Town Planning in Ancient India c15.45

c15.45

A reference to the relevant chapters will show that even in the planning of streets and distribution of public buildings and places there was a great diversity of arrangement. I have only to draw notice to the different types of towns known as Daṇḍaka, Nandyāvarta and so on. I may recount here that all the sites were not planned in the same style (vide Ch. VIII). As regards the planning of plots and distribution of public buildings, it is to be noted that the royal mansions, the council house, the quarters of the premier and other imperial officials, the tenements of the different castes, artisans and traffickers were variously distributed in various towns. The style of architecture after which the buildings were constructed also contributed to the development of the individuality. It should be borne in mind that diversity was not attained at the sacrifice of harmony and concord. Every building in a certain quarter or along same street was not constructed after a style different from the rest. Such an architectural chaos will be repugnant to the view. Indeed, on the contrary, a sort of structural unity and architectural uniformity, (but not of the Procrustean type), as in Jaipur, marked the buildings ranging along a particular street.