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POLITY AND ADMINISTRATION
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that the grāmamahattara was merely a village-elder, while gramavya prtaka was the officer actually entrusted with the duty of performing all the executive functions of the village. 1 From the Valabhi inscriptions it appears that the mahattara during this time was regarded no more than a village-elder. Thakkuras is another village-officer mentioned only once in .the text. It appears to have been a later designation of the village-headman, as he is frequently mentioned in the subsequent records from Gujarat. * Village Council (Grāmaparişad)
The villages had their own councils called grāma parişadss which solved all the problems of the villagers. Āgamtā gära was the place where the meetings of the village-council were held. Meetings, however, could take place in a hall (sabha)", in a temple, or even under a tree. The house-holders (gihattha---kudumbiya) frequently took part in the proceedings of the village-council. We, however, get no information from the text to enable us to ascertain if all the house-holders were allowed to attend the meetings of the village-council.
The members of the village-council must have formed a smaller cabinet for the proper administration of the village. In the context of a gothi (goșthi--a social gathering), we are informed that the goșthis were presided over by five villageofficers," who were specially honoured by the villagers. There
1. "pez "? @ The Parenti, 91427198125 r:---Ibid. 2. Sankalia, op. cit., p. 20. 3, NC. 4 p. 312. 4. Thakkura is often mentioned in the Caulukyan inscriptions-Sankalia,
op. cit., p. 203. 5. NC. 2, p. 99. 6. आगंतारो जत्थ आगारी आगंतु चिट्ठति तं आगंतागारं । गामपरिसठाणं ति वुत्तं भवति
NC. 2, p. 199. 7. : FATTİ AH--NC. 3, p. 344. 8. NC. 2, pp. 199, 200. 9. café zié afirfear azt goate atat STIE-NC. 2, p. 144; also Bīh.
Vr. 4, p. 994.
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