Prof. M.D. Srinivas and Dr. Jatinder Kumar Bajaj from the Centre for Policy Studies, Chennai-600069 delivered a talk titled “Two Beautiful, Affluent and Self-Governing Localities of India: Ullavur and Kundratthur” on 11th Sep 2024 at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Madras. 

Dr. Bajaj Spoke about the abundance of grain that the localities produced which was shown to be several times the average annual national yield. He also contextualized the governance model by comparing the yield right from the times of Mughal and British Administration and highlighted the highly successful model followed by the localities. The talk provided several key insights, a major revelation among which was the completely self-governing nature of the localities which also placed a similar status on freedom right from the individual level. 

Prof. Srinivas explained in depth, the distribution model of the grains harvested and showed meticulous data which were recorded in inscriptions that were several hundred years old. The various stakeholders, the beneficiaries who were from all walks of life, from all classes and faiths that highlighted the inclusive nature of the localities, and the process of distribution provided seeds to explore further on the applicability of these principles to solve modern-day problems. Dr. Bajaj ventured to bring out the diversity of the localities as though being crop-rich, agriculture was not the major occupation as there were others in which the majority of the residents engaged in: carpentry, medicine, masonry, dancers and singers and artists etc.  

The talk and the Q&A further dealt with the unique role of temples and the role that the played in supporting the society such as building hospitals etc. which the speakers highlighted from the inscriptions they found.  

The self-governing nature of the localities were of a similar nature as envisioned by Gandhi and even going back to the Vedic Age, the Dharma Sutras and provides us with valuable information to study an Indian village, which, unlike in other civilizations, is unique and displays a unique identity of its own.