No. I (1922). ADMINISTRATION REPORT, 1920-2i. \± 



employed throughout all the yards, the resultant saving will be of 

 very considerable importance. 



In the Malpe, Mangalore and Thanirbhavi yards, the majority 

 of the curers have put up permanent curing yards, with cemented 

 floors and curing vats, on the models designed by the department. 

 Loans have been sanctioned for the construction of similar ones 

 in the Calicut and Thalayi yards. In the others, pending construc- 

 tion of such permanent structures, the curers were instructed to 

 improve their cadjan sheds in certain inexpensive ways, such as 

 cleansing the floor, providing ventilation and disinfecting the tubs, 

 etc. This caused a strike extending to 2^ months at Tanur. 

 During this period they cured their fish outside the yard with duty- 

 paid salt and undoubtedly spent several times the amount in duty 

 that compliance with the instructions would have cost. Various 

 deputations waited upon me, and only after two visits to Tanur, 

 could I persuade the men of the utility and reasonableness of the 

 innovations. Political influences appear to have been at work, and 

 I believe the majority had no real desire to refuse obedience to 

 the new rules. Similarly a partial strike occurred at Cannanore 

 where ten Mappilla curers stopped work rather than improve their 

 methods, and since then have been curing fish with duty-paid bazaar 

 salt. 



JN"ow the chief objects in establishing public fish-curing yards 

 are (//) c to prevent the loss entailed on the fishing classes by the 

 purchase of duty-paid, salt for curing fish', and (b) l to prevent the 

 injurious effects of the supply of badly-cured fish. ' The attitude of 

 the Mappilla curers of Cannanore and Tanur, who are capitalist 

 middlemen, shows that they can make a profit even by using duty- 

 paid salt. Therefore it is evident that they could put up satisfact- 

 ory sheds and introduce the simple improvements which we advocate, 

 without the least hardship. Ii is evident that their refusal to do this 

 is due to their desire to make a maximum of profit regardless of the 

 quality of the product. The fact that the department controls only 

 a small number of the total of yards is a handicap to the rapid 

 introduction of improvements, as curers undoubtedly hope to tire 

 out our officers and discredit our work by delaying to carry out 

 improvements — the object being to have the yards reverted to the 

 Salt Department. 



Two -Assistant Inspectors were transferred to the department, 

 while four temporary yard officers were entertained. All subordi- 

 nate officers underwent a course of tiaining at the Tanur Experimental 

 Station in improved methods of curing, in the filtration and re-use 

 of old brine and in the estimation of the correct proportions of salt 

 required for different classes of fish. They were specially taught 

 sanitation as applicable to fish-curing yards. 



