1 SALT REVENUE DEPARTMENT FOR THE OFFICIAL YEAR 1896-97,.
2 quantity of this kind of salt produced was nominal, and the REVIEW BY SECTIONS,
3 failure in manufacture was due, as in the case of Lake edge SAMBHAR.
4 ‘pans, to the scanty supply of brine and the rapidity with
5 which it receded towards the Lake centre.
6 The outturn from the walled enclosures amounted to
7 maunds 26,46,434, compared with maunds 35,82,543 during
8 1895-96. When manufacturing operations commenced during
9 the last week of August 1896, we had ten of these walled
10 enclosures in working order at Sambhar with an aggregate
11 evaporating surface of 551711 acres. Some of these enclosures
12 are filled by gravitation, while others are so situate that brine
13 has to be lifted into them with the aid of pumps. The work
14 of filling these enclosures was carried on night and day; but
15 at last the pumps clogged with salt owing to the rapid con-
16 centration of the brine, and one large enclosure of 108'93 acres
17 remained unfilled, while 77-45 acres of pans of another en-
18 closure were only partially charged. The accumulation in
19 the works in a short space of time, of brine at a high degree
20 of density, resulted in the precipitation of salt almost simul-
21 taneously in all of the enclosures. Efforts were made to ex-
22 tract this salt while in a proper condition: but the salt cake in 18
23 pans with an evaporating surface of 42°85 acres hardened so
24 rapidly that it was found impracticable to remove it in a sale-
25 able state, and it was allowed to remain in the pans. This
26 salt is estimated to amount to about maunds 2,50,000, and it
27 will be obtained in a satisfactory condition after it has been
28 dissolved by the rainfall of 1897 and re-crystallised, The
29 success which has attended manufacture in these walled en-
30 closures during such a year of exceptional difficulty as that
31 under report, shows that these works are of the greatest
32 value to us. I mentioned ‘in my last annual report that
33 in addition to the ten enclosures at Sambhar, a similar Esaiialiae ak a iaies
34 work of large size was being constructed at Nawa. This ‘walled enclosure - at
35 latter has now been completed and will be available for ov
36 manufacture during 1897-98. When manufacture commenced
37 during the past year, work upon it was not sufficiently
38 advanced owing to a regrettable outbreak of cholera among
39 the labourers employed, for this enclosure to be of much use
40 to us. But even in its unfinished state it gave us material
41 assistance, “as nine pans, with 27 acres of evaporating surface
42 which were excavated in time to be charged with brine, yielded
43 maunds 2,06,767 of goad salt. Measures are also in progress
44 to improve the system of charging the enclosures at Sambhar
45 with brine for manufacture ; and I trust that the arrangements
46 being made will place us in a better position to meet difficulties
47 in the future. With our large trade al Sambhar we require a
48 fairly regular supply of salt, and the efforts being made are
49 directed towards that end.
50 Owing to the high prices of food grains there was no diffi- gost of extraction and
51 culty in connection with the labour supply at the Lake during _ storage,
52 the past year. The cost of extraction and storage of salt
53 during the year was as follows :—Pan salt cost 5°51 pies a
54 maund compared with 6°60 pies a maund during 1895-96; Lake
55 salt 5 pies against 5°61 pies in 1895-96 ; and the cost of the salt
56 obtained from walled enclosures was 3°65 pies compared with
57 3°86 pies in 1895-96. The average cost of the quantity of
58 maunds 30,89,846 of salt produced during the past year was
59 3°91 pies a maund compared with 4°57 pies a maund in 1895-
60 96; 4°77 pies in 1894-95, and 4°50 pies in 1893-94. The small-
61 ness of the average cost of the outturn of the past year was
62 due in some degree to the supply of labour being abundant,
63 ( 29 )