1 BEVIEW BY SECTIONS...
2 DIDWANA.
3 Stock and sale account.
4 REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTHERN INDIA
5 Durbar, only maunds 41,374 were taken during the year, the
6 balance (maunds 18,626) has lapsed. It was stated last year that
7 no reason could be found for,the full quantity of salt not being
8 taken by the Durbar, but the probability is that the salt allowed
9 is more than the population which consumes Didwana salt
10 requires. This is the sixth consecutive year in which less than
11 the full amount of salt deliverable to. it has been purchased
12 by the Durbar. The towns of Didwana, Merta and Kucha-
13 wan took less salt than in 1894-95, and those of Nagore, Par-
14 batsar and Marote took more.
15 45. Details of the opening and closing balances of'salt, and
16 ef the quantity manufactured and sold, including excesses and
17 deficits discovered in the clearances of heaps,. will be found for
18 the past two years im the statement that follows :—
19 Stock, Sales.
20 Extracted. , Balance at
21 bias beginning “of | including otal, | defects in’ | ‘2080 of the-
22 b2 excesses in . , year.
23 the year. heaps cleared. heaps cleared.
24 Mads, Mas, Mads Mds. Mads.
25 1894 95 web 1,638,209 4,16,508 5,79,717 8,91,121 1,88,596
26 Rates paid for manufac-
27 ture and storage.
28 Results of clearances of
29 heaps..
30 1895-96: oe 1,88,596° 6,13,820 8,02,416 3,64,678 4,37,738
31 Se ee el ee
32 The year under review opened with the rather scanty stock
33 balance of maunds 1,88,596, to which were added new stock,
34 including excesses on clearances, amounting to maunds 6,13,820,
35 making up a total of maunds 8,02,416.: From this quantity
36 were sold maunds 3,64,678 of duty paid and duty free salt, and
37 the closing balance on the 31st of March 1896 was maunds
38 4,837,738. This is as large-a balance of stock as we ever require
39 to keep at this salt source. The year was a favourable one for:
40 the manufacture of salt as it is carried on at Didwana, where
41 the salt is made by the evaporation in pans of brine taken out.
42 of wells sunk in the bed of the salt tract,and where, therefore,
43 within reasonable limits of course, the Jonger and the drier the-
44 season is, the: larger the outturn.
45 During the past year the ordinary rates were paid for manu-
46 facture, viz., 2, 24 and 3 pies per maund according to quality,
47 but the storage rates for the quantity manufactered*(maunds
48 1,53,683) between the 17th February and the 31st of March
49 1896, were again’ increased owing to the straitened circum-
50 stances of the Deswals caused by the scarcity that prevailed around
51 Didwana. The storage of the remainder of the salt manufactured
52 during the year was paid for at the ordinary rates. The aver-
53 age cost of manufacture and storage combined for the year
54 under review was one-third of a pie less than in 1894-95. ‘This
55 difference is due to the larger proportion of first claiss salt paid
56 for at the highest rate, viz., three pies per maund, fn 1894-95.
57 The combined rate of manufacture and storage in 1894-95 was
58 5°59; and in 1895-96 it was 5°25 pies per maund. |
59 During the year six .heaps of salt were cleared by ‘sale, and
60 in all of them excesses aggregating maunds 74,027 were dis- -
61 covered. These excesses averaged 24°13 per cent more than the
62 amount booked at the time of estimation and storage. ‘This is.
63 more than can be considered satisfactory ; but the present Mssist-
64 ant Commissioner is not responsible, and as the manufacturers
65 receive the price due on these excesses, when the heapg are
66 cleared, no injury was inflicted on them by the excessive uinder--
67 estimation made by the present Assistant Commissioner's pre~-
68 decessor,.
69 ( 32),