Sarais, during Mughal era, were defined as spaces where travellers used to stay for a considerable period of time.
The merchants, travelling from one place to another, were able to store their goods in these places with special arrangements made for security.
The sarais were built along the salt route also called as the Mughal roads and they were build so that those who traveled through this route could rest at these inns safely and with comfort. These features brought success for this route and that is why the salt route remains famous even today because of the planning which went into designing this route.
Dohara Sarai, twenty kilometres from Ludhiana, is situated at Grand Trunk Road. It was built by Sher Shah Suri for travellers. In olden times, most dharamshalas/sarais settlements were constructed close to water bodies, rivers, lakes or ponds.