REVENUE DEPAETMENT
AGRICULTURE.
CALCUTTA, the 11th AUGUST 1902.
RESOLUTION—No. 3122.
READ—
The Annual Report of the Civil Veterinary Department, Bengal, for the year 1901-
1902 and of the Bengal Veterinary College.
Read also —
Letter No. 101T.A., dated 3rd July 1902, from the Director of the Department of
Land Records and Agriculture, Bengal, submitting the above report with
his remarks.
The Annual Report of the Civil Veterinary Department and of the Bengal
Veterinary College has this year been considerably curtailed, and is comprised,
together with its appendices, within the prescribed limits of 15 pages.
2. Veterinary Dispensaries.—The
year under review was marked by an
important increase in the number of veterinary dispensaries from twelve to
nineteen; and the number of patients treated, viz., 787 in-patients and 8,892
out-patients, was more than double that of the preceding year. The Lieutenant-
Governor has read with pleasure the good accounts given of the veterinary
dispensaries at Howrah, Gaya, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga, Patna, Balasore, Dumraou,
Muzaffarpur, and Chittagong, and he notices that at Monghyr the new dispeu-
sary building has been built entirely from funds raised by public subscription.
Government in its Resolution No. 4051, dated 10th December 1901, has under-
taken on certain conditions to contribute one-half of the expenses incurred by
District Boards in the maintenance of veterinary dispensaries and one-sixth in
the case of dispensaries maintained jointly by District. Boards and Munici-
palities. The application from the Cuttack Dispensary for assistance is under
consideration.
3. Epidemic Disease.—The Government of India in commenting on last
year's report expressed the fear that glanders is very rife in Calcutta, and stated
that they trusted that measures to check this disease would shortly be brought
into force. The figures available support the conclusion that glanders and
farcy are prevalent both in Calcutta and in the districts. Altogether at the
instance of public officers 51 horses were destroyed on account of this disease
last year. It has been reported to the Government of India that the introduc-
tion of Act XIII of 1889 into Calcutta in supersession of Act VIII (B. C.) of
1880 will involve an annual expenditure of Rs. 10,000 with a probable increase
in the near future, and that therefore on financial grounds its introduction
must await the next revision of the Provincial contract.
The year under review showed a marked decrease in reported cattle-
disease ; but rinderpest was again rife in Birbhum, and there were severe
outbreaks in Khulna, Gaya, and Hazaribagh, where the number of cattle
attacked exceeded 2,000 in each district. In Murshidabad, Chittagong,
Shahabad, Palamau, and Manbhum over 1,000 cases were reported in each
district. The Veterinary Assistants were able to immunise 12,829 head of
cattle during the year, and could have done more work under this head if more
serum had been available. It is satisfactory that there was no friction between
the operators and the owners of cattle.
Under recent orders from the Government of India instruction in rinderpest
inoculation will in future be imparted to veterinary assistants at Muktesar and
Bareilly. It has accordingly been arranged to send this year four assistants
monthly for instruction until 24 have been trained.
4. Improvement of stock.— It is trusted that the attempt made by the impor-
tation by the Civil Veterinary Department and by the District Board of Patna
of Australian cows and bulls to improve the Patna breed of milch cattle may be