Matsya was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas mentioned in the Buddhist text Anguttara Nikaya. The founder of the kingdom of the Matsya was Virata. It consisted of the present-day Alwar, Jaipur and Bharatpur.
The earliest Satavahana inscriptions belong to the 1st century BCE. In the 1st century BCE the Satavahana defeated the Kanvas and established their rule over parts of central India.
The famous Chola king Karikala of the Sangam age is credited with constructing a dam on the Kaveri river. It is considered to be the earliest dam in the country.