During the rule of the Mughal Emperor Akbar, his chronicler Abul Fazal wrote in the Ainay Akbari (Memoirs of Akbar) about the town of Chanderi. He stated that there were an estimated 1200 Bawdi (step wells) in Chanderi. The question arises, why so many Bawdi and aritifical pools. The reason of course is water management and many administrations and rulers who were thoughtful of proper civil upkeep of the towns infrastructure. During the medieval period Chanderi had a population well over one hundred thousand. So the need for proper water management was crucial. Also some of the more elaborate and grand bawdi in Chanderi were reserved for the use of royals, aristocrats, and some pools were reserved for the use of only upper class woman.
Chanderi also is 2200 feet above sea level at a high elevation along the Vindyachal Range. Scarcity of water has always been an issue in this area. Bawdies were built all though Chanderi with large ponds excavated in outlying areas where rainwater collected from the hills and served to keep the level of the water in the bawdies stable. The water from these ponds was and is still also used for farm irrigation.
Location