COAL 



863 



According to the Report by Dr. Oldham, the Assam coal-field must be regarded as 

 the most important amongst those of which the coal areas cannot bo satisfactorily 

 ascertained. The inaccessible nature of the country renders it impossible to obtain 

 an approximation to the value of its coal -formations ; and from its situation, supposing 

 some local industry leads eventually to the development of its native resources, the 

 coal of Assam can never come into competition -with the fuel of other countries. 



The Production of Coal in India from 1858 to 1866. 

 Compiled from Dr. Oldham's Eeport. 



Coal raised in India. The original returns are given in Bengal maunds = 40 seers 

 each = 2,057 Ibs. These have been brought into the English statute tons : 



The above figures show that within the last nine years but little progress has been 

 made in the development of the coal-fields of India. The coal-fields of Bengal are 

 the only ones which have been worked in anything approaching to a systematic plan, 

 and even in these there appears to have been a want of any well r.egula,ted method. 

 There can be no doubt that, if there should spring up a large demand for native coal, 

 there would speedily be an increased production of it. Still, since 1861, we have 

 given us by Dr. Oldham, from the East Indian Railway's Deputy Agent, a return of 

 the coal used on that line, which is as follows : 



1861 

 1862 

 1863 

 1864 

 1865 

 1866 



Tons Tons 



36,711, leaving of coal raised in Bengal 251,625 for other uses. 

 45,544 274,116 



68,063 



99,868 



104,739 



188,133 



283,973 

 254,665 

 221,573 

 211,497 



From this we see that as the locomotives of the railway have been burning more 

 Indian coal, the increased supply from the Bengal collieries has not kept pace with 



