Class 9 Social Science The Story of Village Palampur Exam Notes

Class 9 Social Science The Story of Village Palampur Exam Notes. Please refer to the examination notes which you can use for preparing and revising for exams. These notes will help you to revise the concepts quickly and get good marks.

Class 9 Social Science: The Story of Village Palampur Exam Notes

CASE STUDY OF PALAMPUR

It is an imaginary story of a village called Palampur. Palampur was a village near a river. All the elements of the environment such as land, soil, water, plants, animals, minerals etc. were there in the village.

Main occupation:

The economic activities of the people were closely related to environment. The whole village was producing almost all its bare necessities of life. Its relationship with other village and outside were limited. Simple tools were used by farmers to cultivate fields. As different people had different occupations so people used to exchange goods with each other.

ORGANISATION OF PRODUCTION

Aim:

The aim of production is to produce the goods and services that we want. There are four requirements for production of goods and services.

1. Land and other natural resources.
2. Labour
3. Physical capital - (a) fixed Capital (b) Working Capital
4. Entrepreneur
5. Land: It is a factor of production that is used for cultivation or construction.
6. Labour: It is another important factor of production. It means human exertion. Some production activities require highly educated workers to perform the necessary task. Other require workers who can do manual work.

Physical Capital:

1. Fixed capital: Tools, machines, building can be used in production over many years. These factors of production are called fixed capital.
2. Working capital: These include the factors of production which are used up in production. Raw material and money in hand are called working capital. Entrepreneur: One needs knowledge and enterprise to be able to combine or arrange all the factor of production to produce an output.

FARMING IN PALAMPUR

1. Land is fixed - features of land:

(A) Land is a fixed factor of production. (B) It is a free gift of nature. (C) It is a passive factor of production. 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 bringing new land under cultivation.

2. Is there a way one can grow more from the same land:

Ways to produce more from the same land:

All land is cultivated in Palampur. No land is left idle. During the rainy (Kharif) season, people grow jowar and bajra which are used as cattle feed. Between October 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:

1. 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.
2. Tube wells were first installed by the government but soon people were able to set up their own tube wells.
3. By multiple cropping more than one crop is grown 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.
4. The other way is to use modern farming methods for higher yield. Higher yields are possible from a combination of HYV seeds, irrigation, chemical fertilizers, pesticides etc. (A) Production from the same piece of land can be increased by using various modern techniques. (B) To grow more than one crop on a piece of land during the year. (C) Due to the uncertainty of monsoon use electric run tube wells to irrigate the field. (D) Use of HYV seeds, chemical fertilizers and pesticides in farming to increase production.

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 green because it has led to unprecedented greenery of crops everywhere. The period from 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 self 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.

3. Will the land sustain ? Limitation of green Revolution:

(A) HYV seeds need plenty of water and also chemical fertilizers.

(B) Higher production is possible only from a combination of HYV seeds, irrigation, chemical fertilisers, pesticides etc.

(C) In many areas, Green Revolution is associated with the loss of soil fertility due to increased use of chemical fertilisers.

(D) Also continuous use of ground water for tube well irrigation has reduced the water table below the ground.

4. Distribution of Land:

The distribution of agricultural land is uneven in Indian village. About one third of farmers are land less with no land for cultivation. The top 20 % of farmers own about 64 % of cultivable land while the other medium and the small farmers own 36 % of arable land. Very few farmers are thus able to fulfil their family needs.

5. Who will provide the labour ? Farming requires a great deal of hard work. Small farmers along with their families cultivate their own fields. Thus, they provide the labour required for farming themselves. Medium and large farmers hire farm labourers to work on their field.

Characteristics of rural labour:

1. Farm labourers come either from landless families cultivating small piece of land.
2. They are paid very low wages or sometime in kind.
3. Wages of workers vary widely from region to region and from crop to crop.
4. There is a wide variation in the duration of employment.
5. The capital needed in farming:
6. Most of the small farmers borrow money from money lenders or traders to arrange capital.
7. The money lenders and traders to charge a high rate of interest from the farmers.
8. Medium and large farmers have their own savings from the farming.
9. They also get loan from the banks.
10. Sale of surplus from Products:
11. Medium and large farmers supply wheat to the market.
12. The traders at the market buy the wheat and sell it further to shopkeepers in the town and cities.
13. Farmers used the savings to arrange for the working capital for farming in the next season.
14. A part of the earning is saved and kept for buying capital for the next season.
15. Some farmers might also use the savings to buy cattle, trucks, or to setup shop.

NON FARM ACTIVITIES IN PALAMPUR

Non farming activities: All the economic activities which require little land are known as non farming production activities. Dairy, cottage and small scale industry shop etc are some of the non farm production activities.

1. 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.
2. 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 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 help of family labour.
3. 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, toothpaste, batteries, candles, notebooks, pen pencil and even some cloth.
4. 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.

Importance:

1. They can become the source of income for the farmers.
2. They can provide employment to landless workers.
3. They can help in establishing a market in the village.

FEATURES OF LABOUR

1. Labour is an active factor of production.
2. Efficiency of the labour can be increased through training.
3. Farm labourers come either from landless families cultivating small plots of land.
4. Wages are paid to the labour in lieu of the services.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ENTREPRENEUR

1. It is a factor of production which combines or arranges all the factor of production to produce.
2. It is an active factor of production.
3. It produces goods and services for self consumption or to sell in the market.
4. It is the most important factor of production.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CAPITAL

1. It is a man made source of production.
2. Capital is of two types i.e. fixed capital and working capital.
3. It is a passive factor of production.
4. Capital has economic value.

REASON OUT WHY

1. Why is it important to increase the area under irrigation ? It is very important to increase the area under irrigation because it is not good to depend upon monsoon rains which are erratic and undependable.
2. Why small farmers have little surplus produce with them ?

1. Because their total production is small.
2. They keep a substantial share of their production for their own family need from village.

3. Why is it generally said that we should be very careful using our natural resources ? There is no denying the fact that we should be very careful in using our natural resources. There are many reasons for the same:

1. Scientists are continuously warning us that we had been overusing the modern farming methods for the last so many years. Too much use of these methods is going to bring catastrophe for us.
2. Some point out that the Green Revolution has led to the loss of soil fertility due increasing use of chemical fertilizers.
3. The continuous use of ground water for tube well irrigation has reduced the water table below the ground.
4. Minerals in the chemical fertilizers, when used for long, may escape from the soil and pollute the groundwater.
5. Chemical fertilizers have another disadvantage. They kill bacteria and other organisms which are quite necessary for the fertility of the soil.

COMPARATIVE STUDY

(i) Distinction between fixed capital and working capital:

Fixed Capital: Tools, machines and building are called fixed capital because they can be used in production over years.Working Capital: Raw material and money form part of working capital because unlike tools, buildings and machines they are used up in production.

2. Difference between (a) Multiple Cropping and (b) Modern farming methods.

1. Multiple Cropping: To grow more than one crop on a piece of land during the same year is called multiple cropping. With the improvement of irrigational facilities, as a result of the coming of electricity farmers are able to grow two main crops - kharif crops (like rice, millets, maize etc.) and rabi crops (wheat, barley, gram etc.). Many farmers are also able to grow potatoes as the third crop.
2. Modern Farming Methods: Some other farmers, like in Punjab and Haryana, have increased their production by using latest scientific methods - like using fertilizers, improved varieties of seeds, use of latest machinery, improvement of irrigational facilities etc. As a result of these modern farming methods, the farmers of Punjab and Haryana heralded the Green Revolution and improved their production many folds.

3. How do the medium and large farmers obtain capital for farming ? How is it different from the small farmers ?

It is a fact that the small farmers with less than 2 hectares of land, have to face much more problems than the medium and large farmers. As compared to small farmers, medium and large farmers can quite easily obtain capital for farming.

1. Especially large farmers have their own savings from farming which they had accumulated year after year so they don’t have any need of taking any debt from any bank money lender or any other agency.
2. Mostly medium farmers also have their own savings to spend on the betterment of their farms. But if they stand in need of any borrowing, such an amount is not quite much because they have about 50 to 75 % of the amount already with them. Such farmers can go to the bank direct and get the loan at quite a reasonable rate. The bank shall be quite happy in advancing loan to such good pay-masters. There is no risk in advancing loans to medium farmers because of their better economic condition. As compared to him a small farmer is bound to face much questioning by the bank staff, any money lender or trader.

GLOSSARY

1. Land: It is a factor of production that is used for cultivation or construction.
2. Labour: Labour is another important factor of production. It means human exertion.
3. Capital: It is a wealth other than land which is used for production of wealth.
4. Production process: Organising and utilising the factors of production for the production of goods and services is known as production process.
5. Production: Production is the creation of value in a commodity e.g. manufacturing of a car from steel.
6. Working capital: These include the factors of production which are used up in a production. Raw material and money in hand are called working capital.
7. Fixed capital: Tools, machines, buildings can be used in production over many years. These factors of production are called fixed capital.
8. Factors of production: The essential elements which cooperate with one another in process of production. Following are the major factor of production.

I. Land II. Physical capital III. Labour IV. Human capital

9. Human capital: It is the most important factors of production which put together land labour and physical capital and produce an output either to use for self consumption or to sell in a market.
10. Multiple cropping: To grow more than one crop on a piece of land during the year is known as multiple cropping.
11. Yield: It is measured as crop produced on a given piece of land during a single season.
12. Non farm activity: It refers to the activities in a village other than farming. This includes activities like manufacturing, transportation, shop keeping etc.
13. Green Revolution: The large increase in agriculture production from the 1960s onwards due to adoption of new Agricultural strategy which implied a simultaneous use of better and modern agriculture inputs.

EXERCISE

A. VERY SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

What is climate ?

Answer: Climate is the average weather condition of a place or region over a long period of time (more than thirty years). (This question appears in the source exercise, although it belongs to the Geography chapter on climate.)

What is production ? Give an example.

Answer: Production is the creation of value in a commodity. Example: manufacturing a car from steel.

What are the major economic activities of rural India?

Answer: Farming is the main activity. The other activities are non-farm activities such as dairy, small-scale manufacturing, shopkeeping and transport.

What are the factors of production ? Name any four factor of production ?

Answer: The factors of production are the essential requirements for producing goods and services. Four factors are: land, labour, physical capital and human capital (entrepreneur).

What is fixed capital ?

Answer: Tools, machines and buildings that can be used in production over many years are called fixed capital.

What is working capital ?

Answer: Raw material and money in hand, which are used up in production, are called working capital.

What is human capital ?

Answer: It is the knowledge and enterprise needed to combine land, labour and physical capital and produce an output, either for self-consumption or to sell in a market.

What is multiple cropping ?

Answer: Growing more than one crop on the same piece of land during the same year is called multiple cropping.

Name any four methods to increase production in agriculture.

Answer: 1. Multiple cropping. 2. Use of HYV seeds. 3. Better irrigation (tube wells). 4. Use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides (and modern machinery).

What is the importance of green Revolution for the Indian economy ?

Answer: The Green Revolution increased food-grain production, especially wheat, enormously. India became self-sufficient in food and could create buffer stocks of food grains for droughts and floods.

Name any four states which have benefitted from Green Revolution.

Answer: Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh (western parts) and Andhra Pradesh.

Mention any four factors responsible for low yield of food grains in India.

Answer: 1. Old (traditional) technology. 2. Dependence on the uncertain monsoon because of poor irrigation. 3. Small land holdings and shortage of capital. 4. Little use of HYV seeds, fertilisers and pesticides.

What is market ?

Answer: A market is a place where goods and services are bought and sold.

“Scientific reports indicate that the modern farming methods have overused the land”. Explain by giving an example.

Answer: Repeated use of chemical fertilisers reduces the fertility of the soil, and continuous use of ground water for tube-well irrigation has lowered the water table. For example, in Punjab and Haryana, where the Green Revolution was most successful, soil fertility and the water table have fallen.

What is Green Revolution ?

Answer: The large increase in food-grain production, especially wheat, from the 1960s due to HYV seeds, irrigation, chemical fertilisers and pesticides is called the Green Revolution.

“The yield of food grains per hectare is high in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh”. Give four reasons.

Answer: 1. Use of HYV seeds. 2. Use of tube wells for irrigation. 3. Use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides. 4. Use of modern machinery and farming methods.

B. SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

How do farmers obtain capital for farming ?

Answer: Small farmers borrow money from moneylenders or traders and pay a high rate of interest. Medium and large farmers use their own savings from farming and also take loans from banks.

How have modern farming methods led to loss of soil fertility ?

Answer: Chemical fertilisers supply minerals that plants use immediately, but over time they kill bacteria and other organisms needed for fertile soil, and their minerals may escape into the ground water. So repeated use reduces soil fertility.

Modern farming methods require the farmer to start with more cash than before. Why ?

Answer: HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, irrigation and machinery all cost money and must be bought before the crop is harvested.

Why do farmers engage in small scale manufacturing in villages ?

Answer: Farming gives work only in some seasons and land cannot be increased, so small-scale manufacturing gives extra income. It needs little capital and can be done at home with family labour.

What are the reasons for migration of rural population ?

Answer: Lack of enough work in farming, small land holdings, low wages and seasonal employment push people to cities, where they hope to find better jobs and income.

How does the spread of electricity help farmers ?

Answer: Electricity runs tube wells so that more land can be irrigated effectively and farmers do not depend on the monsoon. This makes multiple cropping possible and also helps in running machines.

What are the different ways of increasing production on a piece of land ?

Answer: Multiple cropping (growing more than one crop in a year) and modern farming methods (HYV seeds, irrigation, chemical fertilisers and pesticides).

What are the differences between multiple cropping and modern farming methods ?

Answer: Multiple cropping means growing more than one crop on the same land during a year (for example two main crops and potato as a third). Modern farming methods use HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, irrigation and machinery to get higher yield from the same land.

It is generally said that we should be very careful in using our natural resources. Why ?

Answer: Overuse of modern farming methods and natural resources has caused loss of soil fertility, a fall in the water table and pollution of ground water. These resources are limited, so they must be used carefully to remain available for the future.

The cost of cultivation is rising very fast in villages. Why ?

Answer: Modern farming needs costly HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, irrigation and machines, so the cost of every acre cultivated has risen.

Why was the initial impact of Green Revolution limited to wheat and only to a few regions?

Answer: The first HYV seeds were developed for wheat and they needed plenty of water and chemical fertilisers. Only some regions, such as Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, had the irrigation facilities and capital to use them.

Write any four features of land as a factor of production.

Answer: 1. Land is a fixed factor of production. 2. It is a free gift of nature. 3. It is a passive factor of production. 4. It is used for cultivation or construction.

Write any four characteristics of labour as a factor of production.

Answer: 1. Labour is an active factor of production. 2. Its efficiency can be increased through training. 3. Farm labourers come from landless families or families cultivating small plots. 4. Wages are paid for the services of labour.

Write any four characteristics of capital as a factor of production.

Answer: 1. It is a man-made source of production. 2. It is of two types: fixed capital and working capital. 3. It is a passive factor of production. 4. Capital has economic value.

Mention any four characteristics of an entrepreneur as a factor of production.

Answer: 1. He combines or arranges all the factors of production. 2. He is an active factor of production. 3. He produces goods and services for self-consumption or to sell in the market. 4. He is the most important factor of production.

Mention any four characteristics of rural labour in India.

Answer: 1. Farm labourers come from landless families or families with very small plots. 2. They are paid very low wages, sometimes in kind. 3. Wages vary widely from region to region and crop to crop. 4. There is a wide variation in the duration of employment.

‘Capital is a basic need in agriculture.’ How is it arranged by Indian farmers ? Explain.

Answer: Small farmers borrow from moneylenders and traders at a high rate of interest. Medium and large farmers have their own savings from farming and also take loans from banks at reasonable rates. The savings are used as working capital for the next season, or to buy cattle, trucks or set up shops.

What are non-farm production activities ? Give a few examples. How can these lead to economic development in rural areas ?

Answer: Economic activities which need little land, such as dairy, small-scale manufacturing, shopkeeping and transport, are non-farm activities. They give extra income to farmers, create employment for landless workers and help to build a market in the village, so the village develops.

What is physical capital ? What are its different types ?

Answer: Physical capital is the tools, machines, buildings, raw materials and money used in production. It is of two types: fixed capital (tools, machines, buildings) and working capital (raw material and money in hand).

Write any three differences between land and capital.

Answer: 1. Land is a free gift of nature, while capital is man-made. 2. The area of land is fixed, while capital can be increased. 3. Land is used for cultivation or construction, while capital (fixed or working) is used up or worn out in the process of production.

C. LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

How is land distributed between farmers of Indian villages ?

Answer: Land is distributed unevenly. About one third of the families have no land and work as labourers. The top 20 per cent of farmers own about 64 per cent of the cultivable land, while the medium and small farmers own the remaining 36 per cent. Many small farmers cultivate less than 2 hectares, which is not enough for the family’s needs.

What are the different ways of increasing production on the same piece of land ?

Answer: 1. Multiple cropping: more than one crop is grown on a piece of land in a year; irrigation by electric tube wells makes this possible. 2. Modern farming methods: using HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, better irrigation and machinery gives a higher yield from the same land.

Modern farming methods require more inputs which are manufactured in Industry. Do you agree ?

Answer: Yes. Modern farming needs HYV seeds, chemical fertilisers, pesticides, tractors, harvesters and electric tube-well pumps. Most of these are manufactured in industries, so farmers depend on industry for inputs, and industry depends on agriculture for raw materials and demand.

What can be done so that more non farming production activities can be started in villages?

Answer: Cheap loans from banks, better roads and transport, regular electricity, markets and cold storage or chilling centres for products like milk, training in skills and government help for cottage and small-scale industries would encourage non-farm activities in villages.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Green Revolution ?

Answer: Advantages: record food-grain production, especially wheat; self-sufficiency in food; buffer stocks for droughts and floods. Disadvantages: HYV seeds need plenty of water and chemical fertilisers; soil fertility is lost; the water table falls due to tube-well irrigation; ground water may be polluted; it benefited only some regions and crops at first.

D. MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

It is a place where goods and services sold -

1. Industry
2. Office
3. Market
4. City

Answer: (C) Market.

.................... is the creation of value in commodity -

1. Goods
2. Production
3. Transport
4. Manufacturing

Answer: (B) Production.

..................... is not a working capital -

1. Raw material
2. Money
3. Tools
4. Labour

Answer: (C) Tools. (The source key gives C, which fits this wording; the question had “is a working capital” in the source, which is a misprint for “is not a working capital”.)

.................... is not a fixed capital.

1. Tools
2. Machine
3. Building
4. Money

Answer: (D) Money.

The continuous use of ground water from tube well irrigation has ................... the water table -

1. Reduced
2. Increase
3. Both of them
4. None of these

Answer: (A) Reduced.

Factors responsible for low yield of food grains -

1. Old technology
2. Use of HYV seeds
3. Use of chemicals
4. All the above

Answer: (A) Old technology.

The yield of food grains per hectare is high in Punjab because -

1. Use of HYV seeds
2. Use of modern machinery
3. Use of tubewells for irrigation
4. All of these

Answer: (D) All of these.

Cultivated land area is -

1. Fixed
2. Unlimited
3. Extend
4. None of these

Answer: (A) Fixed.

Modern farming methods require a great deal of -

1. Output
2. Input
3. Both of them
4. None of them

Answer: (B) Input.

Medium and large farmers have land more than -

1. 1 hectare
2. 2 hectares
3. 5 hectares
4. All the above

Answer: (B) 2 hectares.

Which of the following is part of working capital ?

1. Raw material and land
2. Raw material and building
3. Money in hand and raw material

Answer: (C) Money in hand and raw material. (In the source the option read “Money in hand and labour”, a misprint, since the key is C and labour is not working capital.)

What is multiple cropping ?

1. To grow more than one crop on a piece of land during the year.
2. To grow more than one crop simultaneously
3. To use HYV seeds to improve production
4. None of the above

Answer: (A).

What is the source of capital for the large farmers ?

1. Banks and own savings
2. Money lenders and relatives
3. Banks and money lenders
4. Poor farmers

Answer: (A) Banks and own savings.

Which one of the following terms is used for measuring crop produced on a given piece of land during a single season ?

1. Yield
2. Productivity
3. Cultivation
4. Output

Answer: (A) Yield.

‘Bigha’ and ‘Guintha’ are –

1. The type of village house
2. The type of hybrid seeds
3. The measuring units of grain
4. The measuring units of land area in village

Answer: (D) The measuring units of land area in village. (The printed key gave B, which is not correct.)