Interrelationship Between Cities and Villages in Harappan Civilisation

The Interrelationship Between Cities and Villages:

The city people are dependent on the natural resources and villages in their vicinity in order to meet the needs of the urban way of life and urban Dr.Vasant Shinde of the Deccan College,  Pune also conducted excavations at the site. At Rakhigarhi, all characteristics of the Harappan cities were present. It was the main centre of the Harappan civilization in its eastern region. At this site too, evidence of fire altars like Kalibangan has been found. Indeed, cemeteries were found at various other Harappan sites, but the human skeletal remains from there were not studied to analyze the hereditary characteristics of the population. However, the human bones from Rakhigarhi were subjected to genetic analysis. Scientists believe that in due course it would provide satisfactory answers to the question of the origin of Harappan people. administration. The raw material needed for Harappan industrial production included clay, various siliceous and semi-precious stones, metals, etc. The interrelationship between Harappan cities and villages was dependent on the mechanism of making available, things like food grains and raw materials. Not that all the pre-Harappan settlements were transformed into cities and towns. Some of them did not change notably. There was a network of small towns, small and big villages, and campsites of semi-nomadic people, which functioned to cater to the needs of major urban centres of the Harappan civilisation. It included villages in remote regions as well. The best example of it is the Harappan settlement of ‘Shortugai’ in the Badakshan province of Afghanistan. This region is rich with mines of lapis lazuli. There was a great demand for this semiprecious stone in Mesopotamia. The Mesopotamian epics describe Goddess Inanna’s palace, the walls of which were embedded with this stone. This stone was a very important commodity in the Harappan trade with Mesopotamia.

For Additional Information :

(1) Many sites of the Early Harappan and Mature Harappan (Urban) phases have been found in the basin of the river Ghaggar. The latest research based on the evidence from sites like Kunal, Bhirrana, Farmana, Girwad, and Mitathal, etc. indicate a possibility of the rise of the Mature Harappan more than 5000 years ago. If this is proved in due course, then it may be said that it first developed in the Ghaggar basin. Evidence from Rakhigarhi may prove to be instrumental in reaching a positive conclusion in this context.

(2) The Harappan sites of Mohenjodaro, Harappa, Ganweriwala in Pakistan, Rakhigarhi, and Dholavira in India have been declared as World Heritage sites.