Tradition and technology of constructing wells as a source of fresh water have been in use in the Indian sub-continent from the Harappan times, which is from 2500 BCE onwards (Mate 1998: 99). Dholavira, an important site of Indus valley civilization have several reservoirs to collect rain water; similar evidences come from Mohenjodaro and Harappa (Joshi, J. P. 2008: 121), (Bhadani and Singh 2007). The tradition of stepwell architecture is indigenous to India, but was adopted and refined by the Muslim rulers who constructed stepwell in north-western India, particularly during the 14th and 15th century. Most of the stepwells date from a period between the 12th and the 17th century (Hegewald 2002: 156).
Perhaps the most amazing aspect of traditional water management system is its longevity. Many naulas, bawaris and kunds still in use are hundreds of years old. Clearly the traditional water management system has a high degree of sustainability. Urban water supply was a comparatively late phenomenon. Cities of ancient India were generally located along the banks of perennial rivers, natural springs, or depressions where water gets accumulated during the monsoon (Singh and Kharakwal 2010). In Mewar, the Udai sagar dyke located 10 km east of the city of Udaipur, was constructed in 1550 CE by Maharana Udai Singh. Later two dams Jana Sagar or Bari Talab (8 km north of Udaipur) and Rajsamand (located 60 km north of Udaipur) were built in 1676 and 1678 CE by Maharana Raj Singh. Jai Samand or Debar Lake (one of the largest dams) was constructed between 1685-87 CE by Maharana Jai Singh, so the period between 1550 CE to 1680 CE should be characterized as the golden period in the history of Mewar in this context. Most of the stepwells of Udaipur are also built in the same period. For this hydraulic engineering in Mewar during this period, Maharan Raj Singh is also known as ‘Hydraulic Man’.