Karwar Taluka, 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.
Karwar Taluka
North-westernmost of North Kanara District, Bombay, lying between 14° 44' and 15 degree 4' N. and 74 degree 4' and 74 degree 32' E., with an area of 281 square miles. It contains one town, Karwar (population, 16,847), the and District head-quarters; and 54 villages. The population in 1901 was 58,460, compared with 53,278 in 1891. The density, 208 persons per square mile, is much above the District average. The demand for land revenue in 1903-4 was 1-09 lakhs, and for cesses Rs. 7,000. The Kalinadi flows from cast to west through the centre, and as it enters the sea throws up a bar of sand impassable to any but small craft. Along both banks of the river broad belts Of rice land, broken by groves of palms and other fruit trees, stretch east to near the Western Ghats. The soil on the plains is sandy, and near the hills is much mixed with granite. on the banks of the Kalinadi, and along the seashore, are large tracts covered with a black alluvial deposit, charged with salt and liable to be flooded at high tides.
To bring such land under tillage, a strong and costly wall must be built to keep out the sea. A heavy rainfall is required to sweeten the land, and then, without much manure and with due care, rich crops can be raised. Throughout the taluka the houses are not gathered into villages, but are scattered along narrow lanes, standing in shady coco-palm gardens, some tiled and some thatched, each with its well, bathing-place, and cattle-shed. The annual rainfall is heavy, amounting at Karwar town to nearly no inches.
