History of Chhattisgarh

The state was formed on 1 November 2000 by partitioning ten Chhattisgarhi and six Gondi
speaking southeastern districts of Madhya Pradesh.The capital city is Raipur. Chhattisgarh
borders the states of Madhya Pradesh in the northwest, Uttar Pradesh in the north, Jharkhand
in northeast, Maharashtra in the southwest, Telangana in the south, Odisha in the southeast.
Currently the state comprises 27 districts.

Ancient and Medieval History

In ancient times, this region was known as Dakshina Kosala. This area also finds mention in
Ramayana and Mahabharata. One of the earliest statues of Vishnu has been excavated from
Shunga period site at Malhar. Between the sixth and twelfth centuries, Sharabhpurias,
Panduvanshis (of Mekala and Dakshina Kosala), Somavanshi, Kalachuri and Nagavanshi
rulers dominated this region. The Bastar region of Chhattisgarh was invaded by Rajendra Chola
I and Kulothunga Chola I of the Chola dynasty in the 11th century.

Colonial and Post-independence History

Chhattisgarh was under Maratha rule (Bhonsales of Nagpur) from 1741 to 1845 AD. It came
under British rule from 1845 to 1947 as the Chhattisgarh Division of the Central Provinces.
Raipur gained prominence over the capital Ratanpur with the advent of the British in 1845. In
1905, the Sambalpur district was transferred to Odisha and the estates of Surguja were
transferred from Bengal to Chhattisgarh. The area constituting the new state merged into
Madhya Pradesh on 1 November 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, 1956 and
remained a part of that state for 44 years. Prior to its becoming a part of the new state of Madhya
Pradesh, the region was part of old Madhya Pradesh State, with its capital at Bhopal. Prior to
that, the region was part of the Central Provinces and Berar (CP and Berar) under British rule.
Some areas constituting the Chhattisgarh state were princely states under the British rule, but
later on were merged into Madhya Pradesh.

Separation of Chhattisgarh

The present state of Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh on 1 November 2000.
The demand for a separate state was first raised in the 1920s. Similar demands kept cropping
up at regular intervals; however, a well-organised movement was never launched. Several all-
party platforms were formed and they usually resolved around petitions, public meetings,
seminars, rallies and strikes. A demand for separate Chhattisgarh was raised in 1924 by the
Raipur Congress unit and also discussed in the Annual Session of the Indian Congress at
Tripuri. A discussion also took place of forming a Regional Congress organisation for
Chhattisgarh. When the State Reorganisation Commission was set up in 1954, the demand for
a separate Chhattisgarh was put forward but was not accepted. In 1955, a demand for a separate
state was raised in the Nagpur assembly of the then state of Madhya Bharat. The 1990s saw
more activity for a demand for the new state, such as the formation of a statewide political
forum, especially the Chhattisgarh Rajya Nirman Manch. Chandulal Chadrakar led this forum,
several successful region-wide strikes and rallies were organised under the banner of the forum,
all of which were supported by major political parties, including the Indian National Congress
and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The new National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government
sent the redrafted Separate Chhattisgarh Bill for the approval of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly,
where it was once again unanimously approved and then it was tabled in the Lok Sabha. This
bill for a separate Chhattisgarh was passed in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, paving the
way for the creation of a separate state of Chhattisgarh. The President of India gave his consent
to the Madhya Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2000 on 25 August 2000. The government of India
subsequently set 1 November 2000, as the day the state of Madhya Pradesh would be divided
into Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.

Etymology :

There are several opinions as to the origin of the name Chhattisgarh, which in ancient times
was known as Dakshina Kosala (South Kosala). "Chhattisgarh" was popularised later during
the time of the Maratha Empire and was first used in an official document in 1795. It is claimed
that Chhattisgarh takes its name from the 36 ancient forts in the area. (chhattis—thirty-six, and
garh— fort.) The old state had 36 demesnes (feudal territories): Ratanpur, Vijaypur, Kharound,
Maro, Kautgarh, Nawagarh, Sondhi, Aukhar, Padarbhatta, Semriya, Champa, Lafa, Chhuri,
Kenda, Matin, Aparora, Pendra, Kurkuti-kandri, Raipur, Patan, Simaga, Singarpur, Lavan,
Omera, Durg, Saradha, Sirasa, Menhadi, Khallari, Sirpur, Figeswar, Rajim, Singhangarh,
Suvarmar, Tenganagarh and Akaltara. However, experts do not agree with this explanation, as
36 forts cannot be archaeologically identified in this region. Another view, more popular with
experts and historians, is that Chhattisgarh is the corrupted form of Chedisgarh meaning Raj or
"Empire of the Chedis". In ancient times, Chhattisgarh region had been part of the Chedi
dynasty of Kalinga, in modern Odisha. In the medieval period up to 1803, a major portion of
present eastern Chhattisgarh was part of the Sambalpur Kingdom of Odisha.
 Mauryan Dynasty

In the 4th century B.C., Nanda kings ruled Magadha dynasty and this dynasty was the
most powerful kingdom of the north. A Brahman minister called Chanakya also known
as Kautilya/ Vishnugupta, trained a young man i.e.Chandragupta Maurya from the
Mauryan family. Chandragupta organized his own army and overthrew the Nanda king
Dhana Nand in 322 B.C. Therefore, Chandragupta Maurya is supposed to be the first
king and also founder of the Mauryan dynasty. His mother’s name was Mur, so he was
called Maurya in Sanskrit which means the son of Mur, and thus, this dynasty called as
Mauryan Dynasty.

The History of Mauryan Empire

Prior to the rise of the Maurya, numerous states, large and small, covered northern India. This
was the classical age of the history of ancient India, a time of religious ferment when two new
faiths, Buddhism and Jainism, appeared.

One of the largest of these states was Magadha. It was located in the eastern part of the Ganges
plain, on the periphery of the Aryan cultural area. At this stage in Indian history other states
apparently regarded Magadha as semi-barbarous. Perhaps its position on the frontiers of the
Aryan world meant that its people were not too strict in their commitment to the old Vedic
religion of northern India. It is certainly the case that the two non-orthodox faiths of Jainism
and Buddhism flourished here in their early days, and found patrons amongst the Magadha
kings.

Gradually, over a century or more, Magadha extended its borders. Then, under a line of kings
of the Nanda dynasty (reigned c. 424-322 BCE), the kingdom dramatically expanded, to cover
a large part of northern India.

Some Important Rulers of the Magadha Empire:

1. Chandragupta Maurya (322- 298 B.C.)

Scholars suggest that he was only 25 years when he captured Patliputra from the ruler of
Nanda Dynasty i.e. Dhana Nanda. First of all he established his power in IndoGangetic
plains and later marched towards northwest. Chandragupta soon conquered the whole region
of Punjab. Seleucus Nicator, a Greek general of Alexander, held some of the land in the
extreme north. Therefore, Chandragupta fought a long battle against him and at last
defeated him around 305 B.C. and a treaty was signed. According to this treaty, Seleucus
Nicator ceded the transAria (Heart), Arachosia (Kandahar), Gedrosia (Bal Indus territories
uchistan) and Paropanishae (Kabul) –– namely to the Mauryan Empire and in exchange
Chandragupta made a gift of 500 elephants to Seleucus. He (Seleucus) also gave his
daughter in marriage to the Mauryan prince or it is supposed that Chandragupta married
Seleucus's daughter (a Greek Macedonian princess) as a gift from Seleucus to formalize an
alliance. In this way he took his control over Indus region, some part of which is now in
modern Afghanistan. Later he moved towards Central India and occupied the region, north
of Narmada River. In addition to this treaty, Megasthenese was sent by Seleucus to the
court of Chandragupta and Deimakos to Bindusar’s court as Greek ambassadors.
Chandragupta embraced Jainism towards the end of his life and stepped down from the
throne in favour of his son Bindusara. Later he (Chandragupta) along with Jain monks led by
Bhadrabahu went to Sravana Belgola, nearby Mysore and starved himself to death in typical
Jaina fashion.

2. Bindusara (297 -272 B.C.)

Chandragupta ruled for around 25 years and after that he left his throne for his son
Bindusara. Bindusara was called by the Greeks as “Amitraghata” meaning Slayer of
enemies. According to some scholars Bindusara have conquered the Deccan upto Mysore.
Bindusara conquered 16 states comprising ‘th e land between the two seas’ as confirmed
by Taranatha, the Tibetan monk. According to Sangam Literature Maurya invaded up to
far south. Therefore it can be said that during the rule of Bindusara, the Mauryan dynasty
extended as far as Mysore and therefore included almost the whole India but excluded a
small portion of unexplored trial and forested regions near Kalinga (Odisha) and the
kingdoms of extreme south were not the part of empire. Bindusara also had contact with
the Seleucid Syrian king Antiochus I , who sent Deimachus as ambassador to his
(Bindusara) court. Bindusara asked to Antiochus I asking for sweet wine, dried figs and
a sophist. The later sent all but not a sophist because sending a sophist was prohibited
by the Greek law. Bindusara kept inte rest in the Ajivikas, a religious sect. Bindusara
appointed his son Ashoka as the governor of Ujjain who later suppressed a revolt at Taxila.

3. Ashoka the Great (268 - 232 B.C.)

Under Ashoka, Mauryan Empire reached its climax. For the first time, the whole s
leaving out the extreme south, was under imperial control. ubcontinent, There was an
interval of four years between Ashoka’s accession to the throne (273 B.C.) and his
actual coronation (269 B.C.). Therefore, it appears from the available evidence that the
re was a struggle for the throne after Bindusara’s death.

However, it is clear that the succession of Asoka was a disputed one. The most
important event of Asoka’s reign was his victorious war with Kalinga in 261 B.C. There
was no evidence about the actual cause of the war but both the side suffered heavy
losses. Ashoka was saddened by the wounds and he himself described the effects of war
in the Rock edict XIII. Right after the completion of war he (Ashoka) annexed Kalinga
to the Mauryan Empire and decide d further no more wars.

Another most important effect of the Kalinga war was that Asoka embraced Buddhism
under the influence of Buddhist monk, Upagupta. While he maintained a large and
powerful army to maintain peace and authority, Ashoka expanded friendl y relations with
states across Asia and Europe, and sponsored Buddhist missions. Missionaries to the
kingdoms of Cholas and Pandyas and five states ruled by Greek kings were sent by
Ashoka. He also sent missionaries to Ceylon and Suvarnbhumi (Burma) and al so parts of
South East Asia. Mahendra, Tivara/Tivala (the only one mentioned in an inscription),
Kunala and Taluka were prominent among Ashoka’s sons. Two of his daughters
Sanghamitra and Charumati were known.

Later Mauryans (232-184 B.C.)

The Mauryan Emp ire was divided into two parts after the death of Ashoka in 232 B.C.
These two parts were Eastern and Western. Kunala, son of Asoka ruled the western
part where as eastern part was ruled by Dasaratha, one of the grand sons of Ashoka and
later by Samrati, S alisuka, Devaraman, Satadhanvan and finally by Brihadratha.
Brihadratha, the last

Maurya ruler was assassinated by Pushyamitra Sunga in 184 B.C. Pushyamitra Sunga
later established his own dynasty i.e. Sunga dynasty.

Religion in Mauryan Empire

At the time of maurya dynasty Hinduism, Buddhism and ]ainism were the popular religions
and there existed some rivalry between them. However, on the whole, religious toleration was
the order of the day. Hinduism underwent changes. Krishna, Balaram, Siva, Indra and rivers
like Ganga, Yamuna were worshipped as gods and goddesses. Yajnas were 'performed but
animal sacrifices had lost much of their importance. Image worship was still not in vogue.

Candragupta, Bindusara, and Asoka are the most renowned emperors, with Asoka being the
most known. Hinduism had a very strong influence throughout the Mauryan Dynasty.
However, during the course of the Mauryan Dynasty, Vedic sacrifice began to decline in
popularity. Although sacrificial rituals were on the decline, the worshipping of various deities
was still widespread. Many of the gods and goddesses worshiped during this period are still
popular amongst Hindus today; examples being Indra, Agni, and Visnu. During the reign of
the Mauryan Dynasty, Hindu sects involved with worshipping a major deity also existed. These
sects are seen as reform movements within Hinduism. Examples of these sects include
Vaisnavism and Saivism. Both of these sects focused their devotion on one of the two most
popular deities in Hinduism: Vaisnavism on Visnu and Saivism on Siva. The Arthasastra was
written during Candragupta’s reign of the Mauryan Dynasty by Kautilya and outlined the duties
and responsibilities of a king. It encouraged a king to consider anything that pleases himself as
dangerous, but whatever pleases his people should be considered good. Kautilya was
Candragupta’s Prime Minister during his reign and has also been referred to as Visnugupta and
Canakya in various texts across different religions. The Arthasastra helped enforce Hinduism
as the prevalent religion during the time. An example of how it did this was by asking, “that
the king have as his most important minister a purohita, or Brahmin priest”.

Asoka's Dhamma Asoka's personal religion was Buddhism, as he has admitted in the Bhabru
edict, but he did not thrust it on the population. In fact, he evolved an ethical code which was
the essence of all religions and propagated it as 'Dhamma'. The Dhamma consisted of such
principles as respecting and obeying one's elders and teachers, treating the young with
affection, maintaining

good relations with neighbors, treating animals kindly, tolerating others' religions, adhering to
truth, practicing charity, simplicity and piety, and leading a virtuous life.

The People :

As regards daily life, we find the public side of it sufficiently gay. The people were frugal in
their diet, and sober, except on occasion of festivals. The chief display of luxury was in dress.
The inns, hostelries, eating-houses, serais, and gaming-houses are evidently numerous; sects
and crafts have perhaps their meeting places and the latter their public dinners. The business
of entertainment provides a livelihood for various classes of dancers, singers, and actors.

The king provides in amphitheatres constructed for the occasion dramatic, boxing, and other
contests of men and animals, and also spectacles with displays of pictured objects of curiosity
no doubt the private showman with his pictures of Hades, etc., was also active; and not seldom
the streets were lighted up for festivals and it was not penal to stir abroad. Then there were also
the royal processions, when His Majesty went forth to view his city or to hunt. They never
drink wine except at sacrifice.

Truth and virtue they hold alike in esteem. The greater part of the soil is under irrigation, and
consequently bears two crops in the course of the year. It is accordingly affirmed that famine
has never visited India, and that there has never been a general scarcity in the supply of
nourishing food.

Law and Public Health :

Law was administered in the village by local headmen, or by pancbayats village councils of
five men; in towns, districts and provinces by inferior and superior courts; at the capital by the
royal council as a supreme court, and by the King as a court of last appeal. Penalties were
severe, and included mutilation, torture and death, usually on the principle of equivalent
retaliation. But the government was no mere engine of repression; it attended to sanitation and
public health, maintained hospitals and poor-relief stations, distributed in famine years the food
kept in state ware- houses for such emergencies, forced the rich to contribute to the assistance
of the destitute, and organized great public works to care for the unemployed in depression
years.

Trade and Industry :

The crafts are numerous, especially those dealing with the precious metals and with textiles.
The professions include the doctor, the actor, singer and rhapsodist, the dancer, and the
soothsayer. The traders are partly state officials in charge of royal merchandise, or in
superintendence of matters connected with prices and sales, partly actual shopkeepers or
travelling merchants.

The economy of the Mauryans was another big accomplishment. Under the Indo-Greek
friendship treaty, international trade was thriving. The Silk Road provided a way to get their
goods to other areas, and the Khyber Pass, located on the modern border of Pakistan and
Afghanistan, developed into a strategically important place of trade and contact with the rest
of the world. Through the Khyber Pass on the Silk Road the Mauryans could trade with Greece,
Hellenic kingdoms, and the Malay Peninsula in West Asia. The main exports sent to those
empires were silk, textiles, spices and exotic foods. Technology and science ideas were also
exchanged with Europe and West Asia. Because of the peace and tranquility that the Mauryan
dynasty was experiencing, internal trade within the empire flourished as well. The political
unity allowed people from different areas of Mauryan India to travel and sell their merchandise
at markets around their domain. The trade and economy of the Mauryan dynasty was one of
their most influential achievements.

Army in Maurya Empire :

Mauryan Empire is regarded as the first major empire in the history of India. This period
witnessed the flourishing of art, literature, architecture, sculpture etc. The Mauryan Army, the
largest standing military force of its time, supported the expansion and defense of the empire.
According to scholars, the empire wielded 600,000 infantry, or foot soldiers, 30,000 cavalry,
or soldiers on horseback, and 9,000 war elephants. Military system during the Mauryan period
consisted of people from all castes. There was no discrimination and equity and equity was the
rule in recruitment. The Mauryans had a complex army structure. This was one reason why the
Mauryan empire extended to almost the whole of India. The Mauryan army had 4 types of
troops- elephant (Gaja), chariot (Ratha), cavalry (Turanga), and infantry (pada). The core of
the army was composed of warriors from Uttarapathian in central and western India.
Uttarapatha had many warlike peoples, including the Kambojas, Yavanas, and Sakas.

The Mauryan army was broken into many units, the smallest unit being a “Patti”. It had 1
chariot, 1 elephant, 3 cavalries and 5 infantry. Three Patti made up a Sena Mukha, and three
Sena Mukha made up a Gulma.

Other divisions were the Gana, Vahini, Pratana, Camu and Ani Kini, each of which was three
times as big as the one preceding it. The Aksauhini was composed of ten Ani Kini and was the
largest unit in an army.

The Arthasastra declares that a good army can march two yojanas a day and that a bad army
can only manage one. This is a rate of march for an effective army of about ten miles a day,
considerably below what the armies of the Near East could manage during the same period. It
is likely that the Mauryan army followed the old Vedic practice of agreeing with the enemy as
to the location of a battlefield in advance. Under these conditions, tactical surprise was likely
to have been a rare event. Much of the advice offered by the Arthasastra, at least from the
tactical perspective, seems to be of the same variety as that proffered by Sun-Tsu, more a set
of maxims designed to make the commander think than a set of rules to be applied in certain
circumstances. That is why, to the Western mind, such maxims often appear obvious. Hints of
a tactical system appear, however, in the suggestion that whether the attack is from the center,
right, or left, it should always be led by the strongest troops. The weakest troops are to be kept
in reserve. But the reserve is very important. The king should always station himself with the
reserve to exploit any enemy failure, and a king should “never fight without a reserve.”

Centralization and Taxation :

Centralized government also came in handy when emperors had to deal with trade and farming.
Chandragupta Maurya established a single currency across India, a network of regional
governors and administrators, and a civil service to provide justice and security for merchants,
farmers, and traders.

Through the disciplined central authority of the Mauryan Empire, farmers were freed of
regional kings’ tax and crop collection burdens. Instead, they paid through a nationally
administered system of taxation. The system operated under the principles of the Arthashastra,
an ancient Indian treatise that included advice on how to collect taxes, administer trade and
agricultural resources, manage diplomacy, and even how to wage war!

During his rule, Ashoka also made his laws clear in central public spaces on rock and pillar
edicts, stone slabs that alerted citizens to the rules that governed them. The Mauryan Empire
was strict in revenue collection, but it also funded numerous public works projects to enhance
productivity. Ashoka sponsored the construction of thousands of roads, waterways, canals, rest
houses, hospitals, and other types of infrastructure.

Architecture in Mauryan Empire

Mauryan rule marks an important phase in our cultural history. Mainly in the period of Ashoka,
the art and architecture was at its zenith and fall within the category of court art. Ashoka
embraced Buddhism and the immense Buddhist missionary activities that followed encouraged
the development of distinct sculptural and architectural styles. In the Mauryan period, mainly
in the period of Ashoka numerous stupas were constructed and scattered all over the country.
The stupas of solid domes were constructed of brick or stone with different sizes. The Ashoka
stupas were constructed to celebrate the achievements of Gautama Buddha. Like stupa at Bairat
Rajasthan in the third century B.C., The Great Stupa at Sanchi was built with bricks and several
changes were done. The inner wall of the stupa was built either by terracotta bricks or by sun-
burnt bricks. The top of the dome was decorated by a wooden or stone umbrella which denotes
the universal supremacy of Dharma. Parikrama was also there by encircling the stupa.

Pillars of Mauryan period :

The most famous and mind boggling monuments of Mauryan art were the Pillars, the pillars of
Dharma. These Pillars were not used for support and stand free in columns. Two main parts of
the pillars were the shaft and the capital. A monolith column made of one piece of stone with
exquisite polish is a shaft. Polishing art of the pillar is very unique and seems to be like a metal.
Usually animal figures are the capital figures and carved standing on a square or circular
abacus. Abacuses are decorated with stylized lotuses.

Capital of Mauryan period found at Sarnath near Varanasi, known as the Lion Capital. Being
one of the finest examples of Mauryan sculpture and built by Ashoka in commemoration of
Dhammachakrapravartanan or we can say first sermon of Buddha. The capital has four Asiatic
lions seated back to back, which symbolize power, courage, pride and confidence. The
sculpture

surface was polished and the drum was there on the bell base, i.e. Abacus has the depiction of
chakra or wheel on all four directions and a bull, horse, an elephant and a lion between every
chakra. It has 24 spokes and these 24 spoke chakra is adopted to the National Flag of India.
The circular abacus is supported by an inverted lotus capital. This has been adopted as the
National Emblem of Independent India, but it does not have a shaft, the lotus and crowning
wheel.

Caves of Mauryan Period :

Instead of pillars, rock cut caves are also an artistic achievement of Ashoka’s reign. The caves
at Barabar hill in the north of Gaya and the Nagarjuni hill caves, the Sudama caves, etc. are the
several examples of cave architecture. The hills of Barabar caves were donated by Ashoka to
Ajivika monks and three separate caves at Nagarjuni hills were by Dasharatha to them. The
cave of Gopika was excavated in the reign of Dasratha in a tunnel like fashion. The interior
part of the cave is polished like a mirror.

Pottery of Mauryan period :

Black polished type pottery found in North India is an example of this period. It has a burnished
and glazed surface. Kosambi and Patliputra are the centres of this pottery.

Economy of Chhattisgarh during Mauryan Empire

Trade and enterprise were public- private affairs: the state could own and engage in
business activities just like ordinary citizens could. The royal revenue was drawn from
taxes (and war booty). Additi onally, the king owned timber land, forest land, hunting
groves, and manufacturing facilities, and their surplus was sold off. The state had
monopoly over coinage , mining, salt production, arms manufacture, and boat building.

Farmers comprised the largest part of the population, and agriculture was taxed.
Tradespeople were organised into guilds that held both executive and judicial authority
and also functioned as banks. Craftspeople engaged in a particular industry tended to
live together. Goods could not be sold at the place where they were produced; they had
to be brought to specific markets. Tolls were collected for roads and river crossings; and
goods sold within the

kingdom were taxed, as were imports and exports. The state fixed the wholesale price
of goods and inspected weights and measures. Barter was prevalent, as were notes. gold
, bronze , and copper coins. Money was lent on interest against promissory.

The main road that ran through the entire kingdom and connected it to the western Greek
world was wel l maintained and well patrolled, with pillars and signposts marking the
distances and the by Ships sailed down the Ganges and its tributaries, and to foreign shores
such as Sri Lanka, roads. China , and the African and Arabian harbours, and the state took
care to destroy pirates.

For the first time in South Asia , political unity and military security allowed f or a
common economic system and enhanced trade and commerce, with increased agricultural
productivity. The previous situation involving hundreds of kingdoms, many small armies,
powerful regional chieftains, and internecine warfare, gave way to a discipline d central
authority. Farmers were freed of tax and crop collection burdens from regional kings,
paying instead to a nationally administered and strict system of taxation as advised by
the principles in the Arthashastrabut. Chandragupta Maurya establi fair shed a single
currency across India, and a network of regional governors and administrators and a
civil service provided justice and security for merchants, farmers and traders. The Mauryan
army wiped out many gangs of bandits, regional private armies, and powerful chieftains who
sought to impose their own supremacy in small areas. Although regimental in revenue
collection, Maurya also sponsored many public works and waterways to enhance productivity,
while internal trade in India expanded greatly due to new-found political unity and internal
peace.

Under the Indo-Greek friendship treaty, and during Ashoka's reign, an international network
of trade expanded. The Khyber Pass, on the modern boundary of Pakistan and Afghanistan,
became a strategically important port of trade and intercourse with the outside world. Greek
states and Hellenic kingdoms in West Asia became important trade partners of India. Trade
also extended through the Malay peninsula into Southeast Asia. India's exports included silk
goods and textiles, spices and exotic foods. The external world came across new scientific
knowledge and technology with expanding trade with the Mauryan Empire. Ashoka also
sponsored the construction of thousands of roads, waterways, canals, hospitals, rest-houses and
other public works. The easing

of many over-rigorous administrative practices, including those regarding taxation and crop
collection, helped increase productivity and economic activity across the Empire.

In many ways, the economic situation in the Mauryan Empire is analogous to the Roman
Empire of several centuries later. Both had extensive trade connections and both had
organizations similar to corporations. While Rome had organizational entities which were
largely used for public statedriven projects, Mauryan India had numerous private commercial
entities. These existed purely for private commerce and developed before the Mauryan Empire
itself.

The Mauryan Empire unified most of the Indian subcontinent into one state for the first time
and was one of the largest empires in subcontinental history. The empire was established by
Chandragupta Maurya. Under Mauryan rule, the economic system benefited from the creation
of a single efficient system of finance, administration, and security. The reign of Ashoka
ushered an era of social harmony, religious transformation, and expansion of the sciences and
of knowledge. Chandragupta Maurya's embrace of Jainism increased social and religious
renewal and reform across his society, while Ashoka's embrace of Buddhism has been said to
have been the foundation of the reign of social and political peace and non-violence across the
subcontinent. Ashoka sponsored the spreading of Buddhist missionaries to various parts of
Asia. The Mauryans built the Grand Trunk Road, one of Asia's oldest and longest major roads
connecting the Indian subcontinent with Central Asia. Bengal's oldest inscription – the
Mahasthan Brahmi Inscription – dates from the Mauryan period. The inscription was written
in the Brahmi script in the provincial capital of Pundranagara. The inscription was produced
during the 3rd century BCE. Based on the records of Megasthenes, a picture of Maurya’s
economy could be painted. Maurya had an organized econom y with status given to each
field chosen.

Agriculture was the primary source of livelihood of most Mauryan Indians. Maurya’s
agricult ure were dominated by small landlords. Slaves and Sudras helped to maintain
the lands. But there were some land made into farm by slaves and Sudras under the
orders of the state. Land ownership was reserved for the King. Virtually, all lands in the
Mauryan Kingdom were owned by the King. But the King allowed small landowners to
keep the land in exchange for tax payments. The agriculture of Maurya India was
bountiful and strong. According to Megathenes, India didn’t had a famine. Farmers could
harvest crops twice a year. Their main crops were grains, millet, rice, and a special
type of Indian millet called

bosporum. Other than grains, some farmers cultivated orchards of different fruit trees as
well. Another factor for a good agricultural sector was the gover nment’s support. One
example was Chandragupta’s lake Sudarshana project, a dam meant to provide irrigation
in the Gujrat Province.

Alongside agriculture, animal husbandry also became a source of livelihood and supplied
food to the empire. Lands not fit for agricultural use were utilized for grazing of various
animals, from cattle, to sheep, and to goats. It was a lucrative job. The state also
provided security and welfare towards the shepherds. Compensation and other financial
support were given to them.

Mining was also important for the Maurya Empire. Gold, silver, copper, iron, and tin
were mined in many areas across the empire. It became the sources of minerals needed
for the manufacturing of weapons and armors for the King’s military campaign. It also
provided the needed metal to maintain the currency.
The economy of the Mauryan economy shows a dynamic and organize economy. It
helped the Empire to grow and prosper for several years. It gave wealth to the kingdom
and its kings. It added to the prestige and po wer of the great Mauryan Empire.

POLITICAL HISTORY

Mauryans were the first to build a pan-Indian empire. For the first time in South Asia, political
unity, military security and a uniform administrative system allowed for a common economic
system and enhanced trade and commerce, with increased agricultural productivity.

When Chandragupta Maurya and Chankya gave emphasis to the centralized administration and
statecraft, Ashoka gave emphasis to creating a welfare state.
Chanakya's Arthashastra, Megasthanes's Indica, Ashoka's inscriptions and various other Greek
texts gives detailed description of Mauryan administrative system.
Central Government

Centralized government was the key feature of the Mauryan government. All the powers were
concentrated in the hands of the emperor. Though he was the supreme authority of the judiciary,
civil and military administration, he wasn't a complete autocrat and his authority was under
some restraints. He had follow some traditions when ruling. He had to take advice from his
council of ministers in all matters. The objective of the emperor was to achieve the welfare of
his citizens and also embolden the empire and project its power inside and outside of its border.
The Mauryan emperors didn't believe that they were the representatives of god.They also didn't
believe that their authority was derived by the god.
Ministers

In his work Arthashastra, Chanakya says;

If the state is a chariot, then the king and his council of ministers is like two wheels of that
chariot. A chariot cannot move with single wheel. He needs.the assistance of the ministers.
According to Chanakya, king was one of the 7 branches of the state. The other 6 branches :
● Minister
● Treasury
● Army
● Land.
● Fort
● Neighbouring state.

Council of Ministers
A council of ministers existed in Mauryan empire. The prominent members were
● Prime Minister.
● Head Priest(Purohita).
● Chief of the armed forces
● Crowned Prince.
● Prime Minister.
● Head Priest(Purohita).
● Chief of the armed forces
The members of this council were paid 12,000 panas per year. It consisted of 3 to 12
members.

Bureaucracy
Mauryans had a systematic bureaucarcy to look after their vast empire. They recruited
bureaucrats on the basis of ability and irrespective of caste, religion or sect. The king had
appointed many bureaucrats to maintain different departments of the government such as
treasury, government mint, commerce, finance, revenue, excise, agriculture, toll,
accountance , industry, armoury, transport, mining, weights and measurement, public
work and records maintenance. The chiefs of these departments were called Adhyaksha.
Along with them,there were other officers who took care of the day to day administration
such as
1. Pratihara(Emperor's chief of security)
2. Durgapala (Chief of maintenance of fort and head
of the garrison).
3. Antahpala(Head of border patrol)
4. Paura(Mayor of the capital city).
5. Nyayadheesha (Judge).
6. Prashastha(Chief of police).
7. Karmanthika(Supervisor of mines)
8. Senapathi(Commander in chief of the armed
forces,second in command to the Emperor
himself).
9. Dandapala(Chief of another law enforcement
department).
10. Samahartha(Tax collector).
11. Prashastu (Jailor).

Provisional administration
Mauryans divided their vast empire into 5 provinces for administrative convenience. Which
are,
1. Pataliputra was the capital territory which was directly administered by the emperor.
2. Poorvapatha or the eastern province with Pataliputra as its regional capital
3. Uttarapatha or the northern province with Taxila as its regional capital.
4. Pashchimapatha or the western province with Ujain as its regional capital.
5. Dakshinapath or southern province with Suvarnagiri as its regional capital.
The members of the royal family were appointed as governors of these provinces and given the
title of Kumara Mahamatra. The provincial administration was the replica of the central
administration. They functioned as semi-autonomous regions with a bureaucratic machine
under the governor consisting of Pradeshikas, Rajjukas, Yukthas, Purashas and so on. Among
them, Pradeshikas looked after revenue collection and internal security.These provisions were
divided into districts. Sthanikas administered the districts. Districts were further divided and
were administered by Gopas. Villages were the smallest administrative divisions, administered
by Gramikas. Village panchayats looked after the local needs and supervised construction of
roads,bridges in villages and delivered justice for petty
crimes. A Gopa used to supervise 5 to 10 villages.

City Administration

The Greek envoy to Chandragupta Maurya's court, Megasthanes gave detailed account of city
administration of Pataliputra and other cities.
The administration of city was supervised by an organization of 30 members. This organization
consisted 6 committees, 5 members in each committee. Each committee looked after different
responsibilities.
1. The First committee supervised every kind of industry and business. It would supervise the
Industries and fix a minimum wage for workers of textile, edible oil, sugar, weapons, chariots,
household products and other industries.
2. The Second committee supervised the security, accommodation and surveillance of
foreigners visiting the city.
3. The Third committee kept the data of no of births and deaths inside the city and conducted
census.
4. The Fourth committee supervised trade and commerce, giving permits to the traders and
preventing and detecting the malpractices in trading.
5. The Fifth committee supervised the quality control of the goods produced in the city and
bifurcation of old goods and new goods while trading.
6. The Sixth committee collected 1/10th of the price of the goods produced in the city and its
vicinity as tax.