

boundary to the south of the river, along the Pattanpur Local Fund Road, has 

 been fixed with a view to exclude the less valuable forests towards the west. 



3. The area to be brought under systematic working comprises a strip of 



country lying in the valley formed by the Gangavali 

 Configuration, of the ground. t>- no -i i i.v. j -, , 



River, some 18 miles in length and varying m breadth 

 from 3 to 10 miles. 



4. The general configuration of the ground is hilly. On each side of the 

 river, at a distance varying from 3 to 6 miles, run parallel lines of hills, rising to 

 1,800 feet and with individual peaks considerably higher. These hills are in 

 reality a continuation of the Sahyadri Hills, out of which the Gangavali River 

 has cut the valley. These ranges are further cut into by four tributary streams 

 to the north and two on. the south of the main stream, while from the crest of 

 the hills and running down into the main valley are innumerable spurs, in some 

 cases with very steep gradients. Between the slopes on each side of the Ganga- 

 vali River the ground is undulating, with here and there hills rising to 500 and 

 600 feet above the surrounding country, generally detached or semi-detached 

 portions of the main ranges. 



5. The geological formation of the Ankola Valley varies greatly in charac- 



ter throughout the area. Round the Gangavali River 

 and in most of the low-lying localities laterite covers 



the greater portion of the area. The small hills, semi-detached spurs and slopes 

 are either igneous or metamorphic rocks. Laterite is again found capping the 

 tops of the highest hills, though such places are generally outside the organised 

 area. It is remarkable to find the laterite both on the tops of the hills and also 

 in the valleys, with crystalline rocks of older origin lying between them on the 

 slopes. 



6. On the hill sides a great variety of crystalline rocks occur, consisting 

 of gneiss, schists, inferior granite, and in places, basalts much intersected with 

 veins of milky quartz. Though no visible signs of foliation are present, the 

 rocks appear to have been subjected to intensities of heat, pressure and sheering 

 stress, resulting in various degrees of metamorphism. On the slopes above Konal 

 a rook resembling shale, and in places approaching true slate, is to be found, 

 while on the western slopes above the Kodalgudda village the rock is largely 

 formed of milky quartz. The slopes are nearly everywhere covered with 

 fragments of rock which have been broken off from the scarps above and 

 rolled down the steep hill-sides. 



7. Generally speaking, in the valleys, the disintegration of the igneous and 



metamorphic rocks from the slopes mixed with the 

 wearing of the laterite rocks in the valleys has formed 



a deep, rich, fertile soil, very suitable to the Forest vegetation found in these 

 localities. A tract of low-lying land containing somewhat poor soil exists on 

 either side of the Gangavali River, reaching from mile 39 on the Yellapur Road, 

 to the Dongri Village. Here it stops on the north bank, but extends on the 

 south side, at a little distance from the river and runs past Hegarni Village down 

 the Chandgar Valley to the village of Mabge. 



8. The hill-sides are much exposed to denudation by the heavy rains, 

 especially the upper slopes where in places the rock appears on the surface, as 

 for instance on the south slopes of the Bidralli ridge, the western slopes of the 

 Ujralli valley, and again on the south side of the Hillurbail range. The soil 

 formed by the disintegration of crystalline and metamorphic rocks on these 

 slopes, though generally speaking not deep, is by no means of poor quality, as 

 may be seen from the growth of Teak, Kindal, Nana and other species in places 

 where the rock comes very near the surface. 



9. There is no meteorological station within the area, the nearest being at 



Ankola, some 12 miles from the western boundary 

 of these forests. Here the average rainfall for the 



last 5 years is 124*33 inches, which is probably considerably lower than the 

 average at Ramanguli, a village lying on the eastern boundary of the area. 



10. The maximum temperature can rarely be much over 105 in April and 

 May but, owing to the shut-in nature of the country and the heavy rainfall, 



