1 %
2 REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTHERN INDIA
3 REVIEW BYSECTIONS. stratum is thickest about the centre of the mine, but thins out
4 PANJAB MINES.
5 towards the east and west until it dies out altogether. At
6 lower levels, this marl dies out to the northward also. There are
7 no signs whatever of exhaustion in these two salt seams. They
8 increase in thickness at the lower levels and the salt found
9 improves in quality. The mine has been worked for ages past.
10 A tradition exists among the miners that their tribe has
11 worked in the mine for the past 800 years. In the year 1850,
12 a special department was organized in the Panjab for the
13 collection of the revenue on salt, and since the beginning of
14 that year down to the close of the year under review the total
15 quantity of salt excavated from the mine hill amounts to
16 maunds 5,34,63,085, or about two millions of tons.
17 Good work was done during the year in driving tunnels
18 in the mine. These had for their object—(1) the exploration
19 of unknown parts of the mine hill ; (2) the opeging out of new
20 mining faces for ordinary work ; (3) the provision of places of
21 refuge in connection with blasting operations ; (4) the construc-
22 tion of passages from one chamber to another; (5) the ventila-
23 tion of workings; and (6) the connection of workings with tram-
24 way lines, in order to facilitate the removal of salt. For pur-
25 poses of exploration, tunnels were driven from two points, for
26 distances of 1934 feet and 52 feet, respectively, in order to con-
27 nect the Sajiwal and Pharwala salt seams. The salt of the lat-
28 ter is good at its surface, and the stratum is 50 feet in thickness.
29 It is divided from the Sajiwal seam by marl and impure salt
30 100 feet thick. The mine workings having advanced in some
31 places down to the level of the gorge bed, and also beyond the
32 heart of the mine hill towards its northern face, fitting locali-
33 ties became available from which to start tunnels for the pur-
34 pose of thoroughly exploring the Pharwala seam. Two points
35 were selected, and if the progress of the tunnels is not stopped
36 by water, T hope to obtain useful information during the cur-
37 rent year regarding an important seam of salt. Towards the
38 east and south-east of the mine, there are large quantities of
39 salt only now being opened out, and these need to be connected
40 with the tramway. For this purpose, tunnels aggregating 226
41 feet in length were driven during the year.
42 The old mines which extend along the southern boundary of
43 the new mine have caused much anxiety in past years owing to
44 the danger of their falling in. Efforts to remove this danger
45 have been made for many years past, and were not relaxed dur-
46 ing the year under review. The portion of the old Sajiwal
47 mine, which yielded the greater part of the salt excavated down
48 to the beginning of 1872, has been filled up with waste salt and
49 so rendered safe. The Pharwala and Makhad mines still
50 remain dangerous, but these are smaller and of lesser impor-
51 tance, The work of filling up all of these old mines with waste
52 salt will be steadily continued.
53 The passages in the mine are all properly fenced, and are
54 safe. Great care has been exercised in connection with this
55 work, in view to preventing the occurrence of any accident.
56 The air passages are also in good working order, and the mine
57 is well ventilated throughout.
58 The new tramway tunnel, the roof of which was unsafe in
59 parts, has been lined with masonry wherever it appeared to be
60 at all dangerous. A total length of 464 feet has been protect-
61 ed in this manner, of which 100 feet were lined during the
62 year under report. Thomson’s tunnel, the passage for the
63 ingress and egress of the miners, is now quite safe. A length
64 ( 0 )