Roads with Shade and Water
Emperor Ashoka (third century BCE, Mauryan dynasty) chronicled his public works in his rock and pillar edicts. Pillar Edict VII records that he planted banyan trees along roads to shade people and animals, established mango groves, dug wells and built resthouses and water reservoirs. Rock Edict II, likewise, mentions roadside wells and trees. The combination of shade, water and resting facilities made routes more hospitable to humans and animals.
Medicine from the Land
Rock Edict II also states that when medicinal herbs for humans or animals were unavailable, they were imported and planted, making health care part of public welfare.
Protecting Forests and Wildlife
Pillar Edict V lists animals that were not to be killed and forbids setting forests on fire. Some protections applied on specified days.
Why It Is a Marvel
These measures treated shade, water, medicine and wildlife as public goods, grounded in Dhamma and compassion for all beings. Scholars see here an early link between environmental ethics and state policy or state-supported ecological care. Because the evidence comes from his own inscriptions, the claim rests on primary historical sources rather than legend or oral narratives.