CBSE Class 9 Social Science Story Of Village Palampur Notes

ECONOMIC STORY OF PALAMPUR

INTRODUCTION

(i) In Palampur faming is the main activity. Several other activities such as small scale manufacturing, dairy transport etc. are also carried out. In these production activities various resources combine to produce the desired goods and services.

(ii) Palampur is well connected with neighboring villages and towns. An all weather road connects the village to Raiganj and further on to the nearest small town. many kinds of transport such as bullock carts, tongas, bogeys, motorcycles, jeeps, tractors and trucks are visible on ties road.

(iii) Palampur has about 450 families belonging to several different castes. 80 families of upper caste own the majority of land. Their houses are quite large and made of brick with cement plastering. The SCs (dalits) comgrise one third of the population and live in one corner of the village and in such smaller houses, some of which are of mud and straw.

(iv) Most of the houses have electric connections. Electricity powers all the tubewells in the fields.  Electricity is also used in various types of small business. Palampur has two primary schools and one high school. These is a primary health centre run by the government and one private dispensary.

ORGANISATIONL PRODUCTION

Production of any type of goods or services required the services of four factors of Production.

(i) First requirement is land and other natural resources such as water, forests and minerals.

(ii) Second requirement is labor. Some production activities require highly educated workers, other activities required workers who can do manual work.

(iii) Third requirement is physical capital, i.e. the variety of inputs required at every stage during production. Tools, machines, buildings can be used in production over many years, and are called fixed capital. Raw materials and money in hand are called working; these are used up in production.

(iv) There is a fourth requirement too. One needs knowledge and enterprise to be able to put together land, labor and physical capital and produce an output. this, these days is called human capital. every production is organised by combining land, labor, physical capital and human capital, which are know as factors of production.

FARMING N PALAMPUR

(a) Fixed land:

Farming is the main production activity in Palampur. 75 per cent of the working people are dependent on farming for their livelihood. Since 1960 in Palampur, there has been no expansion in land area under cultivation. By then, some of the wastelands in the village had been converted to cultivable land. There exists no further scope to increase farm production by brining new land under cultivation.

(b) Ways to produce more from the same land:

All land is cultivated in Palampur. No land is idle. During the rainy (kharif) season, people grow jowar and bajra which are used as cattle feed. Between Octobers to December they cultivate potatoes. In the winter (or the Rabi) season they sow wheat. a part of the land area is also devoted to sugarcane which is harvested once every year. The main reasons why farmers are able to grow three different crops in a year are:-

(i)  As a result of the coming of electricity in the Palampur village, people have greatly improved the system of irrigation. They can now irrigate more lands quite effectively.

(ii) Tube wells were first installed by the government but soon people were able to set up their own tubewells.

(iii) By multiple cropping more then one crop is grow on a piece of land during the same year. All farmers in Palampur grow at least two main crops; many are growing potato as the third crop.

(iv)  The other way is to use modern farming methods for higher yield. Higher yields are possible from a combination of HYV seeds, irrigation, chemical fertilisers, pesticides etc.

(c) Green Revolution:

Large increase in crop yields, leading to record food production started, in our country from 1960 onwards and marked a turning point in Indian agriculture which has led to green revolution in our country. The great increase in the production of food grain crops especially the wheat crop in our country during the last 30 years is called Green Revolution. This is because a sort of revolution has taken place in Indian agriculture leading to enormous food grain production. the revolution is called because it has led to unprecedented greenery of crops everywhere. The period 1960 to 1980 is also called ‘golden era’ for the record food grain production. it is because of the green revolution that our country has become salt sufficient in food production and even buffer stocks of food grains  have been created for use in the times of natural calamities like drought and floods.

(d) How Electricity help the farmers in Palampur?

(i)  The major impact of the spread of electricity in Palampur was to transform the system of irrigation.

(ii) Electricity helped the farmers to shift from the traditional Persian wheels to electricity run tube wells.

(iii) The irrigation capacity of electricity run tube wells is much more then that of the Persian wheels.

(iv) Spread of electricity leads, literally the whole society from darkness to light. it transforms all social economic norms of life . it is like a whole new world.

(e)   Sustainable use of land:

(i)  land being a natural resource, it is necessary to be very careful in its use. The modern farming methods have overused the land resource.

(ii) Green Revolution is associated with the loss of soil fertility due to increased use of chemical fertilizers.

(iii) Continuous use of groundwater for tube well irrigation has reduced the water-table below the ground.

(iv) Environmental resources like soil fertility and groundwater are built up over many years. Once destroyed, it is very difficult to restore them.

(f) Distribution of land between the farmers of Palampur:

(i)  Not all the people engaged in agriculture have sufficient land for cultivation. In Palampur, about one third of the 450 families are landless, i.e. 150 families, most of them dalits, have no land for cultivation.

(ii) Of the remaining families who own land, 240 families cultivate small plots of land less then 2 hectares in size.

(iii) In Palampur, there are 60    families of medium and large farmers who cultivate more then 2 hectares of land. A few of the large farmers have land extending over 10 hectares or more.

(g) Who will provide the labour?

(i) Farming requires a great deal of hard work. Small farmers along with their families, cultivate their own fields. Thus, they provide the labor required for farming themselves. Medium and large farmers hire farm labourers to work on their fields.

(ii) Farm labourers come either from landless families cultivating small plots of land. Unlike farmers, farm labourers do not have a right over the crops grown on the land. Instead, they are paid wages by the farmer for whom they work. Wages can be in cash or in kind of crop. Sometimes labourers get meals also. Wages vary widely from region to region, from crop to crop, from one farm activity to another (like sowing and harvesting).there is also a wide variation in the duration of employment. a farm labourer might be employed on a daily basis, or for one particular farm activity like harvesting, or for the whole year.

(h) The capital needed in farming:

(i)  Most small farmers have to borrow money to arrange for the capital. They borrow from large farmers or the village moneylenders or the traders who supply various inputs for cultivation. The rate of interest on such loans is very high. They are put to great distress to repay the loan.

(ii) In contrast to the small farmers, the medium and large farmers have their own savings from farming. They are thus able to arrange for the capital needed.

(i) Sale of Surplus Farm Products:

(i) Small farmers have little surplus because their total production is small and from this a substantial share is kept for their own family needs. so, it is  the medium and large farmers who supply wheat to the market.

(ii) Large and medium farmers sell the surplus farm products. a part of the earnings is saved and kept for buying capital for the next season. Thus, they are able to arrange for the capital for farming from their own savings. Some farmers might also use the savings to buy cattle, trucks, or to set up shops.

NON FARMING ACTIVITIES IN PALAMPUR

(a) dairy :

Dairy is a common activity in many families of Palampur. People feed their buffalos on various kinds of grass and the jowar and bajra that grow during the kharif season. The milk is sold in Raiganj, the nearby large village. Two traders from Shahpur town have set up collection cum chilling centers at Raiganj from where the milk is transported to far away towns and cities.

(b) Small scale manufacturing in Palampur:

Less than fifty people are engaged in manufacturing in   Palampur unlike the manufacturing that takes place in the big factories in the big factories in the4 towns and cities, manufacturing in Palampur involves very simple production methods and are done on a small scale. they are carried out mostly at home or in the fields with the helps of family labor.

(c) The shopkeepers of Palampur:

People involved in trade (exchange of goods) are not many in Palampur. the traders of Palampur are shopkeepers who buy various goods from wholesale markets in the cities and sell them in the village. There are a few small general stores in the village selling a wide range of items like rice, wheat, sugar, tea, oil, biscuits, soap, toothpastes, batteries, candies, notebooks, pen, pencil and even some cloth.

(d) Transport:

there are a variety of vehicles on the road connecting Palampur to Raiganj. Rickshawallahs, tongawallahs, jeep, tractor, truck drivers and people driving the traditional bullock cart and bogey are people in the transport services. They ferry people and goods from one place to another, and in return get paid for it.

Q1 Which is the main production activity in villages across India?
Answer :  Farming is the main production activity in villages across India.

Q2 Name any two non-farming activities in Palampur village.
Answer :  Small-scale manufacturing , dairy farming , transport , services etc.

Q3 Who owns the majority of land in Palampur village?
Answer :  80 upper caste families own the majority of land in Palampur village.

Q4 What educational facilities are available in Palampur village?
Answer :  Palampur has two primary schools and one high school.

Q5 What health facilities are available in Palampur village?
Answer :  Palampur has a primary health centre run by the government and one private dispensary where sick are treated.

Q6 What is the main aim of production?
Answer :  The main aim of production is to produce goods and services required by the people.

Q7 What is marketable surplus?
Answer :  The difference between the quantity of output that a farmer produces during a year and the quantity that he keeps with himself for his own and family’s consumption is called marketable surplus.

Q8 Who are small farmers?
Answer :  Farmers who own less than 2 hectares of land.

Q9 Who are medium farmers?
Answer :  Farmers who own more than 2 hectares and less than 10 hectares of land.

Q10 Who are large farmers?
Answer :  Farmers who own more than 10 hectares of land.

Q11 What is the basic constraint in raising farm production?
Answer :  Land area under cultivation is the basic constraint in raising farm production because it is fixed and scarce.

Q12 What is the minimum wage rate for a farm labourer?
Answer :  The minimum wages for a farm labourer set by government is Rs 60 per day.

Q13 Which is the most abundant factor of production?
Answer :  Labour is the most abundant factor of production.

Q14 What do medium and large farmers do with their earnings from the surplus farm produce?
Answer :  A part of the earnings from surplus farm produce is saved e kept for buying capital for the next season. Another part may be utilized for landing to small farmers who require loan.

Q15 Which changes have taken place in the way of farming practiced in India?
Answer :  a) Traditional seeds have been replaced by HYVs.
b) Cow dung and other natural manure were replaced by chemical fertilizers.
c) Use of pesticides.
d) Use of farm machinery like tractors , threshers etc for ploughing and harvesting.
e) Use of tubewells for irrigation instead of Persian wheels.

Q16 How did the spread of electricity help the people of Palampur?
Answer :  Electricity helped farmers in running the tubewells in the field and is also used for carrying out various small scale business in the village. The electricity run tubewells, irrigate larger areas of land in more effective manner that Persian wheels which were earlier used to draw water from the wells to irrigate the fields.

Q17 Why are the wages of farm labourers in Palampur less than the minimum wages?
Answer :  The minimum wages for a farm labourer set by the government is Rs 60 per day but a farm labourer in Palampur gets only Rs 35-40 per day. It is because there is heavy competition for work among the farm labourer in Palampur, so people agree to work at lower wages.

Q18 Describe the work of a farmer with 1 hectare of land?
Answer :  A farmer with less than 2 hectares of land is regarded as a small farmer. Since the size of plot is very small, therefore, he cannot fulfill the needs of his family. He will have to work as a farm labourer in the fields of medium and large farmers for an amount of Rs 40-50 per day. In order to cultivate his field he will have to borrow money from large farmers or moneylenders or traders. From the borrowed money he will buy fertilizers, pesticides, seeds etc.

Q19 Give the characteristics of Rural Industries.
Answer :  Rural Industries are small scale manufacturing units. Their features are:-
1. These involve very simple production methods.
2. The output is very small.
3. The work is carried out by the members of the family and rarely the labourers are hired.
4. The work is carried out at home and not in workshops.
5. The profits earned are also less.

Q20 What are the different ways of increasing the production on the same piece of land?
Answer :  Following are the 5 different ways of increasing the production on the same piece of land:
1. Use of multiple cropping. It means growing more than one crop on a given piece of land at the same time.
2. Use of HYV’s. These can be used to produce much greater amounts of grain in a single plant.
3. Chemical fertilizers and Pesticides. Their use produce better results by providing sufficient materials to the soil and pesticides protecting the crops from pest attacks.
4. Modern equipments like tractors, threshers, which made ploughing and harvesting faster.
5. Tubewell irrigation. Electricity run tubewells irrigate much larger area in a more effective manner and increase the yields.

Q21 How do medium and large farmers obtain capital for farming? How is it different from the small farmers?
Answer :  Medium and large farmers sell surplus farm produce in the market and earn good money. The money so earned is used to buy capital for farming in the next season. Thus medium and large farmers are able to arrange for capital for farming from their own savings. On the other hand, small farmers do not have their own savings because their production is small which is mainly used for fulfilling their own family needs. Small farmers therefore, avail loans from the medium and large farmers at very high rates of interest. Small farmers also borrow money from various inputs for cultivation. These farmers are put to a great distress to repay the loan.

Q22 Explain the 4 factors of production?
Answer :  The aim of production is to provide goods and services that we want. There are four requirements for the production of goods and services which are known as factors of production.
These are:
1. Land and other natural resources such as water, minerals, forests etc.
2. Labour. It refers to the people who will do work for us. There are 2 types of labour:
• Skilled Labour. These are the high trained or educated workers to perform the special and necessary tasks.
• Unskilled Labour. These people do the manual physical work.
3. Physical Capital. It refers to the variety of inputs required at every stage of production. It is of2 types.
• Fixed Capital. Tools, machines, buildings etc. that can be used for production over many years.
• Working Capital. Raw material and money in hand and other inputs that get used up in one round of production only.
4. Human Capital / Entrepreneur. It refers to the knowledge and enterprise required to combine land, labour and physical capital to produce the output.

Q23 Who is a farm labourer? Throw a light on their economic condition.
Answer :  A farm labourer is a person who works on the land owned by another person. He is paid for his services in the form of wages by the landowner. Wages may be paid in cash or kind. Farm labour is generally comprised of landless people and/or very small farmers whose owned land does not generate enough to support even bare subsistence living.Farm labourers may get a regular job on a farm and may work throughout the year. But agriculture is a seasonal activity. More often , farm labourers get employed only during a particular seasonal activity e.g. ploughing of land , harvesting and threshing of crop.
More generally , there are more persons willing to work as farm labourers than are required at any point of time. Introduction of farm machinery has substantially reduced the demand for farm labour. Landowners are in a position to exploit this opportunity to their advantage. They pay them less wages. These may even be less than the minimum wages fixed by the government. But since the choice is between their starvation and some wages , they opt for the latter.
Farm labourers are compelled to borrow ; once in debt , they find it difficult to get out of it. Farm labourers live a life of destitution.

Village Palampur
Palampur is a small hypothetical village having about 450 families. It is 3 km away from Raiganj — big village. Shahpur is the nearest town to the village.
The village is well connected with neighbouring villages and towns.The village is well connected by the road and most of the houses are electrified. It has two primary schools and one high school.
There is a government primary health Centre and a primary dispensary.

Main Production Activities
Farming is the main production activity in the village Palampur. Most of the people are dependent on farming for their livelihood. Non-farming activities such as dairy, small-scale manufacturing (e.g. activities of weavers and potters, etc.), transport, etc., are carried out on a limited scale.

Factors of Production (Or Requirements for Production of Goods and Services)
Land, labour and capital are the basic requirements for production of goods and services which are popularly known as factors of production. Land includes all free gifts of nature,e.g., soil, water, forests, minerals, etc. Labour means human effort which of course includes physical as well as mental labour. Physical capital is the third requirement for production.Physical capital includes fixed capital (e.g. tools, machines, building, etc.) Working capital includes raw materials such as seeds for the farmer, yarn for the weaver. and money in hand.

Important Changes in Farm Activities
Land area under cultivation is virtually fixed. However, some wastelands in India had been converted into cultivable land after 1960. Over the years, there have been important changes in the way of farming, which have allowed the farmers to produce more crops from the same amount of land.
These changes include :
(a) Multiple cropping farming
(b) Use of modern farming methods.
Due to these changes (in the late 1960s) productivity of land has increased substantially which is known as Green Revolution. Farmers of Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh were the first to try out the modern farming methods in India. Overuse of fertilizers, pesticides and water is resulting into land degradation. The farmers in Punjab are facing these problems.

Labour : After land, labour is the next basic factor of production. Small farmers provide their own labour, whereas medium and large farmers make use of hired labour to work on their fields.
• There are many landless families in Palampur which provide labours. As the work is less for the number of labourers they are not given minimum wages set by the government.
• So some labourers migrate to the cities.

Capital: After land and labour, capital is another basic factor of production. All categories of farmers (e.g. small, medium and large) require capital. Small farmers borrow from large farmers or the village moneylenders or the traders who supply them various inputs for cultivation. Modern farming requires a great deal of capital.

Sale of Surplus Farm Products
Farmers produce crops on their lands by using the three factors of production, viz. land, labour and capital. They retain a part of produce for self-consumption and sell the surplus in the nearby market. That part of farm produce which is sold in the market is called marketable surplus. Small farmers have little surplus output. It is the medium and large farmers only who have substantial surplus produce for selling in the market.

Non-farm activities
Out of every 100 workers in the rural areas in India, only 24 are engaged in non-farm activities. There is a variety of non-farm activities in the villages. Dairy, small scale manufacturing, transport, etc., fall under this category.
Some of the people are engaged in these non farming activities.