Other races followed the Aryans. The Parsians under Darius (522-486 BC) conquered Northwest Punjab and for many years his successors ruled over the area comprising Indus Valley and Northwest Punjab. These areas were constituted into 20th Satrapy, which was the richest part of his empire. Darius, who faced a formidable enemy in King of Gandharvadesa, came to the conclusion that secret of his strength laid in the concentration of power and resources. He therefore decided to divide the conquered territory into small administrative units. He created political system, which endured for well over a century.

In other areas also the Persian influence was of a considerable nature. The system of taxation, centralized control salaried secretariat, the Ashokan column, the edicts inscribed on them, the style of communication adopted, the use of Arabic script and the Kharosthi script derived from it in their inscription are pointer to the Achaemanican impact.

The Indian possessions slipped out of the hands of the Iranians after the death of Xerxes (486-465 B.C). The -Purus- or Pauravas came down from their highlands and created a strong kingdom by incorporating these territories.

The excavations at Dholbaha, the ancient temple town near Hoshiarpur take back its antiquity to the Pleistocene period of the stone age man and show evidence of continued development of civilization right down to the 7th and 8th century AD.