- Administration under the Satavahanas was much simpler that under the Mauryas. Inscriptions refer to ministers who were incharge of various functions. There were treasury officers who maintained land records.
- They practiced a decentralized form of administration.
- These ministers were appointed directly by the king and the post of a minister does not seem to have been hereditary. They were perhaps paid in money from the revenue collected by the state. The state collected taxes both from agriculture and trade.
| One of the practice started by Satavahana rulers in the first century A.D. was that of donating revenue of a village to, either a Brahmana or the Buddhist Sangha. This practice became much more widespread under the Gupta rulers. |
- There was elaborate procedure that was used to record donations of land. These donations were first proclaimed in an assembly nigama-sabha. It was then written down either on a copper-plate or cloth by an officer or minister.
- This record was then delivered to the donee to whom the grant had been made. There was a keeper of records who maintained a detailed account of these donations.
- The rulers at this time were eager to bring more land under cultivation so that they could earn extra revenue. It seems that anyone who cleared the forest and tilled a plot could claim ownership of the land. Revenue was collected both in cash and kind.
- The trade was handled by guilds who also acted as bankers. The state took elaborate measures to encourage trade. Highways were made secure and rest-houses were constructed along them.
- The official language was Prakrit, but the script was Brahmi. Sanskrit was occasionally used by the Satavahanas in their political inscriptions also.
- Katakas and Skandhvaras were the special military camps or cantonment areas. According to Pliny, the Andhra kingdom maintained an army of 100,000 infantry, 2000 cavalry and 1000 elephants.
- Revenue was collected both in cash and kind, reflecting a sophisticated and diversified economic system.
- Administrative Divisions:
- Aharas: The kingdom was divided into districts called Aharas, administered by Amatyas or Mahamatras.
- Rashtras: These administrative divisions were also known as Rashtras, overseen by officials called Maharashtrikas.
- Grama: The lowest administrative level, managed by a Gramika or Gaulmika. The Gaulmika was the head of a military regiment comprising nine chariots, nine elephants, twenty-five horses, and forty-five-foot soldiers.
