The Gazetteers Department

The principal economic resources available in Dhulia district are agricultural land, forests, agro-industrial raw materials, abundant manpower and live-stock. Agricultural land, with a net cultivated area of 16,58,904 acres (1961-62), is the most important of the economic resources in Dhulia district. The cultivated land is classified into five categories, such as, deep black soil, medium deep black soil, medium black soil, light brown soil and murmad soil. The first three types of soil respond more favourably to manures and fertilisers. Intensive cultivation is favourably rewarded in these soils. They are suitable for the cultivation of cotton, jowar, ground-nut, tur; mug and a variety of cereals and pulses. The light brown and murmad soils are suitable for kharif jowar, bajra, mug, udid and kulthi.

Of the total geographical area of 35,31,135 acres, 16,58,904, acres form net area cultivated, 22,39,75 acres constitute double cropped area, 92,612 acres culturable waste, and 53,754 acres fallow lands.

Forest Resources.

Dhulia district is rich in respect of forest resources. The forests in the district are very important commercially. The forests yield valuable teak wood (sagwan) as well as a number of species, such as, khair, palas, shadada, shisam, tiwas, haldu, kalam, ain, bija, dhavada, shaman, sal, hivar, anjan, etc. The other commercially important forest products are, (1) tendu and apta leaves useful for bidi industry. (2) mohtra flowers and fruits (3) gums and resins, (4) lac, and (5) khair for manufacture of catechu. Bamboo is also found on a large scale. Charoli trees which yield valuable dry fruits are found scattered in the forests. Besides timber and other products, fire wood, fodder grass and rosha grass are abundantly available, and they form an important source of revenue. The oil extracted from rosha grass has a great demand in foreign countries, and is rated to be an exchange earner.

Forests extend over an area of 1564.72 square miles [13,34,455 acres in 1961-62 as per statistics furnished by Agriculture department.], of which 1441.72 square miles are in charge of Forest department and 123 square miles in charge of Revenue department. The forest area forms 32.26 per cent of the total geographical area of the district as against 17.56 per cent for Maharashtra. The percentage for this district accords favourably with national forest policy.

The forest resources are exploited through the agency of Forest Labourers' Co-operative Societies. Forestry and logging provided employment to 1647 persons in 1961.

Minerals.

There are no mineral deposits found in the district. Mining industry is therefore limited to quarrying of stones and clay.

Industrial Raw materials.

In the absence of geological resources and minerals, agricultural produce comprises the principal raw materials, in Dhulia. Cotton which is cultivated on a very large scale is by far the most important raw material in the district. Cotton commanded an area of 1,55,622 acres in 1952-53 and 2,09,455 acres in 1961-62. The outturn of cotton in the two years was 13,400 tons and 32,837 tons, respectively.

Groundnut, the most essential raw material for the hydrogenated oil industry, is also produced in large quantities. Groundnut occupied an area of 2,25,295 acres in 1952-53 and 3,22,007 acres in 1961.62. The outturn of this commercial commodity was 22.516 tons in 1952.53 and 1,05,99 tons in 1961-62.

Besides cotton and groundnut the other raw materials available in the district are cotton seed, forest produce as referred to above and non-edible oils used in the manufacture of soaps.

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