Nasik District , 1908
Contents |
Nasik District, 1908
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
(Nasica of Ptolemy). — District in the Central Divi-
sion of the Bombay Presidency, lying between 19° 35' and 20° 53' N.
and 73° 15' and 74° 56' E., with an area of 5,850 square miles. It
is bounded on the north and north-east by the District of Khandesh ;
on the south-east by the Nizam's Dominions ; on the south by Ahmad-
nagar ; and on the west by Thana District, the territories of Dharampur,
Surgana, and the Dangs.
Pysical aspects
With the exception of a few villages in the west, the whole District is situated on a table-land at an elevation of from 1,300 to 2,000 feet above the sea. The western portion, from north south, called Dang, is generally much divided by hills and intersected by ravines, and only the simplest kind of cultivation is possible. The eastern portion, called Desh, is open, fertile, and well cultivated. Except the line of the Western Ghats, which run north and south, the general direction of the hills is from west to east, the higher portions being in the west. The Satmala or Chandor range of hills forms the watershed of the District, dividing the valley of the Girna from that of the Goda- vari. It stretches from Peint east into the Nizam's Dominions, and is crossed by several fair passes. The most important of these, which takes its name from the range, is traversed by a first-class bridged and metalled road. East of Rahudi, the Chandor range ceases to be a barrier. Its chief peak, Dhodap, is 4,741 feet high. Several of the minor peaks are of religious and historic interest. A low range separates Dindori from Nasik. On its peaks are the once celebrated fort of Ramsej and the Jain cave-temples of Chambhar Lena (see Nasik Towx). The other important ranges are the Selbari and Dolbari, varying from 3,000 to 4,000 feet. All streams of any size to the south of the Chandor range are tributaries of the Godavari, the principal of these being the Darna, Kadva, Deo, and Maralgin. In the north of the watershed the Girna and its tributary the Mosam flow through fertile valleys into the Tapti. The District contains many hill forts, the scenes of engagements during the Maratha Wars.
Nasik District is entirely occupied by the Deccan trap formation, which appears at the surface except where hidden under recent soil or concealed beneath some comparatively limited outcrops of pliocene or pleistocene gravels. The Deccan trap consists as usual of successive flows of basalt, with a slight dip towards the east, which once accumulated to a thickness of several thousand feet. Denudation acting uninter- ruptedly during a protracted series of geological ages has removed the greater part of this enormous mass ; and the latest flows are now reduced to small disconnected remnants forming the peaks of lofty hills, of which the summits indicate the former level of the land. Some of the basalt flows are of great thickness and vast horizontal extent, and the same flow can often be recognized in several of the detached hills which denudation has isolated from one another. Over most of the low-lying portions of the District the surface of the basalt has weathered into fertile black soil. The red laterite which caps so many flat-topped hills of the Sahyadri range farther south has been almost all worn away within Nasik District. The beds of clay and conglomerate that form high cliffs along the banks of the Godavari at Nandur Madmeshwar must have been deposited when the head- waters of the river flowing eastwards were situated to the west of their present sites.
In these gravels have been found remains of hippopotamus, and the skull and several bones of a gigantic elephant (E. namadicus), a variety of E. afitiquus which flourished in Europe towards the close of the pliocene and commencement of the pleistocene period. In the so-called older alluvium of the Narbada, which is probably pliocene in age, the remains of E. namadicus occur, together with those of E. {Stegodon) ganesa-itis ignis, a Siwalik species. A well near Bhadra Kali's temple in Nasik, and another near the Nasik jail, are remark- able for the presence of nitrates in large quantities.
The botanical features differ but little from those of adjacent Dis- tricts. There is the same luxuriance of vegetation on the Western Ghats and the same bare country on the Deccan side. The mango and babul are the commonest trees. Along the roadsides grow the pipal, banyan, pipri, umbar, karanj, tamarind, mango, nim, Jambul, and babul. The Clematis triloba, Heylandia, Pulicaria, Indigofera, Impatiens, Exacuni, Canscora, and Cyathodine flower in most parts of the District. The neighbourhood of Nasik town provides good grapes. Of wild animals, leopards, antelope, and spotted deer are fairly- common. Tigers are only occasionally met with. The climate of Nasik town and of the whole of the west of the District is the best in the Deccan. It varies in different parts, but on the whole presents greater extremes of heat and cold in the east than in the west. In January extreme cold and in April extreme heat are experienced. During the rest of the year, constant breezes from the west and south-west equalize the temperature. In 1903 the temperature varied from a minimum of 50° in February to a maximum of 105° in April. The annual rainfall at Nasik town averages 29 inches, while at Igatpuri it is 133. The only other tract with a considerable rainfall is Peint, where the average is 87 inches. At other places the rainfall in 1903 varied from 20 inches at Malegaon to 31 inches at Dindori.
History
From the second century B.C. to the second century a.d. the Dis- trict was under rulers, notably the Andhras, who patronized Buddhism, and some of whom are supposed to have had a capital at Paithan, no miles south-east of Nasik. Among other early Hindu dynasties were the Chalukyas, the Rathors, and the Chandor and Deogiri Yadavas. The INIuhammadan period lasted from 1295 to 1760, during which the District was successively under the viceroys of Deogiri (Daulatabad), the Bahmanis of Gulbarga, the Nizam Shahis of Ahmadnagar, and the Mughals of Delhi, when it formed part of the Subah of Aurangabad. The Maratha ascen- dancy lasted from 1760 until 181 8, when the British power crushed the last of the Peshwas. Since then twice only has the peace of the District been disturbed — once in 1843, when serious breaches of order arose on the slaughter of a cow by Europeans in Nasik town ; and again in 1857, when some Rohillas, Arabs, and Bhils gathered under the outlaw Bhagoji.
The town of Nasik is a place of great antiquity and sanctity, being associated with the legend of Rama. The important cave-temples are the Buddhistic caves known as Pandu Lena and the Jain caves of Chambhar {see Nasik Town), and those of Ankai and of Tringal- vadi near Igatpuri. Nasik has now a large number of temples, mostly dating from the eighteenth century, and not remarkable for their architectural beauty. The temple of Govindeshwar in Sinnar forms a strong contrast to the smaller and richly carved temples of lakshmi Narayan at Pedgaon in Ahmadnagar District, being adorned chiefly with bands and panels of arabesque and other decoration, instead of figure sculpture. The shrine of Aieshwara in the north- west of the town of Sinnar is the remains of a Dravidian temple. The Govindeshwar group is the finest collection of mediaeval temples in the Deccan. The porch of the Jogeshwar temple at Devalana in Baglan is elaborately decorated, though much damaged. An immense hoard of silver coins of the Western Satraps was found in the District in 1906.
Hill forts, of which the District contains thirty-eight, may be divided into two classes : those on the main range or on the eastern spurs of the Western Ghats, and those on the Chandor range in the centre of the District. There are twenty-three Western Ghat forts, the chief being Galna Anjaneri, Trimbak, Kulang and Alang, and Kalsubai. Fifteen forts lie on the Chandor range, including Ankai, Chandor, and Dhodap. Saptashring or Chatarsingi, one of the principal hills in the Chandor range, is not fortified because it is sacred to the Saptashring goddess. The Nasik hill forts bear a great likeness to one another. They are built on isolated hills rising like islands from the plateau, or on peaks connected by low narrow necks. Each hill is capped by a mass of rock scarped by nature, the crest being surrounded with walls pierced by massive gates at accessible spots. Besides the walls and gates, the only work required of man was the construction of cisterns to hold water, and flights of steps. Of the origin of these forts there is no authentic history. Report ascribes the construction of most of them to Sivajl ; but many of them undoubtedly existed before his time, and were the works of the early Hindu rulers. Thus, in 808, Markinda fort appears to have been an outpost of a Rashtrakuta king. During the Mughal ascendancy the Muhammadans became the masters of the forts, and have left traces of their handiwork in Saracenic arches, inscriptions, and tombs.
Population
The number of towns and villages in the District is 1,649. At the last four enumerations the population was : (1872) 737,685, (1881) 781,129,(1891) 843,496, and (1901) 816,504. The decrease in 1901 was due to famine, which affected the entire District. The distribution in 190 1 of the population into twelve talukas is shown in the table on next page.
The chief towns are : Nasik, the head-quarters, Malegaon, Yeola, Igatpuri, Sinnar, Manmad, Nandgaon, Chandor, and Trimbak. The average density is 140 persons per square mile. Nandgaon, with only 87, is the most thinly populated tdliika. Classified according to religion, Hindus formed 93 per cent, of the total, Musalmans 5 per cent., Jains one per cent. ; and Christians numbered 2,935. The vernacular of the District is Marathi. The establishment of Maratha power attracted many Brahmans to the District. These, numbering 27,000, are mainly Deshasths (21,000). The Yajurvedi Deshasths are the priestly class of the holy cities of Nasik and Trimbak. Marathas (163,000) and Maratha Kunbis (139,000) occupy the western portions, and are in general skilful and successful cultivators. The more primitive Kolls (75,000), found along the Western Ghats, are hardy and active. Formerly of un- settled habits, of late years they have taken peacefully to agricultural pursuits. Other castes of importance are Bhils (52,000), Vanjaris
- The Agricultural department's returns give the total number of villages as 1,695.
(31,000), Mails (28,000), Thakurs (17,000), and Varlis (9,000). Bhils live a wandering life in the Dang or are settled in the richer parts of the Desh, where they do duty as village watchmen, residing in hamlets, known as Bhilvadas, close to the village site. Telis (oil- pressers) number 11,000, Dhangars (shepherds and blanket-weavers) 15,000. Of the depressed classes, 73,000 are Mahars or village menials. Of the total population, 59 per cent, live by agriculture, 9 per cent, by general labour, and 2 per cent, by mendicancy. It is characteristic of the population to collect into small compact villages. The inhabi- tants of the villages at the foot of the Western Ghats are to a great extent migratory. Their poor lands seldom yield crops for more than two years in succession ; and often in the hot season — their stock of grain running low — they are compelled to retire to the forest and support themselves by felling and carrying timber, feeding on fish, berries, and even roots. The Musalmans (44,000) are nearly all of foreign origin, and are for the most part settled in the towns.
Of the 1,780 native Christians in 1901, 940 belonged to the Anglican communion and 722 were Roman Catholics. The Chris- tian village Sharanpur, in the immediate vicinity of Nasik, which was founded by the Rev. W. S. Price of the Church Missionary Society in 1854, contains an orphanage, mission houses, schools, and workshops, built upon land granted by Government. For twenty-two years before the establishment of a separate village there was a Christian school and orphanage in Nasik town. In 1865 Dr. Livingstone visited the settle- ment, and took with him to Africa several rescued African slave-boys who were being educated there. The orphanage contained 200 boys and 129 girls in 1905, and is equipped for the teaching of carpentry, smiths' work, and printing. The Church Missionary Society has branches at Malegaon, Manmad, Nandgaon, Deolali, and Igatpuri, and maintains 14 vernacular schools, of w^iich 7 are for boys, 6 for girls, and one is for both sexes, and 5 Anglo-vernacular schools, of which one is for girls. The number of pupils in these schools in 1905 was 969. The Zanana Mission maintains a hospital and a small orphanage at Nasik, and a home for native girls at Manmad.
Agriculture
The soil may be divided into four classes : the reddish-black mould along rivers ; a light black soil higher up ; a brown soil, stiffer and shallower, found on the higher lands near the Ghats ; and highest and lightest of all, light brown or red, often strewn with boulders and mixed with lime. A second crop is not often raised. Manure is invariably used for all garden crops, but rarely for others.
The District is mainly ryotwari, but contains indm lands covering 438 square miles. The chief statistics of cultivation in 1903-4 are shown below, in square miles : —
- Of this total, wliich is based upon the most recent information, stati.stics are not
available for 142 square miles.
Bajra, the staple food of the people, covers an area of 1,099 square miles ; it is sown with a mixture of pulses. Wheat (393 square miles) is grown largely in the central and southern talukas ; it is a fine grain, hard and white. Jowdr occupies 161 square miles. Rice and ndgli are grown on hill lands. Of pulses, the chief are kulith (145 square miles), gram (95), and tur (32). Oilseeds of various kinds occupy as much as 508 square miles. Of these, linseed is especially important ; the area of khurdstii or niger-seed is usually larger, but this crop is not in demand for export. Cotton occupies an increasing area (ill square miles in 1903-4), especially in Malegaon, and tobacco of inferior quality is raised in small quantities over the whole District. Much care is devoted to the cultivation of sugar-cane. Among garden products, three varieties of the vine have long been grown by Nasik Kunbls and Malls. Guavas, potatoes, and ground-nuts, and, in selected tracts, the betel- vine are also cultivated. The Baglan taluka is specially noted for its garden cultivation. Rice and hill-millets are the staples of the Dang, with khurdsni, which is grown in rotation with the millets. The usual rotation is ndchni, sdva, and khurdsni. After the third year's crop has been reaped, the land lies fallow for several years. In Peint the area of land prepared for rice is comparatively small. Here cul- tivation is backward, and little labour has been spent on embanking land for rice.
About 1839 Mr. Grant obtained from Government a grant of 154 acres of land near Nasik rent free for five years for agricultural experi- ments. Potatoes of good quality were successfully grown and dis- tributed among local husbandmen, who soon became alive to the value of the crop. In addition to supplying local wants, Nasik potatoes found their way to the Malegaon and Mhow cantonments. Besides intro- ducing potatoes Mr. Grant brought many grass seeds from France, Italy, and Malta. Indigo and upper Georgian green-seeded cotton and Bombay mango-trees and coffee plants were also tried, but all failed. Mauritius sugar-cane, peas, and European vegetables were grown to a considerable extent, and the seeds distributed among the people. Large advances have been made to cultivators under the Land Im- provement and Agriculturists' Loans Acts, amounting during the decade ending 1904 to 14 ½ lakhs, of which 9-37 lakhs was advanced between i 899-1 900 and i 901-2.
One pony stallion is maintained for horse-breeding purposes at Male- gaon by the Civil Veterinary department. Nasik possesses a local breed of bullocks which, though small, are fit for agricultural work and cost from Rs. 20 to Rs. 200 per pair. Other breeds are the Surti, Var- hadi, Kilhari, Malvi, and Gavrani. Of these the Kilhari, from Indore, are trotting bullocks, too small for field-work. Buffaloes are used for ploughing, heavy draught-work, and water-carrying. Sheep are of two kinds, Gairani and Harani, the latter being distinguished by a short muzzle. Professional shepherds use the wool for weaving, the bones for sickle-handles, and the skins for drums. Of goats, the Nimar variety with long twisted horns is far more valuable than the small local breed. In Sinnar, Yeola, and other level tracts small ponies, useful for pack-carrying, are bred.
Irrigation by wells and dams has been long in vogue, and the irrigated area is now considerable, amounting to 97 square miles. The areas irrigated from various sources are : Government channels and canals, 27 square miles ; wells, 52 square miles ; and other sources 18 square miles. Among larger works are the Kadva river works and the Parsul tank. The former, which commands 63 square miles, includes the Palkhed canal in Dindori and Niphad, opened in 1873, supplying 3 square miles ; the Vadali canal in Niphad, an old scheme improved and enlarged in 1868, supplying 391 acres; and the Ojhar Tambat, also an old work in Dindori and Niphad, improved in 1873, irrigating 495 acres. All these canals are fed by a large reservoir at A'aghad, 18 miles north of Nasik town, in which rain-water is stored. The Parsul tank, which commands 5 square miles, irrigated 668 acres in 1903-4. Wells used for irrigation number 21,700, chiefly found in Nasik, Malegaon, Sinnar, and Niphad. The depth of water varies from 6 to 32 feet. The water-supply of Peint is deficient.
The forests which formerly covered the Western Ghats have nearly disappeared, but every effort is being made to prevent further destruc- tion and to afforest some of the hills. The Nasik forest circle, with a total area of about 1,362 square miles, includes three groups — the Girna, Godavari, and Peint forests — the lines of hills at Saptashring and Peint being fairly covered with trees. The Reserves are of four chief classes : scrub forest, teak coppice, evergreen forest, and babid. They contain few timber trees of any value. The forest administration is under a divisional Forest officer who has one assis- tant. The revenue in 1903-4 amounted to nearly Rs. 54,000.
Good building stone is obtainable from the basalt of the trap which occupies the whole of the District. Fine specimens of zeolites occupying cavities in the basalt were disclosed during excavations necessitated by the construction of the railway line.
Trade and communications
Cotton and silk goods are woven chiefly at Yeola, and thence sent as far as Bombay, Poona, Satara, and Sholapur. The value of the annual exports from Yeola is calculated to amount to 25 lakhs. The silk industry at this place supports 4,000 families. Under the Muhammadans and Marathas it was a monopoly, which was set aside by a decision of the Bombay High Court in 1864. Since then many outsiders have taken to silk-weaving. Gold and silver thread is also made. Malegaon con- tains nearly 3,000 looms ; but the product is of inferior quality. Sinnar
' This figure exceeds the total given in the table on p. 403 owing to corrections not having been made in the forest registers, and to the non-inclusion in the agricultural returns of 87 square miles of ' protected ' forests. and Vinchur produce a little cotton cloth of various kinds and colours for local consumption. Copper, brass, and silver vessels are largely manufactured at Nasik town, and thence sent to Bombay, Poona, and other places. The metal-work of Nasik, especially in brass, is held to be very, superior in make and polish. Besides the railway work- shop, there are four ginning factories employing over 750 hands.
The principal articles of export are grain, oilseeds, molasses, cotton cloth and silk goods, san-hemp, copper, brass and silver ware. A great quantity of grain, chiefly wheat, is bought up by agents of Bom- bay firms, at Lasalgaon, on the railway, 146 miles from Bombay, where there is a permanent market. There is also a considerable export of garden produce, onions, garlic, and betel-leaves. The chief imports are raw silk, cotton thread, copper and brass, sugar, groceries, and salt. Before the introduction of the railway, there was (chiefly along the Bombay and Agra and the Ahmadnagar and Poona roads) a large carrying trade through the District. The Vanjaris or Lamans, and others in whose hands this traffic rested, have suftered much by the change. Such of them as remain have taken to agriculture. The chief traffic with the interior proceeds through the ancient Thai Pass on its way to Bombay. Weekly markets are held at every town, and in many of the larger villages. Besides these weekly markets, fairs are held each year in connexion with certain temples and religious places, notably Trimbak, which partake very much of the nature of the markets, but are larger and display a greater variety of goods. They usually last for a week or a fortnight, and attract great numbers of people, some from considerable distances. The chief centres of local traffic are Igatpuri, Nasik, Lasalgaon, Nandgaon, Manmad, and Yeola, on or near the railway ; Pimpalgaon (Basvant), Chandor, and Malegaon, on the Bombay-Agra road ; and Sinnar on the Ahmadnagar-Nasik road.
The communications of the District were improved by the opening of the north-east line of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway in 1861, and by the opening of the Dhond-Manmad State Railway in 1878. The former line enters Nasik at Igatpuri, and on the no miles which pass through the District as far as Naydongri there are sixteen stations. The latter railway forms a chord-line connecting Manmad in Nasik with Dhond in Poona District on the south- east line of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway. In 1901 the Hyder- abad-Godavari Valley Railway was opened for through traffic from Manmad to Hyderabad. It traverses a few miles of the Chandor taluka and the north of the Yeola taluka. Besides the railway lines running through the District, there are 570 miles of road, of which 303 are metalled. All are maintained by the Public Works depart- ment, except 69 miles of unmetalled road in charge of the local authorities. The Bombay-Agra trunk road traverses the District ; the Nizam's frontier road runs from Satana through Malegaon, Manmad, and Yeola to Ahmadnagar ; and a third road runs to Poona through Sinnar, Nasik, Dindori, and Kalvan. Along the 5 miles of road between Nasik city and Nasik Road station on the Great Indian Peninsula Railway a small tramway, opened in 1891, carries 150,000 passengers yearly.
Famine
The great Durga-devI famine, lasting from 1396 to 1407, is said to have wrought as much devastation in Nasik as in the Southern Deccan, and the memory of it has never been obliterated. Famines also occurred in 1460, 1520, and 1629, but the severest of which record remains was the famine of 179 1-2. Liberal remissions by the Peshwa, the prohibition of grain exportation, and the regulation of prices alleviated the misery. In 1802-4 the ravages of the Pindaris produced such scarcity that a pound of grain is said to have cost 11 annas. The scarcity of 1876-7 caused no little distress. Special measures of relief were taken, and at one period nearly 18,000 persons were employed on works, besides those relieved in villages. The total expenditure on relief during the continuance of the scarcity was about 4 lakhs. In 1896-7 the distress was mainly due to high prices of food, and did not reach the acute stage. The years 1897 and 1898, though not quite normal, gave the District good kharlf and fair rabi harvests. But before the District had time to recover from the depletion of stocks and resources occasioned by the strain of the year 1896-7, the people had to face the almost complete failure of the rains of 1899. It is estimated that the total out-turn was only about 19 per cent, of that of an ordinary year. The entire District was thus affected, though not in equal degree. As early as October, 1899, the number on relief reached 1,051. In March, 1900, it rose to 105,664, including 1,247 in receipt of gratuitous relief, and then decreased until February, 1901, when it again rose owing to the unfavourable rains of the previous year. The number gratuitously relieved reached a maximum of 12,207 in September, 1900. The District being on the outskirts of the seriously affected area, the year brought an influx of wanderers from neighbouring States. Between September, 1899, and September, 1900, the number of deaths exceeded the normal by 31,890, and the death-rate per 1,000 exceeded the mean death-rate for the ten previous years by 38. The total cost of relief measures, including remissions of land revenue (11 -8 lakhs), amounted to 45 lakhs. Advances to cultivators exceeded 10 lakhs.
Partial inundations frequently occur, and the flood of 1872, when the Godavari at Nasik town rose 21 feet above its ordinary level, caused great damage. In 1854 and again in 1904 locusts committed serious ravages.
Administration
The administration of the District is entrusted to a Collector and three Assistants, of whom two are Covenanted Civilians. The District is divided into the 12 talukas of Nasik, Sinnar, Igatfuri, Dindori, Niphad, Chandor, Yeola, Nandgaon, Malegaon, Baglan, Kalvan, and Peint. The Collector is also Political Agent of the Surgana State. Until recent years Nasik was included in the jurisdiction of the Judge of Thana. It has now a District and Sessions Judge, assisted for civil business by seven Subordinate Judges, including a Joint Subordinate Judge at Nasik town. There are 35 officers to administer criminal justice in the District. The commonest forms of crime are housebreaking and theft.
The British possessions in Nasik have, since 1818, been enlarged by the cession of a few villages by Holkar in exchange for others near Indore, and by the lapse of the possessions of the Begam of Peint and of the Raja Bahadur of Malegaon. In 181 8 the Nasik territory was placed partly under Khandesh and partly under Ahmadnagar. The portion allotted to Ahmadnagar was made into a sub-collectorate in 1837 ; and in 1869 the other portion was added, and the whole was constituted a separate District. At first the old system of management was continued, but the practice of farming the revenue was abolished. Crop rates were changed into acre rates, and for a few years there was considerable prosperity; but with a decline in prices, the poverty of the people became noticeable. Subsequently, between 1840 and 1876, the survey was introduced in the plain country of the Nasik sub- collectorate, and the revenue was reduced by nearly one-half. In the hilly country to the west the assessment on ' dry-crop ' land was fixed at a lump sum, and was made recoverable from each entire village for a period of five years, a plan which proved to be most successful. The portion of the District transferred from Khandesh was brought under survey in 1868. The effect of the survey in Nasik was to disclose a great increase in the occupied area ; and as in these parts the rates were revised on the expiry of the first guarantee, the revenue increased 53 per cent, above the amount collected in the period before the survey. The revision survey settlement was commenced in 1872. The new survey found an excess in the cultivated area of 4 per cent, in five talukas for which details are available. The average assessment per acre on 'dry ' land is 10 annas, on rice land Rs. 2-3, and on garden land Rs. 4-7 for patsthal (land watered from a channel), and R. i for motsihal (land watered from a well).
Collections on account of land revenue and revenue from all sources are shown on the next page, in thousands of rupees. Outside the limits of the six municipalities of Nasik, Yeola, Sinnar, Malegaon, Igatpuri, and Trimbak, the local affairs of the District are managed by the District board and twelve taluka boards. The total income of the municipalities averages i| lakhs. The receipts of the local boards in 1903-4 were Rs. 2,09,000, the principal source of income being the land cess. The expenditure amounted to 1 ½ akhs, including Rs. 42,000 spent upon roads and buildings.
The District Superintendent has general control over the police, aided by an Assistant and two inspectors. There are 21 police stations; and the total number of police in 1904 was 796, of whom 14 are chief constables, 171 head constables, and 611 constables. The mounted police number 9, under one daffadar. Besides the District jail at Nasik, there are 14 subsidiary jails in the District, with accommodation for a total of 214 prisoners. The daily average number of prisoners in 1904 was 88, of whom 9 were females.
Compared with other Districts, education is backward in Nasik, which stood eighteenth among the 24 Districts of the Presidency in 1 90 1 as regards the literacy of its population. The Census returned 4-3 of the population (8-2 males and 0-4 females) as able to read and write. Education, however, has made progress of late years. In 1855-6 there were only 17 schools in the District with 1,268 pupils. In 1881 there were 208 schools and 10,770 pupils. The number of pupils rose to 17,933 i'^ 1891, but fell to 15,378 in 1901. In 1903-4 there were 305 pubHc schools with 14,914 pupils, including 1,841 girls, besides 16 private schools with 283 pupils. Of 305 schools classed as public, one is a high school, 13 middle, and 291 primary. One school, is supported by Government, 219 by the local boards, 36 by the municipal boards, 39 are aided and 10 unaided. The total expenditure on education in 1903-4 was about i^ lakhs, of which Rs. 23,000 were contributed by Local funds and Rs. 18,000 by fees. Of the total, 73 per cent, was devoted to primary schools.
Besides one hospital and 12 dispensaries, there are 4 private medical institutions in the District with accommodation for 128 in-patients. In 1904 the number of patients treated was 135,782, of whom 944 were in-patients, and 2,794 operations were performed. The total expenditure on the hospital and dispensaries was Rs. 23,000, of which Rs. 13,000 was met from Local and municipal funds. The number successfully vaccinated in 1903-4 was 21,149, repre- senting a proportion of 26 per 1,000 of population, which exceeds the average for the Presidency.
[Sir J. M. Campbell, Bombay Gazetteer, vol. xiv (1883).]
