Records of the Geological Survey of India. 
[voi„ nr. 
56 
In this case the outcrop of the seam may pass for a long distance down the river, being 
concealed by the sand in the bed, which is here of great width. All dips seen appear to be 
lower than those at the outcrop of the coal, and it is highly probable that the amount of 
inclination may be higher at this spot than it is elsewhere, and the direction of the dip 
different in consequence of the fault close by. The circumstance already mentioned of the 
variation in both amount and direction of dip at different parts of the outcrops in the coal 
seam itself is in favor of this view. 
So far as an opinion can be formed on these very imperfect data, it appears that the 
rocks associated with the coal cover a large tract of country, and it is improbable that so 
thick a seam should thin out within a short distance. It is, however, quite in accordance 
with our knowledge of similar seams in other parts of India that the exact thickness, 
the quality of the coal, and the proportion of good coal to inferior coal and shale should 
he highly variable. 
If the coal seam be continuous it should be found west of the 11 a s d o throughout a tract 
from one to two miles broad, extending probably in a west-north-western direction from the river, 
the southern boundary of this tract passing through the more northern of the two outcrops 
seen in the river. East of the stream the scam should underlie the village of K o r b a and the 
river bank for at least a mile below and probably one to two miles above the village, and it 
may extend for an indefinite distance to the eastward, but it is possibly at a considerable 
depth below the surface throughout a large proportion of the area. 
It is evident that before attempting to open a coal mine, boring must he resorted to in 
order to ascertain the extent of the seam and its depth beneath the surface. The best places 
for boring will depend upon whether it is desirable that the coal should be extracted on the 
east or on the west side of the II as do.* 
If to the west, as the strike of the rocks is somewhat uncertain, the first boring 
should be made about a quarter of a mile west-north-west of the spot where the more 
northern outcrop appears in the river. Although the strike at the outcrop is west by south, 
there can he but little doubt that the normal strike is north of west, and that the alteration 
is due to the fault. Should the coal not be found in the first boring within a depth of 200 
feet, two others, one 300 yards further north, the other at the same distance to the south, 
should be made. When the true direction of the outcrop is ascertained, it will be well to con¬ 
tinue the borings along it at distances not exceeding half a mile apart, as any slight change 
of direction coupled with the high dip (if the latter be constant) will take the coal below 
the depth to which borings can most conveniently be made. There is also a possibility of 
other faults occurring besides that seen in the river. 
On the east of the II a s d o the question is simpler. The fault so frequently referred 
to must either pass through the village of K or b a or just south-east of it. West of the 
fault a boring behind the zemindar’s residence would probably pass thimigli the seam. 
East of the fault the best place for boring is at a spot where sandstone occurs in the 
left bank of the liver below Korba, due east of the more southern outcrop on the right 
bank. Owing to the rather high dip, these borings should be made to a depth of about 
400 feet, if coal be not found sooner. But, as I have already suggested, it is far from 
improbable that the high dip is local, and that on the left bank of the II a s d o the inclina¬ 
tion is less, in which case the coal may be found at a moderate depth. Other borings, 
if the above are successful, may be made at intervals along the east bank of the stream 
below Korba. To the north of K or ba the coal for some distance is probably at a con¬ 
siderable depth, but if continuous, it must again rise towards the surface between one 
and two miles north of Korba. It is, however, impossible to indicate with accuracy a 
good spot for boring in this direction. The best plan for examining the ground would 
be to put down a series of borings along a line running north-north-east from Korba at 
half mile intervals. 
Facilities for mining .—The dip of the seam where seen in the river, although con¬ 
siderable, is by no means so high as to he any impediment to mining beyond its effect 
in rapidly increasing the depth of the seam below the surface. The sandstone above 
* In case of a railway bridge being necessary across the Has do, Korba appears to ben more favorable 
spot than any other in the neighbourhood, as the breadth of the river is moderate and a considerable portion of the 
channel rocky. For several miles above and below, the breadth is very much greater, and the bed a wide expanse 
of sand. 
