No. 1 (1921) ADMINISTRATION REPORT, 1919-20 9 



35. Owing to the failure of the contractors for the purchase of 

 the shells to pay the value of the Tinnevelly and Ramnad shells for 

 the season 19 1 8-19, the Government sanctioned the filing of a suit for 

 its recovery ; the total amount recoverable was nearly Ks. 1,36,000. 



36. Ramnad chank fisher i^. — The season was poor, the total shells 

 taken being 180,894 as against 286,977 in the previous year. The 

 poor results were due to the shortage of the labour supply, as the 

 Kilakarai merchants took all the available divers to Ceylon to work 

 in the chank fishery there. The weather was also unfavourable, as 

 the divers had good fishing on only 48 days out of the 74 during 

 which the fishery lasted. The maximum number of divers who 

 worked in the fishery was 200 as against 400 in the previous year. 

 Out of 19,571 undersized or immature shells fished at Rameswaram 

 1-3,813 were returned alive to the sea in 1| fathoms of water close to 

 the shore. Within a period of three or four months, shells of 

 about 2" in diameter grew by \" and |". This helped the local 

 divers a great deal as they were able to fish these shells by wading 

 in the sea in July and August, when they could do no fishing of any 

 kind on account of the south-west monsoon. On account of the 

 shortage of labour about Rs. 4,000 were saved on account of towage. 

 The small diving force at Vedalai sustained a loss of five divers on 

 account of an outbreak of cholera. The fishery at Tirupalakudi was 

 seriously affected by the influx of fresh water brought down by the 

 Vaigai during the rains which caused the sea water to remain turbid 

 during the best part of the season. No Yalampuri shells were 

 obtained during the season under report. 



37. 8ivaganga chank fishery. — The Sivaganga fishery yielded 

 3,036 shells as against 2,266 in the previous year. The gross pro- 

 ceeds were Rs. 306 and the charges including the rental paid to the 

 Sivaganga estate amounted to Rs. 286 leaving a net profit of Rs. 20 

 as against Rs. 100 in the previous season. The decrease in profit is 

 due to the reduced price for which the shells were sold. The shells 

 were all caught in nets, the attempt made by the department to fish 

 the beds with the help of the divers not being successful. 



38. Tanjore chank fishery. — Rs. 1,822 out of the rental of 

 Rs. 5,922 due for 1917-18 became irrecoverable as the contractor 

 had neither movable nor immovable property. 



39. Ceylon chank fishery. — No expedition was sent to Ceylon 

 during the year under review. The chanks fished in Ceylon in 1918 

 were left unsold on account of the low prices offered and they were 

 sold during the year under report for Rs. 140 per 1,000 full-sized 

 chanks. The gross proceeds amounted to Rs. 7,274 ; deducting the 

 expenditure of Rs. 4,649, the net profit was Rs. 2,625. 



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