A water harvesting mechanism could have been the key to sustenance and prosperity of Gujarat’s Vadnagar when cities were abandoned because of harsh climate across the country between the 4-5th century AD and 10th century AD, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)’s excavations have found in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home town.

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ASI’s excavation branch-V deputy superintending archaeologist, Abhijit Ambekar, who has been carrying out excavations in Vadnagar, said the water system was different from the one found at Harappan-era sites.

“The water storage system was at the city’s periphery along a fortification wall and spread across a large area unlike what is seen at Dholavira [a Harappan-era site in Gujarat]. This helped agriculture thrive, making Vadnagar a prosperous town and led to the spread of Buddhism around it, as evidence shows,” said Ambekar.

He said there is archaeological evidence of 54 water bodies even as the Ain-i-Akbari, which documents Mughal emperor Akbar’s reign in the 16th century, mentions over 360 of them in Vadnagar.

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