliptical 5. GolaVritta; full circle Town planning
Eight types of towns and villages as per their shapes.
Dandaka, Nandyavarta, Sarvotobhadra, Prastara, Chaturmukha, Padmaka, Swastika.

11. Dandaka type of town plan provides for two main entrance
gates
Generally adopted for small towns and villages,
The village offices being located in the east.
The female deity of the village or the chamadevata will
generally be located outside the village
The male deities in the northern portion.
Grid road
DANDAKA
PADMAKA

12. SWASTIKA PRASTARA