1 REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTHERN INDIA
2 REVIEWBYSECTIONS. net revenue of the mines for the past year exceeds that
3 KOHAT MINES.
4 Tsanes of salt from the
5 different mines.
6 of 1896-97 by Rs. 2,283,759, though the quantity of salt
7 issued was smaller. This is of course due to the whole of
8 the salt sold during 1897-98 having paid the higher rate of
9 duty, while that duty was levied upon only 738 maunds dur-
10 ing 1896-97.
11 IT may mention here that during the current year, the
12 Government of India have decided upon the transfer of the
13 Kohat mines to the charge of this Department. This decision
14 is embodied in letter No. 2462S.R., dated the Ist June 1898,
15 from the Government of India, Department of Finance and
16 Commerce, to the Government of the Panjab.
17 The Deputy Commissioner of Kohat has been gazetted as
18 ex officio a Deputy Commissioner of Salt Revenue, and will
19 correspond directly with me on all matters connected with the
20 administration of the mines. £
21 24. The issues of salt from the different mines in the
22 Kohat district during the past four years are shown in the
23 table below :—
24 Name of Depit. 1894-95, 1895-96, 1896-97. 1897-98. »
25 Mas. Mas, Mds. Mas,
26 Jatta vee ove 2,41,332 8,10,020 2,04,834 1,26,758
27 Malgin ane ane 1,44,764 1,62,685 1,34,269 94,099
28 Narri tee aoe 34,192- 29,399 34,021 14,109
29 Kbarrak aie ase 62,842 1,34,096 40,325 32,718
30 Bahadur Khel... aa 1,08,367 * 1,49,270 82,721 54,720
31 Total aes 6,91,497 7,853,470 4,96,170 8,22,404
32 The decrease in the trade of the year under report, the
33 causes of which have been dealt with in the preceding para-
34 graph, affected all of the mines adversely.
35 Jatta.—The quarries are the most important of the group.
36 Compared with 1896-97, there was a decrease in issues of
37 78,076 maunds. The trade routes followed by carriers of salt
38 from Jatia are, (1) vid Teri into the Kurram valley, (2) vig
39 Mamikhel to Hangu and Thal, (3) vz@ Lachi to Kohat and to
40 Peshawar and beyond wid the Khyber Pass, and (4) along the
41 Khushalgarh road to Peshawar, Swat, and Buner.
42 Malgin.—These quarries are the next in importance.
43 Compared with 1896-97, there was a decrease of 40,170
44 maunds in the trade of the past year. The principal market
45 is Peshawar, the trade route followed being that through the
46 Kohat Pass. This line of traffic supplies the Jowaki Afridis.
47 The second trade route follows the Kohra road. By this line,
48 Peshawar is within six marches of Malgin, vid Nilab and
49 Naoshera ; the trade of Swat, Buner, Agror, and Bajaur
50 striking off to the northward at Naoshera.
51 Narri—Under the orders of the Panjib Government,
52 these quarries were permanently closed with effect from the
53 1st of March 1898. The sales of the year were less than those
54 of 1896-97 by 19,912 maunds.
55 Kharrak.—The sales of the past year fell below those of
56 1896-97 by only 7,607 maunds—a comparatively gocd result.
57 These quarries are resorted to by several clans of Powindahs,
58 who distribute salt over the Derajat during the winter, and
59 convey consignments into Afghanistan on the approach of
60 summer, the trade route running vz7@ Tonk.
61 _ Bahadur Khel.—The sales here were less than those
62 of 1896-97 by 28,001 maunds. These quarries lie within
63 ( 22 )