REPORT
ON THE
CALCUTTA MEDICAL INSTITUTIONS
FOR THE YEAR 1895.
No. D/5 5 .
FROM SURGEON-COLONEL G. C. ROSS,
Inspector-General of Civil Hospitals, Bengal,
To THE SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF BENGAL,
FINANCIAL DEPARTMENT.
Dated Darjeeling, the 15th June 1896.
S I R ,
I
HAVE the honour to submit the following report on the working
of the medical institutions of Calcutta for the year 1895, together with the
statistical statements in the appendix.
2. In previous years it was the practice to give here a table showing the
number of deaths in the town of Calcutta, Howrah, and the amalgamated
area of the Suburbs. This form of the statement has, however, been changed
in this report in accordance with the instructions of Government, and the
table given below furnishes the statistics for the town of Calcutta, as defined
in section 3 of Act II (B.C.) of 1888, and of Howrah for the year under review
and for as many previous years since 1885 as figures are available:—
Deaths from the most prevalent Diseases in the Town of Calcutta and Howrah.
YEAR.
CHOLERA.
BOWEL-
COMPLAINTS.
FEVER.
S M A L L - P O X . OTHER CAUSES.
TOTAL.
RATIO PER MILLE
OF POPULATION.
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
T o w n o f C a l c u t t a .
T o w n o f H o w r a h .
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
1885 ...
...
372
...
451
. . .
928
. . . 21
. . .
605
. . .
2,437
. . .
26.83
1886
. . .
...
5 2 8
...
343
. . .
674
. . .
. . .
. . .
511
...
2,056
. . .
22.63
1887
. . .
...
296
. . .
340
. . .
515
...
12
...
432
•••
1,594
...
17.55
1888 ...
. . . 598
. . .
402
. . .
525
...
4 ...
4 4 0
...
1,969
...
21.68
1889 ... 2,315
488
2,756
393
5,994
585
99
19
8,400
578
19,564
2,063
28.7
22.71
1890
. . . 1,879
364
2,759
385
6,792
605
872
45
8,066
474
20,368
1,873
29.8
20.62
1891
. . . 2,955
490
2,716
391
7,851
640
18
16
7,977
596
21,517
2,133
31.5
18.29
1892 ...
2,019
771
2 , 3 6 4
439
7,618
1,009
21
3
8,158
540
20,180
2,762
29.6
23.68
1893
. . .
869
411
2,882
555
8,091
976
31
8
8,240
547
20,113
2,497
29.5
21.41
1894 ...
1,695
5 1 3
3,136
708
8 , 9 6 3
1,150
405
11
8,242
645
22,441
3,027
32.9
25.95
1895 ...
2,099
1,295
3,269
822 11,345
1,770
2,220
65
8,098
1,044
27,031
4,996
39.6
42.84
The mortality, as recorded in the above statement, will place the fact
beyond all doubt that the general health of Calcutta was far worse in 1895 than
in the previous year. The total number of deaths was the greatest for the
seven years for which figures are obtainable, and the death-rate per mille was
6.7 more than that of the last year. At Howrah, too, the total mortality was
by far greater than in any of the previous decade ; and even if it were allowed
that there was a greater accuracy in the registration, the considerable rise
in the death-rate from 25.95 per mille to 42.84 pointedly shows that the
year 1895 was greatly more unhealthy than its predecessor. Looking to the
principal heads of disease, we find that there was an increase—and in some