The power of the Harappan state to mobilize huge workforces is apparent in the construction of the massive platforms on which many of the towns and cities were built. Those at Mohenjo-daro are the most impressive feat: Jansen calculated that the platform underlying the citadel there would have required 300,000-400,000 man-days' labor to build. Equally impressive were the walls that surrounded many of the urban settlements, freestanding or as revetment for the platforms: These were in some cases more than 15 meters thick and could be as high as 9 meters, and they were furnished with elaborate gateways.
The sinking of wells was also a substantial undertaking: Mohenjo-daro is thought to have had around seven hundred, created during the foundation phase of the city's construction. Digging the reservoirs at Dholavira was also a vast project: At least sixteen in number, they together covered about 17 hectares and were excavated down to bedrock or in some areas cut down into it. Soil taken from them was built up into massive bunds (dykes), up to 7 meters wide and faced with masonry, running between the reservoirs. A number of dams were created on the two seasonal streams, running past the settlement to divert water into the reservoirs. In addition to the labor of their original construction, regular work was required to maintain the reservoirs and remove any accumulated silt. While not on the same scale, the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro and the dock at Lothal were also considerable feats of hydraulic engineering.
The Harappans did not build monumental temples or tombs but these platforms, walls, and basins were similarly vast projects requiring the bringing together, feeding, and management of huge numbers of workers. While the work at Dholavira and Lothal may have been undertaken during the slack period of the agricultural year by the inhabitants of the city and its hinterland over the course of a number of years, the construction of the platforms and walls for the foundation of towns and cities were undertakings that had to be completed before the first houses could be built, and work could take place only during the winter months when the plains were clear of floods. Small huts found by the Aachen team when investigating the Mohenjo-daro citadel platform were probably occupied by the workforce.
Though on a smaller scale, there is evidence that suggests communities were organized to work together on a regular basis. In the Late Harappan period, after the breakdown of state control, individual households at Rojdi stored their grain in the ear (whole and unprocessed) and threshed it as and when they needed it. This contrasts to the situation during the Mature Harappan period when the grain was threshed and winnowed communally and stored as processed grain. Other substantial projects, such as the building and maintenance of the seagoing ships, have left no trace but must have taken place. Whether labor was also invested in digging and maintaining irrigation works is uncertain.
World History
