2
REPORT ON SANITATION, DISPENSARIES AND JAILS IN RAJPUTANA FOR 1922
INDIAN STATES.
14. All the Indian States in Rajputana were free from all epidemic diseases
during the year under report except Dungarpur in which Influenza broke out in
an epidemic form in the month of February in a village named Barote. There
were in all 103 seizures of which only 3 proved fatal. The disease was imported
from Gujrat. Timely preventive and quarantine measures were taken to check
its spread.
15. There were a few sporadic cases of Small-pox in the Jhalawar State.
SANITATION.
16. The sanitation of the City of Ajmer could hardly be worse than it is, and
this unsanitary state of affairs has been commented upon for many years in this
Report. What is not realized is that efficient sanitation is an expensive matter
and that when there is no money and no water it is also a difficult problem.
17. At the present moment, in round figures one rupee eight annas a year
is spent per head of the population, on sanitation. A ridiculously small sum,
particularly when there is good reason to infer that for such money, as is spent,
full value is not received.
18. The whole matter is under the consideration of a Small Committee, who
are considering alternate Schemes, but it can be stated with certainty that any
efficient scheme will cost more than is spent on sanitation at present. Conse-
quently the matter is largely one of finance.
19. The Birat System of Sweepers has been condemned year after year, and
with justice, and there is no doubt that until this system is broken the sanitation
of Ajmer will suffer, so long and so far as it depends on the work of these men.
20. An effort is being made to make the Tramway Station more efficient
and with an improved work-shop it is hoped to maintain the Carts and Tramway
Rolling Stock in better order.
21. The condition of the Bullocks is definitely good they are well fed and
cared for.
22. The Motor Lorry has been over worked and over loaded and consequently
has not proved the success expected ; but there is no doubt that its acquisition
was a step in the right direction and it is to be hoped that in course of time all
rubbish will be removed by Mechanical means and that relic of a bygone age, the
bullock cart will disappear.
23. For all practical purposes, the water supply of Ajmer can be always con-
sidered as too deficient for any water-borne scheme consequently the night soil
must either be trenched or incenerated. The latter course recommend itself as
the most efficient cheaper and more easily worked and controlled of the two. More-
over once established, the rubbish could be disposed of in a similar way.
24. There remains the sullage water. The present system of so called water
tight cisterns and tin receptacles is as bad as it can be. A walk through any part
of the city will reveal cisterns full and overflowing with foul water, leaking recep-
tacles and even many drifting drains without receptacles at all. It would appear
that some system of drainage is a desideration. Ajmer is ideally situated for
such, as it is on the site of a hill, and with the waste water from the hydrants, a
comparatively small head of water would suffer to keep such a drainage system
flushed.
The initial outlay would be considerable and the matter requires detailed
examination, but without some such system it is difficult to provide a solution
for the sullage water question.
WATER SUPPLY.
25. The Monsoon only yielded Ajmer 13.29 inches and steps were not taken
early enough to consume the supply, consequently there was a great shortage of
water towards the end of the year under review. However the Wells held out
wonderfully and by mixing a little Budha Pushkar water with that from Bhaonta