Department of General Education Program

GED 103
History of Emergence of Independent Bangladesh
Fall 2019

Assignment
on
Indus Valley Civilization - Culture, Infrastructure, and Economy

Submitted To
M. M. Azizul Rasel
Senior Lecturer
Department of General Education Program
University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB)

Submitted by
Ahmed Hasam Rabbi 192012021
Subrata Roy
Shahriar Islam Akash 192012043
Zinnatun Nessa Ori 191013049

Date of Submission: January 02, 2020

Introduction
Indus Valley Civilization was discovered in 1921 at Harappa of Punjab, Pakistan. Later in 1922,
a part of it was discovered at Mohenjodaro near the Indus River in Sindh, Pakistan. The Indus
Valley Civilization is the most far-stretched civilization compared to the Mesopotamian and
Egyptian civilization.

The two cities were each perhaps originally about 1 mile (1.6 km) square in overall dimensions,
and their outstanding magnitude suggests political centralization, either in two large states or in
a single great empire with alternative capitals, a practice having analogies in Indian history. ​[1]

Indus Valley Civilization was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1980. Before that,
many individuals have surveyed the civilization and mentioned it in their records (book, journal,
diary, etc.). However, archaeologist Daya Ram Sahni of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)
was the first individual to have excavated sites of this civilization.

The civilizations was way ahead of its time as the discoveries sum up the fact that they it was
the most sustainable and the largest settlement that existed. The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC)
was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE
to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form from 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE. ​[2]

The Indus civilization apparently evolved from the villages of neighbours or predecessors, using
the Mesopotamian model of irrigated agriculture with sufficient skill to reap the advantages of
the spacious and fertile Indus River valley while controlling the formidable annual flood that
simultaneously fertilizes and destroys.​ [1]

Alongside agriculture, the Indus civilization also domesticated animals. They were also known
for their aesthetics in regards to literature, arts and crafts, and diversified norms.

Minerals, unavailable from the alluvial plain, were sometimes brought in from far afield. Gold
was imported from southern India or Afghanistan, silver and copper from Afghanistan or
northwestern India (present-day Rajasthan state), lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, turquoise from
Iran (Persia), and a jadelike fuchsite from southern India. ​[1]

Culture and Religion

The culture of Indus civilization was mostly influenced by it neighbouring countries like India and
Persia. Unlike other civilizations which adapted alongwith time with other civilizations, the Indus
civilization prospered on its own.

The Indus Valley religion is polytheistic and is made up of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism.[​3​]
Their belief system was quite diversified; they kept enhancing their religion with time. In fact,
they used to bury the deceased during the early days. Later on, when they adapted to the
thought of life after death, they started cremating the dead one.

The Indus valley developed very well indigenously. The people of the valley strategically
avoided the rest of India’s destruction, fighting and confusion that came with their shared
religious practices, devising and developing their own ideas and methods to progress in a
sustainable and peaceful way.​[3]

They avoided these destructive outside influences, by the use of palaces and gathering places
as a well-rounded and open place of religious practices rather than monumental statues and
tombs that tended to cause controversy. The Indus valley also made sure to not link religion and
warfare together to keep peace and avoid uprising, another prominent key to their success.

Economy
Residents of the Indus valley had extensive knowledge on agriculture which allowed them to
produce agricultural resources in bulk. In fact, agriculture was the main reason behind their
sustainability for such a long period of time.

Crops such as wheat, barley, peas, lentils, linseed and mustard seed were farmed in the winter
and millet, sesame and rice was grown in summer. Animals such as elephants were
domesticated as well as dogs and cats and assisted with farming. ​[4]

The civilization live on a land with a very high fertility rate which gave them the opportunity to
produce varieties of goods. This resulted in extensive trade within the civilization and also with
other civilizations like the Persian and Mesopotamian civilization.​[4]

The above-mentioned civilizations were far away from Indus Valley. They were successful in
trading with such far-away civilizations by using bullock carts as a means of transportation.
Alongside agriculture goods, the Indus Valley was also known for trading potteries and high-end
stones and gems.

Infrastructure
The people of the civilisation were extremely intelligent and advanced for their time, learning
quickly the uses of different building materials and tools, and the best structural layouts for the
towns.​ [5]

The infrastructure of the entire civilization was built with proper planning and organization. This
might also have been another main reason behind their sustainability for such a long period of
time.

Towns were rectangular, with straight walls all facing north, south, east or west, and straight
streets that formed a pattern like a grid and divided the city into block sections. The centre of a
city often held a simple citadel, a mound-like stronghold, where the people would go to for
protection if ever under attack.​[5]

Back then, the houses consisted of 2 or three stories in the higher part of the town and that too
with the infrastructure similar to any modern duplex or triplex house. They had gardens inside
their houses with entrance and exit points on both ends of the houses.

In the higher parts, all the houses had access to clean water from wells that were built near the
houses. The houses even had proper drainage and plumbing facilities. In fact, most of the
houses in the higher parts had areas dug for making baths.

However, houses in the lower parts were just the opposite with fewer facilities yet the drainage
facilities and access to water was the same.

One of the most significant buildings of Mohenjo-Daro was the Great Granary which was
probably used to store grains. Similarly, the Great Bath, found in the middle of Mohenjo-Daro
was another state of the art structure which is said to be used for performing rituals.

Decline
Till today, archaeologists or scholars have not been able to figure out how the world’s largest
civilization ended. There are many theories provided by historians which are as follows:

Invasion

This theory suggests that the civilization was invaded by Aryans and they were successful in
conquering the civilization.

Climate Change

Some say that the civilization collapsed due to the drought that affected the area and dried up
the Saraswati River and some say that a great flood had hit the civilization which destroyed
everything.

Migration

Traces of the civilization’s culture were found in some cultures following the decline of the Indus
civilization. This is why, some say that civilization did not decay, the people started migrating in
smaller groups due to lack of resources.

It is a very shocking fact that such a civilization could sustain for around 2000 years with such
an efficient infrastructure. However, there is a huge doubt whether today's world will be able to
sustain for even a 1000 years.