1916.] The Geography of Orissa. 47 



that the Pargana of Patasapura (now in Thanas Pataspura and 

 Egra of Contai Subdivision). After the war in 1803, the Bhonsl 

 Chief of Nagpur ceded the aboee territory to the British. 



(1) Bansanda or Bansad, urj Haft-ekor, with five forts. 

 Banmundi village on the right bank of the Suvarnarekha opposite 

 Jellasore (Beames). A mistake. It is the Bausada caura of 

 Remuna Dandapata in the T. chronicles. Along with six other 

 cauras it was raised to a mahal in the Ain. The name has 

 survived in the fairly large village Basadiha near Jalesar. It 

 must have been much more important in older days, for among 

 the few places named in this area, appears Bansja in Valentyn's 

 map {circa 1670 a.d.), though put higher up near Kendua or 

 Kanthi (Contai). Father Manrique (c. 1630 a.d.) mentions 

 Banga as an important centre of trade where the Poituguese had 

 a Church. 



The mahal yielded considerable revenue, Rs. 1,05,285£, 

 and therefore must have covered a large area. It extended 

 probably from the Suvarnarekha river north-east to the Bagri 

 riven Some of the following joors or cauras included under 

 Sarkar Jalesar by Grant (p. 533) must have formed part of the 

 seven cauras of Basadiha mahal— Gozaljoor, Lodenjoor, 

 Agrajoor, Lanojoor, Akrajoor, Phulwarrahjoor, Narajoor. 



(2) Bibli. Pipli Shahbandar on the Suvarnarekha (Bl. and 

 Beam.). Not traceable in the T. chronicles. Probably it did 

 not exist in the Hindu time. It has survived in Pargana 

 Shahbandar (royal port) , Thana Baliapal , District Balasore. The 

 pargana was in area a small one, but the revenue was consider- 

 able, Rs. 50,285|, which consisted chiefly of port dues. 



Of the port no trace now exists. Probably it has been 

 washed away. But it existed in Rennell's time (see his Atlas, 

 plate VII, 1779 a.d.) and is mentioned in Midnapur Collector 

 Mr. Bayley's Memorandum on Midnapore (1852). It was the 

 oldest port in Orisa visited by the Europeans, and owed its rise 

 chiefly to their trade from the sea, though its position on the 

 Suvarnarekha enabled it to tap freely the resources of a large 

 inland area. The river gradually silted up ; and the greater 

 facilities of the neighbouring port of Balasore made the latter 

 a formidable rival in the eyes of the Europeans. It existed 

 as a port in Bernier's time, after which its trade died out. 

 The place is shown as Popolai in Gastaldi's map (1561 a.d.) 

 and as Piplipatan in DeBarros' map {circa 1570 a.d.), and 

 other subsequent maps. Father Manrique visited this port in 

 1636 a.d. 



(3) Bali Shahi. Kalindl Balishahl (Bl.), lying amoncr the 

 sandhills on the seashore (B.). Not traceable in the T. chronicles. 

 At the time of British occupation Balisahi wa3 shown under two 

 sarkars, Maljetha (G. 434) and Mazkurin (G. 533). The name 

 now survives in two parganas, Kalindi and Orissa Balisahi, both 

 in Thana Ramanagar, Subdivision Contai, District Midnapur. 



