Town Planning in Ancient India c14.s3.1

c14.s3.1

Other minor centres were the serais, the theatres, and the markets. The Mahābhārata (Ch. 69 of the Śāntiparva) cites the following centres—a market, a field for athletics, a hall of the nobility, a pleasure garden, a garden, the assembly of officials, and the council. I need not repeat that serais were placed at the cross-sections of highways. Tanks were attached to them. There were also special halls exclusively meant for ascetics. “The public rest-houses or choultries were constructed either by the state or by private citizens in the town. It was usual to construct a ‘chattram’ on some good locality with ample open space around it.”¹ In the markets lanes were carefully laid out. No carriage, even that of the king, was allowed admission into them. Mr. Ayyar furnishes us with a description of the market of Kaveripumpattinam; “The central market was situated in a wide open area between the two important divisions of the city. Each stall floated a flag bearing the name of the article sold therein. The stumps of freshly cut trees were planted in front of these stalls, that they might afford a cool shade and breeze. The sun-shade in front of these stalls was raised on these stumps so that they served the double purpose of serving as support for the roof in front of the stalls while providing fresh air in a busy place. As each stall had thus a tree in front of it, the market presented the lively appearance of a park. In the centre of the area set apart for the market and where the main streets intersected, there was a temple dedicated to the Guardian Deity of the city. Here was a temple with a tree and a shrine.¹ There were also town-halls (sabhā or nagara-mandira). These centres and places are signified by the word *manram* in Tamil literature, which means " a public hall, a public place of worship, a place of public resort, public walk or maidan, a law-court with the guardian deity of Justice installed therein, a public bath or park." Any ward allotted to men of a particular caste or profession contained a hall where the confraternity or the guild of these persons periodically met to debate and transact corporate business. These constituted supplementary local centres.