History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period v1.c8.18

v1.c8.18

The general characteristics of the entire coast-land are somewhat different from those of the Southern portion of Bengal. The soil is either alluvial or a reddish laterite cut up by low hills, which yields a poor harvest even in the best of seasons. Irrigation is possible on account of the existence of a number of big rivers and was used even in the 2nd century B. C. The lower parts of many great rivers intersect the coast-land and their Deltas spread fan-wise in the flat plains near the sea. Fishing and salt-making are the principal industries along the sea-coast, and both have suffered materially during recent years on account of the competition of foreign salt and the dried fish trade of the Sunderbans.