1 REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTHERN INDIA
2 REVIEW BY SECTIONS, On the Rewari-Ferozepore Branch of the Réjputana-Malwa
3 PUNJAB MINES. Railway there was a small decrease of maunds 1,334 in the
4 traffic, bookings to stations upon it amounting to maunds 23,990
5 compared with maunds 25,324 in 1895-96. ‘The Bhatinda station
6 imported only maunds 9,000 as compared with maunds 11,643
7 in 1895-96; but Fazilka received maunds 9,270 against maunds
8 ‘5,810 in 1895-96. On the whole the trade of the line was
9 steady.
10 The trade with the Indian Midland and the Bengal and
11 North-Western Railways was very small, and the traftic of the
12 past year shows a decline in the case of each. During the year,
13 only maunds 25 were sent to Morar on the Indian Midland Rail-
14 rays and maunds 160 to Basti on the Bengal.and North-Western
15 ine.
16 There was a decline of maunds 3,015 in the trade with the
17 Delhi-Umballa and Kalka Railway, only maunds 36,650 having
18 been consigned to stations on it compared with maunds 39,665
19 during 1895-96. During the past year maunds 18,150 were
20 booked to stations on the section between Delhi and Umballa’
21 compared with maunds 14,675 in 1895-96, or an increase of
22 maunds 3,475. Maunds 18,500 were taken by the section between
23 Umballa and Kalka against maunds 24,990 in 1895-96 —a
24 decrease of maunds 6,490. It was on this latter section there-
25 fore that the decline in the trade occurred, the principal station,
26 Kalka, taking only maunds 17,225 against maunds 21,725 in
27 1895-96.
28 . The following figures show the direct trade in rock salt with
29 the North-Western Provinces, Oudh and Bengal during the past
30 five years :— ;
31 Mds.
32 1892-938 as aes on vee oes “pao 2,17,006
33 1898-94 a ase oes ses wes des 2,40,333
34 1894-95... ane uct wie es as 2,15,697
35 1895-96. es wee rr as, ae 2,20,413
36 1896-97 ae _ oo eas ‘ 2,41,180
37 .There has been aslight increase in the trade during the past
38 year, and it is hoped that the traffic will continue to improve.
39 Ordinary trade—The removals by railway of ordinary
40 trade salt amounted during the past year to mauads 40,387
41 compared with maunds 1,02,673 during 1895-96, or a décrease
42 of maunds 62,286. The decline was very widespread over
43 the North-Western Railway, the only line to which salt
44 was despatched from the depot by mercantile agency, and was
45 due partly to the decrease in the trade with Kashmir and
46 partly to the rumour of an impending reduction in the rate of
47 duty, which was current in the Punjab during the year. The -
48 fluctuations in some of the principal marts were as follows :—
49 Lala Musa imported only maunds 3,105 against maunds 7,419
50 in 1895-96 ; Rawalpindi maunds 17,140 against maunds 25,174
51 in 1895-96 ; Kharian only maunds 3,607, compared with maunds
52 14,727 during 1895-96; and the Sialkot and Amritsar mer-
53 chants took no salt through mercantile agency during the year,
54 while they so imported maunds 7,277 and maunds 5,830
55 during 1895-96,
56 Removals of ordinary trade salt by road from the Warthganj
57 depot amounted to maunds 36,873 during the past year, com-
58 pared with maunds 31,463 in 1895-96, an increase of maunds
59 5,410. The more important marts to which salt was despatch-
60 ed by this method in larger quantities than in 1895-96 were
61 Multan, Chakwal and Gujranwala.
62 ( 14 )