24 MADRAS FISHERIES BULLETIN VOL. XV 



of pisciculture during the past year. I placed the Ennur station at 

 the Assistant Director's disposal for this purpose, and it bids fair to 

 form the nucleus of that training institute so greatly needed for the 

 instruction of the department's subordinates. The present students, 

 besides pisciculture, have had instruction in elementary zoology, and 

 in surveying, levelling, account keeping and office routine. ISuch 

 trained men should enable the department to make more rapid and 

 thorough progress on the piscicultural side than has been possible in 

 the past. 



34. Tank acquisition and slocking. — In accordance with my 

 programme initiated two years ago, these operations are now being 

 taken up systematically, district by district. During the past year 

 possession was obtained of the 135 tanks acquired under Govern- 

 ment sanction from the District Boards of Nellore and Chiugleput. 

 Stocking was duly carried out and it is satisfactory to find that in 

 the case of the fishery sale of those tanks attended by the depart- 

 ment's officer specially deputed to this work, the revenue obtained 

 amounted to Rs. 2,849 against compensation payable of Es. 1 ,066-8-0. 

 Those sales which could not be attended, on the other hand, brought 

 in a total of only Rs. 7,855-4-0 against compensation payable of 

 Rs. 8,1 01, a fact that emphasizes the need for the department's officers 

 to be present at all auctions, as they only have direct interest in 

 ensuring that there be healthy competition among bidders, and in 

 refusing bids which are obviously inadequate. The rentals of a 

 number of tanks and channels in the Coimbatore district supplied 

 from the Cauvery and Bhavani rivers were also provincialized during 

 the year (Gr.O. Mis. No. 520, Development, dated 5th April 1921) 

 as from 1922-23, and an annua] compensation of Rs. 1,893 assigned 

 to the District Board in consideration thereof. 



The total revenue derived from the fishery sales of all inland 

 waters under our control amounted during the past year to the hand- 

 some figure of Rs. 90,484-3-0 as against compensation payable to 

 district boards of Rs. 55,959-14-0. These figures compare with 

 rentals realized in 1919-2U of Rs. 75,956-3-6, and compensation 

 payable of Rs. 44,946-14-0. The increase in revenue and in profit 

 from this source is most gratifying and betokens the intrinsic value 

 of the department's operations in this promising field of work. 



The district of Ganjam has been surveyed during the past year, 

 and a scheme for the acquisition of the fishing rights in its principal 

 tanks and streams is under preparation. 



35. Fish farms. — During the year the three established fish farms 

 at Sunkesula (Kurnool), Ippur (Nellore) and Perambur continued 

 their work satisfactorily. It is unnecessary to go into details as the 

 work done there has now settled into routine, and to give particulars 

 would merely be to recapitulate the paragraphs in last year's report.) 



