THE STORY OF VILLAGE PALAMPUR
Village Palampur
Palampur is a
small village having about 450 families. It is 3 km away from Raiganj — a big
village. Shahpur is the nearest town to the village.
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.) and raw materials
such as seeds for the farmer, yarn for the weaver.
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.
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.
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