PRODUCTION OF QKANIKO IN SIND 294 



The price of soda-ash has risen from Rs. 5-4 

 Prices of iodArMh p 0r cwt, in 1912 to Rs. 5-12 and Rs. 6-4 in 



and consumption of 



soda in India. the present time. 



The imports of soda-ash and soda-crystal into India during the 

 last four ) r ears were : — 



Tons. 



1914-15 22,027 



L915-16 27,639 



1916-17 18,376 



1917-18 35,014 



Bengal consumes more than three-fourths of this supply. 

 Without accurate measurements of depth and area of each dhand, 



it is not possible to form any estimate of 



Total quantity of .-* c i n n 



soda available in Bind. ™e amount or soda available as trona ra 



the large un worked dhands. Furthermore it 

 would be necessary to carry out experiments in the fractional 

 crystallisation of trona from solutions of similar composition to 

 that of the dhands, before any estimate could be made. It is obvious 

 however that many of the larger dhands contain very large quantities 

 of soda ; probably the two largest — Pur Chandar and Khariri — 

 contain each up to 25,000 tons. There are other large alkaline 

 dhands. the waters of which I have not analysed, ejj., Bitrawaro, 

 Bitriwari, Nichoia, Pharanwari, Ram Rahu, Khabbarwari-Lambre- 

 ji, Kinri, Lun Khan Ulan, all of a good size, besides possibly some 

 which I have not heard of. To this unknown quantity has to be 

 added the trona produced annually from the producing dhands, 

 the figures for which have been given above. 



Besides the quantity of trona actual! y in the dhands } it must 

 not be forgotten that a small amount is brought in annual lyt by the 

 sim or percolating water. 



As a general conclusion, it may be admitted that there is a pos- 

 sibility of developing the trona of Sind provided that — 



(1) a market can be found for natural soda, which seems always 



to be more impure and more discoloured than artificial 

 soda produced from salt, and 



(2) that the trona can be recovered and calcined cheaply. 



The development of the Sind soda will, in my opinion, depend 

 mainly upon t hese two points, 



