3
6. The number of country-bred remounts purchased for Government fell
from 521 in the previous year to 304 in the year under report. The decrease
is mainly due to the purchase of fewer animals for the Bombay Native Cavalry,
Of the animals bought only 91 were reported to be the produce of Government
stallions against 144 in the year 1895-96. Only 27 remounts were bought for
the Ahmednagar Remount-rearing Depôt and Veterinary Captain Morgan
points out the steady increase of price that has taken place for stock got by
Government sires and suggests that a lien should be maintained by Government
on such stock. The report called for from the Superintendent by the Survey
Commissioner and Director on this point will be awaited.
7. One hundred and forty-eight colts were castrated by Veterinary
Assistants and Salutris during the year under report against 151 in 1895-96.
During the year 1896-97 Veterinary Assistants castrated only 41 animals.
This number is still very small and as suggested by the Survey Commissioner
and Director in paragraph 13 of his review the attention of the Collectors should
again be drawn to the subject.
8. The total expenditure of the Department during the year under review
was Rs 68,733-4-1 against Rs. 69,074-15-10 for 1895-96. Of the total cost
Rs. 41,798 were charged to Provincial Revenues, Rs. 13,859 to Imperial Funds
and Rs. 13,076 to Local Funds, as compared with Rs. 40,799, Rs. 16,748 and
Rs. 11,527 respectively in 1895-96. The average cost of maintenance of each
horse and pony stallion rose from Rs. 368 in 1895-96 to Rs. 425 in the year
under report, and that of each donkey stallion from Rs. 292 to Rs. 326. This
increase is reported to be due to scarcity and dearness of forage. The Superin-
tendent should notice in his next report any economy in the feed and keep of
stallions at the depôt which may result from the arrangements to raise fodder
at Ahmednagar which were sanctioned in Government Resolution, Financial
Department, No. 2338, dated 28th May 1897.
9. Fuller details on the important subject of cattle-breeding might have
been given in the Report. As suggested by the Survey Commissioner and
Director, steps should be taken to procure complete information of the results of
the service of stud bulls maintained by Local Boards. During 1896-97 out-
breaks of cattle disease were reported from 17 districts of the Presidency,
but no reports on the subject have been received from the districts of the Panch
Maháls, Dhárwár, Hyderabad and Thar and Párkar for the last four years and
from Surat for the last two years. As remarked by the Superintendent and the
Survey Commissioner and Director it is unlikely that these districts were free
from disease and the attention of the Collectors should be drawn to this point.
It appears that in several cases Veterinary graduates received information of
outbreaks of cattle disease too late to enable them to arrive in time to do much
good, and arrangements should therefore be made to communicate the informa-
tion to the officers concerned more promptly in future. The total number of
animals reported to have been attacked by various contagious and infectious
diseases during the year under report was 18,513 against 18,635 in 1895-96 and
the percentage of fatal cases also fell from 53.65 to 47.58. Rinderpest accounted
for 16,862 or 91 per cent . of the total number of the attacks reported and
8,552 or 97 per cent. of the total number of fatal cases. As usual Káuara
suffered very heavily from the disease and the Superintendent, Civil Veterinary
Department, should be requested to notice in his next report the result of the
measures suggested by the Survey Commissioner and Director in paragraph 21
of his review for its suppression and prevention in that district.
10. During the year under review the Superintendent, Civil Veterinary
Department, inspected 8 out of the 12 Veterinary dispensaries and found
the work of the Veterinary Assistants and dispensaries generally satis-
tactory. The results of the enquiry made by the Survey Commissioner and
Director of Land Records and Agriculture regarding the cause of the smallness
of the number of outpatients at the Poona Veterinary Dispensary should be
reported to Government. A separate report should also be submitted to Gov-
ernment on the subject of the contribution by the Poona and Kirkee Canton-
ment Committee towards the cost of the dispensary. The total number of
animals, treated at the several- Veterinary dispensaries rose from 17,554 in