Town Planning in Ancient India c19.30

c19.30

The above sum up the grotesque and fantastic reasons that the exponents of Indian civic engineering philosophy have adduced in support of their interdicting the aforesaid positions in the matter of location of doors. They are too dogmatic and mysterious to appeal to a modern architect. But then it should be noticed that the principal and subsidiary gates make up, between themselves, as equable and symmetric distribution of the gates as possible. I am disposed to think that these fastidious regulations marked the inchoate stage of Indian townplanning, especially the period when the towns were no bigger than a small ward of a corporation in a modern city. Small dimensions of a town can favour such likes and dislikes of the civic architect. With the growth and expansion of the towns, such meticulous distinctions fell into desuetude and gates were opened wherever necessary. Thus Megasthenes has left accounts testifying to the existence of sixty-four gates in the city of Pāṭaliputra. It seems the civic architects of ancient India do not favour a large number of entrances into the city.¹ By the side of every gate a temple should be raised to the lord of the quarter. It may be interesting to note here that the renowned residential Universities of ancient India, e.g. Vikramaśilā, fortified that they were with walls, possessed splendid gates and a renowned savant, so was the rule, was placed in charge of each gate. He therefore had his lodge beside the gate and any student wishing to enter the University by the gate had to pass through an examination by him. Vikramaśilā had six such gates and Prajñākaramati, a renowned Bengali Pandit (savant) of the time was the guardian of the southern entrance.