chanda district. 23 



viously proved at Zdgra on the other side of the river. The first hole 



was commenced many feet below the coal, being placed in the Barakar 



sandstone cropping out at the ghat between Aikona 



Aikdna ; no coal. _ , 



and Nilja. The site of the others were also ill- 

 chosen, being near the west boundary of the field, and in presumably 

 troubled ground. The direction in which the coal is more likely to be 

 found is east and south-east of the Dehwal ; but there are heavy deposits 

 o£ surface gravels and soils, and the top coal may have been swept away 

 even a8 far as the village. It would be safer to try N.-E. of Aikona, 

 near the outcrop of the Kamthis. 



The greater portion of the field to the south of Khairgaon for a dis- 

 tance of nearly ten miles is occupied by alluvium 



War or a, ^ Kanji, w hi c h obscures the underlying rocks. Bore-holes, 

 Akapur, Akarjun. jo > 



however, have been put down through it in the 

 vicinity of Kanji, Warora, Akapur and Akarjun, and disclose the fact that 

 the coal-measures occur in a basin to the east of Warora at a depth vary- 

 ing from 63 to 285 feet below the surface of the ground. From the data 

 supplied to me by Mr. Ness (the present Superintendent of the Warora 

 Colliery), I find that over 40 bore-holes were commenced and coal cut 

 in twenty-six of them. It is not quite clear that the top coal occurs in 

 all, but in 19, at all events, it appears to have been satisfactorily proved, 

 and the shape of the basin was pretty accurately defined. It lies south 

 of the 66th mile-stone, its northern limit being roughly the latitude of 

 the staging bungalow. The western barrier skirts the tank, and runs 



southward towards Saimbal. The eastern boundary 

 Probable boundary of is con j ectura l to some extent, but it probably 



basin. ° ' r j 



roughly follows the inside of the line from Akapur 

 to Nanduri. 

 At the latter village the coal has been proved to be absent, which 

 will throw the boundary to the west. 



The southern extremity of the basin has not been traced, but the 

 most probable conjecture is, that the coal-measures stretch in the direction 



. ( 23 ) 



