350 DATE SUGAR INDUSTRY IN BENGAL. 



is paid to its preparation. The process of preparing bichh is 

 called bichhmara and is as follows. A small portion of the liquid 

 as its boiling approaches completion is set apart in one of the 

 pans and boiled down rather more rapidly than the liquid in 

 the other pans. Great care is, however, paid to its boiling. When 

 the liquid has reached a certain consistency the pan is removed 

 from the fire. The attendant takes a stick and with it rubs a por- 

 tion of the liquid vigorously up and down in the form of a streak 

 on the inside of the pan. The streak of liquid gets more and more 

 sticky and finally white crystals of sugar may be seen. The operator 

 tells from the ease with which these crystals come whether the day's 

 boiling will be good or not. If the liquid is too thin and crystals 

 cannot readily be obtained the pan is returned to the fire and heating 

 continued until the liquid is of the right consistency. It is then vig- 

 orously stirred after removal from the flame when it becomes a 

 pasty mass. Any excess of this beyond the amount required for 

 bichh is poured out into a flat basket whose surface has been wetted 

 with water to prevent the sugary mass from sticking. A flat mass 

 of sugar which sets to a hard cake is thus obtained. This flat 

 cake is known as Patali and is commonly on sale as a sweetmeat 

 in the date districts at about Es. 2-8-0 to 3-0-0 per katcha 

 maund. 



The residue in the pans is soft and contains crystals which serve 

 as nuclei for crystallisation when added as bichh to the main bulk 

 of the boiled juice. 



The fuel mostly employed for the boiling process is Sundri wood 

 (Rentier a littoralis), which forms the principal part of the wild tree 

 vegetation of the Sunderbans. The under leaves stripped from the 

 date trees are also used as fuel as well as the wood of old date trees 

 which have been cut down. Stalks of rahar (Cajanus indicus), 

 which is often grown as an undercrop in date gardens are also com- 

 monly in use as a fuel. In a few places near railway lines coal has 

 been used. 



The outturn of gur is from -f to -^ the weight of the juice. 



