History of Indian Environment and the Role of Artificial Intelligence: An Analytical Study of Water Management, Climate Change, and Digital History Research

Abstract The development of Indian civilization is the story of the inter-relationship between water, land, forests, agriculture and human society. The town planning and drainage system of the Indus Valley Civilisation, ancient knowledge of water in India, ponds-wells-dams-canals, water planning by Malik Ambar, water resources and forts during the Maratha rule and the shifting control during the colonial period are subjects that can be explored under the umbrella of environmental history. Issues such as climate change, dwindling ground water resources, erratic rainfall, urbanisation and water contamination are becoming more complex today. Consequently, the linkage between historical knowledge and digital tool and AI becomes critical. The primary goal of this study is to look at the traditional system of water management in Indian environmental history, understand the potential of AI, GIS, satellite imagery, OCR and big data analysis in the field of digital history research and explore the correlation between historical environmental knowledge and sustainable development. Historical texts, inscriptions, maps, archaeological reports, digital archives, research articles, and current water resources information have been used in the study analytically.