Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/202

 150 THE BRITISH EMPIRE: — INDIA AND DEPENDENCIES

The number of vessels which entered with cargoes in the interportal trade was in 1916-17, 91,273 of 8,045,742 tons ; in 1917-18, 91,991 of 6,366,966 tons ; in 1918-19, 93,150 of 7,616,676 tons ; in 1919-20, 89,251 of 9,045,672 tons ; and cleared in 1916-17, 74,642 of 7,986,587 tons; in 1917-18, 74,973 of 6,227,984 tons ; in 1913-19, 78,890 of 6,598,618 tons ; m 1919-20, 72,704 of 9,374,816 tons.

The number and tonnage of vessels built or first registered at Indian ports for five years : —

1916-17

1913-14 (Pre-war)

Vo.\ Tou - No. Ton - nage " nage

1917-18

1918-19

v „ Ton- w Ton- ~ Ton- • nage *»• nage ^ nage

1919-20

Built Registered

141 I 5,311

212 122,283

102 7,120 142 209 24,009! 296

11,808 16,872

341;sc,,264l 200 121,013 339 39,550! 300 130,990

Internal Communications. I. Roads. The following table shows approximately the length in miles of roads maintained by public authorities throughout the country : —

Province

Metalled Miles

Unmetalled Miles 31,677-83

Total Miles

Bengal. . . (1918-1919) J

3,117-87

34,795-70

Assam. . „

527-00

S.462-54

8,98954

Bihar and Orissa ,,

3,137-00

15, 879-00

19,01600

United Provs. . ,, j

7.354-8S

20,799-76

34,154 64

Punjab. . ,,

2,905 59

22,06:! -80

24,969 39

Burma. . . ,,

1,972-22

10,569-65

12,541-87

Central Provs. arid Berar,,

8,894 00

4,099-00

7,'.<93-00

Madras. . ,,

21,604-75

5,342-20

g«,916*96

Bombay. . ,,

8,054-84

19.465-53

27,620-87

N.W F. Prov. . „

873-17

2,702-49

3,575-661

Coorg. . ,,

235-75

186 37

422 12

Riijimtana. „

307-00

323-00

680-00

Baluchistan. ,,

<»75-79

34399

1,3)9-78?

Military works. (19Ui-1917)

1,409*44

997-16

2.44s 60

1 Includes 2,197-31 miles of road maintained by local authorities, but it is not known whether they are metalled or unmetalled ; but excludes 130-75 miles of serviceable fair- weather roads, and 071-43 miles of bridle paths.

2 Exclusive of 188 25 miles of serviceable fair-weather and temporary roads 1,598-00 miles of bridle paths.

In several provinces certain of the large canals which are primarily in- tended for irrigation are also used for navigation by country boats and barges of shallow draught. The length of navigable channel in the several province* is : — Madras, 1,318 miles ; United Provinces, 412 miles : Punjab, 259 miles ; Bengal, 590 miles ; Bihar and Orissa, 519 miles ; Burma, 91 miles.

An estimate has reeentlv been sanctioned for the proposed Grand Trunk Canal in Bengal, which will form a very important addition to the navigable waterways of the Province. The canal will be 22 miies in length, and will con- nect the Hooghly River at Calcutta with the navigable rivers o I Eastern Bengal.

Inland steamer navigation is almost exclusively confined to Burma and to the Uanges- Brahmaputra- Megna group of waterwavs, which connect Bengal with Bihar and Orissa on the one side, and with Assam on the other.

A limited number of vessels ply on the Indus River, but this will probably cease when the large irrigation canals in the Punjab and Sind, at present under investigation, are constructed.