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"It might not be absolutely necessary to devote all these funds to public works; some of them might perhaps have been diverted to other and equally useful purposes. But, on the other hand, several considerations have seemed to the Lieutenant-Governor to point to the course of devoting these funds for the present mainly to what may be called their original and primary object. It would scarcely be right to divert them without good reason. The necessities of public works in so vast a territory are greater than the funds as yet at our disposal can meet. And what has principally weighed with the LieutenantGovernor is this, that in other departments he has not the power to incur, and it would not be right that he should incur, annual charges for which he might provide in one year, but for meeting which in future years no provision has been made, while in the Department of Public Works great benefits may be conferred by expenditure on works of a lasting character, and provision for the future is made, inasmuch as the road-cess may shortly be expected to supply an income from which works of a local character once made may be maintained, and the provincial assignment may be set free for larger works and other necessary purposes.

"If again this money is to be devoted to public works, it has seemed to the Lieutenant-Governor to be altogether for the benefit of the country that it should be made to fructify as soon as possible, instead of remaining idle in the treasury, which pays no interest. In anticipation of the new arrangements connected with the road-cess, and with a view to general efficiency, the public works establishments have been lately organised on a localised system, which has been attended with a considerable extension, and it is hoped greatly increased efficiency. Meantime the collection of the road cess has been postponed for some months, so that there is a sort of interregnum, during which our local establishments are ready but our local money is not. The Lieutenant-Governor has promised to enable the local officers to carry on the useful works they had taken in hand in expectation of the early collection of the road cess, and it is very desirable that he should provide the funds for this object.

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Looking, then, to the whole situation, it seems to the Lieutenant-Governor to be best that he should not hoard the money available, but should spend as much as the public works establishment can efficiently, economically, and usefully expend, drawing on the extraordinary funds at his disposal for so much as exceeds the ordinary income of the year.

"In this view the budget estimate of the Public Works Department has been drawn upon a comparatively liberal scale, though that scale is still extremely small in comparison to the territories, and will after all admit of but very moderate extension of necessary works.

"First, it is of course necessary to provide for the repairs of existing buildings, roads, &c. This has been duly done at a cost of about £125,600, of which £91,155 is devoted to the repair of roads and canals.

"Of new buildings, the most important addition to our ordinary outlay is the provision for jails. It may be said that not one properly

constructed jail existed at the beginning of the present financial year in all these provinces, and what has been done or can be done in a single year must be but a very small part of what is required. A sum of £68,757 has, however, been devoted to permanent improvements of our jails in the provision for the ensuing year, exclusive of establishments and repairs.

"A provision of £17,500 has been made to carry on the new Presidency College during the year.

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"All the other building provisions from ordinary funds comparatively small. A few new court-houses are being built at various district stations, but not nearly all which are demanded and are really required.

"There is, however, a considerable assignment for Secretariat Offices and the new Small Cause Court in Calcutta, which, as well as the provision for a court at Midnapore, will be met from the special funds obtained by grant from the Government of India by way of capitalisation of the rents now paid. About £61,700, in addition to a proportion of cost of establishments, &c., will be thus spent under the head of "other buildings," but will not form a charge against the ordinary income of the year. Adding together these charges, we have a total of £187,886 devoted to new buildings.

"In the last Administration Report, the principal roads and canals maintained as provincial are shown as now classified, and that list is appended to this resolution.

"Under the head of communications, the new works proposed involve an expenditure of £100,869, of which £9,154 is the sum given to canals, and the remainder to roads. The Lieutenant-Governor hopes to arrange for the further development of the water communications of Bengal, the existing canals being both useful and profitable. But the subject involves considerations of extreme difficulty; plans did not exist, and till they are carefully elaborated, much cannot be done. Particular attention is being given to the possible improvement, or even canalisation, of the Soorma, the river leading up to Sylhet and Cachar, and now navigable by steamer to those places in the rainy season only. The present budget already contains provision for the commencement of a canal to connect the Khasi Hills (abounding in minerals and potatoes) with the Soorma. Some improvements are proposed in the existing canals, and help has been promised to some of the local committees, especially those of Dacca and Chittagong, who contemplate important local canals to open the direct route between the Eastern Bengal Railway and Dacca, and to give access to Chittagong by a route free from the perils of the open sea.

"As regards roads, the principle followed has been to do most in those districts which, needing most development, are least able to help themselves. The Lieutenant-Governor has also felt that money is much better spent on substantial roads in districts where the supply of metal is good and cheap, and where roads once made can be easily maintained, rather than in those where passable roads can only be maintained at an enormous cost by continually laying down bricks which soon wear out It generally happens, too, that the laterite districts are those most wanting in water communication, while the

alluvial districts, where there is no metal, have many waterways. The Lieutenant-Governor is inclined to think that in rich and populous districts where there is no metal, a light railway will prove in the end more economical, as well as incomparably more efficient, than a brick road wherever there is much land traffic. The question whether rails may properly be laid on some of the existing roads is one of much difficulty, which is still under consideration.

"With these views, then, the money available for new roads has been distributed as follows:

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"An important bridge is in course of construction on the road between Patna and Gya, the great place of pilgrimage. When this is finished, that road will be complete, metalled and bridged throughout. It is possible that rails may eventually be laid on this road, on which the traffic is very large.

"The road from Caragola on the Ganges above Rajmehal to Purneah and Darjeeling has long been in a partially completed state, the communication being generally maintained by temporary bridges which are now falling. Seeing that this road lies through rich and important districts, that it is so far from the course of the proposed Northern Bengal Railway that it will not be superseded by it for local purposes, and that it must be some years before it can be superseded by that railway for the traffic between Calcutta and Darjeeling, the Lieutenant-Governor has thought that this road should be maintained, and that whatever is to be done should be done as quickly as possible, in order that the greatest amount of use may be made of it before the railway comes into play. He has therefore much urged on the completion of the light iron bridges which are taking the place of the wooden ones fallen or falling. He has also not hesitated to complete the hill cart road, which has been much injured by land slips, and needs much remodelling and improvement. Upwards of £22,500 is thus devoted to the Ganges and Darjeeling road, taking both the plains and hill portions.

"The bridges in the plains portion are calculated to bear a light engine in case rails should some day be laid. If in this way direct communication could be established between the western coolyproducing districts and the Northern Bengal Railway, and a branch of the latter should lead to Assam, a great step would be gained towards developing the eastern districts and saving the lives of the hundreds of coolies who now perish by cholera and other diseases in the river steamers.

"Whether a railway shall be made up the Assam valley, the Government of India must decide. But the Lieutenant-Governor is decidedly of opinion that nothing but a railway scale of expenditure will suffice to make a trunk road fitted to compete with the river traffic, and that a railway only would recompense such expenditure. He has therefore not attempted seriously to carry on what is called the Assam grand trunk road, but has given about £10,000 for the improvement of such portions of it as are of much local use, and for the completion of a line sufficient for the postal runner. He has given another £10,000 to be distributed in opening local roads in the tea districts. Altogether £21,035 have been given in the budget for 1873 for new roads or new works on roads in Assam.

"The Chota Nagpore districts are in many ways most important; with a fine climate, an excellent and most productive population, most valuable minerals and other products, and two military stations, it is very important that they should be opened out, and should no longer be cut off from the world, as they have hitherto been. While there is no water communication, the soil is admirably adapted for good and cheap roads; bridges only are required to render these districts accessible by roads very easily maintained. The LieutenantGovernor has then thought it right to do something for this object, and proposes to complete two lines of communication from Giridi to Hazareebagh, and then to Ranchee on one side, and from the railway junction near the Barakur to Purulea and Ranchee on the other, while the district committees will carry further roads of a humbler character. Altogether £25,400 is given for the construction of the Chota Nagpore system of roads.

"Road works of less size and importance in various places, including some improvements in Calcutta, the completion of causeways on the unbridged rivers on the south-western trunk road to Cuttack, and the Sylhet-Cachar road, absorb the remaining £18,000 of road money.

"The sum of £20,000 is provided in the budget for miscellaneous public improvements of all kinds.

"For grants-in-aid to local committees, the sum of £100,000 is provided

"All the sums above detailed are for works exclusive of the establishments by which they are carried on and superintended; about 25 per cent. of the cost of works must be added for establishments. And it must be explained that the public works establishments now do a large portion of the district committees, which work is not shown in the provincial budget. For the present, while the funds of the committees are so limited, no charge is made on them for this service. In practice therefore this is an addition to the grants to districts.

"For the cost of establishments, then, £131,400 is provided, as well as £6,055 for tools and plant.

"The total charge to the provincial revenues under the above heading, as set forth in the abstracts attached to this resolution, is £671,899.

"For this expenditure the Lieutenant-Governor proposes to provide as follows:

Current annual assignment and income..
From capitalised grants, including share of
establishment, &c., debitable to buildings con-
structed from this source

£

420,000

80,000

From accumulated balances of amalgamated road
fund

100,000

The balance from the savings of the year 1871-72

71,899

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"This leaves some margin as compared to the total sum above mentioned as available, and it generally happens that some unspent balances remain at the end of the year. It may therefore be hoped that as much work is provided as our establishments (which are not yet quite completely consolidated,) can safely and thoroughly do, while at the same time there is no risk of exceeding our means.

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"List of the principal roads and water communications maintained
from provincial funds.
ROADS.

1.-Southern Road.-From Calcutta through the 24-Pergunnahs district to Diamond Harbour, the head-quarters of a sub-division, and the site of one of the new batteries for the defence of the River Hooghly.

2.-South-Western Trunk Road.-From Calcutta by Midnapore through Orissa, bifurcating from a point near Cuttack to Ganjam in the Madras Presidency and Pooree the site of the great Temple of Juggernath; including also a more direct connection with the above line from the North-Western Provinces by a branch leaving the East Indian Railway station at Raneegunge and passing viâ Bancoorah to Midnapore.

3.-North-Western Trunk Road.-From Calcutta to the frontier of the North-Western Provinces. In connection with this a road leads to Gya, the great place of Hindoo pilgrimage, and connects Gya with the city of Patna and the East Indian Railway. From Patna again a road leads on to Mozufferpore, the chief town of the great district of Tirhoot.

4.-The Chota Nagpore system of roads.-Consisting of a line of road from the Seetarampore junction of the East Indian Railway to Purulia, the chief town of the Maunbhoom district, and on to Ranchee, head-quarters of the Chota Nagpore Commissionership. And another line from the Giridi terminus of the East Indian Railway to the cantonment and district station of Hazareebaugh, with a junction line between Hazareebaugh and Ranchee. Also a line from Hazareebaugh running north to the Grand Trunk Road. There is also a short branch to Parisnath Hill.

5.-Northern Trunk Road.-From Caragola on the Ganges, nearly opposite the East Indian Railway station of Sahebgunge, through Purneah to Darjeeling with a branch to Julpigooree.

6.-North-Eastern Trunk Road.-From Calcutta by the Military Station of Dum-Dum to Jessore, the chief town of the Jessore district.

7.-Assam Trunk Road.-From Dobree on the Berhampootra, on the extreme west of Assam, to Suddya near the eastern frontier, with a branch to Shillong and Cheerapoonjee, and hill roads to different outposts on the Garo, Khasi and Naga Hills.

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