BALASOR.
4 as a
hundred tons burthen can manage
and, once past that obstruction, there
and muddy, and there
are soft
The Dhamra
high water.
name, soon.
is
Madras
Dhamra
much
port, at the
no want of water. difficulty in
mouth of
landing except at
the river of the
same mon-
by a considerable number of native vessels engaged and it is of greatly rising importance. The
rice trade
discharges the united waters of the Matai, Baitarani,
river
Brahmam', and Kharsua channels of
The banks
a good harbour, affording complete protection from the
It is visited
in the
is
to get over the bar at high tide
is
all
rivers
and the port includes the navigable
the streams so far up as they are affected by the tide.
embrace Chandbali, Hansua, and Patamundaf, the two Chandbali is situated on a high and narrow ridge of sand on the banks of the Baitarani river. It has
These last
limits
being in Cuttack District.
gradually
become a
trading-place of considerable importance, the traffic
being chiefly by steamer with Calcutta.
The
the District
It is
now
the principal port in
port of Balasor consists of the portion of the Bura-
balang river fronting the town of Balasor.
It is
about
the coast in a direct line, but the course of the river
7 is
miles from so tortuous
by water is 15 miles. The navigation at the entrance and there is the usual bar at the mouth, the depth in spring tides being only one foot, while high water gives a rise of Both Balasor and Chandbali are frequented by sloops thirteen feet. from the Madras coast and Ceylon and the inhabitants of the Laccadive and Maidive islands also depend principally on this District for The import and export trade of the Balasor their supply of grain. that the distance
is
somewhat
difficult,
In 1878-79, the imports were valued at is steadily increasing.
- ^358,294, and the exports at ;^492,483 ; in 1879-80, the imports
1880-81, were returned at ;^407,82i, and the exports at £S33>939> ports
imports ^^4 16,95 2, exports ;^473)32°1 in 1881-82, imports ^^876, 306, The great bulk of the trade is with Calcutta. exports .5^^477.563.
The
sloops used along the coast for local
traffic
are built at Balasor,
but the number of vessels belonging to the port has diminished since Government abandoned the manufacture and export of salt. A detailed description of the Balasor ports will be found
in
an
article
in
the
Reporter for April 1876 (quoted very fully in the Statistical Account of Bengal, vol. xviii. pp. 252-262), from which the above Statistical
information
is
mainly derived.
See also the different ports under their
respective alphabetical headings. History.
— Balasor was acquired wth the
rest of Orissa in 1803, since
which year there have been many perplexing changes of
The
first
British officer in
jurisdiction.
charge of the District, Captain Morgan,
exercised authority between the coast and the Hill States, but all the pargands north of Nangaleswar and Satmalang were included within Midnapur, and the limits to the south seem to have been very ill
