'REPORT ON THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY, FOR THE YEAR 1907-1908' [‎42r] (82/137)

1907-1908.]
MINES AND QUARRIES—*MANUFACTURES AND INDUSTRIES.
43 Chap. IV.
9. The receipts rose from Rs. 4,00,357 to Rs. 4,68,028 principally owing to better prices
having 1 been realized from the sale of coupes and lae. The expenditure increase distribution-.
Ks . B53,546 to Rs. 1,72.635 as the result of larger expenditure "on buadings mat an>>—ia^„ It ,
irrigation, and of enhanced salaries paid to officers on the Imperial list. <*uu
5. Mines and Quarries.
DhdrwSr and the Ranch Mabdls continue to be the only districts where the minino-
industry is of much importance. In Dhdrwir, besides the three principal Gold MoiinS
Companies (the Dhdrwdr Gold Minin?, the Gold Fields of Dhdrwar and th e P Dharwar Bee sf
five other companies were working options. The Dhdrwar Reefs Oompan v raised 4 017 inn. Li
gold quartz valued at Rs. 2,79,50,980. The number of labourers on the field is now 13 2o0
Manganese prospects in the Kod taluka are promising. In the Ranch Mahals the Shivraipur
and Bamankna Manganese Mines carried on extensive operations as usual. Ten prospeetinc
licenses and 62 exploring licenses for minerals were issued in that district Prospectin°. lieen-es
for manganese were issued also in the Belgaum, Bijapur, Kanara and Katnligiri districts but
the fall in prices led to a large reduetion in the number of applications. Owino- to the
operations of the Bombay Port Trust stone quarrying proceeded briskly in Thana, Kollba and
Surat.
6. Manufactures and Industries.
Poor crops ar.d low prices to some extent curtailed activity in the cotton industry and a
number of mills were not working, or worked for a short season only. Nevertheless there
was no sign of a chec v in the piocess of development. Nine new mills and factories were
started in Ahmedabad, 2 in the West Khdndesh District, and 1 in ShohSpur, Dh4rwar,
Jacobaba i and Mirpurknis ; while others are under construction in Broaeh and East Khdndesh.
The mills of the Silk and Cotton Manufacturing Company in Poona have been extended and
an annexe, addei, ter ued the Swadeshi Manufacturing Company. The Gokak Falls Mills
Company in Belgaum are contemplating the erection of a ginning factory An East India Company trading post. to be worked by
electiic power deiived from the turbine station at the foot of the falls. Rice and flour mills
prospered on the whole, but business suffered in TUana owing to poor crops and in Sukkur
owing to the low inundation Two new rice-cleaning factories started w >rk in Larkina, and a
large factory An East India Company trading post. for pressing fodder to supply the Quetta garrison and for cleaning rice was
erected at Jacobabad. The fl.mr mill at M.rpurkhas was working for ihe first tine. There
was^ no remarkable development of new industries, but the establishment of a maten factory An East India Company trading post. at
Dharwdr, a tile factory An East India Company trading post. in the Kanara District and a silk-worm farm near Belgaum deserve
mention. . The butter factories in Ahmedabad enjoyed a prosperous year, as did also the Reay
Paper Mills in Poona and the Carpet and Rug Factory An East India Company trading post. in Ahmednagar. The extensive
building operations in and about Bombay and the new dock schemes have given a strong
impetus to the brick-making industry, especially in Thana, and Imd has been applied for on
Trombay Island for a cement factory An East India Company trading post. . The growth of the ehaicoal industry in f hana continues,
much to the detriment of the forest growth in malki lands. Large Government works in
l^oona led to great activity in the building trade there. In all districts many of the minor
local industries, especially jewellers' work and weaving, were stimulated by the abnormal
number of marriages, and the copper a id brass pots of Ndsik had a specially good sale owing
to the Sinvhast Fair. The efforts ceing made to assist the hand-weaving industry by the
adoption of improved methods an 1 implements are still in the experimental stage. The Local
board Weaving Class at Belganm had 2-i pupils in the year. The 1 om used is of the
European hand-loom type and can be repaired by an ordinary carpenter. At one or two places
m Dhdxwdr Japanese looms are in use and at Saswad in the Poona District, hand-looms of the
oalvation Army pattern have been introduced in the hope of inducing the local weavers to adopt
th'-m The fishing population on the coasts were fairly prosperous, because the scarcity of
grain created an unusually brisk demand for dried fish. But ouly the most antiquated
methods of coast fishery are practised and there is much room for development.
The Factories Act.
1. The number of factories under the control of the Act increased from 495 to 519. Number of
welve spinning and weaving mills, of which 8 were in Ahmedabad, and 14 ginning and factories-,
pressing factories were registered during the year. Of 491 working factories ^44 were
peiennial and 21/ seasonal. Three hundred and ninety-seven were connected with the cotton
industry. ■
fhe average daily number of operatives was 214,452 compared with 212,63/ last Number of
year. The number employed in Bombay was 126,057 against 127,700. There is a slight fall operatives.:
om 44,710 to 42,899 in the number of women employed, while the number of children
increased from 8,659 to 10,106.
j 42(} 3 * T1 je total numbir of accidents was !,625, of which 21 were fatal, 184 serious, and Accidents.
; 8 k^hu. The average per hundred persons employed rose from 71 to '75.
0 n e . t* Sevent een prosecutions were instituted, against 9 last year, 7 for employing Prosecution^
Pjatives m contravention of the Act, and 7 for neglecting to fence machinery. Convictions
Weie denied in 13 cases.