Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/14

 BALASOR.

4 as a

hundred tons burthen can manage

and, once past that obstruction, there

and muddy, and there

are soft

The Dhamra

high water.

name, soon.

is

Madras

Dhamra

much

port, at the

no want of water. difficulty in

mouth of

landing except at

the river of the

same mon-

by a considerable number of native vessels engaged and it is of greatly rising importance. The

rice trade



discharges the united waters of the Matai, Baitarani,

river

Brahmam', and Kharsua channels of



The banks

a good harbour, affording complete protection from the

It is visited

in the

is

to get over the bar at high tide

is

all

rivers



and the port includes the navigable

the streams so far up as they are affected by the tide.

embrace Chandbali, Hansua, and Patamundaf, the two Chandbali is situated on a high and narrow ridge of sand on the banks of the Baitarani river. It has

These last

limits

being in Cuttack District.

gradually

become a

trading-place of considerable importance, the traffic

being chiefly by steamer with Calcutta.

The

the District

It is

now

the principal port in

port of Balasor consists of the portion of the Bura-

balang river fronting the town of Balasor.

It is

about

the coast in a direct line, but the course of the river

7 is

miles from so tortuous

by water is 15 miles. The navigation at the entrance and there is the usual bar at the mouth, the depth in spring tides being only one foot, while high water gives a rise of Both Balasor and Chandbali are frequented by sloops thirteen feet. from the Madras coast and Ceylon and the inhabitants of the Laccadive and Maidive islands also depend principally on this District for The import and export trade of the Balasor their supply of grain. that the distance

is

somewhat

difficult,



In 1878-79, the imports were valued at is steadily increasing. 1880-81, were returned at ;^407,82i, and the exports at £S33>939> ports
 * ^358,294, and the exports at ;^492,483 ; in 1879-80, the imports

imports ^^4 16,95 2, exports ;^473)32°1 in 1881-82, imports ^^876, 306, The great bulk of the trade is with Calcutta. exports .5^^477.563.

The

sloops used along the coast for local

traffic

are built at Balasor,

but the number of vessels belonging to the port has diminished since Government abandoned the manufacture and export of salt. A detailed description of the Balasor ports will be found

in

an

article

in

the

Reporter for April 1876 (quoted very fully in the Statistical Account of Bengal, vol. xviii. pp. 252-262), from which the above Statistical

information

is

mainly derived.

See also the different ports under their

respective alphabetical headings. History.

— Balasor was acquired wth the

rest of Orissa in 1803, since

which year there have been many perplexing changes of

The

first

British officer in

jurisdiction.

charge of the District, Captain Morgan,

exercised authority between the coast and the Hill States, but all the pargands north of Nangaleswar and Satmalang were included within Midnapur, and the limits to the south seem to have been very ill