is about five and a quarter square miles in extent and is situated near the head waters of a large feeder of the Yerra Kálwa with the small village of Bedadanúru in its midst. Further prospecting was undertaken about six years ago. Some eight square miles near the village were thoroughly explored by borings, but the only discovery was a one-inch seam.
The existence of gold in the bed of the Gódávari is mentioned in several works published about the beginning of the last century. The Gazetteer of the Central Provinces *[1] says that the metal used to be washed at the point where the Kinarsáni river falls into the Gódávari just below Bhadráchalam. Local enquiries at Bhadráchalam vaguely substantiate the former existence of the industry there.
Iron is smelted from scattered ore in several villages in the Bhadráchalam taluk.
Graphite or plumbago is distributed in small quantities among the gneissic rocks in the north-west of the district, notably near Velagapalli and Yerrametla in the Chódavaram division and at Gullapúdi in Pólavaram. The South Indian Export Company has been prospecting recently at the last-named place. The Gódávari Coal Company possesses a graphite mine at Pedakonda in Bhadráchalam taluk, and has prospected for the mineral in several parts of the surrounding country. Outcrops are said to be plentiful and the samples obtained to be of fair quality but not so good as those from Ceylon. A good average quality fetches from £13 to £15 per ton in the London market at present.†[2]
Mica is said to exist in parts of the Agency and is being prospected for near Pólavaram by the South Indian Export Company.
Good building stone is obtained from the different sand-stone and trap groups in the alluvial plains of the Gódávari. A locality particularly mentioned by Dr. King is Peddápuram. A little cutstone is also obtained in the Chódavaram division.
Very pure rock-crystal, inferior garnets and some sapphires occur in the neighbourhood of Bhadráchalam. The crystals are kept as curiosities or used in native medicines. The garnets are said to be found in the beds of the Gódávari and Kinarsáni rivers, especially near Gauridévipéta.
Detailed statistics of the rainfall in Gódávari are given in Chapter VIII below. The average annual fall for the district is 40.26 inches.
