Question

The main entrance in the Mohenjo-Daro opened ________.
A. In the side lane
B. On the main road
C. In the Jungle
D. None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: Mohenjo- Daro was a major site of the Indus Valley Civilisation and was discovered by RD Banerjee in 1922. The Indus valley civilization was famous for town planning and architecture which the city of Mohenjo Daro truly justified.

Complete answer: The period (3300 – 1900 BCE) saw the wave of first urbanization. The major distinctive feature of town planning was that cities were laid on a grid pattern and the lanes had a well laid out draining system. The houses were usually of modest size and were constructed with baked bricks. The architecture here was reflective of privacy concerns of the residents, as there were no windows and the main entrance gates didn’t render a direct view of the interiors as they didn’t open on the main road. For a similar purpose, some houses also had walls faced on the entry gates to block the view. The houses were centred on courtyards along with separate and covered bathrooms and wells.
Looking at the options given:
Option A. “in the side lane”: This is the correct answer as the houses in Mohenjodaro were constructed with keeping privacy concerns in mind. The doors opened on the side lanes to keep the interiors dust free and to obstruct the outsider’s view.
Option B. “on the main road”: People residing in the houses wanted a private lifestyle and the main roads usually witnessed rush. It is an incorrect answer.
Option C. “in the jungle”: the houses were situated within the cities with well laid out streets and lanes. It is an incorrect option.
Option D. is incorrect as the first option is correct.
Therefore, Option A is correct.

Note: The Harappan civilization featured the first-ever urban sites in the Indian subcontinent. It left its mark on history as being the civilization of distinctive town planning and culture.