MUNICIPAL DEPARTMENT.

                                          SANITATION.

                                DACCA, THE 12th JULY 1913.

                              RESOLUTION—No. 5 T.—San.
READ—

The Reports of the Sanitary Commissioner and the Sanitary Board, Bengal, for the year 1912.

Read also—

The annual statistical returns and short notes on Vaccination in Bengal for the year 1912-13.

MAJOR W. W. CLEMESHA, I.M.S., and Mr. G. B. Williams held the post
of Sanitary Commissioner and Sanitary Engineer, respectively, throughout
the year.

2.     Climate.—The early part of the year was characterised by an
abnormally low rainfall, and, except in April, most districts suffered from
the want of rain. With the advent of the monsoon conditions changed,
and although the fall was then erratic it was more or less above the average
in the majority of districts. Although it is stated that the account of the
rainfall has been inserted in the report in view of the intimate connection
between rainfall and general health, the effect of the variations in the rainfall
on general health has not been discussed, and it is somewhat difficult there-
fore to understand how far the variations in the birth and death rates in
the different districts have been affected by the abnormal rainfall at the
different seasons of the year. The death rate has increased, mainly owing
to greater mortality from fever and cholera, and the Governor in Council
would have been glad to know how far, if at all. this increase was due
to unusual variations in the rainfall.

3.    Birth and death rates.—The birth rate shows an increase, 1.600,335
births being registered during the year as compared with 1,585,187 in
1911. The increase is slight, and would probably have been greater but
for the high price of food-grains. Agricultural conditions were on the
whole good, but the high level of prices has been maintained, and it is
feared that this is more than likely to arrest the natural growth of
the population. There was also a rise in mortality, 1,349,779 deaths being
recorded as against 1,221,580 in the former year. Fever and cholera were
primarily responsible for this increase.

With a birth rate of 35.30 per mille and a death rate of 29.77 the
Presidency of Bengal as now constituted does not compare unfavourably
with other provinces of the Empire. The birth rate is somewhat lower
than that of most other provinces, but its death rate is also lower, and the
excess of births over deaths is considerable. A comparison of the statistics
for the various divisions of the province points to the Chittagong Division
as being the healthiest division. The birth rate is higher in the Eastern
Bengal divisions of the province than in the Burdwan and Presidency
Divisions, but the Rajshahi Division, which shows the highest birth rate in
the province, also returns the highest death rate.

A disquieting feature is the high rate of infantile mortality in certain
districts. Calcutta has hitherto returned the highest death rate among
infants, but this has been surpassed by the Jalpaiguri and Dinajpur districts
where the rate has risen as high as 28.69 and 26.26, respectively.