JAC Class 9 Social Science Solutions Economics Chapter 1 The Story of Village Palampur

JAC Board Class 9th Social Science Solutions Economics Chapter 1 The Story of Village Palampur

JAC Class 9th Economics The Story of Village Palampur  InText Questions and Answers 

Page No. (3 – 4)

Question 1.
The following table 1.1 shows the land under cultivation in India in units of million hectares. Plot this on the graph provided. What does the graph show? Discuss in class.
Table 1.1 : Cultivated Area over the Years

Years	Cultivated Area (Million Hectares)
1950-51	129
1990-91	157
2000-01	156
2010-11 (P)	156
2011-12 (P)	156
2012-13 (P)	155
2013-14 (P)	156
2014-15 (P)	155

(P) Provisional Data
Answer:

Source: Pocket book of‘Agriculture Statistics’, 2017.
Fig. Cultivated Area over the Years
The above graph shows the land under cultivation in India in units of million hectares. It shows that the land under cultivation in India was 129 million hectares in 1950-51, which rose to 157 million hectares in 1990-91 but it reduced to 156 million hectares in 2000-01. This cultivated area remained stable till 2011-12 which again reduced to 155 in 2014-15. It should be noted that the cultivated area has not increased in proportion to the increase in population. Later it is decreasing.

Question 2.
Is it important to increase the area under irrigation? Why?
Answer:
Yes, it is very important to increase the area under irrigation because land is limited and cannot be increased but the area under irrigation can be increased by setting up tubewells. In the absence of irrigation facilities, farmers suffer huge losses due to bad crops. So, to avoid losses due to lack of rain during monsoon and improper irrigation facilities, it is very crucial to increase the area under irrigation.

Question 3.
You have read about the crops grown in Palampur. Fill the following table based on information on the crops grown in your region.

Name of Crop	Month Sown	Month Harvested	Source of Urrigation (rain, tanks, tube wells, canals etc.)

Answer:
Information about crops grown in our region is given below.

Name of Crop	Month Sown	Month Harvested	Source of irrigation (rain, tanks, tube wells, canals etc.)
Wheat	October-November	March-April	Tubewells and canals
Barley	October-N ovember	March-April	Tubewells and canals
Gram	October-N ovember	March-April	Tubewells
Mustard	October-November	March-April	Tubewells and canals
Bajra	June	October	Rain
Jowar	June	October	Rain

Page No. 5.

Question 1.
What is the difference between multiple cropping and modem farming methods?
Answer:
Difference between Multiple Cropping and Modem Farming Methods

Multiple Cropping	Modem Farming
1. The same land is used for different crops under this method.	1. Under this method, higher yield is obtained through single crop.
2. Multiple cropping employs traditional methods.	2. Modem farming has modem equipments, i.e., HYV seeds, chemical fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation etc.

Question 2.
The following table shows the production of wheat and pulses in India after the Green Revolution in units of million tonnes. Plot this on a graph. Was the Green Revolution equally successful for both the crops? Discuss. Table 1.2 : Production of Pulses and Wheat (in million tonnes)

1965-66	Production of Pulses	Production of Wheat
1970-71	10	10
1980-81	12	24
1990-91	11	36
2000-01	14	55
2010-11	11	70
2012-13	18	87
2013-14	18	94
2014-15	19	96
2015-16	17	87
2016-17	17	94
2017-18	23	99

Answer:

The above graph shows that the Green Revolution was not equally successful for the production of pulses and wheat. The production of both the crops was equal before the Green Revolution, but after that the production of pulses was not very good. There was a significant increase in the production of wheat but not in the production of pulses. So, we can conclude that the Green Revolution was good for wheat but not so gpod for pulses.

Question 3.
What is the working capital required by the farmer using modern farming methods?
Answer:
Some money is always required during production to make payments and, buy other necessary items, such as; seeds, chemical fertilizers, pesticides etc. Raw materials and money in hand are called working capital.

Question 4.
Modem farming methods require the farmer to start with more cash than before. Why?
Answer:
Modern farming methods require the use of HYV seeds which are costlier than traditional seeds and need chemical fertiliisers and pesticides to produce more crop. However, for buying all these inputs, a lot of money is necessary. So modern farming methods requirfe the use of more cash than before.

Page No. 7

Question 1.
In the picture 1.5 (Page No. 7) can you shade the land cultivated by the small farmers?
Answer:
Yes, I can shade the land cultivated by the small farmers.

Fig. Shade the land cultivated by the small farmers

Question 2.
Why do so many families of farmers cultivate such small plots of land ?
Answer:
So many families of farmers cultivate such small plots of land because the size of plot does not increase but with the passage of time the families of the farmers increase. According to Indian succession law, the land of a particular person divided among his children and further and this results into small holdings.

For example, in the story of village Palampur, Gobind, a farmer, had 2.25 hectares land in 1960. After his death, this land was divided among his three sons. Each one now has a plot of land that is only 0.75 hectare in size.

Question 3.
The distribution of farmers in India and the amount of land they cultivate is given in the following Graph 1.1. Discuss in the classroom.

Graph: Distribution of Cultivated Area and Farmers
Answer:
The given graph shows that:

1. There are 85% per cent small farmers in India who have land less than 2 hectares in size and they cultivate only 44.60% per cent of total cultivated area.
2. On the other hand, only 15% per cent medium and large farmers exist in India who have land more than 2 hectares in size. They cultivate 55.40% per cent of total cultivated area.

Question 4.
Would you agree that the distribution of cultivated land is unequal in Palampur? Do you find a similar situation for India? Explain.
Answer:
Yes, we would agree with the fact that the distribution of cultivated land is unequal in Palampur because we see that about 150 families out of 450 families in Palampur are landless. They have no land for cultivation. 240 families cultivate small plots of land less than 2 hectares in size, while there are 60 families of medium and large farmers who cultivate more than 2 hectares of land.

A few of the large farmers have land extending over 10 hectares or more. A similar situation exists in India. The number of small farmers in India is 85% per cent of total farmers and they have only 44.60% per cent of total cultivated land for cultivation, while 15% percent medium and large farmers have 55.40% per cent cultivated land.

Question 5.
Identify the work being done on the field in the Picture 1.6 and arrange them in a proper sequence.
Answer:
The correct arrangement of the work being done on the field in the Picture 1.6 (in Textbook) is as follows:

1. Cultivation by traditional methods,
2. Cultivation by modern methods,
3. Ploughing,
4. Sowing,
5. Spraying of insecticides,
6. Cutting of crops.

Page. No. 9

Question 1.
Why are farm labourers like Dala and Ramkali poor?
Answer:
Farm labourers like Dala and Ramkali are poor because:

1. They are landless farm labourers, and they work on daily wages in Palampur.
2. The minimum wage for a farm labourer set by the government is? 300 per day. But they get only? 160 per day.
3. There is a heavy competition for work among the farm labourers in Palampur, so people agree to work for lower wages.
4. They remain out of work for most days of the year and have to take loan from the moneylenders to fullfill their needs. Due to seasonal unemployment, they are unable to repay the loan and they fall into a debt trap.

Question 2.
Gosaipur and Majauli are two villages in North Bihar. Out of total of850 households in the two villages, there are more than 250 men who are employed in rural Punjab and Haryana or in Delhi, Mumbai, Surat, Hyderabad or Nagpur. Such migration is common in most villages across India. Why do people migrate? Can you describe (based on your imagination) the work that the migrants of Gosaipur and Majauli might do at the place of destination.
Answer:
People migrate in search of employment or better job opportunities. They do not find regular jobs in the village which causes chronic poverty, leading to starvation. In this case, they are forced to migrate in other cities. I think the migrants of Gosaipur and Majauli might do the following works at the place of destination:

1. Street vendors,
2. Rickshaw-pullers,
3. Carpenters,
4. Plumbers,
5. Labourers in construction projects like road, bridge or building construction.
6. Servants in hotels and tea shops and houses.

Page. No. 11

Question 1.
Let us take three farmers. Each has grown wheat on his field though the production is different (see Column 2). The consumption of wheat by each farmer family is the same (Column 3). The whole of surplus wheat this year is used as capital for next year’s production. Also suppose, production is twice the capital used in production. Complete the tables.
Farmer 1

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	100	40	60	60
Year 2	120	40
Year 3		40

Farmer 2

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	80	40
Year 2		40
Year 3		40

Farmer 3

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	60	40
Year 2		40
Year 3		40

Answer:
Farmer 1

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	100	40	60	60
Year 2	120	40	80	80
Year 3	160	40	120	120

Farmer 2

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	80	40	40	40
Year 2	80	40	40	40
Year 3	80	40	40	40

Farmer 3

	Production	Consumption	Surplus = Production Consumption	Gapital for the next year
Year 1	60	40	20	20
Year 2	40	40	0	80
Year 3	0	40	40	-20

Question 2.
Compare the pro$fiction of wheat by the three farmers over the years.
Answer:
On comparing the production of wheat by the three farmers over the years, we find that the production of Farmer 1 is increasing year after year. There is no change in the production of Farmer 2 while the produciton of Farmer 3 is declining.

Question 3.
What happens to Farmer 3 in Year 3? Can he continue production? What will he have to do to continue production?
Answer:
In Year 3, Farmer 3 produces nil because he made no investment in Year 2. Yes, he can continue production but will he have to borrow money from local money-lenders, traders, or government or non-government organisations to do this.

Page. No. 12

Question 1.
What capital did Mishrilal need to set up his jaggery manufacturing unit?
Answer:
To set up his manufacturing unit. Mishrilal needed the following capital.

1. Fixed capital in the form of a sugarcane crushing machine.
2. Working capital in the form of money-for buying sugarcane from other farmers for crushing and for paying the electricity bill of rinning the sugarcane crushing machine.

Question 2.
Who provides the labour in this case?
Answer:
In this case, generally, the members of the family provide the labour.

Question 3.
Can you guess why Mishrilal is unable to increase his profit?
Answer:
I think, he is not crushing sugarcane on a large scaleftlue to unavailability of modern techniques. So, he is unable to increase his profit.

Question 4.
Could you think of any reasons when he might face a loss?
Answer:
He might face a loss when he does not get regular electricity supply or crushing machine is out of order or raw material becomes expensive etc.

Question 5.
Why does Mishrilal sell his jaggery to traders in Shahpur and not in his village?
Answer:
Mishrilal sells his jaggery to traders in Shahpur because there is less demand of jaggery in his village and he “also Jets good price for jaggery from the traders of Shahpur.

Question 6.
ln what ways is Kareem’s capital and labour different from Mishrilal?
Answer:
Kareem’s capital and labour is different from Mishrilal’s in two ways:

1. Kareem bought many computers to set up his computer centre while Mishrilal bought only an electric sugarcane crushing machine. So, Karim invested more than Mishrilal.
2. Kareem employed educated and skilled labour for teaching in his computer centre while Mishrilal has no requirement for educated and skilled labour.

Question 7.
Why didn’t someone start a computer centre earlier? Discuss the possible reasons.
Answer:
No one had started a computer centre in the village earlier because the awareness of the village people about computers was less and none of the students went to the town to attend the college.

Page. No. 13

Question 1.
What is Kishora’s fixed capital?
Answer:
Kishore’s fixed capital is the buffalo and wooden cart.

Question 2.
What do you think would be his working capital?
Answer:
The money that he earns from selling the milk and transporting goods on his wooden cart would *be his working capital.

Question 3.
In how many production activities is Kishora involved?
Answer:
Kishora is involved in three production activities:

1. Primary activity: Selling buffalo’s milk.
2. Secondary activity: Bring clay for the potter.
3. Tertiary activity: Transportation.

Question 4.
Would you say that Kishora has benefited from better roads in Palampur?
Answer:
Kishora is involved in transport acitivity with the help of better roads in Palsjfnpur. So, we can say that Kishora has benefited from better roads in Palampur.

Page. No 5.

During your field visit talk to some farmers of your region. Find out:

Question 1.
What kind of farming methods – modern or traditional or mixed – do the farmers use? Write a note.
Answer:
The farmers of our region use mixed farming method. They plough their fields using bullock. They use tubewells and fountain method for irrigation. They use cow-dung manure and chemical fertilizers in their fields. Pesticides are not used. Crop-cutting is done by traditional method.

Question 2.
What are the sources of irrigation?
Answer:
The sources of irrigation are:

1. Rain,
2. Wells,
3. Tubewells,
4. Canals:
   (a) Seasonal canals
   (b) Permanent canals.
5. Ponds:
   (a) Natural ponds
   (b) Artificial ponds.

Question 3.
How much of the cultivated land is irrigated? (very little/nearly half/majority/all)
Answer:
Nearly half of the cultivated land is irrigated.

Question 4.
From where do farmers obtain the inputs that they require?
Answer:
The farmers obtain the inputs, i.e., working capital that they require from local moneylenders, mahajans, large farmers and local traders. Some educated farmers get loan from government institutions under the various government schemes.

Question 5.
After reading the following reports from newspapers/magazines, write a letter to the Agriculture Minister in your own words telling him how the use of chemical fertilizers can be harmful.
Answer:
Palampur
17 February, 2010
The Agriculture Minister
Government of India,
New Delhi.
Sub: In regard to the barm caused bv the use of chemical fertilizers
Sir,
I want to draw your kind attention towards the damage caused by the chemical fertilizers used in agriculture. I came to know via articles published in newspapers and magazines that using chemical fertilizers in agriculture is harmful for health. They provide minerals which dissolve in water and are immediately available to plants.

But these may not be retained in the soil for long. They may escape from the soil and pollute ground water, rivers and lakes. These also kill useful bacteria and other micro-organisms in the soil. The continuous use of soil makes it less fertile than ever and all this leads to degradation of soil health.

Kindly consider this matter.
Thanking you,
Yours Sincerely
Neha
Class IX

Page No. 9 and 10

Question 6.
We have read about the three factors of production land, labour and capital and how they are used in farming. Let us fill in the blanks given below:
Answer:
Among the three factors of production, we found that labour is the most abundant factor of production. There are many people who are willing to work as farm labourers in the villages, whereas the opportunities of work are limited.

They belong to either landless families or small farmers They are paid low wages and lead a difficult life. In contrast to labour, land is a scarce factor of production. Cultivated land area is limited Moreover, even the existing land is distributed unequally among the people engaged in farming.

There are large number of small farmers who cultivate small plots of land and live in conditions not much better than the landless farm labourer. To make the maximum use of the existing land, farmers use modern and new techniques Both these have led to increase in production of crops.

Modern farming methods require a great deal of money. Small farmers usually need to borrow money to arrange for the capital, and are put to great distress to repay the loan. Therefore, capital too is a scarce factor of production, particularly for the small farmers.

Though both land and capital are scarce, there is a basic difference between the two factors of production. Land is a natural resource, whereas capital is man-made. It is possible to increase capital, whereas land is fixed. Therefore, it is very important that we take good care of land and other natural resources used in farming.

JAC Class 9th Economics The Story of Village Palampurs Textbook Questions and Answers 

Question 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):

Cultivated Land		Land not available for cultivation (Area covering dwellings, roads, ponds, grang ground)
Irrigated	Unirrigated
		26 hectares

(d) Facilities:

Educational	–
Medical	–
Market	–
Electricity Supply	–
Communicaton	–
Nearest Town	–

Answer:
(a) Location: A small village well-connected with Raiganj, 3kms from Palampur.
(b) Total Area of The Village: 226 hectares.
(c) Land USE (in hectares):

Cultivated Land		Land not available for cultivation (Area covering dwellings, roads, ponds, grang ground)
Irrigated	Unirrigated
200 hectares	–	26 hectares

(d) Facilities:

Educational	Two primary and one high school.
Medical	One primary health centre and one private dispensary.
Market	Market of Raiganj and Shahpur.
Electricity Supply	Most of the houses have electricity connection.
Communicaton	A well-developed system of road and transport exists.
Nearest Town	Shahpur.

Question 2
Modern farming methods require more inputs which are manufactured in industry. Do you agree?
Answer:
Yes, I agree that modern farming methods require more inputs which are manufactured in industry. Modern farming methods require chemical fertilizers, pesticides, HYV seeds, pumpsets, tractors, threshers etc. which are produced by industry.

Question 3.
How did the spread of electricity help farmers in Palampur?
Answer:
The spread of electricity helped farmers in Palampur a lot. Electricity helped to run tubewells and pump sets for irrigation of fields. This has also increased agricultrual production in the village. Now farmers are able to grow crops during the non-rainy season also.

Question 4.
Is it important to increase the area under irrigation? Why?
Answer:
Yes, it is important to increase the area under irrigation because:

1. It is necessary to meet the food requirement of increasing population.
2. During monsoon season, crop losses can be avoided in case of no rain or less rain.
3. During non-rainy season also, agricultural land can be used for crop cultivation.
4. Irrigation facility retains land fertility for long time use.

Question 5.
Construct a table on the distribution of land among the 450 families of Palampur.
Answer:

	Land Holding
	Landless Families of land	Less than 2 hectares of land	More than 2 hectares of land.
No. of Families	150	240	60

Question 6.
Why “are the wages for farm labourers in Palampur less than minimum wages?
Answer:
The wages for farm labourers in Palampur are less than minimum wages because there is heavy competition for work among the farm labourers, so people agree to work on lower wages.

Question 7.
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:
I talked to two farm labourers Ram Prasad and Sanchi Lai. Both work on daily wages in my region. Their details are as follows:

Details	Ram Prasad	Sanchi Lai
Wages	160 per day	₹ 170 per day
Cash/ kind	Cash	Crop and meals
Regular Wark	No regular work	No regular work
Are they in debt?	Yes	Yes

Question 8.
What are th‘ different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land? Use examples to explain.
Answer:
The different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land are as follows:
1. Multiple Cropping: Multiple cropping is the most common way of increasing production on the same piece of land. Under this method, more than one crop is grown on a piece of land during the year. For example; wheat,, bajra and potato can be grown on the same piece of land.

2. Modern Farming Methods: Modern farming methods is another way of increasing production on the same piece of land. Modern farming includes High Yielding Variety (HYV) of seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, irrigation, etc. This method of farming promises to produce much greater amounts of grain on a single plant.

Question 9.
Describe the work of a farmer with 1 hectare of land.
Answer:
A farmer who has a plot of 1 hectare has to face many problems. Cultivation of such a plot doesn’t bring adequate income to meet the requirements of his family. So, he has to work on the fields of some large farmer as a labourer after working on his field.

Question 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 retain part of the farming for the family’s consumption and sell the surplus in the market. A part of the earning is saved and kept for buying capital for the the next season. Thus, they are able to arrange for the capital for farming from their own savings.

On the other hand, small farmers have little surplus because their total production is small and from this a substantial share is kept for fulfilling their own family needs. So, most of the small farmers have to borrow money to arrange for the capital. The rate of interest on such loans is very high. They are put to great distress to repay the loan.

Question 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:
Tejpal Singh agreed to give Savita the loan at an interest rate of 24 per cent for four months. Besides, Savita has to work on his field as farm labourers during the harvest season for? 100 per day. Yes, Savita’s condition would be different if she could get a loan from the bank at low rate of interest. She could have easily repaid the loan and her condition would have been far better.

Question 12.
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 (optional).
Answer:
I talked some old farmers in my region and came to know that the following changes in irrigation and production methods have taken place in the last 30 years:
1. Changes in Irrigation Method:
30 years back, irrigation was dependent on rains, canals, wells etc. Persian wheels were used by farmers to draw water from the wells and irrigate small fields. But, now-a-days, irrigation is done using tubewells, pump sets etc.

2. Change in Production Method:
Earlier, the farming was done using traditional methods. Farmers used to plough their fields manually or with the the help of bullocks, but with the advancements in technology, ploughing, harvesting etc. works have become easier with the use of machinery like tractors, threshers etc. Production methods has changed significantly under modern farming methods. The farmers make use of HYV seeds, pesticides chemical fertilisers, modern irrigation facilities etc.

Question 13.
What are the non-farm production activities taking place in your region? Make a short list.
Answer:
The list of the non-farm production actitivies taking place in our region are follows:

1. Dairy,
2. Transportation,
3. Tailoring,
4. Manufacturing,
5. Shop-keeping,
6. Carpentery,
7. Pottery-making etc.

Question 14.
What can be done so that more non-farm production activities can be started in villages?
Answer:
Following steps can be taken so that more non-farm production activities can be started in villages:

1. Loans should be made available at low rate of interest so that even people without savings can start some non-farm activity.
2. Another thing which is essential for expansion of non-farm activities is to have markets where the goods and services produced can be sold.
3. All villages should be well-connected with improved road and railways. It will help in carrying out production activity.
4. Electricity supply should be made on regular basis.
5. Government should be more active and initiate effective employment generating schemes.
6. Government should provide training to the villagers in different skills.
7. Small scale industries should be started by entrepreneurs in rural areas to employ the villagers trained in various skills.

JAC Class 9 Social Science Solutions