Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/361

 —a BHAGALPUR. and a

village

fore, I

of

The

entire police force of the District, there-

consisted in 1880 of 4298 officers and men, equal to an average of

man

the

watch or rural force of 3686 men, maintained by the

and landholders.

villagers

351

In the same year,

to ever}’ square mile or to every 457 persons.

number of persons put on

whom

‘cognisable’ offences was 1574, There are 2 jails and 2 lock-ups in

trial for

1392 were convicted.

The

the District, the principal prison being at Bhdgalpur town.

daily

average number of prisoners in

1880 was 206. In 1856-57, the number of Government and aided schools was 10, with 358 pupils in 1870-71, there were 12 such schools, with 750 pupils. An impetus has recently been given, however, to education in the District; and by 1873-74 the number of Government and aided schools had increased to 234, in consequence of the introduction of important changes in the system of primary education, whereby 222 schools received in that year The number of pupils small grants varying from 8s. to los. a month. attending these schools Avas 5972, of whom 5273 were Hindus and 692 Muhammadans. By 1880-81, the effect of Sir George Campbell’s educational reforms, by extending Government assistance to indigenous education, had been to augment the number of aided primary schools under the supervision of the Educational Department to 2544 with

21,286 pupils.

Malarious fevers, generally intermittent but some-

Medical

times also remittent, are endemic in the District, chiefly in the northern Division.

They

are most prevalent during the rains

and

in the begin-

ning of the cold weather, and 55 per cent, of the mortality of the Dysentery and District is attributed in the returns to this cause. diarrhoea are always very prevalent



and among the other common and

diseases of the District are scurvy, jaundice, leprosy, bronchitis,

The most common

asthma.

Bh^galpur, although

does not

it is

of the deadly epidemics

every

now and then

visited

is

cholera, but

by severe outbreaks,

—

some of the neighbouring Districts number of fairs and religious gatherings

suffer so seriously as

fact attributed to the small

which are held, and to the comparatively scanty attendance at those which do take place. The curious fever known as dengue broke out for the first time in Bhagalpur in 1872, and, as usual with this disease, spread throughout the District very rapidly. Small-pox prevails to a ‘

considerable extent, but vaccination with the natives.

There are

is

gradually finding

7 charitable

’

more favour

dispensaries in the District

one main dispensary at Bhagalpur, and branches at Banka, Colgong, Madahpura, Nathnagar, Supul, and Pratapganj. They afforded medical relief in 1880 to 573 in-door, and 16,063 out-door patients. The In 1881, the rainaverage annual rainfall is returned at 47^49 inches. fall registered 42'67 inches, or 4’82 inches below the average. No official

thermometrical returns are available.

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