The compilation of these The Story of Village Palampur Notes makes students exam preparation simpler and organised.
Story Insight of Village Palampur
The purpose of this story is to introduce the basic concepts related to production and this is done through a hypothetical village called Palampur. Firstly, we will start with an introduction to the village and will cover the main details and various data about the village. Then, we will explain different production concepts using the examples from the villages and then how farming is done in this village.
The Story of Village Palampur
The Palampur village has around 450 families which belong to different caste and creeds. The main activity of Palampur is farming and 80 families of the upper caste own the majority of land in Palampur. There are other activities in the Palampur like dairy, transport, small-scale manufacturing, etc which also helps run the economy in the Palampur.
The neighboring towns of the village are well connected and all-weather roads are also well connected. There are options for transportation which are available like tongas, bogeys, jeeps, bullock carts, tractors, etc.
Many of the houses in the village are well equipped with electricity. Electricity is also responsible for the tube wells in the fields. Many small businesses also use electricity for their daily purposes. For education, Palampur has two primary schools and 1 high school. Besides this, there is also a primary health care center which is run by the government and also 1 private dispensary.
Production Stages
As it is mentioned above, the main purpose that we have to discuss in this chapter is the various concepts that the village uses for production. For the production of services and goods of any type, there are four factors that are used in the production. They are land, capital, labor, and enterprise. Out of these four factors, the first and the most important factor is land.
Land includes other natural resources like forests, minerals, and water. These natural resources are the most important factor in production. Second is the requirement of labor. There are many production and manufacturing activities which require highly educated workers while other activities require manual labor.
The third is the requirement of physical capital. This includes the inputs that are required at every step of production. The inputs are machines, tools, buildings, which can be used for production for many years and are also called fixed capital. While money in hand and materials are called working capital. The fourth and final requirement is the enterprise.
To put all the land, labor, and physical capital together one needs to have knowledge and enterprise. Then only finally you will get output. These days this final factor is also called human capital. Thus, for the production, each and every factor above is very important.
Farming in the Village
Farming is the most important activity in Palampur. Almost 75 percent of the working population is involved in farming activities. The story of village Palampur is incomplete without the farming activities. One important to notice in the village is that for a long time there has been an increase in the land area which is under cultivation.
Many wastelands were converted to cultivable land but there exists no further scope to increase this land under cultivation. Thus, as a measure, the people in the village have started cultivating more crops on the same land. All the cultivable is used throughout the year.
No land is idle in Palampur. During winter or Rabi season, people grow wheat and sugarcane. While during Kharif season people grow bajra and jowar. Between the months of October and December, people cultivate potatoes. The main reasons as to why farmers are able to grow multiple crops throughout the year are:
- Due to the availability of electricity in the village, the irrigation system has been vastly improved.
- The lands on which irrigation is been done have improved efficiency.
- Due to multiple cropping, farmers are able to grow more than one crop per year.
- Now, all the farmers in the village grow at least two crops using the same land every year.
- Initially, tube wells were introduced by the government, but now people have been setting up their own tube wells.
- Modern farming methods have contributed to a larger yield of crops.
- This higher yield is possible only due to a combination of irrigation, HYY seeds, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, etc.
Green Revolution and Sustainable Use of Land
In 1960, a record production of food items was witnessed. This marked a turning point in agriculture which then led to a green revolution in India. The green revolution is the increase in the production of food crops especially the wheat crop in India. This revolution led to an enormous increase in the production of food grains in the country.
The revolution is called green because due to it there was a tremendous increase in greenery in the entire country. This period from 1960 to 1980 is also known as the golden era due to the record production of food grain. Due to this revolution, our country became salt sufficient and even started having buffer stocks of food items which can be used during times of natural calamities like floods and droughts.
Land is a natural resource and thus is very necessary to use it carefully. Due to modern methods, it has been overused. With continuous groundwater from the tube well, the level of the water table in the ground has been reduced. Due to the green revolution, the fertility in the soil has been reduced as the use of chemical fertilizers has been increased. Natural resources like soil fertility and groundwater take years to form. Thus, once they are destroyed it is very tough to restore them.
Example:
Question:
Opportunity cost is also known as _____
A. Transfer earning
B. Future earning
C. Present earning
D. None of these
Answer:
The correct option is A.
Transfer earning requires a minimum payment to keep the factor of its products in its present use. It is an opportunity cost of an individual forgoes when deciding to work in one job rather than the next best alternative.