Census of India, 1931 VOLUME XXIU H.E.H. the NiZalll's Dominions .(HYDERABAD STATE) PART III-Administration Report BY GULAM AHMED KHAN Census Commissioner HYDERABAD-DEtCAN. AT THE GOVERNMENT CENTRAL PRESS 1934 ,...... ~ OJ. 0- ._C H ~ r- r.f) -._, ~ U- rJ) 0.. • .-1 Z ~ ~ r..n U .. I CHAPTER I. The Administrative Report on Census sets forth the course run, the difficulties encountered and overcome and suggestions for the guidance of the next Census Commissioner. It is an important reference book and the absence of it not only means incomplej;eness of census work but also entails considerable hardship to the next officei~. Although five Census Commissioners have preceded me~ no one except that for 1901 has left a record of bis ex­ periences. In his introductory chapter of the Report volume (Part I) for 1921:J the then Census Commissioner observed that in the absence of the Administrative volume of the previous census it was found necessary for him to wade through a number of old files with a view to arriving at a de­ finite plan of work and hoped that" the Administrative volume to be published this time will give a detailed account of the machinery by which the Census work was managed and the methods of enumeration and tabula­ tion followed at the present Census. n But when I took over the duties of the Census Comrnissioner I had no alternative but to collect and study the files and follow the remarks left by my predecessor. 2. As suggested by the Census Commissioner for India.I have collected Collection of Printed Matter a few copies of all printed matter and- have them bound in the following order :- 1. Hyderabad State Census Code Parts I and II 2.~.· My office circulars and instructions to Census _officers together with a calender of -operations - 3. Special circulars and instructions re: enquiries on anthropo­ logical and ethnographical matters, literacy~ vital statistics and religion 4. All forms a'tld schedules in the languages In which they were issued (a) The general village registers :::.., (b) The circle lists (c) Letters of appointment of Supervisors and Enumerators (d) The manual of instructions to supervisors and charge superintendents (e) The enumeration book <I) ':J'h e household schedule (g) Traveller-sz tIckets (h) Forms of slips and registers used in slip copying (i) Forms of sorters' tickets (j) Forms of tabulation registers (k) List of occupations (l) List of castes (m) Circulars from the Census Commissioner for India . .. The contents of the volume have been indexed and references-made .easy. 8. ';rhe intimation of the decennial Census was received in the office of Appointment of Census Director of Statistics through Revenue Secretary"s Commissioner letter No. 1100 dated 9th Thir 1338 F. (14th May 1929). The Statistics Department was at that time in charge of the Senior Assistant, Moulvi Abu Muhammad Sahib. On receipt of Government orderp, he gave a start tothe Census work with the clerks of the Gazetteer -section. Both the officer and the clerks had had experience of the Census work in 1921. This was a great advantage. I was appointed Census Commissioner on the 6th Bahman 1889 F. (9th of December 1929) by 2 Government letter No. 472 dated 6th Bahman 1839 :Fasli. I was also at the same time placed in c.harge of the Statistics Department as its Director. The dual function, however economical, was not conducive to efficiency. As time went on, the work grew so voluminous that I was hard pressed for time. As the quinquennial cattle census and the decennial population census form part of the Statistics Department, my suggestion is that if the Director of Statistics is also to be the Census Commissioner then a Deputy Director of Statistics should be appointed so that the Director may be relieved of his Statistics work in order that he may be able to concentrate his whole attention upon such timely and important work as Census. The Commissioner has to do a great deal of itineracy and, should be free to devote his undivided time and attention to Census. l\10ulvi Abu Mahommed was Deputy Census Commissioner and l\{r_ R. Thomes Assistant Census Commissioner. ~mce Establishment. ,1,. The intitial office estahlishment consisted of :- Salary Rs. 1. Head clerk 125 2. Accountant 100 3· Camp clerk 80 4. EngEsh clerk 60 5. English clerk 45 6. Six clerks, each @ 35 7. Daftari 20 8. Dafadar 16 9. Chaprasis (eight) each @ 12 This staff was so inadequate that most of them had to work overtime and on holidays. The accountant not only kept accounts and cash but also attended to printing work. The latter was so important that delay, if any, would have seriously affected the working of the whole cells us Clachinery. I would recommend that as the presli work continues through­ out. the census period, a special press clerk with a knowledge of printing should be appointed. 5. Considerable confusion arose in the matt~r of obtaining paper for Indent for Paper Census work. \Vhen I was planning at the begin­ ning of 1930 to get the required quantity of paper according to specifications furnished by the Census Commi.ssioner for India from the Upper India Couper Mills, Lucknow, and Titagur Mills, Calcutta, the Commerce and Industries Department, Hyderabad, came forward with the recommendation that the de5i paper made in Aurangabad and other places might be purchased and thus the waning cottage industry encouraged. The Secretary to Government in the Commerce and Industries Department convened a meeting on (20-3-1930) 22-6-1339 F. consisting of.the Director of Industries, the Superintendent of Stationny Depot, the Secretary of the Co-operative Union and the Government Paper Expert. I was also invited to attend it. At the meeting I stated my requirements and a representative of the manufacturers, who was also present at the meeting, agreed to supply paper in instalments spread over a period of six months. I agreed and the terms of the undertaking by the Industries Department on the one hand and those of the manufacturers' representative on the other were recorded in the minutes of the meeting. The approval of both the Revenue and Finance Members was also obtained to this arrangement which meant more. money for desi paper than for the mill-made paper. I also duly informed the Census .Commissioner for India that I would use desi paper for all work except for the report and tables volumes. After the lapse of two months, however, I was informed by the Government Paper Expert that, owing to lack of funds and other equipment, the paper manufacturers in Khagazipura. Sewampet. etc.. would not be able to fulfil the contract in time unless financed in advance. As the success of Census work depended on prompt supply of printed instructions, schedules and forms, such delay as was indicated by the Industries Department would _: be disastrous. I was, therefore, obliged to cancel the arrangement and indent for mill-made paper post haste, purchasing only a small quantity of desi paper that was available 8 then. The delay of two months, however, affected the programme of work. I would, therefore. urge the next Census Commissioner to bear these facts in mind and see that the question of the supply, in time, of paper finds a priority in his programme of work. The following is a statement of paper bought :- Number and ! Name of Firm date of Description of paper !Quantity Value order Upper India Couper No. 55 10·7~30 Paper Mills Co., Ltd., No. 65 ,,2-11-80 B.G. Rs. LuC'know No. 382 " 14~2~81 Unbleached printing .. 1,518 reams 9.150 9 " Titaghur Paper Mills Co., Ltd .• Calcutta ,,109., 12-11-80 Green 40 12 0 Red 2 3 0 Blue 0 12 0 821 2 0 Orange 14 0 0 =O.S. Rs. Yellow 0 4 0 1 ,633 10 & Do .. 407 D. O. Red 2 8 21 5-8-31 Yellow 0 o 18 Md. Yusuf. Godur, ,,487 23-9-39 F. Desi paper foolscap Medak " 488 26-6-30 siIlgle size 24 reams 2nd Class double foolscap 2nd class single royal 91 reams 2.655 245 do J Stationery Depot, Foolscap royal unglazed 1,719 12 9 and Kraft Total 16,008 11 8 If desi paper is not available in time it is advisable to obtain the required quantity of mill-made paper. say about ten per cent .• more than thIS time, from up country mills in good time. 6. The Census Code, Part I, was received from the Census Com­ missioner for India late in (June ) 930.) Amardad Census Code 1889 F., and was translated mutatis mutandis, into Urdu and published in sections, an English version of the same being also similarly published for the use of the Administered areas and the Railwa.ys. 7. The State Census Bin was drafted in Urdu and submitted to Government in the Revenue Department in (Amardad Census Act H~39 F.) the first week of June 1980 for it to be passed into Act by the Legjslative Council. The Council passed it (on 25th Dai 1840 F.) 29th November 1930 or about three months before the date of the final enumeration. I think the first duty of the Census Depart­ ment is to have the Aet passed and promulgated immediately after the Census Commissioner has taken charge of the work. So long as the terms of the Act are not made public any general order, which may issue for public information and guidance, wi1l, from legal point of view, be ultra vires.