Bengal

It has been seen earlier that Sharma and Yadav’s theory of urban decline is difficult to accept. Nihar Ranjan Ray in his book has found that there was no evidence of decline of urban areas in Bengal prior to the Turkish invasion in early thirteenth century, although he has suggested that there is no evidence of expansion of urban areas of Bengal during this period. We have postulated elsewhere (Changing Economy of Bengal, IHC, 2010, pp. 2-4) that certain fundamental changes had started occurring in Bengal since the eighth century Ad with the changing courses of some rivers. In the late eighteenth century Major James Rennell had suggested that fundamental change had occurred in Bengal in the late eighth century Ad. Prior to that the three principal rivers of Bengal, namely the Rupnarayan, the Damodar and the Ganges joined together and flowed past the oversea port of Tamralipta (site not yet been determined). After the eighth century the three rivers began to move towards the east leaving their earlier courses that ruined the port of Tamralipta. Both Nihar Ranjan Ray and Manmohan Chakrabarty had accepted the statement of Rennell. According to Nihar Ranjan Ray the eastward movement of these rivers threw branches on the western side of the Bhagirathi River (called Hughly) whose water level also increased at the same time. The flow of several branches of the river Damodar in this area could be confirmed from the deserted beds of these branches on which we would have occasion to speak again. The eastward movement of the river Damodar is a bit surprising since no explanation has been offered by any scholar so far. However, this movement seems to be limited and has halted after about three centuries. Apparently the principal course of the river Damodar did not come near the Hughly River and had remained at a distance to flow towards the sea in the south, meeting the Ganges at Betore before falling into the sea. A channel called the Saraswati began to move towards the west from the Hughly-Tribeni junction to meet Damodar in the west. The combined rivers then moved towards the south to Betore opposite

Howrah, although in recent years doubts have been raised on the identification of Betore. At Betore the Hughly River, coming down from Tribeni junction, met the other two rivers and then fell into the sea, thus creating the largest channel from the sea to the Tribeni junction. These changes had occurred before the second century Ad since Ptolemy had mentioned the Padma River going towards the east slightly north from Murshidabad (actually from Suti) as well as the Saraswati channel going to the west from the Tribeni junction, though without naming them. A proper study of the movement of the rivers of this period is yet to be done that might give us a clue to the urbanization in western Bengal during this period. But it is the movement of the Ganges as recorded by Rennell that gives us a clue to the decline of some urban settlements and the rise of others.