Part 15 - Advancement in Civil Engineering

The houses consisted of toilets and separate bathing areas with bathing platforms. The drains were connected in such a way that they would connect to a large sewage/drainage system at the end. It is discovered in some recent excavation of some Harappan sites that practically every house was equipped with a toilet. Drain pipes of terracotta were used to carry the water of the drainage system at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro. The contents were carried outside the city wall limits into the fields. The drainage system was advanced to the extent that it had rectangular soak pits which facilitated the collection of solid waste. The people were very particular concerning their personal hygienic and sufficient arrangements were made for providing drinking and bathing water (Singh 2009:149)

The details given above undoubtedly prove the existence of advanced construction and civil engineering techniques in the Mohenjo-daro civilization.

Another scholar Dr. U.T.Thakur in his book Sindhi Culture has given a good deal of information about the ancient Sindh and the details about the advancement of the people who lived there and the same is stated below:

When one looks at the Indus Valley civilisation, many interesting aspects are noted. Town planning of the city of Mohenjo-daro in the Indus Valley was done skilfully and followed the rules of town planning. The Sanitation system was in existence, the building rules also existed giving a disciplined appearance, the layout of roads and streets and the drainage system comparable to any modern drainage system of today's metro cities was in existence. The layout of houses was well planned with the appropriate division of rooms, baths, kitchens and courtyards along with wells provided for the houses. The English bond used for brickwork appears to have been known to these people.

The presence of a great public bath is an example of the well-developed construction practices. In this civilization, there were also marketplaces, restaurants and big buildings for the Governor of city and offices for public administration of the Government. The sanitary system was looked after very well, and street lighting also existed. (Thakur 1959:2) These are all indications of a well-planned development of the cities in the Indus valley civilisation.