Story Of Village Palampur
1.Every village in India is surveyed once in ten years during the Census and some of the details are presented in the following format. Fill up the following based on information on Palampur.
a. LOCATION:
b. TOTAL AREA OF THE VILLAGE:
c. LAND USE (in hectares):
Irrigated / Unirrigated
- / - / 26 hectares
d. FACILITIES:
Medical / -
Market / -
Electricity Supply / -
Communication / -
Nearest Town / -
Answer
a. LOCATION: Bulandshahar district, Western Uttar Pradesh
b. TOTAL AREA OF THE VILLAGE: 226 hectares
c. LAND USE (in hectares):
Irrigated / Unirrigated
200 hectares / - / 26 hectares
d. FACILITIES:
Medical / 1 primary health centre and 1 private dispensary
Market / Raiganj and Shahpur
Electricity Supply / Most of the houses have electric connections. Electricity powers all the tube wells in the fields and is used in various types of small businesses.
Communication / Well-connected with neighbouring villages and towns. 3 kms from Raiganj. All-weather road connects it to Raiganj and further on to Shahpur. Many kinds of transport like bullock carts,tongas, bogeys, motorcycles, jeeps, tractors and trucks are present.
Nearest Town / Shahpur
2.Modern farming methods require more inputs which are manufactured in industry. Doyou agree?
Answer
Modern farming methods involve the use of high-yielding variety seeds. These seeds require a combination of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, agricultural implements like tractors, and proper irrigation facilities like electric tube wells to produce the best results. All these elements are manufactured in industries. Hence, it would be right to say that modern farming methods make use of a greater number of industrial outputs as compared to traditional farming methods.
3.How did the spread of electricity help farmers in Palampur?
Answer
The spread of electricity has helped the farmers of Palampur village in the following ways :
→ Most of the houses have electric connections.
→ Electricity is used to run tubewells in the fields.
→ Electricity is used in various types of small business.
4.Is it important to increase the area under irrigation? Why?
Answer
India is an agricultural country. Nearly two-thirds of the people are dependent on farming for
their livelihood. But of the total cultivated area in the country, a little less than 40 per cent is
irrigated even today. In the remaining areas, farming is largely dependent on rainfall which is
irregular and uncertain. Modern farming methods cannot be used in the absence of assured
adequate water supplies. India cannot achieve the goal of self-sufficiency in food grains unless
the area under irrigation is increased.
5. Construct a table on the distribution of land among the 450 families of Palampur.
Answer
150 / 0
240 / Less than 2
60 / More than 2
6.Why are the wages for farm labourers in Palampur less than minimum wages?
Answer
Farm workers at Palampur village get lower wages than the minimum wages fixed by the government. The minimum wages for a farm labourer is fixed at Rs 115 per day. But farm labourers get only Rs 70 - 80. This happens because of heavy competition for work among the farm labourers at Palampur village.
8.What are the different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land? Useexamples to explain.
Answer
The different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land are:
→Multiple Cropping : It is the most common way of increasing production on a givenpiece of land. Under it, more than one crop is grown on the same piece of land during theyear. Indian farmers should grow at least two main crops in a year. In India, some farmersare growing a third crop also over the past 20 years.
→Modern Farming Methods : Production on the same piece of land can also be increasedby adopting modern farming methods. The Green Revolution in India is a remarkableexample of it. Under modern farming, more cultivable areas should be brought underHYV seeds and irrigation. The use of simple wooden plough must be replaced bytractors. The increasing use of farm machinery like tractors, threshers, harvesters, etc.make cultivation faster.
9.Describe the work of a farmer with 1 hectare of land.
Answer
A farmer with 1 hectare of land shall put under the category of small farmer. Most of the work would be done by the farmer and his family members. The farmer will normally use a pair of bullocks to plough the field. His family members would assist him in sowing the seeds. During harvest time, he may require to hire some labourers.
10.How do the medium and large farmers obtain capital for farming? How is it different from the small farmers?
Answer
Medium and large farmers usually have surplus cash by selling their farm produce. Since they have land and house, they easily get loan from banks. Small farmers, on the other hand, may not be able to get bank loans. They have to depend on the local merchant and moneylender for loan.
11.On what terms did Savita get a loan from Tejpal Singh? Would Savita's condition be different if she could get a loan from the bank at a low rate of interest?
Answer
Savita required money for buying seeds, fertilisers and pesticides, and water for irrigation. She also needed money for repairing her farm instruments. So, she decided to borrow money from Tejpal Singh, a large farmer in her village. Tejpal Singh agreed to give the loan of Rs. 3000 at an interest rate of 24 per cent for four months. He also got her to agree to work on his field during the harvest season for Rs. 35 a day.
Savita’s condition would have been better if she could get a loan from the bank. The bankwould have provided her the loan at a low rate of interest. Moreover, Savita could havedevoted more time on her own field instead of working for Tejpal Singh as farm labourer.
14.What can be done so that more non-farm production activities can be started in villages?
Answer
Three things that need to be done to encourage non-farm production activities in villages:
→ The government should set up schemes whereby landless labourers and small farmers are able to get cheap loans to start small individual/community businesses.
→ In addition to financial assistance, the government should set up rural workshops to enable the villagers to build on their skill levels.
→ The government should also work towards improving the infrastructure of villages so that the rural parts of the country are well connected to the urban areas.
15. In your region, talk to two labourers. Choose either farm labourers or labourers working at construction sites. What wages do they get? Are they paid in cash or kind? Do they get work regularly? Are they in debt?
Answer:People who work at construction site usually get the minimum wages. An unskilled worker gets around Rs. 250 per day. A skilled worker; such as a mason; get around Rs. 500 per day.
16.Talk to some old residents in your region and write a short report on the changes in irrigation and changes in production methods during the last 30 years.
Answer:During the early period, irrigation was done by Persian wheel. Diesel operated or electricity operated pumps have replaced the Persian wheels. Tractors have replaced bullocks for ploughing the large farms. Now more and more farmers are in a position to grow up to three crops in a year.
17. What are the non-farm production activities taking place in your region? Make a short list.
Answer:Cycle repair shop, carpenter, ironsmith, general store, tea stall, stationary shop, computer training institute, etc.
18. What can be done so that more non-farm production activities can be started in villages?
Answer:The government should improve electricity supply in the villages. It should open more schools so that children can grow to become educated adults. Moreover, government can also provide vocational training to the rural youths. These activities would help in increasing non-farm production activities in a village.
19.What are the four requirements of production?
There are four requirements of production:
1. Land: contains natural resources, water, forests and minerals.
2. Labour: People do the work and manufacture goods and services. Labourers may be skilled, unskilled, educated and uneducated depending upon the production work and requirement.
3. Physical capital: Can be of fixed capital and working capital.
a. Fixed capital: Tools, machines, buildings etc.. they may range from very simple tools such as farmers plough to sophisticated machines to generators, computers etc..
b. Working capital: Raw materials and money in hand come under this category. Ex. Yarn used by weaver and clay used by potter. Some money is always required during production to make payments and buy other necessary items.
4. Human capital: The fourth important requirement is human capital. Without human labour production cannot be done.
19. How is land fixed in the village palampur?
75 % of people depend on farming. Land area in the village under cultivation is fixed. Since 1960 there has been no expansion in land area under cultivation. No further scope to increase farm production. Land is fixed for agriculture in the village.
20. Which Indian village resemble palampur?
Village of western U.P.
21. What are the different crops grown in the Indian villages during different seasons?
Kharif crops like jowar, Bajra are grown in rainy seasons. These plants are grown as cattle feed. It is followed by cultivation of potato between October and December. In the winter season, rabi crops like wheat, sugar cane are grown.
22. Where do the villagers of palampur sell jaggery?
Sugar cane is grown in the village on one part of the land and jaggery is produced and sold in Raiganj.
23. How are the villagers able to grow more than one crop in palampur?
The villagers can grow more crops because they are having the facilities of electricity, well developed system of irrigation etc.. Initially the tube wells were installed by the government later many private tube wells were also installed. All the farmers in the village grow more than one crop. Many grow potato as the third crop in their field.
24. What do you mean by multi cropping and dual cropping?
Multicropping: To grow more than one crop in the same field is known as multiple cropping. This system gives high yield. Dual cropping: To grow two crops in the same piece of land.
25. What is Green revolution?
Excessive production in agriculture due to modern scientific methods are called green revolution.
26. What is HYV ?
In late 1960s HYVs are introduced, which were a great boon to agriculture. These are High Yielding Varieties of seeds which guarantees greater qualitative and quantitative production. HYV seeds need plenty of water and also chemical fertilizers and pesticides to produce best results.
27. Which states of India were the first to use modern methods of agriculture?
Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh were the first states to use modern methods of agriculture and made use of HYV seeds, pesticides, chemical fertilizers etc..
28. What is the difference between multiple cropping and modern farming method?
Multiple cropping: In this method more than one crop is grown on a single piece of land. For example: Wheat – bajra – potato.
Modern farming methods: In this method modern HYV seeds, chemical fertilizers, modern tools and machineries are used. This provides high yields.
29. How modern methods have over used the natural resources and violated the resources?
Green revolution is associated with the loss of soil fertility.
Continuous use of ground water for tube well irrigation has reduced the water – table below the ground.Chemical fertilizers may destroy the bacteria and other micro organisms in the soil.The consumption of chemical fertilizers in Punjab is highest in the country.