282 NADIR RIVERS
river. Their -condition as waterways and as the channels which feed
the Hooghly from the Ganges is a matter of much importance to the
trade of Calcutta, and during the hot season a weekly register of their
depth is published as a guide to native merchants and boatmen. Since
the end of the eighteenth century, however, increasing difficulty has been
experienced in keeping them open for navigation throughout the year,
as if left to themselves they silt up during the dry season. These
channels, with an aggregate length of 470 miles, are controlled by
Government; and, though no permanent works have been constructed,
such measures as are practicable are taken every year to confine the
water, by means of bamboo .spurs, to a limited channel, so as to force
the current to scour the bars and to obtain a depth sufficient for naviga-
tion by boats of small draught. For the services rendered tolls are
levied at Jangipur, Hanskhali, and Swarupganj on vessels using the
rivers. In 1902-3 the estimated value of the cargo carried was 183
lakhs; and in 1903-4 the gross revenue amounted to Rs. 1,04,ooo, but
there was a loss of Rs. 16,ooo on the year's working.
Nadiad Taluka.-Central taluha of Kaira District, Bombay, lying
between 22° 35' and 22° 53' N. and 72° Wand 73° 5' E., with an area
of 224 square miles. It contains two towns, NADIAD (population,
31,435), the head-quarters, and MAHUDHA (8,544); and 9r villages,
including CHAKLAS1 (7,340). The population in 19o1 was 148,452,
compared with r71,o84 in 1891. The density, 663 persons to the
square mile, is much above the District average. The land revenue
and cesses in 1903-4 amounted to more than 4-3 lakhs. Well-grown
groves of fruit and timber trees, highly tilled fields girt with hedges,
and large substantially built villages, prove the taluha to be one of
the richest parts of Gujarat.
Nadiad Town.-Head-quarters of the taluha of the same name
in Kaira District, Bombay, situated in 22° 42' N. and 72' 52' E., on
the Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway, 29 miles south-east
of Ahmadabad. Population (1901), 31,435, Hindus numbering 26,239,
Muhammadans 4,468, and others 728. At the beginning of the seven-
teenth century Nadiad was a large town with cotton and indigo manu-
factures, and in 1775 was described as one of the prettiest cities of
Gujarat, flanked by nine strong gates and a dry moat. , In that year
Raghunath Rao Peshwa levied upon it a fine of Rs. 6o,ooo for its
adhesion to the cause of Fateh Singh Gaikwar. In 1838 it was said
to be a thriving place, carrying on a considerable trade with Malwa.
Nadiad has been a municipality since 1866, with an average income
of Rs. 51,ooo during the decade ending 19o1. In 1903-4 the income
was Rs. 44,0oo, derived chiefly from octroi (Rs. 19,ooo) and house and
land tax (Rs. i 1,ooo). The town is the centre of an extensive trade
in tobacco and ghi, and contains a cotton mill, a brass foundry, and a
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