1 INTERNAL BRANCH.
2 Sajji and Rassi works,
3 Working of saltpetre re~
4 fineries,
5 Provinces.
6 The Panj ab ene
7 North-Western Proyin-
8 ces and Oudh.
9 Calcutta
10 Total be
11 Province of Behar... {
12 REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE NORTHERN INDIA
13 the outturn of the article in the North-Western Provinces is
14 reported to have been considerably larger than in 1898-99.
15 A smaller number of licenses were issued during the year
16 under report, compared with 1898-99, for the manufacture of
17 sajji and rass¢ (impure carbonates of soda). The decrease
18 in the number of sajji licenses occurred entirely in Behar, and
19 was due to the fact that licenses were taken out late in the
20 season owing tothe heavy rain which fell during the cold
21 weather.
22 54. The work done in saltpetre refineries during the year,
23 as compared with 1898-99, is shown below :—
24 | Z Refinement of saltpetre. Salt educed.
25 2B aoe Eames,
26 S Das 2S Sous Zz
27 3 35 3 Roi 88
28 = BS bs Sa ia
29 4 =a Ss a= O : ov
30 2. gs ee gs = 2”
31 ~ a Lo} 2a — —= 3
32 3% 2 $2 ww 8 g Bo
33 @ 2 Sn * 3 ae as o {#33
34 4 § & a8 oo a 3 ean
35 : >s mr & w3g = a bs a
36 Ha 28 s 352 ss 8 Sao
37 22 i 32 a305 o = eI
38 2 a5 3 % om | 3 4 Sak
39 isa $s Sa = ae] 5 bed 2 BO ds
40 a eC e 4 ou a = Pu
41 ae paar yee Gh See Bg ee
42 Mads. Mas. Mds. | Mds. | Mds. Mads. Mads
43 1898-99 .. 8 { 1,72,895 63,727 36°35 36 | 47,273 47,309 27°36
44 1899-1900... 86 | 2,00,209 79,174 89°55 991 | 50,190 61,181 25°56
45 1898-99... | 156] 2,75,588 | 1,87,119 | 49°76] 45,560 | 15,877 }’ 61,437 22 29
46 1829-2900... | 124 | 8,49,220 | 1,71,558 49°13 | 49,621 | 29,620 99,241 22:69
47 1898-99 . | 876] 4,19,248 | 2,62,784 6268 | 15,503 3,771 19,274 469
48 1899-1900... | 385 | 4,18,636 | 2,54,229 61°46 | 18,968 8,260 17,228 4-16
49 1898-99 ... 13 | 1,15,968 ; 92,160 7947 6,481 5,096 11,577 9:98
50 18..9-1900 .. 13 61,214 49,534 | 80°93 3,781 2,544 6,325 10°33
51 1898-99... | 583] 9,83,694 | 5,55,790 56°50 | 67,580 2,017 | 1,389,597 1419
52 1899-1900... | 508 , 10,234,279 | 5,54,495 1,538,976 15:03
53 S414 ) 68,861 | 85,614
54 The increase of maunds 40,585 in the quantity of saltpetre
55 utilized for refinement, like the increase in the number of
56 crude licenses indicates a partial recovery of the saltpctre
57 trade owing to the higher prices ruling during the year. The
58 percentage of refined saltpetre produced is, however, somewhat
59 lower than in the preceding year, as it takes time to recover
60 saltpetre which has passed during working into the nitrous
61 earth of refineries. The effect of the larger quantity of mate-
62 rial utilized for refinement ought, therefore, to be felt during
63 the current year.
64 The great decrease in the work done in the refineries at
65 Calcutta is noticeable. - These factories do not, speaking gener-
66 ally, manufacture saltpetre, but merely purify consignments
67 received from Behar and Northern India, A high degree of
68 refraction can be attained in factories up-country as easily as
69 at Calcutta ; and as the sale of saltpetre salt at Calcutta with-
70 out payment of duty has now been prevented, the factories
71 there have declined in importance. In the circumstances the
72 Government of India have approved of a proposal, which was
73 recently made, for the transfer of the supervision of the Cal-
74 cutta refineries to the pewly constituted Salt Department in
75 Bengal afd arrangements to that end are in progress.
76 ( 32)