In earlier times the administration of the walled-city was organized at two levels:
At the commercial level there was a mahajan guild and at the residential level there existed a panch system.

The Mahajan Guild

The merchant community of Ahmedabad worked under a guild system, which regulated their activities, and the Nagarsheth was respected as the head of the Mahajans.

The mahajan guild had its activities around trade. The mahajan guild was a regulating body and the mahajans were like the guardians of traders. These bodies protected the traders from injustice at the hands of the rulers in past. They were responsible for improving and maintaining the quality of goods in the market.

Several social work activities were undertaken by the guild. In times of war or national crisis, guilds often came forward to protect the city. Almost all public buildings, including schools, colleges, hospitals, libraries etc. first came into existence with the generous donations of these mahajans.