The Story of Palampur

INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL, DUBAI
The story of a village: Palampur

Grade 9 (Boys) S.ST.
Questions and answers: (total questions: 13)
Q1. Explain the factors of production.
Ans. Land - The first factor of production is land and other
natural resources such as water, forests a9899nd
minerals.
Labour - The second factor of production is labour, i.e.
people who will do the work. Some production activities
require highly educated workers to perform the necessary
tasks. Other activities require workers who can do
manual work. Each worker is providing the labour
necessary for production.
Physical capital – The third factor of production is
physical capital, i.e. the variety of inputs required at
every stage during production.
 Fixed capital – Tools, machines and buildings can be
used in production over many years and are called
fixed capital.
 Working capital – Raw materials and money in hand is
called working capital.
Knowledge – Knowledge and enterprise will be able to
put together land, labour and physical capital and
produce an output.
Q2. How did the widespread of electricity help farmers in
Palampur?
Ans. The main reason why farmers are able to grow three
different crops in a year in Palampur is due to the well-
developed system of irrigation. Electricity came early to
Palampur. Its major impact was to were, till then, used by
farmers to draw water from the wells and irrigate small fields.
People saw that the electric – run tube wells could irrigate
much longer areas of land more effectively. The first few tube
wells were installed by the government. However, farmers
started setting up private tube wells. As a result, by mid –
1970s the entire cultivated area of 200 hectares (ha) was
irrigated.
Q3. Is it important to increase the area under irrigation?
Why?
Ans. It is important to increase the area under irrigation
because
farmers are able to grow more different crops in a year
due to the well – developed system of irrigation. The
yield will be higher and the farmers are able to get
produce greater amounts of surplus grains and to sell
them in the market and increase their income.
Q4. What is multiple cropping? How does it help the

farmers in Palampur?
Ans. To grow more than one drop on a piece of land during
the year is known as multiple cropping. It is the most
common way of increasing production on a given piece
of land. All farmers in Palampur grow at least two main
crops; many are growing potato as the third crop in the
past fifteen to twenty years.
Q5. Using examples explain the different ways of increase

in production on the same piece of land.
Ans. All land is cultivated in Palampur. No land is left idle.
During the rainy season (Kharif) farmers grow jowar and
bajra. These plants are used as cattle feed. It is followed by
cultivation of potato between October and December. In the
winter season (Rabi), fields are sown with wheat. From the
wheat produced, farmers keep enough wheat for the family’s
consumption and sell the surplus wheat at the market at
Raiganj. A part of the land area is also devoted to sugarcane
which is harvested once every year. Sugarcane in its raw form
or as jaggery is sold to traders at Shahpur.
Q6. What is the result of the green revolution in Punjab,

Harayana and Western Uttar Pradesh?
Ans. Farmers of Punjab, Harayana and Western Uttar Pradesh
were the first to try out modern farming methods in
India. The farmers in these regions set up tube wells for
irrigation and made use of HYV seeds, chemical
fertilizers and pesticides for farming. Some of them
bought farming machinery like tractors and threshers,
which made the process of ploughing and harvesting
quicker. They were rewarded with high yields of wheat.
The green revolution introduced modern farming
methods in the late 1960s and increased the production
of wheat and rice.
Q7. How were HYV seeds benefitting farmers?
Ans. Compared to traditional seeds, HYV seeds promised to

produce much greater amounts of grain on a single plant.
As a result, the same piece of land produced far larger
quantities of food grains than what was possible earlier.
Q8. What are the negative effects of the Green revolution

on the natural resources like soil and water?
Ans. Scientific reports indicate that the modern farming
methods have overused the natural resources. In many areas,
Green revolution is associated with the loss of soil fertility
due to increased use of ground water for tube well irrigation
has reduced the water table below the ground.
Q9. How is land distributed between the farmers of
Palampur?
1
Ans. In Palampur, about 3 of the 450 families are landless,
i.e., 150 families, most of them were dalits, have no land for
civilization. Of the remaining families who own land, 240
families cultivate small plots of landless than 2 hectares in
size. Cultivation of such plots doesn’t bring adequate income
to the farmer’s family. At Palampur, there are 60 families of
medium and larger farmers who cultivate more than 2
hectares of land. A few of the larger farmers have land
extending over 10 hectares or more.
Q10. With the help of a chart show the distribution of
cultivated area and farmers in India.
Cultivated Area
Small farmers
36%
Larger farmers
64%
Small farmers have less than 2 hectares of
cultivated land.
Medium and large farmers have more than 2
hectares of cultivated land.
No. of farmers
Medium and large

farmers
20%
Small farmers
80%
Q11. How do the medium and large farmers obtain capital

for farming? How is it different from the small farmers?
Ans. The new ways of farming need less land, but much more
of capital. The medium and large farmers are able to use their
own savings from production to arrange for capital during the
next season. On the other hand, small farmers who constitute
about 80 per cent of total farmers in India, find it difficult to
obtain capital. Because of the small size of their plots, their
production is not enough. The lack of surplus means that they
are unable to obtain capital from their own savings and have
to borrow. Besides the debt, many of the small farmers have
to do additional work as farm labourers to feed themselves
and their families.
Q12. What are the non – farm production activities in

Palampur?
Ans.
1. Dairy – Dairy is a common activity in many families
of many families of Palampur. People feed their
buffaloes on various kinds of grass and jowar and
bajra that grow during the rainy season. The milk is
sold in Raiganj. Two traders from Shahpur set up
collection-chilling centres at Raiganj from where the
milk is transported to far away towns and cities.
2. Small-scale manufacturing – 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 – A number of
people have small general stores in the village selling
a wide range of items like rice, wheat, sugar, tea, oil,
biscuits, soap, toothpaste, batteries, candles,
notebooks, pens, pencils and even some clothes.
4. Transport – The numbers of people involved in
transport has grown over the last several years.
5. Many have opened up computer classes in
Palampur where high school students attend in
large numbers.
Q13. What can be done so that more non-farm

production
activities can be started in the village?
Ans. In the future, one would like to see more non-farm
production activities in the village. Unlike farming, non-
farm activities require little land. People with some
amount of capital can set up non-farm activities. One can
either use his own savings, but more often has to take a
loan. It is important that loan be available at low rate of
interest so that even people savings can start some non-
farm activity. Another thing which is essential for
expansion of non-farm activities is to have markets
where the goods and services produced can be sold. As
more villages get connected to towns and cities through
good roads, transport and telephone, it is possible that the
opportunities for no-farm activities in villages would
increase in the coming years.

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INDIAN HIGH SCHOOL, DUBAI

The story of a village: Palampur

Q4. What is multiple cropping? How does it help the

Q5. Using examples explain the different ways of increase

Q6. What is the result of the green revolution in Punjab,

Q7. How were HYV seeds benefitting farmers?

Ans. Compared to traditional seeds, HYV seeds promised to

Q8. What are the negative effects of the Green revolution

Medium and large

Q11. How do the medium and large farmers obtain capital

Q12. What are the non – farm production activities in

Q13. What can be done so that more non-farm

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