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No. 03-07
December 2007
MAP European Commission
Monitoring Agri-trade Policy Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development
India’s Role in World Agriculture
CONTENTS Introduction
Editorial
Economic developments
Agriculture structure
Agricultural policy
Key agricultural sectors
I ndia is one of the fastest growing economies of the world
and is currently the focus of a great deal of international
attention. It is the seventh largest country in the world in terms
Trade of its geographical size. Today it has a population of nearly 1.1
India’s main export partners billion which makes it the second most populous nation in
the world. With current population growth by 2025 India may
A closer look at India’s imports
even have caught up with China according to the UN.
Trade with EU-27
Outlook for agriculture & trade In this MAP we focus on agriculture and especially on
agriculture trade. India has a large and diverse agriculture
Conclusions
and is one of the world’s leading producers. It is also a major
Graphs, chart, table consumer, with an expanding population to feed. For this
reason and because of its agricultural and trade policy, its
Graph 1: GDP growth in India, China & Brazil presence on the world market has been modest in relation to
Graph 2: Agriculture’s share in GDP the size of its agriculture.
Graph 3: Structure of agricultural trade
Graph 4: Indian exports by destination India is still a big unknown. While it has been a small net
Graph 5: Top 10 agricultural exports agricultural exporter overall since 1990, in recent years there
Graph 6: Evolution of top 10 exports have been many changes in its agriculture and trade policies
Graph 7: Top 5 exports by destination and significant changes in its net trade position for many
individual products.
Graph 8: Indian imports by origin
Graph 9: Top 10 agricultural imports The leading forecasting institutions expect that India will
Graph 10: Evolution of top 10 imports play a bigger role in world markets in future. In a number of
Graph 11: Top 5 imports by origin markets it is expected to consolidate its position among the
Graph 12: Structure of EU-India trade world’s leading importers (vegetable oils) and exporters (rice).
Graph 13: EU exports to India Given the size of Indian agriculture, changes in its balance
Graph 14: Evolution of EU exports to India sheets for key commodities have a potentially large impact
Graph 15: EU imports from India on world markets.
Graph 16: Evolution of EU imports from India
Graph 17: Evolution of rice trade
Table 1: Food consumption per capita
Table 2: Top 10 production sectors
Table 3: India’s tariff structure
This newsletter does not necessarily represent the official views of the European Commission
Contact: DG Agriculture & Rural Development: Agricultural Trade Policy Analysis unit.
Tel: +32-2-2991111/ email: agri-trade-analysis@ec.europa.eu.
http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/publi/map/index_en.htm
© European Communities, 2007
Reproduction authorised provided the source is acknowledged
Economic developments
India is the third largest economy in Asia after Japan and oils, fruits and vegetables, milk and meat, which is
China, as measured in terms of its Gross Domestic Prod- growing from a low base. In the case of edible oils, the
uct (GDP) and it is continuing to grow rapidly. fall in prices after the liberalisation of imports further
stimulated consumption. However although diets are
The Indian economy has seen high growth rates of more diversifying, India still lags behind Brazil and China in
than 8% since 2003. In 2005 and 2006 GDP grew at a rate terms of daily calorie intake per capita.
of over 9%. Globally India’s growth is surpassed only by
that of China. This is expected to continue with growth Table 1: Food consumption –
just under 7% by 2015. Graph 1 compares GDP growth daily calories per capita
in India, China and Brazil, where growth has been much
slower. 1990-1992 1998-2000 2003-2005
Brazil 2860 3001 3223
Graph 1: Annual Percentage change of GDP
China 2696 2917 2957
in India, China and Brazil
India 2396 2463 2512
20
Source: FAOSTAT
15
Agriculture plays an important, though declining role in
annual % change b
10 the economy. Its share in overall GDP fell from 30% in
the early nineties, to below 17.5% in 2006 (graph 2). This
5
is high compared to China and Brazil, at 12% and 5%
respectively. Over this period the share of industry has
0
stayed relatively constant, reaching nearly 28% in 2006.
-5
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Meanwhile the services sector has grown rapidly
Source: WDI, The World Bank Group Brazil China India
(accounting for about 65% of total GDP growth from
2000-2005), to almost 55% of GDP in 2006. The World
High growth rates have significantly reduced poverty Bank predicts that the shift towards the service sector
in India. However it’s GDP per head is still very low will continue at the expense of agriculture, whose share
(estimated at US$ 820 in 2006), so it remains classified could decline by 30% by 2030.
by the World Bank as a low income country. The World
Development Report 2008 states that over one third of Despite India’s economic development, over 70% of the
the population of India was living below the poverty line population still live in rural areas. Agriculture is the key
in 2004-2005, managing on less than $1 a day. employer with around 60% of the labour force, down
from 70% in the early nineties. This compares with 44%
Cereals are the staple food in India, providing over in China (2002) and 21 % in Brazil (2004).
half the calories consumed, while pulses are the main
protein supplement in the diet. Rising incomes and The decline in agriculture in the labour force has not kept
the influence of globalisation have contributed to pace with its decline in the economy. This stickiness has
changes in the diet with a slight decrease in cereals been attributed to low labour mobility and slow growth
consumption and an increase in pulses, edible
Agricultural policy
in productivity in agriculture. In India agricultural value Indian agriculture policy is aimed essentially at improv-
added per worker has grown by only 15% in real terms ing food self sufficiency and alleviating hunger through
from 1990 to 2004. By comparison productivity in China food distribution. Aside from investing in agricultural
rose by over 60% and more than doubled in Brazil. infrastructure, the government supports agriculture
through measures including minimum support prices
(MSP) for the major agricultural crops, farm input subsi-
Graph 2: Main economic sectors share of Indian GDP dies and preferential credit schemes.
Source: WDI, The World Bank Group
Under the price support policy, MSPs are set annually for
60
basic staples to protect producers from sharp price falls,
50 to stabilise prices and to ensure adequate food stocks for
40 public distribution. In the past guaranteed prices have
been below the prevailing market prices, according to
% GDP
30
20
the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
in 2007.
10
0 At the same time subsidies on farm inputs including
1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Agriculture, value added (% of GDP) Industry, value added (% of GDP) fertilisers, electrical power and irrigation water have
Services, etc., value added (% of GDP)
led to inefficient use of inputs and indirectly subsidise
income. IFPRI concluded that “support for agriculture
(from 1985-2002) has been largely counter cyclical to
Agriculture structure world prices”.
India’s agricultural area is vast with total arable and OECD appears to reach a similar conclusion. Its
permanent cropland of 170 million hectares in 2003- 2007 monitoring report points out that the level of
2005. It has the second largest arable area in the world agricultural support (covering transfers from taxpayers
after the United States. OECD in it’s 2007 agricultural and consumers) for India “would appear to be slightly
policy monitoring report notes that Indian agriculture below the OECD average but considerably higher than
is dominated by a large number of small scale holdings that of the emerging economies reviewed by the OECD”.
that are predominantly owner occupied. Furthermore the instruments of support used are “the
least efficient and the most trade distortive forms of
The average size of holding in the late nineties was support”.
about 1.4 hectares and continues to decline, as farms
are usually divided on inheritance. Out of India’s 116
million farmers, around 60% have less than 1 hectare Key agricultural sectors
and together they farm 17% of the land. The share of
medium to large farms (above 4 hectares) is very small at India is among the world’s leading producers of paddy
just over 7% of all holdings, but these farms account for rice, wheat, buffalo milk, cow milk and sugar cane. It is
around 40% of the land. The implication is that many of either the world leader or the second largest producer
the very small farms are subsistence holdings, with low in eight out of its top ten products. Some of these are
investment and little productivity growth. widely traded while others are more specialist products.
Trade
Table 2 shows the composition of production by value Reforms introduced in India in the early 1990s have
for 2003-2005, when paddy rice was the top sector, greatly increased overall trade flows. However it has
followed by buffalo milk and wheat. India is now the consistently run a trade deficit unlike China and Brazil
largest milk producer in the world and the second (US$35 billion in 2004-2005).
largest producer of paddy rice, sugar cane, wheat, cow
milk, groundnuts and certain fresh vegetables. But it is The EU (27) ranks as India’s largest trading partner
also a leading consumer. So although it exports these accounting for about 21% of total Indian trade in 2005,
products the quantities will vary depending on the size ahead of the United States and China. Meanwhile India
of the crop and demand. is the EU’s tenth largest trading partner accounting for
1.8% of total trade. In 2005 its trade deficit with the EU
Table 2: Top 10 sectors of India & world rank was about €2 billion.
Commodity Rank World Production India is one of the leading members of the G-20 within the
India Rank Avg 2003-2005 DDA negotiations. It has a preferential trade agreement
2005 with Mercosur since 2005. It is also part of the South Asia
Billion $ Million T Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) covering seven nations
(India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh
Paddy rice 1 2 27.5 129.2
and the Maldives) which came into effect in January
Buffalo milk 2 1 25.2 50.5 2006 with the aim of reducing tariffs for regional trade.
Wheat 3 2 10.9 69.7 And it is currently negotiating Free Trade Agreements
Cow milk 4 2 10.0 37.5 with the EU and ASEAN.
Fresh vegetables 5 2 6.6 34.9
Turning our focus to trade in agricultural and food
Sugar cane 6 2 5.2 250.0 products; this accounts for a relatively small share of
Potatoes 7 3 3.6 25.0 overall Indian trade. Agricultural exports represent 9% of
Groundnuts 8 2 3.4 7.1 the value of total exports while the share of agriculture
Pimento 9 1 3.3 1.1 in total imports is just 5%.
Buffalo meat 10 9 3.1 1.5 When compared with other main players on world
Source: FAOSTAT, world rank calculated by DG AGRI markets and considering the size of the country, Indian
agricultural trade flows appear relatively modest. As the
Meanwhile India is the world leader in such specialist key goal of agricultural policy since independence has
products as buffalo milk, spices (pimento) and bananas, been to achieve self-sufficiency, trade has been relatively
mangoes, chickpeas etc., which are important in the limited. However technological developments and
Indian diet and are also exported. macroeconomic policy reforms have brought increased
liberalisation, following the implementation of the
And India is the fifth largest cultivator of biotech crops Uruguay Round Agreement, and have contributed to
in the world, ahead of China. In 2006, about 3.8 million changes in agricultural trade.
hectares of land were cultivated with genetically
modified crops, by about 2.3 million farmers. The main Indian agricultural exports totalled $9.3 billion in the
GM crop is Bt Cotton, which was introduced in 2002. year 2005 while imports were worth roughly $5.5 billion.
Thus India is a net exporter of agricultural food products Graph 4: Indian agri-food exports by destination
with a small surplus of just under $4 billion. Between (million $)
1993-1995 and 2003-2005, exports nearly doubled while
Source: COMTRADE
imports grew almost threefold. The value of exports 10.000
grew from $4 to $7.7 billion while imports rose from $1.8 9.000
8.000
to $5.2 billion (graph 3) within a decade. 7.000
6.000
The balance of agricultural trade has always been in 5.000
surplus though there were sharp fluctuations during 4.000
3.000
the nineties. Since 2000 both imports and exports have 2.000
grown steadily. 1.000
0
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
EU27 ASEAN USA BANGLADESH
SAUD.ARABIA UNTD ARAB EM CHINA Total
Graph 3: Structure of Indian agricultural trade (million $)
10.000 As regards the composition of agricultural exports
8.000 (shown in graph 3), commodities represent around
6.000 one third, intermediate products over one quarter and
4.000 final products account for the remaining 40% of total
2.000 agricultural exports. The biggest growth was in the
0 export of commodities which increased by 134% from
-2.000 1993-1995 to 2003-2005.
-4.000
-6.000
The single biggest export is milled rice, accounting for
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 16 % of the value of exports in 2003-2005 (see graph 5).
Source: COMTRADE Commodities Intermediate Final Products Balance
Graph 5: India - top 10 agricultural exports
Average 2003-2005 (million $)
India’s main export partners MUCILAGES FROM
LOCUST BEANS, 166
CASTOR OIL, 172
India is diversifying its export markets (graph 4). The EU COFFEE, 189
MILLED RICE, 1234
remains its top market, accounting for 16% of the value
of export sales in 2003-2005, although this is a decline
WHEAT, 262
Total agri
exports:
from 21% a decade ago. ASEAN is in 2nd place with 14%, TEA, 269 7.7 billion $
although its share has also fallen.
COTTON, 291
This trend may be reversed however as India is FROZEN BEEF, 393 SOYA-BEAN MEAL,
negotiating Free Trade Agreements with the EU and
717
with ASEAN. Meanwhile trade with neighbouring Source:COMTRADE CASHEW NUTS, 487
Bangladesh and China (currently 7.5%) is growing fast.
The US market share has remained steady at 10% and
also that of Saudi Arabia.
Two other commodities, cotton and wheat, are also
Graph 7: India - top 5 exports and destination
within the top 10 exports. Soybean meal, an intermediate
Average 2003-2005 (million $)
product, is the second most important export with 9% INDONESIA
of sales. However 6 out of the top 10 are final products, OTH.ASIA NES
PAKISTAN COTTON - 83%
BANGLADESH
including cashew nuts, beef, coffee and tea which CHINA
SAUD.ARABIA
together represent around 14% of the value of exports. ANGOLA
JORDAN FROZEN BEEF MEAT - 58
%
PHILIPPINES
MALAYSIA
SAUD.ARABIA
JAPAN
In the nineties the value of exports fluctuated UNTD ARAB EM
EU27 CASHEW NUTS - 88%
considerably (graph 6). This reflects big swings both USA
CHINA
KOREA RP
in the price and the volume of rice exports, the latter JAPAN
INDONESIA
SOYA-BEAN MEAL - 57%
depending on the balance between production and
VIETNAM
SOUTH AFRICA
NIGERIA
consumption. Despite those fluctuations, since 1999 EU27
BANGLADESH
RICE - 66%
SAUD.ARABIA
India’s exports have grown steadily. In addition to rice, 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400
Source: COMTRADE
beef (buffalo meat) and soybean meal exports are also
expanding.
A closer look at India’s imports
Graph 6: India - top 10 agricultural exports (million $)
ASEAN is by far the biggest supplier of agricultural
products to India, accounting for a massive 40% of its
Source:COMTRADE
7.000 10.000
6.000 9.000 imports in 2003-2005 (graph 8). Argentina and Brazil
5.000 8.000 rank 2nd and 3rd respectively while the EU only has 4%
4.000 7.000 market share (down from 7% a decade ago), ranked at
3.000 6.000 number six in 2003-2005.
2.000 5.000
1.000 4.000
Graph 8: India agri-food imports by origin (million $)
0 3.000
1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
Source: COMTRADE
MILLED RICE SOYA-BEAN MEAL 6.000
CASHEW NUTS FROZEN BEEF
COTTON TEA
WHEAT COFFEE
CASTOR OIL MUCILAGES FROM LOCUST BEANS 5.000
Agricultural Products (right axis)
4.000
Graph 7 shows the destination of the top 5 exports and 3.000
concentration in key markets. Saudi Arabia is the single
biggest market for rice and is also a big market for buffalo 2.000
beef and cashew nuts. The EU is another important 1.000
destination for rice and cashew nuts. Cashew nuts are
0
exported mainly to developed country markets and 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
together the 5 countries shown take 88% of exports. ASEAN ARGENTINA BRAZIL USA CHINA EU27 Total
The cotton market is also heavily concentrated on a While this is roughly equivalent to the share of imports
few key neighbouring countries, which absorb 83% of from China and the United States, it is far below the share
exports. China, Bangladesh, Pakistan and ASEAN are enjoyed by Mercosur (supplying about 17% of imports)
important markets for soybean meal and buffalo beef. and ASEAN countries. Over the past decade ASEAN and
Argentina have both substantially increased their market market. The phasing out of the multi-fibre agreement
share at the expense of the US, the EU, Brazil and China. explains the increase in cotton imports.
Together the top six suppliers now account for over 70%
of imports.
Graph 10: India - top 10 agricultural imports (million $)
India’s agricultural imports are focused mainly on Source:COMTRADE
4.000 8.000
intermediate products (referring back to graph 3). These 3.500 7.000
account for 56% of imports; final products are 31%, while 3.000 6.000
the share of commodities is just 13%. The biggest growth 2.500 5.000
has been in intermediate products which increased 2.000 4.000
nearly fourfold over the period. 1.500 3.000
1.000 2.000
This reflects the importance of vegetable oils in Indian 500 1.000
0 0
imports (graph 9). Palm oil is by far the biggest import 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
at 29% of the total. Together with soybean oils, they PALM OIL
COTTON
SOYA-BEAN OIL
DRIED PEAS
CASHEW NUTS
RAW SILK
represent over 40% of imports. Protein rich peas are LEGUMINOUS VEGETABLES
Agricultural products (right axis)
RAW CANE SUGAR VEGETABLE FATS AND OILS
also within the top 5. The increase in imports of these
foodstuffs is driven by population growth. While cashew
nuts and cotton are among the top exports, they also Given the importance of vegetable oil imports, it is not
appear in the top 10 imports. Cashew nuts are imported surprising that India depends on a few key suppliers
for further processing as are silk and cotton, which are (graph 11). Palm oil is supplied essentially by 2 ASEAN
used in the Indian textile industry. trading partners, with over 72 % of India’s palm oil
imports coming from Indonesia and 27 % from Malaysia.
Graph 9: India - top 10 agricultural imports This concentration is almost perfectly mirrored in the
Average 2003-2005 (million $) soybean oil market, with Argentina supplying 72 % and
RAW CANE SUGAR,
Brazil around 24 %.
VEGETABLE FATS
124 AND OILS, 103
LEGUMINOUS
VEGETABLES, 145 Graph 11: India - top 5 imports and origin
RAW SILK, 148 PALM OIL, 1509
Average 2003-2005 (million $)
USA
MYANMAR
DRIED PEAS, 167 AUSTRALIA DRIED PEAS - 93%
EU27
CANADA
Total agri EU27
imports: UNTD RP TANZ
COTTON, 243 5.2 billion $ MALI COTTON - 67%
EGYPT
USA
BENIN
INDONESIA
UNTD RP TANZ CASHEW NUTS - 78%
GUINEA-BISSAU
CASHEW NUTS, 384 COTE D'IVOIRE
SOYA-BEAN OIL, 635 THAILAND
USA SOYA-BEAN OIL - 100%
Source:COMTRADE UNTD ARAB EM
BRAZIL
ARGENTINA
SRI LANKA
EU27 PALM OIL - 100%
THAILAND
----> 1105
The evolution of imports is shown in graph 10. In MALAYSIA
INDONESIA
particular the growth in imports of vegetable oils has 0
Source: COMTRADE
100 200 300 400 500
been dramatic with an increase of over 800% between
1993-1995 and 2003-2005, with soybean oil and other
oils and fats taking a growing share of an expanding
Trade with EU-27 Graph 13: EU-27 main agricultural exports to India
Average 2004-2006 (million €)
In this section we look at the EU’s declared trade with Mixtures Of
India, based on the EU’s COMEXT data expressed in Odoriferous
Substances, 4.5
Wine, 3.9
Olive Oil, 3.6
euros. The EU has a deficit of around €1 billion in its trade Animal Feed
preparations, 4.5 Wheat, 40.2
in agri-food products with India, as shown in graph 12.
Food Preparations,
N.E.S., 4.5
Total agri
exports
Graph 12: EU-27 structure of agricultural trade Lactose, 5.1
to India:
249 millon €
with India (million €) Vegetable Seeds, 6.2
Source: COMEXT
600 2,5%
Dried Peas, 11.4
400 Whiskies, 31.6
200 2,0%
Hides, 14 Wool, 17.7
0
Source: COMEXT
-200 1,5%
-400
-600 1,0%
-800
India is an intermittent importer of EU wheat (graph 14).
-1.000 0,5% Having been a small net exporter of wheat since 1999/00,
-1.200 India became a net importer in 2006/07. The EU’s wheat
-1.400
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
0,0%
exports were worth €120 million in 2006, equivalent to
Commodities
Final Products
Intermediate
Agricultural Trade Balance
one third of the value of exports. Exports of whiskies
Export share (right axis) Import share (right axis)
have grown fourfold from 1999 to 2006 and now account
for 10% of export sales. Dried peas accounted for 6% of
The value of agricultural exports from the EU to India exports in 2006 but have fluctuated over the period.
is only about €250 million (average 2004-2006). India
accounts for less than 0.5% percent of the EU’s total Graph 14: EU-27’s main agricultural exports to India
agricultural exports. Meanwhile the EU imports €1.3 (million €)
Graph 14 Evolution of EU- 27’s main agricultural exports
billion worth of agri-food products from India, equivalent to India
250
Source: COMEXT
to 2% of the EU’s global agri-food imports. This is just 200
half the value of the EU’s imports from China. India ranks
as the 12th most important EU supplier. 150
100
The breakdown of the EU’s exports to India is shown in
graph 13. In 2004-2006 wheat was the EU’s top agricultural 50
export to India, valued at €40 million and accounting for 0
16% of exports. Scotch whisky exports were worth €32 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Wheat Whiskies Peas
million, around 13% of exports. Exports of raw wool and Hides Vegtable seeds Lactose
Food preparations N.E.S. Animal feed preparations Olive Oil
hides for further processing in the Indian textile industry Wine Odoriferous substances Wool
were valued at €18 and €14 million respectively. Dried
peas were €11 million. Other specialised products are The current average bound tariff for agriculture is
exported to India, such as vegetable seeds (€6 million), 117.2% according to the WTO’s 2007 Trade Policy Report
wine and olive oil both valued at around €4 million. for India.
There is often a significant difference between bound products already enter the EU market duty free (basmati
he
and applied tariffs. The current average applied tariff is rice) or with a low tariff (5% for oils). Overall 97% of
40.8% according to the WTO. Applied tariffs are subject imports from India enter duty free or with a tariff lower
to frequent adjustment, depending on domestic supply. than 30%.
For example the wheat tariff was reduced in 2006 as
India needed imports to compensate for its poor harvest. Graph 15: EU-27 main agricultural imports from India
Therefore the EU was able to export wheat at zero tariff Average 2004-2006 (million €)
that year. Meanwhile EU exports of dairy products are
Groundnut Oil, 20 Fatty Alcohols, 19
currently very low mainly due to high Indian tariffs. Preserved Fruits
and Plants, 27
Cashew Nuts, 147
The profile of applied tariffs shows a degree of tariff Fresh Grapes, 27
Mucilages And
escalation with the highest tariffs of 150% applied to Thickeners, 36
Total agri
imports from
India:
final products. However tariffs ranging from low or Sesamum Seeds,
50
1.287 millon €
zero to 100% also apply to some final and intermediate
Coffee, 123
products. Today the EU faces tariffs of 100-150 % Tobacco, 51
on exports of high value products such as wine and
Tea, 76 Rice, 114
whiskies. The tariff profile for a number of products is
Castor Oil, 89
shown in the table below.
Source:COMEXT
Table 3: India’s Tariff Structure
The trend in agricultural imports from India is shown
for selected products (2006)
in graph 16. Total imports were valued at €1.4 billion
Product Avg. Bound Avg. Applied in 2006, up from just over €1 billion in 2003. Coffee
(%) (%) was the top import in 2006 but its value has fluctuated
Animal products 105.0 33.0 considerably since 1990. The value of tea imports has
Dairy 65.0 35.0 declined over the period by over 20%.
Fruit, vegetables 100.9 31.5
Coffee, tea 133.1 56.3 Graph 16: Evolution of EU-27 main agricultural imports
Cereals 119.4 37.3 from India (million €)
Fats and oils 168.9 52.5 700
Source:COMEXT
1.600
Sugars 124.7 48.4 600 1.500
Beverages 127.5 68.9 500 1.400
400 1.300
Cotton 110.0 17.0 300 1.200
Source: WTO 200 1.100
100 1.000
Turning to imports, agricultural products represent 0 900
about 7% of total EU imports from India, reaching 1999 2000
Coffee
2001 2002 2003 2004
Cashew nuts
2005 2006
Tea Mucilages of locust beans
nearly €1.3 billion in 2004-2006 (graph 15). The top 5 are Sesame seeds
Walnuts
Grapes
Cucumbers
specialised products: cashew nuts, coffee, rice, castor Plants used in perfumes
Agricultural products (right axis)
Groundnut Oil
oil and tea and account for 43% of the value of the EU’s
imports from India (550 million euros). Some of these
Outlook for agriculture and trade
OECD and FAPRI (Food and Agricultural Policy Research Its world market share is expected to rise from 4% to
Institute) both expect India to play a bigger role in 6% over the coming decade, thanks to robust growth in
world markets in future. It is likely to remain a small net production (second only to Brazil’s) and a slowdown in
exporter overall. consumption growth. For soya meal India’s world market
position is relatively stable and it is expected to stay at
India is forecast to consolidate its position among the about 6% world market share (FAPRI).
world’s leading exporters of rice (its top export), though
the volume of exports has been erratic since the mid Indian buffalo beef exports are projected to grow as
nineties (depending on the size of the crop and on production rises faster than demand, with world market
domestic consumption). Currently it is the second share for beef stable at around 11%. On the dairy side,
largest rice producer after China and the third largest net exports of butter and SMP will also grow. For butter
net-exporter after Thailand and Vietnam. although there is a strong increase in production, this is
in response to surging demand growth, so India remains
FAPRI expects it to increase its world market share from a small net exporter. On the other hand it becomes a
16% to 20% by 2015 as area and yields increase and per significant net exporter of SMP, with its share of world
capita consumption declines. OECD meanwhile takes trade rising from 4% to 6%.
a more conservative view of production prospects
and therefore of export potential. FAPRI’s1 and OECD’s Turning to imports, in 2006/07 India became a net
projections for the global rice trade (graph 17). importer of wheat having been a net exporter for the
5 years previously. However it is not expected to be a
Graph 17: Evolution of World Rice Trade (‘000 t) big net exporter in the coming decade. For dairy there
Average 2014/15 to 2016/17 may be opportunities for EU in the future. If an EU-Indian
FTA is agreed, then, given changing consumer habits,
14.000
12.000
India is a potential market for EU exports of high quality
10.000 processed milk products.
8.000
6.000 Last but not least, India is projected to remain a leading
4.000
vegetable oils importer, absorbing one quarter of
2.000
world soybean oil imports and 14% of palm oil imports.
0
-2.000
Although the share does not increase much over the
-4.000 projection period, this masks an increase in imports
Source: FAPRI 2007 (net trade)
Thailand Vietnam India
Source: OECD2007
US Pakistan
from 5 million tonnes to 6-8 million tonnes by 2016/17,
Nigeria Indonesia Philippines Iraq Saudi Arabia given the expansion in world trade in vegetable oils.
Indian consumption of vegetable oils has grown faster
than production since the mid-nineties and the trend is
For sugar a big change is expected with India forecast to expected to continue. Combined with the recent hike in
switch from being a net importer to a net exporter (over prices, this could lead to a doubling of India’s vegetable
2 million tonnes). oil import bill in 10 years.
1 FAPRI uses net trade data
10
Conclusions
Agriculture occupies a prominent position in Indian policy-making not only because of its contribution to GDP but
also because of the large proportion of the population that is dependent on the sector for its livelihood.
The growth in population and wealth has stimulated demand to the extent that domestic production has not always
been able to keep up and there is increasing speculation that the Indian economy may be overheating leading
to inflation. The downside of the increased import demand and the current commodity boom is that India’s food
import bill will rise sharply.
However it is clear that India’s agricultural sector has made huge strides in developing its potential. The green
revolution massively increased the production of vital food grains and introduced technological innovations into
agriculture. This progress is manifested in India’s net trade position. Where once India had to depend on imports to
feed its people, since 1990 it is a net exporter of agri-food products. Its agriculture is large and diverse and its sheer
size means that even slight changes in its trade have significant effects on world agricultural markets.
How India will develop is still a big unknown, with the picture changing rapidly. Questions have arisen about India’s
capacity to compete in global markets under the current farm structure and farm policy. As the service economy
grows, the share of agriculture will diminish, which may also have implications for India’s stance on trade and
agriculture policy in the future.
*****
11
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
FOR
MASONRY AND ALLIED WORK
1.00.00 SCOPE
This specification covers furnishing, installation, repairing, finishing,
curing, protection, maintenance and handing over of masonry and allied
works for use in structures and locations covered under the scope of the
Contract.
2.00.00 INSTALLATION
2.01.00 Soling
2.01.01 Brick Soling
The ground shall be dressed, consolidated by ramming or by light rolling
and a 12 mm thick cushion of sand laid. On the sand cushion the bricks
shall be laid with fine joints and placed firmly in position by hammering
with wooden mallet. The surface shall be free from undulations. The
'frog' side shall be on the underside. The joints shall be broken the in all
direction and bricks cut as required. The pattern of laying and number of
layers shall be as per Schedule of Item. Orientation shall be as desired
by the Engineer. After laying of each layer of bricks sand shall be spread
over and worked into the joints to pack the bricks tight.
2.01.02 Stone Soling
The stones for soling shall be selected on the basis of thickness of soling
specified in the Schedule of Items. The larger stones shall be laid and
the gaps filled by smaller stones. The interstices shall then be firmly
packed with sand by flooding with water.
2.02.00 Brick Edging
Excavation shall be done close to the brick dimensions and in perfect
alignment. Bricks shall be firmly placed by hammering with wooden
mallets and sides and joints packed firmly with earth so that the edging is
not disturbed easily. Alignment and level shall be acceptable to the
Engineer.
2.03.00 Masonry
Masonry Page 1 of 8
2.03.01 General
All masonry work shall be true to lines and levels as shown on drawings.
All masonry shall be tightly built against structural members and bonded
with dowels, inserts etc. as shown on drawings.
2.03.02 Mortar
Mix for mortar shall be specified in the Schedule of Items.
When lime is used hydrated lime shall be mixed with water to form putty
and stored with care to prevent evaporation for at least 24 hours before
use. Quick lime shall be slaked with enough water to make a cream,
passed through a No. 10 sieve and stored avoiding evaporation for seven
days before use.
Lime putty and sand in proper proportion shall be mixed on a watertight
platform with necessary addition of water and thoroughly ground in a
mortar mill. This mix shall be transferred to a mechanical mix, required
quantity of cement added and the content mixed for at least 3 minutes.
Mixtures of lime putty and sand may be stored avoiding drying out. For
cement sand mortar cement and sand in requisite proportions shall be
mixed dry in a mechanical mixer and then water added and mixed further.
Minimum quantity of water shall be added to achieve working consistency.
Surplus mortar droppings from masonry, if received on surface free from
dirt may be mixed with fresh mortar if permitted by the Engineer who may
direct addition of additional cement without any extra payment. No
mortar, which has stood for more than half an hour, shall be used.
2.03.03 Brick Masonry
Bricks shall be soaked by submergence in clean water for at least two
hours in approved vats before use. Bricks shall be laid in English bond
unless specified otherwise. Broken bricks shall not be used. Cut bricks
shall be used if necessary to complete bond or as closers. Bricks shall
be laid with frogs upwards over full mortar beds. Bricks shall be pressed
into mortar and tapped into final position so as to embed fully in mortar.
Inside faces shall be buttered with mortar before the next bricks is placed
and pressed against it. Thus all joints between bricks shall be fully filled
with mortar.
Mortar joints shall be kept uniformly 10 mm thick. All joints on face shall
be raked to minimum 10 mm depth using raking tool while the mortar is
still green to provide bond for plaster or pointing. Where plaster or
pointing is not provided, the joints shall be struck flush and finished
immediately. Brickworks two bricks thick or more shall have both faces in
true plane. Brickwork of lesser thickness shall have one selected face in
true plane.
2.03.04 Exposed Brickwork
Brickwork in superstructures, which is not covered by plaster, shall be as
shown on drawing and executed by especially skilled mason. Courses
Masonry Page 2 of 8
shall be truly horizontal and vertical joints truly vertical. Wooden straight
edges with brick course graduations and position of windowsills and lintels
shall be used to control uniformity of brick courses. Masons must check
workmanship frequently with plumb, spirit level, rule and string. All
brickwork shall be cleaned at the end of days work. If face bricks are
specified in the Schedule of Item, the brickwork shall be in composite
bricks, with face bricks on the exposed face and balance in routine bricks,
but maintaining the bond fully. Where face bricks are not specified,
bricks for the exposed face shall be specially selected from routine bricks.
All exposed brickwork on completion of work shall be rubbed down,
washed clean and pointed as specified. Where face bricks are used
carborandum stone shall be used for rubbing down.
2.03.05 Reinforced Brickworks
Reinforcements shall be as specified in the Schedule of Items. All
reinforcements shall be thoroughly cleaned and fully embedded in mortar.
Where M.S. bars are used as reinforcement, these shall be lapped with
dowels if left in R.C. Columns or welded to steel stanchions.
2.03.06 Stone Masonry
Stones shall be thoroughly soaked before laying. Stones shall be laid on
their natural quarry beds. Individual stones shall be fitted with mallet and
properly wedged to reduce thickness of mortar joints. Thickness of joint
shall be not less than 8 mm and not greater than 25 mm. Al least two
stones shall run the full width of the wall for every square meter of surface
area.
2.03.07 Exposed Stonework
Stonework, which is to be kept exposed, shall be as shown on drawing or
described in the Schedule of Items. Especially especially skilled mason
shall execute it. Stones used for exposed face shall be specially
selected. All exposed stone faces shall be kept clean and free from
mortar and pointed up neatly as the work proceeds in a manner called for
in the drawings or the Schedule of Items or instructions. A sample wall,
10 sq.m. In area shall be built and approved by the Engineer and all
works shall match with this sample.
2.03.08 Hollow and Solid concrete block Masonry
Hollow and solid concrete block shall conform to the requirement of I.S
2185. Hollow concrete block shall be sound, free from broken edges; free
from cracks, honeycombing and other defects, which may give a defective
work, impaired the required strength.
Dimensional stability: concrete masonry units shall be made of proper
sizes and shape to suit the construction need and shall be in neutral of
the following sizes:
The nominal size of concrete block /solid concrete block.
Masonry Page 3 of 8
Length: 400,500,600.
Height 200,100
Width 50,75,100,150,200,250,300.
In addition block shall be manufactured in half-length of correspondence
to full length. Maximum tolerance of length shall be (+) 5mm and in height
&with shall be + 3mm.
The average crushing strength shall be determined as per I.S 2185 and
shall be of Load bearing wall density of block shall be not less than 1500
kg /mm3 and minimum average compressive strength of units shall be
3.5 to 7 N/mm3 and minimum strength of individual unit shall be 2.8 to
5.6 for block density less than 1500 kg /mm3 but not less than 1000 kg
/mm3 average compressive strength of units shall be 2.0 to5 N/mm3 and
minimum strength of individual unit shall be 1.6 to 4.0 N/mm3
For non load bearing wall block density shall be not less than 1000kg /
mm3 and minimum average compressive strength of units shall be1.5
N/mm3 and minimum strength shall be 1.2 N/mm3
2.03.09 Composite Masonry
Where stonework facing with brick masonry backing is specified the bond
between them shall be achieved by bond stones of dimensions and
frequency as desired by the Engineer.
2.03.10 Fly ash brickwork
Fly ash bricks (cement bonded) shall be locally made. Bricks shall have
smooth rectangular faces with sharp and square corners. Bricks shall be
hand or machine moulded and shall be made from the admixture of
suitable good quality of fly ash, sand and cement as per the composition
mentioned below :
FLY ASH : 50-60%
SAND : 32-40%
CEMENT : 8-12%
The fly ash bricks will be as per latest relevant IS code. The bricks will be
of dimension as per standard clay brick, suitable for making 230mm thick
full brick wall, 115mm thick half brick wall and 75mm thick minor partition
walls, as applicable, as per drawing/specification/BOQ. A maximum
tolerance of (+/-) 2mm shall be allowed as the manufacturing tolerance.
The bricks shall have frog of 100 mm in length 40 mm in width and 10 to
20 mm deep of one of its flat sides.
The bricks when tested in accordance with the procedure laid down in
IS 3495 (part 2) : 1992 after immersion in cold water for 24 hrs., water
absorption shall be within 13-15% by weight. Similarly, the porosity of the
Masonry Page 4 of 8
fly ash bricks shall be within 12-20%. The bricks shall have a minimum
crushing strength of 50 Kg/CmSq.
2.03.11 Expansion & Separation Joints
Location of joints shall strictly be as shown on drawings or as instructed
by the Engineer. Expansion joints shall be as shown on drawings and
specified in the Schedule of Items. Expansion joint filler boards and
sealing strips shall have minimum transverse joints. Transverse joints
shall meet the approval of the Engineer.
Separation joints shall be with standard waterproof paper or with
alkathene sheets about 1 mm in thickness. Length and sealing of laps
shall be to the satisfaction of the Engineer.
2.03.12 Moldings, Cornices, Drip Course
These shall be made as shown in drawings. Bricks or stone shall be cut
and dressed as required. If no subsequent finish is envisaged, these
shall be rubbed to correct profile with carborandum stone.
2.03.13 Curing
Masonry shall be cured by keeping it wet for seven days from the date of
laying. In dry weather at the end of days work top surface of masonry
shall be kept wet by ponding.
2.03.14 Embedding of fixtures
All fixtures shall generally be embedded in mortar and masonry units shall
be cut as required.
2.03.15 Encasing of Structural Steel
This shall be done by building masonry work round flanges, webs etc.
and filling the gap between steel and masonry by minimum 12 mm thick
mortar. Encased members shall be wrapped with chicken wire mesh
when shown on drawings or instructed by the Engineer.
The minimum lap in chicken wire mesh shall be 50 mm.
2.04.00 Damp Proof Course
Unless otherwise specified Damp-proof course shall be 40 mm or as per
schedule thick 'artificial stone' in proportion 1:1-1/2:3 cement sand stone-
chips (10 mm down) with admixture of a waterproofing compound as
approved by the Engineer. The percentage of admixture shall be as per
manufacturer’s specifications but not less than 2% by weight of cement.
The top surface shall be double chequered and cured by ponding for
seven days.
2.05.00 Damp Proof Membrane
Masonry Page 5 of 8
Damp proof treatment using fiber or Hessian base bitumen felt shall be 6,
8 or 10 course treatment as specified in IS: 1609. The number of courses
shall be as mentioned in the Schedule of Items. Sequence or work shall
be as directed by the Engineer. Extreme care shall be taken to prevent
damage to felt during and after laying. The Contractor shall be obliged,
at his own expense, to rectify any leakage appearing within 5 years of
installation by removing and renewing the coats at the point of leakage.
Where shown on drawing, damp proof membrane with one layer bitumen
paper or one layer alkathene sheet shall be laid with minimum 150mm lap
under slabs on grade.
3.00.00 RATES
Rates shall be unit rates for the complete work as detailed out in the
Specification unless any particular portion is specifically excluded in the
Schedule of Items.
4.00.00 METHOD OF MEASUREMENT
4.01.00 Soling
Soling of different types as enumerated in the Schedule of Items shall be
measured on actual area basis. Deductions shall not be made for areas
less than 0.1 Sq.M.
4.02.00 Brick Edging
Edging shall be measured on running length unless included in other
relevant items.
4.03.00 Masonry
4.03.01 Thickness of brick walls shall be measured in nominal brick sizes.
4.03.02 for masonry work exceeding 150 mm in thickness, actual volume of work
shall be measured and deductions for openings, lintels, sills, conduit
ducts, pipes etc. shall be made. No opening less than 0.1 Sq.M. in area
shall however be deducted.
4.03.03 No deductions shall be made for embedded fixtures nor any extra be paid
for the mortar used for fixing or for necessary cutting of bricks.
4.03.04 for encasing of steel beams, columns etc. The sizes as shown on
drawings shall be measured and deductions made for the volume of
encased steel.
4.03.05 No extra payment shall be made for cutting of masonry units.
Masonry Page 6 of 8
4.03.06 Walls 150 mm in thickness or less shall be measured for actual area of
works and deductions made as in Clause 5.1.4.3.2.
4.03.07 Exposed brickwork using selected ordinary brick or face bricks for the
exposed face shall be measured in area as an extra over the ordinary
brickwork if so provided in the Schedule of Items. It shall be measured
by volume including the composite backing if so provided in the Schedule.
Deductions shall be made as described in Clause 5.1.4.3.2.
4.03.08 Reinforcements shall be measured and paid separately under relevant
items in the schedule unless included in the items for masonry work.
Laps in wire mesh reinforcements shall not be measured. Reinforcing
mesh shall be measured on actual area basis. Reinforcing bars shall be
measured by weight.
The weight shall be arrived at on the basis of sectional weights as per I.S.
No extra shall be paid for necessary modifications of existing dowels, if
any, to tie up with the Contractor's work.
4.03.09 Exposed Stonework
Exposed Stonework using selected stone for exposed face shall be
measured in area as an extra over ordinary stonework if so provided in
the Schedule of Items. Deductions shall be made as described in Clause
5.1.4.3.2.
4.03.10 Composite Masonry
Composite masonry shall be measured for volume including backing if so
provided in the Schedule of Items. If not, brickwork and stonework shall
be measured separately and paid under relevant items.
4.03.11 Expansion and Separation Joints
Joints shall be measured for length or area for the complete work as
shown on drawings including filler boards, sealant strips, sealing
compounds, painting, cover etc. If so provided in the Schedule of Items
unless any particular work is specifically excluded from the item.
4.03.12 Mouldings, Cornice, Drip Course
Mouldings, cornice, drip course unless indicated specifically under
separate items shall be considered to be included in masonry items.
However, cut in bricks or stone shall be neglected in measurements.
4.03.13 Embedded Fixtures
Inserts etc. Shall be measured by weight or by number and paid
separately under relevant item in the Schedule of Items.
Masonry Page 7 of 8
4.04.00 Damp Proofing
Damp proofing shall be measured and paid in net area. No deductions
shall however be made for openings less than 0.1 sq. M. in area. No
separate payment shall be made for preparation of base, formworks and
additive for cast-in-situ damp proofing unless specified otherwise.
5.00.00 I.S. CODES
Some of the important relevant codes for this section are: -
IS: 1127: Recommendations for dimensions and workmanship
Of natural building stones for masonry work.
I.S 2185 Code Practice for hollow concrete block.
IS: 1597: Code of Practice for Construction of stone Masonry.
IS: 1609: Code of Practice for laying Damp-proof treatment
Using bitumen felts.
IS: 2212: Code of Practice for Brickwork.
IS: 2250: Code of Practice for preparation and use of Masonry
Mortar.
IS: 5134: Bitumen Impregnated Paper & Board.
*****
Masonry Page 8 of 8
CROPPING PATTERN (AGRICULTURAL AND HORTICULTURAL) IN DIFFERENT ZONES
Cropping Pattern (Agricultural and Horticultural) in Different
Zones, their Average Yields in Comparison to National Average/
Critical Gaps/Reasons Identified and Yield Potential
P. Das
Dy. Director General (Agril. Extension), Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi
ABSTRACT
Multiplicity of cropping systems has been one of main features of Indian
agriculture and it is attributed to rainfed agriculture and prevailing socio-economic
situations of farming community. It has been estimated that more than 250 double
cropping systems are followed throughout the country and based on rationale of
spread of crops in each district in the country, 30 important cropping systems have
been identified. The statistics related to state-wise agro-ecosystems cropping pattern
for 1998-99 and cropping pattern according to land utilization are provided. The
major issues emerging in the irrigated cropping systems along with yield gaps of
some of important cropping systems have also been provided in the text of this
paper.
The information with regard to cropping pattern in horticultural crops particularly
vegetables and tuber crops is not compiled and readily available. However, the
constraints in production and zones/states of cultivation of these crops are given
briefly alongwith research gaps and future thrust areas.
1. INTRODUCTION 2. PREVALENT CROPPING SYSTEMS
Cropping systems of a region are decided by and Multiplicity of cropping systems has been one of the
large, by a number of soil and climatic parameters which main features of Indian agriculture. This may be
determine overall agro-ecological setting for attributed to following two major factors:
nourishment and appropriateness of a crop or set of crops • Rainfed agriculture still accounts for over 92.8 million
for cultivation. Nevertheless, at farmers’ level, potential hectare or 65 per cent of cropped area. A large
productivity and monetary benefits act as guiding diversity of cropping systems exists under rainfed and
principles while opting for a particular crop/cropping dryland areas with an over riding practice of
system. These decisions with respect to choice of crops intercropping, due to greater risks involved in
and cropping systems are further narrowed down under cultivating larger area under a particular crop.
influence of several other forces related to infrastructure • Due to prevailing socio-economic situations (such as;
facilities, socio-economic factors and technological dependency of large population on agriculture, small
developments, all operating interactively at micro-level. land-holding size, very high population pressure on
These are: land resource etc.), improving household food
Infrastructure facilities: Irrigation, transport, storage, security has been an issue of supreme importance to
trade and marketing, post-harvest handling and many million farmers of India, who constitute 56.15
processing etc. million marginal ( electrical / optical signals
1“to T3:
T2
Hello”
l transmit individual bits over the cable:
modulation, encoding, synchronization
2 “From T1: o frame transmission = Data Link function
Hello”
l bits frames
T3
mainframe l frame boundaries
computer
terminals
l addressing
l bit error detection: CRC
o Modems, Ethernets
The objective of this and the following slides is to introduce the concept of
layers. Like any complex computer system, a network is made of components.
This decomposition is, to a large extent, stable: computer networking people
have agreed on a reasonable way to divide the set of functions into what is
called “layers”.
We use the term layer because the decomposition always assumes that different
components can be ordered such that one component interfaces only with two
adjacent components. We call “layers” the components.
We start with the simplest, and the oldest network example: it is a mainframe
connected to terminals. In this case, there are mainly two functions
• physical layer: translates bits into electromagnetic waves;
• data link layer: translates frames into bits.
These two functions are implemented on cables or on radio links. The physical
layer has to do with signal processing and coding; it is the object of the
lecture called “Telecommunications”. The data link layer has to do with bits
and bytes; we will study the data link layer in this lecture.
Introduction
7
A Network
o network layer
l set of functions required to transport packets end-to-end
l examples: IP, Appletalk, IPX
o intermediate system
l forwards data not destined to itself
M1
T1 T4
M2
1
T2 2 3
1a 2a 3a
5a 4a
4, 6a
T3 packet switch
srce=T2, dest=M2, “to T3: hello”
Modern networks have more than the physical and the data link layers. The
network layer is a set of mechanisms that can be used to send packets from one
computer to another in the world. There are two types of networks:
With packet switching, data packets can be carried together on the same link.
They are differentiated by addressing information. Packet switching is the
basis for all data networks today, including the Internet, public data
networks such as Frame Relay or X.25, and even ATM. Packet switches have
queues.
Circuit switching is the way telephone networks operate. A circuit emulates
the physical signals of a direct end-to-end cable. When computers are
connected by a circuit switched network, they establish a direct data link
over the circuit. This is used today for modem access to a data network.
Modern circuit switches are based on byte multiplexing and are thus similar to
packet switches, with the main difference that they perform non-statistical
multiplexing (see later).
A network has intermediate systems (ISs): those are systems that send data to
next ISs or to the destination. Using interconnected ISs saves cable and
bandwidth. Intermediate systems are known under various terms depending on the
context: routers (TCP/IP, AppleTalk,…), switches (X.25, Frame Relay, ATM,
telephone), communication controllers (SNA), network nodes (APPN)
Introduction
8
Transport Layer
o why a transport layer?
l transport layer = makes network services available to programs
l is end-to-end only, not in intermediate systems such as routers
l may add additional functions to network services (reliability, ordering, congestion
control, multiplexing)
o in TCP/IP there are two main transport protocols (there is also RTP)
l UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
– unreliable
– offers a datagram service to the application (unit of information is a message)
l TCP (Transmisssion Control Protocol)
– reliable
– offers a stream service (unit of information is a byte)
o application may use UDP or TCP depending on requirements
o programming interface
l socket API: a library of C functions
l socket is similar to a file descriptor; controls a communication endpoint
– is associated with an IP address, a port number
Physical, data link and network layers are sufficient to build a packet
transport system between computers. However, this is not enough for the
programmer.
When you write a low-level program that uses the network (as we will do in
this lecture), you do not handle packets, but data. The primary goal of the
transport layer is to provide the programmer with an interface to the network.
Second, the transport layer uses the concept of port. A port is an address
that is used locally (on one machine) and identifies the source and the
destination of the packet inside one machine. We will come back to the concept
of ports later in this chapter.
The transport layer exists in two varieties: unreliable and reliable. The
unreliable variety simply sends packets, and does not attempt to guarantee any
delivery. The reliable variety, in contrast, makes sure that data does reach
the destination, even if some packets may be lost from time to time.
Introduction
9
Protocol, service and other fancy definitions
o Peer entities
l two (or more) instances of the same layer
o Protocol and a PDU:
l the rules of the operation followed by peer entities
l the data exchanged is called PDU (Protocol Data Unit)
l there is one protocol (or more) at every layer
o Service and a SDU
l the interface between a layer and the layer above - SAP (Service Access Point)
l the interface data is called a SDU (Service Data Unit)
o Connection
l a protocol is connection oriented if the peer entity must be synchronized before
exchanging useful data (connection set up); otherwise it is connectionless.
A protocol is the formal definition of external behaviour for communicating
entities. It defines:
- format of PDUs
- rules of operation (PDU sent, data delivered, abort)
Examples of protocols are:
TCP
UDP
IP
Ethernet
Protocols are connection oriented or connectionless. A connection exists if
the communication requires some synchronization of all involved parties before
communication can take place. The telephone system is connection oriented:
before A can send some information to B, A has to call B (or vice versa) and
say “hello”. The postal (mail) system is connectionless. If A wants to send
some information to B, A can write a letter and mail it, even if B is not
ready to read it.
Introduction
10
Protocol Architecture
SDU SDU
multiplexing demultiplexing
SAP SAP
procedures
Layer n entity Layer n entity
PDU PDU
Layer n-1
Networking functions are structured as a layered model:
- layer n communicates with other layer n entities using layer n PDUs
- layer n uses the service of layer n-1 and offers a service to layer n+1.
- entities at the same layer are said peer entities
- operation rules between peer entities are called procedures
Layering of protocol entities is reflected by the term of a protocol stack.
Introduction
11
Example: name resolution
1 user clicks:
http://www.zurich.ibm.com/RZ.html
2 DNS query www.zurich.ibm.com
name resolver
name resolver name server
name server
DNS answer www. zurich.ibm .com
A 193.5.61.131
TCP
TCP UDP
UDP UDP
UDP TCP
TCP
IP
IP IP
IP IP
IP
(network layer)
(network layer)
Data Link
Data Link DL
DL DL
DL Data Link
Data Link
(modem, PPP)
(modem, PPP) (modem) (Ether)
(modem) (Ether) (Ether)
(Ether)
Physical
Physical PHY
PHY PHY
PHY Physical
Physical
(twisted pair)
(twisted pair) (TP)
(TP) (TC)
(TC) (thin Coax)
(thin Coax)
Host A P1 router P2 Host B
R1
Flow 2 illustrates the query/response protocol of the Domain Name System (DNS).
The name resolver and the name server are two application programs, probably C
programs making calls to the socket library. The programs use UDP, which is the
non-reliable transport protocol in the TCP/IP stack.
Let us apply the terminology on this example.
“name resolver” uses the UDP service: it creates a request to send data to “name
server”. “name server” is identified by its IP address (for example:
128.178.15.7). “name resolver” also knows that “name server” can be reached by
means of port 53 (a well known convention used in the Internet). The SDU is the
request, with the data. The transport-PDU is called a datagram. It contains the
data, the address and the port numbers. It is identified by 2 in the figure.
UDP creates a request to IP to send data to the name server machine identified by
the IP address 128.178.15.7. The network-PDU is called an IP packet. It contains
the UDP datagram plus the IP addressing information (and some other information,
see later).
IP creates a request to send a data frame over the modem. The modem card creates a
data-link PDU, called a modem “frame”. The frame contains the IP packet, maybe
compressed. Then the data link layer requests transmission of the frame; the
physical layer SDU is a bit. The physical layer PDU is an electromagnetic signal.
At the router
the data frame is received, understood as an IP packet
IP reads the IP destination address (128.178.15.7) and decides to forward it
over its Ethernet interface
IP creates a request to send the data frame over the Ethernet. An Ethernet
frame is created and sent to the name server machine
Introduction
12
An example with TCP
Web Browser
Web Browser Web Server
Web Server
open connection to 193.5.61.131:80 passive open
open (SYN) 80
UDP TCP connect (SYN ACK) TCP UDP
UDP TCP TCP UDP
connect ack (ACK)
send DATA (GET activities.html)
IP
IP IP
IP IP
IP
(network layer)
(network layer)
Data Link
Data Link DL
DL DL
DL Data Link
Data Link
(modem, PPP)
(modem, PPP) (modem) (Ether)
(modem) (Ether) (Ether)
(Ether)
Physical
Physical PHY
PHY PHY
PHY Physical
Physical
(twisted pair)
(twisted pair) (TP)
(TP) (TC)
(TC) (thin Coax)
(thin Coax)
193.5.61.131
Host A P1 router P2 Host B
R1
Here is a second example.
A web browser always uses TCP for communication with a web server.
The web browser starts by requesting from the transport layer the opening of a
connection for reliable data transport. TCP opens a connection to the peer
entity at the web server machine by starting a 3-way handshake. If the
connection can successfully be opened, then data can flow between the web
client and server. TCP monitors missing packets and retransmits them as
appropriate.
The web browser and server can thus assume that they have a reliable data pipe
between them transporting data in sequence and without errors, at least as
long as the TCP layer does not close the connection.
TCP is connection oriented. What is shown is the connection setup phase. TCP
uses IP, which is connectionless. UDP is connectionless.
An observer at P1 or P2 would see the beginning of the message between web
clients and servers only in the third data frame.
Introduction
13
What is the Client-Server model?
distributed applications use the client-server model
o server = program that awaits data (requests) to be sent to it
l interprets a request and send a response
o clients send data (requests) to servers
l wait for a response
user clicks:
http://www.zurich.ibm.com/activities.html
name server
1 Internet
2 query www.zurich.ibm.com
answer www.zurich.ibm.com
IP addr = 193.5.61.131
Web server
IP addr = 193.5.61.131
3 GET activities.html
data (HTML page)
We use the terms “client” and “server” in the following sense.
When two entities say A and B, want to communicate, there is a boostrap
problem: how can you initialize both A and B such that the communication can
take place. One solution is to manually start A, then B, but this defeats the
purpose of networking. The only way we have found so far is to request that
one of the two, say B, is started and immediately puts itself in a listening
position. We say that B is a server. A system, such as A, which talks to B, is
said to be a client.
Being a server or a client is relative to a given protocol. For example,
consider the application level protocol called FTP (file transfer protocol).
The FTP server is a machine that waits for other machines to send requests for
logging in. When an FTP client has contacted an FTP server, then after an
initial navigation phase, the FTP client has to wait for the FTP server to
open a connection back to the client (try it !). In that interaction, the FTP
client is a TCP server, namely, a machine which waits for some other machine
to open a TCP connection.
In everyday’s life, most people use the term “server” to designate a machine
whose main function is to be a server for some protocol: a name server, a file
server, a news server ...
Introduction
14
OSI Architecture
Application Layer
Application Layer 7
Presentation Layer
Presentation Layer 6
end to end layers
Session Layer
Session Layer 5
Transport Layer
Transport Layer 4
global layer Network Layer
Network Layer 3
Data Link Layer
Data Link Layer 2
local layers
Physical Layer
Physical Layer 1
An architecture is a set of external behaviour specifications for a complete
communication system. It describes protocols, but not how to implement them.
The OSI (Open Systems Interconnection) architecture defines protocols and service
specifications.
It is an official standard, similar to the TCP/IP architecture, but is not much
implemented. However, the OSI model is used most frequently to describe all
systems, including TCP/IP
Architectures do not interoperate by themselves at the protocol level. For example,
the OSI transport protocols are not compatible with TCP or UDP. Worse, there is no
compatibility at the service level, so it is not possible to use layer n of one
architecture and put it on top of layer n-1 of some other architectures.
There are fortunately exceptions to this statement. Layer interfaces where service
compatibility is often implemented are:
the data link layer
the transport layer.
For example, it is possible to use various protocol families over the same local area
network (LAN).
The OSI presentation layer is in charge of hiding specific data representation
formats. It defines ASN.1, an abstract, universal means for encoding all types of data
structures. ASN.1 has also become part of the TCP/IP architecture, in the application
layer.
The OSI session layer synchronizes events between end-systems, in order for example to
support failure recovery. It is implemented in TCP/IP over a number of application
layer protocols and TCP.
Introduction
15
The TCP/IP Architecture
OSI layer Number
7
Application Layer
Application Layer - Application Layer
Application Layer
5
Transport Layer
Transport Layer Transport Layer
Transport Layer
4
Network Layer
Network Layer 3 Network Layer
Network Layer Network Layer
Network Layer
Data Link Layer
Data Link Layer 2 Data Link Layer
Data Link Layer Data Link Layer
Data Link Layer
Physical Layer
Physical Layer 1 Physical Layer
Physical Layer Physical Layer
Physical Layer
Host Router Host
(= end-system) (= intermediate system) (= end-system)
The TCP/IP Architecture, or the Internet Architecture is described by a collection
of Internet standards, published in documents called RFCs (Requests For Comments),
available for example from ftp://ftp.switch.ch/standard.
The picture shows all the layers of the Internet Architecture. There exists,
inside every layer, a number of protocols that we will discover in this course.
There exist other architectures, each of them having a different set of layers and
names for layers. There are:
proprietary architectures: SNA (IBM), Decnet (Digital), AppleTalk (Apple),
XNS (Xerox), UUCP (Unix internal protocols), etc
the ITU architecture defines public networks for telephony, telex, fax, data
networks (X.25, Frame Relay, mail and directory services) and ATM
the IEEE LAN architecture defines layers 1 and 2 for local area networks. We
will see some details later.
Having several architectures is a nuisance; everything would be simpler if there
would be only one. Today, the TCP/IP architecture has become dominant, so this is
the only one we will study in detail. The ITU architecture (Frame Relay and ATM)
does also play an important role and we will study it at the end of the course.
Introduction
16
Physical Layer
o layer 1 function is to transmit/receive a sequence of bits on electrical or optical system
Bits are encoded as analog signal; here are examples different channel coding
(Ethernet uses Manchester encoding)
0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0
NRZ
NRZI
Manchester
Differential Manchester
o modulation
l adapt signal to fit a channel, eg. modems (telephone frequency band 300 - 3400 Hz)
l amplitude, frequency, phase modulation, or hybrid (amplitude and phase)
We see here some rudiments of transmission. The diagram shows some very
primitive channel encoding methods. They are used on short distances, for
example with Ethernet or Token Ring.
Introduction
17
Bit Rates
o Bit Rate (débit binaire, Bitrate) of a transmission system = number of bits transmitted
per time unit
units: b/s, kb/s = 1000 b/s, Mb/s = 10e+06 b/s, Gb/s=10e+09 b/s
o Shannon-Hartley law: C max = B log2 ( 1 + S/N ), with B = bandwidth (Hz), S/N = signal
to noise ratio (not expressed in dB)
example: telephone circuit: B = 3 kHz, S/N = 30 dB, Cmax - 30 kb/s
o Practical Bit Rates:
l modem: 2.4 kb/s to 33.6 kb/s (56kb/s on reception over ISDN at server), 9.6 kb/s GSM
l ISDN line: 124 kb/s to 2 Mb/s
l Ethernet: 10 Mb/s, 100 Mb/s, 1Gb/s
l Token Ring 4 Mb/s, 16 Mb/s
l FDDI: 100 Mb/s
l ATM: 2 Mb/s to 622 Mb/s
l SDH: 155 Mb/s to 2.4Gb/s
o Transmission time = time to send x bits at a given bit rate
o Example: time to send 1 MB at 10 kb/s = ?
The bit rate of a channel is the number of bits per second. The bandwidth is
the width of the frequency range that can be used for transmission over the
channel. The bandwidth limits the maximal bit rate that can be obtained using
a given channel.
In general, the information theory gives the maximum bit rate available under
some modelling assumptions. The Shannon-Hartley laws gives the maximum bit
rate, for a given bandwidth, assuming the channel is a white noise channel.
Many people confuse bandwidth and bit rate, but you should keep the
distinction.
The bit rate and the number of bits to transmit determine the transmission
time.
Introduction
Statistical and Non-statistical 18
Multiplexing
o Multiplexing
l several sources use the same link
o Statistical Multiplexing
l the bit rate is less than the sum of the incoming bit rates
l may produce packet loss; requires congestion control
T1
1
T2
2 4
3
T3
Multiplexing means putting several sources on the same link. The most common
ways of multiplexing is by sharing time slots (temporal multiplexing) or
frequency bands (frequency multiplexing). Temporal multiplexing is used in
many telecommunication networks - in circuit switching each source is
allocated with one time slot. When a source does not use the link during its
slot, the available capacity is unused.
In statistical multiplexing data units are stamped with identifiers so that a
source may send data at will.
On a packet switch, the bit rate of the output (4) is often less than the sum
of the bit rates of all inputs (1 to 3). There is a queue at the output; if
several packets arrive at the same time, then only one of them is transmitted
whiles others have to wait. If nothing special is done, then once in a while,
the queue may overflow and packets are lost. This happens everyday on the
Internet. Special mechanisms, called congestion control, are required to avoid
that packet losses happen too frequently. Congestion control is the object of
the advanced lecture on networking.
In contrast, with circuit switching, the bit rate of the outgoing circuit (4
on the picture) is at least equal to the sum of the incoming circuits bit
rates (1 to 3). There is no loss of data.
What is the value of statistical multiplexing ?
Well, economy. Most of the time, sources are not active, so circuit switching
tends to waste bit rates.
Introduction
19
Propagation
o Propagation between A and B = time for the head of signal to travel from A to B
A time
t0 t1 tn
B
s0 s1 sn
si - ti = D (propagation delay)
o D = d /c, where d = distance, c =signal celerity
copper: c= 2.3e+08 m/s; glass: c= 2e+08 m/s;
o Rule of thumb: 5 µs/km; example: earth round trip in fiber: D = 0.2 s
o time through circuits also adds to propagation delays
Propagation is the time taken by the front of a signal to reach the
destination. It is independent of the bit rate.
Propagation of an electro magnetic signal is the speed (also called celerity)
of light. It depends on the wavelength and the element in which the signal is
propagating.
Acoustic waves move at ca. 300 m/s. What is the propagation time if we use an
acoustic phone system between two cities which are 1000 km apart ?
Introduction
20
Examples
o At time 0, computer A sends a packet of size 1000 bytes to B; at what
time is the packet received by B for each of the following cases ?
distance 20 km 20000 km 2 km 20 m
bit rate 10 kb/s 1 Mb/s 10 Mb/s 1 Gb/s
1-way propagation ?
transmission ?
reception time ?
Compute the values for these examples and try to find scenarios where they
apply. Meditate the results.
Introduction
21
Examples
o At time 0, computer A sends a packet of size 1000 bytes to B; at what
time is the packet received by B (c = 2e+08 m/s)?
distance 20 km 20000 km 2 km 20 m
bit rate 10 kb/s 1 Mb/s 10 Mb/s 1 Gb/s
1-way propagation 0.1 ms 100 ms 0.01 ms 0.1µs
transmission 800 ms 8 ms 0.8 ms 8 µs
reception time 800.1 ms 108 ms 0.81 ms 8.1 µs
modem satellite LAN Hippi
Introduction
22
Throughput
o Throughput (am thruput, f débit utile, g Durchsatz) for a transmission
system or a communication flow =
number of useful data bits / time unit
units:
b/s, kb/s, Mb/s
o Example 1:
PCM voice ( 8 kHz, 8 bits per sample -> 64 kb/s)
throughput = 64 kb/s
o Example 2: Stop and Go protocol
The throughput defines how much data can be moved by time unit. It is equal to
the bit rate if there is no protocol (example 1). However, in most practical
cases, the throughput is less than the bit rate for two reasons:
- protocol overhead: protocols like UDP use some bytes to transmit protocol
information. This reduces the throughput. If you send one-byte messages with
UDP, then for every byte you create an Ethernet packet of size 1 + 8 + 20 + 26
= 53 bytes, thus the maximum throughput you could ever get at the UDP service
interface if you use a 64 kb/s channel would be 1.2 kb/s.
- protocol waiting times: some protocols may force you to wait for some event,
as we show on the next page.
Introduction
23
A Simple Protocol: Stop and Go
o Packets may be lost during transmission:
bit errors due to channel imperfections, various noises.
o Computer A sends packets to B; B returns an acknowledgement packet
immediately to confirm that B has received the packet;
A waits for acknowledgement before sending a new packet; if no
acknowledgement comes after a delay T1, then A retransmits
Question: What is the maximum throughput assuming that there are no
losses ?
notation:
l packet length = L, constant (in bits);
l acknowledgement length = l, constant
l channel bit rate = b;
l propagation delay = D
l processing time = 0
This example is a simple protocol, often used, for repairing packet or message
losses. The idea is simple
- identifiy all packets with some number or some other means
- when you send one packet, wait until you receive a confirmation
- after some time, if no confirmation arrives, consider that the packet has
been lost and retransmit.
Compute the maximum throughput of this protocol, assuming the source has an
infinite supply of packets to send, the destination generates the confirmation
instantly, and the bit rate of the channel is constant.
Introduction
24
packet P1 sent Solution (1)
packet P1 acknowledged
T=L/b
2D
T’=l/b time
A
B
cycle time = T + 2D + T’
useful bits per cycle time = L
throughput = Lb / (L + l + 2Db)= b /(ω + β/L)
with ω=(L+l)/L=overhead and β=2Db=bandwidth-delay
product
Introduction
25
Solution (2)
distance 20 km 20000 km 2 km 20 m
bit rate 10 kb/s 1 Mb/s 10 Mb/s 1 Gb/s
propagation 0.1ms 100 ms 0.01 ms 0.1µs
transmission 800 ms 8 ms 0.8 ms 8 µs
reception time 800.1 ms 108 ms 0.81 ms 8.1 µs
modem satellite LAN Hippi
bw delay product 2 bits 200 000 bits 200 bits 200 bits
throughput = b × 99.98% 3.8% 97.56% 97.56%
Introduction
26
Bandwidth-Delay Product
o Consider the scenario :
time
A
B
B says: “stop”
last bit sent by A arrives
β = 2Db
o β = maximum number of bits B can receive after saying stop
o large β means: delayed feedback
As an illustration of the effect of propagation, consider the scenario above.
The number β is called the “bandwidth”-delay product (why with quotation
marks?). It expresses the latency (in terms of number of bits) of a channel.
We will find it important in the rest of the lecture.
Introduction
27
Facts to Remember (this chapter)
o Computer networks are organized using a layered model
o There is one layered model per architecture
l ex. TCP/IP, Appletalk, Novell Netware, OSI
l but the numbering is standard (1 to 7)
o Layers 1 and 2 correspond to cables (or wireless channels)
o Layer 3 = network layer; has mainly intermediate systems, eg. routers
o Layer 4 = transport; is in end systems only
o UDP provide the simplest access to network services
o Layer 5-7 is the application layer (web, e-mail, etc)
o Concepts you should know
l protocol, peer entities, PDU, service
l transmission time versus propagation time
l bandwidth delay product
CHAPTER 9 - BRICK MASONRY
Notes
1. Rates include: -
(a) Lead up to 100 m for all materials for all Items.
(b) Cost of all materials including water.
(c) All lifts for all items unless otherwise specified.
(d) Cost of mixing cement mortar.
(e) Cost of curing.
2. The rates for brick masonry in superstructure include the cost of
scaffolding.
3. Work In foundation and plinth.- For purpose of measurement of masonry
work in foundations and plinths it shall be determined as follows:-
(a) For building-Masonry work below ground floor level or 1.2 m above
average ground level, whichever is lower.
(b) For abutment ,piers and retaining walls of culverts,bridges,walls of
reservoirs, septic tanks, basement and other similar works- upto 1.5 m
above top of foundation concrete.
2. Work In superstructure: - (a) For all works above the level specified In 3(a)
and 3(b)
above.
(b) For compound wall, parapet wall over retaining wall-Entire works above
the average ground level.
5. Standard modular brick of size 19 cm x 9 cm x 9 cm shall be used.
6. Classification of brick masonry: - (a) The common burnt clay brick shall be
classified on the basis of minimum average compressive strength. Each
class of bricks shall be further divided in to two classes, first class and
second class, based on tolerance and shape.
(b) The various types of bricks when tested in accordance with I.S. 3495
(Part I) - 1976 shall have minimum average compressive strength as
follows:
(I)First class table moulded(TM) Chimney Kiln burnt brick/Grog or Ghol
bricks 50kg/sq cm
(ii)Second class TM Chimney Kiln burnt brick 35kg/sq.cm
(iii)Second class TM. Open bhatta or pajwa burnt brick 30kg/sq cm
(iv)Kumbhar bricks burnt in Pajwa 20kg/sq cm.
(c) Tolerance - The dimensions of bricks when tested in accordance with IS-
1077-1976 shall be within the following limits per 20 bricks-
(i) For bricks of class Designation 50 and 35 kg / sq cm
Length 372 to 388 cm (380+ 8 cm)
Width & height 176 to 184 cm (180 + 4 cm)
(ii) For bricks of class Designation 30 kg / sq cm
Length 368 to 392 cm (380+ 12 cm)
Width & height 174 to 186 cm (180 + 6 cm)
(iii) For bricks of class Designation 20 kg / sq cm
Length 350 to 410 cm (380+ 30 cm)
Width & height 165 to 195 cm (180 + 15 cm)
7. Measurements- (i) Dimensions shall be measured correct to the nearest
cm. The area shall be calculated in Sq. m correct to two places of decimal
and cubical contents in cum correct to two places of decimal.
(ii) The brick walls up to three bricks in thickness shall be measured in
multiples of half-brick, which shall be deemed to be inclusive of mortar,
viz.
½ brick wall 10 cm
1 brick wall 20 cm
1½ brick wall 30 cm
2 brcik wall 40 cm
and so on Irrespective of excess of executed width. However width or
thickness in no case be less than specified above.
(iii) Where fractions of half brick occur due to architectural or other
reasons, measurements shall be taken as follows:
(a) Up to 1¼ brick-actual measurements.
(b) Exceeding 1¼ brick-full half-brick.
(iv) For walling which is more than 3 bricks in thickness, actual thickness
of wall shall be measured
(v) The full area of honey comb brick wall shall be measured without
deductions for openings
(vi) No deductions or additions shall be made on any account for the
following:-
(a) Ends of dissimilar materials (that is, joists, beams, lintels, posts,
girders, rafters, pulins, trusses, corbels, steps etc.), up to 0.1 Sq. m
in section.
(b) Openings up to 0.1 Sq. m in area (in calculating area of an opening,
any separate lintels or sills shall be Included with the size of
opening but end portions of lintel shall be excluded and extra width
of rebated reveals, if any, shall also be excluded).
(c) Wall plates, bed plates and bearing of slabs, chazzas and the like,
where thickness does not exceed 10 cm and bearing does not
extend over the full thickness of wall.
(d) Cement concrete blocks for hold fasts and holding down bolts.
(e) Iron fixtures ,such as wall ties , pipes upto 300 mm dia and hold
fast for doors and windows.
(f) Chases of sections not exceeding 50 cm in girth.
8. Rectangular pillar / column shall mean a detached masonry portion such
that Its breadth does not exceed three times Its thickness and thickness
Itself does not exceed three brick lengths.
9. The following Indian standards may be referred to: -
I.S. No. Title
1077-1992 Specifications for common burnt clay building
bricks (third revision). (Reaffirmed 2002)
1905-1987 Code of practice for structural safety of buildings,
Masonry walls (first revision).
2212-1991 Code of practice for brick work(with amendment
No. 1)
3102-1971 Classification of burnt clay solid bricks (second
revision).
3414-1968 Code of practice for design & installation of joints
in buildings.
3495-1992 Methods of tests of burnt clay building bricks.
5454-1978 Methods for sampling of clay building bricks.
(Reaffirmed 2006)
10. The bricks specified under Item 905 of this chapter shall not be used without
written prior permission of the Superintending Engineer/Chief Engineer.
Item No. Item Unit Rate Remark
901 Second class T M. open bhatta or
pajawa burnt brick masonry in
superstructure in-
(a) Cement mortar 1:2 cum 2225.00
(b) Cement mortar 1:3 cum 1936.00
(c) Cement mortar 1:4 cum 1799.00
(d) Cement mortar 1:5 cum 1715.00
(e) Cement mortar 1:6 cum 1649.00
Item No. Item Unit Rate Remark
(f) Cement mortar 1:8 cum 1583.00
902 (a) Add for arch masonry in item cum 95.00
901 for span up to 6 m excluding
centering.
(b) Centering for arch masonry in cum 318.00
item 901 for span up to 6 m.
903 Deduct for Kumhar brick burnt in cum 91.00
Pajawa in items 901
904 Add for second class TM. cum 73.00
Chimney Kiln burnt brick in items
901
905 Add for first class TM. Chimney cum 183.00
Kiln burnt / Grog / Ghol brick in
items 901.
906 Deduct for masonry in plinth and cum 60.00
foundation.
907 (a)Labour only for item 901 cum 329.00
including labour for scaffolding
making mortar & curing.
(b)Deduct from item 907 (a) for cum 44.00
plinth and foundation.
908 (a) Labour only for arch masonry cum 423.00
up to 6 m span excluding
centering but including labour for
making mortar and curing.
(b) Labour only for assembling, cum 154.00
erection,dismantling and cleaning
of centering for arch up to 6 m
span.
909 Extra rate for one-brick or half- cum 88.00
brick wall.
910 Add extra for every additional floor cum 60.00
or every additional 3-m height or
part thereof for such works which
have no intermediate floor.
911 Extra rate for brick masonry cum 88.00
circular in plan. Including wells, to
a mean radius not exceeding 6 m.
912 Extra rate for brick masonry in well
steining for depth-
(a) Up to 6 m cum 60.00
(b) Beyond 6 m to 12 m cum 90.00
(c) Beyond 12 m to 18 m cum 136.00
(d) Beyond 18 m to 24 m cum 204.00
Item No. Item Unit Rate Remark
(e) Beyond 24 m to 30 m cum 306.00
913 Extra rate for brick masonry In cum 89.00
square or rectangular pillars.
914 Extra rate for brick masonry in cum 200.00
circular pillars.
915 Honey comb brick masonry with
second class T M. open bhatta or
Pajawa burnt bricks in-
(a) Cement mortar 1:3 cum 1244.00
(b) Cement mortar 1:4 cum 1200.00
(c) Cement mortar 1:5 cum 1193.00
(d) Cement mortar 1:6 cum 1175.00
(e) Cement mortar 1:8 cum 1160.00
916 Deduct from item 915 for Kumhar cum 65.00
brick burnt in Pajawa.
917 Add to item 915 for second-class cum 53.00
TM. Chimney burnt / Grog / Ghol
brick.
918 Add to item 915 for first class TM. cum 131.00
Chimney burnt / Grog / Ghol brick
919 Labour only for item 915 (a) to (e) cum 339.00
including labour for scaffolding,
making mortar and curing.
920 Second class T M. open bhatta or cum 1044.00
Paiawa burnt dry brick masonry for
soak pits.
921 Deduct from item 920 for Kumhar cum 91.00
brick burnt in Pajawa.
922 Labour only for item 920 cum 133.00
923 Making triangular brackets for cum 2341.00
sunshade over doors and windows
in cut second class TM. Chimney
burnt bricks including corbelling in
cement mortar 1:3.
924 Add to item 923 for first class TM. cum 183.00
Chimney burnt / Grog / Ghol brick.
925 Labour only for item 923 including cum 704.00
labour for scaffolding, making
mortar and curing.
926 Chamfering, rounding masonry Rm 26.00
(other than circular pillars).
927 Cost of water for curing only and one cum, 56.00
included in items 901, 915 & 923. of masonry
Item No. Item Unit Rate Remark
928 Labour for curing only and one cum of 63.00
included in items 907 (a), 908 (a), masonry
919 & 925
CHAPTER 3
Indian agriculture: growth, sustainablity, and vulnerability
3.1 Overview of the agriculture sector
3.1.1 The Green Revolution
3.2 Sustainability issues
3.2.1 Groundwater depletion
3.2.2 Soil degradation
3.3 Vulnerability to climate change
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 37
38 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
CHAPTER 3
Indian agriculture: growth,
sustainability, and vulnerability
Ulka Kelkar1
A
griculture and allied activities constitute the single largest component of India’s GDP (gross
domestic product), contributing 24% of the total. The importance of this sector to the Indian
economy can be gauged by the fact that it provides employment to two-thirds of the total
workforce. The share of agricultural products in exports is also substantial, with agriculture account-
ing for about 15% of export earnings. With a weight of 57% in the consumer price index, food prices
are closely linked with inflation and any adverse shock on agriculture could have cumulative effects on
the economy. Agricultural growth also has a direct impact on poverty eradication, and is an important
factor in employment generation.
The growth of Indian agriculture post-independence and the country’s attainment of self-suffi-
ciency in food grains has been an impressive achievement, but it has come at a high ecological cost.
Moreover, the challenge is far from over. The food demands of the present and future generations have
yet to be met, while the limits of expansion of cultivated land have been reached. Finally, given that
almost two-thirds of the net sown area is rain-fed, Indian agriculture continues to be fundamentally
dependent on the weather, and hence, highly vulnerable to climate change.
This chapter sets the context for the policy case studies on Indian agriculture presented in the next
two chapters. It discusses key features of the agriculture sector, how it is facing multiple ecological and
socio-economic pressures, and the additional stress that is likely to be posed by climate change.
3.1 Overview of the agriculture sector
There are two main cropping seasons in India: the kharif season is during the south-west monsoon
(July–October), during which agricultural activities are undertaken in both rain-fed and irrigated
areas, and the rabi season is during the winter months, during which agricultural activities are under-
taken only in irrigated areas. About 60% of the net sown area of 142 M ha (million hectares) is rain-
fed. Wheat accounts for one-third of the total food-grain production in India, while rice forms about
42% of the total (Table 3.1).
1
The Energy and Resources Institute, India [Valuable input provided by Suruchi Bhadwal is gratefully acknowledged.]
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 39
Table 3.1 Food-grain production (million tonnes)
Crop 1999/2000 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04* 2004/05**
Rice 89.7 85.0 93.3 72.7 87.0 87.8
Wheat 76.4 69.7 72.8 65.1 72.1 73.0
Coarse cereals 30.3 31.1 33.4 25.3 37.8 31.9
Pulses 13.4 11.1 13.4 11.1 15.2 13.7
Food-grain production (by season)
Kharif 105.5 102.1 112.1 87.8 112.0 102.9
Rabi 104.3 94.7 100.8 86.4 100.0 103.5
Total 209.8 196.8 212.9 174.2 212.0 206.4
* 4th advance estimates; ** 2nd advance estimates
Source MoF (2005)
It is worth highlighting that India supports 18% of the world’s population and 15 % of its livestock
on merely 2.2 % of the world’s geographical area. Of India’s reporting area of 306.05 M ha, nearly
46 % of the land area is being utilized for agricultural purposes. The remaining land includes area
under forests (23 %); buildings, roads, railways, surface water (8 %); barren and unculturable land
covered by snow and desert areas (6 %); and other uncultivated land including fallows (17 %).
Table 3.2 compares the pattern of land use between 1950–51 and 1999–2000. There has been a
steady increase in the gross cultivated area, from 132 M ha to 192 M ha, in the past 50 years due to the
increase in cropping intensity, from 111% to 135% over the same period. However, in per capita terms,
agricultural land availability has declined from 0.48 ha in 1951 to 0.15 ha in 2000 (FAI 2004). Indian
agriculture is characterized by small landholdings with the majority of farmers practising subsistence
agriculture. Only 25% of the farmers produce 60% of the total agricultural output of the country
(T E R I 2005). Seventy-eight per cent of landholdings are less than 2 ha, 59% are less than 1 ha, and
only 1.6% are large holdings of more than 10 ha. A majority of farmers lack direct access to markets
and rely on middlemen for marketing their produce in exchange for cash, credit, or agricultural input.
Table 3.2 Land use statistics of India for 1950/51 and 1999/2000 (area in million hectares)
Years
Category 1950/51 1999/2000
Geographical area 328.73 328.73
Reporting area 284.32 306.05
Forests 40.48 69.02
Not available for cultivation 47.52 44.35
Area under non-agricultural uses 9.36 22.97
Other uncultivated land excluding fallow land 49.45 28.49
Net cultivated area 118.75 141.23
Gross cultivated area 131.89 189.74
Net irrigated area 20.85 57.24
Gross irrigated area 22.56 76.34
Source Directorate of Economics and Statistics (2003)
40 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
It is estimated that the requirement of food stock to feed India’s projected population of 1.4 billion
in 2030 will be 114 million tonnes of rice, 83 million tonnes of wheat, 13 million tonnes of maize, 106
million tonnes of fruits, and 193 million tonnes of vegetables (T E R I 2005). This is an enormous
challenge given the limited availability of land and water resources. Most of the area not under forests
or cultivation comprises marginal and sub-marginal lands and the extension of agriculture into this
area will be costly, as it requires extensive work for soil and water conservation, irrigation, and recla-
mation (Gundimeda, Sanyal, Sinha et al. 2005). Competition from more lucrative cash crops means
that there is not much scope for increasing the area under food grains. For instance, a lot of area under
rice in Kerala has been lost to coconut and rubber plantations. The yield of food grains in major
producing states like Punjab and Haryana has also reached a plateau. Consequently, any growth in
food-grain output can be achieved only through rapid increases in productivity (Box 3.1).
Box Policy goals in agriculture
3.1 India’s Tenth Five-year Plan (2002–07) envisages an overall GDP growth rate of 8%
per annum. The Tenth Plan has the following focus areas in the agricultural sector.
P Increase in cropping intensity
P Development of minor irrigation and utilization of created irrigation potential
P Rainwater harvesting and conservation for the development of rain-fed areas and
watershed approach
P Utilization of unutilized and under-utilized wastelands and degraded lands
P Timely and adequate availability of input, such as seeds, fertilizers, and implements
P Improvement of seed production to achieve a desired seed replacement rate
P Promotion of organic farming with the use of organic waste and integrated pest
management
P Strengthening of marketing, processing, and value-addition infrastructure,
conservation of threatened breeds of livestock, and improvement of breeds used for
draught
P Improvement of pasture lands and availability of fodder seeds
P Emphasis on biotechnology for the development of high-yielding seeds
3.1.1 The Green Revolution
In the first half of the century, Indian agriculture registered an extremely low growth rate of 0.3% per
annum. In the five decades since independence, the annual growth rate was about 2.7%. Food-grain
production grew from 50.8 million tonnes in 1950/51 to about 211 million tonnes in 2001/02 (MoF
2005). After being a food deficit country for decades, food imports were virtually eliminated during
the 1960s. This growth was driven by massive public investments in public irrigation and rural electri-
fication, development of research and credit networks, and guaranteed support prices for output and
subsidized input (Mehra and Datt 2004).
Termed as the Green Revolution, this massive expansion of food-grain production started in 1963/
64 when a limited quantity of HYV (high-yielding variety) wheat seed was imported for experimenta-
tion, and found adaptable to Indian conditions with the use of fertilizers. The introduction of HYVs
was supported through the extension of irrigation facilities, better agricultural techniques, water
management, plant protection, and storage and marketing infrastructure. Higher profits meant that
both, areas under cultivation and cropping intensity, increased.
3.2 Sustainability issues
While food security was the imperative behind the Green Revolution, it inadvertently created ecologi-
cal imbalances. The Green Revolution technology required large and assured quantities of water,
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 41
Table 3.3 Average annual growth rate of agriculture (%)
Growth rate of agriculture Overall GDP
Five year plan and allied sectors growth rate
Seventh Plan (1985–90) 3.2 6.0
Annual Plan (1990–92) 1.3 3.5
Eighth Plan (1992–97) 4.7 6.7
Ninth Plan (1997–2002) 2.1 5.5
Tenth Plan (2002–07)
2002/03+ −7.0 4.0
2003/04++ 9.6 8.5
2004/05+++ 1.1 6.9
+ Provisional, ++Quick estimates
+++ Advance estimates
Source MoF (2005)
fertilizers, and pesticides. However, the longer-term environmental consequences of this intensifica-
tion of agriculture included soil degradation, pesticide concentration in food chains, decline in crop
diversity, depletion of groundwater, water-logging, and salinity problems. This section focuses on
groundwater depletion and soil degradation.
3.2.1 Groundwater depletion
The Green Revolution depended on timely irrigation, which was not possible through the state-run
canal irrigation system. The percentage of land irrigated increased from 17% of the gross cropped area
in the 1950s to 41% in 2000. There was a phenomenal increase in privately-owned shallow tube wells,
from about 1000 in 1947 to about 36 000 in 1968/69 to about 20 million presently. The indiscriminate
pumping of groundwater has led to a steep decline in the water table in many places. While
groundwater exploitation is not presently a major concern at the aggregate level, overexploitation is a
serious concern in agriculturally important states. In Punjab, for instance, the level of exploitation is
already 94%. Haryana follows suit, at 84%. The situation is also precarious in Rajasthan (51%) and
Tamil Nadu (60%) (Figure 3.1).
(a) (b)
Figure 3.1 Groundwater availability in (a) 1991 (b) 2001
Source T E R I (2006)
42 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
The problem of groundwater depletion has been aggravated by the practice of providing free or
subsidized electricity for agriculture. Heavily subsidized flat rates on irrigation pumps, free power
policies of certain states, and cross-subsidization of agricultural consumers has meant that the agricul-
ture sector consumes 27% of the total electricity in the country. The electrical energy consumption for
irrigation has increased from 17 817 million kWh (Kilowatt-hour) in 1982/83 to 84 729 million kWh in
2000/01 (Table 3.4).
This has also led to inappropriate cropping patterns with water-intensive sugar cane and rice being
grown in water-scarce areas. For the country as a whole, about 14% of the blocks is either overexploited
or critical, a number, which is expected to reach 60% in just 25 years (World Bank 2005).
TERI’s Green India study estimated the incremental costs of groundwater extraction to be around
Rs 490 million to Rs 980 million per year. It pointed out the equity effects of falling water tables as
they place the resource out of the reach of smaller and marginal farmers who are unable to afford the
higher costs of extraction (T E R I 1998, forthcoming).
With respect to government policy, water is a state-level subject, but water planning cuts across
state boundaries. Unfortunately, the organizational structure for water management at the central
level is very fragmented and there is no institutionalized mechanism for securing coordination among
the many ministries engaged in water management (such as the Ministry of Water Resources, Ministry
of Environment and Forests, Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of Power, and Ministry of
Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation). There is a need for appropriate incentives that encour-
age efficient water usage and discourage perverse cropping patterns. Recent years have seen a growing
interest in participatory irrigation management through the formation of users’ groups called water
users associations (WUAs) and also a proposal for the interlinking of rivers for inter-basin transfers.
3.2.2 Soil degradation
Of India’s total geographical area of 328.73 M ha, it is estimated that an area of about 107.4 M ha has
been degraded (Planning Commission 2001) (Figure 3.2). In a study, T E R I (1998) identified soil
erosion, occurring due to wind and water, as the single largest cause of degradation, followed by
water-logging, salinity, and declining fertility. The study also found that soil was becoming polluted
with municipal and domestic sewage, pesticides, and fertilizers. Soil degradation leads to loss of
productivity, which in turn affects food security and the potential for rural on- and off-farm income
generation.
Subsidies to encourage extensive use of fertilizers and pesticides to improve agricultural produc-
tivity have led to imbalanced nutrient application and soil degradation. India is the fourth largest
producer and user of agro-fertilizers in the world. Consumption and production of fertilizers has
increased from a mere 0.5 kg/ha of application in the 1950s to 89.3 kg/ha in 2000–01.
Also, from 1997 to 2000, about 3.43 lakh ha of land were brought under canal irrigation. Though
this had a positive effect on productivity, in areas where drainage did not receive adequate attention,
this also caused water-logging and secondary problems such as salinization.
Table 3.4 Consumption of electricity by the agricultural sector (million kilowatt-hours)
Consumption by Share of agriculture
Year agriculture sector Total consumption sector (%)
1981/82 15 201 90 245 16.84
1985/86 23 422 122 999 19.04
1990/91 50 321 190 357 26.44
1995/96 85 732 277 029 30.95
1997/98 91 277 299 067 30.52
1998/99 97 195 309 734 30.75
1999/2000 90 934 312 841 29.07
2000/01 (provisional) 84 729 316 539 26.77
Source Directorate of Economics and Statistics (2003) cited in T E R I (2005)
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 43
Figure 3.2 Soil degradation
Source T E R I (2006)
3.3 Vulnerability to climate change
Climate change is expected to disproportionately impact developing countries, whose economies are
closely tied to climate-sensitive sectors like agriculture and which are already facing multiple stresses
due to population growth, urbanization, industrialization, and globalization. In the tropics and sub-
tropics, where some crops are near their maximum temperature tolerance and where rain-fed agricul-
ture dominates, yields are likely to decrease for even small changes in climate, which could lead to an
increased risk of inadequate food supply. Often the poorest in rural areas occupy the most marginal
lands, forcing them to rely on highly vulnerable livelihoods in areas prone to drought, flooding, and
other hazards. Developing countries also lack the financial and technical resources to effectively
defend themselves against natural disasters (IPCC 2001). Thus, regions and communities that are
unable to cope with current climate hazards are also likely to be the most poorly equipped to cope with
the adverse impacts of climate change (Brooks and Adger 2003).
Of particular relevance to India is the fact that climate change will lead to increased variability in
summer monsoon precipitation. As Figure 3.3 shows, the large year-to-year variations in annual
rainfall are reflected in substantive variations in yield. The National Commission on Agriculture (1976)
had estimated that rainfall variations accounted for 50% of the variability in agricultural yields, being
as high as 90% for cotton and groundnut, 47% for wheat, and 45% for barley and jowar.
Given that even today rain-dependent agricultural area constitutes about 60% of the net sown
area of 142 M ha, Indian agriculture continues to be fundamentally dependent on the weather
(Table 3.5).
In particular, it is also observed that the country is facing large and rising economic losses due to
natural disasters, amounting to 2% of the GDP (World Bank 2003). Two-thirds of the total sown area
of the country is drought-prone, with monsoon rains showing high inter-annual, intra-seasonal, and
spatial variability (Table 3.6). 40 M ha of land is prone to floods, with 8 M ha and
30 million people affected each year on an average (NCDM and NDMD 1999). In the pre-monsoon and
post-monsoon seasons, the coastline, particularly the east coast, is vulnerable to tropical cyclones.
44 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
Figure 3.3 Variation during 1960–82 of (a) rice yield throughout the Indian region (b) total food-grain production
(c) all-India rainfall
Source Gadgil (1996)
India’s first national communication, which was submitted to the UNFCCC (United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change) in 2004, describes the potential impact of climate change.
Climate projections indicate marked increase in seasonal surface air temperature in the 21st century,
Table 3.5 Historical data on rainfall levels and kharif crop production in India
Deficient rainfall Monsoon rainfall % Rainfall in July Kharif food grain
years departure from normal (%) production % fall
1972/73 −24 −31 −7
1974/75 −12 −4 −13
1979/80 −19 −16 −19
1982/83 −14 −23 −12
1986/87 −13 −14 −6
1987/88 −19 −29 −7
2002/03 −19 −49 −19
Source MoF (2003)
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 45
becoming conspicuous after the 2040s. Models predict little change in total monsoon rainfall for India
as a whole, but project an overall decrease in the number of rainfall days and increase in rainfall
intensity over a major part of the country. Preliminary assessments reveal a general reduction in the
quantity of available runoff, and an increase in the severity of droughts and intensity of floods in
various parts of India. Wheat yields in central India may drop by two per cent in a pessimistic climate
change scenario (GoI 2004).
The results of various studies regarding the impact of climate change on Indian agriculture are
presented in Table 3.7.
In addition, climate change is expected reduce water availability by altering the hydrological cycle.
Temperature changes will affect evapotranspiration rates, soil moisture, storm intensity, etc. in a
major way, while changes in precipitation will affect the timing and magnitude of droughts and floods,
shift runoff regimes and alter groundwater recharge characteristics (Gleick 1998). These temperature
and precipitation changes will have significant effects on the demand, supply, and quality of water (Lal
and Harasawa 2001). The Third Assessment Report of IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change) points out that the impact of climate change is likely to be most serious in unmanaged or
unsustainably managed water systems that are currently water stressed. It also states with a high level
of confidence that freshwater availability is expected to be highly vulnerable to anticipated climate
Table 3.6 Losses due to droughts (1999–2001)
Districts Villages Population Damage to Estimated value of Cattle population
Year affected affected affected crops area (ha) damaged crops (Rs million) affected
1999 125 – 36 988 000 13 422 000 64.4 34 560 000
2000 110 54 883 37 814 000 36 700 000 3 718.7 54 167 000
2001 103 22 255 8 819 000 6 744 000 – 92 155 000
Source GoI (2001)
Table 3.7 Impact of climate change on agriculture in India: results of various studies
GoI (2004) Decline in yields are offset by increase in carbon dioxide concentrations with the
magnitude varying from one crop to the other in different regions, depending
mostly on the scenario chosen.
Wheat yields in central India may drop by 2% in a pessimistic climate change
scenario.
T E R I (2003) Districts in western Rajasthan, southern Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, northern Karnataka, northern Andhra Pradesh, and southern
Bihar are highly vulnerable to climate change in the context of economic
globalization. Numerous physical (e.g. cropping patterns, crop diversification,
and shifts to drought-/salt-resistant varieties) and socio-economic (e.g.
ownership of assets, access to services, and infrastructural support) factors
come into play in enhancing or constraining the current capacity of farmers to
cope with adverse changes.
IPCC (2001) Temperature rise of 1.5 degree centigrade and a 2 mm increase in precipitation
could result in a decline in rice yields by 3% to 15 %.
Sorghum yields would be affected and yields are predicted to vary from 18% to −22 %
depending on a rise of 2 °C to 4 °C (degree centigrade) in temperatures and
increase by 20% to 40 % of precipitation.
Kumar and Parikh (1998) Economic impacts would be significant even after accounting for farm-level
adaptation. The loss in net revenue at the farm level is estimated to range
between 9% and 25% for a temperature rise of 2 °C to 3.5 °C.
Sanghi, Mendelsohn, A 2 °C rise in mean temperature and a 7% increase in mean
and Dinar (1998) precipitation would reduce net revenues by 12.3% for the country as a whole.
Agriculture in coastal regions of Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Karnataka will be the
most negatively affected. Possible losses are pointed out for the major food-
grain producing regions of Punjab, Haryana, and Western Uttar Pradesh.
46 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
change. In particular, surface runoff is expected to decrease drastically in arid and semi-arid India
under the projected climate change scenarios. Climate change is likely to change the volume as well as
temporal distribution of streamflows (IPCC 2001). The results of various studies on the impact of
climate change on water resources in India are presented in Table 3.8.
The vulnerability of agricultural production to climate change depends not only on the physiologi-
cal response of the affected plant, but also on the ability of the affected socio-economic systems of
production to cope with changes in yield, as well as with changes in the frequency of droughts or
floods. The adaptability of farmers in India is severely restricted by the heavy reliance on natural
factors and the lack of complementary input and institutional support systems. For instance, the New
India Assurance Company estimates that insurers in India have been bearing less than five per cent of
the total economic cost of disaster claims (Shankar 2003). The low levels of insurance penetration in
India are driven home by the fact that after the devastating tsunami of December 2004 with about 10
000 casualties, LIC (Life Insurance Corporation) settled only 268 claims amounting to Rs 2.38 crore
in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Pondicherry. Without adequate recourse to formal credit and insurance,
small and marginal farmers in particular become caught up in a vicious cycle of debt and impoverish-
ment. Therefore, erratic monsoon precipitation due to climate change would adversely affect the
farming community in India and its ability to adapt to the impact of climate change. T E R I (2003)
developed an index of the vulnerability of Indian agriculture to climate change that took into consid-
eration climate sensitivity as well as adaptive capacity, as measured at the district level (Figure 3.4).
Narain (2003) suggests that households engaged in agriculture can employ a range of strategies in
responding to water scarcity. This includes the following.
P Improving access to available water (such as makeshift storages, digging deeper tube wells, ex-
changing irrigation timeshares, buying groundwater, and engaging in water theft)
P Reducing demand for water (such as switching to less water consumptive crops, adopting more
efficient irrigation practices, and altering dates for agricultural operations)
P Coping with the adverse impacts of periodic drought (such as credit, sale of valuables and live-
stock, use of stored seeds and food grains)
P Diversifying sources of livelihood (such as alternative employment opportunities, migration)
The study mentions that many of these response options are to be employed at household level. It
concludes that existing responses may not be adequate to cope with prolonged and worsening water
stress due to climate change.
Kumar and Parikh (2001) build a case for government policy interventions in light of the poten-
tially severe implications of climate change. Specific recommendations include the need for research
Table 3.8 Impact of climate change on water resources in India: results of various studies
GoI (2004) Observed a decline in total runoff for all river basins except Narmada and Tapi.
A decline in runoff by more than two-thirds the amount in the control scenario
has been predicted for the basins of Sabarmati and Luni with severe drought
conditions.
Indo-UK programme (2005) Observed that, except for Godavari, where there are not any significant
changes reported in the annual cycle of rainfall, the Ganges and the Krishna
basins show major declining trends, which is an interesting observation at a
basin scale.
Narula and Bhadwal (2003) Estimated that decrease of 20% to 30% in total flows in the Lakhwar sub-
basin in Uttaranchal on account of climate change alone.
Lal and Harasawa (2001) Studied the impact of climate change on water resources using output from
various GCMs (General Circulation Models).
Tangri and Hasnain (2003) Examined the impact of climate change on glaciers in the Himalayan region.
Wilk and Hughes (2002) Studied impact on mean annual runoff and assured water yields for a reservoir
in southern India.
Designing policies in a world of uncertainty, change, and surprise 47
Figure 3.4 Vulnerability of Indian agriculture to climate change
Source T E R I (2003)
and development on more heat-resistant crop varieties, development of a database of farmer-level
adaptation strategies that can be widely disseminated, and further research on the socio-economic
implications of climate-induced changes with emphasis on security of food supply.
It is important to recognize that policy decisions related to agriculture or water resources will
influence decisions from the farmer’s level to the national level, and have the potential to enhance
adaptive capacity to climate change. Alternately, factors that reduce vulnerability to climate risks –
irrigation, better infrastructure, electricity, credit, crop insurance, markets, transport, and price
information – reduce farmers dependence on climate, and help them to benefit from market opportu-
nities, or switch to alternative crops or employment options. At the other end of the scale are better
health facilities, education, and awareness, which are key developmental priorities but are often
ineffectively implemented due to conflicts, policy gaps, and the sheer magnitude of the problem. The
incorporation of climate change risks in such policies can help farmers tackle current climatic variabil-
ity as well as extreme events like droughts and floods. As a result, such policies have significant impli-
cations for long-term vulnerability reduction and poverty alleviation.
In India, integrated watershed development has emerged as an effective approach in augmenting
water supply through conservation of rainwater in rain-fed farming systems. These farmlands account
for nearly two-thirds of the country’s cultivated land and encompass the arid, semi-arid and drought-
prone regions. Interventions in the dry land/ rain-fed regions that are characteristic of poor climate
were targeted under IWMP (Integrated Watershed Management Project). This Project suggests that an
integrated and coordinated approach be deployed across various ministries to promote soil and water
conservation by optimizing land-use production systems and use of sustainable low-cost location-
specific technologies (MoEF 2001). The watershed approach basically is a project-based development
plan for water harvesting, water conservation, and other related social and economic activities that
seek to enhance the production potential of an area on a sustainable basis. There is growing awareness
48 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
at the central government level that integrated watershed development can also prove to be a potent
instrument of adaptation to climate change. There are special programmes such as DPAP (Drought
Prone Areas Programme) for almost one-sixth of the land area in the arid and semi-arid regions of the
country, in addition to the special programme of watershed treatment in the catchment of river valley
projects and flood prone rivers (Box 3.2).
The role of science and technology has, in the past, also played a crucial role in increasing yields
and production across the country. Biotechnology could be used to develop cultivars specific to certain
weather conditions. This would include the development of drought-resistant, salt–tolerant, and pest-
resistant cultivars of different crops. This would ensure a strong approach to dealing with food secu-
rity besides addressing climate change (Brenner 1996).
At the same time important insights can be drawn from local knowledge or traditional know-how.
Furthermore, local institutions and indigenous arrangements (e.g., micro-credit and land tenure) have
an important role in enhancing the resilience of the poor.
Box Key government programmes
3.2 GoI (Government of India) has several plans and programmes to facilitate the
development of degraded lands to improve conditions in rain-fed regions across the
country.
P DPAP (Drought Prone Area Programme) of GoI is aimed at soil and moisture
conservation in drought prone areas. The primary objective is promotion of overall
economic development mainstreaming marginalized and vulnerable sections.
P DDP (Desert Development Programme) was later introduced to restore ecological
balance, conservation of soil and water and to arrest the desertification through
shelterbelt plantations.
P IWDP (Integrated Wasteland Development Programme) was introduced with the aim to
develop wastelands for overall economic development besides improving economic
conditions of resource poor population.
P NWDPRA (National Watershed Development Programme in Rain-fed Areas) initiated in
1990–91 targeted improvement in agricultural production in rain-fed areas, restoring
ecological balance.
P In order to channelize greater resources for rain-fed areas, NABARD (National Bank for
Agriculture and Rural Development) set up a Watershed Development Fund of Rs two
billion in the year 2000–2001.
P Apart from these, the River Valley Project, Flood Prone River programme, WDPSCA
(watershed development project for shifting cultivation Areas) – were introduced to check
siltation of reservoirs and enhance the productivity of degraded lands.
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52 IISD–T E R I–IDRC Adaptive Policies Project
COST OF CULTIVATION OF SUGARCANE IN ONE ACRE
(During the year 2010-11)
Sl. Amount
Nature of work / Category of Expenditure
No. (in Rs.)
1 Preparation of Land:
a) Ploughing : 2 Times @ Rs.1100 1st time
Rs. 800 2nd time = Rs.1,900
b) Cultivator : 2 Times @ Rs.500, 1st Time
Rs.400, 2nd Time = Rs. 900
c) Formation of Ridges : Rs.500 = Rs. 500 3,300
2 Manure Cost:
4 Tractor Loads Manure @ Rs.1200 per tractor including
Loading and Transport charges (Rs. 1200 x 4 = Rs.4,800) 4,800
3 Spreading of Manure in the filed (Rs.150 per tractor) 600
4 a) 2 DAP Bags @ Rs. 520/- per bag = Rs.1,040
b) 2 Bags Potash per bag Rs.270 = Rs. 540
c) Urea 2 bags + Potash 2 bags @Rs.280/-
per bag (Rs.280x4=Rs.1120/-) = Rs.1,120
d) Ammonium sulphate 4 bags @ Rs.450
per bag (Rs.450x4=Rs.1800/-) = Rs.1,800
e) Micro nutrients = Rs.1,000
f) Applying Fertilizers 4 times @ Rs.200
each time(Rs.200x4=Rs.800) = Rs.1,000
-------------
Rs.6,500 6,500
5 Preparation of Field & Field Channels for Plantation 600
6 Cost of Seed:
a) 4 tonnes Seed @ Rs.1,600/- per tonne = Rs.6,400
b) Transport Charges = Rs.1,200 7,600
7 Plantation of Sugarcane:
a) Cleaning, Spreading & Plantation = Rs.2,000
b) Treatment = Rs. 300
c) Baskets = Rs. 100 2,400
8 Cost of Weedicide 800
9 Spraying of Weedicide 200
10 Water Management 3,000
11 Motor / Sub-mersible pump maintenance 2,500
12 Interest on Bank Loans 2,500
13 Second Dose of Fertilizers
a) Cost of Ammonia + Potash + Complex = Rs.1,675
b) Application = Rs. 150 1,825
14 Cost of 4 Weedings @ Rs.800 per Weeding 3,200
15 Earthling up 2 times @ Rs.1500 each time 3,000
16 Propping 2 times @ Rs.1200/- each time 2,400
17 Pest Control 1,000
18 Land rent 15,000
19 Management & Supervision 2,000
20 Temporary Fencing 2,000
21 Jute rope & Sulphar 200
22 Cutting Charges @ Rs.300 per tonne for 40 tonnes 12,000
23 Transport Charges @ Rs.150 per tonne for 40 tonnes 6,000
TOTAL 83,425
1
Sl. Amount
Nature of work / Category of Expenditure
No. (Rs.)
1 The following expenditures included in the Cost estimate
at Page-1 are intended for 1st crop as well as Ratoon
Crop. Therefore 50% of the following expenditure is to be
equally shared among both Crops.
a) Cost of preparation of land = Rs. 3,300
b) Seed = Rs. 6,400
c) Cutting & Transport = Rs.1,200
d) Cleaning, Treatment & Plantation = Rs. 2,400
e) Weedicides = Rs. 800
----------- 14,100
Rs.14,100
------------
2 Thus actual cost of 1st Crop will be total Cost of
Cultivation at Page-1, viz., Rs.83,425 (minus) 50% of the 76,375
above Costs, viz., Rs.7,050 = Rs.76,375.
YIELD AND INCOME
1 a) Expected yield of Sugarcane in 1 acre (Plant Crop = 40
tonnes)
b) Cost of cultivation for 40 tonnes = Rs. 76,375
c) Cost of cultivation per tonne = Rs. 1,909
(Rs. 76,375/40 tonnes = Rs.1,909)
d) Cost of cultivation per quintal = Rs. 191
(Rs.1909/10 qtls = Rs.190.90 or Rs.191)
2
Large Dam Projects and Displacement in India
The displacement caused by large scale irrigation and hydro-projects has
drawn considerable attention in recent years. Many authors have noted that
project proposals for such large scale water resource management initiatives
seldom include an assessment of the displacement to be caused, or of the
costs of rehabilitation (e.g., Thukral 1992, McCully 1997, Singh 1997).
Numerous studies have also been conducted on resettlement and
rehabilitation of displaced persons and of the impacts of displacement on
income, standards of living and physical and emotional health.
In India, the government, which is the planner, financier, developer and
owner of numerous large dam projects, does not have figures of people
displaced by large dams, either since independence in 1947 or in toto. This
fact is the biggest sign of the fact that displacement and resettlement of
people is the least concern of large dam builders.
This is particularly clear when we see that India is the third largest dam
builder country in the world. It now has over 3600 large dams and over 700
more under construction.
In the present paper, we have attempted to put together numerous surveys
of displacement to arrive at an estimate of the total numbers displaced by
large and medium dams in India. The aim of this paper is to examine
available data and put forth a numerical estimate of displacement from
available data.
It emerges that large dams are the single largest cause of displacement in
India since India got independence in 1947. The World Bank notes that
though large dams constitute only 26.6% of the total WB funded projects
causing displacement, the resulting displacement makes up 62.8% of the
total number of people displaced (Cernea 1996b). It is also apparent that
project authorities do not consider the problems of displacement and
rehabilitation as important parts of the project. The primary concerns are
engineering specifications and electricity and irrigation benefits. In this
event, concerned authorities seldom undertake detailed and systematic
surveys of the population to be displaced (Thukral, 1992). Information on
the extent of displacement is therefore hard to obtain.
Even when such surveys are conducted, many characteristics of these
surveys lead us to question government figures. It has been noted that
project authorities often provide lower displacement figures than might
actually be the case in proposal documents, so as to show a favourable cost
benefit ratio to the funding authority and thus ensure clearance for the
project (McCully, 1997; Cernea, 1996b). A World Bank review of the status
of displacement and rehabilitation has shown that the displacement of as
many as 0.6 million people across 192 projects had not been accounted for
in project planning. In at least one instance, the number of people actually
displaced was seven times the number stated in the project documents
(McCully, 1997:92). Calculation of displaced persons by independent
investigation shows how figures are under-represented by government
authorities. Viegas (1992) points out, drawing on extensive field
investigation, that the number of persons displaced by the Hirakud dam
was between 1.1 lakh and 1.6 lakh, while the official figures are only 1.1
lakh. Fernandes & Thukral (1989) point out that unofficial figures of
displacement due to the Hirakud dam are 1.8 lakh persons (Pattnaik, Das &
Misra, 1987, quoted in Fernandes & Thukral 1989). In case of Bargi dam
he
project on Narmada river in western Madhya Pradesh, till t dam was
constructed and reservoir was filled, the project authorities kept saying that
101 villages will be submerged. However, when the reservoir was filled, the
number of villages submerged happen to be 162. Then, the Chief Engineer
just put a white paint on the old figures and wrote down the new figures.
The paint being of bad quality, for a long time both old and new figures
continued to remain visible (Jhaveri and Singh, 1997).
Further, Thukral (1992) points out that displacement in dam projects often
begins before surveys are complete. This obviously leads to underestimates
of the number of persons displaced.
Another shortcoming of estimating dam-related displacement is that only
reservoir displacement is taken into account. Large dam projects can
displace people in a number of ways including due to colonies, due to
canals, downstream impacts, catchment area treatment, compensatory
afforestation, secondary displacement (at resettlement colonies, for example)
and due to related conservation schemes like sanctuaries and national
parks. That figures of all such categories displacement, when put together,
can lead to much larger figures of displacement as can be seen from the
case of Sardar Sarovar Project, under construction on Narmada river in
Gujarat state in western India. Here, as per the latest figures of government
estimates, while over 41,000 families will get displaced due to reservoir. The
canals of SSP will affect a much larger number of people as canals take up
186,000 ha of land compared to reservoir area of 40,000 ha. As per
conservative estimates, 24,000 khatedaars (land-holding families, meaning
thereby, a much larger number of families, since one joint land holder
generally represents many more families) will be seriously affected by
canals. Similarly, over 10,000 fisherfolk families will lose their livelihood in
downstream areas due to complete stoppage of riverflow in nonmonsoon
months due to the dam. About 1,000 families have already been affected by
the colonies.
The World Bank (1991) estimates that equivalent of some 2-5% of the
irrigated command area is taken up by canals and a further 3-8% of land is
taken up by reservoirs. That these can be gross underestimations is
apparent from the case of SSP quoted above, where equivalent of over 10%
of projected irrigated command area is to be taken away by canals.
Similarly, in case of Subernarekha project on Bihar-Orissa border, the
submergence land is over 12% of projected command area land.
Displacement also takes place where townships are established for technical
and administrative personnel involved in the construction of the project,
and where protected areas are established as compensatory measures for
the forest lands and natural habitats that are lost to submergence. In areas
where the oustees are to be resettled, many of the previous residents who do
not have title to the land they cultivate are forced to leave as the land is
bought and allotted to project oustees. This paper also reflects only reservoir
displacement, while accepting that these figures grossly under estimate the
displacement caused by large dam projects.
Estimates of displacement also fail to take into account the backwater
effect, i.e. the rise in water level as the reservoir begins to silt up. As a result
of the submergence are being larger than originally estimated, larger
numbers of people are displaced than was originally thought to be the case.
Further, persons resettled on the edges of the reservoir may be forced to
move repeatedly as the waters rise to submerge the new settlements.
Improper surveying also leads to people being resettled within the planned
submergence area. Such multiple displacement is not taken into account
when estimating the numbers displaced by a dam project. [A lack of
coordination be tween different projects may also lead to oustees being
forced to move repeatedly. Persons resettled due to submergence may come
in the way of industrial plants, mines, or railway lines that are separate
components of the plan to “develop” a region.]
Displacement due to dams in India has been variously estimated.
Fernandes, Das & Rao (1989) claimed a decade ago that Indians displaced
by dam projects numbered 21 million. As the authors themselves pointed
out, these were very conservative estimates. A recent statement by Shri N.C.
Saxena (the then Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development, Government of
India) however put the total number of persons displaced due to large dams
at 40 million. He said in an open meeting that most of them have not been
resettled. Roy (1999), based on a survey of 54 projects estimated the people
displaced by large dams in last 50 years to be 33 million.
A review by the World Bank posits that an average of 13,000 people are
displaced by each new large dam constructed currently (Cernea 1996b). By
this estimate, Indians displaced by the country’s 3000+ large dams would
number over 39 million. The compilation of figures in the present study
shows a total of 4 387 625 persons displaced across the 140 large and
medium dams included in the survey. The average for these 140 dams thus
comes to 31 340 persons per dam. It is apparent then that estimates of only
2 million people having been displaced by all dams in India till 1990 are
vastly inaccurate (Gleick 1999). While the sample used here is not meant to
be representative of all of the India’s dam projects, it emerges that the order
of magnitude in which displacement should be estimated is in the tens of
millions.
Conclusion:
1. Accurate figures of people displaced by large dam projects is difficult to
come by due to the utter lack of sensitivity shown by the promoters of
large dams across the world.
2. Available estimates of people displaced by large and medium dams in
India show that the 140 dams for which such figures are available, have
displaced over 4.4 million people. However, firstly, these are only
government or World Bank estimates and hence are likely to be very
conservative figures. Secondly, these only figures of people displaced by
reservoirs and do not include people displaced by related works of dam
projects like canals, colonies, downstream impacts, compensatory
afforestation, catchment treatment and sanctuaries.
3. While as per GOI admission, less than a quarter of estimated 40 million
people displaced by large dams in fifty years have been resettled in India,
there is no resettlement of other categories of displaced as there is no
policy.
4. The weakest sections of people in India, namely the tribals, the
scheduled castes and backward caste people have suffered maximum in
the process of displacement, much disproportionate to their population
percentages. Women among these classes suffer even more.
5. The condition of people displaced by SSP, who are claimed to have been
resettled is pathetic, with basic civic amenities and livelihoods severely
endangered and standard of living much worse than before displacement,
as per many independent assessments. If this is the condition of people
displaced by most controversial, most visible project that is under
scrutiny of the highest court in India and that was for a long time under
the scrutiny of the World Bank, and of a project whose proponent claim
that the resettlement is best in the world, the condition of other
displaced can be expected to be worse.
6. India even now does not have a national resettlement policy. Not that
existence of one would help unless there are legal institutional
mechanisms to ensure its implementation. This is abundantly clear from
the condition of people under the World Bank projects even now, even as
the World Bank continues to have an R&R policy that ensures that living
standards of people must improve after resettlement.
7. That leads us to the last conclusion. This submission is not just about
numbers. Numbers are necessary to reiterate the seriousness of the
issue of displacement due to large dams. This submission would like to
emphasize that unless past performances are analysed honestly,
ruthlessly and thoroughly, no amount of policy making will help.
Notes:
1.Figures on power generation are derived from CBIP report on large dams.
Where two figures for submergence areas are provided, the latter figure is
from CBIP (1987).
2. For entries marked with a *, the displacement figures for under
construction projects have been estimated from the 1971 census.
Displacement by the time of completion of the project is expected to be
significantly larger.
Sources:
Bhalla, Surjit S. , 1999, private communication regarding CWC figures of
displacement compiled by him on 4 th October 1999.
Cernea, M.M. 1996. “Public Policy Responses to Development Induced
Population Displacement”. EPW: June 15 1996:1515-1523.
E.G. Thukral (ed.) Big Dams, Displaced People: Rivers of Sorrow, Rivers of
Change. Sage Publications, New Delhi.
Fernandes, W. S.C. Das & Sam Rao. 1989. “Displacement & Rehabilitation :
an estimate of the extent and prospects” in W. Fernandes & E.G. Thukral
(eds.).Development, Displacement and Rehabilitation. ISI. New Delhi.
Fernandes W. & E.G. Thukral (eds.)1989. Development, Displacement and
Rehabilitation. ISI. New Delhi.
Fernandes, W., S. Choudhury, M. Rao & N. Misra. 1993. Deforestation
Displacement and Impoverishment of Tribals: Are Tribal Sub-plans the
Solution? Unpublished report. ISI. New Delhi.
Gleick, P.H. 1999. The World’s Water: The Biennial Report on Freshwater
Resources. Island Press. Washington D.C.
Hemadri, R. 1999. “Indian Experience on Displacement, Resettlement, and
Development: People’s Perspectives”. Annexure to WCD Submission on
Dams, Displacement, Policy and Law in India.
Jhaveri, Jharana and Anurag Singh, 1997. Kaise Jeebo Re, documentary
film on displacement in Narmada Valley. Jan Madhyam, New Delhi.
Leidermann, S.M.1999. “Environmental Refugees from Energy Projects:
Exploration, Extraction, Construction, Operation and Waste Disposal"
Unpublished paper for the "Symposium on Global Connections:
Environmental Justice in the Americas and Abroad" at the Annual Meeting
of the Geological Society of America Thursday, October 23, 1997 Salt City
Convention Center, Salt Lake, City Utah
McCully, Patrick. 1997. Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large
Dams. Orient Longman. Hyderabad, India.
Misra, Swati. 1995. “Development, Displacement and Rehabilitation: with
specific reference to Big Dams in India”. CSSS, SSS,JNU.
Roy Arundhati, 1999. The Greater Common Good, India Book Distributors,
Delhi.
Singh, Satyajit. 1997. Taming the Waters: the political economy of large dams
in India. Delhi. Oxford University Press.
Smitha, Sunil. 1996. “Fishing in the Tawa reservoir: Adivasi’s Struggle for
Livelihood” EPW. April 6, 1996:870-872.
World Bank 1991. India Irrigation Sector Review, World Bank, Washington.
Following numbers have been used in the attached excel file containing
the displacement figures in Indian dams.
1. World Bank. 1985. Inventory of Dams related to World Bank Projects.
2. Daud, Justice S.M. 1993. The Indian People’s Tribunal on
Environment and Human Rights. First Report, Bombay 1993.
3. Gleick, P.H. (ed.) 1993. Water in Crisis: A Guide to the World’s Fresh
Water Resources. Oxford University Press . Oxford. Table G-11
4. Chambers, R.1988. Managing Canal Irrigation: Practical Analysis
from South Asia. Cambridge University Press. Cambridge
5. Rich, B. 1994. Mortgaging the Earth: The World Bank, Environment,
Impoverishment and the Crisis of Development. Beacon Press. Boston,
MA.
6. World Bank. 1993. “Early Experiences with Involuntary Resettlement:
Impact Evaluation on India- Maharashtra Irrigation II project”. OED.
7. Scudder, T. 1973. “Summary: Resettlement” in Ackerman, et al. (ed.)
Man Made Lakes: Their Problems and Environmental Effects. American
Geophysical Union. Washington D.C.
8. Viegas, P. 1992. “The Hirakud Dam Oustees: Thirty Years After”. In
E.G. Thukral (ed.)BigDams, Displaced People: Rivers of Sorrow, Rivers
of Change. Sage Publications, New Delhi.
9. India Today, 10 September 1993
10. Maloney, C. 1990. ‘Environmental and Project Displacement of
Population in India’ UFSI Field Reports. No. 14.
11. Goodland, R. 1995. ‘How to Distinguish Better Hydros from Worse’.
Unpublished MS.
12. Cernea, M.M. 1994. ‘African Population Resettlement in a Global
Context’. In C.C. Cook (ed.)Involuntary resettlement in Africa : Selected
Papers from a Conference on Environment and Resettlement Issues in
Africa. World Bank Technical Paper, No. 227.
13. Bhanot, R. & M. Singh.1992.”The Oustees of the Pong Dam: Their
Search for a Home. In E.G. Thukral (ed.)
14. Goldsmith, E. & Hildyard, N. 1984. The Social and Environmental
Impacts of Large Dams Vol. 1. Wadebridge Ecological Centre,
Cornwall.
15. Cernea, M.M. & S.E. Guggenheim. 1993. Anthropological Approaches
to Resettlement :Policy, Practice and Theory.Westview Press. Boulder,
Colorado.
16. Motor-Columbus/Appio & Associates. 1979. ‘Lokoja Hydroelectric
Project Feasibility Study’ Appendix C2: ‘International Resettlement
Experience’NEPA, Lagos.
17. Billorey, R. 1993. ‘Selaulim Dam’, in C. Alvares (ed.) Fish Curry and
Rice: A citizen’s Report on the State of the Goan
Environment. ECOFORUM. Mapusa, Goa.
18. Maloney, Clarence. 1991. Environmental and project displacement of
population in India, part I: development and deracination. Field
Staff Reports of Universities Field Staff International and Natural
Heritage Institute. Asia, 1990-91/No.14, 16pp.
19. CBIP. 1979/1987. Large dams in India. 2. Vols. Central Board of
Irrigation and Power. Chankyapuri, New Delhi.
20. Cernea, M.M. 1996b. Resettlement and Development : The Bankwide
review of projects involving involuntary resettlement 1986-1993.
World Bank. Washington DC. 1996.
Learning
12
Earthquake Design
Earthquake Tip and
Construction
How do Brick Masonry Houses behave during Earthquakes?
Behaviour of Brick Masonry Walls by horizontal forces due to earthquake. A wall topples
Masonry buildings are brittle structures and one of down easily if pushed horizontally at the top in a
the most vulnerable of the entire building stock under direction perpendicular to its plane (termed weak
strong earthquake shaking. The large number of direction), but offers much greater resistance if pushed
human fatalities in such constructions during the past along its length (termed strong direction) (Figure 1b).
earthquakes in India corroborates this. Thus, it is very The ground shakes simultaneously in the vertical
important to improve the seismic behaviour of and two horizontal directions during earthquakes
masonry buildings. A number of earthquake-resistant (IITK-BMTPC Earthquake Tip 5). However, the
features can be introduced to achieve this objective. horizontal vibrations are the most damaging to normal
Ground vibrations during earthquakes cause masonry buildings. Horizontal inertia force developed
inertia forces at locations of mass in the building. at the roof transfers to the walls acting either in the
These forces travel through the roof and walls to the weak or in the strong direction. If all the walls are not
foundation. The main emphasis is on ensuring that tied together like a box, the walls loaded in their weak
these forces reach the ground without causing major direction tend to topple (Figure 2a).
damage or collapse. Of the three components of a To ensure good seismic performance, all walls
masonry building (roof, wall and foundation) (Figure must be joined properly to the adjacent walls. In this
1a), the walls are most vulnerable to damage caused way, walls loaded in their weak direction can take
advantage of the good lateral resistance offered by
walls loaded in their strong direction (Figure 2b).
Further, walls also need to be tied to the roof and
Walls foundation to preserve their overall integrity.
Roof
Toppling
A
B
Foundation
B
(a) Basic components of a masonry building
Pushed in the plane of the wall
A Direction of
earthquake
shaking
A Weak
Direction (a) For the direction of earthquake shaking shown,
wall B tends to fail
Toothed joints
in masonry
A courses
Direction of B B or L-shaped
dowel bars
earthquake shaking
Strong
Direction
Toppling B
A
Pushed perpendicular
to the plane of the wall Direction of
earthquake Direction of
shaking earthquake
shaking
(b) Direction of force on a wall critically determines (b) Wall B properly connected to Wall A (Note: roof
its earthquake performance is not shown): Walls A (loaded in strong direction)
Figure 1: Basic components of a masonry support Walls B (loaded in weak direction)
building – walls are sensitive to direction of Figure 2: Advantage sharing between walls –
earthquake forces. only possible if walls are well connected.
23
IITK-BMTPC Earthquake Tip 12
How do Brick Masonry Houses behave during Earthquakes? page 2
How to Improve Behaviour of Masonry Walls Choice and Quality of Building Materials
Masonry walls are slender because of their small Earthquake performance of a masonry wall is very
thickness compared to their height and length. A sensitive to the properties of its constituents, namely
simple way of making these walls behave well during masonry units and mortar. The properties of these
earthquake shaking is by making them act together as materials vary across India due to variation in raw
a box along with the roof at the top and with the materials and construction methods. A variety of
foundation at the bottom. A number of construction masonry units are used in the country, e.g., clay bricks
aspects are required to ensure this box action. Firstly, (burnt and unburnt), concrete blocks (solid and
connections between the walls should be good. This hollow), stone blocks. Burnt clay bricks are most
can be achieved by (a) ensuring good interlocking of commonly used. These bricks are inherently porous,
the masonry courses at the junctions, and (b) and so they absorb water. Excessive porosity is
employing horizontal bands at various levels, detrimental to good masonry behaviour because the
particularly at the lintel level. Secondly, the sizes of bricks suck away water from the adjoining mortar,
door and window openings need to be kept small. The which results in poor bond between brick and mortar,
smaller the openings, the larger is the resistance and in difficulty in positioning masonry units. For this
offered by the wall. Thirdly, the tendency of a wall to reason, bricks with low porosity are to be used, and
topple when pushed in the weak direction can be they must be soaked in water before use to minimise
reduced by limiting its length-to-thickness and height- the amount of water drawn away from the mortar.
to-thickness ratios (Figure 3). Design codes specify Various mortars are used, e.g., mud, cement-sand,
limits for these ratios. A wall that is too tall or too long or cement-sand-lime. Of these, mud mortar is the
in comparison to its thickness, is particularly weakest; it crushes easily when dry, flows outward
vulnerable to shaking in its weak direction (Figure 3). and has very low earthquake resistance. Cement-sand
mortar with lime is the most suitable. This mortar mix
provides excellent workability for laying bricks,
stretches without crumbling at low earthquake
shaking, and bonds well with bricks. The earthquake
response of masonry walls depends on the relative
Overturning strengths of brick and mortar. Bricks must be stronger
than mortar. Excessive thickness of mortar is not
Overturning desirable. A 10mm thick mortar layer is generally
satisfactory from practical and aesthetic
considerations. Indian Standards prescribe the
preferred types and grades of bricks and mortars to be
used in buildings in each seismic zone.
Soil Soil
Thick Wall (1½ brick) Short Wall (1 brick) Related Earthquake Tip
versus versus Tip 5: What are the seismic effects on structures?
Thin Wall (1 brick) Tall Wall (1 brick)
Reading Material
IS 1905, (1987), Indian Standard Code of Practice for Structural Use of
Unreinforced Masonry, Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi
Large portion of wall
Inertia force IS 4326, (1993), Indian Standard Code of Practice for Earthquake Resistant
from roof Design and Construction of Buildings, Bureau of Indian Standards,
not supported by
cross walls New Delhi
IS 13828, (1993), Indian Standard Guidelines for Improving Earthquake
Resistance of Low-strength Masonry Buildings, Bureau of Indian
Cross Wall
Standards, New Delhi
Long Wall Paulay,T., and Priestley,M.J.N., (1992), Seismic Design of Reinforced
Cross Wall Concrete and Masonry Buildings, John Wiley & Sons, USA
Authored by:
C.V.R.Murty
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur
Kanpur, India
Sponsored by:
Short Wall Building Materials and Technology Promotion
Good support offered
by cross walls Council, New Delhi, India
Figure 3: Slender walls are vulnerable – height This release is a property of IIT Kanpur and BMTPC New
and length to be kept within limits. Note: In this Delhi. It may be reproduced without changing its contents
and with due acknowledgement. Suggestions/comments
figure, the effect of roof on walls is not shown. may be sent to: nicee@iitk.ac.in. Visit www.nicee.org or
www.bmtpc.org, to see previous IITK-BMTPC Earthquake Tips.
24
HTML Crash Course
By Daniel D'Agostino
nd
2 June 2007
th
Revised 19 June 2007
HTML Kickstart: Tools Needed
A text editor
* Notepad is fine
* Chami's HTML-Kit is better
* Other systems can use their respective text
editors
A web browser, preferably two
* Firefox
* Internet Explorer
Some good reference
* http://www.w3schools.com 2
HTML Kickstart: HTML Demo
* HTML is just text
* HTML tags give text a special meaning
* Create a new text file
* Name it test.htm (htm = html)
* Write the following in the file:
“The future is now.”
* Now open the file with a web browser.
* What happened to the text enclosed in tags?
3
HTML Kickstart: HTML Syntax
* HTML tags normally have a start tag
() and a closing tag ()
* You can have multiple tags around the
same text but they must be closed in
reverse order
Hello!
* Tags are sometimes called elements
4
HTML Text Formatting: Spacing
White space
* newlines
* multiple spaces
Spacing tags
*
*
* is called an empty tag
* Block and inline elements
5
HTML Text Formatting:
* The tag is deprecated
* Use it until you learn better things
* HTML tags can have attributes
* attributes:
* face
* color
* size
* Order of attributes not important
* Values in quotes
6
HTML Text Formatting: Headings
* through
* Hierarchal structure (use for page
title, etc)
* Headings may be customised (like all
other text)
Heading 1
Heading 2
Heading 3
7
Why Layout Tags are Bad
* Previous example has lots of extra layout
code
* A lot of layout code is repeated several
times
* It adds nothing to the meaning of the text
(the heading is still a heading)
* Ideally content and presentation should
be separate
* This is achieved with CSS (another
language)... for now live with HTML
8
Logical Tags vs Layout Tags
* is very bad
* , and are bad as well
* and should be used
instead of and
* should not be used because text can
be confused with links
* means text should stand out
* means text should be emphasised
* and just mean the text should
look different (no meaning)
* example of JAWS browser reading text
* not or not?
9
HTML Text Formatting: Quotations
The tag
* needs inner tags (e.g. )
* block element
The tag
* inline element
* browser incompatibilities
10
HTML Comments
Useless in HTML
* demonstrate using
* HTML tags are clear and legible
* HTML comments increase the size of
the page, unlike with programming
11
HTML Text Formatting: Code
Tags used to format source code in a
page
* (inline, monospace)
* (inline, not monospace)
* (block, monospace, kills
whitespace)
12
HTML Text Formatting: Other
can be aligned left, right, center or justify (left
is usually best)
Serif fonts are best for printed media; sans-serif
are best for reading off a screen
Horizontal rules (): another empty tag
More (less useful) text formatting tags:
http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_formatting.asp
13
HTML Entities
* You cannot use characters
because they are used for HTML tags
* Entities are used where special characters
are needed
* Examples: < > © & "
* Entity formats: name and number
* Reference:
http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_entitiesref.asp
14
HTML Links
* Link is the most important thing
* Format: link
* Links are relative unless they start with
a protocol (e.g. http:// or file://)
* google
- wrong! (relative)
* For internal links, relative links are better
* shorter
* transparent when relocating website
15
Relative Links: Folder Navigation
* / - root
* .. - parent directory
* . - current directory
* dir/ - child directory named 'dir'
* ../dir1/ - 'dir1' directory in parent directory
Append slash to domains/folders to prevent
multiple requests
16
HTML Links: Local Links
* Used to link to a specific point in a page
* local link
* local anchor (old)
* local anchor (best)
* Example of simple table of contents
17
Links to other media
mailto: links
* try mailto: in browser
* mailto: link
* additional parameters
* make it VERY clear that mail client will pop up
Other file types (zip, pdf, doc, etc)
* Linking to any file type is possible, not just htm
* make it clear that link does not go to a webpage
* it is very annoying to have a pdf load when a
webpage is expected
* put a little icon or something
18
Notes about links
When you link to a folder, it will fetch index.*, so
index.htm is generally the first file you should create
Link text should be descriptive (e.g. “Photos of my
garden”) to show where they go
Link text should not be an action (e.g. “Click here!”)
* link destination is not clear
* people don't like being told what to do
Use title attribute when a link cannot be clear
19
HTML Lists
* Ordered Lists (, )
* Unordered Lists (, )
* When to use each
* Definition Lists (, , )
* Nested Lists
20
HTML Images
* Images are separate files (compare doc
with htm)
*
* ALT is not there to popup text, even
though Internet Explorer does it
* ALT = alternate text, used if the image
fails to load
* Use title attribute to popup text
Other attributes: width, height, border, title, align,
hspace, vspace
21
HTML Images: Advice
Use only jpg, gif and png formats
* bitmaps are too large
* other formats are not always readable
Specify a width and a height for the image to
make sure page doesn't keep resizing every time
an image loads
22
Thumbnailing
* To make a thumbnail, enclose an image in a link
* It is possible to use the same picture and
resize it using width and height attributes
* Very bad – wastes bandwidth!
23
Image Maps
This section is here for completeness' sake and
can be skipped
* image map => image with clickable areas
* tag, id attribute
* tag, attributes: alt, coords, href,
shape, title
* shape can be rect, circle or polygon
24
HTML Tables
* A table is made up of rows and columns
* A table can be considered a list of rows
* A row can be considered a list of cells
* : table
* : table row
* : table data (cell)
* : table heading
25
HTML Tables: Example
Row 1 Cell 1
Row 1 Cell 2
Row 2 Cell 1
Row 2 Cell 2
26
HTML Tables: Attributes
* cellpadding and cellspacing (difference
between padding and margin)
* colspan and rowspan (merging cells)
* summary
* usual width, height, border, background,
bgcolor
27
Basic Page Layout with Tables
Page Title
Navigation Content
28
Why Tables are Not So Good
* They still bloat the page with presentation
information
* They defeat the purpose of having a
logical relationship between rows and
columns
Item Price
A $4.99
B $3.50
C $8.99
D $1.00
* They are still better than frames (next) 29
HTML Frames
* Why frames are/were used
* Navigation in one file
* Why frames are bad
* No logical page structure
* Printing problems (old)
* Browser compatibility (old)
* Search engine difficulties
* If a search engine does find a page,
that page is isolated
* Address bar does not tell you where you are
30
Frames (continued)
* Why frames are bad (continued)
* Cannot view source
* Bookmarking/deep-linking
* Why there is no excuse to use frames
* Now there are languages (e.g. PHP) for
server-side page inclusion
* Targeting links
* target attribute: _top, _blank
* not recommended!
31
HTML Forms
* Forms are a way of interacting with a
website (e.g. an application form)
* Forms are useless until you know a
language capable of processing them
(e.g. PHP)
* The tag:
* method (difference between get/post)
* name/id
* action
32
HTML Forms:
tag used for most inputs
* type: button, checkbox, file, hidden,
image, password, radio, reset, submit,
text
* importance of submit button
* id attribute (to distinguish input fields)
* value attribute (to set a default value)
33
HTML Forms: Other input tags
hi
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
34
Creates a border around some elements, good for
distinguishing a form or parts of a form
Caption!
Other stuff...
35
Meaning of HTML
Now that you know HTML, you can understand
what it stands for.
HTML = Hypertext Markup Language
Hypertext is about links.
A markup language differs from a programming
language in that it is text-based and uses tags to
'mark up' text.
36
History of HTML:
* Once upon a time there was HTML 3.2
* HTML 3.2 introduced the tag
* This allowed webmasters to handle both
presentation and content using HTML
* It made a mess
* HTML 4 was later introduced, along with
CSS. HTML handles page structure, while
CSS handles layout.
* The latest standard in pure HTML is
HTML 4.01
The latest HTML standard is XHTML 1.1
* HTML 5 and XHTML 2 are being developed 37
History of HTML: The Browser Wars
* Once upon a time there were no
standards for HTML
* Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape
Navigator were the top browsers at the
time, so they decided which HTML tags
to create
* They made a mess
* Each one started inventing its own tags,
e.g. Microsoft invented and
Netscape invented , both of which
are very annoying
38
History of HTML: W3C
* A body was needed to set standards
* The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
was created
* The W3C is directed by the inventor of
the World Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee
* Tim Berners-Lee was knighted in July 2004
* The W3C sets standards of HTML and
many other web technologies
* The W3C also maintains an HTML validator:
http://validator.w3.org/
* Your HTML will not validate as it is!
39
HTML Document Structure
* You can't just throw your tags around
the page blindly
* There is a document structure that must
be adhered to
* Each HTML document consists of a head
and a body
* All your content goes in the body
* The head section contains information
about the page
40
HTML Document Structure Example
My page
41
Head Section Explained
* is the browser title
* tags are metadata, i.e. data
about data, i.e. information about the page
* tags can include keywords, author,
description, etc.
* They are mostly useless but the one in the
example (which specifies the character
encoding of the page) is necessary for
validation
* Don't try to remember the character
encoding meta tag by heart... just copy and
paste!
42
Document Type Definition
Before the tag, we must place a Document
Type Definition showing the HTML version and
one of three document types:
* Transitional – the validator is very lenient
* Strict – recommended for good code
* Frameset – used for frames (keep away)
The DTD is another of those things you copy and
paste and don't remember by heart
43
DTDs for HTML 4.01
Taken from:
http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_whyusehtml4.asp
44
Validate your code
* Put one of those DTDs (preferably the
strict one) at the beginning of your HTML
page, before the tag
* Try validating your page against the
W3C Validator now
* The Validator will complain if any HTML is
not well-formed
* Don't worry if you see loads of errors...
errors tend to cascade so chances are
that fixing one line will solve about 20
errors
45
XHTML
XHTML is Extensible HTML
* it is based on XML so it is stricter
* it is among the latest HTML standards
* some handheld devices (e.g. mobile
phones) can read XHTML webpages
* it is a good way to get used to writing
good code
46
HTML to XHTML
* All tags must be closed, even if they are
empty tags
* becomes
* All tags and attributes must be lowercase
* not
* All tags must be closed in the right order
* wow is wrong
* Attribute values must be in quotes
* text
* Use the id attribute instead of name
* Use an XHTML DTD
47
XHTML 1.0 DTDs
Taken from:
http://www.w3schools.com/xhtml/xhtml_dtd.asp
48
XHTML 1.1
* XHTML 1.1 is a bit trickier
* It is not just about adding a DTD
* An XML version declaration is added at
the top before the DTD
* This declaration also includes the
character encoding, so we no longer need
the meta tag
* The tag now also has some extra
attributes
* Don't remember! Copy and paste!
49
XHTML 1.1 Strict Example
...
Remember to omit the tag for character encoding!
50
Moving On
* HTML on its own is very basic
* The next language to learn is definitely CSS
* After CSS, you can optionally learn JavaScript
* Or you can go straight to a server-side
language such as PHP
51
1.1 : AGRICULTURE SECTOR IN INDIA
Rural Indian women are extensively involved in agricultural activities. However the nature and
extent of their involvement differs with the variations in agroproduction systems. The mode of female
participation in agricultural production varies with the landowning status of farm households. Their
roles range from managers to landless labourers. In over all farm production, womens average contribution
is estimated at 55% to 66% of the total labour with percentages, much higher in certain regions. In
the Indian Himalayas a pair of bullocks works 1064 hours, a man 1212 hours and a woman 3485
hours in a year on a once hectare farm, a figure that illustrates womens significant contribution to
agricultural production. (Shiva FAO, 1991)
The impact of W.T.O rules and policies of trade liberalization in the agriculture sector on women
is distinctive for four reasons. Firstly, women have been the primary seed keepers, processors. They
have been the both experts and producers of food, from seed to the kitchen. W.T.O impacts womens
expertise and productive functions throughout the food chain. The Trade Related Intellectual Property
Rights (TRIPS) agreement impacts womens knowledge of and control over seed. The Agreement on
Agriculture impacts womens livelihood and income security, and also has secondary impacts in terms
of increased violence against women. The sanitary and phyto sanitary agreement has a direct impact
on womens expertise and economic role in agroprocessing.
Secondly, as globalization shifts agriculture to capital intensive, chemical intensive systems,
women bear disproportionate cots of both displacement and health hazards.
Thirdly, Women carry the heavier work burden in food production, and because of gender
discrimination get lower returns for their work. When WTO destroys rural livelihoods, it is women who
loose the most. When WTO rules allow dumping which leads to decline in prices of farm products, it
is womens - already low incomes, which go down further.
Fourthly, their position vis-à-vis WTO is also more vulnerable because as the livelihoods and
incomes of farmers in general, and women agriculturists in particular are eroded, they are displaced
from productive roles, women in agriculture and their status is further devalued, while the patriarchal
power of those who control assets and benefit from asset transfer due to globalisation is increased,
other social processes are triggered which result in increased violence against women.
The violence associated with displacement, devaluation and dis-empowerment takes the form of
intensive violence, increasing incidences of rape, the epidemic of female foeticide, and growth in
(1)
trafficking of women. Women also bear the ultimate burden of farm suicides, since they are left to look
after their households without assets but with the burden of indebtedness.
India has a geographical area of 328.73 million hectares; of which reported area for land use
is 306.04 million hectares. The net area cultivated is about 142.60 million hectares i.e. about 46.6
per cent of the total reported area. Since nearly 50 million hectares of area is sown more than once,
the cropping intensity works out to 135.1. Forests account for about 68.97 million hectares i.e. 22.5
percent of the total reported land area. Also nearly 13.97 million hectares are cultivable wastelands
and 9.91 million hectares are fallow lands. Only about 30 percent of the total cropped area is irrigated
and the remaining area is rain fed. The available statistics further shows that only about 66 percent
of the gross cropped area is under food crops and nearly 34 percent area under nonfood crops. Cereals
and pulses account for nearly 52.93 per cent and 12.64 percent of the total area respectively. Fruits
and vegetables occupy nearly 4.24 percent of area. (Haque 2003)
Plantation crops accounts for insignificant proportion of total area at the macro level, although
these are very important crops for certain regions, namely tea in Assam and West Bengal, Coffee in
Kerala and Karnataka, Coconut, cashew nut and rubber in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Of the total
coconut area of 1.84 million hectares, Kerala accounts for 51 percent followed by Tamil Nadu 17
percent, Karnataka 18 percent, Andhra Pradesh 5.4 percent and other 9.6 percent. In the case of
cashew nut, there are about 601 thousand hectares of which Kerala accounts for 20 percent, Andhra
Pradesh 15 percent, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu 14 percent each, Orissa 11 percent and
Goa 8 percent and others 4 percent. Tea covers nearly 4.34 lakh hectares of area in the country of
which 3.33 lakh hectares are in the states of Assam and West Bengal. Coffee is predominantly grown
in the three southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Of the total coffee area of about
2.41 lakh hectares, Karnataka shares 1.28 lakh hectares, Kerala 66.5 thousand hectares and Tamil
Nadu 32.9 thousand hectares. Similarly rubber is the crop of southern states. Of the total rubber area
of 5.59 lakh hectares, Kerala shares 4.73 lakh hectares, Karnataka 19.6 thousand hectares and Tamil
Nadu 18.7 thousand hectares. Also the contribution of plantation crops to foreign exchange earnings
is very significant. While tea and coffee earn sizeable foreign exchange, rubber is a valuable import
substitute, for rubber-based industries.
According to population census of India 2001, there are about 402.5 million rural workers of
which 127.6 million are cultivators and 107.5 million are agricultural labourers Table - 1.1. In other
words, pure agricultural workers constitute nearly 58.4 per cent of the total rural workers, of which
31.7 percent are owner cultivators and 26.7 percent are mainly agricultural wage earners (Agriculture
Statistics at a Glance, sourced from Registrar General of India, New Delhi 2001). The latest available
agricultural census data (Govt. of India, Agricultural Census Division, Ministry of Agriculture 2002)
also reveal that about 78 percent of operational holdings in the country are marginal and small, having
less than 2 hectares. About 13 percent holdings have 2 to 4 hectares and 7.1 per cent have 4 to 10
hectares of land. (Haque 2003)
(2)
The relatively large holdings above 10 hectares number only about 1.6 percent of the total
operational holdings. However, these 1.6 per cent of the large holdings occupy about 17.3 per cent
of the total area, while 78 percent of holdings which are less than 2 hectares, operate only about 32.4
percent of the total area. This speaks of inequality in the distribution of operational holdings. Also
there is inequality of income between agricultural and non-agricultural workers, which is evident from
the fact that percentage share of agriculture in current total GDP is only 24.2, while the percentage
share of agricultural work force to total work force comes to about 60 percent.
The agricultural Census data clearly bear out the fact that Indian agriculture is dominated by
small and marginal farms, which are basically subsistence farmers. They provide mainly for self-
consumption. However, some of these farmers have to sell their produce immediately after harvest at
low prices and buy the same products later at high prices.
Table -1.1 (1) : Population and Agricultural Workers (in millions)
Year Rural Cultivators Agricultural Other Total
Population Labourers Workers Rural
1951 298.6 69.9 27.3 42.8 140
(82.7) (49.9) (19.5) (30.6) (100.0)
1961 360.3 99.6 31.5 56.6 188.7
(82.0) (52.8) (16.7) (30.5) (100.0)
1981 523.9 92.5 55.5 96.6 (a) 244.6
(76.7) (37.8) (22.7) (39.5) (100.0)
1991 628.7 110.7 74.6 128.8 (a) 314.1
(74.3) (35.2) (23.8) (41.0) (100.0)
2001 741.7 127.6 107.5 167.4 402.5
(72.22) (31.7) (26.7) (41.6) (100.0)
Source : Registrar General of India, New Delhi, 2001
Characteristics of labour Market in Agriculture
According to 55th of National Sample Survey (NSSO, 2001), agricultural labour households
constitute nearly 32.2 percent of the total rural households. The self-employed in agriculture account
for 32.7 per cent of the total rural households. In fact, the proportion of agricultural labour households
increased from 30.3 per cent in 1993-94 to 32.2 percent in 1999-2000. While that of cultivating (self-
employed) households declined from 37.8 percent in 1993-94 to 32.7 per cent in 1999-2000. The
proportion of female-headed households increased from 9.7 per cent in 199394 to 10.4 percent in
1999-2000. Nearly 62.6 per cent of the rural households belonged to less than Rs. 470 monthly per
capita expenditure class. Nearly 4.6 percent rural households reported that none in the family was
(3)
having any work, 27.7 per cent reported that only one male member was, usually working, while 27.8
households indicated that one male and one female member were usually employed.
Of the female households 22.8 percent reported that none of their person was usually employed
and 39.6 percent mentioned that only one female member was usually working. The NSSO data further
revealed that 7.2 percent of the rural households did not possess any land and 51 percent households
possessed less than 0.4 hectare. About 19.1 percent household possessed between 0.41 and 1 hectare
and 11.5 percent between 1.01 and 2 hectare. Only 11.2 percent possessed land above 2 hectare.
Thus by and large Indian farming is dominated by small and marginal farmers. In fact, the proportion
of rural households not possessing any land or which possessed less than 0.4 hectare land was quite
high in the states of Bihar, Goa, Maharashtra, Sikkim and Tamilnadu. Also the proportion of agriculture
labour households was quite high in some of these states. It was 38 percent in Bihar, 41.7 percent
in Maharashtra and Karnataka and 45.2 percent in Tamilnadu.
Another important source of data is Census of India (2001), according to which there are nearly
127 million cultivators, 107.5 million agricultural labourers and 6 million other farm workers engaged
in livestock, forestry and plantations. Of the total agricultural labourers, 38.0 per cent were female
and 61.9 percent male workers. Also among livestock, forestry and plantation workers, 78.3 percent
were male workers and 21.7 percent were female workers. About 99.2 percent of agricultural workers
were reported to be unorganized and unprotected.
Status of Plantation Workers
The data compiled by Labour Bureau, Government of India from annual returns under the
Plantation Labour Act, 1951 show that nearly 10.9 lakh persons were employed in the plantation
sector, comprising 10.2 lakh in tea, 30680 in coffee, 27302 in rubber, 3463 in cardamom, 2696 in
cinchona and the remaining in other plantations. At all India level, 50 percent workers in tea and
coffee plantations, 34 percent workers in rubber, 62 percent workers in cardamom, 38 percent workers
in palm oil and 45 percent in cinchona were women. In the plantation sector, nearly 80 percent are
small holders having less than 20 acres each. Workers in smaller estates are by and large unorganized
and their levels of employment are relatively lower than their counterparts in large plantation estates.
It has been known that coffee and rubber planters in Kerala, and Karnataka that workers in small
plantation estates receive Rs. 10 to Rs. 20 less per day as compared to those working in large estates.
Also they do not adequately get the benefit of minimum wages, bonus and other facilities such as
housing, medical care, maternity benefit etc.
Laws Governing labour Standards in Agriculture
The Government of India has passed a number of laws in order to promote labour standards in
agriculture. These laws are also in conformity with various relevant International Labour Organization
(ILO) Conventions such as (i) Minimum Wage Fixing Machinery (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (129),
(ii) Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100), (iii) Discrimination (Employment and Occupation)
(4)
Convention, 1958 (No. 111), (iv) Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), (v) Abolition of Forced
Labour Convention, 1957 (105), (vi) Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), (vii) Worst Form of
Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), (viii) The Safety and Health in Agriculture Convention, 2001
(No. 184) and (ix) Plantation Convention, 1958 (No. 110).
The Plantation Labour Act, 1951 as Amended in 1981.
This is an Act to provide for the welfare of labour, and to regulate the conditions of work, in
plantations. According to this Act, in every plantation, effective arrangements shall be made by the
employers to provide and maintain at convenient places in the plantation, a sufficient supply of
wholesome drinking water to all workers, medical facilities, canteen, crèches, recreation facilities,
educational facilities, housing facilities and annual leave with wages and maternity benefits. In most
schools, there is a provision of free mid-day meal for the children of those employees drawing a
monthly salary of Rs. 750. Every plantation, employing 50 or more women workers, also provides
crèches.
However, only 20 to 25 percent of the plantation workers who are employed in large estates
above 25 acres and who come under the purview of the Plantation Labour Act get such benefit. About
75 to 80 per cent holdings in tea, coffee and rubber are small and marginal where workers have access
to free housing facility, free electricity and drinking water facilities and sometimes even medical care,
they do not generally receive many of the benefits indicated above. Particularly women workers do not
have access to maternity benefit in smaller estates based on personal interviews. Also the wage rates
of these workers are less by Rs. 10 to 20 as compared to those working in larger estates where the
workers are organized. Besides, they do not get subsidized rations unlike the organized plantation
workers.
Poverty and Unemployment
According to various rounds of National Sample Survey, the absolute number of rural poor
persons increased from 232 million in 1987-88 to 244 million in 1993-94 and then declined to 193
million in 1999-2000. As shown by table 1.2 still about 27 percent rural people are reported to be
below the poverty line. In several states including Bihar (44.3 percent), Orissa (48.0 percent) and
North Eastern states, the incidence of rural poverty is higher than the national average (Economic
Survey 2001-02). The NSS data (NSSO. 50th round) further reveal that: among landless agricultural
labourers, the incidence of poverty is as high as 71.8 percent in Western Plan region of Assam, 83
percent in Jharkhand (former south Bihar), 78 percent in Northern Bihar, 71.9 percent in Central Bihar,
67 percent in Eastern Haryana, 64.2 percent in Chhattisgarh, 89.6 percent in South Western Madhya
Pradesh, 72 to 76 percent in various regions of Maharashtra (other than coastal and inland Western
Maharashtra), 61.9 percent to 83.9 percent in different regions of Orissa, 73.5 percent in Southern
Rajasthan, 65.8 percent in Northern coastal region, 73.4 percent to 89.8 percent in Central, Eastern
and Southern Uttar Pradesh 68.8 percent in Eastern part of West Bengal and 85.7 percent in Himalayan
region of West Bengal.
(5)
Table - 1.1 (2) : Population Below Poverty Line 1999-2000 (Based on 30 days Precall Period)
S.No. State/UT Rural No. of Persons Percentage of
(100,000) Persons
1 Andhra Pradesh 58.13 11.05
2 Arunachal Pradesh 3.80 40.04
3 Assam 92.17 40.04
4 Bihar 376.51 44.30
5 Goa 0.11 1.35
6 Gujarat 39.80 13.17
7 Haryana 11. 94 8.27
8 Himachal Pradesh 4.84 7.94
9 Jammu & Kashmir 2.97 3.97
10 Karnataka 59.91 17.38
11 Kerala 20.97 9.38
12 Madhya Pradesh 217.32 37.06
13 Maharashtra 125.12 23.72
14 Manipur 6.53 40.04
15 Meghalaya 7.89 40.4
16 Mizoram 1.40 40.4
17 Nagaland 5.21 40.4
18 Orissa 143.69 48.01
19 Punjab 10.20 6.35
20 Rajasthan 55.06 13.74
21 Sikkim 2.00 40.4
22 Tamil Nadu 80.51 20.55
23 Tripura 12.53 40.4
24 Uttar Pradesh 412.01 31.22
25 West Bengal 180.11 31.85
26 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 0.58 20.55
27 Chandie:arh 0.06 5.75
28 D & N Haveli 0.30 17.57
29 Daman & Diu 0.01 1.35
(6)
S.No. State/UT Rural No. of Persons Percentage of
(100,000) Persons
30 Delhi 0.07 0.40
31 Lakshadweep 0.03 9.38
32 Pondicherrv 0.64 20.55
All India 1932.43 27.09
Source : Planning Commission - Government of India.
Also among self-employed cultivating households, the poverty ratio ranges between 30 to 50
percent in several regions including Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, large parts of Madhya Pradesh and
Marahashtra, Orissa, Southern Rajasthan, coastal Northern Tamil Nadu, all regions of Uttar Pradesh
(other than Western UP), and Eastern Himalayan regions of West Bengal. Thus, a significant population
of agricultural workers including both self-employed and wages workers stay below the poverty line.
They have poor purchasing power and command over goods and services. The annual growth rate of
employment as such has decelerated from about 2.04 percent during 1983-1994 to 0.98 percent
during 1994-2000. But the growth rate of agricultural employment has declined from 1.51 percent in
earlier period to -0.34 percent during 1994-2000.
(7)
1.2. WOMEN IN AGRICULTURE
According to Swaminathan, the famous agricultural scientist, some historians believe that it
was woman who first domesticated crop plants and thereby initiated the art and science of farming.
While men went out hunting in search of food, women started gathering seeds from the native flora
and began cultivating those of interest from the point of view lf food, feed, fodder, fibre and fuel.
Women have played and continue to playa key role in the conservation of basic life support
systems such as land, water, flora and fauna. They have protected the health of the soil through
organic recyclining and promoted crop security through the maintenance of varietal diversity and
genetic resistance. There fore, without the total intellectual and physical participation of women, it will
not be possible to popularize alternative systems of land management to shifting cultivation, arrest
gene and soil erosion, and promote the care of the soil and the health of economic plants and farm
animals. (Prasad & Singh 1992)
That women play a significant and crucial role in agricultural development and allied fields
including in the main crop production, livestock production, horticulture, post harvest operations, agro/
social forestry, fisheries, etc. is a fact long taken for granted but also long ignored. The nature and
extent of womens involvement in agriculture, no doubt, varies greatly from region to region. Even
within a region, their involvement varies widely among different ecological sub-zones, farming systems,
castes, classes and stages in the family cycle. But regardless of these variations, there is hardly any
activity in agricultural production, except ploughing in which women are not actively involved. In some
of the farm activities like processing and storage, women predominate so strongly that men workers
are numerically insignificant. (Aggarwal 2003) Studies on women in agriculture conducted in India and
other developing and under developed countries all point to the conclusion that women contribute far
more to agricultural production than has generally been acknowledged. Recognition of their crucial
role in agriculture should not obscure the fact that farm women continue to be concerned with their
primary functions as wives, mothers and homemakers.
Despite their importance to agricultural production, women face severe handicaps. They are in
fact, the largest group of landless labourers with little real security in case of break-up of the family
owing to death or divorce; inheritance laws and customs discriminate against them land reform and
settlement programmes usually give sole title and hence the security needed for obtaining production
credits to the husband. Agricultural development programmes are usually planned by men and aimed
at men. Mechanization, for example alleviates the burden of tasks that are traditionally mens responsibility,
(9)
leaving womens burdens unrelieved or even increased. The excess burden of work on women (the
double day of the farm work plus house work) also acts as a stimulus to have many children so that
they can help out with chores from an early age. Extension workers almost exclusively aim their advice
at mens activities and crops. In some regions, this bias may depress production of subsistence food
crops (often womens crops) in favour of increased production of cash crops (often mens crops) in
favour of increased production of cash crops (often mens crops) so that family nutrition suffers.
It may not be out of place to mention here that considering their dual responsibilities within and
outside the home, it would be in the fitness of things that more and more in the village training is
organized for rural farm women to suit their convenience with due realization that institutional training
is important in its own place.
In order that farm women get a fair deal at the hands of change agents, one of the remedial
measures that needs to be undertaken is to induct a sizeable number of well trained women personnel
in training and extension programmes of agricultural development agencies at all levels and more so
at the grass-root level.
According to 1991 census the male cultivators has increased in the country by 11.67 percent
from 76.7 in 1981 to 85.6 million in 1991. The female cultivators however have increased at much
faster rate of 45.23 percent from 14.8 million in 1981 to 21.5 million in 1991. As shown in table 2.1,
the number of male agricultural labourer increased by 31.48 percent, but that of female by 36.45
percent. 74 percent of the entire female working force is engaged in agriculture operations. About 60
percent of agricultural operations like sowing of seeds, transportation of sapling, winnowing, storage
of grain etc are handled exclusively by women, while in other jobs they share the work with women.
Apart from participation in actual cultivation, women participate in various forms of processing and
marketing of agricultural produce (Aggarwal 2003).
In rural India, the prosperity of the household depends on the prosperity of agriculture and allied
occupation in any particular point of time vis-à-vis the role of women in innumerable activities connected
with farming, dairying, sericulture etc.
But the women hands are invisible even to this day, so it is not surprising that the agricultural
extension activities is mainly a male oriented pursuit.
Multi-Dimensional Role of Women
(i) Agriculture : Sowing, transplanting, weeding, irrigation, fertilizer application, plant protection,
harvesting, winnowing, storing etc.
(ii) Domestic: Cooking, child rearing, water collection, fuel wood gathering, household maintenance
etc.
(iii) Allied Activities: Cattle management, fodder collection, milking etc.
(10)
Mainly rural women are engaged in agricultural activities in three different ways depending on
the socio-economic status of their family and regional factors. They are work as:
(i) Paid Labourers
(ii) Cultivator doing labour on their own land and
(iii) Managers of certain aspects of agricultural production by way of labour supervision and
the participation in post harvest operations.
The table - 1.2 (1) depicts the number of women workers engaged in agriculture:
Table - 1.2 (1) : Women Workers in Agriculture (Million)
Women Workers in Agriculture (Million)
Agriculture 1981 Census 1991 Census
Cultivators 14.8 21.5
Agriculture Labourers 20.8 28.2
The participation of rural women in agriculture is increasing in spite of scientific and technological
developments. The share of farmwomen in agricultural operations has been shown in the following
Table 2.2.
Table - 1.2 (2) : Share of Farm Women in Agricultural Operations
Activity Involvement (Percentage)
Land preparation 32
Seed cleaning and sowing 80
Inter cultivation activities 86
Harvesting-reaping, winnowing, drying, cleaning and storage 84
The Table 1.2 (3) given below shows that the average time spends by farmwomen in household
and agricultural activities. In the peak season an active farmwoman spends five to nine hours per day
on the farm. Agriculture and allied activities almost take the equal time and energy at par with
household activities.
(11)
Table - 1.2 (3) : Time and Energy Distribution by Rural Women
Activities Duration Energy Percentage
Hours/Min K. Cal.
Domestic activities 7.55 903 40.53
Agriculture and allied activities 7.00 283 39.69
Sleep 6.50 284 12.76
Rest and Recreation 2.15 155 6.97
Total 23.20 2255 100.00
According to Joshi (1999), the productivity of female labour is low. It is also very low in
agriculture sector. At the price level of 1980-81, in 1950- 51, the productivity per labour was Rs. 2305
which increased to Rs. 2794 and further increased to Rs. 3157 in 1990. The productivity has not
doubled in last 40 years in agriculture sector whereas the mining and mineral sector productivity per
labour is Rs. 13417, manufacturing sector of Rs. 11099, power gas and water supply sector Rs.
14608, construction sector of Rs. 16210, commerce and business Rs. 13136 and in other service
sector, it is Rs. 14625. Thus productivity of agriculture labour is very low compared to other sector.
It is also observed that the productivity of female agriculture labour is really low compared to that of
male labour.
Female agricultural labours do not enjoy any maternity leave and do not get proper rest after
childbirth.
Table 1.2 (4) : Percentage distribution of workers (main + marginal) according Categories
of worker by sex and by sector during 2001 for India.
Categories Rural Urban Combined
of Worker Female Male Total Female Male Total Female Male Total
Cultivators 36.46 42.19 40.14 4.26 2.99 3.21 32.51 31.34 31.71
Agricultural 43.4 27.48 33.20 11.03 3.42 4.71 39.43 20.82 26.69
labours
Household 5.44 2.83 3.77 12.93 3.50 5.10 6.36 3.02 4.07
Industry workers
Other Workers 14.70 27.49 22.90 71.77 90.09 86.98 21.70 44.82 37.52
All workers 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
Total workers 111.46 199.20 310.66 15.59 76.26 91.86 127.05 275.46 402.51
(main+marginal
In Millions)
(12)
According to table 1.2(4) about 36.50 percent women work as cultivators and 43.4 percent as
agricultural labours. Table 1.2(5) gives the number of women in agriculture, plantation and other rural
activities :
Table - 1.2 (5) : Statistics about Women in India
1. Total Women Population (2001) 494.83 million
2. Total Women Workers (2001) 127.05 million
3. Total Women Main Workers (2001) 72.65 million
4. Total Women Marginal Workers (2001) 54.40 million
5. Total Women Owner Cultivators (2001) 41.30 million
6. Total Women Agriculture Wage Workers (2001) 50.09 million
7. Total Women Household Industry Workers (2001) 8.08 million
8. Total Women Other Workers (2001) 27.57 million
9. Total Women in Organized Sector (1999) 4.80 million
10. Total Women in Livestock, Forestry, Fshing, Hunting, Plantation,
Orchards and activities (1991) 1.32 million
Note: For serial numbers 1 to 8 Censuses 2001
For serial number 9th Tenth Five Year Plan
For serial number 10 census 1991
Table 1.2 (6) and 1.2 (7) gives the average daily wage rates of male and female workers in June
2001 and during 1999-2000 respectively.
According to table 1.2 (4) about 36.50 percent women work on cultivation in the farm. While
table gives the number of women workers in different sectors.
Table - 1.2 (6) : Average daily wage rates for agricultural and non-agricultural Occupations in India
Occupation Sex June 2001
Ploughing Female 42.16
Male 66.10
Sowing Female 41.58
Male 57.92
Weeding Female 43.26
Male 51.23
Transplanting Female 47.03
Male 58.28
(13)
Occupation Sex June 2001
Harvesting Female 45.77
Male 55.67
Winnowing Female 44.08
Male 51.94
Threshing Female 44.22
Male 52.64
Picking Cotton Female
Male
Cane Crushing Female 39.32
Male 56.98
Source : Men and Women in India.
Table 1.2 (7) : Average Wage Earning Received per day by casual labours by sex,
Type of operation and Industry during 1999-2000
Rural
Category Type of Operation Female Male
Casual Labours in (a) Manual Work in Cultivation 38.06 48.14
Other type of Works Ploughing 27.91 39.09
Sowing 32.73 41.81
Transplanting 28.37 38.78
Weeding 29.22 39.15
Harvesting 25.74 34.68
Other Cultivation activities 29.24 39.21
(b) Manual Work in other 27.65 39.27
Agricultural 30.65 44.84
Activities 33.34 46.45
Forestry 41.30 61.59
Plantation 21.88 28.14
Animal Husbandry 55.73 57.74
Fisheries 27.96 42.64
Other Agriculture activities 27.34 42.31
(14)
Category Type of Operation Female Male
(c) Non-Manual work in cultivation 34.98 56.49
(d) Non manual work in activities other
than Cultivation.
All 29.01 44.84
Table - 1.2 (8) : Per Thousand Distribution of Female headed households by Household type
for each size class of land cultivated for rural Areas in India during 1999-2000
House Hold Type
Size Self Employed in: Sub Agricultural Other Sub Others Total Per 1000
Class of Land Agriculture Non- Total Labour Labour Total distribution
cultivated (Fig. In Agriculture of
hect.) households.
0.00 16 105 121 391 88 480 397 1000 561
0.01 - 0.40 321 66 388 276 61 336 275 1000 245
0.41 - 1.00 614 41 656 160 26 187 156 1000 103
1.01 - 2.00 720 16 736 114 9 123 141 1000 56
2.01 - 4.00 815 15 830 16 0 16 154 1000 23
4.01 and above 905 38 943 0 23 23 34 1000 11
All 221 81 302 310 68 378 318 1000 1000
Source : National Sample Survey Organization, 55th round (July 1999 - June 2000)
Table 1.2 (8) shows that higher the land holding, small is the number of women heading the
households. In fact, out of 1000 household of women cultivator 909 are headed by women having less
than one hectare.
According to latest UNDP report, the gender related development index of developed and developing
countries where India has the rank of 1 osth.
As men migrate in search of better-paid work, women in rural India are taking over agricultural
work in the villages. They face meager wages, long hours, hazardous work and sexual harassment.
Figures from the census show that, amongst rural women, the percentage of marginal workers
(defined as working for less than 183 days per year) has increased significantly from 8.1 per cent in
1991 to 14.2 percent in 2002. During the same period, there was a sharp fall in the percentage of
main workers (more than 183 days a year), especially male workers, coming from rural areas. The
figures thus show a casualization and feminization of the workforce in rural areas, with the number
of marginal women workers becoming larger and more significant, while male main workers in rural
areas have declined.
(15)
These changes also coincide with the period of the 1990s, when India really began to part of
a globalize economy. Some of the changes that have ensured the huge displacement of labour from
agriculture are given below.
y A shift from subsistence farming to marketable crops - irrespective of regions, changes in
crop patterns showed a common trend: all the shifts resulted in a decrease in the labour
required.
y Greater use of labour-displacing machinery.
y A change in land use patterns-from agriculture to urban, industrial areas., or brick kilns;
and in coastal areas, to export-oriented aquaculture. All the new activities displace labour
from agriculture, but create fewer jobs than they destroy.
More Work, Less Pay
The estimates for changes in the last 5-7 years show declines in employment ranging from 20
per cent to as much as 77 per cent. Employment in agriculture is thus available for fewer days per
year. It is therefore becoming essential for men to migrate in search of better-paid work. Women are
filling this vacuum. Women are forced to accept work in agriculture in their own village under very bad
conditions because they cannot migrate as easily as men.
The dependence of womens labour on family farms, especially during the peak periods of
sowing and harvesting, has become very common. About 15 years ago, agricultural work was considered
acceptable for poor tribal women, Muslim women today even, who were traditionally bound by rules
of purdah, go out to work for wages in the fields in certain areas.
Farmers, on the other hand, also seem to prefer women as agricultural workers. The farmer is
faced with the increasing costs of production required for modern agriculture. He finds that he can
squeeze his labour costs by using lower-paid women workers. For instance, women are preferred to
men in North 24 Parganas (West Bengal) by the owners because they are docile, require lower wages
and are less lazy than men. Similarly, the work of women within family-based agriculture is preferred
because it is cheaper than hiring labour.
Women agricultural workers, although they represent a big proportion of all women workers,
continue to receive lower wages than men. The Ministry of labour puts the difference at 60 per cent
of mens wages, while the Indian Labour journal showed that women received 75 per cent of mens
earnings. The wage differentials prevailing in some states are given in table -1.
While earnings from agricultural work have not improved for women, modernization of agriculture
has in some cases brought new kinds of problems and demand.
The existence of patriarchy at all levels also intertwines with the work-related problems of
women. A study on the feminization of agricultural labour in Andhra Pradesh shows that despite the
increasing involvement of women in paid work. Womens relative power within the family had declined.
(16)
Table 1.2 (9) : Male/female wage rates in Indian agriculture
Trade union and State Wage rate for adult men Wage rate for women
Haryana Rs. 50-60 Rs. 25-30
Saharanpur, (Uttar Pradesh) Rs. 60 Rs. 35-40
North 24 Parganas, (West Bengal) Rs. 40 (6 hours of work) Rs. 25 (6 hours of work)
Andhra Pradesh Rs. 40-50 Rs. 25-30
The effects of increased commercialization of agriculture are impacting on women labourers in
certain more indirect ways. While consumer goods, advertisements, video parlors, television, etc. have
invaded villages; increasing seasonal migration has also exposed rural workers to more affluent areas
and to cities. One of the noticeable impacts of this is an increased desire for consumer goods.
Spiraling demands for dowry are seen as one of the easiest and fastest ways to meet this desire. Dowry
is thus spreading to communities where it did not exist before. In tribal families, where a bride parice
was the practice, the girls family now has to buy the groom all the goods that make a fat dowry. The
bride price is only a token. Mortgaging and selling of land to meet the dowry demands of the bride
grooms family has become an important mechanism by which poor and marginalized farmers lose
their land.
A study on land rights for women in West Bengal recently found that 39.9% of the house holds
surveyed have had to part with land or raise loans at high interest rates in order to pay dowry. In fact
79% of the families who sold land to pay for dowry were Muslim - a commonly where dowry was not
a tradition. In addition, the people who were selling or mortgaging their lands for dowry were agricultural
labourers and marginal farmers.
Agro chemicals have become an integral part of the development. process of agriculture and the
use is expected to increase manifold in India. Fertilizer too a large extent have not affected womens
role adversily, but the weedicides and herbicides have almost replaced the manual uprooting of weeds
and hoeing for destroying weeds. In important crops slike rice and wheat, weeding and hoeing used
to employ a large number of female labour days/acre. With the introduction of chemicals to destroy
weeds, womens participation has almost ceased. Thus, herbicides have affected womens employment
adversily as they were the principal labour for weeding. (Singh and Punia 1991)
On the other hand, women from landless families do not get fodder for their animals which they
used to get from farmers field in lieu of wages or on mutual interest basis, keeping of animals on
purchased fodder is difficult for poor families, there by kepriving them of the animal products and by
products in their diet.
Due to the use of agro-chemicals women are exposed to several health hazards such as gynecological
infections, arthritis, intestinal and parasitic infections.
(17)
Biological technologies in terms of high yielding and short duration varieties have offered better
remunerations and intensifications of crops production thereby increased labour absorption capacity
in the agriculture sector. With the development of biotechnology there is every possibility of propagation
of plant and. animal species in the petridishes in laboratories (tissue culture technology). Under these
circumstances, women folk employed in raising nurseries would be left in large. (Singh and Punia
1991)
Agriculture growth has not alleviated female poverty; rather it appears to have set in motion
process, which in the long run could worsen the situation in many regions of the country.
Women in Decision Making in Agriculture
Womens role in agricultural operations, animal husbandry and other economically productive
activities is very significant. They contribute about 60-70 percent of the labour required for these
activities thus playing a pivotal role in sustaining economy. The decision making process is an important
segment of every household because it makes implementation of a plan or programme quite easy.
In rural areas of the country, both husband and wife are jointly responsible for making decisions
on matters like family obligations, specific housing charges and purchase of household articles. However,
womens suggestions are not given due consideration in the decisions pertaining to agricultural sector
and important family matters. It is because the majority of women are illiterate, have little time to
know about the latest techniques of framing and restricted mobility due to several cultural taboos.
In an interview with female respondents, it was noticed that male members only sought their
consent whereas their suggestions/objections were not taken into account. Thus it was evident that
women had to play second fiddle to men in decision-making. Another study conducted in Haryana,
revealed that farm women did not decide independently about any farm operation but participated in
almost all the decisions and dominated only decisions more related to home sphere i.e. storage of farm
produce, purchase/sale of animal and credit. The table 7.1 shows the decision making process of
women in agriculture in Himachal Pradesh. (Bala, 2003)
We generally talk of womens empowerment, which can be said that women should have powers
to determine their own actions, power to have an authority to make decisions and guide their destiny.
This power in decision making can be acquired and exercised only if they have a thorough knowledge
about the various porgrammes, plans and current issues, access to the basic human development and
social policies.
Generally, women have less access to information about technology by virtue of their inferior
educational status and relative isolation from public life. Thus, there is a hesitation to come out and
interact. At times, even the suggestions of knowledgeable rural women are ignored or are not taken
seriously because men consider it disgraceful to accept the decision of women. This is because
traditionally men have been major lawmakers of society. Many policies and decisions neglect women
and undermine their abilities and roles.
(18)
The undesired restrictions imposed by elderly people in the society on their daughters and
daughters-in-law should be relaxed to facilitate their mobility in order to have easy access to the outer
world.
Most importantly, the women should have a penchant for self- empowerment through enhancing
their knowledge and skills. Empowerment without any change in mens attitude or without their willingness
will only aggravate family problems, increasing dissatisfaction and ensuring that women will continue
to be at the receiving end.
Government policies should be framed to provide legal support and instill confidence in women.
Porgrammes should be developed exclusively for women; to build leadership skills for managing agricultural
community based development activities. Access of technology, inputs and credit has to be ensured
predominantly through women extension workers. They should be trained in farm management sills
and made capable of taking even complex decisions like shifting from subsistence farming to diversified
agriculture, with stand competition form market forces improvement in work or farm efficiency etc.
The extent of participation in the decision-making activities in house hold and agriculture related
and other socio-culture affairs reflects the status of women in the family as well as society. Table 7.2
shows the activities by decision makers in household related activities in Orissa. (Chaudhary 2004)
Table 7.3 shows that major decision regarding purchase of every household items are taken by
males. Decisions in matters of food and clothing more or less have an equal participation rate between
males and females. But decision regarding savings and investments and purchase of household assets
is taken by males i.e. 83.5 per cent and 81.3 per cent respectively. As the male members control the
finance, this creates an adverse impact on womens access to household assets and other household
activities (Chowdhary 2004)
Table 7.4 shows that the major decision makers in agricultural activities are men even though
women performs more in agricultural related activities than men. Even they need not be consulted at
the time of purchase of animals or change of crop.
An average, a women spends 14 hours a day working in and outside the home. During harvesting
season she spends about 16 hours a day. The question arises why womens role in the economy is not
recognized and has given such an inferior position?
(19)
Table - 1.2 (10) : Decision Making Pattern of Rural families
Activity Decision Making Pattern (Percent)
Male Share Female Joint by Male
Share and Female
Adoption of HYVs 83 - 17
Use of fertilizers/plant 80 - 20
Protection measures
Purchase of farm Machinery 72 - 28
Purchase and sale of animals 21 - 64
Sale of milk and milk products 11 - 78
Procurement of Credit 50 - 50
Marketing Farm Produce 32 6 62
Investment of added profit 26 7 67
(Bala 2003)
Table - 1.2 (11) : Men and Women involved in different activities in agricultural Sector
Activities Women Men
Household Activities Cooking (grinding, cutting
Preparing food etc
Sweeping, washing Clothes
& utensils
Fetching water
Collecting water
Making cow dung-cakes
Child Care Feeding children
Taking care of children
Agricultural Activities Digging Ploughing, digging
Irrigation of fields
Harvesting crops Harvesting Crops
Sowing Sowing
Weeding
Cutting grass from fields
Groundnut picking
(20)
Activities Women Men
Husking/winnowing
Vegetable plucking Vegetable plucking
Fertilizing
Selling Sells Vegetables, groundnuts, Occasionally
cereals, sometimes sells fuel wood
Allied Activities Feeding cattle, milking & Cattle feeding, milking, bathing
Bathing the cattle sometimes cattle
Cleaning of cattle shed Cleaning of cattle shed
sometimes
(Sarmishtha Chaudhry 2004)
Table - 1.2 (12) : Involvement of Women in Decision Making (Household Related Activities)
Involvement of Women in Decision Making (Household Related Activities)
Decision-Making Items Male Female Male + Female
Food 36.9 32.4 30.5
Clothing 38.4 28.3 33.2
Education of Children 55.2 22.0 22.7
Health 60.4 17.9 21.6
Marriage of Children 69.4 8.2 22.3
Savings & Investment 83.5 7.0 9.3
Purchase of Assets 81.3 4.1 14.5
(Sarmishta Chaudhary 2004)
Table - 1.2 (13) : Decision - Making in Agricultural Activities
Decision - Making in Agricultural Activities
Decision-Making Items Male Female Male + Female
Purchase of Fertilizer 90.2 2.9 6.8
Purchase of Animals 93.1 6.8
Purchase of Agricultural Equipments 92.1 1.9 5.8
Changing of Crops 96.0 3.9
Selling of Crops/Cereals/Vegetables 83.9 10.7 5.3
(21)
The poor participation of women in agriculture sector is also confirmed in a study conducted by
Sethi (1991) in Himachal Pradesh, where womens opinion is not normally considered and their opinions
is also not considered in the matters related to participation in developmental activities. The social role
as a decision maker in the production and the distribution of products and their participation and
representations in village developmental activities has not changed over the time. In all such social
relations men continue to dominate the sune and there exists no party of decision making in gender
relations.
Moreover, womens exclusion from public life keep them out of the decision making process
related to various rural developmental activities such as the utilization of loans and subsidies under
the various Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) schemes. Women also fail to get loans
sanctioned for agricultural development or various schemes under Rural Employment programme (REP)
women have no representation in the Agricultural Marketing Committees and other similar bodies. The
governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGO) also prefer men for these purposes. Thus,
the ideology of segregation and seclusion of women helps in keeping them out of the various decision
making process concerning the various facts of rural development. It is for this reason that to find that
whereas womens labour is utilized for both productive as well as non-productive work, the various
source of power lies in the hands of men only.
Women in Plantation - Faulty Policy of Liberalization
In India, plantation sector occupies a unique position due to its agro industrial features and
large number of women in employment. Women are more preferred by the plantation authority because
they can be employed on low wages and are more committed. Also they can be easily convinced for
the unauthorized deduction from wages, as well as delayed wages because of their subservient nature
and low level of education and awareness (Bhadra 1991).
The special feature of plantation is that it not only employs the men members, but also women
and children above the age of 12 years and women have an important role to play. The reasons for
this are:
(a) Plantation work is only a special kind of agriculture off work, familiar to Indian women, the vast
majority of them live in rural areas.
(b) Facilities have been given to make workers to settle down on or in the vicinity of the plantation
and to take their families and wives with them.
(c) Under the old system, labour contract was based on the principle of utilizing every able bodied
persons of the family and fixing the rates accordingly.
(d) Many women had to seek employment in order to balance the family budget, although the
contract system has been abolished the wage system.
(e) As the entire labour force is residential, the women can take up employment without causing
serious disruptions to the family.
(22)
The social and demographic profile of the workers in plantation sector such as rubber indicates
certain interesting patterns. The sex wise segregation of the workers reveals stinking skewed distribution
of work force with lower participation of women. However a probing into the poor participation of
women in the occupation revealed the invisible participation of women is more than two thirds of the
cases Quite often, the male tapers are found supported by female members and even children of the
family. The male tapers who are as the dejure workers get considerable assistance from their family
members for collecting the latex, transportation of latex and preparation of rubber sheets; Usually the
male tapers start tapping in the pre early hours of the day and the women and children are found
joining the work with a lag of two-three hours. Here; though the work is carried out collectively, the
contribution of women and children remain invisibles as they are neither recognized nor remunerated
as assistants. The lower absorption of women labour in rubber holdings has been cited as a major
issue in the development discourse of the state, with the commendable increase in the area under the
crop at the cost of female labour intensive crops such as paddy. To sure of the officials of Rubber
Board of India, this argument was one of the factors that tempted the Board to choose a logo that
illustrated female tapers at work. (Remesh 2004)
The lower participation of women during the initial hours of tapping is mainly due to their
engagement in domestic chores. Preparing break fast and lunch, sending the younger ones to schools,
cattle care and so on carried out by women members, before joining along with some food as helpers
during later hours in the morning.
In the tea gardens the female permanent workers generally do the plucking. The other work
maintenance of plantation, pruning, spraying are done by male workers. During the peak season minor
girls from the labour families particularly women and children from neighbouring villages are employed
for plucking of leaves.
India is the fourth largest producer of natural rubber in the world after Thailand, Indonesia and
Malaysia and at the same time is the fourth largest consumer after USA, Japan and South Korea.
Rubber cultivation in India had been traditionally confined to the narrow belt extending from Kanyakumari
district of Tamilnadu to West of Western Ghats. Within this zone, Kerala assumes considerable significance
with 86 percent of the area and about 95 percent of rubber production. Within Kerala, Travancore -
Cochin region continues to be the dominant belt of rubber cultivation, with 72 percent of total area
under the crop and 75 percent of the rubber tapped area.
Today, rubber cultivation has expanded tremendously in Kerala taking about 48 lakh hectares,
which has the second position in terms of area after coconut. Though there are no reliable estimates
available, it is widely understood that within the holding sector, the share of small and tiny holdings
(less than 5 ha) is significant in terms of area, production and employment. For instance, a recent
study reports that the share of smallholdings with an average size of less than 2 hectares in total area
under rubber has increased from 53 percent in 1955-56 to more than 83 percent in 2001, with an
average holding size is less than 0.5 ha (Viswanathan et.al. 2003)
(23)
Unfortunately, the rubber economy of Kerala particularly its small holding sector undergoing a
phase of crisis since 1996 November, with a trend of price crash of unprecedented scale and proportions.
From its all time peak of Rs. 70 per kg, the market price of rubber has gone down to Rs. 26 by 2000
AD. This drastic decline in rubber prices is widely attributed to faulty import policy of liberalization of
the rubber economy in a globalization regime that commenced since early 1990s and acquired momentum
by the mid 1990s, after India joined WTO (Remesh 2004).
Following the onset of the era of trade liberalization in the fam products and the concomitant
implementation of the Agreements of Agriculture (AOA) under the regime of WTO from 1995 onwards,
the agriculture products in general and plantation products in particular have experienced considerable
levels in price crash.
There is an apprehension that the removal of quantitative restrictions on imports has led to
steady increase in the cost of production in plantation sector. Incase of rubber, more importantly, the
integration of Indian market to that of international is reported to have led to the building up of huge
surplus stocks. This in turn brings down the price, thereby intensifying the problem, of grower and
peppering the job prospects to the thousands of tapers and the women associated with them. Production
and supply of natural rubber is far in excess of the domestic needs.
Due to this unprecedented fall in price of the produce, small growers in Kerala are finding it
difficult to pay even the wages. To minimize cost of production, wage cuts and deferments in wages
or other monetary benefits are being resorted to continue tapping and the workers employed. Several
growers have already resorted to large scale cost cutting of various essentials such as minimization
of fertilizer use, pesticide spraying, soil developments, land up gradation and even deferring replanting.
As the tapers are also well aware of the price crash, there is a growing tendency among tapers
to empathies the small growers and to respond to their grievances compassionately.
In many cases, tapers have agreed to defer the wage payments till the sale of produce and also
sympathetically considered the growers viewpoints while demanding compensation and other benefits.
In some cases, it is noted that the growing understanding between the employer and employee, in the
period of crisis has resulted in the product sharing arrangement in place of piece rate wage system.
During the period of continuing price crash in the rubber economy, tapers are fully aware that
there is no point in collectively bargaining for a wage revision, which is simply unaffordable by the
farmer. Due to this, they are even ready to continue in the job without any wage revision, though the
wages in the alternative rural occupation and the cost of living of the workers have shot up considerably.
There are also certain shortcomings in the existing framework of legislation, which considers
plantation as large-scale cultivation. For instance, the labour in small and tiny rubber holdings (below
5 ha) are out of the reach of the protective framework of the Plantation labour Act of 1951, which
defines plantation as any land used for intended to be used for growing tea, coffee, rubber which
(24)
ad measures 5 ha or more and in which fifteen or more persons are employed or were employed on
any day of the preceding twelve months
This classification irrespective of the fact that there has been an increasing tendency of fragmentation
of holdings in all plantations crops in the recent decades, leading to a gross exclusion of a major chunk
of plantation workers from the protective provision of labour legislation, like supply of drinking water,
suitable medical facilities, crèches as well as bonus, gratuity and provident fund.
It is beyond argument that the penetration of globalization and the resultant price crisis has led
to a gross erosion of increase or bargaining power of the workers. Given the context of the general
crisis in the economy, the tapers are not finding any alternative employment and are forced to continue
with their present engagements, despite the fact that the wages are not revised for the past few
years. In addition this unprecedented stagnation of wages, some tapers and women workers are even
anticipating further wage cut in the near future.
Tea plantation workers in Kerala, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu are facing starvation; following
the closing down of several small and medium companies. The reason, the unrestricted imports and
a sharp fall in international price of tea. The ugly reality of the resulting poverty writ large on the faces
of malnourished women and children and disillusioned them. Once safely engaged in plantation work-
is the tragedy story of market driven humanitarian crisis.
In the past few years, ever since economic liberalization became the development mantra,
Kerala has been at the receiving end. Flooded with cheap and highly subsidized agricultural imports,
its agrarian economy has been thrown out of gear. Whether it is the import of palm oil, rubber or
coffee, or tea almost every aspect of the States socio-economy has been negatively impacted.
Coconut prices have crashed from Rs. 10 to Rs. 2, Rubber has plummeted from Rs. 60 to Rs.
16 per kg and coffee from Rs. 58 in 1999 to Rs. 30 per kg in 2000. Even spices have hit, spared with
pepper prices falling from Rs. 2,600 to Rs. 1,300 per quintal in the consecutive period. While Ketalas
farmers are naturally a worried lot, the changing global intellectual property rights (IPRs) regime is
certain to further throttle domestic agricultural research, which, in turn, will impact farm production.
And the repercussions will eventually be felt by the industry, which will find the export market restricted
and monopolized by the patent-holders.
Kerala is not alone. The destructive fallout from the emerging global trade paradigm is being
felt all over the country, if not in the same magnitude. But before analyzing the bitter political harvests
and the growing disenchantment with the World Trade Organization (WTO), it is important to understand
why and how the market rules play against the Indian farmers and for that matter, farmers in the
developing countries
Now in Assam, every worker in the estates fets 6 kgs of cereal in 15 days. A male worker is
also entitled to get 6 kgs of cereal for his wife and 3 kgs for each of his children. However, if the only
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Women : The Foundation of the Dairy Industry
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permanent worker in a household is a woman, whatever may be her family size, she is entitled for her
quota of ration only (Das 2002)
Scenario is worst in Worst Bengal, thousands of jobless families have survived by eating rats and
snakes in their villages. There were no snakes or rats left in the plantations as all these had been
caught and eaten by hungry workers. A shocked supreme court had sought the West Bengal Governments
response on an expert panels report, which said that deaths due to starvation among workers of
abandoned tea garden have assumed disastrous proportions
Women in Dairy Sector
The overall farming performance is the farming productivity behaviour of farm women comprising
six components viz. cropping intensity, cropping yield index, milk yield index, level of adoption,
commercialization index and expansion/diversification index in a rice based farming system. The result
indicate that there is significant difference between small, medium and large farms women with
respect to overall farming performance. It is observed that small farm women had less cropping
intensity, crop yield index, level of adoption, commercialization and expansion/diversification index
when compared to medium and large women. However, in case of milk yield index, small farmwomen
are on par with medium but higher than the large farmwomen. (Reddy 2003)
According to Verma (1992), Animal Husbandry is predominantly a male affair in case of high,
economic status as majority of them employ, permanent male labour to look after the animals,
whereas it is predominantly a female affair in case of farmers of medium and low socio-economic
status. On an average, a woman devotes 3.5 hours per day for animal husbandry activities against only
1.6 hours per day devoted by men in this category.
Women accounted for 93% of total employment in dairy production. Depending upon the economic
status, women perform the tasks of collecting fodder, collecting and processing dung. Women undertake
dung composting and carrying to the fields. Women also prepare cooking fuel by mixing dung with
twigs and crop residues. Though women playa significant role in livestock management and production,
womens control over livestock and its products is negligible. Men, leaving only 14% to women, assume
the vast majority of the dairy cooperative membership.
In tribal communities in low rainfall, semi-arid and arid areas much of the work with regard to
animal management has to be looked after by women due to migration of males for work. However,
in many cases the income from dairy animals does not remain in the hands of women and neither does
the decision regarding sale and purchase. However, due to the move to develop womens dairy co-
operatives in many states in India women have better control over sale of milk and use of income from
it. Another positive development is recognition of women as members of dairy co-operative societies,
so that the price of milk supplied to the society can be paid to the women directly. Till a few years
ago women were not made registered members of the dairy co-operative society (the registration was
in the name of the husband and thus he collected the money for milk produced and supplied by the
women).
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Women are well aware of each animals behaviour and produdion characteristics. Women are
knowledgeable about local feed resources and are able to identify beneficial grasses, weeds and fodder
tress for feeding of dairy animals. While the contribution of women to the animals management is
recognized, the experiences of women regarding animal diseases and their perceptions are ignored.
Now there is some realization about the knowledge possessed by women and the need to improve their
knowledge, skills and awareness.
Feeding : Participation of women in indoor feeding activities such as providing water to animals,
mixing ration and preparing feed is very high. As far as the involvement in outdoors activities is
concerned, such as cutting and transportation of fodder, the deployment of women is low.
Health care : The share of rural women is found more in all animal health care related activities
performed at home. Activities like care of sick animals, care of animals during pregnancy, care of
newly born calf and applying and giving medicine at home are performed jointly by women members
of the family.
Processing and marketing related activities : The participation of rural women in processing
activities is found higher than in marketing related activities such as purchase of animals, selling of
milk, disposal of animals etc.
Management : Women perform all the activities related to management of animals like cleaning
of animals and their shed, milking and making cow dung cakes.
In India, Animal Husbandry is a vocation for millions of small farmers and land less people, a
large percentage of them raise animals on crop residues and common property resources. When in
some developed countries, less than 3% of the adult population is engaged in agriculture and animal
husbandry, 70 percent of Indian population is dependent on agriculture and animal husbandry, of
which 30 percent are landless. Women provide 60 percent of the livestock farming labour and more
than 90 percent of work related to the care of animals is rendered by women folk of the family.
During 2001-02, the contribution of livestock sector to the countrys GDP was 5.59 percent. The
value of output of livestock and fisheries sector was estimated to be around 179544 crores, which is
about 27.7 percent of the total value of output of Rs.648122 crores from agriculture and allied
sectors. With an estimated output of Rs. 103804 crores, the contribution of milk was higher than
paddy (Rs. 73965 crores), wheat (Rs. 43816 crores) and sugarcane (Rs. 28592 crores). Milk and
livestock sector provides regular employment to about 11 million in principal status and 8 million in
subsidiary status. Women in animal husbandry and livestock sector constitute 69 percent of the labour
force as against 35 percent in crop farming (Economic Survey 2002-03).
Dairy farming has grown from largely unorganized, complex activity into a vast organized industry
that encompasses not only increased production of milk and milk products, but also the breeding of
higher yielding cattle, and the scientific rearing of cattle and production of cattle feeds. This has
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proportionately increased the demand of trained manpower in this sector. However, the implementations
of WTO policies will totally ruin the dairy sector and thus affecting the available employment opportunities.
A common feature in region where dairying is an important commercial activity of the rural
population as in Gujarat and Punjab, is that it is the women folk who essentially maintain and manage
the dairy cows and buffaloes. In areas, where the milk produced is channeled through dairy plants,
bringing daily or weekly income to the household, the dairy activity raises the status of women.
Winner of the prestigious Magsaysay Award, Mrs. Ela Bhatt, highlights the need for giving
women their due place in dairy development. For their empowerment and economic well being. Womens
access to training in modern dairying and cooperative management is essential.
The membership in most of Indias 70,000 village level dairy cooperative societies (DCS) is
heavily dominated by men. The picture is now gradually changing in the favor of women. Efforts are
on to give them their due place in dairy development.
Presently, some 2,476 all-women DCS are functioning in the country in selected States. Out of
9.2 million total memberships in DCS 1.63 million are women (18 per cent). However, women constitute
less than three per cent of total board member.
Women Second in the Land Agenda
The land reform measures adopted by the Indian Union or respective states are not in accordance
with any personal law of any community. In matter of womens right to inheritance of agriculture land,
states either have their own policy or refer it to the principle of personal laws. (Jyoti Gupta 2002)
In a discussion conducted by in West Bengal the women asserted the importance of ownership
of productive resources in their name. Their first demand was, We want land in our own name.
Various reasons were forwarded by the women for such a demand. (Jyoti Gupta 2002).
1. Old age security if sons do not look after them.
2. The predominant notion that their daughters can inherit land if the mother has it in her
own name.
3. Women can use the property to pay for their daughters marriage in the absence of the
husband; as sons usually inherit the property and may be unwilling to pay for their sisters
marriage.
4. Lack of security in the matrimonial home, as women do not have any legal right to
property, be it land, cattle or house.
5. Given the rise in the cases of divorce, desertion and physical violence against Women by
husbands, the women expressed the urgent need for secure shelter, be it legal right to be
homestead of their parents or land to cultivation.
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6. The younger women especially those who have already divorced, deserted or remained
unmarried, preferred to be given a share in he parents properly, be it land, house or both.
7. Women felt that they should have independent access to ownership of productive resources
to be able to counter the system of dowry, as well as to free themselves of a dependent
status all their lives.
8. The women also pointed out that apart from ploughing, they participate in all agricultural
operations. Women who belonged-to peasant house hold, but did not have to work as
agricultural labouers also pointed out that they bear all responsibility for the agriculture
produce once it is brought home from the field, yet they are not considered agriculturist
or cultivation only their husbands are recorded as cultivators. Women felt that ownership
in their name would make a difference to their access and control over the women also
told that though are capable of ploughing but they are not allowed.
9. While women do not have ownership rights recorded in their name, they however bear the
responsibility of returning debts, incurred by their husbands in lieu of land mortgage.
10. Women are often not informed about such debts or transactions the husbands enters into
with the assets of the family. The women felt that such a solution could be checked if they
as owners were to be signatories to the transaction.
Right And Privileges Of Women In India
1. Constitutional Provisions
The Constitution of India not only grants equality to women but also empowers the State to
adopt positive measures in favour of women for neutralizing the cumulative socio-economic, education
and political disadvantages faced by them. Fundamental Rights, among others, ensures equality before
the law, equal protection of law, prohibits discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion,
caste, sex or place of birth, and guarantees equality of opportunity to all citizens in matters relating
to employment. Articles 14, 15, 15(3), 16, 39(a), 39(b), 39(c) and 42 of the Constitution, are of
specific importance it this regard.
Constitutional Privileges
(i) Equality before law for women (Article 14)
(ii) The Stats not to discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion race caste sex,
place of birth or any of them {Article 15 (i)}
(iii) The State to make any special provision in favour of women and children {Article 15 (3)}
(iv) The State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the right to an
adequate means of livelihood [Article 39 (a)}; and equal pay for equal work for both men and
women [Article 39 (d)}
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(v) The State to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and or maternity
relief (Article 42)
(vi) The State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the
improvement of public health (Article 47)
(vii) To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India and
to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women {Article 51 (A)(e)}
(viii) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the
Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the number of seats to be filled by direct election
in every Panchayat to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation to
different constituencies in a Panchayat {Article 243D (3)}
(ix) Not less than one-third of the total number of offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayat at each
to be reserved for women (Article 243D (4))
(x) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the
scheduled castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct
election in every Municipality to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation
to different constituencies in a Municipality {Article 243T (3)}
(xi) Reservation of offices of Chairpersons in Municipality for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled
Tribes and women in such manner as the legislature of a State may by law provide {Article 243T
(4)}
2. Legislative Provisions
Legal Rights
To uphold the Constitutional mandate, the State has enacted various legislative measures intended
to ensure equal rights, to counter social discrimination and various forms of violence and atrocities and
to provide support services specially to working women.
Although women may be victims of any of the crimes such as Murder, Robbery, Cheating ete.
the crimes, which are directed specifically against women, are characterized as Crime Against Women.
These are broadly classified under two categories
(1) The Crimes Identified Under the Indian Penal Code (IPC)
(i) Rape (See. 376 IPC)
(ii) Kidnapping & Abduction for different purposes (See. 363-373)
(iii) Homicide for Dowry. Dowry Deaths or their attempts (See. 302l304-B IPC)
(iv) Torture, both mental and physical (Sec. 498-A IPC)
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(v) Molestation (See. 3541 PC)
(vi) Sexual Harassment (See. 509 IPC)
(2) The Crimes identified under the Special Laws (SLL)
Although all laws are not gender specific, the provision of law affecting women significantly have
been reviewed periodically and amendments carried out to keep pace with the emerging requirements.
Some acts which have special provisions to safeguard women and their interests are
(i) The Employees state Insurance Act, 1948
(ii) The Plantation Labour Act, 1951
(iii) The Family Courts Act. 1954
(iv) The Special Marriage Act, 1954
(v) The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955
(vi) The Hindu Succession Act, 1956
(vii) Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956
(viii) The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 (Amended Act, 1995) (ix) Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961
(x) The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971
(xi) The Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1976 (xii) The Equal Remuneration
Act, 1976
(xiii) The Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 1979
(xiv) The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 1983
(xv) The Factories (Amendment) Act, 1986
(xvi) Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986 (xvii) Commission of Sati (Prevention)
Act, 1987
3. Special Initiatives For Women
(i) National Commission for Women
In January 1992, the Government set-up this statutory body with a specific mandate to study
and monitor all matters relating to the constitutional and legal safeguards provided for women, review
the existing legislation to suggest amendments wherever necessary etc.
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(ii) Reservation for Women in Local Self-Government
The nod and 73rd Constitutional Amendment Acts passed in 1992 by Parliament ensure one-
third of the total seats for women in all elected offices in local bodies whether in rural areas or urban
areas.
(iii) The National Plan of Action for the Girl Child (1991-2000 AD)
The plan of action is to ensure survival, protection and development of the girl child with the
ultimate objective of building up a better future for the girl child.
(iv) National Policy for the Empowerment of Women, 2001
The Department of Women & Child Development in the Ministry of Human Resource Development
has prepared a National Policy for the Empowerment of Women in the year 2001. The goal of this
policy it to bring about the advancement, development and empowerment of women.
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1.3 IMPACT OF WTO ON WOMEN
W.T.O
Agreement on Sanitary Agreement on Trade Related
And Phyto Sanitary Agriculture Intellectual Property
Measures (SPS) (AoA) Rights (TRIPS)
Agro processing in Changes in Patterns of Patents on Seeds,
Household and Agricultural Production Biopiracy, Seed
Cottage Industry and Trade Monopolies
Erosion of Womens Erosion of Agricultural Erosion of Womens Control
Expertise, Livelihoods Livelihood, Incomes and on Seed and Traditional
and Incomes in Food Security Knowledge related to Seed
Agro Processing and Biodiversity
Impacts on Women
in Agriculture
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World Trade Organization (WTO) has provided a powerful forum for developed countries to erode
the economic sovereignty of the Third World Countries including ours. Our market has been forced
open for goods and services of the multinationals particularly holders of the monopoly rights in
intellectual property services. Trade liberalization is ruining the small and cottage industries and
endangering the livelihood of the vast masses engaged in eking out existence in the self-employed
sector of our economy. The media and large industries are facing stiff import competition and the
brunt is being borne by the workers facing not only deprivation of their hard earned rights and
entitlements, but also retrenchment and lay-offs.
WTO is the most visible symbol of these processes of globalization, marketisation and recolonisation.
The process is being propelled by the multinational
Corporation, constantly in search of space for expansion of their operation, seeking to transform
the nations as their willing agents, totally ignoring the drastic implications on employment and survival
of the vast multitude of people, creating a new culture of commoditization.
The present phase of globalization in India since 1991 has been going on in other parts of the
world much longer. It is being overseen by Multinational Institutions like IMF, and World Bank. Because
these institutions represent the interest of International Finance Capital, they have prescribed to all
developing economics a uniform package of policies, which are not based on the specifications of
these economics. Their view is clear, if an economy is facing problem it is because its structure is not
suitable to the one required by the dominant world economic interest. Thus, the prescription is that
the structure of the economy has to be adjusted to that required for its incorporation into the world
markets. This is what the WTG is forcing on all economics and that is what the World Bank prescribes
as Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) the interests of the local population of the countries
undertaking SAP or implementing the WTG provisions do not matter.
Today, a large majority of Indian do not know what the New Economic Policies launched in
1991 are or what does WTG stand for. They do not know that it is setting the agenda for the way
they will live and work for the next fifty years or more. They do not know that WTO is changing the
rules in the direction that are weighted against them. It is not just the common people who find things
difficult to understand, even well educated people find hard to comprehend our legislator and policy
makers are also confused. Parliamentarian failed to understand the issue. Whenever any discussion
took place, these had been piecemeal.
As a matter of fact, the problem arises also because the developed countries have not reduced
their aggregate measure of domestic support (AMS) and export subsidies. As reported by OECD
(2001), the total support to agriculture in USA increased form $ 41,852 in base period of 1986 - 88
to $ 50,884 during 1998-2000. This meant about 22 percent rise. In European Union, it rose from
$ 94,640 in the base period to $ 105,032 in 1998-2000, i.e. by 11 percent; in Japan it increased from
$ 53,354 to $ 55,498 i.e. by 4 percent; in Korea it raised by 42 percent i.e. from USD 12,218 in the
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base period to USD 17,324 during 1998-2000. In USA, it was all shown under Green Box subsidy. As
against this, product specific support in India was - 3.05 billion dollar i.e. about - 34.8 of the total
value of agricultural output, while non-product specific support after adjustment of support to resource
poor farmers worked out to 7.5 percent in 1995-96 and only 2 to 3 percent in 1997-98.
Quite interestingly, it has also been observed that the global agricultural trade as such has
suffered a set back in the wake of WTO. The volume of agricultural exports which was growing at the
annual rate of 5.2 percent during the early 1990s decelerated to 3.4 percent during 1995 to 1990
(Ramesh Chand 2001)
However, the annual growth rates of Indias agricultural export declined more sharply, from
about 15.6 percent in the early 1990s to 5.6 percent in the post WTO period i.e. 1996-1999. Similarly,
while the overall growth rate of developing countries market access to develop countries decelerated
marginally from 0.77 percent per annum in the early 1990s to 0.37 percent in the late 1990s.
In act, the small and marginal farmers and agricultural labourers who constitute the marginalized
section of the rural population lose on both production and consumption fronts. Because of their low
bargaining power and participation in development, they are simply net losers. Further, a recent study
by Ramesh Chand (2001) shows that overall net social gains of trade liberalization have been engative
for relatively under developed regions of the country.
Impact of Liberalization on Agricultural Workers and Women
There is apprehension that economic liberalization, which tends to induce privatization and
market-led technological change, may affect employment and income prospects of rural women adversely.
For instance the impact of opening of fisheries and agro processing to multinational and corporate
reportedly displaced million of workers.
The impact of economic liberalization on agricultural workers and women may be summarized
as follows:
q The volatility of international prices of agricultural commodities has affected agricultural
workers in India adversely. Particularly during the last few years or so, most of Indias
agricultural commodities have lost international competitiveness due to low international
prices. The exports of agricultural commodities have fallen. Simultaneaously, there have
been increased imports of edible oils and raw cotton which have depressed the domestic
prices of these commodities.
q It is apprehended that the process of economic liberalization will ultimately result in a
situation in which multinational companies will dominate the agricultural scene in India
and small farmers may lose their grips over agriculture, posing a risk of livelihood insecurity
for millions of agricultural workers and rural women.
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q In the wake of WTO, not only agricultural exports have declined, but also rate of growth
of agricultural output and employment. Consequently, both cultivating households as well
as landless particularly women labourers have suffered a loss of income.
q In the wake of economic liberalization, cultivators as well as agricultural labourers look
depressesed because of deterioration in their income levels as well as uncertain future.
Also the gap between agricultural and nonagricultural workers is widening.
q There is a secular worsening of the condition of agricultural labourers due to increase
casualization of labour force and inability of the organizeq farm and non-farm sectors to
absorb the growing labour force.
q In the plantation sector too, the decline in the export earnings from tea, coffee and rubber
and low domestic prices have affected both income and employment of women. Particularly,
smaller plantations find it difficult to maintain the levels of employment and wages of the
labourers.
Agreement on Sanitary and phyto-Sanitary Measures (SPS)
Though the WTO provisions lays down that the minimum five percent market access may have
to be given by importing countries, the developed countries impose certain quality norms and product
specification and other sanitary and phyto-sanitary regulations. The EU now insists that milking cows
be fully mechanized to avoid contamination and potable water used to process milk. (Kulkarni 2001)
It also prescribes that only steel machinery and filtered air be used for processing. To adhere
to these norms the Indian dairy industry may have to invest much capital in the required infrastructure,
either through cooperative efforts or cooperative sector intervention. However, this may increase the
cost of milk at the present yield level. Besides, this is beyond the financial capability for most of the
cattle owners, as they have only one or two milking animals similar measures have been prescribed
for agro-processing.
The sanitary and phyto sanitary measures in an explicit manner came into force as an integral
part of the Agreement on Agriculture. The Indian exporters of foods items have faced standard
divide in a stringent manner since the WTOs agreement of SPS measures came into force in 1995.
The SPS measurers are aimed to protect the human, animal or plant life or health in. such manner
that the scientific merit is not compromised (George 2003)
Technical Barrier to Trade (TBT)
Other specific types of provisions are Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), which focus on ensuring,
that the imported products satisfy domestic tastes, preferences and requirements with respect to
quality, safety or appropriate considerations of environmental concerns during the manufacture, packaging
and/or shipment of the products. The TBT agreement covers all technical regulations, voluntary standards
and conformity assessment procedures. The legitimate objective of TBT includes national security
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requirements and prevention of deceptive practices taking into account the risks that non-fulfillment
would create. (Smita 2001)
In addition to these objectives, another potential objective of the TBT could be simple protection
of domestic dairy sector and markets from foreign competitions. For instance, some countries apply
different standards for a given product in different regions of the country, which complicates and
confuses the efforts by exporters trying to enter their markets. Canada is certainly guilty of this with
respect to its regulations regarding the colouring of margarine and its blending with buttar.
One TBT relevance for dairy products could be related to shelf life restrictions. South Korea, for
example, had uniform government mandated shelf life standards, but on being questioned about their
scientific basis by USA agreed to change its policies regarding shelf life in a negotiated settlement.
Thus TBT can result in a net loss causing significance and unnecessary costs to the exporters.
There is a need for equivalency provisions for standards to balance the interests and rights of
exporting countries with the needs and expectations of consumers of importing countries.
Special Safeguard Provisions (SSG)
The infamous SSG, can limit access of Indian dairy products, provides for imposition of additional
import duty of the import exceed their average during the three preceding years by no more than 5
percent. During 1995-98 the 17.5 percent of the cases in which SSG was invoked were dairy products.
The tarification of non-tariff barriers under the WTO has forced India to bind the import of milk
powder at zero duty. This was primarily because milk powder import had so far remained on the
restricted list and therefore was devoid of any non-tariff barriers or what is known as quantitative
restrictions (QRs). In comparison, New Zealand imposes a 12 per cent import duty and the United
States and the European Union have bound duties at a specific rate of $ 865 and $ 1,188 per tonne,
respectively. The import of milk powder from Denmark into India was for instance contracted at
$1,400 per tonne, even as the US and the EU are providing a subsidy of $ 1,028 and $ 959 per tonne
of subsidy. The import price, with the subsidy built-in, is substantially lower than the cost of production
in India!
The logic behind allowing MNCs to import milk powder without countervailing duties is difficult
to fathom, when their own governments are giving them massive subsidies. The Producer Subsidy
Equivalent, which measures the aggregate quantum of subsidy as a percentage of the value of the milk
produced, in 1997 stood at 82 per cent in Japan, 59 per cent in Canada, 54 per cent in the European
Union, 47 per cent in the US and 23 per cent in Australia. Furthermore, the per tonne subsidy of $
811 for milk powder declared by the EU in 1998 or the $ 875 per tonne subsidy provided by the US
under its Dairy Export Incentive Programme constituted roughly 55 per cent of the prevailing international
price of $ 1,500 per tonne the same year.
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Impact on Agro Processing and Household Industries and Erosion of Womens Livelihood
Following few examples of Shri Mahila Udyog Lijjat Padap, Bikaneri Bhujia and oil ghanes are
more than suffice to show the devasting impact of SPS, TBT and SPG in the livelihood of women.
Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad
There have been a number of specific grass roots movements in which women from lower middle
class have been an active agent of their empowerment. For instance, the growth and significance of
Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad started by only seven women in March 1959, in Girgaum, a
thickly populated area in South Mumbai. These women belonged to the Lohana community, mostly of
peasants origin, hailing from Gujarat. In fact, these women, were friends, purchased this venture of
another woman along with its loss of Rs. 80. With the needed ingredients from their homes, they rolled
out papads on the terrace of their buildings (Ramanathan 2004)
With in three months, there were about 25 women working in their group. In two years, the
number rose to over 150 women. By 1962-63, the annual sales of papad rose to about Rs. 1.82 lakhs.
In July 1966 this organization of Shri Mahila Udyog Lijjat Papad was registered as a society under the
Societies Act. In September 1996, the Chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC),
Government of India personally visited this organization and granted a formal recognition. KVIC also
granted a working capital of about Rs. 8 lakh and tax exemption and soon it was registered under
Mumbai Trust Act 1950, as a public trust. Thus the formal organization of Shri Mahila Udyog Lijjat
Papad was completed by the seventh year of its existence.
The organization aimed at promoting self-employment, dignity of labour and earning capacity
of women working from home. With time, this was to be consciously developed as a discourse and
ideology, based on Mahatma Gandhis concept of trusteeship. Gandhian trusteeship was well suited to
the organization, as it had evolved in due course. Under trusteeship, all assets belonged to the society
and business was nothing but a refined form of service. Ownership of a business developed on those
engaged in its functioning. In other words, there were to be no employee or employer.
As most of them came from the lowest economic sections of the society, this developed in them
a sense of self-esteem and gave them pride in their capacity to earn their livelihood independently.
Thus, Lajjat, as it evolved, was very much more than a mere entrepreneurial venture. It was a symbol
of womens strength, as its logo proclaimed, a living example of a concept and a way of life. At its
core were women helping themselves to grow beyond the confines of their home as well as of their
work. This is an example of how meeting a practical need for supplementary income had a transformatory
potential for the women concerned.
The pace of growth of the organization is evidenced in the opening of several branches in
different parts of India. The 21st branch was inaugurated at Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh in November
1979, 50th branch at Borivalli in March 1996, 55th branch in Baroda, Gujarat in April 1997, 59th
branch in Rahuri, Maharashtra in December 1998 and 61st branch in Veerayatan, Rajgir in Bihar in
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December 1998. The 62nd branch opened in Jammu and Kashmir in 2001. Since 1998 the opening
of new branches was slackened to concentrate on increase of production in the existing center to avoid
overlapping of the territorial spread of each branch.
Apart from making papads, the organization soon started to diversify into allied or other areas
of production that seems feasible as a cottage industry. The flourmills in 1975 (to grind lentils etc.),
masalas (Spices) division in 1976, printing division in 1977 and polypropylene packing division in 1978.
The cottage leather division (1979), the match industry division in 1979 and agarbatti (incense sticks),
were started but eventually had to close down as they were neither economically viable nor self
sustaining.
The Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad had thus expanded to have 32 divisions and 62 branches.
The other divisions are sales, export, advertising, printing and polypropylene. The branches and other
divisions spread over 15 states of India, with Mumbai itself having 17 branches. The strength of
member-sisters swelled to more than 40,000 from the original. The tremendous increase in the sales
proceeds in about a decade was indicative of the corresponding growth and spread of the organization.
The total sales figures of the organization for the 12 month till February 1980 was Rs. 4 million, the
corresponding sale for the financial year 1999 was Rs. 25.866 million including the export sale of Rs.
8.5 million.
Once well-established Lijjat attracted attention due to its unique equitable structure and rapid
development. Several foreign visitors and officials thronged to see its functioning to promote similar
organization in their countries. Visitors came from far and wide from Israel, U.K., Srilanka, Sudan, Iraq
and other countries. The Lijjat exports to all these and other countries had a hand in the increasing
popularity of its name and products both in the east and the west.
The growth of the Lijjat Papad is to be seen in the larger canvas of women and their development
within the framework of progress in India. The contribution of Lijjat in promoting economic empowerment
of women has been well recognized and appreciated. The Economic Times Award for the Business
women of the year was received in September 2002 by Jaswantiben Popat, the only surviving member
of the seven women member founder of the Lijjat. The award was given for the women behind Lijjat
Papad for unleashing the power of unity for building an enduring and respected brand showing that
the ordinary women can achieve the extraordinary.
In the later half of the 20th century, women initiated movements that were economic, social,
political or cultural in content. Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad was a model attempt to make
women economically self reliant, thus paving way for their concurrent empowerment in the other facets
of their lives. It symbolized the beginning of a slow, but steady, process of women taking an active
agency over their lives and that of society around them. What is significant is that Lijjat Papad
provided a beacon light to the lower class women in India, irrespective of their caste, religion and
region, a path towards a better future. The capacity to earn ones livelihood and the resultant self-
confidence was necessary the first step in the ladder to empowerment (Ramanathan 2004)
(41)
Women : The Food Processors
(42)
Bikaneri Bhujia Cultural and Intellectual Piracy by Pepsi?
An example of the free usurpation of a traditional name for a cottage industry product is the
recent flooding of Delhi bill boards and banners with advertisement by Pepsi for Bikaneri Bhujia.
Pepsi will now be selling bhujia under its brand name Lehar Namkeen. A global company is thus
taking control of the traditional snack food sector.
The famous bhujia of Bikaner was developed by a local halwai, when in 1877, the then ruler of
Bikaner, Maharaja Dungar Singh asked him to prepare new namkeen for his guests. The halwai
produced hair thin bhujia, which became instantly popular. There are now 200 units manufacturing the
bhujia. The moth dal, the basic ingredient, grows only in Bikaner.
A product of a local traditional innovation is now to be manufactured and marketed under the
brand name of a multinational. Pepsi will be adding consumer value by providing authentic tasting
products with guarantee of quality and freshness at reasonable prices, delivered at the doorsteps of
the consumers. As the worlds largest manufacturer of snacks, Pepsi sees an opportunity of upgrading
the industry with infusion of technology and would like to see the imagery of namkeens changed from
cottage sector produced commodity type product to a modern high quality product, which is in line
with international standards.
Lehar Namkeen thus uses the imagery and technology of the Bikaner Bhujia even while
undermining its cultural, technological and socio-economic base. The small cottage industry based
units will thus be wiped out as their market will be monopolized by the global snack food giant.
Bhujia will be disassociated from its cultural and ecological roots in Bikaner and in the small-scale
snack food sector and will be associated with pepsi in the minds of global consumers through pepsis
massive advertising.
Already, Delhi is getting covered with billboards asking, Sir, do you want same Bhujia? or using
popular popular film songs to say Mere pua ghar laya Bhikaner Bhujia and Khata Rahe Mere Dil.
While Art (8) and 29(9) of Trade Mark with their broad scope would be able to prevent any
Indian citizen from doing what Pepsi has done with Pepsis signs, symbols and marks, Pepsi is free to
pirate and distort the collective heritage of Indian society because our heritage cannot be narrowed
to a registered trade mark.
The cultural and economic implications of a multinational corporation taking over a traditional
product and selling it globally under its brand name that is illustrated in the Pepsi case is at the heart
of the political and economic issues of Intellectual Property Rights in general and a Trade Marks
regime in particular. When new IPR regimes are introduced in a technologically and culturally plural
economy of India which has not been crushed by formalization of law but governed by customary
codes and moral law, we have to ensure that changes introduced into our national laws in the context
of globalisation have the mechanisms for preventing piracy. This includes biopiracy as in the case
(43)
of Neem patents or seed patents and breeders rights and cultural piracy and intellectual piracy as in
the case of Bikaner Bhujia.
Whether it is farmers right to seed or traditional halwais to produce Bikaner Bhujia whether it
is our biological wealth or our rich craft tradition, the protection of the livelihoods of our people and
of our cultural values and heritage should be the top most priority of any process of law making, even
in the GATT era.
Since Trade Marks are an economic instrument with major cultural and political impact, it is
important that a new Trade Mark Bill ensures that it protects our cultural and intellectual heritage, as
well as the economic base of survival of millions of small producers especially those in the cottage
industry sector.
The section on textiles is also totally inadequate in protecting the rights and markets of traditional
weavers and seems to be drafted only for the industrial sector. This is particularly important given that
traditional techniques and designs are now being pirated on a large scale by western corporations
for global markets. A major case has emerged in Ghana where traditional designs woven by hand loom
weavers are being imitated by U.S textile corporations, usurping the American markets from Ghanian
weavers, and undermining the existing African markets to which they currently supply goods.
Further these groups of producers have values of free sharing that need to be protected for the
future of humanity as a whole. Instead of expanding the sphere of privatizing IPRs to cover seeds and
traditional snack foods, it is essential, to reduce the sphere of IPRs like patents and trade marks in
domains where they can infringe on the prior, even though non-formalized and non-registered rights,
of farmers, healers and handicraft producers.
Protecting the rights of traditional communities has to be ensured by not allowing MNCs to have
the unbounded intellectual property rights that would allow them to trample on Indian producers,
traders and consumers. The traditional farmers and the halwais can best be protected by having very
clearly defined limits and boundaries for corporate rights, and having very clear criteria for exclusion
in patents as well as in trade marks based on ethical, cultural, ecological, economic and political
imperatives.
Bikaneri Bhujia is a traditional snack produced in cottage industries in Bikaner, Rajasthan,
India and currently providing 2,500,500 persons mainly women with a living wage. Pepsi with its
capital, is now using this traditional name in its advertising, in order to underbid the local producers
and therefore destroy their market. Pepsi has introduced no new technology to produce this snack. This
US MNC, which can now operate freely in India after the economic liberalization, has appropriated the
cultural knowledge, the traditional method of food preparation of millions of simple women, and
thereby destroyed their basis of living. These women from town and country educated and uneducated,
married and widowed, had an income from this cottage industry, which was perfectly suited to the
region, which gave this snack its name. The moth lentil, used for preparing this snack, grows only in
(44)
the deserts of Bikaner and Jodhpur. The cottage industry had a secure local market and supported not
only the women but also the farmers in this desert region, where not much else grows. A further ten
thousand women are employed in the preparation of Papad, a snack that is eaten together with the
Bikaneri Bhujias. And hundreds of thousands of street vendors live from the sales of these popular
traditional snacks. (Maria)
At the conference on Intellectual Property Rights, Community Rights and Biodiversity in Delhi,
it was reported that almost the entire population of Bikaner was involved in the production and
distribution of Bikaneri Bhujia. Now Pepsi has announced that it will remove this product from the
cottage industry sector land relocate it in the high-tech sector. This will be catastrophe for the people
of Bikaner, as Pepsi has stolen the traditional trademark name in order to destroy the market of the
little people.
In India, in support of these policies, farmland necessary for the feeding of the local population
is now planted with export food products, such as tomatoes for ketchup from Pepsi in place of rice
in the Punjab, sunflowers instead of rice and millet in Karnataka, flowers, strawberries and fruits for
export in Maharashtra instead of basic food stuffs. Corn is grown for animal feed, to be exported to
Europe. The large food concerns turn the farmers into contract producers who provide them with raw
materials for the manufacture of Novel Food which they then sell where certain social classes have
the necessary purchasing power.
The Attack on Local Processing! The Threat to our Ghanis, Chakkis and Dhabas.
Global agribusiness is now attempting to take over food processing by making fresh, locally
produced food appear backward, and stale food clothed in aluminum and plastic appear modern.
Industrial processing and packaging was first applied to edible oils, destroying the livelihood of oil mill
operators and small farmers because of imported soybeans. An attempt is now being made to take
over the wheat economy.
The Indian wheat economy is based on decentralized, small-scale local production, processing
and distribution systems. Wheat and flour (atta) provide livelihoods and nutrition to millions of farmers,
traders (artis), and local mill operators (chakkiwallas). The decentralized, small-scale, household based
economy of food production and food processing is huge in aggregate. It generates millions of
livelihoods while ensuring that fresh and wholesome food at accessible prices is available to people.
Moreover, such production and processing has no negative environmental impacts.
It is estimated that more than 3.5 million family-run kirana shops supply wheat to Indian
consumers. More than 2 million small neighborhood mills produce fresh flour. In addition, flour is also
produced by million of women working at the household level. The rolling pin (belan) for making rotis
has always been a symbol of womens power. It is often mistakenly said that only 2 percent of food
is processed in India. This is because officials ignore womens work in the home and the contribution
of this work to the national economy.
(45)
While 40 million tonnes of wheat is traded, only 15 million tonnes is purchased directly as atta
because India loves freshness and quality in food. Less than one percent of consumed atta caries a
brand name because Indian consumers trust their own supervision of quality at the local chakki better
than a brand name attached to stale, packaged flour. This decentralized; small-scale economy based
on millions of producers, processors and traders works with very little capital and very little infrastructure.
People are the substitute for capital and infrastructure. However, such a people centered economy
impedes large-scale profits for big agribusiness. They are therefore eyeing the Indian wheat economy
to transform it into a source of profits.
The destruction of millions of livelihood, of local decentralized economy and of peoples access
to fresh and cheap atta is described as modernization of the food chain. In the Third World packaged
food is described as the food of the rich, even though the rich in the industrialized countries in fact
eat fresh food, while the poor are forced to eat heavily processed and packaged food. Packaging is
not modernization, but rather an obsolete aspect of non-sustainable economy that uses packaging
and brand names as a way to displace the more efficient and cheaper system through which people
can get food processed locally in front of their eyes and hence ensure quality and freshness.
The Delhi government has also passed a law requiring all small dhabas and street vendors to
get licenses. While economic reforms have ended the license - permit raj for big corporations and
MNCs, globalisation is creating a new rule of license and corruption by dragging the small farmers,
small processors into a net of a license-permit raj. This is a system of slavery, not free trade. Free
trade is what we have had the freedom to practice our trade, at the small scale, whether it is to put
up a tea stall or dhaba or the roadside or a small chakki or ghani in a village and community.
Agriculture is the basis of our survival, our culture, and our moral fabric. Destruction of Indian
agriculture by import dumping and take over of Indian agriculture by MNCs through WTO trade rules
an World Bank/IMF policies of economic reform is not just the destruction of the livelihoods of 750
million Indians who are farmers. It is an assault on our freedom and democracy; it is an invasion into
our culture and civilization, it is a threat to our environment and food security, it is a recipe for a new
slavery, in which the farmers and the country are enslaved to American MNCs, the American government
and the World Bank, IMF and WTO.
A new freedom movement for India has to be based on a movement for farmers freedom. We
have to keep our food and agriculture free of MNC control and WTQ control. Unless our food and
agriculture is based on policies that defend nation and sovereignty and farmers sovereignty, we all
once again be colonized and enslaved.
Agreement on Agriculture (AoA)
Worst of all, agriculture, the last bastion of the national economy is facing unprecedented threat
with the removal of all quantitative restriction (QR) on imports of agricultural products, on the one
hand and impending corporatisation of this sector, on the other. The damage has been compounded
(46)
because of the complementary economic, financial and fiscal policies being followed by the government
and advice of IMF and World Bank. Farmers have been left to the mercy of the traders and profiteers.
They are being dispossessed of their land through auctions to recover the dues. Public Distribution
System has been decimated in the name of targeting subsidies and fiscal discipline.
Following the WTO Treaty, India has liberized its agricultural trade policy by removing all quantitative
restrictions on imports of agricultural commodities and export of major commodities. There has been
tarification of erstwhile non-tariff items and WTO compatible tariff rates prevail.
At the time of signing the AOA in 1994, it was hoped that Indian farmers would gain substantially
from trade liberalization, as our farmers would gain international market access for their products.
This was mainly because international price at the point of time were much higher than domestic
prices of most agricultural commodities. However, in the wake of WTO, Indias exports of almost all
agricultural commodities have sown a declining trend. Due to low tariff, imports of edible oils particularly
palm oil have surged which have depressed the domestic prices of edible oils and oilseeds. As a result,
Indian farmers have suffered a great deal. Also the country imports edible oils to the tune of 46 lakh
tonnes and spends huge foreign exchange.
There is no level playing field created through AOA or WTO led trade liberalization and therefore,
where is the question of small and marginal farmers in India benefiting from such unequal open trade
regime. In other words/the existing AOA is heavily biased in favour of developed countries. Besides,
even if Indian farmers are led to freely decide what they should produce or should not produce, for
domestic and international markets, based on comparison with world market prices of the principle of
comparative advantage, they will not gain much mileage because of two reasons. First, the world
market for agricultural commodities lack objectivity, as these are largely controlled by a few oligopolists
and multinational companies who account for agreements among them and consequently, free trade
will remain a myth.
Second, small and marginal farmers in India lack adequate access to marketing facilities even
within the country due to lack of access to basic infrastructure like market yards, within a reasonable
distance, roads and transportation, storage, cool chains etc. and therefore, depend heavily on unscrupulous
middleman. In other words, benefits of trade (if any), whether nationally or internationally, would be
cornered. Moreover, in a country like India where there is huge population, Indian farmers can substantially
benefit from domestic market alone, provided there is sufficient improvement in purchasing power of
the people and necessary marketing infrastructure. In fact, enabling the small farmers to benefit from
development of domestic market would be a necessary pre-condition for their gainful access to international
markets.
As the same time, it is apprehended that the process of economic liberalization will ultimately
yield a situation in which multinational companies will dominate the agricultural scene in India and
small farmers may lose their grips over agriculture, posing a risk of livelihood insecurity for millions
of people. (Reddy, 1997) Also trips and bio-piracy are likely to affect the Indian farmers adversely.
(47)
Already several traditional Indian products like kalajjra, karela, brinjal and anar are reported to have
been patended in foreign countries, although India has won cases for Basmati and Neem. In addition,
the monopolistic/oligopolistic seed production by multinational companies would tend to raise input
prices, thus rising the farmers cost of production.
WTOs agreement on Agriculture had incorporated three broad areas of commitments from
member states, namely in market access, domestic support and export subsidies. Increased market
access was the hallmark of the free trade, aimed at opening new markets for agriculture exporters.
There has, however been hardly any change in the volume of exports. High imports duties continue
to block exports from the developing countries have also blocked the exports from developing countries.
And on top of it, only 36 countries (all developed) have the right to impose special safeguard provision
if agriculture imports distort their domestic market. The underlying objective being to correct and
prevent restrictions and distortions in world agricultural markets. On the other hand, the trading
regime has ensured that developing countries take time-bound initiatives to open up their domestic
markets for cheap and highly subsidized imports of agricultural commodities in the name of encouraging
competition. Nine years later, it is now established that these measures have only protected the
farmers and the farming systems of the developed countries.
It is now official, nine years after the WTO came into existence, on January 1, 1995; the
anticipated gains for India from the trade liberalization process in agriculture are practically zero. The
Ministries of Agriculture and Commerce have officially admitted that the hopes from an international
regime that talked of establishing a fair and market oriented agricultural trading system have been
belied.
Market Access
Increased market access was the hallmark of the free trade agenda. It was aimed at force
opening new markets for agriculture exporters. The AoA required all countries to allow a certain
minimum market access for every agricultural product at 5 percent for developed countries and 4
percent for developing countries. Southern nations, with low cost of production, were always told that
with the developed countries would have to open up their markets for cheaper food imports as a result
of which the developing countries would gain enormously.
India was forced to either phase out or eliminate the quantitative restrictions (QRs) on agricultural
commodities and products latest by April 1, 2001. India has, therefore, opened its market and, in turn,
made the farming community vulnerable to the imports of highly subsidized products. Already, cheaper
imports of skimmed milk powder, edible oils, sugar, tea, are canut, apples, coconut etc. have flooded
the market.
Domestic Support
Clever manipulation of their subsidy-reduction commitments has in reality increased the support
to farmers in the developed countries. In the US, subsidy to mere 9,00,000 farmers has increased by
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700 times since 1996. Two years before the former US President, Mr. Bill Clinton, left the office, the
US had provided an additional $ 26 billion to its farmers. In absolute terms, farm support in the OECD
countries increased 8 percent to reach a staggering $ 363 billion in 1998.
In the European Union (EU), direct payments to farmers after the reforms initiated in March
1999 to the Common Agricultural Policy, now account for 126 percent of the net income of cereal
producers and 129 percent for the bovine meat producers. And this falls under the Blue Box. Explicit
and implicit support to farmers is, therefore, protected under the various colours of the protection
boxes: Green Box, Amber Box and Blue Box.
In India, we are being told that our Aggregate Measure of Support (AMS), a measure of the
subsidies that are provided to agriculture, being negative (against the upper limit of ten percent) we
can still raise our subsidies to farmers. In reality, India is committed to do away with agricultural
subsidies under the Structural Adjustment Programme of the World Bank and the IMF. In any case,
India provides only $ 1 billion worth of indirect subsidies to 550 billion farmers.
It was anticipated that due to reduction in domestic support in. the developed countries, cereal
production would shift from the developed to the developing countries. Empirical evidence, however,
is that such a trend is not at all visible. In fact, all indications (and efforts of the World Bank/IMF)
point towards making the developed countries the hub of cereal production. The Brettea Woods
institutions have been asking developing countries to diversify to cash crops as a pre-condition for
advancing loans. Moreover, with such massive subsidies intact, and with the Ors lifted, developing
countries are sure to be inundated with food imports, a process that has already initiated further
marginalisation of farming and farm communities.
Export Subsidies
The WTO enables only 25 countries to provide export subsidies for their agricultural products
and commodities. Other countries, which do not have agricultural export subsidies, like India, cannot
make any new provisions for it. Export subsidies that need to be pruned, as per a formula, are not
provided in India. On the other hand, the US continues to find legitimacy for even export credits, which
are actually used to promote and push American agricultural exports.
The Ministry of Agriculture acknowledges that despite the rules being defined, the expected
gains have eluded the developing countries. It was expected that with the removal of trade distorting
measures, agricultural exports from the developing countries would increase. This did not happen. In
fact, India has on the other hand seen a massive increase in the imports of agricultural commodities
and products from Rs. 5,000 crore in 1995 to over Rs. 15,000 crore in 1999-2000, a three-fold
increase.
In edible oils alone, the import bill has soared to Rs. 9,000 crore. The so-called fair trading
system has also not helped efficient producers in realizing a higher price for their products. On the
contrary, prices of most agricultural commodities are declining in world market.
(49)
Agreement On Agriculture: A Kargil Treaty
The Agreement on Agriculture should be called a Kargil Agreement. Converting self-sufficient
food dependent economies is the Kargil vision and the W.T.O strategy. Because the Agriculture Agreement
of W.T.O. is an agribusiness treaty it distorts production and trade from the perspective of nature,
small farmers and all consumers, especially the poor. It is a recipe for ecological destruction, devastation
of family farms, and rumination of citizens health. Behind the apparent neutrality of rules for domestic
support, market access and export competition are distorted assumptions and myths about food
production and distribution (Vandana Shiva 2003)
These Kargil myths are enshrined in the W.T, O. agriculture agreements. The first myth is that
America is the best region for growing food and America grows the best food. The reality is that
America is a model of how not to grow and produce food. The second myth is that free trade allows
food to be delivered efficiently. The reality is that without massive subsidies and dumping, U.S.
corporations could not capture South markets, and free trade is based on a food swap, with
countries importing and exporting the same commodity and all countries pushed into trade in a handful
of commodities controlled by the agribusiness giants-not on exporting what a country can uniquely
produce and importing what it cannot.
The related myth is that dumping frees up incomes of farmers who can then buy motorbikes,
cellular phones and computers. The reality is that dumping destroys domestic markets, collapse of
markets destroys livelihoods and incomes, collapse of rural incomes erodes purchasing power and
entitlements. Impoverished farmers join the ranks of the hungry. Indebted farmers commit suicide.
Starvation deaths and farm suicides are the tragic outcome of trade liberalization of food systems.
While displacing farmers has been justified on grounds of productivity in fact small farms are
more productive than large ones. As our former Prime Minister Ch. Charan Singh had stated,
Agriculture being a life process, in actual practise, under given conditions, yields per acre decline
as the size of farm increase (in other words, as the application of human labour and supervision per acre
decreases). The above results are well nigh universal: output per acre of investment is higher on small
farmers than on large farms. Thus, if a crowded, capital-scare country like India has a choice between
a single 100 acre farm and forty 2.5 acre farms, the capital cost to the national economy will be less
if the country chooses the small farms .
However, it is the small farms and small farmers who are being destroyed by globalization and
trade driven economic reforms. Five million peasants livelihoods have disappeared in India since
reforms were introduced.
Change in Agricultural Production and erosion of Agricultural Livelihood.
There are two levels at which the matter of food self-sufficiency, based on the green revolution
in India, is a myth. At the micro level, the displacement of crop mixtures of cereals, pulses and oilseeds
(50)
by monocultures of commoditised HYV crops undermines food self-sufficiency in a drastic way. First,
the small peasant, who does not fit into the credit, purchased inputs and cash crop package, is
displaced, losing his or her entitlement to food that food production provided. There is ample evidence
available that the green revolution had a class bias and worked against the interests of the small
peasant. The dispossession of the poorer sections of rural society through the green revolution strategy
and their reduced access to food resources is, in part, responsible for the appearance of surpluses at
the macro-level. The surplus, according to prominent economist V.K.R.V. Rao, is a myth because it is
created by lack of purchasing power.
The green revolution has displaced not just seed varieties but entire crops in the Third World.
Just as peoples seeds were declared primitive and inferior by the green revolution ideology, food
crops were declared marginal, inferior and coarse grained. Only a biased agricultural science
rooted in capitalist patriarchy could declare nutritious crops like ragi and jowar inferior. Peasant
women know the nutrition needs of their families and the nutritive content of the crops they grow.
Among food crops they prefer those with maximum nutrition to those with a value in the market. What
have usually been called marginal crops or coarse grains are natures most productive crops in terms
of nutrition.
That is why women in Garhwal continue to cultivate mandua and women in Karnataka cultivate
ragi inspite of all attempts by state policy to shift to cash crops and commercial food grains, to which
all financial incentives of agricultural development are tied. Table 3.1 illustrates how what the green
revolution has declared inferior grains are actually superior in nutritive content to the so-called superior
grains, rice and wheat. A woman in Himalayan village once told without our mandua and jbangora
we could not labour as we do. These grains are our source of health and strength. (Shiva 1992)
Table - 1.3 (1) : Nutritional content of different food crops
Protein Minerals Ca Fe
(Gms) (100 gms) (mg) (100 gms)
Bajira 11.6 2.3 42 5.0
Ragi 7.3 2.7 344 6.4
Jowar 10.4 1.6 25 5.8
Wheat (milled) 11.8 0.6 23 2.5
Rice (milled) 6.8 0.6 10 3.1
(Shiva 1992)
The most extreme example of this polarized vision is that of bathua, an important green leafy
vegetable with very high nutritive value, which grows as an associate of wheat. When women weed the
wheat field they do not merely contribute to the productivity of wheat; they actually harvest a rich
source of nutrition for their families. However, with intensive chemical fertilizer use bathua becomes
(51)
a major competitor of wheat and has been declared a weed that is killed with herbicides and
weedicides. The food cycle is broken, women are deprived of work, and children are deprived of a free
source of nutrition. The crops that the green revolution destroys are thus not marginal in the context
of nutrition and survival, but in the context of the market and of commodity production of food for
profit. The bias against peoples seeds and peoples crops translates into a bias against womens work
in the production of sustenance.
Since diversity works against the logic of centralization and control, genetic diversity must be
destroyed in effect; global agricultural strategies are breeding out those links in the food chain, which
are of high value of womens work in the survival economy and which have traditionally been under
their control. The green revolution in Punjab reduced food values by displacing the traditional cereal
pulse oilseed mixed cropping patterns and reducing the production of pulses and oilseeds. The rapid
spread of HYV rice and wheat took place at the cost of pulses and oilseeds. (Shiva 1992)
Women in India are an intimate part of nature, both in imagination and in practice. At one level
nature is symbolized as the embodiment of the feminine principle, and at another, she is nurtured by
the feminine to produce life and provide sustenance. With the violation of nature is linked the violation
and marginalisation of women, especially in the Third World. Women produce and reproduce life not
merely biologically, but also through their social role in providing sustenance.
Women were the worlds original food producers, and continue to be central to food production
system in the Third World in terms of the work they do in the food chain. The worldwide destruction
of the feminine knowledge of agriculture evolved over four to five thousand years, by a handful of
white male scientists in less than two decades has not merely violated women as experts; since their
expertise in agriculture has been related to modeling agriculture on natures methods of renewability,
its destruction has gone hand in hand with the eco logical destruction of natures processes and the
economic destruction of the poorer people in rural areas (Shiva 1992)
Contrary to received views that modernization would liberate women from old discrimination and
domination, the modernization of agriculture in India is deepening old prejudices and introducing new
biases and violence. The assumption of the substitutability and dispensability of nature and women
that results from the dichotomies and dualisms of economic and scientific reductionism is the underlying
cause for the desertification and death of soils on the one hand and the deprivation, devaluation and
death of women on the other (Shiva 1992)
Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs)
The Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS) of WTO is, the aspect of
globalization, which can be the biggest threat to peoples food security when combined with the
opening up of the seed industry. The section of TRIPS that most directly affects farmers rights and
agricultural biodiversity is Article 27.5.3(b), which states. (Vandana Shiva and Anjali 2002).
(52)
Parties may exclude from patentability plants and animals other than microorganisms, and
essentially biological processes for the production of plants or animals other than non-biological and
micro-biological processes. However, parties shall provide for the protection of plant varieties either
by patents or by an effective sui generis system or by any combination thereof. This provision shall
be reviewed four years after the entry into force of the Agreement establishing the WTO.
The article thus allows two forms of IPRs in plants; patents and a sui generis system. The Patent
Act and the National Plant Variety Legislation drafts are becoming a major location of contest between
the public interest and corporate interest.
The 1970 Patent Act excluded all methods of agriculture and horticulture from patentability. In
addition, the exclusion of product patents in the area of agrochemicals was also ensured through
Section 5a. The Patent (Amendment) Bill 1995 removes these restrictions in the field of agriculture.
Further, since it does not articulate new demarcation criteria for exclusions, it allows the patenting of
plants, plant products, plant characteristics, their genes, biopesticides, biofertilisers, etc. The totally
unrestricted scope of patenting in agriculture that this Bill proposed would have undermined Indian
agriculture, threatened Indian farmers, and imperiled food security. It failed to pass through Parliament
due to these serious implications.
The TRIPs agreements militate against peoples human right to food and health by conferring
unrestricted monopoly rights to corporations in the vital sectors of health and agriculture. It also
threatens the livelihood of farmers. The case of the Basmati Patents is a good illustration of how
Intellectual Property Rights (IPRS) claimed by corporations undermines farmers rights.
Basmati is a rice variety evolved over centuries of breeding by Indian farmers. The US company
Rice Tec has Patent No. 56, 63, 484 for Basmati 867 which is essentially derived from Indian Basmati,
but which Rice Tec claims is an instant invention of novel rice lines.
The patent claim thus denies farmers breeding and innovation, and by appropriating the contribution
of farmers, declares biopiracy as an invention. Over time, Rice Tec can use the patent to prevent
Indian farmers from growing basmati or force them to pay royalties since a patent allows the patent
holder to exclude others from making or using the product covered by a patent. In the short run, Rice
Tec can use Biopiracy to undermine Indias markets of Basmati exports of 4,00,000-5,00,000 tons
valued at Rs.11.2 billion which commands three-fourth of the total rice exports.
Intellectual Property Rights in the area of agriculture and plant variety will undermine food
security since the protected and patented varieties are not linked to food needs, but to the processing
and marketing requirements of agribusiness. The shift to the control of agriculture through the control
of seed will also contribute to secondary impacts on other natural resources like land and water
passing into the control of TNCs. IPRs in the area of seeds and plants will increase the national debt
tenfold.
(53)
Article 27.5.3 (b) of the TRIPs agreement is based on allowing the patenting of life forms by
discriminating between biological and non-biological forms. Since such discrimination already exists,
the Agreement in Agriculture should be reviewed on the basis of discrimination between the small
family farm and the large corporate farm, and discrimination between ecological/organic agriculture
and chemical/genetically engineered agriculture. US industry tried to preempt such discrimination,
which is necessary for food security by insisting that genetic engineering be labeled organic.
However, without protecting the earth, biodiversity and the small-farmer, no food security is
possible. Hence the right to life and the right to food security, require that the WTO agreement be
changed to provide protection to small producers and to the environment. Trade policy needs to be
guided by human rights and by environmental concerns. The human rights of farmers and poor
consumers cannot be sacrificed merely for the increased profits of global commerce. Discrimination
between sustainable and non-sustainable systems, between just and unjust systems, between ethical
and unethical farming is necessary to ensure future survival.
The myth that has supported globalization is that it will lead to growth. But what is never
specified is growth of what and for whom. Trade liberalization does lead to growth of profits for global
agribusiness corporations. But it is leading to a decline in food production and food security, and the
erosion of ecological security and economic security for farmers.
Globalization of agriculture can neither provide food security nor sustainability. Sustainability of
agriculture and the right to food requires an alternative to the external intensification and external
liberalization of agriculture. Internal intensification creates conditions for internal liberalization.
The green revolution model, and now the globalization model of agriculture are based on the
destruction of diversity, uprooting of small peasants through indebtedness, chemical intensification,
capital intensification, centralisation and long distance transport. They are based on the intensification
of external inputs, and integration with global markets.
The alternative to both the green revolution and globalization is the biodiversity intensification
of farming, which can only be done on small farms. Biodiversity intensification leads to internal
intensification and internal integration of farms with diverse local markets. This is the real liberalization
of agriculture since it frees the earth from the violence of agrochemicals, it frees diverse species from
the assault of poisons and toxins, it frees the farmer of bondage through debt and royalties, it frees
the Indian consumer from having to compete with global agribusiness to get access and entitlement
to food. For both sustainability and justice, the alternative, based on internal intensification and
internal liberalization is essential.
Under GATT Article VI, a government that was found to be injured by the dumping of overly
cheap goods can offset the economic damage by charging countervailing duties on them at the border.
But anti-dumping duties on agricultural products have never been assessed in part, because the
Protocol for Provisional Acceptance permitted countries to continue pre-GATT policies and in. part,
(54)
because the governments often benefited from the opportunity to distribute cheap foods, while the
actually injured parties were peasants with little political clout. The GATTs provisions for anti-dumping
have been widely applied in disputes over trade in industrial goods.
Patents on Seeds, Biopiracy, and Seed Monopolies
Seed Security is the foundation of food security. Through their operations the multinational
corporations (MNCs) usurp from sovereign nation states, the power of seed production, distribution
and supply. Sovereignty implies self-governance, having freedom of choice and autonomy of decision-
making. Freedom struggle against colonial was fought for sovereignty. Today, the same is threatened
by neocolonialism, which manifests it self in the growing influence of a handful MNC and governments
that harbour them. More than 60 crores Indians are dependent either directly or indirectly on agriculture,
which contribute Rs. 4.18 lac crores to the GDP. Quality seed is the foundation for Indian agriculture
and therefore can better the lives of 60 crores Ind1ans. In the words of Dr. M.V. Rao, one of the
eminent scientists behind the green revolution in India, The agriculture of any country will be as
strong as its seeds programme. If the seed programmes are weak, the agriculture is weak and if the
agriculture is weak, the nation is weak (Rao, 2004).
By being able to control that grows and eats what and in how much quantity, it finally means
be1ng 1n charge of peoples lives and livelihoods. From the sowing to the harvesting if an MNC 1S
under protection from national and international law and policy, then the sovereignty of peoples
agriculture is severely at risk.
For instance, if a seed company is able to ensure that there is no other way that a farmer can
re-sow a particular crop but by repeatedly procuring the seed from them, the farmer is made dependant
on the company. Traditionally a farmer would have been to generate the seeds for the next crops from
the produce of the present one. The customary rights of farmers to save, use, exchange and sell seed
and other planting material are the foundation of agriculture. It also enables them to continue the
development and transfer of their biodiversity and indigenous knowledge and practices.
The current intellectual property system allows MNCs to have exclusive rights over the planting
material so that they control it. This has disastrous implications for farmers since for the first time
in history they are losing control of the foundation of their livelihood the seed. Keeping seed free
is critical to guaranteeing food sovereignty.
The simple act of seed saving has been accepted as a natural gift of the farmers. In the present
situation, this and several other farmers rights are threatened. For food sovereignty to be guaranteed,
seed and agriculture has to be under local control of those who have made it possible in the first place.
This requires governments to facilitate farmer-centered and peoples agriculture, genetic engineered
seeds reduce biodiversity and negate local and national control over food productions.
It is essential that communities maintain sovereignty over their own systems of food production,
distribution and supply. In most local communities food security depends pr1marily on the knowledge
(55)
and activities of women. The mechanization of agriculture and emphasis on cash crops marginalize
women and irreversibly erodes the knowledge, control and hence autonomy of traditional livelihood
system. (Bhutani, 2004)
A strong local management and a large biodiversity base provide the best insurance for both
food security and political stability. Agro-biodiversity can only be assured if the peoples vast and
varied traditional knowledge base is guaranteed an enabling environment to survive and thrive. It is
critical that agricultural policy objectives, such as food sovereignty and seeds are put first and trade
rules subject to them and not vice-versa.
Seeds are the most important component of agriculture productivity and a striking symbol of
agricultural research as it contains embodied technology. In India, both private and public sector plays
commendable role in seed production and its distribution. But the composition of the private and public
sector differs widely with the private sector mainly concentrating on the high value seed like vegetables
whereas the public sector mainly concentrates on the production of high volume, low value seeds like
cereals.
In India, National Seed Corporation (NSC) established in 1963 had played a prominent role in
green revolution by engaging on production and distribution of seeds. (Suresh and Chand 2004) The
Indian Seed Industry besides providing the quality seeds to the farmers at the affordable prices has
been responsible for employment generation in rural sector and the growing rural economy. In crops
like cotton, maize, sunflower etc, where the hybrids are popular, the employment generation is estimated
to be above 800-870 lacs man days per annum. The magnitude of the employment potential that 100
in the rural area, which have less employment potential than urban areas, underlines the significant
contribution of the seed industry in our country. (Rao, 2004)
At present, farmers use saved seeds of a particular variety for growing subsequent crops either
on his own land or on leased land or by traditional exchange of seeds in the village community. Once
he converts into commercial seed sector, he is not permitted to sell the seeds of protected varieties
without prior permission and he can be booked for breaching the IPR norms in that case. The market
size of public sector in seed industry increased in absolute terms during the period of 1994-95 to
1998-99, the share of public sector declined from 40 percent to 25 percent during the same period.
Similarly, the share of unorganized private sector has increased to 60 percent from 35 percent. The
seed market in India has seen an upsurge. From Rs. 2000 crores in the year 2000, it is estimated to
touch Rs. 6000 crores by the end of the year 2005 (Deccan Herald). At present, out of the estimated
Rs. 4000 crores turnover in the seed industry, about Rs. 3000 crores is supposed to be from the private
sector.
It is reported that 92 percent of wheat farmers are using home grown seed for the next seasons
crop. This is a high as 93 percent for groundnut and 76 percent for rapeseed mustard. The role of
private sector in the Indian seed industry is on the increase. The composition of Indian seed has
reached a ratio of 60:40 between private and public sector.
(56)
As a result of globalization, the Indian seed industry has to face the competition from the large
global companies. As the indigenous seed industry operates with low profile margin and largely
depends on technological support of the Indian public sector, the competition becomes one sided and
unequal.
The large multinationals from the developed countries are in advantage position, vis-à-vis the
indigenous companies due to their
1. Very large financial resources and low interest funds
2. Trained manpower to operate in Biotech regime
3. Capacity to invest in biotechnology research.
Under such a situation, the indigenous seed industry might collapse in future unless an initiative
in the form of technology mission on quality seed to support technically and financially and through
a policy is launched by the government. The collapse of indigenous seed industry will have a very
adverse impact on Indian agriculture and farmers.
Some of the ramifications of the collapse of indigenous seed industry are:
t Farmers will have to depend on a few large seed companies for their exclusive technology
for basic and vital input like seed, leading to consequences like shortages, high prices, loss
of biodiversity.
t The seed prices will go up because of reduced competition
t Cultivation of few hybrids or varieties in a crop across the country could result in pest and
disease epidemics. This will reduce biodiversity.
t Closure of small and medium sized companies.
t Native R & D may slowly vanish.
t The present level of rural employment due to hybrid seed production may get reduced.
There is a threat that a few large seed companies with technological edge monopolize the Indian
seed market. Looking at such a bleak prospects, some of the leading Indian seed companies may
choose to sell their business at the lucrative prices that may be offered to them by MNCs.
In a state like Haryana, the structural composition of the seed sector has witnessed significant
changes since the formation of WTO in the year 1995-1996. The contribution of Government and
Cooperative Sector in the total cereals certified seed in Haryana state were 77 % and 5.62 % respectively,
in the year 1990-1991, and both the sector maintained their consistent contribution up to 1995-1996.
But their share in the total cereals certified diminished rapidly after the establishment of WTO in 1995-
1996 and reached nearly 34.62 % and 4.18% respectively in the year 1999-2000, the contribution of
private sector in the total cereals certified seed was 17.07 % in the year 1990-1991, but its contribution
in total cereals certified increased rapidly after the establishment of WTO and reached up to 61.20%
in the year 1999-2000 (Kumar, Chand 2002).
(57)
This reflects that Indian seed industry is rapidly moving into a phase of Corporate Control over
seeds after the establishment of WTO. Developments in seed sector proceed either through multinational
companies setting up their branches or through collaboration between multinationals and private seed
companies. Under the latter scenario, the Western collaborator provides technological expertise and
investment, while the private counterpart provides the Indian Germplasm and a marketing base (Kumar,
Chand 2002)
A debate has also begun on the implications of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic
Resources on Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), which comes into effect from Jun 29, 2004. ITPGRF
A is a binding agreement that gives legal force to the conservation and sustainable use of 64 food
crops from 35 genres and 29 forges.
But the Treaty has an ambiguity in Article 12.3.d, which is being interpreted by countries
allowing changes to IPRs on changes made to the genetic resources held in the multi-lateral system
(MLS). This would mean patenting of seeds and restricting farmers access and defeating the basic
purpose of the Treaty. The controversial clause reads as follows: Recipients shall, not claim any
intellectual or other rights that limit the facilitated access to the plant genetic resources for food or
agriculture or their genetic parts or components from MLS.
There is a fear that unless the ambiguity is removed in the Treaty, there will be a lightening of
the IPR regime. The governing body of the Treaty should ensure that both seeds and the genetic
resources they contain could not be subjected to IPRs. The governing council should also ensure that
legislation to recognize farmers rights is implemented fully in all the countries that have ratified the
Treaty. There is a necessity for the implementation of the Leipzig Global Plan of Action with its ten
priority activities negotiated by one hundred and sixty governments in the year 1996 to conservation
of crop varieties on farm and the development of the Global Diversity Trust (GDT)
India has enacted the Plant Varieties Protection and Farmers Rights (PVP&FR) Act and the
Biological Diversity (BO) Act well in advance of the implementation of ITPGRFA. But there are also
chances of India modifying its PVP&FR and BD Act with a view to joining the UPW Convention of 1991.
The UPW-1991 does not recognize farmers rights to save seeds for the next crops. If India joins UPW,
1991 it will sacrifice the interest of the farmers.
Dr. Asheesh Tayal of Green Peace hopes that Treaty should end Biopiracy. There have been
several instances of Biopiracy. One recent incident is of Monsanto taking patent on Indian Wheat,
which has been challenged by RFSTE in the Supreme Court.
However, according to Mr. Bhagirath Choudhary of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce
and Industry (FICCI) the Treaty will provide exclusive legal rights to private companies to charge
patent loyalties on patented varieties drawn from traditional novel varieties of developing countries.
The export market for important varieties or products made from medicinal plants can be affected by
patents owned in foreign countries. Domestic market could be flooded with patented agricultural
(58)
products. The collaborative R&D projects on plant varieties will diminish. Access to and transfer of new
technologies and improved varieties would be restricted. Innovative and creative processes of indigenous
and local communities can be eroded. IPR laws can provide a disincentive to public and private sector
scientists. Overall, the Treaty may increase the threat to diversity of genetic resources and escalate
Biopiracy. (Sharma, 2004)
International organization that work to eliminate poverty in developing countries, say that the
Treaty should out law patents on the sixty four major food crops and forages that are listed in the
Treaty. But the clause, which bans patents, is open to interpretation. It is important that the governing
body should close these loopholes (Vackayil, 2004)
The agriculture biodiversity and its components genetic resources for food and agriculture have
been developed by the indigenous people, tribal and forest dwellers, men and women, and farmers over
the last 12000 years through the free exchange of genetic resources across the globe. The scientists
would need genetic diversity in agriculture to face unpredictable environmental and climatic changes.
In order to select solutions to these, there should be genetic diversity.
However, attempts are being made to commercialize them for reopening excessive profits by
patenting them for exclusive exploitation. Indian Basmati rice, neem, turmeric etc are the victims of
such global patenting manipulation. Similarly, the integrity of many of these plant varieties is being
compromised by genetically modified organisms. These developments in the field of plant biotechnology
are alienating farmers and ethnic breeding from their own resources (Vackayil, 2004)
High yield varieties (HYVs), or green revolution seeds are misnamed because the term implies
that the seeds are high yielding in and of themselves. The distinguishing feature of these seeds,
however, is that they are actually, high response varieties. Though these seeds can be saved by
farmers, they are nonsustainable due to vulnerability to diseases and pests and therefore need to be
replaced after one or two crops.
Hybrid seeds are the first generation seeds (F1) produced from crossing two genetically dissimilar
parent species. The progeny of these seeds cannot economically be saved or replanted, as the next
generations will give much lower yields.
The hybrid seeds are also called Sarkari seeds as these seeds have initially been developed and
distributed by the public sector in India.
Today there are three kinds of producers of seed:
a) Farmers Seeds : the farmer has historically been the producer of perennial varieties, which
could reproduce themselves etemally.
b) Public Sector Seeds : Public sector research institutions have bred short term varieties for
high yield. These seeds could for sometime be saved and used by the farmer, but their
yield reduces after a few years.
(59)
c) Private Sector Seeds: Private companies and transnational corporations produce non-
renewable and therefore non-sustainable seeds through hybrids and tissue culture, where
the farmer has to return to the company for fresh seed, each time he has to sow.
The last is called biological patenting of seed. Patents give the owner of the seed the exclusive
right to multiply, save, develop further varieties and sell seeds. Biological patenting effectively prevents
the farmer from multiplying saving and selling seed.
The biotechnology revolution, which spurs the shifts in Indias seed policy, differs from the Green
Revolution, in terms of corporate control and the control of bioregions. The biotechnology revolution
is predominantly private in character. The Green Revolution was spearheaded by the international
agricultural research centers like CIMMYT and IRRI organized by the Consultative Group on International
Agricultural Research, which is controlled by governments, private foundations, agribusiness corporations
and multinational development banks. The private corporate interests such as agrochemical and agribusiness
transnational thus functioned through the programme set by public or quasi-public institutions, which
they could influence and from whose agricultural strategies they stood to gain. (Vandana Shiva)
With the biotechnology revolution, the private corporate multinational interest has become the
spearheading sector of agricultural policy. The Pepsico Project and the new seed policy signal, this new
trend in which the technologies are not transferred from CIMMYT or IRRI to ICAR or PAU and on the
farm. This time, transnational corporate capital will go directly with the latest technology to the
remotest farm. Private interests of profits will thus be the dominant driving force in the bio-revolution,
increasing the control of multinationals, decreasing the role of governments and citizens of the Third
World.
Table - 1.3 (2) : Comparing the Revolutions
Green Revolution Gene Revolution
Summary
Based in public sector Based in private sector
Humanitarian intent Profit motive
Centralised R & D Centralised R ft 0
Focus of yield Focus on inputs/processing
Relatively graduate Relatively immediate
Emphasis on major cereals Affects all species
Objective
To feed the hungry and cool To contribute to profit by
Third World political tension increasing input and / or
By increasing food yields processor efficiencies
With fertilizers and seeds
(60)
For whom
The poor The shareholder. and management
By whom
CGIAR has 830 scientists In the USA alone, 1,127
working in 8 institutes scientists working for 30
reporting to US foundations bio-tech companies.
Industrialised countries
Quasi - UN bodies
How
Plant breeding in wheat, Genetic manipulation of all
maize, rice plants, all animals, microorganisms.
Primary Targets
Semi-dwarf capacity in Herbicide tolerance
Response to fertilizes Natural substitution
Factory production
Investment
$108 million for agricultural Agbiotech R & D investment
R & D through CGIAR $144 million in USA System (1988)
by 30 Companies
General Impact
Substantial but gradual Enormous, sometimes immediate
52.9% of Third World wheat and $20 billion in medicinal and flavour
rice in HYVS (123 million hectares) /fragrance crops at risk
500 million would not Multi-billion dollar beverage,
otherwise be fed confectionery, sugar and vegetable
oils trade could be lost
Impact on Farmers
Access to seeds and inputs Uneven Increased production costs.
Small farmers lose land to Loss of some crops to factory
larger farmers farms
New varieties improve yield Input/processing efficiencies
but increase risk increase farmer risk
Reduced prices Overproduction and materials
diversification
(61)
Impact on Farmers
Soil erosion due to heavy use Continuation and possible acceleration
of crop chemicals of Green Revolution effects plus
Genetic erosion due to Release of potentially uncontrollable
replacement of traditional new organisms into the environment.
varieties
Species loss due to overplanting Genetic erosion of animals and
of traditional crops with maize, microorganisrns
wheat or rice
Pressure on water resource Biological warfare on economically
due to irrigation important crops
Impact on consumption
Decline in use of high value Emphasis on feeding the rich
foods for poor people Yuppie market
Export of food out of region Increased use of chemical and
biological toxins
Economic Implications
Direct contribution of $10 Contribution to seed production of
billion per annum to Third $12.1 billion per annum by year 2000
World food production
Indirect contribution of Contribution to agriculture of $50
$50-60 billion billion per annum by year 2000
Gene flow to US alone contribute Absorb benefit of gene flow from
to farms sales of $2 billion per the Third World
annum for wheat, rice and maize.
Potitical lmplications
National breeding programme CGIAR system subverted to
curtailed corporate interests.
Third World agriculture Genetic raw materials and
westernized technologies controlled by genetics
Germplasm benefits usurped supply industry through patents
Dependency
Source : Vandana Shiva 2001
The dependence on import of seeds on the one hand and export of processed foods on the other
has the very real danger of creating new forms of poverty and deprivation within the country, and
(62)
making us totally dependent on a handful of multi nation interests for the supply of inputs and the
purchase of our agricultural commodities. The Pepsico project for the lab-to-farm-to-factory integration
of seeds and agro-processing an example of what the new liberalization implies.
The pharmaceutical giants, Sondoz India, as entered into an agreement with Northrub King of
the US, subsidiary of its multinational patent company, and also with the Dutch vegetable king,
Zaaduine. ITC is trying up with pacific Seeds, a subsidiary of Continental grains from Australia. The
US seed giant Kargill INC has tied up with the Gilland company retaining controlling interest of the
company. To other US companies, Seedtec International and Dehlgien, have entered into agreements
with Maharashtra Hybrid and Nath Seed Company respectively. Pioneer HI-bred has started an Indian
Subsidiary Pioneer Seed Company. Apart from these, Hindustan Lever is negotiating with a Belgium
firm while Hoechst, Ciba-Geigy are reportedly moving in with other tie-ups
Seed is the first link in the food chain. Whoever controls the seed controls the food supply.
Therefore Monsanto spent over $9.4 billion acquiring seed and biotech companies, Dupont spent over
$9.4 billion to acquire Pioneer Hi-Bred, the worlds largest seed company and Dow Chemical bought
Kargil Seeds North America in mid September 2000. In spite of this, the control cannot be total as
long as farmers can save, share, exchange and sell seeds among themselves. Today, the farmer saved
seed and state-run seed programmes are worth around $22 billion, which is almost equal to the 423
billion total commercial seed market worldwide.
The terminator technology which is not yet commercialized in India, has as primary aim, the
maximization of the seed industrys profits by destroying the ability of farmers to save their seeds and
breed their own crops. Genetic seed sterilization goes far beyond intellectual property. A typical patent
provides an exclusive legal monopoly for 20 years but Terminator is a monopoly with no expiration
date. It is the perfect tool for the corporate seed industry in a global market - because it destroys the
concept of national seed sovereignty.
The false miracle that seed companies are selling with biotechnology and genetic engineering
is the possibility of liberating agriculture from chemicals and other ecological risks. However, most of
the seed multinationals are also leading chemical companies. These include Ciba-Geigy, ICI Monsanto,
and Hoechst. The immediate strategy for these companies is to increase the use of pesticides and
herbicides by developing pesticide and herbicide tolerant varieties.
While deepening corporate control of agriculture, the biotechnologies also expand the scope for
this control. While markets for agrochemical inputs and HYV seeds were restricted to regions with
irrigation, the Bio-revolution will permit the extension of commercial agriculture to all regions, to
rainfed lands and marginal soils. The impacts of the Bio-revolution thus have the potential to encompass
the entire rural populations of the Third World. Transnational will thus gain total market control in a
sector around which the life and livelihood of millions of farmers and peasants revolves.
Indigenous breeding through selection has given access to the best seeds to all, and the crop
itself provides the seed. Richarias work on conserving indigenous strains has established that by
(63)
marinating control over seeds, the peasant need not sacrifice in terms of yields. The hybrid seed must
be bought each year from the seed merchants. The genetically engineered seed of the Bio-revolution
will deepen this dependence of peasants on MNCs. The lab, not nature, will become the sole source
of seeds of the biotechnologies, and with labs shifting from universities to the corporate sector, from
the public to the private domain, only those who can pay, will have a right to seeds.
Globally and nationally, food grain production has been dramatically reduced due to ecological
instabilities. These include drought, induced both by climatic change associated with the Greenhouse
effect, and desertification through inappropriate land and water use. The momentum of grain production
between 1950 and 1984, when world output grew from 624 million tones to 1,645 million tones has
waned in recent year and may continue to dip further.
What will be the impact on the availability of staple foods as more and more land is diverted
to fruits and vegetables for export, at a time when food scarcity is already a reality, both nationally
and globally? And with the pressure from the World Bank and the IMF to reduce food subsidies, how
will the food entitlements of economically and politically weakest groups be protected?
Cash crops, especially for export, are subject not just to ecological risks, but to financial risks
as well, because cash crops for export do not produce much cash over time. The growth of export-
oriented cash crop agriculture is a primary reason for Africas food crisis. The main drawback to cash
crops is that over the year they produce less and less cash. Cash crops are encouraged over food
production by an export oriented agriculture policy. As the area under commodities for exports grows,
prices fall and returns decline instead of increasing.
Contracting Seed Production: Private sector seed companies produce patent seed and breeder
seed on their own farms. This is principally for reasons of security. Farmers are then supplied with
foundation seed and produce hybrid seed under contract. Few company representatives identified land
ceilings as presenting a problem in seed production. This was partly because circumventing restrictions
upon land ownership (or at least leasing) was considered straightforward. Even in the event of land
ceilings being abolished, they still envisaged contracting seed production to farmers. Large areas of
land are required for the production of hybrid seed, and it was considered uneconomic to attempt this
on corporate owned holdings. That land ceilings are not considered an issue by many companies is
demonstrated by the ignorance of company representatives of actual land ceilings. In Andhra Pradesh,
for example, managers estimates of the maximum possible land holding ranged from 45 acres to 550
acres.
But there is a further incentive for companies to continue contracting seed production to small
farmers. B.D Sharma, Former commissioner, Commission on Schedule Cast & Schedule Tribes, Government
of India, points out that the embodiment of labor in agricultural produce has been devalued by
treating family farm labor as of zero value, because it is free. The whole family at minimal expense,
whereas on corporate farms, management staff would need to be employed at additional expense.
(64)
Great care is exercised over cultivation of small areas of crop by a farmer and his family, not least
because their very livelihood depends directly upon the productivity of their land.
The epidemic of farmers suicide is the real barometer of the stress under which Indian agriculture
and Indian farmers have been put buy globalization of agriculture. Growing indebtedness and increasing
crop failure are the main reasons that the farmers have committed suicide across the length and
breath of rural India. The suicides by farmers highlights these high social and ecological costs of the
globalization of non-sustainable agriculture which are not restricted to the cotton growing areas of
these states but have been experienced in all commercially grown and chemically farmed crop in all
regions. While the benefits of globalization go to the seeds and Chemical Corporation through expanding
markets, the cost and risks are exclusively born by the small farmers and landless peasants.
Globalization and privation of the seed sector have eroded farmers seed supply and seed supplied
by the public sector. While the entry of private seed companies is justified on grounds of increasing
farmers options and choices, by making farmers look down on their own varieties as inferior and by
eroding the capacity of the public sector, globalization has in effect created a seed famine.
Besides putting their own resources, the middle and small farmers borrow money, paying high
interest rates, from arthies or private moneylenders who also provide them seeds, fertilizers and
pesticides on credit. The rise of moneylenders is a part of an emerging phenomenon of corporate
feudalism. Withdrawal of low interest credit has been a key element of the World Bank led economic
reforms.
Women as Seed Keeper
Over the centuries women have made great contribution to conserve the seeds. Even tribal and
poor women have been involved to save seeds as amply manifested by the following few examples in
Jharkhand.
Bhelwara Village, Bishungarh
Sabitri, lives in Bhelware - a village in Bishungarh, the next lane, is a self-assured, smiling young
women. She has passed class VII and has three sons. She knows the names of many old rice strains
that the village had before. Her husband Ravi Shankar Mahto confirms: We had bal-bhog, man-bhog,
purbi sail, kart baki and maina tho. Each of these had different characteristics. They needed less water
and no fertilizer. They dont need DAP, urea or pesticides. But the new produce twice as much. The
result? Khet kharab hoe gelo, says Sabitri, Labh ke liye purano dhan chhod diyo (Now the fields
are spoilt. For profit people left off planting the old strains).
Bindiya Devi is a second success story. A matriarch of 80 plus, Bindiya became a widow after
her first child. She lives with her son and a large extended family. Daughter in law of Bindiya Devi says
the real result of the shift to the new seeds is more work for the women. 75 per cent of the
transplanting is done by women over a 40 day period and 95 per cent of the weeding is done by
(65)
women. Post -planting, their work has increased due to weeding (dhan nikauni), unless you weed
strenuously the improved varieties will choke. There were few weeds in the old rice because its tall
and blocks the light. Now the DAP, etc. greatly strengthen the weeds. The leaves are hard like knife
blades. They dont cut the skin like the new ones do. The backaches with the long hours spent
weeding and the fingers and palms of their hands get red. They get sores and cut around their nails.
We simply cant grind turmeric and other sharp spices any more, she says.
Theres a great difference in taste too as well as in other characteristics. There was one very
productive hybrid variety, which they soon rejected. If you cooked it at 6 pm it would spoil by 11 pm
so if the men came home late for dinner no one would get to eat until a second meal was cooked.
Bindiyas family still plants 50 per cent of the land with the old seed. Its less risky, she says,
needs less water. When cooked it doesnt spoil for two days. But they still seem to spend a lot more
on health. In spite of severe arthritis, Bindiya still does some of the work of sorting and storing seeds.
She has a mora, a 3-foot high coil of rice straw plastered inside with cow dung and clay to hold paddy
in and the bamboo dimni in which they store seeds. There used to be a practice of exchanging seeds
within the village earlier, she says. Now the men take the surplus and give it to the block in exchange
for new seeds.
The Kurmi women contribute a major part of the labour as in any rice growing culture, but we
sense a change in their role and status here. Its the men who go to the block and interact with the
extension people. The men sell the grain surplus and leftover seeds. The women dont read the books
given by the block and the agri-shops and cant quite figure out the new methods for themselves.
Somewhere, theyve lost out it, the new agriculture that is being pushed by the seed companies
through the willing agency of the block officials.
Jagdishpur
The Kurmi Mahato women of Jagdishpur have discovered a new vocation, which helps them to
offset the decreased earnings from agriculture. Earlier they would gather fresh picked garden green
and other local vegetables and carry them all the way to town for sale in the daily market. Now,
Jamuna Devi and many other women trek the 15 km to Hazaribagh town each morning to buy
vegetables and market them in baskets from house to house. To the women of the middle class
localities and government colonies, Jamuna out her wares with a basket on her head looks like a
typical village woman come to them straight from her own kitchen garden.
Jamuna and her friends leave home at 6 am and return after dark, with money twisted into their
saris at the waist. Jamuna earns a profit of Rs.1500 a month selling vegetables this way. Cash in had
gives these women a sense of status and a say in the home as an acknowledged breadwinner. All their
earlier work in the rice fields and vegetable gardens went unrecognized. A new venture had given them
economic independence, a newfound business sense, but it also means a continuing neglect of the
productive assets they already own in the form of their cultivated lands and herds of domestic animals.
(66)
Karra Blocks headquarters are situated about 40 km from Jharkhands state capital Ranchi. The
Karra Society for Rural Action has initiated a micro-finance programme for women farmers and
entrepreneurs in the block. There are at present 255 groups with a membership of about 4,250
members. The NGO promotes sustainable development, organic agriculture, craft and other income
generating activities and environmental restoration.
The Karra society helps farmers to innovate by distributing a yariety of seeds for trials on test
plots. Crops that do well are then selected for cultivation the following year. In this the society support
from the Bihar Beej Nigam (Bihar Seed Corporation), the block agriculture office, and the Birsa
Agriculatural University (BAU), who are all activity promoting new crops. Farmers seeds of the previous
year may be exchanged for new seeds of the type being promoted by these organizations as well as
a number of other private players in the field. A groundnut variety with the trendy name AK 1224, and
various lentils are distributed at low cost by the block. Soyabean for some reason is distributed free
at cost to farmers for planting.
Society members say that farm families rely on their own seeds for marua (finger millet) And
traditional rice strains like bhajana , sursuia, mis, samanpuia and tulsi nanjan, However, they are
increasingly experimenting with hybrid seeds that the local shops stock. Sita Devi and her husband
Ram Prasad Mahto have two acres of wetland paddy and several plots for vegetables. They grow
cauliflower, tomatoes, ginger, groundnut, corn and potatoes. They mange to preserve and plant their
own seeds for chilies, radishes, summer squashes and beans, mustard and spinach.
The story of Martha Bakhla, chairperson of Mahila Mandal is different Tribal farmers are hesitant
about adopting new practices and technologies because they dont have the capital with which to buy
expensive inputs and they dont want to take loans banks, the LAMPS and other government sources.
You can get fertilizers on installment now. Chemical fertilizers give you greater production at first;
later you dont get the same results, Martha says.
For one or two years even women would go out and take loans for agriculture. Then interest
rates went up. People couldnt pay back the loans. Some farmers were jailed. There is a system here
called kurki-jabti by which the bank and moneylenders can confiscate animals of loan defaulters.
People saw this happen and got scared. An organization called World Vision has adopted some villages
nearby and one of the things they are promoting is soybeans, which they distribute at Rs.1.5 per
kilogram. No one has tested the seed to check its provenance. There is a type of contract farming
being promoted in Karra. The agency, be it the block office or the NGO give the seeds and also help
market the produce. New seeds are sometimes distributed free for testing on farmers fields.
Martha says tribal farmers are more conservative in their choice of cropping pattern here. They
plant several traditional varieties of rice in their don khet (wetland paddy fields): bhojana, rais, dahiya,
hat higunja, lal dhan. In the uplands they wait for the rains in sawan and plant godha dhan (upland
rice), and a mix of sarguja and sesame as oilseeds. There is less investment, better taste, and were
independent. We can sell out produce within the village or in the local hoot (weekly village market),
(67)
With loans from the micro-credit scheme run by the Karra Society, the Malgo womens group
has decided to go commercial. This monsoon they will plant marigolds and ginger. The first will be
picked up by flower buyers who come daily to Karra for their suppliers. The second is selling at Rs.
80 per kilogram in the bazaar in Ranchi, up 300 per cent since last year due to a shortage being felt
in the whole of North India this season. Micro-finance through their own savings has helped these
women to diversify and experiment with new crops, unlike the men folk in their village.
Biopiracy of Wheat by Monsanto
Wheat forms an integral part of the life of most Indians. It has been the principle crops in
several regions of India for thousands of years. India is the second largest producer of wheat (73.5
million tones) after China. It is cultivated in 25.68 million hectors in India.
Apart from being the staple food of most Indians, wheat in India has been closely associated
with religious ceremonies and festivals since time immemorial. Each traditional variety has its own
religious or cultural significance. The different varieties of wheat, the use of different wheat preparations
in rituals, and .the medicinal and therapeutic properties of wheat have all been documented in ancient
Indian text and scriptures. (Shiva and Ritu 2003)
Monsantos patent (EP 0445929 B1) claims to have invented wheat plants derived from a
traditional Indian variety, and products made from the soft milling traits that the traditional Indian
wheat provides.
Monsanto repeats the biopiracy pattern that was earlier attempted by RiceTecs claim to have
invented Indian Basmati. Through a case filed by the RFSTE in the Indian Supreme Court, which forced
the government of India to challenge the RiceTec Patent No. 5663484 in the USPTO, and a national
and global movement against basmati biopiracy, we succeeded in having 99% of the RiceTec patent
revoked. Earlier we had started the Neem campaign to challenge the USDA/GRACE patent, which was
revoked in EPO in May 2000. With Greenpeace, we are preparing a challenge against Monsantos
biopiracy of Indian wheat. And with farmers groups in India, Navdanya, a programme under RFSTE,
is working to conserve, rejuvenate and grow native wheat varieties which were displaced and marginalized
by the Green Revolution, even though in terms of nutrition per acre and productivity with respect to
water, they are superior to the industrial varieties which depend on intensive inputs of chemicals and
water.
In reply to a Parliamentary Question on the Monsanto wheat Biopiracy, the Minister of Agriculture
has replied, (starred question no. 8 dated 21st July 2003), M/s Plant Breeding International, a
Unilever company which was acquired by Monsanto in 1998 has obtained a patent for a new verity
of wheat designed for use in Europe. This variety incorporates some characteristics of the Nap Hal
land race of wheat from India. The Nap Hal land race is not covered by the European patent and
continues to be available to Indian farmers and researchers.
(68)
The reply indicates that the government of India is not planning to take any action against the
Biopiracy and is in fact legitimising it. The reply also, accepts two flaws in the patent claim. Firstly,
European law does not allow patenting of plant varieties. Secondly, the reply accepts Nap Hal as
a name of a land race in India, even though no farmer in India would name a traditional variety
Naphal.
Naphal means no fruits - No farmers variety could have such a name
The plants claimed as inventions in Monsantos patent are essentially derived verities of traditional
Indian wheat referred to in the patent as Nap Hal available as accession No. 1362 from the AERC
Institute of Plant Science Research, Norwich, U.K. There is no traditional Indian wheat called Nap Hal.
In Hindi the word would mean that which gives no fruit. Nap Hal is not an Indian name for an
indigenous wheat variety. It could have been a name for Monsantos terminator seeds. The vernacular
names of wheat varieties are khani, mundia, rotta, sita, kathia, jandi and many others. Government
also says that the Naphal was collected from Marcha, Uttar Pradesh by a United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA) explorer in 1948 and was received back by us from USDA 1n 1992 and
conserved in the Directorate of Wheat Research, Karnal and NBPGR. It is wrong to say that USDA
explorer in 1948 explored the Nap Hal var1ety and or 1n any manner contributed to the traditional
bio-wealth. In 1948 the alleged explorer did not make the collection h1mself but was handed over
these varieties. Even the locat10ns specified by the USDA explorer are inaccurate and the altitudes and
longitude/lat1tudes by the match. Allegedly, W. Keolz made following collect10ns:
Table - 1.3 (3)
Date of Collection Locality
10.4.48 Marcha, Uttar Pradesh, India
Elevation - 3050 meters
Latitude - 28 degree mm N
Longitude - 80 degree mm E
10.7.48 Subu, Uttar Pradesh, India
Elevation - 3050 meters
Latitude - 28 degree mm N
Longitude - 80 degree mm E
19.7.48 Nabi, Uttar Pradesh, India
Elevation - 2745 meters
Latitude - 29.50 degree mm N
Longitude - 79.30 degree mm E
21.7.48 Sara, Nepal
Elevation - Not given
Latitude - 28 degree mm N
Longitude - 84 degree mm E
(Shiva & Ritu 2003)
(69)
It is pertinent to mention that Latitude 28 degree Nand longitude 80 degree E lies in the plains
of Saharanpur and not place of Marcha in Uttar Pradesh. Even the elevation in Saharanpur is not 3000
meters. This attitude of 3000 meters is in the Himalayan ranges w1th different lat1tude and longitude.
It is further mention that there is no village in Uttar Pradesh with specificat10ns given name as
Marcha. Marcha is a sub tribal category of the Bhotias who are Tibetans speaking Buddhist living in
the upper reg10ns of the Himalayas. The discrepancy 1n the location and the name in case the variety
referred to as Nap Hal was pirated and was not collected by the alleged explorer. It is the governments
duty to investigate which variety has been incorrectly recorded as Nap Hal and correct the nomenclature
appropriately. Wheat is the most documented crop in India since formal breeding of wheat started
more than a century ago in 1905.
NP 4/Pusa 4/Niphad 4 is beardless variety with felted, white glumes with grains of an amber
colour. Sir Albert Howard (known as the founder of modern organic farming, the author of the
Agriculture Testament 1n whose honour RFTSE/Navdanya organ1se the annual Howard Memor1al
Lecture on Non violent Agriculture on Gandhi Jayanti, the 2nd October), his wife G.L.C. Howard and
Habibur Rehman Khan selected the pure lines NP-4 (Pusa-4) from the mundia land race in 1905.
Mundia combined higher yield potential, early maturity with superior grain quality features. As a
ICAR report states It soon crossed the national boundaries and was adopted in many countries. The
variety won prices in several international grain exhibitions as one of the best grain quality wheat
during 1916-1920. This is how it must have entered the U.K. collections and got recorded under the
distorted name Nap Hal. Indian wheats have travelled widely since 1873, with the opening of the
Suez Canal and removing export restrictions. Indian wheat was so important a crop for the British
Empire that an important Resolution of the Government of India no. I - 39-50 of March 14th, 1877
was passed on the wheat question requiring the Governor General to provide all information on Indian
wheat including local names for the varieties of wheat cultivated and three description in English.
More than 1000 wheat samples in bags 02 pounds each were sent to the India office, examined by
Forbes Watson, and a detailed report provided to the Secretary of State. It is the traits, not the name
that will be the basis of our challenge of biopiracy and we are working on the analysis of the traits
of various varieties conserved by Navdanya farmers and grown by traditional farmers.
The soft milling low elasticity traits of India wheat have been patented. The wheat plant claimed
as invention in Monsantos patent relates to products derived presumably from the primitive land race
from India called Naphal. Naphal are extremely unusual in lacking two High Molecular Weight
(HMW) subunits of glutenin coded by the x and y genes, which refer as the Glu D1 double null
trait. The HMW subunits of glutenin, which make up only about 6-10% of the gluten (wheat protein)
content of wheat are, the key components in conferring elasticity and dough mixing stability. Due to
the lack of HMW glutenin in Naphal, the dough becomes more easily hydrable than other wheat and
produces very weak inelastic dough, which is very extensible. This is advantageous in making of semi-
sweet biscuits, non-fermented crackers, wafers, and food and food ingredients made from batter
because the flour will form dough with less water (when Sodium Metabisulphite or SMS is not used).
(70)
The production of a strain of wheat variety Galahad-7 claimed by Monsanto comprised of
crossing a commonly grown soft wheat variety Galahad with a Sicco line containing the NapHal
Glu-D1 double null wheat strain (Nap-Hal x Sicco). The wheat provides flour from which dough can
be prepared at ambient temperature without the need for chemical treatment (SMS) of the flour at
ambient temperature and is useful in the manufacture of biscuits, crackers and wafers and other. The
Galahad-7 is essentially derived from native Indian wheat. Crossing is an obvious step in breeding and
since both the criteria of novelty and non-obviousness necessary for patentability are violated, the
patent should be revoked.
Even though plants are not an invention the first statement in Monsantos patent states this
invention relates to plants and to products derived there from In this case the plant is essentially
derived from the traditional Indian wheats which Indian farmers have collectively evolved and conserved
over millennia. The Monsanto patent in effect pirates the collective cumulative innovation of Indian
farmers and people claims the piracy as an invention. The traits of Indian wheat, which is being
claimed by Monsanto, as its invention are traits evolved for Indias food culture and cuisine based on
rotis and chapattis. The patent is thus a piracy not just of millennia of breeding by Indian farmers
but also of millennia of innovation in food qualities.
Gluten (wheat protein) plays an important role in the texture of chapattis and other food
preparations made form wheat. The gluten content of wheat varies from about 9-13%. The hard
milling varieties contain more gluten than the soft milling one, which are more suitable for chapattis.
Soft Milling Wheat is not an Invention; it is Our Daily Diet
For thousands of years we have eaten soft milling wheat appropriate to our food culture.
Ignoring the daily diet of one fifth of humanity, Monsanto arrogantly claims No wheat varieties are
yet available commercially which are soft milling and from which a dough with low or very low elasticity
can be prepared with out either chemical treatment or the use of carefully controlled conditions (e.g.
low temperature) during the preparation of the dough. The need to maintain critical conditions during
dough preparation is obviously a serious constraint on manufacture. The need for chemical free
treatment of the flour usually conducted with sodium metabisulphate (SMS) would be avoided. If
possible, especially in view of the current consumer pressure for foodstuffs those have been chemically
treated. It is generally recognized that the biscuit making industry would avoid the use of SMS if there
was any commercially viable alternative.
The alternative is available on a very wide scale in India in our daily food. This is the alternative
which Monsanto has pirated. Monsantos claim covers wheat plants derived from Indian wheat varieties
and products made from soft milling wheat.
The patent needs to be revoked because it is not an invention. It also needs to be revoked
because with an exclusive right to grow wheat with low gluten and produce high value products with
it, Monsanto could extend these rights to India under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and then
(71)
charge royalties from farmers growing traditional wheat varieties. Even if the patent is not recognized
in India, Monsantos biopiracy patent in Europe and USA prevents India from deriving benefits from
the growing market in US and Europe for hemical feel, low gluten, wheat products.
Native Indian Wheats
Years of research on Indian wheat by Sir Albert Howard, his wife G.L.C. Howard and Habibur
Rehman Khan, has resulted in diverse range of wheat varieties. They made a comprehensive collection
of the wheat sorts enormous variability present in the land races. They identified 37 separate botanical
varieties of wheat belong to 10 subspecies.
Sir Albert Howard Contribution towards Indian wheat
Sir Albert Howard was the founder of the organic farming movement. He worked for 25 years
as an agricultural investigator in India, first as Agricultural Adviser to States in Central India and
Rajputana, then as Director of the Institute of Plant Industry at Indore, where he developed the famed
Indore composting process, which put the ancient art of composting on a firm scientific basis, but
most of his work in India was on improving crop varieties mainly of wheat. He and his wife G. loc.
Howard formed a brilliant scientific team during a long career in India. They achieved good results
with the wheat. Howards were the first to undertake in India wheat breeding work on a systematic
basis. In 1906 they commenced both at Pusa (Bihar) and Lyallpur in the Punjab (now in Pakistan), a
system of selection from single plants which enabled them to produce several wheats of much greater
value than the mixtures then in cultivation. The Howards were able to develop within a short time
several varieties, outstanding in yield and quality, by selection from local types. Prior to the imitation
of wheat improvement work in India, various mixed types of wheat were being grown in different areas,
the types being designated by local names. Often hard and soft - kerneled types, or red and whitekerneled
sorts would become mixed with the result that price of Indian wheat in the export market was very
low. From these various types the Howard isolated many pure line of which two became widely grown
.
varieties, Pusa 4 and Pusa 12 (now called N.P 4 and N.P. 12). Pusa 4 has plump, hard grains and the
Pusa 12 is a soft wheat with white grains. These are outstanding examples of the results achieved at
Pusa through individual plant selection. Pusa 4 (NP 4) a pure line selection from the local sorts,
Mundia, combined higher yield potential and early maturity with superior grain quality features. It
soon crossed the national boundaries and was adopted in many other countries. The variety won prizes
in several international grain exhibitions as one of the best grain quality wheat during the years 1916-
1920. Work on similar pure lines were carried by the Howards at the centers resulted in the production
of improved types, such as Type 9, type 90, Type 11 and Type 8A, at Lyallpur in the Punjab (Pakistan),
C13 (K13) at Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, and Ao.13 and Ao.90 at Nagpur in-Madhya Pradesh.
Cargills Nature Fresh Atta Spells Doom For Chakki Fresh Milling
Cargill is the worlds largest grain trader and the largest privately owned company in the US.
Both domestically in the US, and internationally, Cargill uses its size, its information and its tremendous
(72)
financial resources to influence the price of agricultural commodities. Cargill controls over 70% of the
worlds trade in cereals. Cargill Foods has been aggressively marketing its what flour in India and
distributing free samples to establish its monopoly in the wheat trade and flour milling. Since Cargill
has entered the wheat trade in India, half of the processing mills in Punjab have been closed down.
Cargills war on our food system if not stopped would have serious implications on our food systems
and agricultural sector as bad as the Kargil war. Infact, Cargill has used the Kargil victory celebrations
to launch the free distribution of Nature Fresh atta thus exploiting the sentiments of the public and
creating confusion in the minds of consumers.
Cargill says that it is Delivering increased value to producers. This to Cargill means, contract
farming, where the farmers will be compelled:
t Buy seeds from Cargill or Cargill-specified seed companies.
t Use Cargills phosphates and other fertilizers specified by Cargill
t Use pesticides specified by Cargill
t Have Cargill inspectors grade the produce, and finally
t Sell to Cargill at a predetermined price.
Cargill would like to put a stop to the saving of seed by farmers, of free exchange of seed
between farmers. In its propaganda it does this by declaring the scientific traditions of farmers as
unscientific. In its technology it achieves this trough hybrid seeds, which force the farmer to return
to Cargill at every showing.
Delivering increased value to consumers means that Cargill:
q Manipulates prices to farmers and international prices as well as domestic prices of
agricultural produce and their processed products.
q Controls storage by controlling giant silos and elevators that can hold the worlds grain
reserves for more than a year.
q Controls transportation of the grain from the farm to the store by controlling shipping,
road and rail routes.
q Controls processing by controlling milling and extraction and other processing operation
q Provides no access to information about the process and the product.
Erosion of Womens Control on Seed and Biodiversity
Seeds are the first link in the food chain. For five thousand years, peasants have produced their
own seeds, selecting, storing and replanting and letting nature take its course in the food chain. The
feminine principle has been conserved through the conservation of seeds by women in their work in
food and grain storage. With the preservation of genetic diversity and the self renewability of food
(73)
crops has been associated the control by women and Third World peasants on germ plasm, the source
of all plant wealth. All this changed with the green revolution.
At its heart lie new varieties of miracle seeds, which have totally transformed the nature of food
production and control over food systems. The miracle seeds for which Borlaug got a Nobel Prize and
which rapidly spread across the Third World, also sowed the seeds of a new commercialization of
agriculture. Borlaug ushered in an ear of corporate control on food production by creating a technology
by which multinationals acquired control over seeds, and hence over the entire food system. The green
revolution commercialized and privatized seeds, removing control of plant genetic resources from Third
World peasant women and giving it over to western male technocrats in CIMMYT, IRRI and multinational
seed corporations.
Women have acted as custodians of the common genetic heritage through the shortage and
preservation of grain. In a study of rural women of Nepal, it was found that seed selection is primarily
a female responsibility. In 60.4 percent of the cases, women alone decided what type of seed to use,
while men decided in only 20.7 percent. As to who actually performs the task of seed selection in cases
where the family decides to use their own seeds, this work is done by women alone in 81.2 percent
of the households, by both sexes in eight percent and by men alone in only 10.8 percent of the
households.
Throughout India, even in years of scarcity, grain for seed was conserved in every household,
so that the cycle of food production was not interrupted by loss of seed. The peasant women of India
have carefully maintained the genetic base of food production over thousands of years. This common
wealth, which had evolved over millennia, was defined as primitive cultivars by the masculinist view
of seeds, which saw its own new products as advanced varieties.
The green revolution was a strategy of breeding out the feminine principle by the destruction
of the self-reproducing character and genetic diversity of seeds. The death of the feminine principle
in plant breeding was the beginning of seeds becoming a source of profits and control. The hybrid
miracle seeds are a commercial miracle, because farmers have to buy new supplies of them every
year: they do not reproduce themselves. Gains from hybrids do not produce seeds that duplicate the
same result because hybrids do not pass on their vigour to the next generation. With hybridization,
seeds could not more be viewed as a source of plant life, producing sustenance through food and
nutrition; they were now a source of private profit only (Shiva 1992)
Green revolution varieties of seeds were clearly not the best alternative for increasing food
production from the point of view of nature, women and poor peasants. They were useful for corporations
that wanted to find new avenues in seeds and fertilizer sales, by displacing women peasants as
custodians of seeds and builders of soil fertility, and they were useful for rich farmers wanting to
make profits. The international agencies which financed research on the new seeds also provided the
money for their distribution. The impossible task of selling a new variety to millions of small peasants
(74)
who could not afford to buy the seeds was solved by the World Bank, UNDP, FAO and a host of
bilateral aid programmes which began to accord high priority to the distribution of HYV seed in their
aid programmes.
Over the past decade, through new property rights and new technologies, corporations have
hijacked the diversity of life on earth, and peoples indigenous innovation. Intellectual Property Rights
(IPR) regimes globalized through the TRIPs agreement of WTO and have been expanded to cover life
forms thus creating monopoly control over biodiversity.
Patents on life are a hijack of biodiversity and indigenous knowledge; they are instruments of
monopoly control lover life itself. Patents on loving resources and indigenous knowledge as an enclosure
of the biological and intellectual commons.
The Biodiversity Act, 2002, which should have been aimed at defending community rights, has
instead facilitated the privatization of biodiversity and indigenous knowledge. This is why the success
of movements in forcing syngenta to back off from piracy of our rice collections is significant.
As one of the oldest and larges agricultural societies, India also has an impressive diversity of
at least 166 species of crop plants and 320 species of wild relatives of cultivated crops. Forests, which
contain much though by no means all of Indias biodiversity, now comprises about 64 million hectares,
or about 19% of land area of India, according to satellite imagery. Roughly 33% probably represents
primary forest. About 10 million hectares are managed as protection forests for ecological stability,
15 million for production of timber and 25 million as social forest to meet the demand for the fuel
wood and fodder. About 14 million hectares lie within national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
Of the estimated 45,000 plant species, about 15,000 species of flowering plants (6% of the
Worldwide total), an estimated 33% are endemic to India. Areas rich in endemism are Northeast, the
Western Ghats and the North Western and Eastern Himalayas. However, the Andaman and Nicobar
Island contribute at least 200 endemic species to the endemic flora. Estimates of other plant taxon
include 5,000 species of algae, 1,600 lichens, 20,000 fungi, 2,700 bryophytes and 600 pteridophytes.
And of the estimated 81,000 fauna species includes 50,000 insects, 4,000 molluses, 200 fish
140 amphibians, 420 reptiles, 1200 birds and other invertebrates. Indias bird species represent about
13% of the worlds total. Mammal fauna comprises 372 species, with 63% found in Assam. Thus India
is home to about two lakh species of living organisms.
Most of the people in our country derive their livelihood and meet their survival needs from the
diversity of living resources. The indigenous knowledge system in medicine, agriculture and fisheries
are the primary base for meeting the food and health needs of the majority of our people. In this
context, therefore, conservation of biodiversity is intimately linked to indigenous knowledge system on
the one hand and peoples rights to protect their knowledge and resources on the other hand. Whenever
biodiversity is threatened and eroded, peoples rights and peoples knowledge is also eroded.
(75)
Seventy percent of India depends upon traditional systems of production for their survival. The
majority of the people in the rural areas, involved in agriculture are small, marginal farmers and
peasants. Seeds produced and sold by farmer account for over 70 per cent of the total seed supply
in the country. Similarly more than 70 percent of Indias health care needs are met by traditional
systems of medicines, whose practitioners use over 7,500 varieties of medicinal plants as part of their
healing work. In fact the biodiversity based traditional healthcare system is being kept alive by 3,60,740
Ayurvedic practitioners, 29,701 Unani experts and 11,644 specialists of Siddha, according to an ethno
botanical survey in late nineties. In addition millions of housewives, birth attendants and herbal healers
carryon village based health traditions.
The sharing and exchange of biological resources and knowledge of its properties and use has
been the norm in all indigenous societies, and it continues to be the norm in most communities,
including the modem community. But sharing and exchange get converted to piracy when individuals,
organizations or corporations who receive biodiversity and knowledge from indigenous communities
freely and converts this gifts into private property through IPR claims.
(76)
1.4 IMPACT OF AGREEMENT ON AGRICULTURE AND TRADE
LIBERALIZATION OF AGRICULTURE-ON WOMEN
Changes in Changes in
Production Patterns Distribution Patterns
More costly non-renewable Dismantling of P.D.S. Removal of QRs
Chemical, Intensive Irrigation,
Mono Crops for Exports
Higher Cost Less Nutritive Lowering of farm
of Production Crops and Prices due to
Resources of Dumping of
food entitlements subsidized produce
Debt Malnutrition Falling Income
Starvation Farmers Suicides Increased trafficking Feticide and
of Women Violence against
women
Women left in destitute and debt
(77)
a. Change in Production Pattern
1. More costly non-renewable, Chemical, Input intensjve Irrigation, Mono Crops for Exports and High
cost of Production.
On 7th August 2002, the Financial Express announced that Monsanto bagged the trophy at
the Lakshya event at the National Institute of Industrial Engineering, Mumbai, for a rural marketing
project. The Project by Monsanto was a market development strategy aimed at capturing the small
to marginal farmer segment. It was deployed at the Udaipur district in Rajasthan that forms the single
largest maize growing district in the country. The objective of the project was to provide a solutions
package to small farmers on improved technologies, particularly focusing on maize crops. Farmers
were encouraged to train other farmers back home through a special Humsafar programme .
Monsantos much lauded project Humsafar actually involves the introduction of its eco-narcotic,
Roundup (the controversial glysophate- based herbicide) to small and marginal peasants. In Udaipur,
and turning an important local food and fodder crops into raw material for industry through the aegis
of a nongovernmental organization Karmasheel Sansthan. The corporation used the devastating drought
of 2002 as its entry-point.
Drought is invariably the harbinger of food and fodder shortage, creating famine conditions of
both humans and cattle. In 2002, the drought-induced famine had killed over 30 people in Rajasthan,
including 12 children. Monsantos maize varieties, that are being promoted for industrial food, are also
not giving the high yields promised, and have in many places, failed to perform adequately.
Maize is the most important food crop grown in Rajasthan, growing along with millet in areas
where few other crops grow. Again, Rajasthan itself is the most important maize growing region in the
country. The total area under maize cultivation in the country in 2001 was 65.5 lac hectares of which
9.6 lac hectares was in Rajasthan with 1.72 lac hectares in Udaipur, the highest maize growing district
in the country where maize is sown over 75% cultivable land during kharif. The majority of the maize
grown in Rajasthan is rainfed maize.
Maize is also an important industrial crop, as it produces a high field of starch/energy per
hectare. In addition, like other cereal crops, it cultivation has often been diverted from being a food
crop to a producer of starch, cellulose and as raw material for industrial production of glucose,
sorbital, dextrose, high fructose syrup, maltodoxrine, germ oil, germ meal, fiber and other products
which have applications in industries as diverse as alcohol, textiles, paper pharmaceuticals, organic
chemicals, cosmetics, edible oil, poultry live stock and fish feed.
The cattle and poultry feed industry in particular consume enormous amounts of maize, which
makes up almost 8-12 percent of the feed.
(78)
Monsantos Maize will not increase food security
Monsantos claim of helping farmers of the Udaipur region of Rajasthan improves their living
standards and thus their food security through the cultivation of their maize variety is false for the
following reasons:
i) Monsanto varieties need extra water, and thus create water shortage and contribute to drought.
In fact, in large areas where sown, the varieties have failed because Rajasthan is facing severe
drought conditions.
i) The yields promised by Monsanto have not been met in farmers fields. In fact, Monsanto itself
appears to be rather unsure about the productivity of its varieties, as it has highly varying claims
in its various publicity material.
iii) The production costs to farmers growing Monsantos maize varieties are much higher than the
costs to farmers growing local rainfed varieties, as the former varieties need chemical inputs,
while the latter produce grain with on-farm inputs.
iv) Monsanto is promoting the cultivation of its maize varieties as an industrial crop rather than as
food crop. Today, there is just one purchaser for these varieties. This purchaser, Godrej Agrovat,
pays higher rates for Monsantos maize than the market rate, the company is not bound either
to continue to buy from farmer, or give the same rare. Even at this high rate, the net returns
to the farmer are lower than those growing local varieties, as the production costs are much
higher.
Three Different Claims by Monsanto for Productivity of their Maize varieties
Field staff at Wana and Menar villages in Udaipur reported that the Monsanto varieties have
achieved maize productivity of 12 quintals/acre (30 quintal/hec). Monsanto won the Laskhya General
and HR Management Award for its. programme Humsafar by claiming that the yields of the farmers
has increased to 20 quintals per acre (50 quintals per hectare), whereas, Monsanto through its
publicity brochures distributed among the farmers is claiming even much higher yields.
Reported by Monsanto field Reported by Monsanto for the Reported by Monsanto in the
staff (in quintals) Humsafar Award (In quintals) publicity brochures (in quintls)
Per Per Per Per Per Per Per Per Per
Bigha Acre Hectare Bigha Acre Hectare Bigha Acre Hectare
2.4 12 30 4 20 50 10-18 50-90 125-225
b. Comparison of productivity by farmers between Monsantos varieties and desi (local) varieties
Discussions with the farmers reveal that Monsanto seed has just nominally increased maize
productivity. In the villages of Udaipur, Chittor and Banswara, farmers never weigh the maize grain,
the yield is simply counted by the number of jute sacks; one sack maize contains around 100 kg.
(79)
Comparison of Productivity of desi (local) maize with Monsantos varieties based on farmers experience.
Desi Varieties (In quinals) Monsanto Varieties (In quintals)
Per Biga Per Acre Per Hectare Per Biga Per Acre Per Hectare
1.2 6 15 1.4 7 7.5
Monsantos Strategy: Co-opting NGOs and Universities
Monsanto is aggressively marketing and promoting its maize seeds through the Humsafar (fellow
traveler) program. The seeds being promoted include:
q All rounder
q Hi shell
q Asgro 501
q Asgro 633
The cost of these Monsanto seeds vary from Rs. 250 to 275for a packet of 5 kg., whereas the
same quantity of Desi/Local varieties costs only Rs. 25.
The Humsafar programme was launched in 2001 in 14 villages, which were adopted by Monsanto
for detailed demonstration and popularization of maize cultivation. After four months. 14 more villages
were included. Now programme has been extended to 98 villages in Udaipur, Chittorgarh and Banswara
districts.
The Humsafar programme has been initiated with the NGO Karamsheel Sansthan, and the
Rajasthan College of Agriculture, Udaipur (now known as Maharana Pratap Agriculture and Technical
University)
The programme operates from seven Humsafar Kendras with seven persons overseeing the
programme at the field level. Staff posted at the Kendras conduct the field studies with the help of
village sarpanch and other functionaries to find out where the farmers are involved in growing desi
(indigenous) maize. The staff also assesses the willingness of the farmers to grow the Monsanto
varieties of maize.
Bt. Cotton.
Although cotton acreage forms only five percent of Indias total cropped area, over half the
chemical pesticides on agriculture, amounting to about Rs. 1600 crores a year, is consumed by this
crop. Controlling bollworm infestation in cotton with pesticide costs Indian farmers Rs. 1100 annually.
With pesticide resistance increasing and becoming wide spread, chemical sprays do not always succeed
in protecting the crop. The ICAR calculated that by using integrated pest management methods with
one or two sprays, the Bt. cotton hybrids could save Rs. 1500 per hectare on chemical pesticides and
provide additional return through higher yield of Rs. 7000 to Rs. 8000 per hectare. It therefore seems
(80)
hi!t1ly probable that Bt cotton will enthusiastically taken up by Indian farmer, the area under this
transgenic crop is likely to grow rapidly. If the benefits from Bt cotton are immediate, the risk could
take some years to manifest themselves.
A severe pest infestation is presently driving farmers to spray huge doses of pesticides in an
attempt to save their crop. Yet virtually all farmers report that the pest simply cannot be controlled.
This is hardly surprising considering the 600 fold resistance developed by bollworm to pesticides over
the last 10 years according to cotton scientists. The costs of cultivation of cotton have increased so
dramatically that in some villages, the debt accumulated over the last two to three years has risen to
Rs. 50000 per house hold. It is no longer rare, for women to mortgage their mangalsutra or land-
owning farmers to sell an acre or two to start repaying their debt. The entire support system of this
increasingly commercial agriculture made up of input dealers, money lenders and commission agents.
More readily than men, women farmers express distress at watching the very land not used to produce
a variety of dry land crops ( a mix of food, and cash crops such as jowar, red gram, green gram wheat)
become useless in providing direct food for the family.
Table - 1.4 (1) : Cost - Benefit Analysis Madhya Pradesh
Particular Bt Cotton Non Bt. Cotton
Cost (Rs. Per Acre) Cost (Rs. Per Acre)
1. Seeds 1650 450
2. Pesticides 1100 1950
3. Fertilizers 1375 1375
4. Irrigation 750 750
5. Plucking (at Rs. 2 per kg. 800 1480
6. Other costs like sowing etc. 1000 1000
Total Rs. 6675 Rs. 7005
i) Average yield of Bt. cotton 4.01 quintals/Acre Average yield of Non Bt cotton = 7.40 quintals/
Acre.
ii) Prevailing market rate of cotton in M.P. = Rs. 1800quintals
iii) Gross earning from Bt. Cotton = 4.01 x 1800 = Rs. 7218. Net profit from Bt. Cotton = Rs.
543/Acre. (7218 - 6675)
iv) Gross earning fron Non Bt. Cotton = 7.40 x 1800 = 13320. Net profit from non Bt. cotton =
Rs. 6315/acre.
(81)
Karnataka
Table - 1.4 (2)
Particular Bt Cotton Non Bt. Cotton
Cost (Rs. Per Acre) Cost (Rs. Per Acre)
1. Seeds 1650 450
2. Pesticides 2200 4250
3. Fertilizers 3000 3000
4. Irrigation 500 500
5. Plucking at Rs. 1.5 per kg. 575 1050
6. Other costs like sowing,
manure etc. 1000 1000
Total Rs. 8925 Rs. 10250
i) Average yield of Bt Cotton = 3.82 quintals/ Acre
ii) Average yield of Non Bt Cotton = 7.0 quintals/ Acre
iii) Prevailing market rate = Rs.2000 per quintal
iv) Gross earning from Bt Cotton = 3.82 x 2000 = 7640
v) Gross earning from Non Bt Cotton = 7 x 2000 = 14000
vi) Net loss from Bt. Cotton = 8925 - 7640 = Rs. 1285/ Acre
vii) Net earning from Non Bt Cotton = 1400 - 1025 = Rs. 3750/ Acre
In the final analysis, as shown above, it is simply clear that the average yield of Bt Cotton in
Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka is around 4 quintals/hectare, and not 15 quintals/hectare, as claimed
by Monsanto.
The cost-Benefit analysis from the tables 4.1 and 4.2 amply reveals that the farmers in Madhya
Pradesh earn only Rs. 543/acre from Bt. Cotton where as their earning from Non Bt Cotton is
approximately Rs. 6315/acre. In Karnataka, farmers are at loss of rupees 1285/acre while cultivating
Bt. Cotton and their earnings from Non Bt. Cotton is about Rs. -3750 per acre.
Bt. Cotton or the G.M./Transgenic crops compound, the instability of the entire system by
introducing new risks such as the pollution of their traditional crops, a major threat on biodiversity,
and the build-up of resistance in insects and plants. Since the time of hybrid seeds industry has
captured the steering wheel of agriculture promoting the purchase of seeds, fertilizers and the pesticides
as well as buying out small-scale dealers, acquiring and merging with one another.
When the Biodiversity door opened, chemical companies such as Monsanto, Dupont, ICI, Bayer
and BASF jumped into the fray. They invested largely into research in G.M., merged and remorphed
(82)
themselves to an extent that their names also changed. ICI split to Zeneca then Astra Zeneca and
after a merger with Novartis (itself borncut of Ciba Geigy and Sandoz) to become syngenta. Today,
the entire G.M. crops and the food market around the world are in the hands of less than 10
companies. Agriculture has remorphed into agribusiness. It is this aspect that worries people. Appropriate
national strategies to counter it will be needed soon. Wisdom lies in understanding what the costs and
the benefits are, and minimizing the former while maximizing the latter.
Sugarcane : Crashing Prices, Cause Concern
Sugarcane Cultivation and processing is an important source of agriculture income and employment.
Sugarcane is the largest processing industry next only to cotton textiles. An instrisinic symbolic relationship
exists with rural masses and it is a nerve center for rural development and employment. There are 414
sugar mills in India, which has emerged as the main producer of sugarcane at 300 million tonnes, from
4 million hectares at present, country is producing over 18 million tonnes of sugar. In addition,
sugarcane supports a large number of open pan sugar (khandsari) and jaggery (gur) units in the
unorganized sector with a production of over 10 million tonnes of jaggery.
The average SMP payable by the factories during last two years season works out to Rs. 75.14
.
per quintal in West U.P and Rs. 71.34 per quintal in East U.P. This is the way below the prices of Rs.
100 per quintal on early ripening cane and Rs. 95 on common varieties, which the farmers were getting
in the recent years. In other words, the industry is effectively seeking a Rs. 25 reduction in the cane
price supplied by the farmers.
The lower price is however not acceptable to the farmers. According to farmers, for every quintal
(100 kg) of cane crushed the mills obtain not only 10 kg of sugar but also six kgs of molasses and
four kgs of baggasse and press mud. Even if the average ex-factory price of sugar has dipped to Rs.
12 per kg, if one computes revenue from other streams (taking average rate of Rs. 100 per quintal
each for molasses, and baggase and Rs. 10 per quintal for press mud), mills realize over Rs. 130 on
every quintal of cane they purchase at Rs. 100. Even after accounting for conversion and processing
cost, the mills would be left with a fair margin, which renders any reduction in cane prices totally
unacceptable.
Table 1.4 (3) : (a) Ghaziabad
S.No. Particulars Cost Rs.
1. Ploughing 500
2. Sowing
(a) (seeds), 25 quintal @ Rs. 100 Quintal 2500
(b) Chemicals to reduce mites etc. 1250
(c) DAP 75 kg @ Rs. 9 kg 675
3. Fertilizers, 5 Bag @ Rs. 50 per bag 1250
(83)
S.No. Particulars Cost Rs.
4. Water (8 times) @ Rs. 300 2400
5. Deweeding (Khundai) 4 times @ Rs. 600 2400
6. Knotting (Bandhai) 3 times @ Rs. 500 1500
7. Cutting (chhulai) Rs. 8 quintal for average yield of 275 quintals 2200
8. Transport Rs. 10 per quintal for the average yield of 275 quintals 2750
Total Rs. 17425
Table 1.4 (3) : (b) Meerut
S.No. Particulars Cost Rs.
1. Ploughing 500
2. Sowing
(a) (seeds), 25 quintal @ Rs. 100 Quintal 2500
(b) Chemicals to treat mites etc. 1250
(c) DAP 75 kg @ Rs. 9 kg 675
3. Fertilizers, 5 Bag @ Rs. 50 per bag 1250
4. Water (10 times) @ Rs. 300 3000
5. Deweeding (Khundai) 3 times @ Rs. 500 1500
6. Knotting (Bandhai) 3 times @ Rs. 500 1500
7. Cutting (chhulai) Rs. 9 quintal for average yield of 250 quintals 2250
8. Transport Rs. 10 per quintal for the average yield of 250 quintals 2500
Total Rs. 16925
Table 1.4 (3) : (c) Baghpat
S.No. Particulars Cost Rs.
1. Ploughing 500
2. Sowing
(a) (seeds), 25 quintal @ Rs. 100 Quintal 2500
(b) Chemicals to treat mites etc. 625
(c) DAP, 50 kg @ Rs. 10 kg 500
(d) Zinc - 1 bag of 5 kg 220
3. Fertilizers, 5 Bag @ Rs. 50 per bag 1250
4. Water (20 times) @ Rs. 200 4000
5. Deweeding (Khundai) 4 times @ Rs. 500 2000
(84)
S.No. Particulars Cost Rs.
6. Knotting (Bandhai) 3 times @ Rs. 500 1500
7. Cutting (chhulai) Rs. 10 quintal for average yield of 300 quintals 3000
8. Transport Rs. 10 per quintal for the average yield of 300 quintals 3000
Total Rs. 19095
Average Input cost per Acre Rs. 17815
Average yield per Acre = 275 quintals
Earlier gross income at the rate of Rs. 95 - 100 per quintals for the average yield of 275 quintals
per acre - Rs. 26125 27500
Now Gross Income at the rate of Rs. 75 per quintals for the average yield of Rs. 275 quintal
per acre = 20625
Earlier Net Income per acre = Rs. 8310 - 9685 (26125 -17815) and (27500 -17185) Now Net
Income per acre = Rs. 2810 (20625 - 17815)
Reduction in farmers income per acre = Rs. 5500 to 6875 (8310 - 2810), and (9685 - 2810)
Reduction in Income
For the small farmers with 2 acres of sugarcane = 11000 - 13750
Reduction in income for medium farmers with 5 acres of sugarcane - 27500 34375.
Reduction in income for large farmers having 10 acres of sugarcane - 55000 68750.
From the above analysis it is clear that there is change in cropping pattern, resulting in high cost
of production and fall in income to the farmers affecting the survival of women.
Less Nutritive Crops and Resources of Food Entitlements
Food security in agriculture is based on a delicate balance between market forces and public
policy, and the rights of consumers as well as producers. This balance would ensure that food prices
are not too high to take food beyond the reach of already deprived consumers, and not too low so
as to push out domestic farmers from production. Food is not merely an item of consumption. Food
production is also the most significant source of livelihood for most Indian people. It is through their
participation in food production that most people in India are entitled to food. While lower food prices
might be good for societies with hardly any farmers, they are devastating for food security in peasant
economies - where livelihood depends on the sales of produce in domestic markets. (Shiva 1999)
Therefore, the impact of trade liberalization on food security is different in different socio-
economic contexts. For those items where domestic prices are lower than international prices, trade
liberalization leads to exports and thus a rise in domestic prices. Whereas for those items where
(85)
domestic prices are higher than international prices, trade liberalization leads to dumping and a
displacement of domestic producers from agriculture. In such a situation, cheap food can be a
prescription for famine when it displaces domestic producers and destroys their entitlement. (Shiva
1999)
A comparison of nutrition needs of a person assessed according to activity and rations at various
times and various starvation/welfare diets, however a large section of poor and women do not get the
required calorie.
Table - 1.4 (4) : Welfare Diets for Starving the Poor
Caloric Value Per day Activity Level
Basal Metabolism (adult) 1500 No activity
Government Rations during the Deccan Famine
of 1877 1627 Heavy labour
Buchenwald (Nazi Concentration Camp)
rations (1994) 1750 Heavy labour
7-year old childs approved diet requirement 2050 Moderate activity
Indian adult (Subsistane) 2400 Moderate activity
Indian male approved diet 3900 Heavy labour
TDPS ration 100* Heavy labour
Anna Antyodaya Scheme Ration 200** Heavy labour
* From Vinayak Prasad Access to Health Care in India : The Equity Concerns, Governance and
Poverty : Contemporary Policy Reforms for India
** Calculated from the above figure
Declining Food Production
Agricultural policies that push the small farmer to destitution on the one hand, and promote
cash cropping on the other, have resulted in lowered food production. There has been a steady decline
in food production since the early 90s as a result of the thrust towards export-oriented agriculture.
The collapse of domestic support for food production (through dismantling the MSP, rising costs of
inputs, crop failure due to uncertified seeds) in the late90s has intensified this shift, as farmers are
desperate to recover their losses. The country is already facing a decline in food production to the
order of 12.8% in just one year.
The National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau 1997 data shows a declining trend in consumption in
Rural India, particularly in cereal and millets, the main source of energy for the poor, from 1990 to
1995. The most important reasons for this decline are:
(86)
q Rising food prices
q Destriction of livelihoods
q Destruction of the PDS system
q Shift to export oriented agriculture
Trade liberalization links to a decline in food consumption are even more evident in the sub-
Saharan region of Africa Trade liberalization links to a decline in food consumption are even more
evident in the sub-Saharan region of Africa. As a result of loan conditional adjustment and export
thrust, five of the six most populous countries of this region (which together comprise 60% of the total
population of, the region) have experienced a decline in calorie intake per head even after taking
account of net food aid inflows.
In India, the per capita grain availability has been seriously declining since 1995, when WTOs
rules started being implemented. In fact, National Sample Survey (NSS) rounds starting from the 38th
round have documented the decline in cereal consumption 1992, following the implementation of
SAPs.
The reduced consumption on the one hand, and the decline in agricultural production and
procurement on the other are directly linked though the Food and Agricultural policies of the government.
Colonialism had destroyed the food sovereignty of the country, forcing changes in cropping from food
for local and regional food security to commercial crops. Rice particularly had become a commercial
crop even within the country.
Starvation
It was Orissas Kalahandi district in 2001, then Jharkhands Palamau district in the beginning
of 2002 followed by Madhya Pradeshs Shivpuri district and then Rajasthans Baran district where
deaths due to starvation have been reported. In all the cases, it has been either the media or citizens
groups, which have brought these deaths to public notice. Unfortunately, the pattern has been for the
state governments to deny that the deaths have been due to starvation. The government of Orissa
claimed that people had died because they consumed mango kernels, the government of Jharkhand
said that the deaths were due to sickness and old age and the government of Rajasthan has carried
its defense to the extreme by stating that people had died because they had eaten a variety of grass
which was part of the traditional diet.
The fact is that none of these deaths would have occurred if the people of the area had access
to food, as they should have under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), which is supported to provide
rice and wheat at highly subsidized prices to poorest of the poor. In Baran district, the identification
of the beneficiaries of the AAY could not be completed and the ration shops in many villages did not
stock cereals for sale as part of the welfare schemes. The irony is that in many parts of the country
the AAY has literally known a lifeline to the citizens at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder.
(87)
The report prepared by some NGOs says that food for work programmer and the public
Distribution System is dysfunctional in Rajasthan. The issue is not limited to deaths but the means of
survival in the villages of Mamoni, Gangapur, Sheharana, Rajpura, Betha, Lalkankri, Bhawanagarh,
karwarikalan and Hatiydeh in Baran distrct. Only a lucky few got two chapatis to eat every two days
while the rest did not have more than half kg flour which they boiled to make lapsi and ate with one
vatki of boiled water.
People in these villages were consuming sarna (wild grass seeds) as they hardly had any food
grains with them and now even grass has dried up. People were also boiling phang (a wild green
vegetable) and eating its leaves as they have nothing else to consume. Others were seen meat of dead
sheep on account of which many fell ill.
When even grass dried up the able bodied villagers started to dig roots of a herb, shalavri. After
being peeled and dried these herbs were sold at Rs.5 to 6 a kilogram. A few people were also boiling
and drying amla and Bartering it for wheat. As result people were earning a meager Rs.5-6 every two
or three days.
In India millions of men, women and children are chronically undernourished. Pregnant women
are worst affected, since maternal and foetal under nutrition results in the birth of children with low
weight (less than 2.5 kg). Such children are handicapped at birth in brain development - the cruelest
form of inequity.
Amidst reports of hunger and starvation deaths, India continues to make room for exporting
surplus food grains. That an estimated 320 million people desperately need food, despite more than
60 million tones stocked in the open. There was a proposal to dump it in the sea to make storage
space for the next crop, when export market, could not be found for this surplus.
Persons consuming less than 1890 Kcal unit per day may be considered as hungry as the
consumption is very much lower than the food adequacy norms of ICMR. About 42 percent of the rural
population consumes less than 2430 Kcal unit per day. The average calorie consumption for rural India
is 2683 Kcal unit per day. The people with basic minimum calorie intake face long-term ill effects of
malnourishment. Calorie deficiency in terms of both spread and depth may be due to higher food
prices, lower incomes, lack of assets, fewer work opportunities.
According to study by M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, despite millions tones of food
stock in the godown, there are people going bed with out any meal. As shown in Table 4.4 there are
16 persons per thousand reporting zero meal in rural India.
Table shows that an average about 945 out of 1000 person get two square a meal in a year.
Orissa is reported to have minimum number of people receiving two squares a meal through out the
year.
(88)
Table - 1.4 (5) : Per Thousand Distribution of Households by Availability of
Two Square Meals a Day in a Year
Members of Households getting two square meals a day
State Through out the Only some Not getting Not
year Months of the through out the getting
Year year co1. 2+3
Andhra Pradesh 966.00 17.00 12.00 29.00
Assam 901.00 61.00 30.00 91.00
Bihar 928.00 51.00 15.00 66.00
Gujarat 976.00 9.00 4.00 13.00
Haryana 992.00 8.00 0.00 8.00
Karnataka 960.00 27.00 8.00 35.00
Kerala 910.00 74.00 4.00 78.00
Madhya Pradesh 970.00 25.00 3.00' 28.00
Maharashtra 954.00 41.00 4.00 45.00
Orissa 844.00 149.00 5.00 154.00
Punjab 999.00 1.00 0.00 1.00
Rajasthan 985.00 6.00 0.00 6.00
Tamil Nadu 969.00 15.00 9.00 24.00
Uttar Pradesh 963.00 29.00 5.00 34.00
West Bengal 856.00 111.00 30.00 141.00
All India 945.00 42.00 9.00 51.00
Source : Hunger Atlas by M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation 1994.
Malnutrition
As an estimate between 40 to 50% of urban women and between 50 to 70 % of rural women
suffer from anemia. Unfortunately, efforts at iron supplementation programme and nutrition programme
for pregnant and lactating women have not reached the intended populations or prevalence of anemia
among women (Gopalan and Shiva 2000) National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau (NNMB) surveys show
that even after 50 years of independence, average intake of calories is substantially below the Recommended
Dietary Allowance (RDA) for men and women.
Majority of the people in India derive their calories from cereals like wheat, rice, maize, the
cheapest source of energy, and not from other sources such as oils, fats, nuts, oil seeds, pulses and
(89)
milk which are consumed in minimal amounts because of high-costs. Per capita availability of pulses
has decreased from 60.7 gms to 34 gms per day.
Calories and energy are required by the body to maintain body temperature, metabolic purposes,
support growth, physical activity and work. RDA for energy is the average requirement and nothing
more. The intake and expenditure of energy are extremely finely balanced and any surplus energy
consumption is stored as fat and continuous intake results in increased weight. Inadequate weight gain
reflects inadequate food intake. A significant section of men and women continue to be atleast 5 to
8 kg less than the desirable weight.
Mean intake of 2100 calories b y women suggests that 50% of the population is subsisting on
deficit diet which is less than 2100 calories. Any decrease in calorie intake results in weight loss or
decrease in the activity patterns to conserve energy. Chronic low level of energy intake and increase
in the work demand obviously effects womens health and nutritional status negatively. .
This level of calorie consumption was possible because of the cost of food grains influenced by
the existence of public distribution system (PDS) agricultural subsidies and subsidies on inputs like
water, power in determining the prices of the cheapest source of calorie i.e. cereals. In view of the
new economic policies, prices and wages are expected to be determined by the changing market
conditions. Withdrawal of subsidies would make even the calories from the cereals less accessible to
those without adequate purchasing power. This could result in millions slipping into the category of
malnourished. It is significant to point out that 52% of children below the age of 5 years in India are
already malnourished. (Gopalan & Shiva 2000)
It is also assume that any availability of food is going to be distributed within the household
according to need of the individual family members. Unfortunately, the intra-household distribution of
food continues to reflect the gender biases of society. It is the women and the girl children who eat
last and least. Intake of protective foods like milk, eggs, meat, fish, fruits and vegetables are adequate
only in High Income Group (HIG) and Middle Income Groups (MIG). Dietary intakes of rural women
are worse than Low Income Group (LIG) population. Food intakes of all protective foods such as milk,
vegetables and pulses are deficient. Nutritional studies indicate that adequate calories and protective
foods are assured only to certain income groups. Obviously in general nutritional status tends to be
quite clearly linked within economic categories such as class, land holdings wages and household
incomes. However other criteria such as caste and ethnic tribal status also lend to be quite significant
(Chandra Shekhar and Ghosh 2003)
Any major shift in agriculture in terms of cropping pattern, control of seeds, laws related to
patenting of seeds, liberalization of imports of food, oil and grain and increased food processing is
bound to affect the subsistence and marginal farmers. The impact will be substantial as 70% of
employment for the people in India is in the primary sector. Most people tend to overlook the fact that
major part of the farming and agricultural work is done by women. This is despite the absence of a
(90)
legal right to the land or the products. They depend on their land for food as well as income for their
families and earn wages by working on others lands to feed their families.
In India with 36% of the people living below the poverty and increasing food prices, the low
nutritional status for women who already eat last and least get further affected. In a country with large
food reserves, the inability to purchase food due to inadequate purchasing power reflected in the poor
nutritional status, sometimes resulting in starVation deaths (as in Kalahandi (Orissa), Bundelkhand
(U.P), Dhule (Maharashtra) is a matter of great concern. These areas happen to be tribal areas, often
drought prone with a high incidence of illiteracy and deep indebtedness and prone to exploitation. The
strategic approach has to take these factors into consideration for dealing with such special areas of
concern to relieve people of malnutrition and hunger.
Debt and Farmers Suicide
The burden of the agrarian crisis has obviously fallen on the, small and marginal farmers. The
rising cost of cultivation, coupled with the risk associated with it, has not only added to the burden
on the peasantry but made life uncertain for the poor peasants. A tragedy of unprecedented proportion
is unfolding in Andhara Pradesh. According to the Andhra Pradesh Ryothu Sangam (APRS), 279
peasants have committed suicide (between May 14 and June 14 2004) after the Congress government
assumed office, however the government has put the figure at 194 (Sridhar 2004).
Unlike the rounds of suicides in 1987-88,1997-98 and 2000, when peasants growing particular
such as tobacco, cotton, chillies and ground nut ruined this time death stalks every where. No crop
appears safe and no section of the small peasantry appears insulated. The overwhelming proportions
of the death toll is among small and marginal farmers and tenant cultivators, who have no claims on
the land they cultivate and who pay exorbitant rents to the landlords.
An increase in the suicide rate in a population is generally known to indicate acute stress that
people undergo during a phase of social crisis. Death by suicide is among the most horrible consequence
of the policies of the government. What is even more shocking is that the government ignored the
repeated cries of depress in the peasantry.
Deep in debt, following periodic losses suffered because of poor crops yields and low prices,
farmers sold their kidneys. Highest number of cases has been reported from Rebitachintala Mandal
in the Palamdu area (Sridhar 2004)
For March and May are the months when farmers settle old loans and get new ones for kharif
crop. This is also the time when moneylenders start recovering their money. With repeated crop failures
and high costs of cultivation, the farmers had no money to repay debts. The elections also played a
role, money lenders were quiet during elections. Immediately after, pressure began to pile up. There
was talk of a moratorium on debt recovery. Moneylenders were in a hurry to get back loans. For heavily
indebted farmers, the system cracked up, forcing them to commit suicide (Joshi 2004)
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65 farmers in the Vidharbha region of Maharashtra have killed in 2004 over debts as little as
Rs. 8000, because when it does not rain and where proper irrigation facilities do not exist, these small
amounts crush hope and with it life. Thirty committed suicide in just June alone, very often, the family
of the suicide victims do not have money to arrange for the last rites (Chaudhrui 2004)
Farmers had pawned their houses, cattle; some even the wifes mangalsutra to borrow money
but it was finally vanishing that broke their spirit. Since 2001, about 340 farmers have committed
suicide in the region of Vidharbha (kappikar 2004).
It is becoming evident that nothing but a reversal of the agrarian and agriculture policies
pursued in the past decade or so under the garb of liberalization, will stem the curse of death. While
politicians and bureaucrats waffle on what the peasant actually needs, the issue of an unqualified
moratorium on repayments of loans by small peasants - whether from private or institutionalized
source has became a life and death question. This will determines whether the lives will be saved in
the days ahead.
An increase in the suicide rate in a population is generally known to indicate acute stress that
people undergo during a phase of social churn. Death by suicide is among the most horrible consequences
of the policies of the government. What is even more shocking is that the government ignored the
repeated cries of distress in the peasantry. More pertinently, the phenomenon of suicides among
sections of the peasantry - not only in Andhra Pradesh, but also in Karnataka, Punjab, Rajasthan,
Maharashtra and Kerala indicates that the Indian peasantry is going through a deep churning. It is
also obvious that this churning has been caused by the neo-liberal prescription for agriculture.
The Indian government celebrated its triumph in Cancun, but the negative impact of globalization
on agriculture through the World Trade Organization regime has already compounded the agrarian
crisis brought in by drought. Several agricultural commodities have seen a fall in the prices in the last
three years owing to imports.
The lifting of agricultural and power subsidies have pushed up the cost of cultivation substantially
and the withdrawal of safety nets like the universal public distribution system for food has increased
expenditures for poor families.
The burden of irredeemable debt has eroded the living standards of those who are already poor,
throwing them to the mercy of moneylenders, and depriving them of their dignity and standing in the
rural society. The noose is already around the neck of the farmer.
Farmers suicides are no longer a feature of drought prone and economically backward districts.
The phenomena have spread to all regions including prosperous agriculture belts like Mandya. While
49 suicides, the highest figure recorded, took place between April 1 and October 25 in drought prone
Hassan district, during the same period 22 suicides took place in Mandya, the states sugar bowl and
heartland of Cauvery irrigation network. Eighteen suicides were committed in Shimoga, a paddy-
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growing district of high rainfall. Fourteen farmers ended their lives in Heveri district, which has normal
rainfall.
The phenomenon of suicides amongst farmers in Karnataka has been a recurrent theme in
agricultural sector since 1998. The sudden and alarming spurt in suicides since April 2003, however
appears to indicate a new trend and pattern. Farmers suicides are no longer a feature of drought
prone or the economically backward districts alone, and nor are they occurring only in pockets of high
investment agriculture like cotton growing tracts.
The pressure from moneylenders to repay loans appears to drive farmers, particularly the small
and marginal farmers, to take their own lives. Loans from institutional lending sources typically account
for just 10 per cent of a small farmers credit needs and there appears to be little evidence of banks
forcing their creditors to repay their loans. For example, in Heveri district, the percentage recovery of
loans to agriculture by banks was 49 per cent, 44 per cent and 47 per cent respectively during the
last three years. All banks have rephrased their loan and interest structures. The disbursements of
banks are going down, as farmers are unable to repay loans because this is the third year of crop
failure.
Unable to get the loan from banks, farmers have been forced to borrow from moneylenders at
the exorbitant rate, which usually vary from 24 to 60 per cent per annum, sometimes even at higher
rate. Though the coercion by the moneylenders rarely has taken the form of physical assault, but the
pressure always continue. Moneylenders come in the form of a group and harass the debtor that
results in considerable loss of face and self-esteem for the latter. After the suicide, the family of the
victim does not disclose the identity of the moneylender, usually a large landlord. As there are no
generally written agreements between the moneylender and the victim that makes it difficult to punish
those who practise usury.
In Mandya, there has been a spate of suicides largely in Maddur Taluk, though Mandya is
relatively an agrarian prosperity. But due to the low storage capacity of dam in the cauvery basin,
farmers had to dig bore wells, which unfortunately failed. Following are the few case studies of the
farmers suicide in Mandya, Bangalore Rural and Hasan districts.
Boraih aged 55 years of village Gunnanayakandahalli in Mandya district committed suicide on
6 September 2003. He has borrowed more than one lakh from friends and moneylenders, besides a
loan of Rs. 45,000 from Syndicate Bank. His elder son died four months back. He received no
compensation from the government. His last rites were conducted by the contribution of Rs. 6,000
from friends, villagers and relatives. Now, the main breadwinner is the daughter-in-law.
Similarly, H. K. Hanumme Gowda of Bidarhasahalli Village committed suicide on 12 August
2003. He had borrowed money from Vijay Bank, PLD Bank and other institution of Rs. 55,000. He had
70 trees of mango, which died up due to drought. Now family does not have any source of income,
and finds it hard to find any breadwinner. His wife is seeking help for the education of the children.
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The case of Puttaswamy of village Bidarahalli in Maddur Taluk of Mandya is not different.
Having only three acres of land he has taken loan of Rs. 26,000 from the Cooperative Society and
Rs. 50,000 from moneylenders. No compensation was received, and last rites were carried out with
Rs. 25,000 donated by Abbas Ali Bohra, a social worker from Channapatna.
Kadi Gowda of Huligerepure in Mandya, who was around 70 years old, hanged himself due to
reported failure of crops since last three years. He has the loan of more than one lakh of which Rs.
80,000 was from private parties. He also collected the loan for the marriage of his daughter. It is one
of the few cases where the deceased is able to get Rs. one lakh compensation from the government.
There is a case when the eldest lady of the farmers family committed suicide when all her
efforts to seek the loan for agriculture from government turned futile. Smt. Chenamma of village
Valagerehalli of Muddur Taluk in Mandya district hanged herself in front of the house. She had
borrowed heavily from private sources. No compensation has been paid since the land was not in her
name. If compensation were paid, her son would like to spend the money on the education of his
children.
Due to pressure of loan repayment, Puttaswamy Gowda of Chikannadodi village of Channapata
Taluk in Bangalore rural district committed suicide by consuming poison. He had borrowed around Rs.
20,000 from State Bank of Mysore and around Rs. 160,000 from moneylenders. Family cultivates betel
leaves by paying Rs. 20/hour from others tubewells. Karnataka government has sanctioned compensation
of Rs. one lakh. Mrs. Sonia Gandhi also paid Rs. 25,000.
The study conducted by RFSTE unambiguously shows that growing indebtedness in the rural
areas among the farmers is the main reason for the farmers to commit suicide in Karnataka. Almost
all the farmers who have committed suicide have taken the loan, which costs more than their total
land assets. Situation became worst when the government institutions stopped giving loan to the
farmers. While there are varieties of reasons, indebtedness is the common factor in all the suicides.
Over 400 farmers in the states have committed suicide between April 1, and October 25 in 2003. By
the end of November 2003, the number of suicides increased to 478. With 54, Hassan tops the list
followed by Mandya and Belgaum.
However, according to a report, nearly 500 farmers have committed suicide in Karnataka during
2003 till the midweek of October 2003.
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Table - 1.4 (6) : Suicidal Deaths of Farmers in Mandya, Bangalore Rural and Hassan Districts
Sl. Name of the Age Village District
No. Deceased
1. Boraih 55 Gunnanvakanhalli Mandva
2. Hanume Gowda 35 Bidarhosahalli Mandva
3. Puttaswamv 48 Bidarhalli Mandva
4. Kadi Gowda 70 Huligerepura Mandya
5. Chennamma 60 Valagerehalli Mandya
6. Puttaswamv Gowda 55 Chikkanaddi Bangalore Rural
7. Basve Gowda 60 Jagadpur Bangalore Rural
8 Puttalinge Gowda 45 Eggalur Bangalore Rural
9. Puttaswamy 34 Hosakapau Hassan
10. Lakkegmida 45 Kandali Hassan
11. Chennapasan 70 Harnihalli Hassan
12. Shivanane 50 Geejahalli Hassan
13. Somshekhar 40 Bendekere Hassan
14. Basvaraju 30 Hiriyur Hassan
15. Chandrappa 60 N. Bendihalli Hassan
16. Shiva Swamy 40 Halbagenehalli Hassan
17. Hemaji Naika 45 Margenduhalli Tandya Hassan
18. Lokesh 40 Belawalihalli Hassan
At an estimate, the Punjab farmers are under debt of a whopping amount of Rs. 10,000 crores.
The indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers and insecticide is eroding the fertility of the land, thereby
causing unprecedented loss in natural productivity. A report by Indrajeet Singh Jeji, a former MLA and
president of Human Rights Organization, says that almost 500 farmers have so far committed suicide
in the state. According to Jeji, Lehra and Andana blocks of Punjab alone accounts for about 174
suicidal deaths till June 2003. Farmers, having less than even one acre, are burdened with the debt
from Rs. one lakh to 11 lakhs. Some of them jumped in front of the railway tracks while others set
themselves on fire, but majority of them poisoned themselves.
One of the main reasons is the collapse of nuclear family in Punjab, which has affected the land
holdings. There is severe slump in the earnings of the farmers, which is further adding to their debts.
Now, the farmers view agriculture as a loss making occupation, and the realization is causing intense
pressure among them.
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Table - 1.4 (7) : Suicides by Farmers in Karnataka (1 April to 10 November 2003)
Sl. District Cases Cases Rejected for
No. Reported Compensation
1 Bagalkot 16 13
2 Bangalore (Rural) 22 07
3 Bangalore (Urban) 02 0
4 Bldar 20 09
5 Hassan 54 32
6 Chamarai Nagar 08 01
7 Haveri 26 19
8 Uttara Kannada 03 0
9 Dharwad 17 13
10 Koppal 15 10
11 Mandya 38 27
12 Chikmagalur 15 08
13 Raichur 04 02
14 Tumkur 27 15
15 Shimoga 27 19
16 Kolar 11 05
17 Mysore 13 09
18 Udipi 01 01
19 Kodagu 03 0
20 Belgaum 34 24
21 Davangere 33 29
22 Bellary 26 17
23 Chitradurga 31 20
24 Gulbarga 03 02
25 Bijapur 13 10
26 Dakshin Kannada 08 02
27 Gadag 08 05
Total 478 299
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They accuse the State Chief Minister Captain Amrinder Singh of backing out of his earlier poll
promise of providing bonus of Rs. 30 per quintal on crops in three instalments. The payment of
instalments was restricted to certain pockets of the state, and that too at meager rate of Rs. 10,
somewhere only Rs. 5.
Punjab is hailed as the launching pad of Green Revolution in India; but pathetically, the farmers
of Punjab are facing a debt burden of thousands of crores. Adverse residual effects of irrational
application of synthetic fertilizers and plant protection agro-chemicals have decreased the fertility
status of the soil. Desperate use of these inputs not only falsified their hopes for better yield but also
crippled them financially and the resultant frustration induced them to commit suicide. Increasing cost
of production and decreasing productivity are proving most damaging. The situation prevailing in
eastern UP, Bihar and Orissa is no better.
It puts a big question mark on the entire concept of planning for agro-rural development in the
country. Agriculture, which sustains the national economy, is still the most neglected sector on the
priority list of national development. It is amazing how the Central or the State government can afford
to remain insensitive to the increasing cases of suicides committed by farmers. It hurts ones sensibility
that even a tragic situation like this is not enough to put our policy makers and planners to shame.
The genesis of the recent economic crisis in Punjab lies in the distorted structure of its economy
and disarticulated agro-cultural social change. The net barter terms of trade (at 1970-71 = 100)
between foodgrain and manufactured products was 93.64 in 1971-72 and it deteriorated further to
85.48 in 1990-91. Thereby, this unequal market exchange also tends to weaken the socio-economic
position of the rural households, dependant only or mainly on agriculture as cultivators and farm wage
workers.
According to a study in Punjab small and marginal farmers and landless labourers were more
prone 0 suicide. 45.2 per cent of the total suicides are by landless labourers, 24.5 per cent are of small
farmers, and 18.8 per cent are by marginal farmers. About 18 per cent report indebtedness as a cause
of suicides.
A study by the Agro Economic Research Centre (AERC) of the Punjab Agricultural University
(PAU) on the indebtedness of farmers, done for the Ministry of Agriculture, threw up some shocking
facts. According to the study, the small and marginal farmers are the largest number; their holdings
are small in the state and get merely 27.02 per cent of the total agricultural credit. Here too, the
process is marred with wrong selection of beneficiaries, improper monitoring and less promising
purposes for which the loans are being advanced, defeating the national objective of providing low-
cost credit to this groups.
There are 1706 banking institutions including 942 commercial banks in the rural areas of the
state which have raised deposits worth Rs. 12,254 crores and advanced about Rs. 6,000 crores as
loans to agriculture sector. The share of certain thrust sectors like dairy and poultry, besides fisheries
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has decreased in the last three years, and what to talk of diversification. Centre, some time ago, had
directed the state to suggest measures so that a national policy could be drafted to benefit the
marginal farmers whose conditions are deplorable even after half a century of independence. The
study recommended to the state government and centre to adopt the Self-Help Group (SHGs) strategy
to provide low cost credit to the small and marginal farmers, most of whom largely are dependent on
the commission agents and moneylenders for their credit needs.
Despite an increased flow of credit in the state, crop loans still constitute more than two-thirds
of the agricultural advances. Incidentally, there has been a decline in the proportion of advances made
to crucial sectors like minor irrigation from 2.82 per cent to 1.09 per cent, land development from
0.47 per cent to 0.38 per cent, farm machinery from 16.83 per cent to 11.67 per cent, dairy farming
from 5.37 per cent to 4.90 per cent, and poultry from 1.58 per cent to 0.87 per cent.
It is interesting to note that commercial banks take nearly 15 days to process a loan against
seven days by cooperative banks. But the informal sectors, i.e., moneylenders and commission agents
process loan within half day.
Similar situation is prevailing in West Bengal unable to bear the soaring interests on bank-loans,
over 80 farmers have ended their lives in the last three months in 2003 in West Bengal. Most of them
hail from the rice-yielding districts of Burdwan and Bankura. Over 1,000 have killed themselves in the
past year.
Paradoxically, Burdwan, where most of the deaths have been reported, is known as the rice
bowl of the East. The farmers are unable to meet the 16 per cent interest on loan charged by the
public sector banks. Even the few micro-finance institutions have failed to perform, forcing the farmers
into a vicious debt trap.
What was acted as a double whammy for farmers is the poor price for their yields in the open
market in the wake of a bumper harvest in the neighbouring states and cheap imports from South East
Asia, and the late reaction of the State Government in offering the minimum support price. A sluggish
jute market following the advent of an all-devouring plastic industry has prevented the Jute Corporation
from Uft1ng the stocks in time, complicating the situation further. However, according to Nirupam Sen,
the State Industries Minister, Reports that the farmers are committing suicide due to bank loans are
not fully true. Why should the farmers of Burdwan commit suicide when they are far better off than
farmers of many other districts.
The West Bengal Left Front governments much-eulogized programme of land reform - a key to
its electoral success for more than two decades, is regressing under the impact of liberalization. Small
and marginal farmers, who were the main beneficiaries of land reform, are victims of the fallout. No
longer are they the instruments of social and economic change and productivity that they had been
till recently. The gradual withdrawal of state subsidies for inputs such as fertilizer and seeds and the
rising irrigation costs are making farming unaffordable .for small and marginal farmers, who form 76
per cent of the agricultural population and operate 60 per cent of the cultivable land.
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Small and marginal farmers are forced either to sell or give land on lease to the rich class. This
is not only swelling the ranks of land-less agricultural workers but has also begun negating the gains
of land reforms. According to a report, in Burdwan, 60 per cent of 224,051 patta holders owning about
80,000 hectares of vested land under the governments land reforms programme have been forced to
sell off their uneconomical holdings. The buyers are mostly big landholders or the new rural rich who
have been investing heavily in farming.
In fact, there is growing penetration of the capitalist mode of production in the agriculture.
Already several multinational companies engaged in food processing industries have been making bids
to buy vast tracks of good farmland in the state. Considering the present policy of the centre, keeping
these companies out of agriculture is just out of question. On the contrary, the process will get
expedited in the coming years. The rise in production costs has pitted the small and marginal farmers
in an unequal race. It is like asking a physically disabled person to run against Carl Lewis. As long
as the prices of input were heavily subsidized and controlled, small farmers could somehow manage
to eke out their livelihood from their land. Now, their land is either getting sold or being taken on rent
by rich landlords.
In Burdwan, a new class of rich farmers known as waterlords has also emerged following the
scarcity of DVC water and falling levels of sub-soil water in the district. Owing to electrically operated
submersible pumps, the waterlords earn large amount by selling high priced water to farmers. The
small and marginal farmers cannot afford this price. These farmers, whose holdings are adjacent to
those of water lords, are being forced to lease out their land to them.
b. Change in Distribution System and Dismantling of P .D.S.
Off take of grain under Public Distribution System (PDS) has been very low and has added to
Indias food insecurity. During the April - September period in 2002 the off take from ration shops for
wheat was a dismal 18.09 percent and only slightly better at 25.75 percent for rice. In September, the
wheat and rice off take was a mere 15.3 and 24.7 percent respectively. The corresponding figures for
families above the poverty line is dismal to say the least at 6.2 and 5.5 percent respectively, indicating
that states are hardly using P.D.S. In case, below poverty line (BPL) families, the figures are slightly
better at 45.5 and 50.3 percent respectively. Ironically, bulks of stocks lifted from the Central Pool are
for exports while there is a paradox of hunger within the country.
Food insecurity and hunger is not restricted to any particular state and is an endemic national
problem with many families not having money to even purchase wheat and rice at Antyodya rates of
Rs. 2 and Rs.3 per kg respectively. As a result they mortgage their ration cards for a pittance and are
deprived of access to the P. D.S., while the centre on its part is replenishing food stocks in vulnerable
areas using rural transport service.
It is a systematic failure irrespective of who is in power in. Center or State and has to be
addressed by taking corrective measures including not only disbursal of ration cards to the tribals, but
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also ensuring that they are neither mortgaged or used for making bogus entries while the poor do not
get their due ration.
On Oct. 10, 2002, Sharad Yadav, the then Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public
Distribution, ruled out any impact of drought on the export of food grains from the country. India has
seen the worst drought in 2002 in many years, and state after state were forced to admit that
thousands were dying of starvation. Millions of Indians go to bed hungry, as the government has
dismantled the PDS system, and taken affordable food out of the reach of millions.
The wheat which the poor and the hungry are unable to purchase at Rs 4.30 per kilo for those
below the poverty line, and at approx. Rs.7 for those above it (mostly those on the borderline of
poverty), is then exported through middlemen like Cargill who are given this wheat at concessional
prices, often below the price at which the poorest have to buy the grain.
Food grain export is liberalizations answer to the problem of over procurement from farmers
even while it will bring in much needed foreign exchange. However, ever since Indian agriculture was
subjected to liberalization, both the share of agriculture exports in Indias total exports as well as their
value in hard cash has actually declined.
Unlike the European countries where the public distribution system (PDS) was discontinued after
the Second World War, its importance has grown for an over populated and poverty-stricken country
such as India. It was with the basic objective of curbing consumption and ensuring an equitable
distribution of available food supplies especially in the deficit areas and among the poorer strata of
society, that the PDS was introduced more than fifty years ago.
Internationally, food is being traded by powerful multinational companies. By passing on the
reins of the nations food security to these companies and the trading blocks through a policing system
under the WTO. India is witnessing a gradual collapse of food self-sufficiency and the scrapping of
the public distribution system, the very foundations of food security.
What is being forgotten is that a developing economy, such as Indias needs a food security
system that looks much beyond management of scarce supplies and critical situations. Food security
systems are evolved as an integral part of a development strategy bringing about a striking technological
change in food crops, providing effective price and market support to farmers and deploying a wide
range of measures to generate employment and income for the rural poor to improve their level of
well-being, including better physical and economic access to food grains.
Food security, therefore, can only be ensured if the developing countries have provisions and
powers to re-enforce quantitative restrictions. No amount of tinkering with suitable clauses on market
access, domestic support and export subsidies is going to serve the food security needs of the developing
countries. As long as the subsidies - both explicit and implicit - are not brought down to zero in the
developed world, the developing countries should have the provision to continue with the quantitative
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restrictions. After all, border protection is the only way for the developing countries to avoid being
inundated by cheap and highly subsidized food and agricultural commodity imports.
Food grain exports: redirecting subsidies from farmers to traders
The push towards exports is neither aimed at helping farmers of the nations finances; rather,
in accordance with the impetus of WTOs Agreement on Agriculture, it is a way of diverting support
away from farmers towards traders. While the government dismantles procurement and public food
distribution because they are considered subsidies to the people of the county, and are supposed to
distort trade, it allows traders to buy bulk grains from its godowns at prices even lower than those
offered to the poorest of the poor; the difference is borne out of public money.
The annual budgets since liberalization having been adding to the subsidies for the corporate
sector - tax holidays for building silos and cold storages, incentives for exporting, subsidized transportation
to the ports of the traders choice. The recently announced 5 year export policy of the government
has allocated Rs. 100 crores towards aided corporations transport grain from FCI to the ports. In
addition, public money is used to take land away from farmers to build transportation facilities for
agri-business to help them transport the grain even faster.
The experience of the 2001 wheat export exposes the governments lack of commitment to its
people. As against an economic cost of Rs.8300 per tonne to the FCI and an open market price of
Rs. 7000 per tonne. India was offered a price of Rs.4300 per tonne in international market in May
2001. The 20, 000 tonne Philippines order bagged by Cargil was met through wheat sold to the
multinational at the BPL rate.
However, the existing attractive rates were further reduced with subsidies to the corporation,
whose financial capital is greater than that of many less developed countries. Over and above selling
the wheat at the BPL rates, the government agreed to bear the freight charge from Rajpura to
Jamnagar port in Gujarat and pay a commission to Cargill. Thus, wheat whose cost to the government
included the MSP (Rs.580 of 2000) as well as the commission, market charges, levies and cess paid
by FCI, increasing the real cost by another Rs.70 a quintal, was sold at less than Rs.420 a quintal
giving the corporation a subsidy of Rs.130 a quintal.
In fact, since 2000, Cargil has emerged as the biggest buyer of subsidized wheat being pushed
by India into world markets. Cargill picked up 7.5 lac tones of Indian wheat between December 2000
and January 2002.
Removal of Quantitative Restrictions (QRs)
On 1st April 2001 India completely removed the Quantitative Restrictions (QRs) on imports from
all 1429 items as per the bilateral agreement with the United States, Quantitative Restrictions on
imports in respect of 714 items have already been removed with effect from 1st April 2000. This
formed part of the Export and Import (EX 1M) Policy announced in New Delhi on 31st March 2000.
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The QRs from the rest of 715 items (actually 751 in the notification 2 of 31st March 2001) has been
removed on 1st April this year.
QRs were being maintained ever since 1947 on balance of payments (BOP) grounds under the
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) to which India was a signatory. India participated in
the 7-year long Uruguay Round Negotiations (1986-1993) which culminated in the signing of the
Uruguay Round Agreement in April 1994 and became a founder member of the World Trade Organization
(WTO), which came into being in January 1995. India subscribes to all the WTO Agreements, but
continued to maintain QRs on BOP grounds as per the provisions of Article XVIII-B of GATT. Till 31st
March 2000 the quantitative restrictions wee maintained on balance of payment ground on 1429 items
out of which 700 items were under Restricted List, 685 items were under SIL (Special lmport License)
list and there were 44 items under Canalized list. In April 1999 about 1285 items were already shifted
to the open general license (OGL) list.
Imports have been restricted by countries on various grounds for environmental and ethical
reasons and reasons of public order. For the Third World in particular the issue of Balance of Payments
and scarcity of foreign exchange has been a major reason for restricting imports. Such restrictions are
permitted under Article XI of GATT, which allows such restrictions as quantitative restrictions.
According to the commitment given by India to the developed world, we had time till 2003 to
remove all quantitative restrictions. This commitment had been accepted by countries like European
Communities, Japan, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland. Yet India entered into a bilateral
agreement with US on 28th December 1999, which hastened the removal and set a definitive timetable.
With full knowledge of how severe the impact of the removal of restrictions on imports would
be, the government of India asked Washington to announce this socalled agreement only after Indian
Parliament went in recess, to avoid democratic debate on such controversial issue. The Financial
Times, the US government was asked to delay the formal announcement till after the Indian Parliament
had gone into recess because the government feared the sensitive issue could cause a fear among law
makers eager to make political capital out of the issue.
The flooding of Indian markets with 1,429 products, whose import was restricted to conserve
scare foreign exchange, and protect jobs and livelihood, will have a devastating impact on the Indian
people, women and the Indian economy. Most items in the restricted list are agricultural products,
items produced in the smallscale household ,sector and animal products. Among the unrestricted
imports are carcasses and animals waste parts that create a threat to our culture and our public
health. It also includes fish, milk, coconut, coffee, spices, tea, ragi, bajra, neem products and even
Basmati. This flood of imports will leave no aspect of the Indian economy untouched. The forced
removal of restrictions on imports will induce high levels of cruelty against poor farmers and workers
in the informal small sectors whose livelihoods will be snatched away by mass-produced industrial
products. The dumping of meat products will also increase cruelty to animals as most animals are
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slaughtered faster to create global meat markets especially in predominantly vegetarian societies like
India.
Impact of the Removal of QRs on Agriculture and Farmers Livelihood
Out of the 715 items from which QRs have been lifted from 1st April 2001, 147 items are
agricultural and dairy products. The removal of QRs on agricultural commodities makes them vulnerable
to global market prices and global competition. Global commodity prices are extremely volatile and in
any case do not represent true competition on the basis of production costs, because these markets
are controlled by global traders like Cargill who receive overt and covert government subsidies from
both exporting and importing governments. The current fall in commodity prices in the global market
is already being reflected in the countrys domestic prices. The unrestricted access to the Indian
market given to the US through the US-India deal on unrestricted imports will threatened the lives and
livelihoods of farmers, weavers, retailers and workers in every sector.
The quantitative restrictions have been removed at the time when the agricultural crisis created
by farmers debts, removal of subsidies, corporate seed failures is forcing thousands of farmers to
commit suicide in Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and other parts of the country.
Thousands more are being forced to sell their kidneys and other body parts in order to survive. Adding
to this crisis is the governments decision to dismantle the Food Corporation of India so that corporations
can move into the procurement and distribution sector. Even as farmers are reeling under the drastic
fall in procurement price, the government is subsidizing corporations for building silos, cold storages
and transportations facilities including ports through tax holidays, low interest rates, better credit
facilities and subsidizing infrastructure costs.
Though the government boasts of protecting Indian farmers and their interests but vast difference
between the bound rates of the key agricultural commodities and the custom duty levied on them by
our government shows its indifferent attitude towards our farmers. On almost all the edible vegetables
and roots and tubers e.g. potato, onions, garlic, leeks, cauliflowers, broccoli, carrot, turnips, cucumber,
leguminous vegetable, mushrooms, beans, spinach and others, the bound rate of duty is fixed at 100%
and the basic custom duty is only 35%. Again on edible fruits and nuts the bound duty limit is 100%
while the custom duty on a large number of items under this category is only 35%-40%.
On tea and coffee the bound rate of duty is 150% and the total custom duty fixed on these items
is only 76.80%. On spices e.g. pepper, cloves, nutmeg, mace and cardamom etc., the maximum bound
rate of duty is 150%, which is generally on the crushed or grounded spices, and on whole spices it
is 100%. However the basic custom duty on almost all spices is fixed at 35%.
On cereals the situation is very scary. There is 0% bound duty on maize, rice, sorghum etc and
the custom duty on these items varies from just 50% to 80%. Rice with a broken rice percentage of
50% or more has no duty on it. This will push up rice imports at the time when the government is
dismantling Food Corporation of India (FCI) on grounds that there is too much rice in its stores.
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Besides that there are several items with nil (0%) custom duty, e.g. Rye, Barley, Oats on which the
bound duty is 100%.
Similarly, dairy, livestock and poultry are major agricultural activities which is not only generate
employment but are also a formidable source of regular income throughout the year. The removal of
QRs on dairy products would hit hard the dairy activities in the state. The basic custom duty limit on
all these items is 35% and the total duty limit is 40%. However on buttar and other fats and oils
derived from milk, cheese and curd, the bound rate of duty is 40% and the basic custom duty is 35%.
On milk and cream, concentrated or containing added sugar or other sweetening matter the bound
duty limit is just 0% but custom duty is fixed at 35%60% in case of concentrated milk and cream.
(RFSTE 2003)
In Punjab the impact of QR removal is quite apparent. There the rate of the milk was Rs. 14-
15/liter in the beginning of 2000. Generally the price of milk goes up during summer every year. But
with the spread of news of cheap milk import, the milk prices went down to Rs. 9-10/liter.
The removal of import restrictions from poultry meat and egg products will have a serious
impact on the domestic poultry industry. Though the present rate of duty on the poultry items is 100%
as against the bound duty of 150%, yet this would not check the dumping of cheaper imported
products. The price of chicken has already come down from Rs.100 to Rs.55-60. Indian poultry
industry and farmers are particularly afraid of dumping of cheap chicken legs, which is considered a
delicacy here, unlike in most western countries, where the leg meat is virtually considered as a waste
matter to be dumped at throwaway prices in developing countries.
Removal of import restrictions on vegetable seeds will lead to surge in seed imports by multinational
seed companies. Yet another danger of unbridled seed imports is the threat to the environment posed
by GE seeds. Indian soils are already heavily contaminated with agricultural chemicals, as are foods,
thanks to the technology of the Green Revolution. GE seeds, such as Monsantos Roundup Ready
seeds, will intensify the use of herbicides, while their Bt seeds will create plants that continuously
produce poisons. In the recent Monsanto vs. Percy Schmeiser case in Canada, the corporation agreed
that the use of GE seeds on one farm can contaminate the seeds and plants of neighbouring farmers
through cross pollination, wind and other factors.
The same case has provided evidence of how Monsantos Roundup Ready rapeseed has displaced
practically all the native biodiversity in rapeseed and its related varieties, both cultivated and wild. The
use of such seed can have a devastating effect on Indian agriculture, where the majority of farmers
are small and marginal farmers, who depend upon agricultural biodiversity for their livelihood.
In addition, these seeds are patented. In fact, the Monsanto vs. Percy Schmeiser case has also
set a historical precedent that decrees that farmers whose seeds were contaminated with GE patented
seeds with or without their knowledge, cannot use or sell the crop as it belongs to the patent holder.
Rather, they will be fined heavily for not having paid royalty to the company. Ina country, where farm
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sizes are small, contamination is bound to occur, and the already debt-laden farmer will be forced into
further deprivation or suicide. (RFSTE 2003)
The threat of GE seeds to the environment is so great, that in March 2001, Italys Minister for
Agriculture ordered checks of 21 seed companies in a campaign against illegal GE material. The
suspected seeds were imported by Monsanto and were already distributed to retailers. Italy has
forbidden the use of GMO seeds in open fields. This ban exists in most EU countries. Thailand is the
first Asian country to ban GE crops. Australia is also planning a general moratorium and more
stringent regulations on GE crops. The worldwide resistance by farmers to GE crops is so strong that
GE cotton was introduced into Indonesia under military protection.
As against the low Indian custom duty on the agricultural products, the average tariff in OECD
countries in 1995 were 214% for wheat, 97% for barley, 154% for maize. Their tariff peaks reach 350%
and above in extreme cases for some products of interest to developing countries. The most important
areas with highest tariff rates include the major agricultural staples - cereals, meat, sugar, milk butter
and cheese as well as tobacco products and cotton. In EU, for instance, the out of quota tariff for
bananas is 180%; in Japan these tariffs range between 460% to 600% for dried beans, peas and lentils
and in the US groundnuts in shell attract a tariff of 164%. Recently Japan has levied a tariff of about
1000% on rice. However in India the bound rate duties for rice and maize was fixed at 0% many years
ago.
Impact of Removal of Import Restrictions: Collapse of edible oil sector
The most damaging impact of liberalization has been on the edible oil industry. The duty on the
crude edible oil was reduced to 15% in August 1998 and only in June 2000 it was raised to 25%. This
led to the closure of hundred of small-scale ghanies, oil mills and expellers.
In 1999-2000 the custom duty on edible crude oil was 16.5% while on the refined edible oil the
duty was 45.5%. It was raised to just 75% and 85% respectively in the Financial Budget 2001-2002,
even though the bound duty limit for edible oils (except soya oil) is 300%. Even sick vanaspati units
can import Crude Palm Oil (CPO) at only 55% duty.
The heavy import of Palm oil has not only affected the mustard growers but domestic soya
growers too. In fact, soya growers are in a worse position, as the bound rate for tariffs is only 45%.
Under the Financial Budget 2001-2001, the tariff for crude soya oil is even lower at just 35%. The
major producers of soya Argentina, Brazil and USA have had bumper crops. As Europe and Japan, the
major importers of soya, have rejected American soya because it may contain genetically engineered
soya, the ground is being laid for dumping this potentially hazardous product into India.
The impact of import liberalization is in terms of market and price destabilization. The W.T.O
language of surge in imports fails to reflect the fact that even small quantities of artificially cheap
imports can perturb domestic markets and domestic prices. Even high value crops like spices, tea and
coffee have witnessed collapsing prices.
(105)
Without adequate safeguards of support our farmers have to deal with the destabilization of
prices, which occurs long before a surge of imports of agricultural products. Most items on the
restricted list of imports on which QRs are now being removed are agricultural products, items produced
in the smallscale household sector and animal products. The removal of restrictions on imports greatly
impact small farmers and workers in the informal small sectors whose livelihoods will be snatched
away by mass-produced industrial products.
Though it is argued by the Government that tariffs or duties would be used to restrict imports,
the factual situation belief this assurance. The crisis faced by the domestic edible oil sector is another
example. After removal of import restrictions in 1998, there has been a reduction in the import duties
on edible oils from 65% in 1995 to approximately 35%, this has resulted in massive increase in oil
imports. Imports of soyabean oil have increased from 2,36,000 tonnes in 1997 - 98 to 8, 00, 000 in
1998-99. In 2000, 5500, 000 tonnes of foreign palm oil, soyabean oil and animal fat was imported.
By 2002-2003, India was importing $940.0 million dollars worth of edible oils.
The mustard produced by our farmers, which was selling at Rs. 2,000/- per quintal a year, is
today not even selling for Rs.900 per quintal. The production of mustard seeds fallen by 65%and over
60% small oil mills and ghanis have been closed down, rendering lacks of people unemployed.
Similarly, soya bean and palm oil have flooded the Indian market, destroying the domestic edible
oil economy based on coconut, the mustard, the groundnut and the sesame. This is why coconut
farmers in Kerala blockaded the Cochin harbour and groundnut farmers in Sirsi, Karnataka and
Soyabean farmers in Mutlai, M.P. protected and were shot at.
In any case, price collapse is not a linear mechanical phenomenon dependent on percentage of
imports. It is more appropriately described in terms of non-linear perturbation in a complex system into
chaos and disintegration.
Therefore, even in the case of products where the imports are low, removal of import restrictions
have sent the domestic prices into a downward spin, leaving the producers in crisis, and the agricultural
economy in shambles.
Lowering of Price Farm Prices due to Dumping of Subsidized Produce and fall in Income
Dumping by U.S.A and Other Developed nation
The proactive of selling cheap products abroad at prices below the cost of production is called
dumping. Agriculture dumping has made, it impossible for many Third World producers to thrive, even
in their national markets. In conjunction with the export oriented conditionalities of structural adjustments
imposed by the IMF and the World Bank, which have obliged many governments to convert their
domestic food production to agro industrial commodity crops in order to generate the foreign exchange
with which to pay their debts, dumping has made developing countries dependent upon food imports-
and extremely vulnerable to fluctuating prices in the world marketplace.
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Since Bretton Woods, dumping has been considered illegal. Article VI of the original GATT
agreement defines and condemns dumping, as can be seen in the text below. Article XI in the original
GATT text permits governments to adopt domestic supply management, even allowing restrictions on
imports, that might favour domestic producers, in order to control production levels and avoid the
temptation to export surpluses and to relieve critical shortages of foodstuffs.
General Agreemernt on Tariffs and Trade (1969). Article VI, Paragraphs 1 and 2 : Anti-dumping
and Countervailing Duties.
1. The contracting parties recognize that dumping, by which products of one country are introduced
into the commerce of another country at less than the normal value of the products, is to be
condemned if it causes or threatens material injury to an established industry in the territory of
a contracting party or materially retards the establishment of a domestic industry. For purposes
of this Article, a product is to be considered as being introduced into the commerce of an
importing country at less than its normal value if the price of the produce exported from one
country to another
a) Is less than the comparable price, in the ordinary course of trade, for the like product
when destined for consumption in the exporting country; or,
b) In the absence of such domestic price, is less than either
(i) The highest comparable price for the like product for export of any third country in
the ordinary course of trade, or
(ii) The cost of production of the product in the country of origin plus a reasonable
addiction for selling cost and profit.
Due difference shall be made in each case for differences in conditions and terms of sale, for
differences in taxation, and for other differences affecting price comparability.
2. In order to offset or prevent dumping, a contracting party may levy on any dumped product an
anti-dumping duty not greater in amount than the margin of dumping in respect of such product.
For the purposes of this Article, the margin of dumping is the price difference determined in
accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1.
In the ensuing decades, the impact of agricultural surpluses and falling farm prices in the United
States caused ripples throughout the world. Due to dominant market position of the US food industry,
the US target price became a virtual ceiling in the global marketplace. Agribusiness enjoyed low prices
worldwide for raw materials and cheap US grains flooded marketplaces throughout the world. By 1986,
world cereal reserves, held mainly by the US and Europe, reached 316 million tons-equivalent to a
quarter of annual, global consumption or 2.5 times annual world trade.
Such dumping because legal with the conclusion of the Uruguay Round negotiations of the
GATT. Under the new agreement, signed in April 1994, countries are obliged over a period of six years
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to phase out export subsidies by 21 per cent in volume and 36 per cent in monetary terms, from the
1986-90 base period. This is not a removal of subsidies. It is a perpetuation of subsidies.
The Uruguay Round does not help farmers anywhere, even in the North. The agriculture agreement
requires a 20 per cent reduction in each industrialized nations support for domestic producers over
six years and a 13.3 per cent reduction over 10 years for developing countries. All government farm
programmes are to be added up as a single monetary value, called the Aggregate Measure of Support
(AMS), summing up that countrys annual budgetary and its friends in the Congress, have used the
commitment to phase down the AMS thereby leading to cutbacks in several support programmes that
encourage conservation, wetlands protection, and other environment friendly farming practices.
Under GATT Article VI, a government that was found to be injured by the dumping of overly
cheap goods can offset the economic damage by charging countervailing duties on them at the border.
But anti-dumping duties on agricultural products have never been assessed in part, because the
Protocol for Provisional Acceptance permitted countries to continue pre-GATT policies and in part,
because the governments often benefited from the opportunity to distribute cheap foods, while the
actually injured parties were peasants with little political clout. The GATTs provisions for anti-dumping
have been widely applied in disputes over trade in industrial goods.
US anti-dumping law dates back to 1916 and has been used most frequently by the domestic
steel industry to protect itself against imports, in many cases, those more cheaply produced by lower-
wage workers. Since a petition for an antidumping investigation is initiated by the concerned private
industry, usually one with strong political constituencies, there is a strong incentive for the government
to find both price discrimination and injury to the industry, and to order the imposition of anti-dumping
duties.
As per the WTO provisions, the EU which accounts for 40 percent of the world trade of dairy
products, should have reduce the subsidy on buttar from $ 1481 a tonne in 1990 to $ 1392 in 1995,
,
with a commitment to reduce it to $ 947 in 2000. Similarly on SMP the subsidy was to reduce from
$430 a tonne in 1990 to $406 in 1995 with a commitment to reduce it to $275. Thus, the commitment
of the EU has been to reduce 36 percent of the subsidies uniformly. The U.S. also committed to
slashing subsidy on these products.
However, looking at the behavior of the world prices of dairy products, one gets a contrary
picture. Instead of the world prices being pushed up, as was believed, they actually declined. This is
attributed to the increased subsidy by the E.U and the U.S and to the policy of differential subsidy
across the globe.
Indians agriculture imports were of the order of $1.86 billion in 2000-2001 but they increased
to $ 2.29 billion in the year 2001-2002. If the surge continues, then the interests of the Indian farmers
would be seriously affected. The Economic Survey 2002-2003 makes a forthright statement. India has
considerable flexibility to counter flooding of the Indian market by cheap agriculture imports through
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the imposition of tariffs (bound rates) under WTO. WTOs permissible tariff rates are reasonably high:
112 percent for nuts, 140 percent for sugar and coffee, 100 percent for tea and cotton, 70 to 100
percent for food grains, 45 to 300 percent for edible oils, and 40 to 50 percent for fruits. Countervailing
duties can also be imposed to counter questionable subsidies given to agriculture products by the
exporting countries, apart from having the option of acting under safeguard provision to counter the
surge of imports.
The per capita transfer to US farmers amounted to $ 29000 in 1995. In the main maize
producing areas of Mindano and Cagayen Valley, the average per capita income amounts to leas than
$ 300. So each US farmers receives in subsidies roughly hundred times the income of a maize farmer
in Philippines. (Datt 2003)
The developing countries are not allowed to increase their negligible level of export subsidies
while the developed countries are allowed to maintain 64 percent of their subsidy out lay on the base
level. Consequently, agriculture imports from the developed countries are available at much below the
market price in the domestic economy. (Datt 2003)
Even before the WTO mandate began to be asserted, the government has been trying with the
idea of opening the vast Indian market for unrestricted imports of skimmed milk powder and milk
products. Following the governments economic policy of liberalization, milk powder, which used to be
on the restricted list for imports, was put on the open general license in 1995-96. The open door policy
to MNCs has only placed the national milk grid in jeopardy. U.S and E.U will continue to flood and
dump their highly subsidized milk and milk products into the unsuspecting developing countries like
India, which have little safeguard mechanism to protect their small dairy products.
New Zealand, with an import order of 12,000 metric tonnes, has already dumped a large
quantity of buttar oil into India. Even after paying an import duty of 35.2 per cent, the buttar oil
imports have been at less than US $ 1,000 per tonne against the prevailing global price of US $ 1,300
per tonne. In simple terms, New Zealands buttar oil is roughly cheaper by Rs. 15 a kg, made available
at Rs. 64.54 per kg compared to the prevailing international prices of Rs. 87.40 per kg. And that too
when New Zealand claims not to be providing any subsidy to its dairy farmers.
The resulting crash in the domestic prices of buttar oil was therefore expected. The price of
buttar oil (ghee) before the recent import was in tile range of Rs. 100 to Rs. 120 per kg, which has
subsequently come down by 10 to 15 per cent. While the consumers are happy, the real price has to
be paid by the dairy farmers. Since the Indian dairy farmers are paid on the basis of recovery of the
fat in the milk, has already suffered erosion in the milk value by 15 per cent.
Jamaican farmers, few years back spilled milk on the streets to protest against the dumping by
the U.K. Such protests will gradually be seen in India as the negative impact of trade policy becomes
visible. The gain of the White Revolution will soon filter away.
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Increased Trafficking of Women
One of the little known consequences of globalization and liberalization will be an increase in
the trafficking of women. As the number of girls decline, the atrocities like rape, molestation, sexual
harassment, kidnapping will increase manifold. Girls will be afraid to leave their homes. Women will
be shackled at home (Nambisan 2004)
According to recent indications, India might soon be competing with Bangkok for the undesirable
epithet of sex capital of the world. Sex tourism and trafficking is on the rise in India due the three
reasons as identified by United Nations Development Fund for Women (Das Gupta 2004)
i) Increasing migration of women to cities for economic reasons
ii) Gender inequality as the victims are mostly women and girls and
iii) The process of globalisation, which has led to the commodification of women.
India is fast becoming a leading destination for sex tourism and sex trafficking. Justice Ms.
Sujata Manohar of National Human Rights Commission points out; sex trafficking is a modern form
of slavery. One must plan beyond merely recruiting the victims because of they do not have the means
of income, they will fall prey to the prostitution to survive.
According to a survey report, even in the state like Jharkhand, nearly 50 percent of employed
tribal women are subjected to physical and mental torture by their bosses. The study vindicated the
stand of the National Commission for Women that sexual harassment is prevalent in India. One would
take this statement further that harassment is aggravated by economic deprivation (Das Gupta 2004)
Significantly large number of sexual harassment cases is reported from Tamil Nadu and Andhra
Pradesh. A study of the number of cases reported under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act implies
that prostitution thrives in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka as 90 percent of the cases have
been reported from here (Menon 2002).
Like most offences, Crime Against Women (CAW) is steadily on the rise in the country. Of the
total crimes committed in the country, seven percent constitute CAW. This may not be alarming at first
sight but the point is that many crimes are not reported. Kidnapping and abduction of women tops
the list. In 1999,of the total crime against women about 67 percent cases of kidnapping and abduction
were reported. A significant feature is that 54 percent of the victims were less than 18 years (Menon
2002).
Women in the rural areas are not even aware of their legal rights, but even those who know the
law find that even the most horrifying cases take a twist by the time they come up for trial. Society
does not get as angry as it does on the matter of religion and castes. They are too tied to wrong
tradition and too used to suffering (Nayar 2002).
Ghutiar Sharif, in West Bengal is fast emerging in exporter of sins. Teenage girls, lured from the
poverty stricken villages of south 24 paraganas are collected here before being sold off to far-off
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places like Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Dhaka and even Dubai. In the initial months, the parents are
sent any where between Rs. 3000-4000 to make them believe that the girls are in safe hands. But
when the deal is over parents are told that the girls have led their employer. The badly off parents
resign to their fate and the girls are lost to the world. They are so poor that they live on week and
get to eat rice once or twice in a month, so one can easily imagine how easy the racket are. In the
entire deal the go-betweens make Rs. 2000. Most of them are part time farmers. They are asked to
go back to their native places during harvesting season and bring back as many as catches as they
can on their return. (Sen Gupta 2004)
Foeticide and Violence against Women
The data from the 2001 census reveals some starting facts on the recent fertility decline in the
states of Punjab and Haryana. This decline does not correspond with any substantial increase in the
contraceptive use; it is in fact as a result of selective sex abortions. In fact, the decline in the sex ratio
is in the age group zero to six across India (Times of India 6th November, 2001)
Significantly, social studies indicate that the bias against female progeny is most prevalent
between the well off Jat and Jat Sikh community (Sikh whose ancestors few centuries ago were Jat
but adopted Sikhism). Even the demand for dowry is highest among them. Purely materialistic factors
combine to weigh against the female sex, perpetuating the pre-judice against it. The two primary facts
are; first the patriarchal desire to keep land and property within the family by simply eliminating
daughters before birth, second excessive pressures for dowry, followed by bargaining consumerism.
(Dutt 2004)
The ultimatum issued by the Akal Takht; the Sikh Vatican, on April 13, 2001 against the practice
of female foeticide came in the wake of the 2001 census, showing that Indias most prosperous state
also had the most skewed male-female ratio. The census focused attention on Fatehgarh Sahib district
as having the lowest child sex ratio in the country with 754 to 1000. However the fatwa seems to have
yielded little results, though ostracism faces those who flout the order of the Akal Takhat, the highest
religious authority of the Sikhs (Dutt 2004)
The sex ratio in the age group of 0-6 years has declined sharply from 945 females per 1000
males in 1991 to 927 females in 2001 except Kerala, Tripura, Mizoram, Sikkim and Lakshadweep. The
worrying trend is that the female foeticide is not confirmed to North India but spreading fast to the
South of the country, in the states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Even in the state
like Karnataka in Belgaum, Bagalkot and Bidar, the sex ratio has been falling. It is 921 females per
1000 males. In the small taluk like Cikodi, it is as low as 879 and 873 in Gokak (Radhika 2004). The
decline has been particularly sharp in Union Territories of Daman and Diu from (969 to 709) and
Dadra and Nagar Haveli from 952 to 811. The decline is also alarming in some prosperous states like
Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat. Punjab with the highest per capita income has the lowest sex ratio of
793 females per 1000 males in the 0-6 age group. (Times of India 5th may 2001)
(111)
Falling sex ratio is definitely a matter of concern. For instance, in Kakhrod village in Jind district
of Haryana, there are about 500 men who are past marriageable age as they are unable to find brides
because there are few women around (Panicker 2002)
The dearth of girls, as compared to boys of marriageable age, has served to revive the practice
of bride price being paid by grooms families. In this, it is not dowry that has to be paid. In fact, there
is flourishing trade in supplying girls of different castes from poorer state such as Bengal, Bihar,
Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Orrisa. Not all such alliances succeed owing to incompatibility; often
these girls are pushed into prostitution (Dutt 2004) In Haryana, in some villages the grooms get the
bride by paying just Rs. 5000 from Orissa or Assam while a buffalo of good breed may cost about
Rs. 40000.
In 1991 not a single district in India had been recorded with a child sex ratio of less than 800,
in 2001there were 14 and the number of district with the child sex ratio between 800-849 increased
to 31 during the same period. Ten worst district, with a child sex ratio of less than 800 are in Punjab
and Haryana, the two of Indias wealthiest states. Fatehgarh Sahib, Gurdaspur, Patiala, Mansa, Kapurthala,
Bhatinda and Sangrur in Punjab, Ambala, Sonipat and Kurukshetra in Haryana (Sharma 2004)
It is increasing from the rich to poor, from upper castes to scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled
tribes (STs). Among the scheduled castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) where the average child
ratio has always been higher than in general population and better than the national average, it has
begun to dip substantially. Thus while in 1991, the child sex ratio for STs was 985 against a national
average of 945, in 2001 it has fallen to 973 and amongst SCs, the figure were 946 in 1991 and 938
in 2001 (Sharma 2004)
The Pre-Natal Diagnostic Technique (PNDT) Act came into being in 1994. It stipulates that
ultrasound and other techniques be used only to detect foetal abnormalities. In the hands of right
people, it has made childbirth safer. But the Act has not achieved what it proposed to. Doctors simply
put up a notice that sex determination is banned and then continue to do it. Doctors are a protected
species. Committed activists have exposed the erring doctors only to find that the police is not
permitted to take action. A government appointed medical team deals with the offence and in most
cases the scandal is covered. Medical Council of India (MCI), Indian Medical Association (IMA) and
other such bodies should take stringent action against the doctors involved in foeticide. Unfortunately,
these bodies act like trade unions only to protect the doctors and clinics.
The forced bachelorhood on the boys will have grave consequences. Old bachelors will be forced
into marginalized life without any self-esteem in the house of distant relatives. Thus, according to
psychologist, they could add to the problems affecting their physical and mental health. The consequences
of declining sex ratio are already visible in Haryana were the elders have started asking social workers
and politicians to find brides for the village boys. While there is no proven correlation between
bachelorhood and the crime, the pressure value of the institution of the marriage is said to be a crime
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deterrent. People in the Bas village of Hissar district in Haryana complain that crime rate has gone
up in direct proportion to the number of bachelors (Push karma 2002)
The decline sex ratio will play have with the social fabric of the country; leading to social
tensions. Female foeticide will dis-empower Indian women. Fewer girls will also mean that their child
hood, their marriage and their future will come under a variety of social and physical threats, where
only those who have power, wealth, and influence will dictate their choices in life (Vasudev 2003)
The Census Commissioner rightly observes in his report, one thing is clear - the imbalance that
has set in at this early age group is difficult to remove and would remain to haunt the population for
a long time to come. To say least, the demographically, the sex ratio of 927 of the population in the
age group zero to six does not appear to augur well for the future to come (Bose 2001)
(113)
Public Hearing held in Mandya, Karnataka
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PART - II
CASE STUDIES AND JAN SUNVAWAIS
2.1 CASE STUDIES AND JAN SUNVAWAIS
KARNATAKA
State of Karnataka is the eighth largest in the country having an area of 1.91 lakh sq. Kms. It
has coastline of 310 Kms. Coastal zone is a narrow strip of land between the Arabian Sea in the West,
the Western Ghats in the East, Kerala in the South and Goa in the North. It had a population of 52.73
Millions (2001) with population density of 275 per sq. km. The state had a rural population of 34.81
Million and Urban population of 17.92 Million. More than 71 % of this population is engaged in
Agriculture. Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe constitute 16.20% and 6.55% of the total population.
Average farm size stands at 1.74 hectares as per Agricultural Census 2000-2001. (Directorate of Land
use statistics, Karnataka Government, 2004)
Importance of Agriculture
Agriculture plays an important role in the economy of the State. Besides contributing a substantial
part of the state domestic product (about 25.3% in 200001), it is also the largest source of employment.
Out of 23.52 million workers in the state (as per 2001 census), agriculture and allied activities provide
employment to 113.14 million (55.87%)
Agricultural Holdings:
According to 2000-01 agricultural Census, total number of holdings in Karnataka was 70.79
lakhs, out of which small and marginal farmers accounted for 19.09 lakh and 32.52 lakh holdings
respectively. Against the total operated area of 123.07 lakh hectors, small and marginal farmers
accounted against which average size of holding of small and marginal farmers was 1.44 and 0.46
hectares respectively. Scheduled caste and Scheduled Tribes consist of 8.23 lakhs (10.71 lakh hectares
operated area) and 3.82 lakhs (6.75 lakh hectors-operated area), respectively. Even though small and
marginal farmers account for 72.9% of total holdings, the total area operated by them works out to
only 34.4% of holding had declined to 1.74 hectares from 3.20 hectares. Total area under agricultural
crops, which was about 90% of the gross cultivated area, had declined by about 3% and it was 87.35%
in 2000-01. Area under non-agricultural crops has seen a upward trend from 10.87 lakh hectares in
1980-81 to 15.54lakh hectares in 2000-01.
Irrigation:
Irrigation plays a very special role in Agriculture. Karnataka has only about 1A of cultivable area
under irrigation and rest % is dependent on rainfall. Expansion of irrigation infrastructure in Karnataka
(119)
has been slow, but it has increased four folds in the last four and half decades. Net irrigated area,
which was 7.11 lakh hectares in 1955-56, had gone up to 26.43 lakh hectares in the year 2000-01.
But, the intensity of irrigation, which was 102% in 1955-56, had increased to 124% in 2000
Canals account for approximately 40% of the total irrigated area; the second main source of
irrigation is Tube/Bore wells.
The state has four major irrigation reservoirs under Cauvery Basin viz. Krishnaraja, Sagar,
Harangi, Kabini and Hemavathi and five major irrigation reservoirs under Krishna basin viz. Bhadra,
Tungabhadra, Ghataprabha, Malaprabha and Narayanapura. The potential planned under Krishna
basin under all projects is about 21.02 lakh hectares and potential created upto January 2004 is about
14.44 lakh hectares. Parts of Bellary, Raichur and Koppal districts are covered under Tungabhadra
project. Parts of Belgaum, Bijapur and Dhapur and Dharwad districts are covered by Malaprabha and
Ghataprabha reservoirs. Bhadra reservoir covers parts of Shimoga, Chikmagalur and Davanagere districts.
Upper Krishna project covers parts of Gulbarga Bijapur and Raichur districts.
Similarly, under Cauvery basin potential planned in about 7.28 lakh hectares and potential
created upto January 2004 is around 5.15 lakh hectares. Parts of Mysore, Kodagu, Chamarajanagar,
Hassan, Mandya and Tumkur districts are covered under Cauvery basin projects.
Agricultural production in the State is divided/spread over three seasons namely Kharif, Rabi and
summer. These seasons account for nearly 70%, 22% and 8% of annual food grains production
respectively. Similarly, in case of oilseeds, this ratio is of the order of 70%, 15% and 15%.
Normally, area coverage under Kharif, Rabi and summer seasons is around 69 lakh hectares, 31
lakh hectares and 6 lakh hectares respectively.
Agricultural Production:
Since late 1950s production of cereals has increased three times; it was 30-35 lakh tones and
now ranges 90-100 lakh tones. This is largely due to increase in production of rice maize and ragi.
Production of tur and Bengal-gram has increased substantially and has been important factor in
increase of pulse production from 3-4 lakh tones to 8-9 lakh tones in recent years. Total food grains
production has increased from 38.04 lakh tones (1955-56) to 1.09.60 lakh tones in the year 2000-
01. Oilseed production was highest (18.89 lakh tones) in 1993-94 on account of introduction of
sunflower crop, but the same has seen a declining trend due to availability of cheaper imported edible
oils. Production of cotton also increased three folds, from 3.01 lakh bales (1955-56) to 10.09 takh
bales in 1996-97. But in recent years the same has been declining due to less area coverage and
diversion of area to maize and sunflower. Production of sugarcane has increased tremendously from
31 lakh tones in 1955-56 to 429 lakh tones in 2000-01. (Directorate of land use statistics, Karnataka
Government 2004).
(120)
Yield : Per hectare productivity of Cereals has seen a three-fold jump from about 5-6 quintals
to about 18 quintals per hectare. This mainly due to increase in the yield rate of Rice, Ragi and Maize.
Productivity of pulses has increased marginally, 4-5 quintals from 2.5 to 3.0 quintals per hectare.
There has been no significant change in yield rate of oilseeds; it has remained constant at 6-7 quintals
per hectare. Yield of cotton has increased from 47 Kg/hectare in 1955-56 to 277 kg/hectare in 2000-
01. Sugarcane yield has increased to 108 tonnes in recent years from 61 tonnes at the time of
formation of the state.
Food grains Requirement:
The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has suggested the following scale (table 5.1) for
providing a balanced diet to an average Indian adult. Based on ICMR norms, table 5.2 gives the
estimated requirement for cereals, pulses, edible oil, sugar and cotton in Karnataka.
Table - 2.1 (1) : Diets Recommended by Indian Council of Medical Research
Sl. Commodity/Food Stuff Recommended Quantity
No. (Gms/head/ day)
1. Cereals 400
2. Pulses 85
3. Fats 28
4. Sugar 57
5. Vegetable 280
6. Fruit 120
Table - 2.1 (2) : Estimated Requirement/Availability of Cereals, Pulses, Edible Oils,
Sugar/Gur and Cotton in Karnataka.
Sl. Items Year
No. 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07
1 Population in OOOs 52734 53646 54574 55519 56479 57456 58450
2 Adult population equivalent of total population
@ 86% in OOOs 45351 46136 46934 47746 48572 49412 50267
3 Estimated requirement of :
a) Cereals @ 400 gms/adult/day in 000 tones 6621 6736 6852 6971 7092 7214 7339
b) Pulses @ 85 gms/adult/day in 000 tonnes 1407 1431 1456 1481 1507 1533 1560
4 Add : 10% for seeds, cattle feed etc in 000 tonnes
a) Cereals 662 674 685 697 709 721 734
b) Pulses 141 143 146 148 151 153 156
(121)
Sl. Items Year
No. 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07
5 Total reqwrement in 000 tonnes
a) Cereals 7283 7409 7538 7668 7801 7936 8073
b) Pulses 1548 1575 1602 1629 1658 1686 1715
c) (a + b) Foodgrains : 8831 8984 9139 9297 9458 9622 9788
6 Requirement of edible oils @ 9 kgs/adult/annum ill
000s tonnes. 408 415 422 430 437 445 452
7 Total requirement of Sugar/Gur @ 40 gms/person/
day in 000s tonnes 662 674 685 697 709 721 734
8 Requirement of Cotton @ 2 kg/adult/annum in
000s tonnes (lint) 91 92 94 95 97 99 101
9 Availability/Production Target :
Cereals 9979 8015 6031 9786 9974 10172 10373
Pulses 970 756 700 852 843 862 882
Total Foodgrains 10949 8771 6731 10638 10817 11034 11255
Foodgrains per capita Availabilty per day in K.gram 0.661 0.521 0.399 0.631 0.608 0.608 0.608
Directorate of land use statistics, Karnataka Government.
Coffee Plantation in Karnataka
Coffee was introduced in 1600AD, but commercial plantations were only set up in the 1820s
following British investment. As the number of British growers increased, cultivation was steadily
extended throughout Karnataka and a large plantation of 1,200 hectares was established in the 1870s.
Most coffee planted in the early years was Arabica, mainly the Old Chicks variety that apparently
inherited the bean qualities of the original Mokka introduced by a Muslim pilgrim, Baba Budan. In
Chickmanglur Arabica cultivation reached its early peak during the 1860s but this coincided with major
outbreaks of pests and diseases such as white stem borer and coffee leaf rust. There was an epidemic
of coffee leaf rust in 1889. Due to this the productivity and output declined and poor prices added
to the decline. To counteract falling yields enterprising planters introduced seeds from other origins
and some planters tried to select and evolve disease-resistant arabica. One of the most promising
types developed was Kents, which became popular. Robusta was introduced from Indochina at the end
of the nineteenth century for planting in estates at lower altitudes. (Coffee Profile of India, 2003)
Coffee in the Economy : Coffee contributes between 3 and 4 percent of the GDP of Karnataka,
the largest producing state. An estimated 5 million people directly or indirectly depend on coffee in
the three southern states for their livelihood. Coffee contributed less than one percent of export
earnings in 1993-94, but this increased to almost 1.3 percent in 1998-99, following the improvement
in world price.
(122)
Share in global production and exports : Indias share in global production is 4.5% (2000-01) and
its share in global exports is also almost nearer to the level 4.7% in 1999-2000.
Area Production and Yields : Planted area in coffee has increased nearly four fold in a span of
past five decades to 346995 ha and almost equally shared by arabica and robusta. While production
registered in impressive growth to 300,600 tonnes in 2001-02 from a meager 18,893 tonnes of 1950-
51. It will be observed that the most vigorous growth was in the area planted to robusta and this now
accounts for just over half of the coffee area. In terms of production robusta now shares about % of
total production while arabica shares the rest.
Table - 2.1 (3) : Coffee Area (Hectares)
Year Arabica % Robusta % Total
1950-51 67613 73 24910 27 92523
1960-61 70650 59 49670 41 120320
1970-71 80433 59 55030 41 135463
1980-81 109454 53 98815 47 208269
1990-91 127934 47 142887 53 270821
2000-01 167679 48 179037 52 346716
2001-02 165892 48 181103 52 346995
Coffee cultivation is largely confined to three Southern States, Karnataka accounts for 58
percent of the planted area but contributes about 70% of Indian production. Kerala with 24% and
Tamil Nadu with 9% of planted area account for 22% and 7% of Indias coffee production respectively.
(Table 2.4 and 2.5)
Table - 2.1 (4) : Planted Area by States - 2001-02 (Ha)
State Arabica % Robusta % Total % to India
(MT) (MT) (MT)
Karnataka 110260 31.8 91515 26.4 201775 58.1
Kerala 4149 1.2 80646 23.2 84795 24.4
Tamil Nadu 25018 7.2 5663 1.6 30681 8.8
Non-Traditional Areas 25465 7.3 3279 0.9 28744 8.3
Non Conventional Areas 1000 0.3 1000 0.3
Grand Total (India) 165892 47.8 181103 52.2 346995 100.0
Coffee is also grown to a lesser extent in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa and North Eastern states.
The average overall productivity is 937 kg/ha (2001-02). Average robusta yields (1046 kg/ha) are
considerably higher than arabica yield (812 kg/ha.).
(123)
Table - 2.1 (5) : Production by States (2001-02)
State Arabica % Robusta % Total 5 to India
(MT) (MT) (MT)
Karnataka 99430 82.2 109240 60.8 208670 69.4
Kerala 1420 1.2 65270 36.4 66690 22.2
Tamil Nadu 16750 13.8 4880 2.7 21630 7.2
Non Traditional Areas 3050 2.5 160 0.1 3210 1.1
Non Conventional Areas 400 0.3 0 0.0 400 0.1
Total (India) 121050 100.0 179550 100.0 300600 100.0
Number and size of holdings : Out of a total of 156800 coffee holdings of India 98% are small
(less than 10 ha. in size). About two-third of the area is farmed by small holders, with an average
holding of 1.46 hectares. Large holders cultivate 46.4 hectares on average farm 35 percent of the land
and accounts for 40 percent of output, as their productivity levels are moderately higher.
Cultivation Practices : Planting is carried out in rows with a spacing of 1.8 m for arabica and
2.7 m for robusta though this spacing varies between varieties and the degree of slope. Coffee is
grown as a bush with a single stem, which was found to be most suitable under Indian conditions.
Under this system, the main stem is cut back to allow lateral branching with a further topping at about
1.5 meters. In addition to topping, periodical pruning of unwanted branches and suckers is also carried
out. (Coffee Guide, 2003)
Commercial fertilizers that contain nitrogen (N), phosphorous (F) and Potash (K) either individually
or in the complex form are used in plantations besides the organic match available through the fallen
leaves of the shade tree.
Shade and Intercropping : All the coffee in India is grown under the canopy of shade trees.
Where intercropping exists, pepper vines are trained on shade tree. larger farms often grow orange
and other citrus trees within the coffee area. Bananas, once a major intercrop especially in Tamil Nadu
regions, are now out of race following an outbreak of a viral disease.
Pests and diseases : Arabica and robusta coffees in India are susceptible to fungal diseases.
Arabica is more susceptible to pest and disease than robusta. Coffee leaf rust, caused by the fungus
Hemileia vastatrix is the major disease in arabica. The second most important disease affecting with
arabica and robusta is black rot caused by the fungus Koleroga noxia. White stem borer (Xylotrechus
quadripes) is the most serious pest of Arabica coffee in India and it is prevalent in all coffeegrowing
areas. Another endemic pest is mealybugs (Planococcus sp.) Coffee berry borer (Hypothenemus hampei)
affects the berries resulting in heavy crop loss. (coffee guide 2003)
(124)
Labour Requirement : Coffee production in India is labour intensive as in some other countries.
It is estimated that the equivalent of some 551,000 workers are employed on daily basis. The total
estimated labour requirement for a hectare of yielding plantation of arabica and robusta respectively
are 495 man days and 330 man days per year.
On farm processing : It consists of the preparation of dry cherry and parchment. Dry cherry is
prepared by sun drying the fruits and spreading them evenly on the drying grounds (tiled, concrete or
mud-plastered yards). Only ripe fruits can be used for wet processing. These are pulped by machinery,
which removes the fruit skin. The mucilage is removed later by machinery (Originally, the mucilage was
removed by natural fermentation but this is no longer popular).
Moisture standards are confirmed by sampling. Normally the cherry would be fully dry at the end
of 12 to 15 days under bright weather conditions. The prescribed moisture standard for Arabica is 10.5
percent and 11 percent for Robusta. Most Robusta is prepared by the dry method.
Off-farm Processing : There are presently 73 licensed privately owned curing/processing factories.
Most of the factories are well equipped and are able to process the best quality coffee. The quality
standards instituted by the Board are used by all processors for exports and domestic consumption.
Marketing Structure and Marketing Channel
Until 1992-93 coffee marketing was wholly administered and regulated by the Coffee Board.
Reflecting government policy and responding to the views of the growers, a process of liberalization
was initiated by the Board during 1992-93. An Internal Sale Quota (ISQ) was introduced. This allowed
growers to sell 30 percent of their output directly to the domestic market. A Free Sale Quota (FSQ)
replaced the ISQ in 1993-94, which allowed growers to sell 50 percent to the domestic market or
export directly. The FSQ was increased to 100 percent to small growers and 70 percent for large
growers in 1994-95. In the subsequent season large growers were also given 100 percent FSQ. Now
all restrictions have been abolished. As a consequence, the Coffee Board has devised new roles for the
changed free market situation.
The activities of the Coffee Board have been considerably reduced following the drive to full
market liberalization. Both large and small growers are now free to market their coffee in any way they
choose. Nevertheless, the Coffee Board undertakes a variety of roles to the benefit of the industry in
general. Liberalization has meant that the future activities of the Board will be focused in the areas
of research and development, quality control, market intelligence and information, market promotion,
extension and free market development.
Current Scenario : Coffee from the growers is purchased at approximately 40 local buying
centers. Many major and smaller buyers are represented at each center. Most small growers prefer to
sell coffee in the form of dry cherry and parchment. Large growers and estates sell coffee in green
and graded form either directly to exporters or by private auction. Domestic distribution of coffee takes
place through wholesale and retail roasters.
(125)
Consequent to dismantling of auctions by the Board, less than 10 percent of coffee is sold
through the private auction. Fortnightly auctions are held by the Indian Coffee Traders Association
(ICTA) since 1993 at Bangalore, which facilitate growers to sell their graded coffees. However, as most
growers prefer to sell their unprocessed crop directly to exporters or roasters, the scope for auctioning
green coffee at the moment remains comparatively limited.
Grover Prices : Estimated grower prices after liberalization of the market during 1995-2001 are
given in Table-2.6. Increased output will depend, to a very large extent, on the prices received by
growers. There was a general decline in prices received by growers until 1991-92. Prices then moderately
recovered before rising sharply following the Brazilian frost and drought of 1994. Grover prices were
comparatively higher during 1995 to 1998 seasons and price has typically averaged 60- 75% of the
export unit values. From 1999 onwards again there is a steep and continued decline in prices received
by growers.
Table - 2.1 (6) : Producers Prices (in US Cents/lb)
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001
Grower Prices Arabica 84.72 78.32 130.18 99.47 67.44 63.75 43.82
Robusta 66.53 56.68 76.3 75.62 57.61 57.87 23.44
Exports : Indian coffee is exported to over 40 countries but the top 6 markets are Russian
Federation, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Spain and USA, which account for nearly 70% of Indian coffee
exports. Between the periods 1997/98 and 2000-01 exports registered a growth rate of 9% p.a. In
terms of export earnings 1999-2000 was particularly impressive owing to better volumes in spite of
reduced international prices and unit value. Export picked up during this period due to higher exportable
production. Owing to falling international prices the export value came down to 1050 crores during
2001-02 from 1375 crores of the previous year, which represented a fall of 325 crores (24%).
In terms of unit value of exports, all the grades including instant showed an appreciable decline,
ranging from 29% in the case of instant coffee to 60% in the case of plantation grades. The overall
decline for all coffees in prices was 48%. This has reflected on the export earnings of 2001-02
Domestic Consumption : Domestic consumption, which is not currently expanding, is mainly
confined to the producing states with use in Tamil Nadu almost half of the total and Karnataka
according for 30 percent. The total estimated demand of coffee in India now is about 65,000 tonnes.
Consumption was almost stagnating for the past one decade around 60,000 tonnes and showed a
marginal decline, consequent to domestic retail price hikes in 1993 and 1994. Though the current per
capita consumption is about 60 gms., is very low, good potential exists for its growth. Many small
gourmet roasters as well as some big private corporate roasters cater to the local market. Nestle and
Hindustan Lever is the major manufactures of soluble coffee. With the gaining of popularity of cafes
in the metros in the recent years, coffee is establishing itself as a life style product. In the long run
this may help to prop up the otherwise stagnant market.
(126)
With the international coffee organization disbanded and the quota regime gone, Indian producers
were left to themselves to compete for a market. Coffee prices dropped from their highs and producers
had to take massive cuts in profits (Srinivasan 2004). Coffee exports, from the beginning of the year
2003 till the end of May 2003, stood at 65,149 tonnes as against 1.19 lakh tones during the same
period in 2002. Besides, rupee appreciation has played its role in impacting the exports. With export
prices denominated in dollars, a stronger rupee lends to lower returns to farmers and reduces selling
interest. Realization for growers in rupee terms had dropped by close to eight percent in 2003
compared to the previous of 2002 (Kulkarni 2003).
Coffee growers who are facing a drought-like condition, apart from battling the crisis due to
poor prices, have urged the government to waive the interest on loan under the Special Coffee Term
Loan (SCTL) scheme. In a representation made to the Reserve Bank of India, growers said that the
waiver of interest extended to the agriculture sector in the drought-hit states, should also be made
applicable to the coffee sector (Kulkarni 2003).
Field Study
Karnataka is one such state in India where lots of lands are under plantation crops. The most
common plantation crops in the state of Karnataka are coffee, banana, spices, cocoa, vanilla, coconut
and areca nut.
Coffee is grown mostly in Chikmagalur, Hassan and Coorg districts. Chikmagalur district is the
first to grow coffee in India. The cultivation of coffee has an eventful background. It is said that coffee
was introduced around 1670 AD by one Baba Budan. He is reported to have brought coffee seeds from
Yemen and raised seedling on the hills of Chikmagalur. Later the seedlings were supplied to Coorg and
Kerala.
Chikmagalur is pre-eminently mountainous with a flat projection in the east. This hilly Malnad
tract full of rich forest is renowned for its coffee plantations. The large area of this district is Malnad
i.e. a largely forested hilly region of heavy rainfall. The landscape of the tract is highly enchanting the
slopes of the mountains, hills here are replete with fascinating natural beauty. They are clad with thick
forests through which the shining streams wind their way, fertilizing the narrow valleys and glades. The
western part of the district is covered with some of the dense and most useful forests of the country.
The forests clothe the hilly sides densely and give the much-needed shelter for coffee cultivation. The
district is rich in forest resources. (Gazette of Chickmagalur, 2003)
Soil in this part of the district is of poor acidic type, though relatively poor, the soil is well suited
for the growth of plantation crops like coffee.
Coffee is a self-pollinating plant and the fruits are called berries. Coffee plant usually 7 to 8
years old before it bears a full crop. Coffee is a perennial and an annual crop, grows best at altitudes
ranging from 3,600 to 8,000 feet in tropical climate.
(127)
The coffee varieties commonly cultivated in these districts is Arabica, Robusta, Cauvery and 795.
Coffee plants have a life span of 50 to 60 years. Arabica variety is widely cultivated as it yields better
and the seed fetch a good price in the market. This variety is of international standard and most
demanded variety by traders. Robusta is a sturdy variety which was the only variety grown earlier, but
now only few grow this variety. Robusta grows to a height of 5 to 6 feet. This variety yields lesser and
the price it fetches in market is also less.
Coffee produced in India is only 3% of the international produce and 1.98% of worlds export.
It earned Rs. 324 crores from the coffee exports in 1991 and the same exports increased to Rs. 1868
crores in 1998 but then decreased to Rs. 1682 crores in 2000 and it stood at Rs. 1112 crores in 2003
due to fall in international prices. Karnataka accounts for 70% of Indias production, Kerala 24% and
Tamil Nadu 6%. Coffee is produced in 2,04,270 hectares of land in Karnataka. Chikmagalur accounts
for 87,038 hectares, Coorg 82,350 hectares, Hassan 34,090 hectares, Mysore and other 800 hectares.
(2002-2003 figures)
In the area under coffee cultivation 32,035 planters have less than 2 hectares of land, 14,699
planters have between 2 to 4 hectares, 7,281 planters have between 4 to 10 hectares, 1,344 planters
have between 10 to 20 hectares, 374 planters have between 20 to 40 hectares, 147 planters have
between 40 to 60 hectares, 81 planters have between 60 to 80 hectares, 52 planters have between
80 to 100 hectares, 130 planters are above 100 hectares.
Table - 2.1 (7) : Average daily number of persons employed in coffee plantations in Karnataka
Districts 1994-95 2001-02
Chikmagalur 98,290 1,28,250
Coorg 1,92,070 1,97,550
Hassan 79,410 87,300
Average minimum wages in plantation crops of Karnataka is Rs. 64.75 per day.
Influence of WTO on Coffee Plantation:
Many planters are of the opinion that mo has affected them to a large extent. They feel that
due to the open market system a planter cannot sell coffee at a higher price as against the fixed price
because the trader or the buyer has an option of buying from other markets like China and Vietnam
where the coffee prices are low.
Mrs. Chitra Subbaiah a planter from Coorg and Secretary of Kodugu Women Coffee Awareness
Board feels that mo has killed them. She said that the local traders, whom they had to sell their
produce, were cheating them and buying from external markets, as the prices were very low there due
to low cost labour. She blamed the political leadership for their short sightedness for signing the mo
agreement. She asserted that India does not need mo.
(128)
Rudrappa a planter form Sakleshpur, Hassan district, blamed WTO for the current economic
distress in the coffee plantation. He feels the planters were not trained to meet the requirements of
international standard, which mo has specified. He said if the coffee is dried in the yard it is not
acceptable to the trader, as he prefers only machine dry, which the small farmers like him cannot meet.
The traders fix the price and do not take the cost of production into consideration, so the industry
is running at a loss, he said. Rudrappa says, We have to give labour all the facilities while our
incomes are low and that is the reason why we have reduced the permanent labour and have gone
in for contract labour. He painfully said that now the planters are unable to manage the estates and
there are more than 500 estates that are available for sale.
Ramachandra a small farmer of Shanthahalli, Coorg district blamed mo for Coffee Board not
giving any subsidy for manure. The subsidy would have helped the planters in a big way at this hour
of crisis and to overcome their difficulties.
Narayan Alva of Sakleshpur taluk; Hassan district said that the planters are at the receiving end.
When the coffee prices shot up between 1995 to 1997 the daily wage rate of labour increased but
now when the price of coffee has reduced the wages remain the same, so maintenance of permanent
labour has posed a lot of problem for the planters and the present distress has forced them to go in
for contract labour instead of permanent labour
Chandre Gowda of Aralguppe, Chikkagalue district, said in thee Year 1995 when the coffee
prices started soaring high the planters started buying more lands and borrowed heavily from banks
for further investment on lands but when the coffee prices reduced from 1998 on wards that caused
problems to them as they could not service their debts, virtually this has put them in a debt trap. Banks
are no longer lending them and are not meeting their financial requirements, which they badly need
in this hour of crisis. He said many for our both big and small farmers have become bankrupt. It is
difficult for the planters to survive, as he is in debts because of rise in cost of agricultural products
like fertilizers and pesticides, Mr. Chandre Gowda said.
Some of the planters in districts of Chikmagalur, Hassan and Coorg although are not aware of
the problems posed by WTO but blame the Government policies for their miseries. They could not point
out exactly as to what has gone wrong with the coffee plantation and fall in prices.
The crisis in coffee plantation and fall in prices ahs made planters to go in for alternative crop
cultivation like vanilla, rice, banana, amla and ginger.
Hariprasad, who owns 75 acres of land in Aldoor in Chikmagalur district, sold part of his land
to repay the bank loan, as he could not maintain his plantation, as the yield couldnt fetch him a
compensatory price. To maintain his family, which became difficult and to supplement his income he
had to start a hotel.
M.K. Murthy of Aldoor, Chikmagalur district blames liberalization as the root cause for the
present economic crisis among planters and drop in prices of coffee. He blames the open market
(129)
system that has given the traders the power to fix the coffee prices. This has in turn ruined the planters
and the coffee industry. The planters have become pawns in the hands of the profit hungry traders,
who care hoots for the interest of the planters.
Naseer Ahmad of Hosahalli, Sakleshpur taluk, Hassan district, and a small farmer who owns 15
acres of coffee plantation has not been able to cope up with the present recession. His revenue per
acre earlier was between Rs. 25,000/- to Rs. 28,000/-, but now although his expenses are Rs.
20,000/- his earning is only Rs. 8,000/- per acre, so he is under severe loss. This led him to sell his
tractor and jeep to clear his loans. In desperation he is planning to change over to vanilla cultivation,
as the expenses incurred per acre is lesser compared to coffee. Earlier he earned from sale of orange
and pepper but due to less rains the orange trees have dried up and pepper is infested with pests.
D.M. Shanker of Agalguppe village has about 150 acres of coffee plantation. He is maintaining
40 per permanent laboures. According to Shankar heavy labour is required during periods of spraying,
manuring, picking, weeding and sanding. Coffee is labour intensive and requires 365 days care.
Government policies have not helped the planters, but government has provided for the labour
class with free education, free meals for students and monthly ration at affordable prices - so a
labourer can sustain. But it is difficult for an estate owner to survive as he is in debts because of rise
in the cost of agricultural products like fertilizers and pesticides.
Bank policies have misled the planters as during 1994 and 1996 the prices of coffee reached
its peak but the banks instead of guiding the planters to go in for fixed deposits the bank provided
them with more loans. This has created havoc as the planters further invested in purchase of land to
cultivate more coffee that would fetch the more profits. The bank lent for 100 acre estate 100 crore
loans, though the planters had surplus income they have borrowed and spent heavily on luxury items.
Now with the coffee prices falling low the planters are unable to repay the bank, this created an
imbalance. Now he has started borrowing from outside sources at high interest rates to pay the bank
interests.
Earlier coffee used to be bought by the Coffee Board but now the planters are independent and
sell their produce to the traders, the prices are fixed according to the quality.
In the year 2000, the coffee industry requested the government and the bank to exempt 1700
crore borrowed by the planters. If this is exempted then the planters can survive, otherwise the whole
industry will collapse.
If the planter does not repay he is considered, as Non Performing Applicant (NPA) is this status
is declared then the planter is unable to raise funds from any other financial institution or other
sources. The Karnataka Government to certain extent has exempted the borrowing from small banks,
but borrowers of nationalized banks face the problem. 2003 was the lowest crop, and 2004 is the
worst year for a coffee planter.
(130)
Prema of Agal Khan estate in Agalguppa village has 100 acres of coffee plantation. According
to Prema, annual expenses on estate per acre - Rs. 15,000 to 20,000, expenses includes labour -
minimum Rs. 12,000 per labour wages Rs. 65 for both men and women. Marinating permanent 30
labourers, providing medical, water, shelter, higher education for their children during wedding etc.
Earlier 80 labourers but now cut short to the above-mentioned number.
Manuring both pre-monsoon and post monsoon Rs. 1000 per spray per acre, pesticide spraying
twice per barrel Rs. 125 (8 to 10 barrel requirement per acre). To break even half ton coffee yield is
required. Arabica coffee is sold at Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 55,000 per ton at the present rate. Coffee is
labour intensive and requires 365 days care. Regular checking for stem borer attacks. Coffee everything
is preventive and timely measures are necessary, heavy labour. required during periods of spraying,
manuring, picking, weeding and shading. Women psychological do not commit to hard work.
Government policies have not helped the planters, but government has provided for the labour
class with free education, free meals for students and monthly ration at affordable prices so a labourer
can sustain. But it is difficult for estate owner to survive as he is in debts because of rise in the cost
of agricultural products like fertilizers and pesticides.
The woes of small farmers are more acute than the big farmers due to liberalization and
globalization. The cost of production has go up due to use of machinery for drying of coffee and the
global competition has brought down the prices, says Nisar Ahmed.
The planters of Coorg faced similar problems by cultivating coffee. The planters earlier grew
only cardamom but due to shortfall in rains, many of them had shifted to growing coffee. Even this
proved a curse to them. Fall in coffee prices has increased their miseries. High rate of interest from
banks has made them bankrupt. Most of the planters have not paid back even the interest and they
want further investment, which the banks are not ready to give.
Rajanna in shanthalli village of Coorg district has 20 acres with include 5 acre of coffee and 15
acre of cardamom. Earlier only cardamom was cultivated but due to less rains shifted to coffee. But
the shifting has caused them problems, as it is not feasible to cultivate coffee. Even now cardamom
fetches good price. 4 acres of land is leased out for paddy cultivation, the yield is shared between the
two, so paddy is only sufficient for self-consumption and labour are paid Rs. 60 for women and 100
for men. One acre cardamom gets 10,000 income, but rate fluctuations are there but if the crop is
good the income earned is good. For the past two years the cardamom crops has been bad. Due to
this 2-lakh loan has been incurred; coffee has not yielded any income at all.
Ramchandra of Shanthalli village has 15 acres cardamom and 10 acres of coffee. 20 years back
only cardamom, but then shifted to coffee. 20 labourers permanent 65 to men and 50 to women,
cardamom sold to the spice board so the prices are fixed, but we have been able to clear all our loans.
Coffee does not yield well due to less rain; we have compensated our income by renting out a house,
which fetches an additional income every month.
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The small planters in Coorg district are changing to ginger cultivation as they feel that it will
fetch them a good price. Some other planters want to shift to vanilla cultivation. Will that be a solution
or is it an escape many are not sure.
Unaware of WTO, blame Government
Some of the planters in Chikmagalur, Coorg and Hassan districts are not aware of WTO and
dont have the knowledge about the effects it has brought about on their lives. However, they blame
the government - both Centre and State - and their policies for fall in coffee prices in late 1990s and
beginning of 2000. They blame the Open Market System and the traders who fix the price of coffee,
are responsible for this down fall in prices. The planters point out that our own traders have spoilt the
international market for they purchase less priced coffee from China and Vietnam and this has caused
a decline in Indian coffee prices. It may be pointed out here that the planters are not aware of the
changes in Government policies which has come about after the introduction of new economic policies
from 1991-92 onwards under the influence of WTO, which has resulted in throwing open markets for
world wide competition.
Failure to Educate Planters
Coffee Board has also not made efforts to educate the planters about the changes that have
come about in the world scenario in the field of coffee trading and this partially jeopardized the
interest of the planters. The transition from total control of the Coffee Board to Open Market System
virtually at the mercy of the traders has been very quick and planters have not been able to cope up
with these fast-changing policies. The small planters are the most affected ones by these changes, as
they neither have required capital nor technical know-how. The high rate of bank interest that did not
come down in level with international bank rate put the planters in grave financial crisis, in addition
to the fall in international coffee prices. The banks did not bring down the lending rate of interest,
which was as high as 16% to 21% till recently. Banks were liberal in lending to the planters during the
boom period of 1995 to 98 as they were getting more profits but later squeezed the credit totally in
the period of crisis - 1999 to 2003. Had the banks brought down the interest rate in the year 1998
onwards the planters would not have been in present soup.
Additional Factor
Another additional factor, which has increased the cost of production for the planters, is the use
of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Earlier the planters were using farmyard manure, green manure
and compost, which were available in plenty with virtually no cost. But the use of chemical fertilizers
in recent years to increase production has increased the cost of production and contributed to their
financial burden. Planters seem to have become addicted to using of chemical fertilizers and pesticides
that are easily available in the market instead of labourious process of preparing organic manure.
Plenty of money in the boom period made them blind and take recourse to easy methods unmindful
of consequences and financial burden.
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The government policies have not helped the farmers, infact, they have affected adversely the
planters. The government has to provide for the labour class with housing, maintenance and the basic
facilities, but the estate owners pay for all these facilities. The government has to certain extent
provide labour with free education and monthly ration at affordable price - so a labour can sustain
says K. T. Surendra a big planter. He adds, but now labourer are facing problem as the planters have
reduced hiring labour which has created unemployment. It is difficult for an estate owner to survive
as he is debts because of rise in the cost in the agricultural inputs
Some of the owners to raise income for paying interest to bank are cutting timber, which affect
ecology. Irrigation is required because of variation of monsoon. Even drinking water has become the
problem and may of the planters buy water by purchasing tankers for domestic use. The area is known
as giri area and landslides are very common which affects in crop failure.
Conclusion
W.T.O. has affected owners to a large extent. Due to the open market system the planters
cannot sell coffee at a higher price as against the fixed price because of the trader or the buyer has
an option of purchasing from other markets like China, Vietnam where the prices are low. 2003 was
the lowest crop and 2004 is the worst year for coffee planters. The financial situation is very bad as
the whole economy of this area is dependent on coffee. If the present situation continuous the whole
coffee plantation will collapse and that will affect the survival of labourers, mostly women.
With the international coffee organization disbanded any the quota regime gone, Indian producers
were left to themselves to compete for a market. Coffee prices dropped from their highs and producers
had to take massive cuts in profits. Coffee exports, from the beginning of the year 2003 till the end
of May 2003, stood at 65,149 tonnes as against 1.19 lakh tones during the same period in 2002.
Besides, rupee appreciation has played its role in impacting the exports. With export prices denominated
in dollars, a stronger rupee lends to lower returns to farmers and reduces selling interest.
It has revealed that the spread and depth of hunger are more in the areas with deficit production
and the areas with a large number of people dependent on casual employment as in Kerala, Tamil
Nadu, Gujarat and Maharashtra, though these are premia facie not among the poorest of the states.
The other factors that contribute to the depth of hunger appear to be lack of non-agricultural employment
opportunities and low wages to the labour as in the case of Madhya Pradesh and Bihar.
Effects of WTO on the coffee plantations in Karnataka need in depth study. Not all planters are
aware of the impact of the WTO and Global Economic Policies on coffee industry. The changes have
been quick and the planters response to these changes has been no adequate preparation to meet
the challenges of new economic policies. The planters like the farmers are in a debt trap. The open
market system, dependency on traders, banks for their finance and use of chemical fertilizers has
caused havoc on their lives. The consequent change has affected the plantation labour in a big way
and has worsened their economic conditions. Permanent labour is a causality giving way to contract
labour. Mechanization has led to cut in working days of labour and their income.
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The Plantation Labour also has suffered extensively due to distress economic situation that has
effected the coffee plantations. The average working days of the labour largely women has reduced
by 30%, which was earlier put at 240 working days per year. The reduction in the average working days
per year of the women has resulted in reduction of their annual income. This means although the
minimum wages remained the same their incomes have reduced and decline in their standard of living
causing a great hardship.
Public Hearing in Karnataka
The Karnataka Rajya Raita Sanga in collaboration with the National Commission for Women
(NCW), New Delhi, Diverse Women for Diversity (DWD) New Delhi and Research Foundation for
Science Technology and Ecology (RFSTE) New Delhi organized the public hearing of rural women on
19th July 2004 at Mandya district in Karnataka state. The main objective of the public hearing was
to document the experience of rural women in the background of globalization and WTO agreements.
The public hearing was conducted which aimed at mobilizing the solutions from among the affected
women themselves, which would constitute an important input for formulating pro-women agriculture
development policies.
Thus, this program is an important event in empowering women in decision making and provided
them a forum to express how and why they have been marginalized and what needs to be done to bring
them in the main stream of development. Around 250 rural women participated they could speak of
the entire gamut of their problems, general as well as those pertaining to seed, agriculture, food and
water.
Out of 27 districts of the state, rural women representatives had came from 16 districts,
including the faraway northern districts of the state, which account for highest number of farmers
suicide. Members of different women organizations were also present and many of them spoke about
their problems. Similarly women artists, environmentalists, students, rural women and others expressed
their grievances. The very fact that these women spoke from 10 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. reflects, how vocal
these women were. The feeble voices of women usually unheard at home, sounded like thunderbolts
on the dias! Such a huge gathering of rural women and men, itself justices the public hearing as apt
and timely. Eminent personalities from diverse field, such as journalist, activists, academicians, advocates,
Raita Sangha activists and NGO representatives were present on the dias.
Since 1991, in the wake of globalization and WTO agreements, the poor strata of the society
have been suffering immensely. Women who constitute the poorest of the poor suffered more
disproportionately. The WTO import on Indian agriculture, made them suffer much more, their hardship
and suffering have increased. They are suffering as producers, consumers as agricultural labourers and
cultivators. Problems of drinking water have also increased their hardship.
Sometimes it became difficult to distinguish between gender issues in general and then problems
as producers and consumers. Hence, it was not easy to pin down exactly the WTO impact on rural
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women. However all the speakers did point out that since 1990 their problems have assumed alarming
rates both in terms of depth of realty and its coverage or area spread.
Highlights of Public Hearing
The role of women and their participation in silkworm rearing and the related sericulture work
is quite significant. But they are not happy with low prices for their output and also the price fluctuations.
One of the speakers commented that they grow silk but cant afford to wear a silk sari, they demanded
fair and stable prices for their production.
All women felt that they cannot flight individually and collective action is a must. They
stated that unless they are united and organized, they couldnt effectively fight for justice
and to prevent exploitation.
Depletion and drying up of ground water resources attracted serious attention from almost
all the speakers. Smt G. B. Sudha, a lawyer by profession narrated the incidence of acute
shortage of water in Bagur village of Hassan district. When the women of the village
protested against some mismanagement of water from Hemavathi reservoir, police resorted
to the use of brutal force, where in many women sustained injuries and few of them were
even arrested by the police. However, the government announced compensation at the
behest of some political leaders, the compensation was given to such persons who were
not involved in the protest. Thus there was injustice in the distribution of compensation.
More women representatives from Bellary district explained the hardship of women labourers
who work for a very low wage. They also referred to wage discrimination based on sex.
They felt that only through women organizations and self help groups, such injustice can
be done away with.
Member of Spandhana a women organization of Mandhya district narrated a few rape
cases of rural women where the culprits have gone scot frere on account of the influence
of their money and power. A new thinking on such problem is a must from different
perspectives including societal and governmental.
It is quite satisfying to know that many of the rural women felt that marriage is not the
solution for all problems of women, rather it is only a beginning. They said that all
solutions to their problems liein their education, thus the need for women education
received top priority in the public hearing programs.
K. U. Devi from Janavadi Mahila Sangha of Mandhya district spoke about increasing
family violence and sexual harassment of women in both organized and unorganized
sectors. Police and law can do very little in this respect, the solution lies in social awareness,
so she expressed the need for creating such awareness in the society through different
mechanisms.
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Majority of the speakers felt that from the past one decade, the prices of most goods and
services have gone up. Health services are expensive, education is expensive, seeds and
fertilizers are expensive and hence the cost of even rural living has increased. However,
there is no steady source of income the cost of agriculture has also gone up significantly.
Although they couldnt directly and precisely establish the link between price rise and
globalisation the pointers are towards globalization.
Most women from districts of Northern Karnataka, Bidar, Bijapur, Gulbarga and Gadag -
narrated their nightmearing experiences of rain failure, crop failure and farmers suicide,
leaving the entire burden of the family on women. Since several studies have indentified
the positive links between WTO agreements, globalization and crop failure. Well the influence
could be that globalization has caused immense misery to women in general and rural
women in particular.
They told that hybrid seeds (genetically engineed seeds) from seed banks are not dependable;
they are prone to frequent diseases, hence demand the use of too much peticides, which
are expensive. Even the pests have become immune to pesticides. This derives farmers to
suicide.
Mrs. Sujatha Nagaraj from mandya stated that the cost of agriculturer has gone up,
sericulture subsidies are beset with lot of procedural difficulties and dairying demands
huge capital. Milk societies do not purchase all the milk produced by the households and
hence disposing off the excess production is the greatest problem. She mentioned that
milk price is less than the price of a litre of mineral water! Similarly, marketing of vegetables,
especially tomatoes are the greatest problem facing the rural women. She attracted the
attention of the audience towards management of surplus production.
Smt. Chayadevi from Hassan district dislcussed the problem of potato crop, production of
which is costly and cropis highly unreliable. The farmer gets around Rs. 600 to 700 per
quintal where as a retailer pay Rs. 14 to 15 per kg. The potato chips cost Rs. 100 per
kg, where as raw potato costs very less. Why this difference is so hige? What is the
missing link? A serious points to ponder by experts of agribusiness management.
Several of the speakers mentioned about dowry deaths, female foeticide and marginalisation
of women in decision-making, one speaker made heartbreaking statement.
In future a female child will lose its right to born, when human rights movement are
gaining popularity, how to reconciles to this kind of a situation?
True, that there are disparities in wages based on sex. However there are also regional
disparities in wages. Laboureres in North Karnataka gets Rs. 15 to 20 per person per day
where as in Southern districts it varies from Rs. 60 to 70 there fore, labour migration is
taking place from low wage to highwage districts.
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Smt Madhu Bhusan, an artist of Vimochana a women forum stated that commercialization
of agriculture has led to more exploitation of women in terms of dowry, increasing drinking
habit among men, unethical, influence of mass media on women which may not really
empower them, instead make them vulnerable. She also referred to cultutral erosion by
narrating one incidence of a tribal group called Hakki-pakki in Karnataka.
Especially rural women from Bijapur district said that five rivers are flowing in their
district, but water problem is very acute. Their argument is we have resources at our
doorstep, but we are not entitled to use them. What the government is doing? Their
elected representatives are grossly useless they stated.
Majority of the speakers felt that both education and health services are expensive and
they cannot afford to buy them and their primary schools and health centers are ill
equipped and are not functioning properly.
They felt that alcoholism among men is increasing significantly these days, which has
made the life of women more pathetic although this cannot be directly linked to globalization,
commercialization of agriculture invariably contributed to an increase in alcoholism. In
this way an indirect link can be established.
Suggestions Emerged From Public Hearing
q Remunerative prices for agricultural goods
q Emphasis on water harvesting
q Focus on the supply of drinking water and sanitation
q Creating awareness among women regarding the adverse impact of globalisation on agriculture.
q Strengthening of women organizations.
q Increasing agricultural wages: Necessary state intervention in this matter is desirable.
q Women are allowed to retain their lright over their seeds.
q Reducing the cost of education and health services.
q Better marketing infrastructure.
q A strong movement to preserve the ecosystem and the native culture
q No privatization of water resources.
q Equal and free access to common property resources (CPRs)
q Involvement of locals by participatory methods.
q Strict penal punishment for cases of cases of crop failure due to defective seeds and
pesticides.
q Sensitizing the police, legal system and the concerned personnel regarding womens problem.
q Plugging the loopholes in the Anti Dowry Act.
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q Making agricultural credit more simple and reachable.
q Organizing more such public hearing of the grievances of women, frequently and at
different places.
Dr. Vandana Shiva Director DWD in her address to the participants suggested that women should
have a right over the seeds; they should fight for freedom from credit and just price for their products.
Many of the women activists also felt that there is a need to change the present law, which
allows the wife to inherit her husbands property only after his death. They argued that even when the
husband is alive, when the family breaks down, she must be entitled to have half of the property
owned by her husband.
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2.2 WEST BENGAL
Apart from paddy, Jute and Mesta is the main crop in West Bengal. West Bengal also produces
about 22% of the total tea production in India. The fibre crops have traditionally been produced in
countries where labour is abundant and cheap. As a result the production systems have been simple
and labour intensive. Role of jute in the countrys economy lies in the fact that more than 4 million
farm families mostly in West Bengal are involved in jute farming and majority of them belong to small
and marginal categories. Importance of the crop can further be assessed from the fact that cultivation
of these crops generates employment (seasonal) of more than 10 million man-days per person. Industrial
operations of about 73 jute mills in the country are a vital segment of the national economy.
In addition about 0.5 million people are involved in raw jute and finished goods trading and
ancillary activities. India has a large demand of packaging material for storage and transportation of
food grains and other marketable commodities. Such demand was 1435.1 thousand metric tonnes for
the year 2000-2001. After fulfilling such a huge demand, India exported 255.1 thousand metric tonnes
of jute goods during 2000-2001 in about 120 countries of the world valued at Rs. 931.71 crore.
Being a natural fibre, jute is biodegradable and as such environment friendly. The principal
products such as sacks can be re-used and, as a result may have a secondary value for other users.
Despite such positive features, the world market for jute has remained depressed.
In recent years, world production of jute has been about 3 million tonnes per year, of which
3,00,000 tonnes are traded internationally in the form of raw fibre and 9,00,000 tonnes in the form
of products.
In the mid 1960s about 20 percent of the worlds jute was processed in developed regions. This
share has now fallen to around 5 percent. This decline results from the increased concentration of jute
processing industries in the major producing and consuming countries of Asia coupled with a decline
in overall consumption elsewhere because of the spread of synthetics products.
Socio-economy
Jute cultivation is primarily restricted to India and Bangladesh, accounting approximately for 66
percent and 25 percent respectively of the world production. Jute is grown on around 1 million-hectare
land. The land area under jute cultivation has grown two-fold since independence while the production
has gone up by 3.5 times. Research and development work carried out by the agricultural scientists
during this period has not only resulted in increasing yield (kg/ha) of the fibre but also in improvement
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of the fibre quality and shortening the cultivation period. Investigations reveal that the crop pattern
jute-paddy-potato is more profitable for the farmers than say paddy-potato-sesame.
The principal outlet of the jute products is in the packaging sector. The Compulsory Jute
Packaging Act of Government of India is however in the process of dilution giving way to synthetic
product in the sector. Jute fabrics are widely used in India for packaging food grains, sugar, pulses and
seeds. Special food grade jute bags have been developed for satisfying stringent international norms
of safety.
Jute shopping bags of various shapes, sizes and designs are nowadays a common sight in many
towns and cities. Jute-geo-textiles are being increasingly used in India to solve many geo-technical
problems. In fact the bio-degradability of the substance is viewed as a very welcome feature as after
the useful lifespan, the material can decompose and merge with the surrounding soil. It is claimed that
in this process the soil is also enriched. Jute composites are increasingly being used in the railways
and in the building sector as weed substitute.
Relatively simple, labour intensive and sometimes very crude techniques are used to convert the
fibres into the products listed here, although for some products for instance jute based carpets -
somewhat sophisticated technologies are employed. Any cost relief provided by the trading practices
as also fiscal measures of the concerned authorities would help the jute and coir sectors to survive.
Most of jute products manufactured in India are consumed in the domestic market. Thus during
2001-02, out of 1615 thousand tonnes of goods produced in the jute sector only 180 thousand tonnes
(ca. 11 percent) were exported. The export earning from the jute sector accounted at the turn of the
millennium for a meager 0.3 percent of Indias export earnings. One of the major constraints to export
is the high share of freight costs to the landed price. (Sen and Saha 2004)
If projected state wise, West Bengal constitutes 71.50% and 77.14% of area and production
respectively. Bihar comes next in order with 15.24% and 11.89% respectively and Assam holds third
position with 10.95% and 9.00% respectively. Orissa accounts for just 1.75% and 1.56% respectively.
Other states constitute less than 1 % both in area and production. When the area remained around
0.8 million hectare for the last two decades, the increase in production and productivity are the
contributions of high yielding jute varieties grown under improved crop husbandry.
The Jute Industry in West Bengal
Out of 73 jute mills in the country 59 are in West Bengal, providing employment to 2,00,000
workers directly, and approximately 40 lakh jute growers are also dependent on this industry. Of these
59 mills, 5 mills are run by National Jute Manufacturing Corporation (NMJC) Limited and one by the
Government of West Bengal. Of late, this industry has been witnessing widespread workers unrest
against the most barbaric repression of the jute barons. Lockout was declared in 17 mills and only 10
have been reopened. Out of these ten, in some mills, the management forced the unions to agree to
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very adverse terms and conditions to lift the lockout. Again, in some mills, wages were reduced for
all categories of workers.
With the increasing trend of lay-off, closure and downsizing of jute mills, the employment
scenario continued to be grim. The number of factories and the total employment remained stagnant
in recent years. The average daily employment for the years 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 was 9,35,503;
8,89,857; 8,91,179 and 8,85,788 respectively while the number of factories in the same period was
11,047; 11,238; 11,441 and 11,720 respectively.
The employment of women in factories is gradually decreasing. The average daily employment
of women workers in the years from 1995 to 1999 is 22,687; 22,580; 22,203; 22,470 and 21,270
respectively.
The National Jute Mill Corporation (NJMC) Ltd. runs five mills in West Bengal and one in Bihar.
The production in these mills has been adversely affected due to non supply of raw jute and other
inputs as the Government of India has curtailed budgetary support for this purpose, resulting in
increase in its losses. The workers and staff are not getting their wages and salaries in time. The
statutory liabilities of this corporation as on 1-1-2001 are as follows: provident fund and pension dues
approximately Rs. 55.64 crore, ESI dues Rs.17.63 crore, tax dues Rs. 1.16 crore, salary and wage dues
Rs.17. 51 crore (wages of three fortnights due to the workers and salaries for two months due to
officers and staff), and gratuity dues of about Rs. 5.94 crore to 702 workers.
This decision to dilute the Jute Packaging Materials Act implies substituting jute with plastics for
packaging, to the detriment to environment and jute industry. West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadev
Bhattacharjee has asked the Prime Ministers office to review the decision, which would affect about
2.5 lakh workers and over 40 lakh farmers of the state.
Economics of Jute Cultivation
As per an estimation made during Average yield :
1999, the maximum share in the cost Jute fibre 2730
of cultivation was on human labour Jute stick (kg/ha) 5670
(74.12%) followed by bullock/power Cost of jute cultivation (Rs/ha) 19580
Sale Price :
(8.58%), fertilizers (6.89%), irrigation
Fibre (Rs./100 kg) 910
(5.56%), insecticides (2.15%) seed Stick (Rs./100 kg) 70
(1.42%) and Gross manure (1.28%). The Gross Income (Fibre + Stick) 28812
maximum cost was on weeding and Net return over cost of Cultivation (Rs./ha) 9232
Cost of 100 kg fibre production (Rs.) 717
thinning (37%) followed by extraction
(20.11%) bundling, carrying and steeping (13.50%) harvesting 11.70%) land preparation, (4.72%),
drying, bailing and storing (3.30%) irrigation (2.86%) and insecticide application (1.90%). The labour
cost on fertilizer application sowing and marketing was just over one percent each. The cost and return
from jute cultivation per hectare is given below: (Das and Hazra 2002)
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Farmers Income : Return over cost of cultivation Rs. 5363 pa. ha
In the form of jute stock Rs. 3969 pa.ha.
Saving in the form of family labour i.e. 35% of Rs. 14515 = Rs. 5080 pa. ha.
Tea Production
India is the worlds largest tea producer and tea from Bengal is considered as the best. In India,
tea is grown in 15 states. Among these the largest producers are Assam (50.7 percent), West Bengal
(22.1 percent), Tamil Nadu (15.9 percent) and Kerala (8.3 percent). Besides the traditional small tea
segment in South India, in the recent past a large number of small farmers in Assam. North Bengal
and Bihar have switched over to tea. There are now more than 1,10,000 holdings accounting for 18
percent of the all India tea production.
Production during 2000 was 846 million kgs (M. kg.) and the estimate for 2001 is around 850
million kgs.
India accounts for 20 percent of the total area under tea in the world. 20 percent of the total
area under tea in the world, 28 percent of world production. 22 percent of global tea consumption
and 15 percent of the total global tea exports. The total area under tea is 507200 hectares. Acreage
has grown at a rate of 0.6 percent in the last five years. Production has been growing steadily at 2
percent since 1995. The tea industry provides direct employment for one million workers of which a
sizeable number are western. (Bariah 2002)
More than two million persons derive their livelihood from ancillary activities associated with
production, value addition and marketing of tea. Substantial foreign exchange earnings (Rs. 1850
crores) with negligible import content and contribution to the state and central exchequers (Rs. 1,100
crores) are the other significant economic features of the Indian tea industry.
India is the worlds largest consumer of tea, consuming over 600 million kg annually. Per capita
consumption is 660 grams per annum. With a penetration rate of 77.2 percent - urban penetration:
90 percent and rural penetration 72.6 percent, tea continues to be the most popular and widely
consumed beverage within the country. Consequently, India is only the 4th largest exporter in the
world. Export performance has declined in recent times. Since 1998, the export volume has dropped
at a CAGR of - 1 percent and export value dropped at a CAGR of 9 percent.
Until 1987-88, tea was the most significant export item from India. By accounting for 20.7
percent it ranked number one among agricultural exports but thereafter it started declining and now
it occupies the 3rd position by contributing 8.8 percent of the total agricultural exports. Similarly its
contribution to GDP has declined from 1.24 percent in 1950-51 to 0.33 percent in 2000-01.
Export of the Indian tea in the early fifties had 45 percent share in the world market. It was the
time when exports were at modest 206 million. This started showing downward trends from 1998
onwards when Indias share slipped to 17 percent in the export market. There has been wide fluctuation
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in the export volumes ever since. But the dismal export performance was much pronounced in 2000.
The experts witnessed a sharp decline from $ 542 million in 1998 to $ 424 million in 2000. This
further went down in 2002-03 touching $ 209.8 million.
In rupee terms, the earnings eroded from Rs. 29184 crore in 1998-99 to Rs. 111036 crore in
2002-03. Sustained low quantity of exports has brought it down to 14 percent of the worlds export
market. The worst happened when the CIS countries, biggest export market of Indian tea, undertook
a paradigm shift in the buying patterns by its increased bias towards CTC varieties. Ironically, the
preferred export commodity accounted only to 20 percent of the Indian crop at approximately 160
million kg., leaving the country with small quantity of export crop.
The lost market has been captured by competitors mainly Sri Lanka, which makes high value
orthodox varieties to be blended with low value fillers collected from India. Sri Lanka has established
its branded Dilmah packet teas in Russia, Indias major market.
It is now selling teas at Rs. 15 from Rs. 25, much below the cost of production. The southern
region comprising of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, produces roughly 24 percent of the total tea
production of the country. Similar cases were reported from Dooars, Terai, Bengal and Cachar in
Assam.
Table - 2.2 (1) : Indian Tea Production and Sales
Qty. in million kg. Value Rs. Crore
Year Production Export Import Domestic
Qty Qty Value Qty Value Qty
1999-2000 835.35 192.44 1932.66 10.36 61.97 638
2000-2001 848.36 203.55 1889.78 15.29 95.47 658
2001-2002 847.25 190.00 1695.78 16.02 82.70 679
2002-2003 709.19 128.89 1110.36 16.98 78.20
(Apr-Nov.) (741.87) (129.27) (1191.04) (11.23) (61.16)
Problems:
Today the overall world tea absorption is lagging behind supply resulting in an over supply
situation. World supply has grown at a CAGR of over 3 percent since 1995. World absorption has
grown at a CAGR of 2.5 percent in the same period leading to worldwide softening of tea prices.
Reduced price realizations are threatening the profitability of producers the world over.
Declining exports and increasing production place tremendous pressure on prices leading to
continued loss in profitability, loss in foreign exchange earnings. The health of the industry, thus, has
an immediate socio-economic impact in the remotely located tea growing areas of the country. It is
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therefore critical for the industry to immediately adopt sustainable and low cost developmental strategy
for improving production.
As India shines, the Rs. 5000 crore worth tea industry losses its sheen with price realization
down and costs rising. In 2003, several violent incident and lockout were reported across the tea
industry, the loss at least 50,000 man days (Gokhale 2003)
A survey conducted recently has indicated that the small tea grower is getting a very small share
of the total price paid by the consumer. Since the bought leaf factories as well as the small tea growers
belongs to an unorganized sector of teaproduction, their transactions are not very coherent and well
structured and lack group action and bargaining power.
Starvation Kills Hundreds of Tea Garden Workers in West Bengal
Around 800 tea garden workers have died of starvation, with several surviving on wild roots and
rats in West Bengal, where the closure of uneconomic plantations has rendered a million labourers
jobless, says a rights group.
The deaths resulted from a combination of starvation, malnutrition, general debility and diseases
among workers in abandoned tea gardens in north Bengal. At least 25 tea gardens in north Bengal
were closed during the past three years turning more than a million workers jobless, after their
managements decided to shut down operations citing poor economic viability.
There are an estimated 160 gardens in north Bengal, which accounts for about 30 percent of
Indias annual tea production of 82.3 million kg. But the sagging global market for tea has drastically
impacted India. The $ 1.5 billion-a-year India industry is tottering following a crash in prices in weekly
auctions, besides a slump in exports. The slump has affected the labourers, a large number of them
being women. Some of the workers were surviving on wild roots, rat5 and snakes. (Bhatnagar, 2004)
The cut in prices is largely attributed to inferior quality tea being produced by various Indian
gardens. Exports have decreased because of competition form cheaper beverages Sri Lanka, Kenya
and Bangladesh.
The labour trouble in the tea industry is symptomatic of the crisis in the tea industry. Few
examples will he suffice to illustrate the situation of tea industry. On November 6., 2003 in a bizarre
twist in the Dalegaon tea garden in Dooan of Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal, an enraged mob
torched the house of a powerful CPI-M Trade Union leader, leaving 21 persons to die an excruciating
death after hacking and maiming them. Some were beheaded; others not so lucky had their limbs
chopped off. All bodies were charred beyond recognition. Officially 19 persons including two women
were killed, but the witness claim that the actual number is 25 (Paraen Yawer 2003).
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Table - 2.2 (2) : Starvation Deaths Till March 2003
Tea Estate Workers Date of lockout/ No. of deaths by
Closure Starvation/ disease
Munjal Tea Estate 1399 06.11.02 70
Ramjhora Tea Estate 1503 18.08.03 71
Kataiguri Tea Estate 1869 22.07.03 91
Dekdapara Tea Estate 802 22.08.02 67
Rahimabad Tea Estate 1000 17.04.02 88
Supriya Tea Estate 436 20.01.03 10+
(Source : Sen Gupta 2004)
No one imagined the issue of recruitment of three staff in the garden would lead to an incident
of such appalling problems. But the tell tale signs ere viable for all to see. Tarakeshwar Lohar,
secretary of the local unit of CITU affiliated Japlaiguri Zilla Chaikaman Mazdoor union was under
pressure from the workers over the recruitment issue. It was alleged that he had managed to get
outsiders appointed to the posts. (Paraen Yawer 2003).
To paraphrase of a Biblical saying, the sins of fathers shall be visited on the children. The sins
of the leaders shall be visited on their minions. With the management increasingly minimizing its
labour force as a cost cutting, trouble is certain to brew in the coming days.
Consider for instance, the tale of Somari Lohar. The untaught 60-something with a wizened
countenance whose literacy hasnt progressed beyond the thumb language. She is just one of the many
unlettered in most of the sub-Himalayan bagans (tea gardens). Somari has left walking may months
ago and crawls instead. To her, life has halted long before weighed downed by penury. Each row of
her ploughed face preserves a yarn of abject grief. (Sen Gupta 2004)
Somaris husband was a petty worker on the payroll of the Rahimabad Tea Estate. His family
of four plunged into dark days with the babus slapping a lockout 19 months ago. Things worsened with
the supply drying up in the company ration counter. Still we had the option to make do with whatever
we could find in the forests. But then came the deluge, Somaris husband was bitten by the dreaded
malaria bug. It was all over within a couple of days. (Sen Gupta 2004)
Consider the case of Julious Kharia. He died after days of consuming a deadly broth of boiled
arbi, wild fruit, tamarind and wild chillies. The neighbors watched on helpless. Julious wasnt poor
either, for he also had accumulated dues of Rs. 50,000-plus with the company.
Even as dry statistics rattled out by the State Government and the Tea Board put the number
of closed companies at 20 in real terms it is no less than 37 or even more, with many companies
paying just a fraction of the staff dues.
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According to a rough estimate, over 10,000 workers have been - off due to closure and lockout.
The figure could double if they temporary workers are taken in account. The net result over the deaths
in the past two years due to hunger.
Tea in North Bengal
183-tea plantation which is about 70% of all the tea estates in West Bengal exist in Jalpaiguri.
Of these, 22 plantations have been closed, abandoned or are sick. The earliest date of closure is
February 2002 (Kohinoor Tea Estate), so that many gardens have been closed for 1-2 years.
To work in these plantations, young men and women were recruited from Chotanagpur tribal
villages. Thus, the tea worker population today is chiefly comprised by tribals like the Oraon, Munda
and Santal. In recent years, Nepali workers have also joined the labor force in these estates. According
to a 1983 survey, the number of permanent tea workers in Dooars was 150,707, of which over 50%
were women. About the same number of women are employed on temporary assignments during the
period April - October. The task of tea leaf plucking is the prerogative of these women workers.
The total number of permanent workers in these 22 gardens is 20847 and the total affected
population is 94347 people (from District Magistrates report). Besides this, there are a number of
people who used to work as bigha or temporary labour in the plantations. They have also been
thrown out of work, and their families are suffering. If one were to take the other tea-producing district
of Darjeeling, the magnitude of the crisis would become clearer.
Table 2.2 (3) : Closed Plantations in North Bengal
Name of Tea Plantation Location
Rahimabad Tea Plantation Hathipota PS, Jalpaiguri District
Ramjhora Tea Plantation Birpara PS, Jalpaiguri District
Dheklapara Tea Plantation Birpara PS, Jalpaiguri District
Katalguri Tea Plantation Banarhat PS, Jalpaiguri District
Pathorjhora Tea Plantation Maljhora PS, Jalpaiguri District
Dima Tea Plantation Kalchini PS, Jalpaiguit District
Kalchini Tea Plantation Kalchini PS, Jalpaiguri District
Raimatong Tea Plantation Kalchini PS, Jalpaiguri District
Srinathpur Tea Plantation Alipur PS, Jalpaiguri District
Chamurchi Tea Plantation Banarhat PS, Jalpaiguri District
Carron Tea Plantation Nagarakata PS, Jalpaiguri District
Mujnai Tea Plantation Madarihat PS, Jalpaiguri District
Sepoydhoorah Tea Plantation Darjeeling District
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Name of Tea Plantation Location
Simulbarie Tea Plantation Darjeeling District
Sayedabad Tea Plantation Darjeeling District
Samsing Tea Plantation Makeli PS, Jalpaiguri District
Kohinoor Tea Plantation Hathikota PS, Jalpaiguri District
Dhawlajhora Tea Plantation Madarihat block, Jalpaiguri District
Jogesh Chandra Tea Plantation Kranti block, Jalpaiguri District
Chongkong Tea Plantation Darjeeling District
Rungnet Tea Plantation Darjeeling District
The crisis began in the year 2002, when most plantations closed down; with wages and food
rations became irregular for most plantations even before closure. Living in the middle of nowhere with
no work other than that available in the tea plantations, workers and their families have been suffering
from malnutrition, anaemia and other nutrition related problems. Combined with the lack of medical
treatment, the results have been drastic. According to the Agriculture Minister of West Bengal, Kamal
Guha stated that 320 workers have died of starvation in the last one year. Besides 50,000 workers
of 14 tea plantations are passing their days in distress having been denied food, electricity, medicines
and other amenities for months together. Khitish Goswami (a leader from the RSP, another partner
in the ruling left Front) placed the deaths at 450 according to a survey done by their labour Union.
CITU State Secretary Chittabrata Majumdar (owing allegiance to CPI(M) , the largest party in the
ruling coalition) also said that tea plantation workers did not have food or medicine for many months
and no other means of livelihood, so they must have died due to malnutrition and lack of medical
care. (Source: The Telegraph Nov. 23, 2003)
Upon closure of the plantations, the food rations for the workers have stopped. As tea plantations
are in very interior areas with their workers living on the plantation itself, the abandonment of the
plantation by the owners and managers has spelt disaster for the workers. A direct consequence of
this plight is that severe under nutrition and high child mortality rates are now prevalent in most tea
gardens. Electricity has been cut off and as the water supply was electricity dependent, this has meant
that workers receive no drinking water. The labour lines are far away from any other habitation and
therefore any other source of drinking water, workers have in some cases have to depend on river water
that is unfit for drinking purposes. The women are the worst victims, because they have not only lost
the paltry wages (@ Rs. 10-15 a day for the temporary worker) from the tea estates, but also have
to gather food and fetch water from a distant water source for their families.
In order to overcome the problem of the workers, the Jalpaiguri District Magistrate, after
discussion with the FCI, Food Department, Unions and Management, sent a proposal for a continuation
of the Pubic Distribution System (PDS) to the State Government on 7th November, 2003. His contention
was that foodgrains for these families are already available with the FCI (because the tea estates used
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to procure the food grains from FCI until closure), and therefore no additional allocation of food grains
was necessary. His suggestion was the family ration cards provided by the plantation management be
treated as temporary BPL ration cards and that the workers be tagged to the concerned ration dealers
directly. He suggested that the State Government provide subsidized food grains to the families against
these cards. The State Government has not taken any decision on this suggestion so far (Source:
Sramik Samhati Kendra, m;meo, 2004).
Case Studies of Farmers of West Bengal
The agricultural scenario in the State of West Bengal is one of declining crop yield and increasing
strife for small holding peasant farmers. Subsistence farmers find it imperative to search for a secondary
occupation, and many of them seasonally migrate as wage labourer in neighbouring districts.
Over the past decade (1994-2004), the use of agrochemicals in farms has increased at least two
times in the State. Monsanto company has introduced its glyphosate herbicide to rice farms, although
its use is most intensive in tea gardens of North Bengal.
The drive for earning more has pushed all subsistence farmers to growing at least one cash crop
like potato, sugarcane and jute. While traditional multiple cropping system involved cultivation of
several oil seeds, pulses and vegetables, modern monoculture of rice or wheat has eroded the local
crop diversity. Farmers are crucially dependent on hybrid seeds supplied by the government and MNCs.
This in recent years has occasioned several disastrous results for the farmers. In what follows we
describe a few cases of agricultural setbacks as a result of selected cash crops.
Potato
The profit : cost ratio for potato, according to State agriculture officers, is 1.02. This narrow
margin of profit, and the high production cost makes potato farming a highly risk-prone venture for
most farmers. The risk has proved itself in a spate of farmer suicides in Dinhata of Coochbehar
district, Jamalpur of Bardhaman district, and Chandrakona of Medinipur district - all in the period
March-April 2004.
In the case of potato, it is not less production that has caused farmer suicides. On the contrary,
it is overproduction, which belies the prevalent myth that more production means prosperity. Overproduction
of potato has often caused strife and hunger among farmers. Biman Adhikari, President of Kishan
Sabha of Chandrakona recalls, Back in 1997, an overharvest of potato caused a dramatic fall in
prices. Women of farmer households used to hide all vials of pesticiqes from their menfolk.
In 1998-99, the cost of production was Rs. 12090.00 per acre; In 2003-2004, it has doubled
to Rs. 24000.00 per acre. Yield has been at about .120 quintals per acre. The State production figures
reveal that the total production of potato was 8,500,000 ton. However, the cold storage capacity is
only 4,200,000 ton. Market glut, contributed by overproduction results in distress sale. After home
consumption of the produce, most of the remaining potatoes are sold at a throwaway price - even 0.50
paise per kg.
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Shib Choudhury of Birbhanpur of Chandrakona block of Medinipur district committed suicide
because he failed to sell his produce. All middlemen refused to buy his potatoes because all the cold
stores were full to the brim. Rekha Choudhury, widow of Shib Choudhury, recalled how he had been
depressed when he saw the potatoes rotting in the fields. Even his attempts to sell them at a distress
sale price failed, because there were no buyer.
Nimai Poira of Khetua of Medinipur district also attempted to commit suicide. His wife Bandana
rushed into the room and snatched the bottle of pesticide away from him. Nimai reported that he had
borrowed Rs. 18,000 from the cooperative society and another 6,000 from friends. In addition, I had
sold off rice from the previous season to collect Rs. 12000, only to farm potato. And now the
wholesalers refuse to take anything. What should we do?
Sheikh Saifuddin of Hosenpur, Bardhaman district also committed suicide on the 13th April.
When inquired about the incident, the District Superintendent of Police became angry with the reporters:
Are the press reporters willing to turn this State into Andhra Pradesh?
Saira Bibi, widow of Saifuddin, reported that he had borrowed a huge sum of Rs. 48,000 from
Jot Sri ram Samabay Samiti, and Rs. 22,000 from various sources. On the 13th a mahajan came to
his house to ask for repayment of his loan. Saifuddin went out with him. After an hour he returned
home and drank a bottle of pesticide.
The hailstorm of the 12th and 19th March perished all the crop of farmers. Like Saifuddin, most
of the farmers are now unable to repay the loan, and consequently, cannot begin sowing of jute. While
most of the potato has perished in the hailstorm, the remaining produce cannot be sold, because there
is no buyer.
In Coochbehar, too, overproduction of potato is a cause of concern for both farmers and
wholesalers. Most farmers have failed to sell their produce. Those who have been fortunate to sell have
paid Rs. 80 per quintal of potato just to keep their potatoes in cold stores. After having borne the cost
of production @ Rs. 24000 per acre, the cost of transport and cold storage charges, farmers have
incurred a great loss.
Sunflower
This season, agriculture officers gave sunflower seeds to farmers in Medinipur and Bardhaman
districts as an alternative cash crop.
The State Seed Corporation (SSC) procured hybrid sunflower seeds from Sheetal, a private firm
based in Bangalore. The hybrid variety, Surya-51, is reported to be a high-yielding, but has turned out
to be a disaster for farmers of Bardhaman and Medinipur. The crop plants flowered well, but yielded
no seeds.
On the 24th May, 2004 depressed farmers of Chandrakona block in Medinipur district burned
their sunflower plants to ashes in 3 acres of land. The Agriculture Department is in jitters after this
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incident. The Sub-Divisional Officer and District Agriculture Officer assured of starting an investigation
into the quality of the seeds. Block agricultural officers have been instructed to conduct a field study
to investigate into the fate of sunflower cultivation in their respective blocks.
In Bardhaman, farmers have also experienced zero yield from the Surya-51 seeds distributed by
the SSC. Mr. Ananta Hajra, a Sub Divisional Agriculture Officer, reported that sunflower farmers from
seven blocks of Bardhaman district Khandaghosh, Memari 1, Memari 2, Bhatar, Jamalpur, Aushgram
1 and Aushgram 2 - have experienced zero yield of crop. They are now preparing to move the
Consumers Redressal Forum to demand adequate compensation for the loss. Each of these farmers
had spent Rs. 9000 per acre for growing sunflower on their farms.
Return to Sustainable Agricultural Practice: A Case Study from Bankura District
In Kalyanpur village of Bankura district, farmers have realized the futility of growing modern
HYV rice. The escalating cost of production and the diminishing crop output has made rice farming
a discouraging venture. Farmers report that every year they are facing persistent occurrence of pest
insects, which had earlier been only a minor problem. They had to substantially increase both the
dosage and frequency of pesticides application, but that would kill the whole range of beneficial
organisms.
Asit Dey, a middle aged farmer of Kalyanpur, is the first of the villagers to have stopped
chemical agriculture. He remembered his doctors warning some 15 years ago that he had fallen sick
due to pesticide-applied rice and vegetables. Since 1990, he stopped growing HYV cereals and using
chemical pesticides. I find that my health has improved ever since we stopped eating HYV rice, he
said. His wife Maya says that she can now enjoy the real taste of traditional rice varieties Asit Kalma
and Dahar Nagra - because her family has abandoned growing the bland HYVs.
Asit grows rice in a dry upland farm. He cannot afford to grow bora (summer rice) after the
aman (winter rice) harvest. Bora rice needs a lot of water, which is a scarcity in the area in the
summer. Thus, he has begun growing mustard and sesame, because neither requires irrigation, and
both can be cultivated after the oman harvest. Moreover, these oilseeds provide nutrients to the farm.
Maya, his wife is a strong support in his decision to change over to traditional crop seeds.
Asit also is a breeder: he collected a local variety from Mediniput, and improved its characteristics
by selective breeding. Fellow farmers of the village have named the variety Asit Kalma.
The Navdanya team conducted two farmer workshops in Kalyanpur in 2002, and persuaded
farmers to stop chemical agriculture. After an assurance of technical support in the event of pest or
disease outbreak, 20 farmer households of the village started Organic farming involving folk crop
varieties, Organic inputs and rotation of various crops. Asit Deys farm served as a model for the new
converts. In 2003, the crop output was more than satisfactory. In Asits farm, the yield of Asit Kalma
was at par with the Swarna (a HYV) rice grown on his neighbours farm, at a comparatively miniscule
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production cost. This success convinced all the villagers, and most of them have now stopped growing
HYVs.
With his decade of experience of positive results from Organic farming, Asit Dey is convinced
that growing folk rice varieties following traditional techniques of Organic cultivation is profitable,
healthy and ecologically sustainable. At any workshop and meeting with farmers, Asit is a source of
inspiration for the young generation of farmers. He has dissuaded young farmers from using herbicides
and pesticides in the village farms.
Globalizations Impact on Farmers in West Bengal
The focal impact of globalisation on agriculture has percolated to several aspects of the rural
economy as well. The cultural aspirations and lifestyles are intricately linked to livelihoods. Therefore,
the impact of globalization is likely to be perceived in the rural cultural milieu. To understand the real-
life situation at the grass roots level, a small survey was conducted in the state of West Bengal.
Change in household income from agriculture over the period from 1994 to 2004 was estimated
as the increase or decrease in the profit margin. The profit margin here is defined as the difference
between the sale price of crop produce and the total cost of production (including seed cost and cost
of agrochemical inputs and labour. In case of negative value in the profit margin, it is imperative that
the farmer would either borrow from a local money-lender or bank, sell off or mortgage his/her
property or migrate to other districts in search of a secondary livelihood.
The overall result shows a definite decline in the percentage growth in profit margin over the
decade 1994-2004. In Jalpaiguri district, a staggering 86% of farmers have experienced a decline in
the rate of farm income. In Bankura district, this proportion is 82% and in Howrah district, it is 56.3%
of the sampled number of households. All small holders have incurred a fall in profit margin. Even
among these wealthy farmers, several have experienced a reduction in profit margin over the decade.
However, for a handful of farmers, profit margin has been positive (implying that profit margin has
increased), but such positive change has been fortuitous and confined to rich farmers. Only 18% of
Bankura farmers and 44% of Howrah farmers have made a higher profit margin in 2004 than in 1994.
A positive growth in profit margin has taken place on farms where crop diversification was
practiced. In Howrah, a greater proportion of farmers experienced positive growth in profit margin
because farmers there have turned away from rice monocultures and are growing a diversity of crops.
However, the profit margin is not particularly high in diversified farms because (a) the crop output was
reduced due to pest attack and (b) the market price of the produce fell. The pest attack in most of
the farms was not controlled by the use of synthetic pesticides, which only increased the cost of
production. In one instance the production cost was considerably reduced, resulting in 11.2% rise in
profit margin. A similar instance was found in Howrah district, who owned 5 bigha of land, her
insistence on eliminating chemical pesticides caused a 19.8% increase in profit margin.
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The amount of loans has increased over the past 10 years. The source of loans may be banks,
various government credit schemes, and private moneylenders. Farmers make loans primarily to buy
costly agrochemicals and implements like diesel pump sets and hand trawlers. Another reason for
borrowing is a daughters marriage. Marriage on dowry is rampant even among the scheduled case
communities, who earlier observed the custom of bride price. The widespread custom of dowry compels
the farmer to make a huge amount of loan just in order to climb the social ladder of prestige.
The above analysis shows that over the period 1994-2004, the drive for market liberalization and
globalization has severely impinged on the rural household economies. The traditional mode of agricultural
practices has been obliterated. Of course, the Green Revolution of the late 1960s and 1970s had
already set in the process of replacing all traditional farming knowledge and practices of seed saving.
However, the recent economic system giving a free had to MNCs in agricultural sector has caused a
rapid shrinkage of the traditional practices and replacement of folk crop varieties by HYVs and hybrid
varieties. This has obviously escalated the cost of agricultural production, while stagnating productivity.
Besides, theyre a direct financial deficit of the farmers household economy, which is a macrocosmic
reflection of the national fiscal situation. Rising costs of inputs, declining productivity of crops, plummeting
market price of farm produce, breakdown of the state protection of farmers interests (through withdrawal
of state subsidies), and the loss of farmers control over means and conditions of production have
resulted in a general decline in the profit margin from agricultural activity. The study shows that
smaller the holding, the greater the decline in profit margin.
Public Hearing in West Bengal
The Public Hearing began at 11 am after 138 participants from different parts of the State had
arrived in small groups. Owing to a thunderstorm that disrupted railway overhead cables in south
Bengal the previous night, many women from South 24 Parganas were unable to arrive. The participants
hailed from Bankura, Birbhum, East Medinipur, West Medinipur, Nadia, Purulia, North 24 Paganas and
South 24 Parganas districts. A majority of them were farmers, but a few represented a section of
migrant labourers who had been dispossessed of their lands by industrialization and modernization
drives over the past decade. All participants belonged to networks of Shramajibi Samiti (SMS), Madhyamgram
and Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies (CIS), Barrackpore.
The panel of the Public Hearing was composed of Dr. Vandana Shiva, recipient of the Right
Livelihood Award and FAO Medal, eminent writer Mahasweta Devi, winner of Sahitya Academy Award,
poet-columnist Jaya Mitra, renowned activist Sri Samar Bagchi and ecologist Dr. Debal Deb.
Karuna Prasad, a poet and singer, inaugurated the program with two songs. His songs were
composed on the themes of bio piracy of Indian crops and herbs by MNCs, and the urgency of saving
local crop genetic diversity.
In her introductory address, Dr. Shiva explained the objective of the Public Hearing. We shall
hear and document the womens first hand accounts of the impacts of Globalisation on their lives and
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livelihoods, she said. A part of the four such Public Hearing is of social importance because it is
the women of Bengal who spearheaded the famous Tebhaga movement of the 1940s, she recalled,
whose slogan reverberated: Pran debo tobu dhan debo na. (We shall give our lives, but never our
rice). Dr. Shiva spoke in Hindi and renowned Bengali writer Jaya Mitra translated her words.
Dr. Shiva told the women that it is the Bengal women who upheld and secured their rights to
land and crops of their labour through much sacrifice. I am hopeful that I shall the women of Bengal
who have retained the legacy and spirit of Tebhaga. I know there are certain areas of West Bengal
where many farmers are still growing indigenous crop varieties outside the encapsulating system of
modern industrial agriculture. I know there are many communities who resist and defy the destructive
forces of modernization, the market and Globalisation. We are here to record the womens experience
of the struggle against aggressive inroads of MNCs into our culture. Dr. Shiva called on the participants
to brood another freedom struggle to protect womens rights over land, occupation and culture.
She informed the participants that the NCW will organize a National Conference of Women in
Delhi, where opinions of West Bengal women will be considered as a major contribution to the future
policy making exercise.
Mahasweta Devi in her speech recalled that many farmer women had sacrificed their lives in
Kakdwip of South Bengal during the Tebhaga movement. She recalled that the women of Tebhaga had
taken the bold oath to preserve their seeds sown in our blood and refused to give the share of their
farm produce to landlords. Mahasweta Devi said that the British rule had manufactured the Bengal
famine by hoarding food grains and stepping up food prices. Today a new type of famine is being
manufactured by the globalised market, she warned. Mahasweta Devi eloquently explained to the
participants the plight of indigenous people in West Bengal and other States. She told how processes
of commercialization and modernization have dislodged traditional land use systems and have intensified
the exploitation of women, leading to unforeseen consequences for both indigenous people and their
resources. Globalisation is destroying all natural resources, she said, on which the rural poor
depend for survival. Real estate developers are filling up wetlands. Earlier people knew which ponds
water was good for drinking and cooking. Now the ponds and the knowledge of sustainable use of
these ponds are vanishing. Nevertheless, it is the poor women who are capable of resisting the process
of destruction. Women of Dinajpur have stopped an attempt to dam the Punarnava River. It is these
women, upholding the legacy of Tebhaga martyr Ahalya, who march in the forefront in the struggle
of resistance to imperialism. She called upon the participants to fight, as mighty women in many parts
of the world do, the evil force of Globalisation.
Dr. Debal Deb of CIS described how the WTO has opened the floodgate of bio piracy of the
wealth of biodiversity and traditional knowledge pertaining to the use of local biodiversity. He explained
that the current Globalisation process began with the Green Revolution, which sought to compel the
countrys farmers to depend on multinational corporations for seeds, agrochemical inputs and pump
sets for irrigation. Within 30 years of the Green Revolution, he said, thousands of folk crop genetic
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diversity, indigenous knowledge of sustainable land use and traditional systems of food security disappeared.
Following WTO, this process of destruction has been intensified by untested GM seeds and toxic
agrochemicals. He recalled that the Green Revolution had sought to increase food production and
eliminate poverty and hunger. He noted that bumper production of cereals has led to rotting of food
grains in warehouses, while endemic hunger in pockets of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra
persists. He said, Today we all witness that even bumper production of food crops lead to indebtedness,
poverty and suicides of farmers. Overproduction of rice, tomato and potato over the past decade has
not reduced food prices on the market but has drastically reduced the sale price of farm produce,
resulting in a cascade of farmer suicides.
Dr. Deb added that the WTO has paved the way for enclosing and commercialising common
property resources, and stealing the traditional knowledge base pertaining to local biodiversity. Dr. Deb
termed Globalisation as a regime of plunder of resources of the poor for the prosperity of the
corporate empire. He pointed out that bio piracy of local knowledge began with the Basmati rice,
neem and turmeric, the latest instance being the Indian wheat variety whose patent is held by Monsanto.
He estimated that over 160 indigenous crops and herbs and their traditional uses have been patented
as corporate innovations. He called on all participants to rise against this regime of bio piracy and
the political system that fosters and facilitates corporate plunder of the nations resources.
Sri Samar Bagchi of NAPM expressed concern that under the regime of WTO, the Indian farmers
will soon lose their autonomy and become enslaved by MNCs for the supply of seeds, agrochemicals
and implements. He called on all participants to freely share their experiences and boldly express their
opinions, which will be documented for discussion at the Union Government level in Delhi.
A total of 17 women including 2 Santal women recounted and shared their first hand experiences
of enclosure of the commons, displacement from ancestral land, drastic changes in traditional land use
practices. They clearly linked these changes to plummeting water table, salinisation of soil, rising cost.
of foods and loss of livelihoods. Their accounts gave a different set of instances of India shining -
a different portrait of industrial progress, which was coupled with illegal land transfer, marginalization
and prostitutionalization of women and disentitlement of the poor.
Kalpana Sardar of North Parganas district said that export-oriented prawn farming has destroyed
farmers livelihoods. In the Sundarban area, fertile crop lands have become converted into shrimp
farms. Entry of salt water into, rice farms has destroyed farm productivity. Prawn farms have also
reduced farm labour employment opportunities. She told that 100 bigha (33 acres) of rice farm
requires 2700 labourers whereas the same amount of jalkar where tiger prawns are farmed employs
just 15 labourers. Emigration of villagers is on the rise in search of employment: Many women are
driven to prostitution to save their families from hunger.
Jahanara Bibi and Palina Pramanik of Minakhan Block of North 24 Parganas district reiterated
Kalpanas account, and added Women of our villages are all unemployed ever since the beginning of
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farming of tiger prawns. Salinisation of land has led to the disappearance of brushwood for fuel.
Household expenses for fuel have escalated because people must buy kerosene oil. They reported that
while small farmers are willing to grow rice for subsistence, they couldnt afford to sow crops because
of leakage of salt water from neighbouring prawn farms of rich farmers. They also recounted stories
of sexual harassment of women who are employed in tiger prawn processing units.
Budhu Tudu, a Santal woman from West Medinipur district revealed in her account another side
of exploitation of women. The introduction of machines like tractors and threshers has reduced
employment of women in farm work. Those who are employed, do not receive the wage at the rate
stipulated by the government, and have to work overtime in order to make two ends meet. She further
added that chemical agriculture has poisoned all cultivated crops as well as wild edible plants, small
fish and even drinking water.
Fazila Bibi from Nadia district reported that monocultures of commercial crops like sunflower
has replaced in her area a wide diversity of rice, pulses and vegetable crops, which has ensured food
and nutritional security to the rural poor in the past.
The womens speeches were interspersed with traditional folk songs. SMS participants also
recited many mass songs they composed on the theme of farmers rights.
SMS women also staged a drama skirt, in which they identified Globalization as erosion of
biodiversity, loss of seeds, loss of farmers rights, commercialization and devaluing women, and fattening
of industrialists.
Shikha Mandal from Kulpi block of South 24 Parganas district described another instance of
development that fosters and exacerbates poverty. She said, Local people were losing employment
because work is afoot to build a port in Kulpi. About 60,000 bigha of farm plots will be taken over
by the port authority. This will disemploy and displace thousands of local people.
Suniti Bhattacharya from Bishnupur Block of Bankura district articulated how the on-going
process of modernization of agriculture has destroyed traditional knowledge of seed saving and sustainable
farming. She told that womens traditional knowledge of drying and storing seeds in earthen pots, of
protecting them from pest attack and retaining viability of the seeds are now being forgotten. In the
past, she said women decided which varieties of rice would be grown in their home gardens and
farms to provide nutrition for their family members. Modern market-dependence of farmers for seed
supply has robbed women of their decision making power. The introduction of HYV seeds and machines
has marginalized womens role in production, and hence devalued the. This devaluation is reflected in
the abolition of bride-price customs in many indigenous societies and in the rising frequency of dowry
crimes.
Ashalata Das from South 24 Parganas reported that traditional fishers have lost their occupation
because of Crocodile Project in the area. The local people are migrating out to distant townships in
search of employment.
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Minati Mandal from Namkhana Block of South 24 Parganas district gave a similar account of
shrinkage of employment opportunities in her area. She went on to say that overuse of pesticides has
adverse health effects on the livestock as well as humans, especially children. Her account revealed
another aspect of India Shining: The number of tube wells is less than one each for 250 or more
people. Water table is falling, drinking water is becoming saline and contaminates with arsenic.
Government health centres no longer distribute medicines for common ailments.
Joynur Bibi from Pathar Pratima Block of South 24 Parganas district recalled that in her childhood
she has seen irrigation systems using surface water, that was sufficient to feed everyone in the village.
Over years of negligence, the village ponds and tanks have dried up, with their water holding capacity
significantly reduced. Rich farmers are using electric pumps to extract ground water for boro (summer
rice) cultivation. Intensification of HYU rice has replaced vegetable diversity on farms. She said that
productivity of farms has declined over the past decade, and agriculture has become too expensive.
Pesticides fail to adequately control crop pests, she added with bitter jest, people use them with
greater confidence to commit suicide.
Joynur Bibi went on to say that village Panchayat bodies to indulge in political favouritism and
corruption manipulate BPL lists. Thus benefits of various governmental programs of rural development
do not reach the poor. Each poor family is entitled to receiving 35kg of rice under the Antyodaya
Yojana. The old are supposed to get 10 kg of rice free under the Annapurna Yojana. A sum of Rs. 500
is allotted for poor women who are pregnant. However, in reality, the poor families hardly receive any
such benefits. While Indira Abas Yojana allots Rs. 22,000 for building a house for each poor family,
they receive Rs. 10,000 after signing a voucher of Rs. 22,000.
Maya Tanti from the same block reported that the use of syhthetic fertilizers has caused compaction
of the soil and loss of soil fertility.
Tehmina Begum from North 24 Parganas said that in her area prawn farming and cultivation of
HYV tomato and capsicum have engendered the farmers livelihoods. Fertile farms are rendered
useless by salt-water infiltration and conversion into prawn fishery. In the remanding croplands, hybrid
capsicum farming has replaced red chilli, which were even a few years ago dried and powdered for
sale on local markets. Women who used to earn from red chilli processing are losing their income
because of capsicum.
Ashalata Maiti from Sagar Island reported that the Ganga Sagar Mela was this year contracted
out to Sahara Company, which raised the fares of all transport vehicles and the rent of space for
vendors. Space was too costly for the small businessmen and poor women to sell their wares at the
Mela. The Company is also evicting local inhabitants to leave space for erecting a powerhouse and
other structures. She added that safe drinking water and cooking was a scarcity on the Island and the
number of tube wells is too small for everyones needs. People find it imperative to use dirty pond
waters for cooking, she told, and therefore water-borne diseases are common.
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At the end of the Hearing, noted writer Jaya Mitra observed that we are now compelled to
contemplate our rights over water, land and forest. It is ironic, she said, that in a land that receives
very high rainfall, people have to buy water to irrigate their lands and that in a land of rich biodiversity,
farmers are buying earthworms to enrich their farm soil.
Mitra cited an instance of the impact of Globalisation on village economies of Bengal: An
average village community spends Rs. 200,000 towards cigarettes and cosmetics. She urged that
women get over such fads and look into their real needs.
The songs recited by SMS and CIS members concluded the Hearing.
Dr. Shiva said that todays Public Hearing made it clear that Globalisation had caused several
problems for survival for the poor, and that the women are themselves aware of these problems. They
must find ways to tackle and overcome these problems themselves. We from Navdanya shall of course
stand by them, as we have always stood by rural women in their struggles. But the decision and the
means to struggle is theirs. India will shine not by the colourful advertisements of MNCs, nor by the
dazzling lies of politicians, but by the brilliant invincible people of India, she concluded.
In the valedictory address, Dr. Debal Deb said that reliance on the Government to solve all the
problems is fruitless. Dr. Deb further asserted, We cannot expect a corrupt government to protect the
countrys food security. Women are the repository of the wealth of our agro biodiversity and traditional
ecological knowledge. They are capable of protecting this wealth from plunder. They can save our
cultures.
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Public Hearing held in Ludhiana, Punjab
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2.3 PUNJAB
Punjab, the state of rivers and canals, known as the granary of India, is located in the North
West of India. With only 15% of geographical area of the country, it produces around 22% of wheat,
10% of rice and 8% of cotton of the country.
Punjab has been contributing around 50% of the rice and 65% of wheat to the central pool for
more than decades. Of the total geographical areas, 23% is under cultivation with a cropping intensity
of 186%. The state has been largest tractor population in the country and the highest per hectare
consumption of fertilizer and 96% of the cultivable area is under canal and tube well irrigation. Hence,
agriculture in Punjab is not really dependent on the monsoons. (Directorate of Agriculture, 2002
Punjab)
Of the total area under wheat in the country, 13% is in Punjab and 36% in Uttar Pradesh. It is
interested to note that wheat area in the Punjab (3.22 Mha) is slightly less than that in Madhya
Pradesh. (3.5 Mha), but the production in Punjab (12.2 MT) is more than double that of Madhya
Pradesh (5.5 MT), thereby, highlighting the interstate difference in yield per hectare.
During 2000-2001, Punjab produced 155.50 lac tonnes of wheat, 91.54 lac tonnes of rice, 2.04
lac tonnes of cotton and 97.60 lac tonnes of sugarcane.
In addition to the conventional crops, the main fruits grown are Kinnow/Orange (194,720 tonnes)
Mango (56,080 tonnes) Grapes (1,29,316 tonnes), Lichi (11,460 tonnes) and Lemon (4,676 tonnes).
The main vegetables grown in Punjab are potato (13,71,516 tonnes) root crops (1,29,316 tonnes)
cabbage (15,184 tonnes) cauliflower (78,041 tonnes) and brinjal (33,201 tonnes).
As per the survey conducted by the National Productivity Council of India, the availability of crop
residues in Punjab has been of the order of about 300 lac tonnes, which is approximately 10% of the
total availability of crop residue in the country. The major crop residues are rice straw, wheat straw,
and cotton stalks. In addition, large quantities of agro industrial residues/by products are also available
viz. rice husk generated in rice mills and bagase by the sugarcane mills situated in the state.
To promote the agriculture in the state, the Punjab Government has launched a number of
schemes under Technology Mission and Second Push scheme in agriculture.
Schemes under Technology Mission
t Intensive Cotton Development Programme
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t National Pulse Development Programme
t Oil Seed Production Programme
Schemes under Second Push in Agriculture
t Promotion of Maize Cultivation
t Promotion of Summer Moong Cultivation
t Program to Boost Sugarcane production
Despite warnings about receding water tables and the futility of continuing with the wheat-paddy
rotation, farmers in the paddy belt continue to repose their faith in the water thirsty crop. Reports
coming in from the vast fields of Central Punjab, a typical paddy-growing belt, reveal that the area
under paddy this year is not going to show any significant decrease, much against the hopes of the
Agriculture Department. (Bhatt, 2004)
Rather, in some parts, the area, which was traditionally under sugarcane, is also likely to come
under paddy, if one takes into account the disillusionment among the farmers in view of the sugarcane
fiasco in the state.
In Patiala district, the sathi variety of paddy, which takes only about two months to mature,
has been planted in acres of land, particularly in the Samana block. At Fatehgarh Sahib about 100
hectares of the early variety has been sown, while in Ludhiana, the crop has already covered a good
1000 hectares by now. In Gerozepur too nearly 500 acres of area has already come under early
varieties of paddy. This despite the fact that the Johl Committees recommendations of paying compensation
for keeping fields free from paddy wheat variety have been accepted in principle and the modalities
are being worked out.
The water level all over Punjab is going down drastically by about two to three feet every year.
In Ludhiana, in places like Pakhowal block, where farmers used to get water at an average depth of
40-50 feet, are going in for submersible pumps this year, because the water level has further gone
down.
The situation is the same in other paddy growing districts, including Ferozpur, where the average
fall is between 1 to 2 feet and Patiala, where the average fall is between 70 cms to 4 metres!
Agriculture Department sources revealed that in Dera Bassi block, a fall of four metres was reported
this year, but the area under paddy was expected to remain the same here as well.
The water wastage is maximum during this period because of rapid evaporation of water from
the fields. Other problems like power shortage and pumps going dry because of ground water depletion,
also hit the farmers during this period, but the farmers do not heed the recommendations under the
impression that the crop planted during this period when the day length is more increases the yield
of the crop.
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Farmers reveal that the Johl Committee recommendations would work well with them only in
case the compensation money was enhanced from Rs. 2500 per acre being offered now.
Growing Paddy With Less Water
In Punjab, the demand of water to meet the present production level is about 43.7 lakh hectare
meter (LHM). Out of this 14.5 lakh hectare meter is supplied by surface canals where as groundwater
recharge provides about 16.8 lakh hectare meter of water. But excessive demand of 12.4 lakh meter
of water is met through over exploitation of the ground water by pumping it out with the help of 9.5
lakh tube wells. It has created worst situation in the state, as centrifugal pumps in 28% of the states
area are estimates to be replaced with submersible pumps. As more than 45 per cent farmers of the
state are marginal and small having less than 2 hectares of land holdings, it is impossible for them
to install these high cost submersible pumps.
Water standing in the fields during pre-monsoon months of May and June increases atmospheric
humidity, which enhances the incidence of pests and diseases and further increases the cost of
production. More over puddling operation in ponded water before transplantation compacts the sub
soil affecting the growth of roots of subsequent crops.
Nearly a sixth of worlds total rice grown as upland rice. The largest areas of upland rice are
found in India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, China and Philippines, Direct Seeding of rice is practiced in
parts of Assam, West Bengal, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Gujrat states during pre-monsoon rains, but
the yields are very low. Therefore improved agricultural techniques and better water efficiency are key
to feeding a speedly increasing population.
Rice crop is considered a water guzzler but instead of maintaining standing water, irrigating the
field one or two days after disappearance of ponded water from the surface, can lead to water saving
up to 30 percent without any significant loss in year.
In the context of all these situations the agricultural exper.t_ at JDM, Agricultural Research and
Development Foundation, Ladhowal distt. LOdhiana, in the state have got success in growing paddy
without puddling. They called this technique as growing paddy harvesting of rain water. (Aulakh
R.P.S.2004)
In this technique they raised nursery by the traditional method but transplanted the seedling
without pudddling the field. This was made possible by making rides with tractor drawn ridger after
preparing the field. The channel in between the ridges were filled with water and the paddy seedlings
were planted on lower parts of level. During the first weak, the crop was irrigated daily but after that
the irrigation was applied after a weak or more depending upon the climate. Special attention was
made to irrigation at the tilling and grain filling stages.
Dr. Daler Singh, an expert of the team conducting farmer participatory and adaptive researches
at this foundation claimed that with technique water could be saved up to 70% and this technique was
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helpful in saving soil fauna from drowning. Weeds were kept under control with recommended weedicides
of 100 ml of oxyflurofin. With this concept, early maturity and better yield were also got in addition
to water saving. The concept is cost effective, labour and time saving and a step towards sustainable
agriculture, without adversely affecting the yields.
What happens in case of puddling is that hard layer is created 6deep in the surface soil, which
dose not let water percolate down and recharge the water table. But in fields of paddy grown with this
technique, the soil remains loose, roots well aerated and the soil has plenty of earthworms helping in
improving the soil health and microbial activity of the soil. Moreover mechanical weeding is also easier
as compared to transplanted crop.
Hence by efficient water management, we can achieve the food security at lower cost and with
better quality, both these being the requirements of sustainable agricultural development and the
changing world scenario.
Field Studies
Gurman Singh 28 years, a farmer in Alampur village, Rajpura Tehsil said, Bores up to 60-70
ft have gone dry. Now bores at depth of 250 ft are being used, but the water level is going down. There
is sand below 18 ft. of ground level. A nalla has been sanctioned by the government to be built in
the area, but it cannot be built till the SYL canal is built. The SYL will really benefit this area because
it will bring water to our farms. This year due to lack of rain, zerri (paddy) has not been planted in
this area. He also blames power supply for irrigation pumps which is only 6 hours, and that too it is
intermittent supply. The result is no kheti in this area. Most of the water of sutlej is going out of
Punjab.
Smt Sukhchain Kaur of the same village is worried about the rain. There has been no rain for
2 years and if rain does not come for another year, agriculture will be over in the area. Some villages
in the nearby have not found water even at 500 ft. It is becoming increasingly difficult to look after
cattle as due to the shortage of green fodder to the animals. Most of the families in the village have
stopped keeping buffaloes or are keeping only one buffalo.
According to Shri Lal of Janouya village, all farmers have become poor men. Only 10% of us
are still farmers, there is no profit in agriculture. There is no water and all bore wells at a depth of
150 ft have failed now, leaving farmers with no alternative except for rain-fed dependance. The crops
of maize and gobi (cauliflower) have ruined due to the failure of rain. The farmers of our region want
SYL to work, at least in our region, so that the water table level may rise. The farmers along the
Bhakra canal do get water. He said that each farmer in his village had 5-15 acres of land on an
average but half of them are now blow poverty line. They do not now have any capacity to take loan.
We do not want loan, we only want the SYL to come to our area.
Smt Sukhbans Kaur aged 50 years of Jansuya village has to tell the same story, there is no
chara (fodder), growing in the villages as there is no water, so all dairy has stopped in the village.
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Even deep water is not available; I go to collect sweet water from a hand pump across the road, as
it is the nearest one to me that still has water. I make 5 trips daily to collect only drinking water.
Shri Sham lal aged 70 years and his wife Shano were grazing cattles when we meet I was doing
farming till 5 years agro. For the last two years, my crops failed, as there was no water, and I am
unable to raise loans to dig a deep bore for irrigation. This year I have not planted any crops, so as
I have no work, at the fag end of my life I am feeling a deep helpessness asserted Shamlal.
Near village Jansuya at the flood drain Tikan Suban Nahar, Shri SurlalSingh and Shri Gurcharan
Singh were on their flood duty though the drain is absolutely dry. They also do some cultivation in their
native village. They blamed the government for not providing new electricity connection. As no new
connections are being given for submersible pumps, there is a 10 year waiting time to get new
connections, so generators are being used which work on diesel, which is a great additional cost to
farmer. With no income, farmers are in heavy debt. Now all moneylenders have refused to lend us
money, since you have planted no crops this year, how will you be able to repay the loan? Those
farmers with big farms are getting richer, but the small farmers like us are getting poorer.
Crop Diversification : Dominance of wheat-rice crop rotation has adversely affected the agricultural
economy of Punjab. It has unfavourably affected the ecological parameters of the state. Though
farmers try and diversify to other crops, they do not find the right price, and as only the wheat rice
have been given a Minimum Support Price (MSP) which shall be declare for other crops too.
The Punjab Agro Foodgrains Corporation was declared the Nodal Agency by the state government
to implement the Contact farming Programme with a view to encourage diversification of crops.
According to the Economic Survey of Punjab 2003-04, during Rabi 2002, 12,238 acres was brought
under the crops of Hyola (hybrid rapeseed mustard with higher oil content, barley (high malt content)
and wi nter maize. An eara of 1.75 lakh acres has been brought under the, land contract farming
programe with corporate houses namely Rallis India, Mahindra Shuhlabh, Escorts and DCM Hariyali
were involved in the extension serVices to the contract farmers. The area for contract farming may
further increase to 2.2 lakh acres in 4-5 years.
Shri Sarabjot Singh Dhillon doing contract farming since 2 years on 30 acres in village Malko,
in District Patiala. The crops he is growing are maize, barely and mustard (Hyola 501). The scheme
is not profitable for him, the companies provides only seed but all other inputs are his own. The price
he get for my crops is lower than the price in the market, for example for mustard, he has given a
price of Rs. 1500 per quintal, but the market price is Rs. 2000 per quintal. For maize, he was told
that the yield would be 22 quintals per acre, but he got a yield of only 10-12 quintals per acre, as
the birds attacked the plants at the time in spite of all methods of scaring them away commented
Mr. Dhillon.
According to Mr. Dhillion, the Punjab Agro Corporation seed is more expensive than the market.
For example, Punjab Agro gives the maize seed at Rs. 50 per kg. Whereas in the market it is available
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at Rs. 30 per kg. Mustard Hyola 501 seed is given at Rs. 500 per packet for an acre, though at the
market it is at Rs. 300 per packet for an acre.
Diverse crops into the market, it will encourage farmers to diversify to other crops.
He also wants to diversity into other crops, which use less water and diesel than wheat-rice
combine. But since the rate given to farmers in the contract is so low, only 2 farmers in his district
have signed the contract. The contract says that the seed be bought only through Punjab Agro
Corporation Ltd., but we are free to sell it to others if we are able to get a better price in the market.
Earlier the farmers used to grow chana Bengal grain. But due to various reasons, and better
price most farmers turned to cotton. But the American sundi (Ball Worm) had devastated the cotton
crop leading to heavy debts. Said Shri Jaspal Singh there is not even one house which is not free from
debt. About 25-30 sprays had to be done on cotton when the sundi struck. Also the traders rule the
market, and decide on the price of cotton at their whim. We require an MSP for cotton to save
ourselves. We have gained nothing from agriculture except debt, suffering and disease
Debts on farmers, farmers suicides and impacts on gender and households:
Accoding to the study done by Dr Shergill, the total debt on the farmers in the state is Rs 5700
crore. This debt is 70% of the Net Domestic Product originated in the state in a year. In other words,
three-fourths of one years total agricultural income has to be paid if the total debt is to be liquidated.
The districts of Sangrur, Bhatinda and Mansa which have a high share of farmers suicides also
have a high debt burden. In Bhatinda and Mansa, at an average farmer has a debt of Rs. 90,000. The
Sangrur district, the commission agents meet 75 % of the total short term credit needs of the farmers
in this zone.(from Suicides in Punjab by Institute for Development and Communication)
Suicide rate : An in-depth analysis of disaggregate data on Punjab shows disturbing trends.
There has been a distinct increase in the number of suicides in Punjab since 1993. In 1992-93,
suicides in Punjab increased by 51.97 %. By contrast, the all India average registered an increase of
5.11% only. In subsequent years this trend has continued. In 1993-94, there was an increase of 14%,
whereas in India it was 5.88 %. In 194-95, the increase in the case of Punjab was 57 %, whereas in
India as a whole here was a decline of suicides. In 1995-97, the increase in the suicides in Punjab
was to the extent of 21%, whereas the decline in India to the extent of 19%. It is a matter of concern
that the number of suicides per lakh population (i.e., suicide rate) has been steadily increasing from
0.57 in 1988 to 2.06 in 1997. The suicide rate of cultivator farmers as compared with non-cultivators
is very high. For instance, suicide rate of cultivator farmers in 1993 was 1.98 % and that of non-
cultivators was 0.90%. In the year 1997, the suicide rate of cultivator farmers was 4.49 and non-
cultivators 1.82. (Suicides in Rural Punjab, Institute for Development and Communication).
The cultivator farmers suicides in the districts bordering Haryana, i.e., Sangrur, Bhatinda and
Mansa, was to the extent of 61% between 1991-97. The districts in Amritsar, Firozepur and Gurdaspur
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have a 25% share of farmers suicides. Together these two zones have witnessed more than 85% of
the total cultivators farmers suicides in the state.
There is a decline in the size of operational holdings in Punjab. About 45% of the farms are
smaller than 2 hectares. Small size holdings have increased from 38.6% to 44.7% in 1991. The
increase in the number of marginal holdings (less than 1 hectare) was higher at 7.1%. This is significant
because small farms are increasingly becoming uneconomical. Our survey was extensively done in this
category of farmers of small land holdings. The women in this sector are crushed under burden of debt
taken by their husbands, sons, and brothers. Consequently, they have become psychologically distressed,
socially alienated and economically distressed.
As has been reported widely in various newspapers, fragmentation of land and the consequent
economic hardship has contributed to distress in families, of which women have to bear the major
brunt. The former sarpanch of village Sakrodi in Sangrur district was under heavy debt due to crop
damage and in order to pay the debt he wanted to sell some portion of his land. He and his wife were
in severe depression due to the debt burden. The situation had become worse when 2 of his brothers
separated from him and division of land took place. As the brothers refused to contribute anything
towards repayment of loan, he finalized the deal to sell part of the land. This resulted in a severe
conflict with his wife. One night before the buyers were to come, he killed his wife with his sword and
committed suicide by consuming pesticide.
Another example is of a farmer in Longowal Khurd village (Gurdaspur district) who committed
suicide in 1998. In 1994, due to division of land in his family, only 2 acres came to his share. He also
had to shoulder the as well responsibility of his sisters marriage, for which he had to sell 5 kanals
of his land, he also took loan. He could not return the loan due to crop failure and his child as expelled
from school for non-payment of fees. This depressed him so much that he killed himself the next day.
His wife could not face the burden of indebtness and killed herself the next day.
It should be noted that the decision to sell land is always a hard one in village life of Punjab,
as it leads to status loss of the seller in the eyes of the community.
In Bangan village, villagers had been facing the problem of crop damage for 5 years caused by
floods by a barrage constructed in the neighbouring area of Haryana. The barrage diverted the water
from the river Ghaggar towards Bangan and other villages, submerging their fields, causing loss of
crops year after year. This threw the farmers of the village into a vicious debt trap, and resulted in
an increasing number of suicides. According to the villagers, they repeatedly brought the floods to the
notice of the government, but the govt paid no attention.
The fact is that the small and marginal farmers are living in economic hardship, social pressure
and psychological stress. It is not to deny that the small and marginal farmer and even the landless
laboureres did benefit from the trickle down effect of the green revolution, but they have had to pay
a very heavy social cost. In a caste ridden society, penetration of consumerism and its demonstration
and widespread effects of dowry has further added to the woes of women in the State.
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The practice of dowry is making the small farmer vulnerable and adding to the problems of
women. At village Harkishanpura in district Bhatinda, we spoke to Shri Jagraj Singh, Sarpanch. This
village has come into the nnews with having the maximum number of suicides by farmers. Shri Jagraj
Singh clarified that it would not be correct to say that the unhappy suicides were due to alcoholism
and other such habits. They were solely due to distress of being in the debt trap. He gave us 7 names
of the latest suicide victims. They ranged from 55 to 30 years of age.
Shri Jagraj Singh said, Chana used to be a crop in the area, but due to lack of rain and lack
of water, there was no alternative for the farmer except to switch to cotton. Desi cotton was good
for 2-4 years, then the American sundi struck the crops, and did not allow cotton to grow. Each
farmer went into debt of one to oneand-a-half lakh of rupees. Now the farmers have sown Bt cotton.
This is the first experiment with it for some farmers, or second time for others. However the seed of
Bt cotton is very expensive, we need Rs. 2500/- seed for one acre.
The population of the village is 1000-1100, with 80 homes, all belonging to farmers. Out of
these, 70 homes who have taken loans have been declared defaulters, so no more loan is being given
to them.
Smt Nasib Kaur wife of suicide victim Shri Bada Singh said, as regards my husbands fate, what
could I say? We had 1200 kila of land in the village, and he sold off 600 kila at a very low rate in
order to repay part of his debt. The humiliation of facing the moneylenders was too much for his pride.
We, the farmers of this area, have been cheated by the govt., by moneylenders. Being simple and
trusting people, we had expected better care from the authorities. All our pleas fell on-deaf years. A
whole lifetime of my husbands toil was wiped out by 2 years debt.
One of the suicide victims in the village was a young man. He married his 2 sisters, and had
to spend a great deal of money on the weddings. This was expected of him by the in-laws of his sisters.
At the end, he has committed suicide as debt became too heavy and he saw no hope of recovery
through farming on his land.
We spoke to the young RMP (local doctor), about health problems of the villagers. He said, all
people here are under great mental stress and tension. Most suffer from aches in knees and joints,
and these are related to poor drinking water quality. People in the village are aging 20 years earlier
than the normal aging time, which had existed earlier. Kids have started getting grey hair at the age
of 7 years. Diarhoa is rampant and people suffer from stomachaches all the time. There is no govt
dispensary in the village. There are no vet services in he village; even cattle have deformed nails. The
nearest vet and dispensary are at Varianwali, 6 km away.
Suggestions by women of farmers households and by farmers of Panjab:
q Compensation demanded for the affected families, most of which are woman headed households
with small land holdings, and debt to repay
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q Appropriate treatment and medical facilities for the serious and other diseases, which have
sprung
q Crop insurance as a measure to combat the menace of suicide.
q Intervention and counselling centers that harmonise between farmers and banks/moneylenders.
Such centers are urgently needed by the women headed households of the farming communities,
q Reorganization of social structures at panchayat level to combat the menace of consumerism
and dowry.
q MSP of other crops like sugarcane and cotton to help the farmers
q Drinking water to be supplied free of cost, as the debt ridden families are unable to pay the Rs
55/- per month for taps. Also the drinking water supply should be safe.
q The families of victims should be treated in the same way as victims of natural disasters such
as earthquakes, cyclones and floods.
Public Hearing in Punjab
A Jan Sunwayi to hear the impact of globalization on the Graameen Women of Punjab was held
at Ludhiana on 17th March 2004 at Pindi Dayal Dharamshalla, Ludhiana, Punjab under the banner
of the National Commission of Women, (NCW) National Alliance of Women for Food and Water Rights
(NAWF) and Diverse Women for Diversity with Bharat Jan Gyan Vigyan Jatha and Punjab Stree Sabha.
The aim of the jan sunwayi was to hear the voices of women in agriculture on the impact of globalization
on women in agriculture, seed, food and water. It wa s envisaged that women having been traditional
cultivators, processors and preservers would also come forth with solutions and alternatives to the
problems. Apart from the graameen women from various regions of Punjab with academician, farmers,
advocates, social activists, medical practioners, health. workers, veterinary doctors, intellectuals and
government representatives attended the meeting.
Major Sher Singh Auluck (retd), a well known farmer, introduced the jury, which comprised of
Dr Vandana Shiva, well known environmentalist and Director, Research Foundation for Science, Technology
and Ecology (RFSTE), Ms Amarjeet Kaur, All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Dr Arun Mitra,
General Secretary, Bharat Jan Gyan Vigyan Jatha, Ludhiana (BJGUJ), Dr Chanchal Gupta, Prof of
Pharmacology, Dayanand Medical College, Mohinderdeep Grewal, a well known writer and retd Lecturer,
Shri Daler Singh, Government Officer and a farmer well known for alternative farming practices, whose
model of paddy cultivation provides a saving of 75% water, Manjit Kaur Sodhia, retd Principal, Government
College for Women, and activist and Dr. S.N. Sewak, a renowned theatre personality.
Dr Arun Mitra, General Secretary BJGUJ, opened the session by reminding us that centuries ago,
it was the women who were the first farmers, who had nurtured agriculture and had ensured healthy
food for the family, since the men used to go out hunting. It was the women who had preserved the
water bodies, forest, biodiversity and had ensured clean drinking water for all.
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Dr Mitra dwelt on the policies of World Trade Organization (WTO). The globalization under
WTO is affecting the agriculture sector particularly women, said Dr Mitra. He added, As and when
Patent Act under WTO is implemented it will increase the cost of medicines beyond the common man.
Now the traditional healing systems have got replaced by expensive medicines, which are getting
costlier day by day. For example, a simple drug for stomach disorders, costs Rs. 2/- in India but costs
Rs 30/- in Pakistan; similar scenario will emerge in India.
Dr Mitra added that farmers are suffering loss in agriculture due to policies being imposed on
them, which are not farmer-friendly. Distribution System (PDS) which was a way to provide food at a
controlled price have been closed down, causing great hardship to the poor as he now has to buy the
basic food at higher costs. The common man is also being forced to even buy water to drink. He called
on all the participants and the eminent members present to jointly study the problems and as well as
evolve an action plan.
Ms. Amarjeet Kaur from AITUC reminded the audience of the important role that women had
played in our country since the earlier times. Most herbs have been named after women. Most rivers
have been named after women, i.e., Ganga, Jamuna, and Saraswati. Even search of water, and had
been done by women. The relationship between women and soil, seed, water, biodiversity has been and
is very deep. Therefore the theft of our seeds and biodiversity, which has been nurtured and preserved
by the women, has had a deep impact on them.
Dr Vandana Shiva, Director (RFSTE), recalled that when she had visited Punjab in the early 80s,
the term Punjab Shining was being used widely to acclaim the prosperity due to the Green Revolution.
But she had seen, even at that time, that beneath the shine of Punjab were monocultures of water
intensive crops, the chemicals that go along with, and ruin the fertile soil, So, after proclaiming that
Punjab was shining, by spoiling the fertility of its soil and depletion of ground water, we are now
proclaiming India Shining.
Dr Shiva added that this term is being used at a time when Multi National Corporation (MNC)
like Monsanto has been allowed to patent a variety of our wheat. RFSTE, through a writ petition filed
before the Supreme Court of India, had filed a case against the patenting of a variety of our basmati
and had been successful in making the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to revoke all but 3
of the 20 claims of patency for Basmati rice lines and grains which it had granted to an American
MNC Rice Tec Inc. Also RFSTE along with other groups had demanded withdrawal of the patent on
neem that had been granted to an MNC W.R. Grace by the European Patent Office.
Again, now, with Greenpeace and other organizations, RFSTE has challenged Monsanto in a
court at Munich Germany for patenting our wheat.
But the question is this, why should we, as citizens of India, have to challenge an MNC for
stealing our wheat, when it is actually the duty of the government to do so and protect our wheat.
But the government as if it is silently allowing MNCs to steal our wheat. Even the sacred river Ganga
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and its waters is being sold to an MNC Suez. So perhaps we should coin new terms, i.e., Coke
Shining and Monsanto Shining, since these companies will make enormous profits on our food and
water, which are our fundamental rights, and by stealing our biodiversity, which has been preserved
by our women through centuries she added.
Dr Shiva reminded the audience that Sikh Gurus had fought for welfare of the whole humanity
of the country. Punjab has traditionally been the state that has borne the brunt of invasions and
invasive policies, and has always provided protection to the rest of India. It was at Punjab that that
the first voice against rin (loan) was raised which then led to the formulation of the Land Alienation
Act, 1900, which clearly stated that no one can take away a farmers land, cattle and house and that
they belonged to him and him alone.
The legendary hard work of Punjabs farmers became the reason for Punjab to take a pioneering
role when Indias Green Revolution started. Punjabs farmers worked hard, experimented with new
seeds, and invested in fertilisers and pesticides. Punjab prospered and developed into the wheat bowl
of India. But in the process, a new story began to unfold.
In districts like Bhatinda, the water table has collapsed, water bodies are poisoned with chemicals,
the land has been degraded with excess pesticides, and yields are falling. Though Bhatinda was not
the best place to farm initially, being rocky and barren, farmers worked hard and ploughed the rocky
land, dump topsoil and infuse it with fertilisers. The barren land sprang to life and gave bountiful
wheat crops. But some years ago, a large number of farmers in Bhatinda moved out of growing wheat
and shift to cotton, as it was a cash crop with rich dividends. The first few years of the cotton crop
were good till the American bollworm attack came. Crops got destroyed. Panic stricken, the farmers,
through pesticide dealers, started pumping in huge amounts of pesticides. Initially the pests died but
then the pests developed immunity fast. Says Lal Singh, a cotton farmer in Bhatinda, Before 1990,
we had no problems. We used to earn well and so eat well and lived well. But after the pests came,
we saw hell. We had to spray throughout the year, and sometimes as many as 35 times. As the
pesticide was very expensive, we had to take loans.
In villages where pesticide use is high, health concerns are rising. Water in Bhatinda district is
no longer fit for drinking, due to toxity of water. The water in Harkishanpura has been certified unfit
for drinking by the government, but everyone continues to drink it, as there is no alternative. The water
was found to have high concentrates of chloride. Excessive use of pesticides has destroyed the topsoil
in many areas, and has crept into the water table, endangering the health of villagers.
Crops failed year after year and debts increased. Honor is a sacred word in Punjab. As moneylenders
came knocking doors, the proud farmers of Punjab could not hide their shame and hundreds committed
suicide. In village Harkishanpura, the village sarpanch passed a resolution and announced that the
village of about 125 families and spread over 1170 acres was up for sale. The reason was that not
a single house in this prosperous area was free of debt. Many have sold their land to be free of debt.
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It is a collapse of a dream, says Sukhminder singh, a cotton farmer and member, village panchayat
at Harkishanpura, We will end up as agricultural labourers. Our children have moved out to nearby
areas as casual labourers earning about Rs. 70 a day she added.
Farmers and labor working on farms claim they are being affected by use of pesticides. Burning
of eyes, skin rashes and itching, giddiness and fainting have been reported by labor after they have
sprayed in fields. Many families use the gunny bags and the attractive plastic containers of pesticides
to store foodstuffs, i.e., wheat flour, once the spray is over. Buckets used for mixing pesticides are used
to store drinking water. Consumption of pesticide residues, through food and water, weaken the
immune system and opens up the human body to various diseases.
Ms Usha Sharma, an advocate in Punjab and Haryana High Court also discussed the water
pollution due to pesticide. Recently, there have been several deaths from village Jajjal, and neighbouring
villages. A large number of people are suffering from cancer, kidney failure and ulcers. She demanded
that compensation must be given to those who died due to pollution. Quoting villagers, she said that
water has been proven to be the killer in the village, forcing the villagers to go to Talwandi Sabo, about
5 km from the village, to fetch clean water. Panchayat of Jajjal village has been writing to the
government to conduct an inquiry and has put aside land for a water treatment plant along with 1
lakh of rupees, the government has taken no action and only turned a deaf ear to the pleas.
Taking suo motu notice of the news item in Hindustan Times, March 18, 2004 that polluted
drinking water in Jajjal village of Bathinda district was causing serious cancer-like disease. The
Punjab and Haryana High Court has issued notice to the state of Punjab through the secretary (Public
Health Department), Secretary (Department of Rural Development and Panchayats), Bathinda Deputy
Commissioner and Gram Panchayat of the village.
We think that the constitutional safeguards provided in the Constitution prima facie stand
breached by the State of Punjab and its functionaries in relation to the residents of Jajjal village and
accordingly issue notice, remarked Hon able High Court.
Smt Darshan Kaur, from Fatehgarh Sahib, said that in a few years, the water level in her village
had gone down from 70 metres to 150 metres. This is causing great difficulty for the people.
Parveen Kaur from Amritsar talked about the problem of drinking water. In her village, handpump
water is below 250 ft. Poor like her cannot afford the kind of money (Rs 6000/-) to buy a pump. She
added, Without water in the morning hours, women cannot send their children to school.
Smt Kamla spoke about the water problem. For a tanker, the contractor charges Rs 400, which
the poor cannot pay. Sometimes in her area sewage gets mixed with the water supply. She blamed the
government for the pathetic condition of the farmers and the poor. We are forced to sign on Rs
2500/ - while we are getting only Rs 1200/-.
Or Bawa Singh, from Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI), Punjab Chapter, said that
since the last 40 years, there has been a drastic change in the lifestyles of people in Punjab. The
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government and MNCs selected special pockets in Punjab where labour was cheap in order to get more
food grain, even though water in those areas was less. The companies also made profit from the
farmers by selling them pesticides and fertilizers. Farmers were assured that they would have very good
output and a very rosy picture was painted. Farmers were not able to calculate what their income
would be. They built homes and bought goods, but they did not do this from their own bank balance,
but from bank loan. Another point that is to be noted that even though the interest on a FOR with
a bank is only 8%, the farmer had to pay 18% interest on loans taken from bank, and between 2440%
on loans taken from private money lenders.
Today majority of the farmers are indebted and committing suicides. To reduce the farmers
suicides, the bank rate must be reduced to the rate of fixed deposit. Moneylenders should not be
allowed to charge more than the bank rate. Government should have the facility to purchase the
agricultural produce of the farmers, which it promotes among them. For instance, government promoted
keenu in Punjab but there is no industry to purchase or consume keenu in the state.
Mr Nirpender Singh from Fazlika said, In big canals, the government has laid polythene to stop
the water seepage into the earth, which is lowering the water table in Punjab. As the water table is
going down and down, women are forced to travel long distances to collect water. Earlier the water
used to be sweet, but now it is bitter in taste. It is our rainwater that the government is giving through
the canal to another country (Pakistan), but the government does not hesitate to deprive the farmers
of Punjab of the water by lining it the with polythene.
Mr Nirpender Singh talked about the minimum support price MSP for sugarcane. This was earlier
fixed at Rs. 100/- per quintal, but the farmers are getting Rs. 70/per quintal. The balance Rs. 30/
- was the profit, the loss of which is badly affecting farmers. As a loss of this saving, the farmer like
him was compelled to take loan. Even though he was willing to put the papers of his land in the
custody of the bank for a very small amount of Rs. 3 lakh, yet he was refused the loan. Yet his brother,
who has a cloth shop, was sanctioned Rs. 6 lakh.
Shri Manmohan Sharma, from VHAI (Punjab Chapter) said Women suffered most from chemical
farming as they worked on farms and so are the first ones to come in direct contact with chemicals.
Causing it disorders of endocrine glands, cancer, asthma skin diseases and infertility. Studies reveal
that breast milk samples from Punjab contain pesticide. Even pesticide dealers, in spite of their
immediate gains, regret that excess of pesticide has damaged the soil of Punjab.
Shri Manmohan Sharma also talked about the contract farming in Punjab. Sangrur has become
the first district to introduce contract farming. According to Mr. Sharma, the contract has no legal
binding for the company, exploits the farmers.
The farmers are unaware of what is written in the lengthy documents, and usually sign without
being clearly told of the terms. The buy back cost of the produce by the company is never mentioned
in the contract.
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Ms. Rajinder Singh Brar, a woman farmer who belongs to Abohar, Fazilka, mentioned that no
male acknowledges the existence of female farmer; she is doing agriculture better than men farmers.
She has decided to change to organic farming. She said that women farmers have not received any
training in water management, by extension workers. Organic wheat grown by her received a much
lower price than the other wheat.
She explained how the contract farming is cheating the farmers due to absence of proper
contracts between them and the companies that have been mandated to carry out contract farming
in the state. A particular produce that fetched Rs. 8.50 per Kg in the market was paid only Rs. 3.5
per Kg. For the castor, the price is Rs. 1650 per Kg, but the company paid only Rs. 1000 per Kg. While
the cost of production is fixed by the manufacturer, but in the case of agriculture, the farmers do not
fix it.
She also talked about the water scarcity in her region. Moreover the water is alkaline. Being
a rich farmer, I can afford to pay the cost of 3 tankers per week, but poor farmers cannot afford it.
These poor women are busy throughout the day on collecting water.
She also added Government should start agro-processing, she demanded. She blamed the
male dominated society for the problems of women engaged in agriculture. Males have different
attitude towards women engaged in agriculture. It is difficult for males to digest the success of female
farmers. She gave the example of how the scientist in Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana,
did not cooperatewith her when she went to find out about the new varieties.
According to Dr Rajinder Pal Singh Auluck, agricultural scientist women are a part of every
gathering in Punjab, but the men never tried to improve their condition. He said, The growing
alternative crop replacing wheat or paddy is not the solution. Paddy and wheat are not the culprits,
but the technique being used is the culprit. A feedback shows that the contract farming is very
harmful to the farmer. When we give the negative feedback about the Bt cotton in Punjab, the Indian
representatives of Monsanto appear to be more worried and anxious than the foreign employee of the
company.
Dr. Singh stressed that women should take active part in decision-making. He gave the example
that when the wife is the sarpanch, it is only her husband who takes all the decision. Women sarpanch
should become more active and take the decision for her.
Ms Gurbax Kaur, head teacher of a school in Jalandhar said, Women should not use fruit
produced by chemicals. She also requested the audience not to use the tullu pump, as it blocks
water and deprives others.
Shri Darshan Singh Macchiwala discussed about the integrated and holistic approach in farming
adopted by him on his farm. Though he has passed only 7th standard, but he has achieved remarkable
success in making the best use of recycling techniques. Besides cultivation, he has a piggery, a poultry
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farm and fishing ponds; the wastes of one are being recycled as manure for the other. His technique
of organic farming has been widely acclaimed and he has helped others to replicate his model. The
successful alternative model, as has been developed by Shri Darshan Singh Macchiwala has been
acknowledged in Punjab as a Best Practice in Agriculture.
Dr Chanchal Gupta, Professor of Pharmacology at Deen Dayal Medical College had observed a
steep rise in diseases which are very likely linked to intake of unsafe foods which contain residues of
chemicals. She also said that plastics should not be used as it blocks the flow of water in pipes, drains,
and canals, and since plastics are non-biodegradable, they affect the productivity of the soil.
Shri Avtar Singh said, Agricultural scientists have encouraged farmers to use pesticides; whom
is causing water pollution.
Smt Sukhwinder Kaur Saini from District Ropar said, She and her neighbour farmers were sold
outside seeds and promised higher and better quality produce. However, the produce was of low
quality and could not be marketed. It was a trick by agents to sell seeds to innocent farmers without
any guarantee of quality, so that farmers are forced to buy seeds for the next crop. Women should
make it a point to save their own seed as they had been doing for years.
Dr S.N. Sewak, who was a jury member, said, we are shining only in corruption. We should
follow some policies to avoid desertification of Punjab. Women are not coming forward to take the
lead. When a woman becomes sarpanch, only the husband takes decisions. He said that the government
was ready to give Rs 1.5 lakh grant for open air theatre, but the woman sarpanch could not even
decide whether she could take the grant or not, and depended on her husband even for such a simple
decision.
According to the Alma Ata declaration, health care was to be provided to all by the year 2000.
National Health Policy had guaranteed that by the year 2000, health would be a fundamental right,
which may not be possible. Studies to become a doctor have become very high; it costs upto Rs 50
lakhs for medical studies, including post graduation, in some private colleges. Yet private medical
colleges are being promoted, and the government medical colleges are getting neglected and closing
down said Mr. Arun Mitra.
Dr Vandana Shiva closed the session by reminding the farmers, that the new international policy
has very little space for the farmers, and no place at all for the small farmers. In fact, In USA the
government says that only 2% of population need be farmers. The question then is, where will rest of
the farmers go? There is a big plan to finish off our small farmers and allow only a few big farmers
to exist, which will be controlled by MNCs. In fact, an Exit Clause of Farmers is written in the text
of WTG. But in India, small farmers have been and are the very basis of our agriculture. The government
should form policies that protect and encourage the farmers.
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2.4 BUNDELKHAND
Occupying almost 70,000 square kilometers of the central plains in India, the Bundelkhand
stretches over twelve districts of northern Madhya Pradesh (MP) and five districts of Southern Uttar
Pradesh (UP).
Located between the generally hot and humid dry continental climate of the west (Rajasthan),
the Bundelkhand generally experiences a semi-arid climate, though this is highly variable depending on
the time of year. Indeed, the area is known for experiencing droughts in summer and disastrous floods
during the monsoon.
On average, the region receives anywhere form 75 cm to 125 cm of rain each year. The dry
plains in the north usually receive less while the southeast benefits from more water. Daily temperatures
also fluctuate depending on the time of the year. Peak summer (may-June) brings excessively high
temperatures, often topping 40C as the hot, dry loo winds sweep in from the desert. During the winter
months (December - February) daytime temperatures are quite pleasant reaching highs between 16.5
C and 21c. Nighttime brings much cooler temperatures and frost has been known to occur on the
coldest evenings.
The Bundelkhand is drained by the Yamuna River system, itself one of the principal tributaries
of the Ganges. Due to this, drainage occurs principally from north to south, with some local variation
depending on topography. The main tributaries of the Yamuna are the Betwa, Ken, Baghain, Pahuj and
Dhasan Rivers, most of which are important sources of irrigation water. However, even more important
than rivers are the numerous small streams and nallahs that feed the larger rivers.
Both man-made and natural water bodies dot the countryside of Bundelkhand. These vary from
lakes and reservoirs to tanks and other water harvesting structures, and play an important role in
assuring water security in the region. The most well known are: Pahuj reservoir, Barwar sagar, Barwar
lake, Siaori lake, Pachawara lake, Dakwan and Parichha reservoirs, Arthar tal, Manikput tal, Majhgawan
tal, Bela tal and Rajpura sagar among others.
Grasses are predominant in the rocky plains and hills, particularly after the monsoon, although
scrub and brush species are also common where more water is available for their growth. Siari, katai,
gunj, bel and ghout trees provide some shelter in the normally open wastelands which characterize
the Bundelkhand region. These grasses and shrub species are important as fodder for cattle and have
economic value.
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Black soils, which are found mostly in the south of the region, are more water retentive and are
therefore preferred for wheat, gram and sugarcane cultivation. Covering only a small percentage of
the Bundelkhand, riverine soils are primarily formed by sand and clays. These soils are generally not
used for agriculture and are therefore not considered as an important soil in the region.
The impact of human activity on the region has until now been unsustainable. Even now, the
Bundelkhand is seen as a region suffering from acute ecological degradation, logging and mining
activities over the past several centuries have denuded the landscape and facilitated the erosion of the
fragile soils. Additional population and livestock pressures, which are already high, have only served
to aggravate the problem. Expanding ravine lands, especially in the northern area, are already threatening
local farmland and can have serious consequences on the socio-economic situation.
Access to abundant water resources has always been one of the major environmental concerns
in the region. Irregular rainfall has often led to either drought or flood conditions with consequent
effects on the natural and human environment. Increasing dependence on groundwater resources has
led to a lowering of the groundwater table in places where withdrawals have exceeded recharge. The
decline in groundwater levels has further undermined water security in the region and accelerated
desertification and erosion. In recent years water quality has also emerged as a principal environmental
concern. Erosion from marginal lands and agricultural fields has increased the sediment load in the
rivers and has already shortened the lifespan of many checkdams and water harvesting structures. The
growing use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, which until now has remained quite low, will also
affect water quality in the future.
The people of the Bundelkhand have remained both politically and economically separated from
the rest of India. As such the area has one of the lowest levels of economic and human development
in the country. Indeed, the remoteness of the region has prevented the development of basic infrastructure
such as roads, electricity, water and sanitation services, and telephone lines. The lack of these services
has only perpetuated the poverty cycle in the region.
According to current estimates, the human population of the Bundelkhand region is approximately
21 million. The present population is four times greater than in 1961, which indicates that the
population growth rate has remained high since the green revolution improved cropping practices and
ensured greater food security. In fact, historical data on population growth in the region shows that
population size over the past century has fluctuated widely due to the climate (floods and drought),
immigration from Pakistan and urban migration, and epidemics of cholera and influenza.
Bundelkhand is an agriculture-intensive region and therefore the majority of the populations are
rural and dispersed over the area. Nonetheless, increasing population pressures will force a greater
number to settle on marginal lands, which have previously remained abandoned. In addition, more and
more rural inhabitants are leaving their villages and migrating to the larger urban centers such as
Jhansi, Hamirpur and Banda. Recent rural migration data indicates a rate as high as 39% per year,
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Public Hearing held in Bundelkhand
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which is over three and a half times the national average of 11 %. Male rural out-migration is quite
common but nonetheless disruptive to the family social unit.
The majority work as farmers or agricultural labourers, occasionally supplementing their incomes
during the non-planting season working as day labourers or in small cottage industries. The regional
economy is almost exclusively based on agriculture, owing to the predominantly rural population and
lack of exploitable natural resources. Industry is mostly absent, save in the larger towns and cities such
as Jhansi. Statistics show that the ratio of working factories to 100,000 people is 1.6 in the Bundelkhand
versus 6.3 in the rest of Central India. Most of the non-agricultural economy is based on small
commercial ventures or the provision of basic services.
Agriculture plays an important role in the Bundelkhand economy. However, even this sector has
not been exploited to its full potential due to several factors. Poor soils and uncertain rainfall have
made agriculture difficult in many areas. Crop productivity is among the lowest in the country, and
even the value of agricultural production per hectare in the region is 1.4 times less than for Central
India. Frequent droughts and floods have destroyed crops and undermined social security as well, and
few farmers irrigate their lands. Perpetuating the cycle has been the poverty that has prevented many
farmers from switching to more efficient farming methods. As such, most of the agriculture is subsistence
and contributes little to the overall economy in the region.
Nonetheless, the principle crops in the Bundelkhand are cereals such as wheat, rice, and barley.
Cereals occupy the majority of the cropped area and are sown primarily during the rabi (winter/dry)
season. In addition, pulses, grams and oil seeds are also important crops. Fruits, vegetables, and fibres
are only secondary in importance and are localised to specific geographic areas. Mixed cropping is still
practised by farmers as a precautionary measure against crop failure but the method is encountered
less and less, particularly where there is access to irrigation.
The majority of the irrigated land receives water from later construction works such as the
canals built during the British Raj or the post-Independence Matatila, Lalitpur, and Sarpar dams. These
structures have done much to increase the irrigation potential of the region, but still only benefit a
third of the cultivable area. While the use of irrigation has improved the lot of many farmers in the
region, the widespread use of groundwater has severely affect_d the sustainability of this activity. In
a region that often suffers from weak monsoons and drought, recharge of the groundwater table is
limited. Over extraction bas already led to a decrease in the water table and if continued, will pose
a serious threat to water security in the region.
Public Hearing in Bundelkhand
The Jan Sunwayi was organised by RFSTE, Manviya Shiksha Sanstha, an organisation working
for farmers rights in Bundelkhand, and National Commission for Women. Both women and men of the
region Bundelkhand gathered in large numbers at Sri Vatika Garden at village Barokharkhurd. People
came from different areas viz. Chhattrerpur District, Mahoba, Lalitpur, Srinagar, Milathu gaon. About
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Victims of Rape at Bundelkhand Jan Sunwaiye
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750 participants attended the Jan Sunwayi. Prominent among the women who spoke were Smt Shobana
Srivastava, a prominent woman farmer, Smt Udheria Devi, Pradhan, Karbi Zila Panchayat, Smt Ram
Dulari, Chairperson, Mahoba Zila Panchayat, Smt Sonia, Pradhan, Khaptia village, Banda distt and Smt
Ram Devi, Member, Panchayat Chandwara Gaon, Banda distt (UP)
The jury consisted of Shri Radha Ram Bundela, the famous historian of the region, Dr lakshmi
Tripathi, Professor, Mahila Maha Vidyalaya, Smt saraswati, Director, Mahila Jagrati Manch, Karbi,
Sudha Chauhan, ex Chairperson, Banda Nagar Palika, Dr Bhartendu and Smt Shobana Shrivastava,
well known farmers of the region, Rakesh Aggarwal, correspondent E-TV, Shri Chanda Mohan Sahu,
a well known farmer, and Vandana Shiva, Director, RFSTE, Maya Jani, Director, Navdanya, and Hiti
Mahindroo, from Diverse Women for Diversity
Lack of water has made it difficult for women. The women complained of lack of water in their
households. For example Kunna Devi, from Barokher village said, There was no water in taps. Sheila
Devi, from Bidhipur gaon, talked about the poor sanitation system in her village during rains, the
sanitation water flowed into the houses. Shashi Singh from Zila Mahila Manch, Banda said, water
supply is only for 15 min to 30 min in a day. Since there is no electricity, so generators do not work.
She said that the Ken- Betwa river link, which is being planned by the government to take the water
from Ken away, will trouble the region even further, since the region is already water scarce.
Smt laxmi Tripathi said In Bundelkhand, women have no work except to collect drinking water
on their heads from long distance. The grim situation of water may best be illustrated by saying in
Bundelkhand, which is roughly translated, as let the husband die but the earthen pot of water should
not break. Instead of solving the water problem, the attempts of the government to link Ken to Betwa
is a disastrous mistake. Banda is entirely dependant on Ken river. If Ken is linked to Betwa, it will not
only affect Banda but would also jeopardise the survival of farmers who depend on the Ken.
The participants were extremely apprehensive of the drought like conditions that would prevail
in the aftermath of the Ken-Betwa river link and the desertification of the region as a consequence.
The farmers of the Ken region would be directly affected, with drying up of wells and lowering of the
water table. Said Ms Laxmi Tripathi, She added About 400 villages in Banda district will also be
affected, because there will be no water in the river during summer.
Said Smt Suman, Water is the biggest problem in almost every district of Bundelkhand, whether
it is Banda or Lalitpur. Despite the large number of dams in Bundelkhand, the queue for water before
a tap or a hand pump is a common sight during summer. Bundelkhand has sufficient rainfall, but
people have forgotten the conventional system of water conservation, causing a water crisis. For
instance, the old tanks in the Tikamgarh district are still operational and provide water to the people.
According to Smt Suman, the scenario is worst in Patha in Chitrakoot district where women have
to travel a long distance to collect water for drinking. Half of womens time is spent to travel long
distances to collect water, which affects their health and well-being of their children, and aggravates
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domestic problems. It has to be noted that the Patha Drinking Water Scheme was completed in 1973,
which has however failed to solve the problem, because 30% to 60% water does not reach the people.
In a village near Patha, there is only one hand pump, which is in use. In village Sakroha, only 3 out
of 13 hand pumps are in use, causing great distress to people.
Even today, in Bundelkhand, women play an equal role in agriculture. Agriculture is not considered
a commercial activity here. The women want to do farming of traditional crops, like their traditional
wheat, rice and pulses. But they are unable to find a market of their fine rice varieties, and the policy
of the state does not allow rices of the region, like Kanda and Katka, to go to other states, which is
not a favourable policy for women. The rice variety mushkin of the region is one of the finest
varieties, yet state does not allow the variety to be exported to other states. As the market for this
rice is not enough within the region, so this variety is in danger of getting lost. These traditional fine
rice varieties are not bought by the state, and neither are they allowed to sell them in other states.
These way farmers would tend to stop growing the traditional varieties, which would then get lost.
They discussed difficulties with other traditional crops also.
Smt Shashi Singh said that today agriculture in Bundelkhand is facing a crisis, as the government
is promoting genetically modified (GM) crops, which have increased by about 40% during 1996-2001.
GM crops need more water and more fertilisers, which may affect food, soil and water. As some soils
in Bundelkhand have micronutrient deficiency, she was worried about the adverse affects of use of
chemicals and GM crops in the region.
Shri Ramdeo Namdeo said that the areas consisting of black soil, away from the lakes have less
water. These having natural kheti. Bundelkhand was famous for its pulses, like moong, urad, kondo,
Sarna and chana. However, these pulses varieties are slowly finishing, as the seeds of these varieties
are not available. Now, the new wheat varieties are beginning to replace the traditional bio-diverse
crops.
The region between Jhansi and Tikamgarh, which includes Barua Sagar and Prithvipur, is a
region well known for its fresh vegetables, especially haldi, ginger, arbi and lauki, among others.
Women are the main farmers in this region. Women partake in all farming related activities, including
carrying vegetables to market, and selling the produce. Women said these vegetables should be
protected. They also said, as the region should be protected from outside influences, such as chemical
farming, which would spoil the bio-diverse nature of farming in the region.
The farmers are against chemical farming. They described how the soils of those farmers who
had used chemical fertilizers and pesticides, have become dependent on chemicals, and how the soil
now needs increasing amount of chemicals, which is proving to be very expensive for them. Most of
them have got into debt. Others complained that the farmers, who do very hard toil, are left with no
profit, whereas the traders who buy from them are making 100 fold profit. They demanded that
policies should be made farmer friendly, from the very first step of receiving reliable healthy seed, bank
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loans at a low rate of interest. More and more farmers are turning towards organic farming. During
the Jan Sunwayi, farmers shared with each other their experiences in chemical and organic farming.
A large number of women complained of ill treatment in their homes, which is a consequence
of decline in farmers incomes. Violence against women is growing at an alarming rate. A large
number of liquor vends have been allowed to be opened. Men are turning to liquor, which adds to
womens problems in a low-income household. We received a large number of written applications from
women, who are being harassed for dowry and ill treatment. They also suffer from malnutrition. The
women wanted the letters to be presented to NCW, as they are unable to come to Delhi themselves.
The women do not know where to turn for help. They are unable to file FIRs at police stations.
There are no women police officers at police stations. The women demanded that a woman constable/
officer be posted at the police stations in the region. Dowry cases and dowry-associated violence have
increased resulting dowry deaths and dowry suicide. Women present were very surprised when they
were told that at Delhi there existed Womens Cells at Police Stations. Most of the girls who came to
the meeting were victims of dowry related violence. Apart from filing FIRs at police stations, the old
fathers who had accompanied the girls to the meeting said that they are having difficulty of bearing
the burden of educating the grand children. The husbands families often remarry their sons. It is not
within the scope of the girls families to prove the second marriage, in order to file for divorce. Legal
action is not possible in most of the cases, due to lack of funds, and lack of proper guidance.
With legal aid or without it, violence on women continues. We are enclosing data on violence
against women from Banda and Bundelkhand. According to a survey carried out by Manav Shiksha
Sansthan, an NGO at Banda, whose members were present at the meeting, the reported dowry death
cases in Banda alone have shown a marked rise, as shown below:
Year Dowry deaths Rapes Molestation
1996-97 2 0 0
1997 -98 8 0 6
1998-99 5 2 23
2000-01 19 16 14
2001-02 17 14 6
2002-03 19 14 11
Total 80 46 60
In Bundelkhand, the reported cases (from a newspaper item) are as follows:
Year Dowry deaths Rapes Molestation
2000 109 87 33
2002 80 86 18
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Maiki, from Bhodiprva village, Bhuragarh, said that she had no employment and had 4 daughters
to feed. She wished she had some land for agriculture, and requested the government to provide her
with some work. The women complained that they were encouraged to participate in sterilization
schemes in return of a grant of land. For example, Shanti and Maikis husbands, from Godipur village
near Ken, were promised right to some land if they underwent sterilization. But after sterilization, they
were not given any land.
Women farmers are unable to get loans from banks, as they fail to provide any security to the
bank.
Smt. Gulshan Mahoura said that on death of her husband, villagers had helped her to repay part
of the loan; her husband had taken from the bank. She requested waiver of interest on loan amount
taken from the bank.
Landless women also discussed their problems. They complained that they had no property
rights, and demanded that their right to property be recognized. Widows also demanded right to
property. Widows complained that even though they were entitled to widow pension, yet they were not
receiving it, whereas those who were not entitled to widow pension were able to manipulate, by giving
bribes, and were taking pension.
Women of the region have traditionally been agro-processors. Shri Ramdeo Namdeo said that
agro-processing units in the region have all closed down. Earlier, women used to prepare gur, achaar,
van papad, soaps, herbal concoctor for common ailments rassi (rope) and baskets from kaans grass
and baans (bamboo). But now as the market is flooded with plastic rope and plastic baskets, women
have stopped making rope and baskets from the traditional grasses and bamboo, as they do not find
market for them. They do not find market for soap and herbal concoctor ether and paper either, so
they have stopped these activities also. On the whole, women have lost their incomes and livelihoods
in the agro-processing sector. But they want the revival of the agro-processing sector in the region,
as well as market for their produce.
Dr. Sahib Singh Shukla from Atara said in his region, OAP and urea was distributed free of cost,
which is overtaking traditional farming, but farmers should strive to save the soil by using gobar khad.
Sugarcane mills are closed. Dr Shukla said he would like to set up a kacchi dhani, which could cater
to 6-10 households. If other people also set up such dhanis, villagers could generate income for
themselves.
Smt Shobana Shrivastava, a successful woman farmer, encouraged women to carry on with their
work. She narrated some success stories of her village where women graze cattle and sell milk. She
said, help yourselves, and do not cry.
Common land belonging to villages, used for pastures for the cattle, has been given away as
patta to various people, so the villagers have nowhere to graze their cattle. Recovery of commons
is a dire need in the region so that women can again go back to rearing of livestock. Shri Ramdeo
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Namdeo said that loss of commons and pastureland has resulted that no cattle to be kept at homes.
Therefore, households do not have milk, and children are being deprived of a valuable food. It is not
profitable any more to keep cattle. Veterinary care for the cattle, in case needed, is not available. Till
a few years ago, it was possible to see about 500 cattle in each village, but now one can see only
about 10 cattle.
Shri Ramdeo Namdeo from Niwari, of Tikamgarh narrated: There are 1200 lakes and ponds in
Tikamgarh district, and most have been built by rajas as manta (as promised for fulfillment of wish)
for benefit of people. They have been built by locals using conventional techniques, and functioned till
today. They do not need much maintenance. There are thousands of baories in Bundelkhand. Earlier
they were looked after by communities but today most of them have gone into private hands. In areas,
which are not in private ownership, panchayats look after the maintenance of the baories. It is
important to educate the panchayats particularly women about the need to maintain the baories.
In many lakes, such as Bisagarh, Nandanwara Lake, Sindur Sagar, Gwalsagar and others, women
farmers have been growing kesru, surka, kama I dandi, and mumr in the lakes in the summer months,
and singham in winter months. Till recently the lakes provided livelihood to women fishers. Fish from
these lakes is today even being sent to West Bengal.
But now, fishing rights are given to big contractors. Women from communities that depended
on fishing as a livelihood are without work. Avdesh related how fishermen of the region had lost their
livelihoods due to government policy of giving fishing contracts to big contractors. Her fisherman
husband has now to do rickshaw pulling to earn a livelihood. Kamal, from Bharti Samaj Sangh, said
that for all the years, villagers had harmoniously fished in lakes, by rotation of days. The lakes were
a common resource for the benefit of the community. The rainwater fed the lakes, and the villagers
looked after the lakes for the benefit of all. But now the government auctions fishing rights to
outsiders.
Pinky Sahu, a handicapped girl who works with an NGO Viklant Kalyan Santh and makes
envelopes, special spice mixtures for a living, also demanded reservation of scholarships in educational
institutions for handicapped persons.
Alcohol related violence on women is on the rise. Shashi Singh, Vice President of Zila Mahila
Manch, banda, demanded that liquor vends be closed, which has caused havoc in all households.
Women get beaten up by drunken husbands and cannot complain. Now women are being forced to
raise their voice against alcoholism, and have become united to fight this issue she added.
Medina from Bodhipur said, It is the government that is responsible for getting us beaten by
giving licenses to sell liquor. Prabha Gupta, from Mangal Jyoti Sanstha, Banda said, 50% of loans
disbursed were for liquor booths. In Alia gaon land is being sold off as a result of debt into which men
have fallen due to alcoholism. There is no food in the homes of Alia village. All the women demanded
that all liquor shops be closed. The women also said that since credit cards had been introduced in
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the area, their lives had become very hard. The combination of easily available liquor and credit cards
had aggravated the problem.
Shri Avdesh said in fact, only smallholdings exist in Bundelkhand, and these are of no use. 31
departments that had to be transferred to the Panchayats have not been done so. Once this is done,
local governance will become stronger, and will benefit the local communities. He is very worried as
to the consequence if the Ken-Betwa river linking. He said, the river link will cause Ken to dry up, and
then what will happen to the women? The women shouted in unison, we will go dry, but Hamirpur zila
will flow away with floodwaters.
Dr Bhartendu, a successful farmer of the region, said, In Banda, we are lucky that wheat is still
being grown without chemical fertilisers, and is being sold at a high cost at Delhi. Let NGOs empower
women farmers to become successful at agroprocessing at home. Dr. Bhartendu was equally worried
about the consequences of the Ken Betwa river link. We would not allow Ken to be turned away from
us. All of us should sit together and make a yojna and form a sangathan to protect our agriculture
for our families.
At the end of of Jansunwai Shri Kamal from Barokherkhurd Block summarize the hearing.
1. Save the people from rin (loans). The bank interest on loans for farmers is too high and creates
misery for the farmers. In case of death of a farmer who has taken loan, the widow be exempted
from repayment of loan taken by the late husband.
2. Ken Betwa river link should not be allowed to make, as it will rob farmers of their livelihoods,
as well as create water scarcity in the region.
3. The traditional lakes, tanks and ponds in Bundelkhand, which are still functioning, should be
maintained properly, by the community and by the government, as these are a source of water,
food and livelihoods to a large number of people. Since these lakes, tanks and ponds are rainfed,
best practices should be replicated in water scarce areas, if possible.
4. There should be a separate law for women in the farming sector.
5. Chemical farming should not be encouraged. Traditional farming and traditional crops of the
area should be protected as well as promoted.
6. Agro-processing in the region should be revived, as it is a good source of income for women.
Market should be made for agro-products of the region.
7. Traders are grabbing common pasturelands, this should be stopped. Panchayats should try and
recover common pasturelands. Attempts should be made to green the region once again.
8. Fishing rights should be restored to locals and not auctioned to contractors.
9. Access to food is fundamental right; so all people should get food.
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10. All liquor vends should be closed down. Credit cards should not be distributed. The introduction
of credit cards and opening of liquor vends is a lethal combination.
11. Violence against women is growing at an alarming rate. Even though there have been dowry
related deaths, there are no women police officers, and legal aid cells in the region. Women have
great difficulty to register FIRs, as police personnel are uncooperative. More womens cells
should be opened at police stations, that women police officers be present at all times, and that
legal aid cells be opened, as well as be operational, in the region.
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3.1 RECOMMENDATIONS
On the basis of the research study undertaken on the impact of WTO on Women in Agriculture,
Diverse Women for Diversity has the following recommendations for the National Commission on
Women and the Government of India.
Towards a women centred agriculture policy:
a) Trade and technology policies must protect the livelihoods of women in agriculture. The Agreement
on Agriculture of the WTO (AOA) must be reviewed with a gender perspective.
b) Since it is womens collective knowledge and expertise embodied in seeds and biodiversity, there
should be no patents or IPR monopolies on seed. The TRIPS Agreement of WTO must be
reviewed from a gender perspective.
c) Womens work in agro processing is both an important source of livelihoods and important
source of safe and culturally diverse foods. Food safety laws designed to destroy household and
community based agro processing need to be changed. The sanitary and Phyto sanitary Agreement
of WTO (50S) must be reviewed with womens livelihoods and expertise of agro processing in
focus.
d) Agriculture and trade policy needs to be guided by the objectives of sustainability, livelihood and
income security, and food security. These objectives also serve the interests of women.
e) Organic farming needs to be promoted to increase womens productive roles in agriculture,
decrease health hazards from toxic chemicals and avoid the drain of scarce family incomes to
pay for unnecessary chemicals.
f) Livelihood and income security creates the imperative to protect agriculture from dumping of
artificially cheap subsidized products. These needs reintroduction of QRs (Quantitative Restrictions).
The right to countries to protect special products, and introduce special safeguard measures
must be used to protect the livelihoods and incomes of women in agriculture.
g) For a women centred food security model we proposed the following:
A truly woman centred decentralized democratic model of food procurement and distribution for
food security has to ensure:
q Food security at the household level;
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q Food security at the local level;
q Food security at the regional level;
q Food security at the national level;
The present food crisis is reflected in bursting godowns and starving people - a reflection of total
food insecurity at the household, local and regional levels.
A truly decentralized democratic model will put the foundation of national food security -
household food security - in womens hand.
State-Centered Model People-Centered Model
Which operates on the trickle- down theory that National food security is built on the basis of a
stocks in the FCI godowns Will actually meet genuine peoples food security even in remotest?
the food needs of the women, children, dalits, corners of the country.
landless and the most excluded people in the
country.
National food security National food security
Regional food security Regional food security
Local food security Local food security
Household food security Women-led household food security
Elements of Women-Centered Household food security
q High nutrition-per acre to increase nutritional security
q Internal input agricultural practice to reduce debt and expenditure on purchased inputs.
q Increased use of drought resistance varieties and crops to reduce ecological vulnerability. Organic
methods to improve soil moisture, conservation and reduce water demand.
q Diversity of crops to ensure balanced nutrition throughout the year.
q Use of farmer saved open pollinated varieties to reduce costs and improve adoption. Elements
of gram-sabha centred local level food security.
q Food security should be a central element of genuine decentralization of the food system. For
gram sabhas to be empowered to function as providers of food security, they need to
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q Establish community grain banks - Gram Annakosh
q Receive grants to procure locally so that local producers livelihoods are protected and hence
their food entitlement is protected.
q Local procurement reduces storage and transport costs.
q Local procurement provides culturally appropriate foods
q Use locally procured grain for all public food- related programmes and schemes like ICDS, Food
for Work Schemes, Anna Anthodia, Jawaharlal Rodger Yojana and other development programmes,
school mid-day meals, as well as in all other public sector institutions such as primary health
centers, district health centers, canteens, railways etc.
q In case surpluses exist after meeting local needs, village grain bank should sell to grain banks
of state and centre
q In case of scarcity and emergency, village grain banks receive from state and central grain
banks.
q Gram sabha has the right to develop a taxation system to raise complementary financial resources
for procurement and running the Gram Annakosh.
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Elements of Women and Food Security-centered Food Procurement and Distribution System.
Genuine surpluses exported at
fair price through state agencies
Centre procures from various states to
maintain buffer stock to ensure national
food security, and to provide food grain
for nutrition and food related schemes
at the national level and for those that
are directly under the Centre
State procures from the Gram Sabha
within it, to ensure regional food security
and to provide foodgrain for nutrition and
food related schemes at the regional and
district levels
Surplus sold to Kshetriva Annakosh Gram
Sabha procures locally to ensure food
security for the village, and to provide
foodgrain for nutrition and food related
schemes and programmes such as PDS,
ICDS, Food-for-Work programmes
Surplus sold to Gram Annakosh
Women-led household level food security
based on improving womens capacity to
grow and retain food.
This includes promotion of sustainable,
low external input agriculture.
Mahila Annakosh
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State level Food Security System - Kshetriya Annakosh
q States are empowered to procure regionally with the centre providing adequate financial resources
during the transition period.
q State policies include ability to raise complementary financial resources through taxation
q State governments procurer surpluses from Gram Sabhas.
q Kshetriya Annakosh provides food to Gram Sabhas in period of regional food scarcity and
emergency.
q Kshetriya Annakosh will provide food to all public institutions and schemes related to food such
as ICDS, PDS, Food-for-work schemes, state run hospitals, health centers and clinics, state
institution canteens including canteens of legislative assemblies; railways etc.
q State agricultural policies should be redirected from non-sustainable water-, and capital-intensive
food production systems to sustainable, water prudent, low input systems of food production.
National level Food Security System - Rashtriya Annakosh
y Maintain the FCI as the central institution of procurement during the transition to multilevel food
procurement system to ensure genuine decentralization and effective food security at household,
local, regional and national levels.
y Maintain the PDS system merging the BPL with the APL so that all peoples access to food is
protected.
y Develop, over 5 years, a multi-layered PDS system with responsibilities at each level matches
with rights and capacities at that level.
y Centre continues to fix a uniform minimum support price for food grains and ensures its
implementation, both for public and private procurement, so that internal dumping of food grain
does not occur, and farmers get a fair price.
y Revision of New Agricultural Policy to make it farmer-centered and food security centered rather
than corporation-centered by removing.
a) Contract farming
b) Incentives such as tax holidays, tax concessions, low lending rate etc to corporations for
taking over food system
c) Ban futures trading in food grains
y Policy should give priority to local production, local procurement and local processing.
y Removal of Farm-to Port clauses in EXIM policy and Zero excise duty for industrial agro processing.
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y Exports to be routed through state agencies after ensuring the existence of genuine surpluses
after ensuring domestic food security at the levels of the household; the village, the region and
the nation have been met.
y Imports only to be in periods of genuine scarcity.
y Remove restrictions on transport of food within the country by farmers rather than traders.
y New taxes on luxury consumption, corporations, increase in tariffs on agricultural imports and
exports to finance national food security system including financial resoures to be transferred
to state and Gram Sabhas.
y Maintain national buffer stocks.
y Bring back quantitative restriction on imports and exports of agricultural commodities and food
by using Art. 20 and 21 of the WTO Agreement on Agriculture.
y Negotiate for change in WTOs Agreement on Agriculture to ensure that livelihood and food
security boxes empower India to be exempted from trade liberalization rules of WTO in areas
of food and agriculture.
y Fix minimum retail price for essential commodities.
y Ensure labeling for food safety, including freedom from genetic engineering.
WTO Reforms for a Genuinely Decentralized Food System
The present rule of the WTO including its various treaties such as the AoA, TRIPS and GATS
undermine the Constitution of the country by threatening the fundamental right to food, the Panchayati
Raj Amendment and the federal structure of the Constitution.
The re-negotiated terms part of the citizens call for WTO : SINK TO SHRINK
The re-negotiation should include as part of creating a genuinely decentralized agenda for food
security system.
Agreement on Agriculture - The negotiations must reject the clauses on Market Access, removal
of Quantitative Restrictions on imports and exports and removal of subsidies to farmers and food
subsidies for consumers. Quantitative restrictions must be re-imposed on food and agricultural
items.
Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) - Food security is not possible without farmers
right to safe seed. Monopoly IPRs on seeds, plants and other life forms threaten farmers right
to safe seed and thus endanger food security.
Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement - The current dominant interpretation of the Agreement
allows the shutting up on safe foods on SPS grunds - such as banning freshly pressed low-cost,
healthy mustard oil, while allowing the introduction of hazardous foods - such as genetically
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engineered food products, meat products that increase health hazards and public health problems.
Each nation needs to develop its own national system that meets its national needs of safety
rather than being limited/directed by the present interpretation of the SPS.
General Agreement on Trade in Service (GATS) covers food distribution and water by ringing
both sectors under services. Thus it allows corporate takeover of essental commodities and vital
resources, without which it is not possible to survive. Food and Water cannot be brought under
GATS.
Recommendations from Jan Sunwais
It is strongly recommended that for social economic and political empowerment of rural women
in India the development managers must design their development programmers and activities by
considering not only men as farmers and women as farmers wives but as equal partners in development
process.
Policies should spell out specific legislation and programmes of action to entitle women to
productive assets, access to inputs (land, credit, water, fertilizer, seeds, information, technology and
training, etc.) access to markets and womens full membership in organizations.
Efforts to formulate sustainable development policies should recognize the impact of unsustainable
practices on women, especially in relation to food security and marginal groups (women, households
headed by women). Intra-household food allocation should be investigated and addressed if necessary.
Agricultural policies and technology must seek to eliminate drudgery, to improve economic
efficiency and wages for the time spent by women, and to militate against the displacement of female
labour.
Measures to increase productivity must be accompanied by policies to ensure commensurate
increase in incomes, wages and other benefits for women.
q The families of suicide victims should be treated in the same way as victims of natural disasters
such as earthquake.
q There must be a policy of crop insurance to mitigate the hardship due to crop failure.
q Guidance centre must be started to harmonize the functioning between banks/moneylenders and
the women farmers.
q Women should be increasingly involved in the decision making process in agriculture. Even when
the wife is Sarpanch, it is only her husband who takes all the decisions.
q Farmers particularly women farmers must be given loan at the nominal interest rate.
q Public Distribution System must be strengthened.
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q The indiscriminate use of pesticides should be stopped to avoid the health hazards like burning
of eyes, skin rashes, itching, giddiness.
q To help the faarmers, minimu support price shuld be fixed for cash crops and plantation sector,
as large number of women are involved.
q To enhance the income of women engaged in agriculture government should revive the agro-
processing sector.
q As women have always been on the fore print to save the seeds, they should raise against the
biopiracy and MNCs.
q Emphasis must be given on water harvesting and the seed varieties consuming less water.
q Awareness should be created among women involved in agriculture about the impact of globalization.
q Disparity in wages based on sex must be stopped.
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5. APPENDIX
5.1 Charter of the National Alliance for Womens Food Rights
Women and children suffer most when food rights are threatened therefore women and childrens
food rights must be at the center of our countrys concerns :
1. We women from diverse groups and organizations demand that our Food Rights as enacted in
the constitution be protected under any economic regime, and by all goverments.
2. We demand that the government immediately act through policy intervention to arrest rising
food prices and inflation, which are clearly linked to structural adjustment policies.
3. We call for the reintroduction of the essential commodities act service unregulated markets
create freedom for hoarders and black marketers and make the ordinary public victims of harsh
scarcities of essential commodities like food.
4. We call upon the government to strengthen the public distribution system (PDS). We demand on
expanded system, which will include many more essential commodities. We demand that ration
cards be given without hindrance to all those who require them. Food grains at half the price
of ration supplies must be supplied priority in the distribution of cheap food grains and other
essential commodities. Women should be given a special role in the running of these PDS
network and the community should be encouraged to play a bigger role. This is essential to
make a system more accountable and to prevent pilferage and black marketing. A multi-tried
system needs to be established consisting of; national grain banks in which the government must
play a stronger role, all the way to the micro level where community run and women run grain
banks become the basis for household food security and a community level public distribution
system.
5. We demand proper land use policy guidelines to prevent diversion of agricultural land for commercial
purposes including aquaculture and horticulture. Common land and panchayat land is being
handed over to commercial interests depriving the village poor of their use. We demand this
practice be stopped and that the genuine implementation of land reforms, and an immediate
halt to the removal of land ceiling laws and a stop to foreign direct investment (FDI) in agriculture.
The removal of land ceilings and the opening of FDI in agriculture is increasing the numbers of
landless and increasing the burden of the landless.
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6. Declining public investment and encouragement of the corporate sector in agriculture leaves the
farmers vulnerable to rural capitalists and multi-national corporations (MNCS). We call upon the
government to encourage public investment and restrict MNC investment in agriculture.
7. We women cal on the World Bank to stop the deliberate creation of hunger and malnutrition in
India through structural adjustment policies especially those forced on agriculture.
8. We demand safe and healthy food for all. We demand the Government ensures that our food
is free from chemical and non-chemical adulteration. Effective food safety provisions need to be
in place to prevent adulteration, thereby enabling the public access to safe and healthy foods
of our choice.
9. We out rightly reject genetically engineered foods. Genetically engineered foods are proving to
cause retarded growth and immune deficiencies. Since women and children are the worst victims
of malnutrition, health hazards due to the consumption of genetically engineered foods will be
most severely felt by poor women and children.
10. We call upon the government to immediately stop the license for free importation of 1 million
tonnes of soyabean (for our edible oil industry), which is not necessary from a point of view of
peoples food rights and will pose threat to livelihoods of farmers, a large section of whom are
women. It will also post a threat to women and childrens health since the government has failed
to take actions to ban the importation to genetically engineered Soya or demand the separation
and labelling of all genetically engineered foods.
11. We demand a halt to the use of imported food and unsafe food for welfare schemes such as
the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) Mid day Meal programmed, in which such
foods as pre-processed corn blend is being used extensively. Not only is such imported food
hazardous to our health due to the use of genetically engineered Soya, but also our local,
nutrient-high cereal and grain economy is being marginalized to support resource intensive
production systems of the developed countries.
12. The government price support system must be reoriented to ensure the meeting of basics food
needs for women and children. We call upon the government to increase procurement prices to
staple foods especially those of millets and legumes, in order to encourage farmers to return to
growing essential food crops. Non-food crops (for example, cotton, tobacco and jute) cultivated,
as raw materials for industries should have no government procurement prices since industries
can directly pay remunerative prices to farmers.
13. Women have always played an important role in the production and processing of food. Cottage
and small industries income are being taken over by MNCs and big business companies encouraged
by the government. Apart from destroying womens livelihoods, this also leads to the flooding
of the market with expensive, unhealthy junk food. Food resources are being diverted on a large
scale to this elite consumer market, creating scarcity for households and rising price rises. We
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demand that food processing should be reserved for the small-scale sector. Such a reservation
of the food processing industry for the small scale sector would be consistent with WTO requirements
of national treatment, since we would be treating domestic industries in the same ways as MNCs
by excluding both from entry into the food processing industry.
14. We call upon the government to restrict and ban all exports of essential food till all the fed. We
demand that the food needs of women and children of this country are met first, and only the
surpluses from meeting this need should be used for trade exports. Instead of women eating last
and least relying on the leftovers for this sustenance, we demand that global trade be left with
the leftovers only after the food rights of all within the country are met. The government needs
to maintain vigilant monitoring of production, consumption and the food needs of all.
5.2 Women as Knowledge Keepers and Custodians of Cultural Diversity
Nature has given us abundance; womens indigenous knowledge of biodiversity, agriculture and
nutrition has built on that abundance to create more from less, to create growth through sharing.
Women farmers share seeds freely and with sharing as a base, there can never be scarcity.
The giving and sharing of food in abundance has been the basis of ensuring food security.
The giving and sharing of knowledge has been the basis of the growth and evolution of knowledge.
An economy of sharing is an economy of abundance.
This worldview of abundance is based on sharing and on a deep awareness of human as
members of the earth family. This awareness that in impoverishing other beings, we nourish
ourselves is part of our present ecological knowledge and ancient wisdom.
Without giving and sharing there can be no sustainability; with our sustainability, there can be
no space.
Diverse Women for Diversity (DWD) movement celebrates sharing for sustainability and peace
through food festivals, exposure tours, training programmes in biodiversity conservation, sustainable
agriculture, indigenous healing systems, water conservation, capacity building for leadership and
good governance.
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IMPACT OF WTO
ON WOMEN
IN AGRICULTURE
By
RESEARCH FOUNDATION
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
NEW DELHI
NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR WOMEN
NEW DELHI
Contents
Foreword (i)
Preface (iii)
PART - I : OVERVIEW
1.1 Agriculture Sector in India 1
1.2 Women in Indian Agriculture 9
1.3 Impact of WTO on Women 35
1.4 Impact of Agreement on Agriculture and Trade Liberalization of Agriculture on Women 77
PART - II : CASE STUDIES AND JAN SUNWAIS
2.1 Karnataka 119
2.2 West Bengal 139
2.3 Punjab 161
2.4 Bundelkhand 177
3. Recommendations 189
4. Reference 197
5. Appendix 203
FOREWORD
WTO agreements have been at the centre of national and international debates since the
Uruguay Round of GATT and the establishment of W.T.O. on 1.1.1995.
In the decade that has gone by, two ministerial level meetings of W.T.O have collapsed,
in Seattle in 1999 and in Cancun in 2003. Agriculture was at the core of the disagreements
that led to the collapse. The Agreement on Agriculture has now been
recognized as being unequal and unfair, with subsidies growing in the
rich North, these subsidies being used for dumping artificially cheap
products on the poor South, destroying livelihoods and incomes.
Most farm operations in India are women-centred. Food security
depends on womens work, womens knowledge, womens skills in seed
saving, in agricultural production, in food processing, in local marketing,
in cooking. Women are the providers of food, and custodians of the
heritage of biodiversity of crops and cultural diversity of food.
Womens status, power, relevance is, therefore, being impacted by
W.T.O rules at every level of the food chain. The Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights
Agreement is transferring control over knowledge of seed and biodiversity from rural women
to global corporations. The cases of the bio-piracy of Neem, Basmati, and wheat are not just
cases of attempts to transfer the heritage of the South to the North. They are cases of
usurping the knowledge and expertise of women. The industrialized corporatised agriculture
promoted by the Agreement on Agriculture is robbing women of livelihoods in food production
and food processing.
Losses of incomes under conditions of poverty translate into the loss of life and dignity.
The Rs.1 trillion annual losses suffered by rural producers due to globalisation of agriculture
are not just a financial loss they are leading to a human tragedy.
This study and public hearings commissioned by the National Commission for Women
and carried out by the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, through its
gender programme, Diverse Women for Diversity, is the first assessment of the gender impact
of W.T.O and the globalisation of agriculture.
(i)
The public hearings organized in four regions of India Punjab, Bengal, Bundelkhand, Karnataka-
have allowed rural womnen to speak for themselves. And the women have shown how the impact of
W.T.O is not just economic loss of livelihoods and rural income. These economic impacts translate
into a social crisis. Rising costs of production and declining prices are leading to debt; unpayable debt
is forcing farmers to commit suicides, and women farmers are left to look after their children, without
land, without assets, which have gone in paying the farm debt. As livelihoods disappear, women are
being increasingly pushed to become victims of trafficking. And women and children face the harshest
consequences of the collapse of the food security systems.
Globalisation has increased the violence against women in all its forms economic, political,
and physical. The worst violence is expressed in the growing trends of female foeticide in high
economic growth regions.
The women have spoken. It is now the turn of policy makers to listen and formulate policy to
protect the livelihood, dignity and the very right to life of women. The lives of women need to enter
the calculus of economic growth. If 8% growth translates into 8% women disappearing, is our society
richer or poorer? Are we more developed or more under developed?
The report on the Impact of W.T.O on Women in Agriculture is a wake up call to the nation.
We are deep in an agrarian crisis. And rural women are the worst victims. But they are also at the
cutting edge in creating alternatives that generate rural employment, protect bio-diversity, promote
healthy, nutritious, culturally diverse food systems. Women when organized are determined to keep
food security in their hands to defend the nations food security.
POORNIMA ADVANI
Place : New Delhi Chairperson
Date : January, 2005 National Commission for Women
(ii)
PREFACE
Diverse Women for Diversity, the gender programme of the Research Foundatin of Science,
Technology and Ecology, carried out a study on Impact of W.T.O. on Women in Agriculture for the
National Commission for Women. The research study was combined with Jan Sunwais in Punjab, West
Bengal, Karnataka and Bundelkhand to provide a platform for the voices of the rural women, and
hence the impact directly from them.
The objective of the study was do a gender sensitive analysis of the impact of W.T.O. on Women
in Agriculture, and on the basis of the Jan Sunwais and research analysis, involve a gender sensitive
trade and agricultural policy. The Jan Sunwais was organized to hear the voices of local women on
the problems they are facing due to :
(i) Shifts of knowledge and control over seed and biodiversity from women to global corporations.
(ii) Trade liberalization of agriculture leading to loss of livelihood, womens employment and entitlement
and hunger.
The Jan Sunwais also gave platforms for women to suggest alternatives that would improve
livelihood and food security and strengthen decision making in agriculture.
Diverse Women for Diversity is happy to present the report of the study and Jan Sunwais as
Impact of W.T.O. on Women in Agriculture.
Dr. Vandana Shiva
Founder
Diverse Women for Diversity
(iii)
Women Fight Police during
the Tebhaga Movement when
the slogan was
Jan Deba, Ddhan Debo na
(we will give our lives, but will not give our rice)
PART - I
AN OVERVIEW
Trend Wars
Dejan Milojicic
Internet technology
Hewlett Packard Laboratories
1501 Page Mill Rd., MS 1U-14
Palo Alto, CA 94304
dejan@hpl.hp.com
As we’ve all seen, Internet technol- will the changes stop? Web. There, I also do spell checking,
ogy has become a dominant factor in On a different front, much of today’s follow my favorite basketball teams on
business, academia, and everyday life. research revolves around the Internet. the NBA’s Web site, and buy books
E-commerce and e-services are fueling Networking teams explore how to and computers at Amazon.com and
a market sea change, with practically bring big pipes that last mile to homes, buy.com among many other sites.
any business anyplace nurturing its while others explore operating systems WebVan offers groceries online in the
equivalent on the Internet. The change within the context of Web servers or San Francisco Bay area and other com-
began with advertisements and news, look to agent technology for help with panies offer clothing. “If it is not on out
followed by entertainment (with music Web interfaces and search techniques. on the Internet, it ain’t there” :-).
and movies) and traditional businesses, Internet research has made itself felt Unfortunately, the Internet has also
such as retail sales, financing, broker- most profoundly through startups. A opened some dark doors, including
age, and auctions. Now, entirely new number of university research projects privacy invasion, pornography, and
businesses and services are created on ended up in products coming from information abuse, to name a few—
and for the Internet. As a consequence, startups, usually as products for the problems that existed in the presence
Internet service providers and applica- Web, such as Akamai or Inktomi. The of traditional technologies and that
tion service providers have created a open-source community is another rel- will have to be fought with traditional
revolutionary new model for driving evant factor in this arena, while the and new ways.
new applications, hardware, and soft- Linux operating system and Apache In this installment, we feature some
ware development. Web server are the most widely repre- of the people who have brought the
More globally, the recent AOL– sented systems in Web serving. Internet technical revolution to you:
Time-Warner merger revolutionizes The Internet’s impact on everyday Erik Brewer of Inktomi and the Uni-
our perception of future business, mak- life is also fascinating. The other day, versity of California at Berkeley, Fred
ing us all wonder who will dominate my wife and I received a Web greeting Douglis of AT&T Labs–Research,
tomorrow’s businesses. If an Internet card through Yahoo—animated, too! Peter Druschel of Rice University, Gary
company that was lightly regarded—if It is much easier to reach me by e-mail Herman of HP Labs, Franklin Reynolds
not ridiculed and abused for its poor than by phone. Like most of my col- of Nokia, and Munindar Singh of North
service just a few years ago—can buy leagues, I do not search for academic Carolina State University.
one of the pre-Internet giants, where papers in libraries, but rather on the —Dejan Milojicic
Eric Brewer that it was a big advantage to post my resume, even though not
all my interviewers knew how to use the Web. In fact, I remem-
What were the decisive turning points for ber giving a talk at MIT where I tried to convince other stu-
Internet and Web technology to become ubiqui- dents to use the Web before they went out and interviewed,
tous and pervasive? because it would be an advantage to have some experience with
For me, the turning point for the Internet it and because I felt it made it easier for the interviewers to fig-
was simply seeing lots of people have e-mail ure out what it is the interviewee does.
access. When I think about the turning point for the Web, I Back then, the Web was a mixture of very formal things, like
remember when I interviewed for a job in 1994 and I realized technical specifications, and informal things like people’s home
70 IEEE Concurrency
Internet technology questions
1. In retrospect, what were the decisive turning points
for Internet and WWW technology to become
ubiquitous and pervasive?
2. What are the next likely disruptive technologies in
Internet space that might make new marks in the
pages. And of course, the need for a search engine was pretty way we live and work?
obvious early on, given the Web’s kind of wonderful anarchy. 3. What are the most important technologies that
I also felt that although you could find things if people told you will determine the future Internet’s speed and
where they were, that was about the only way to find them. I direction?
felt automated search was fundamental to the Web’s long-term 4. Where do you see the roles of industry, startups,
success. research labs, universities, “open source” compa-
nies, and standard organizations in shaping the
What are the next likely disruptive technologies in Internet space that future Internet?
might make new marks in the way we live and work? 5. What will be the major application areas dominat-
The first is definitely wireless technology. I’ve spent a lot of ing the Web?
the past five years working on wireless communications. Not 6. What is the most controversial and unpredictable
so much the wireless part, but the services part. I’m a big fan technology in the Internet space?
of any device that has access, and usually that means wireless
access, just for ease of use. I’m also a big fan of any kind of
physical integration with the Internet. It takes a lot of forms,
and FedEx uses one of the key ones: tracking. You can use the esting to me because that storage is transient. It doesn’t really
Internet to check where your FedEx package is anywhere along belong to anyone in particular. I like the notion that if I have
its route. That’s a nice integration of the physical world with storage in the network, I can access that storage from any-
the virtual world. I think there’s a lot more of that coming. where, using the always-on principle. That’s why I expect most
People talk about more esoteric things like robots, but I actu- data over time to migrate into the infrastructure—because it’s
ally think simple things such as sensors will become common. more reliable, more available, accessible from anywhere, and
I like being able to check the traffic on the freeway using a probably cheaper.
camera so that I know first-hand how the traffic is, much more
than trying to wait 10 minutes for the radio report to come on, Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs,
which might or might not tell me what I want to know. universities, open-source companies, and standards organizations in
shaping the Internet’s future?
So you see more physical and real-world integrations? I think universities have to work on a much longer horizon,
Exactly. It would be nice if my stereo volume would go down because a startup or an industry development group or indus-
when the phone rings. That’s relatively easy to do technically, try research group will do anything that’s on a short horizon
but that integration is nonexistent, or at least rare, in the present better and faster. Startups, though, rely on timing. It might be
day. And even other kinds of physical integration such as Web- that most startups fail because they’re too early for the tech-
van, which is essentially Internet ordering and physical deliv- nology, not because they’re too late. And though it’s fine for
ery. It’s a simple but very powerful combination. I’d like it to be the university to be too early, it’s bad for a startup to be too
a lot less obvious where the virtual world ends and the physical early. For example, the Apple Newton was too early. It was a
world starts. I feel like that this will be a major transition for the good idea in many ways—it even has some nice properties that
next five years, and maybe one of the most rewarding. are still not in the Palm Pilot—but their timing was off. So
startups are about timing, and research labs are about having
What are the most important technologies that will determine the a vision that exists five years or farther out. And even if they
speed and the direction of the Internet’s future? don’t achieve that vision, they should find lots of interesting
Most people take fast networking for granted. I actually things along the way.
think it’s more important to be continuously connected. So
the reason I like DSL is not so much that it’s faster, but because Do you see long-term opportunities for open-source companies?
it’s always on. And one of the reasons I like wireless technol- Absolutely. Most of the stuff we’re doing at Berkeley has
ogy is again, because it gives me access from any location at been and will continue to use some flavor of open source. Cer-
any time. The always-on principle is probably the most impor- tainly large parts of Unix generally fit that model. I like it
tant thing that will push the Internet, because it will change because it’s about cooperation for the benefit of many people.
the way people interact with it. And to the extent that I believe there’s a lot of value in oper-
ating systems and in packaging systems that are robust, there
What about storage? Many people bring up storage as an important will continue to be lots of room to add value for companies,
factor. even if their source code is public or if their source code
One of the most interesting changes on the Internet in the belonged to somebody else originally.
past few years has been the deployment of an incredible num-
ber of caches, which are essentially storage at the edge of the What major applications will dominate the Web’s future?
network to make the network faster and more reliable. It’s Finding information will continue to be the most common
been, I think, wildly successful as a technology. But it’s inter- application. Variations of that will certainly be important;
January–March 2000 71
e-commerce is essentially about finding information about prod-
ucts for businesses rather than for consumers. Communication Fred Douglis
will also dominate the Web’s future, including instant messag-
ing and chat. It’s remarkable how many more people at Berke- In retrospect, what were the decisive turning
ley use instant messaging than people at companies do. So I think points for Internet and WWW technology to
in some sense its impact is still on the way, even though some- become ubiquitous and pervasive?
thing close to 40 million people use it already. Those classes of I think everybody agrees that Mosaic was
things—chat, instant messages, group white boards, group con- the point at which the Internet went from
ferencing—are really going to be key application areas. being largely a research tool to being something that was used
by the masses, because it provided a nice GUI and a way to get
What is the most controversial and unpredictable technology in the all the graphics that simple text and HTML didn’t have.
Internet space?
I’m going to go out on a limb and say it’s voice over IP—in What are the next likely disruptive technologies in Internet space
part because I think it’s not well defined. The notion that you that might make new marks in the way we live and work (agent
can use packets to send voice I completely believe in, but the technology, voice/text recognition, wireless, ...)?
idea that you can do that and maintain the tight latency bounds I think that Mark Weiser had it right; it’s a shame he passed
that two-way voice requires means that you have to have a away before he could see his vision realized. His vision of
much more controlled environment than the public Internet. “ubiquitous computing” is finally at a point where we’re see-
So voice over IP I believe literally; voice over the Internet I’m ing it actually happening. We’re seeing big companies like
much more skeptical about. I think a lot of the trouble in that IBM put a large effort behind it—what they call “pervasive
area will come from the fact that people aren’t distinguishing computing.” The requirements for ubiquitous computing,
IP versus public Internet. It’s not the most controversial topic, which are the cost model and the connectivity model, are such
but I certainly think it will be slower to come than people think. that everybody will have these computers in their homes. Voice
and text recognition is another issue as far as ubiquitous access
What do you think about privacy? to computers. I’m hearing from people in AT&T Labs that
I’ve been working in the privacy and security area as a speech recognition and speech synthesis are much more nat-
researcher for several years now, and I believe that we should ural than before: the ability to interact with the computer in a
have a range of security and privacy options. This comes down kind of Star Trek mode is something else we’ll see soon. And
to a need for an anonymous or pseudo-anonymous infrastruc- that, too, is going to make a huge difference, because if you
ture, which hasn’t really arrived yet. More importantly, it can walk up to your computer and talk to it, then that brings
speaks for a need for very explicit rules or at least disclosure in another level of ubiquity.
about what companies can do with the information they have
about you. Most of that doesn’t exist yet, and in the sense that What are the most important technologies to determine the Internet’s
it does exist, it’s voluntary. future?
A privacy policy is a good start, but I don’t think it’s even Number one is broadband access to the home. Among my
clear what kinds of privacy policies there are, what classes they coworkers, virtually everybody has a cable modem if they’re in
fit into, and what is and isn’t acceptable behavior. There’s also an area that’s served by cable modems. If they’re not, then they
a notion that there is a fundamental right to privacy, and it have ISDN or DSL. One of the heads of the Yankee Group who
might extend quite well into the digital world. For example, if spoke in front of AT&T about a year ago said, “Once you have
I have data that I view as private, and I put it somewhere, and a cable modem, you’d sooner give up your firstborn child than
it’s encrypted, is it subpoenable? Does the government have a lose it.” I use that quote because it’s exactly what happened to me:
right to anything I store digitally? I’d like the answer to be I moved from an area where I had a cable modem to an area
“no” for the same reason that I think the things in my brain where one wasn’t available, and I’ve been suffering for the last
that I haven’t written down yet are also inaccessible. This is a 10 months. I’m not giving up any of my children, thank you, but
social discussion that’ll take place over the course of the next it really does revolutionize how you use the computer and the
decade, and it might have different answers in different cul- Internet from home. High-speed access also means both new
tures, which will be one of the interesting things to watch. applications and an ever-increasing load on networks and servers.
Eric A. Brewer is an assistant professor at the University of California,
Berkeley in the Department of Computer Science. He cofounded Inktomi What about wireless? Are there any hard limits that could be crossed
Corporation in 1996, and is currently its chief scientist. He received his BS to provide a qualitatively better way of doing something?
in computer science from UC Berkeley, and his MS and PhD from MIT. It’s all gradual. I don’t think there’s a threshold that we’re
He is a Sloan Fellow, an Okawa Fellow, and a member of Technology
coming up to, except for certainly the distinction between the
Review’s TR100, Computer Reseller News’ Top 25 Executives, Forbes
“E-gang,” and the Global Economic Forum’s Global Leaders for Tomor- POTS [Plain Old Telephone Service] line and anything else—
row. Contact him at 623 Soda Hall, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720- when you jump from a POTS line to a cable modem or DSL
1776; brewer@cs.berkeley.edu; www.inktomi.com. or something. There’s work on other things, like 3G, which are
72 IEEE Concurrency
attempts to make wireless connectivity available with the kind of Internet telephony, is becoming more and more competi-
of access that would give you, let’s say, multimedia when you’re tive, and the big phone companies are all making much less
in the field—but that’s down the road. money at it. Of course, the costs are going down, too. Inter-
net telephony was not even really on AT&T’s radar for some
Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs, time. Now AT&T, like everybody else, is moving to support
universities, open source companies, and standards organizations in it. In the end, telephony will be just one of a number of Inter-
shaping the future Internet? net services that we’ll support, but certainly long distance as a
It’s clear that startups are driving a lot of what’s happening money maker will have much less of an impact for AT&T and
right now. We’re seeing companies such as Akamai come in for the other big phone companies. Already, data dominates
and have an enormous impact in a particular market in record voice traffic on our networks.
time—and the time from startup to IPO is getting shorter and
shorter. We see this in lots of different areas, where start-ups What about charges on the Internet—for example, for anything
are taking the roles that industrial research labs and academia including Internet telephony or any other applications?
basically had to themselves until recently. I’ve questioned for a long time the model that everybody gets
This also means that start-ups are providing a lot of competi- a sort of fixed pipe, where the end users don’t pay based on what
tion to these environments in terms of recruiting the best talent. they do, but instead go on a flat rate. Ultimately there will be
It doesn’t mean that industrial research labs and academic depart- charges to give end users the best performance. You could sign
ments don’t still offer a lot and attract good people, because they up with some other network that charges you a little bit more but
do, but it’s different. Start-ups tend to offer more immediate real- gives you better guarantees. We see this already, to some extent,
world impact, while labs and universities because at the ISP level there are settle-
have more freedom to do long-term ment charges and things when there’s an
research. incompatibility between how much traf-
fic one ISP is sending to another. But that
What about open-source companies?
I question the model doesn’t tend to affect the end users.
I guess the biggest example of this is that everybody gets a
Netscape, which decided to make its fixed pipe, where the How do you perceive security? What do you
browser open source. There was a long end users don’t pay think will happen in the future with the right
time when people had to basically write to privacy and governmental intrusion?
their own browser or use a very old ver- based on what they Advertising is driving much of what’s
sion of Mosaic if they wanted a browser do, but instead go on happening on the net right now. For
that they could modify in some fashion a flat rate. advertising to work, it needs some infor-
to, let’s say, record traces or add some mation about individual users. The idea
new functionality. So having Mozilla be is that when I go to a Web site, a com-
open-sourced is wonderful for the Internet community. pany can make much more money if it can tailor its advertise-
It doesn’t, however, seem like Netscape’s being open-source ments to me. At the same time, I really don’t like the fact that
has taken off in the same way as Linux. But even Linux is still people know all this stuff about me. There are special tools that
a bit player in comparison to Windows, which is unfortunate. intercept and anonymize cookies to try to keep people from
We’re finally starting to see some cross-platform compatibil- finding out many of the details about a given person. There are
ity between the two with things such as Star Office and also standards evolving regarding the guarantees a particular
VMware, which will let you run Windows applications on content provider can make as far as the privacy of the informa-
Linux at a penalty. But that’s a relatively recent development. tion provided to them.
The tension between all these companies throwing money
What major application areas will dominate the Web in the future? at this, and a lot of these sites and the services that we have
I’m sure that there will be new applications down the road, right now, wouldn’t exist without advertising money. But as
but for the foreseeable future, today’s applications are the same the tools evolve to separate that out—for example, eliminating
as future applications—e-commerce, pornography, interactive advertisements completely—costs could rise. It’s just like tele-
chat rooms, and games strike me as the big ones. As bandwidth vision, where it’s possible to have a VCR that skips over adver-
to the end users—home users as opposed to corporate users— tisements. If commercials aren’t being recorded, and if that
increases, then interactive video will certainly become more becomes the norm rather than the exception, then the com-
commonplace. And other sorts of things such as Internet tele- panies paying for commercials right now and providing broad-
phony will become the norm as opposed to the exception. cast or cable television would stop paying, moving us to a
model where everything would be by subscription.
How would Internet telephony impact big phone companies such as It’s the same thing for Internet services. One model is that you
yours? go to a search engine and it shows you a bunch of ads while
It’s clear that the long-distance market, excluding the impact answering questions, and you don’t pay anything. Another model
January–March 2000 73
is that it doesn’t show you a bunch of these ads, but you have to erful technology, reducing it to intuitive user paradigms. That’s
pay five dollars a month for the privilege of using the site. essentially what enabled the Web. As a community, we don’t
have a good record in realizing that. For us, the command line
In other words, advertisements are a good thing, as long as they are interface was good enough. In retrospect, most people would
controlled? agree it was inconvenient, but at the time there was not enough
Right now, because they’re driving so much of this, they’re of a driving force for us to make it more usable. We just didn’t
a necessary evil to some. What I was trying to get at was that see the enormous opportunity behind that.
banner ads appeared sporadically, started becoming com-
monplace a few years ago, and are now ubiquitous. Because What are the next likely disruptive technologies in the Internet space
they’ve enabled so many things that people otherwise wouldn’t that might make new marks on the way we live and work?
have the time and money to support, they’ve actually done us These kinds of things are extremely difficult to predict, but
all a great service. So we need a way to manage them. it is probably going to be paradigms and technologies that
I don’t have a problem with banner ads when they’re useful. make a dramatic difference in the usability and the ease of con-
To make them more useful, you need information about the figuring and maintaining existing information technology.
people to whom you’re providing them. The more you cus- Agent technology and voice recognition and synthesis all have
tomize the ads, the more you base them on what it is that the strong potential. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if core tech-
Internet users are doing, and the more sensitized people are nologies came out of this space that mark a turning point in
to the question of the lack of privacy. There are lots of people the Internet.
who are working specifically in this area, but I’m not one of
them. I think you could have a whole separate round table on What are the most important technologies that will determine the
the merits of privacy and how it contrasts speed and the way of the Internet future, for
with what the providers are doing. But I example, fast networking, user interfaces,
think it’s certainly of crucial importance computer power (speed/memory/storage),
to the evolution of the Internet. Making the technology and so on?
truly ubiquitous in all Fast networking, user interfaces, and
Fred Douglis is the head of the Distributed Sys-
parts of the world is computer power are clearly going to
tems Research Department at AT&T Labs–
Research. He has taught distributed computing at make a big difference and will play key
Princeton University and the Vrije Universiteit,
going to be an import- roles in enabling future progress. How-
Amsterdam. He has published several papers in ant part in achieving ever, I don’t think that these things will,
the area of World Wide Web performance and is
responsible for the AT&T Internet Difference
broad coverage. in and of themselves, bring about land-
Engine, a tool for tracking and viewing changes
mark changes. Such changes must come
to resources on the Web. He chaired the 1998 from new paradigms that can dramati-
Usenix Technical Conference and 1999 Usenix Symposium on Internet- cally change or increase the availability and usability of exist-
working Technologies and Systems, and is program cochair of the 2001 ing technology. A few examples are automatic configuration
Symposium on Applications and the Internet (SAINT). He has a PhD in
of ad hoc networks, speech recognition and synthesis, and tech-
computer science from the University of California, Berkeley. Contact him
at douglis@research.att.com; www.research.att.com/~douglis. nologies that let a larger group of novice users take advantage
of information technology through a device that behaves more
like a household appliance than a computer. These must be
devices that will not require people to perform tasks such as
configuring and upgrading operating systems and applications,
Peter Druschel which are annoying and often too intimidating for a lot of
In retrospect, what were the decisive turning people out there.
points for the Internet and WWW to become We have a long way to go in terms of truly allowing every-
ubiquitous and pervasive? one, regardless of economics or educational background, to
The key technologies that enable the Web access the Internet. I think it’s easy for us to overlook that. In
developed over many years, and a lot of peo- spite of the fact that most of our friends and colleagues have
ple made important contributions. The turning point in bring- Internet access, there is still a large fraction of the population
ing Internet technology to the masses was the invention of who just cannot afford to buy a computer or pay monthly ISP
browsers, HTTP and HTML. These were not fundamentally charges. Making the technology truly ubiquitous in all parts
new technologies, but they made the Internet available to a of the world is going to be an important part in achieving broad
broad audience by providing a convenient user interface. coverage. That will require progress both in terms of the costs
There’s a lesson for us to learn here: the key to bringing these and usability to make it less expensive and intimidating to buy,
technologies to bear was ultimately not in the performance, as use, and install an Internet access device.
measured in transactions per second or bits per second, but
usability and availability. That means simplifying all this pow- Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs,
74 IEEE Concurrency
universities, open-source companies, and standard organizations in of biocomputing that people are currently starting to get really
shaping the future Internet? interested in. Because of its potentially profound impact on
All these organizations must play their respective roles; I computing and information technology, it will ultimately
cannot see how we can make significant progress without each impact the Internet. In the short term, agent technology—
of them. They are each in a unique position to realize certain automated intelligence that helps you configure information
opportunities to bring forward new ideas, invent and market technology and networks among mobile users, automatically
the respective technologies, and develop the necessary stan- repair and heal disruptions and failures in networks, and auto-
dards that ensure widespread use. matically adapt to differences in the quality of service at any
given time—has the potential to bring a new paradigm into
How would you divide their space of influence? Have there been any play. Those technologies are most likely to profoundly impact
significant overlaps? the way we use information technology.
The role of startups has amplified in recent years. This is
Peter Druschel is an assistant professor of computer science at Rice Uni-
the space in which a lot of existing base technologies and ideas
versity in Houston, Texas. He received his MS and PhD in computer sci-
have been crystallized and brought together with the respec- ence from the University of Arizona. His research interests include oper-
tive energy and funding to make them marketable. At the same ating systems, computer networking, distributed systems, and the Internet.
time, we also need to make progress in developing base tech- He currently heads the ScalaServer project on scalable cluster-based net-
nologies that are too long term or too risky for a startup com- work servers. Contact him at druschel@cs.rice.edu; www.cs.rice.edu/
~druschel.
pany. That’s where the research labs and universities come in.
Universities also educate the next generation of technical lead-
ers and technical personnel. The open-source movement
ensures broad availability of base technologies, leverages the
innovation and energy of the open-source contributors, and Gary Herman
ensures diverse platforms.
In retrospect, what were the decisive turning
Do you think there is any other area where the open-source approach points for Internet and WWW technology to
can work? become ubiquitous and pervasive?
I would like to see a similar movement in applications, in For years, IP traffic was insignificant relative
particular, core productivity applications—for example, alter- to voice traffic—it was minuscule, just a gnat.
natives to Microsoft Office. That will be of tremendous impor- Then a number of things happened. The PC business paradigm
tance and could open the market and playing field, could open pushed costs down to the point where the technology became
up doors for innovation. It remains to be seen if it is feasible for affordable, and Web standards began to work across platforms to
the open-source movement to take hold of the complexity and enable deployment of an information service with a global foot-
the level of sophistication in that application space. print. The standards also democratized the creation of informa-
tion in a way that the videotext and even the online service
What will be the major application areas dominating the future providers were not able to do: people who had information could
Web? publish it, and people accessing information—even those with
The major application areas are broadly electronic com- very narrow needs—could be served by a common infrastructure.
merce, distance education, distance collaboration, and enter- Prior to that, the cost of assembling information was high,
tainment; those are the areas with the most potential. Identi- and the value of any subset of information was relatively low,
fying the specific applications within that space is going to be so information services struggled to be economically viable.
a big gamble and hard to predict. Those who have the right Somehow, PCs, Internet connectivity, modem speed improve-
ideas in this space and know how to realize them can look for- ments, and a set of cross-platforms all happened at the same
ward to fame and fortune. point in time. There were more entrants, lower barriers, more
competition, and more alternatives—capitalism at its finest.
Games have been a very important factor around the evolution of
technology. They draw a lot of new ideas and developments. What are the next likely disruptive technologies in Internet space
They do play an extremely important role, because they that might make new marks in the way we live and work (agent
inspire the imagination and unleash a lot of creative energy technology, voice/text recognition, wireless, ...)?
that pushes forward innovation. They also have an important The most likely disruptive technology is cheap and ubiqui-
role in connection with the open-source movement, which tous wireless connectivity. Agent technologies have been pur-
leverages a lot of raw talent out there. sued for years; voice-to-text has been pursued for years. Those
things are hard problems that are addressed incrementally.
What is the most controversial and unpredictable technology in the Wireless seems to be the thing that creates the greatest num-
Internet space? ber of options. Pervasive connectivity, pervasive computing,
Looking long term (several decades), it is the various types and the ability to have devices that relate with each other in ad
January–March 2000 75
hoc ways—they create new options for how things work, how it’s either the interface itself or the complexity of the interface
people work, and how systems operate. design that limits the ability to push the Internet and comput-
ing technologies into those more mundane application areas.
So the next thing on the horizon could be that wireless becomes a
commodity? Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs, uni-
Wireless is a commodity. The ability to embed computing versities, open source companies, and standards organizations in shap-
and wireless intelligence into everything is the next big change. ing the future Internet?
This is a real challenge for many of the traditional models
Speaking of commodity and client kinds of machines, does it somehow for innovation and the creation of commercial technology. In
narrow and make obsolete the high-end machines? Once upon a time, the Internet space, the required technical knowledge is taught
people thought that big machines would never go away, but the push in universities and used in everyday life. This lets startups
continues. aggressively attack every visible, commercially significant prob-
There are classes of information that involve large volumes of lem, and, obviously, they’ve become very significant suppliers
data, where big machines solve operational problems. But I think of technology into the marketplace. Moreover, their success
the percentage of big machines will continue to decrease. The appears to be changing the motivations of faculty and students
one possible trend emerging is very large-scale data centers, in universities. It certainly creates challenges for traditional
which involve tens or hundreds of thousands of relatively simple corporate research labs.
machines. Industrial research labs need to examine their traditional
The data-center-consolidation era dealt with the operational models for motivating and rewarding research staff. They need
and administrative problem of having many small machines, to examine their role as technology suppliers in contrast to the
which encouraged consolidation into large servers. If the multi- role played by startups. I think they need to reach farther into
thousand CPU data-center problem is tamed from an opera- the future, speculate more, assume more risk, and try to cre-
tional and administrative point of view, ate what (HP CEO) Carly Fiorina has
then some of the operational benefits of called “strategic dilemmas” for the
having large, consolidated servers might corporation. That is, create significant
go away, and they’d be left to storage and future options unforeseen by the prod-
dynamic data problems, where central- Even at great univers- uct development parts of the company.
ization is necessary. You can’t easily de- ities, the faculty is
centralize dynamic data and deal with the learning to focus on The commodity aspect also doesn’t help, because
recovery and the administration of you no longer need substantially expensive
changing data. But there are still some
very near-term work equipment. You can do everything with off-
big problems that are addressed well in with a conscious eye the-shelf PCs and that kind of technology.
single, logically centralized entities. toward commercial That also means that much of the
and personal financial innovation occurs at the business-model
What are the drivers of the Internet? level. It isn’t so much that there is some
User interfaces. I don’t know that it’s
gains. radical new technology, but rather that
a technology as much as it’s a design art. known technology has been applied to
The models that people use to deal with this world of com- solve a business problem in a very different way. It can be dif-
puting—whether it’s embedded computing or it’s more explicit ficult for industrial labs to engage at that level, because if they
in the desktop sense—become the things that determine the remain in a corporate “ivory tower,” they tend to be fairly
rate at which the Internet permeates everyday life. I guess the remote from the practical applications technology in a busi-
counter argument to the importance of user interfaces as a gat- ness or industry context. To pursue innovation in such situa-
ing factor in growth could be that the current Internet and tions, the researchers will need to get into the front lines with
client technologies are extremely complex, but the value has the businesses that are looking to apply technology. I think
been so persuasive that people are motivated to overcome the Dorothy Leonard-Barton at Harvard has termed this process
complexity in ways that, five years ago, people would not have “empathetic design.”
viewed as feasible. The challenge for universities is that they now have a conflict
I know we’ve been looking at some of the work that people of interest, because if they’re working in the Internet space,
at places like MIT have done on these contextual, natural lan- they typically don’t get to work with a long-term horizon. If
guage interfaces using speech recognition. The problem there they do valid technology, they’re able to personally bring it to
is the design complexity of the interface. The interface is very commercial use by forming startups. So even at great universi-
simple and intuitive, and there’s a huge amount of effort in ties, I fear that some of the faculty is learning to focus on very
designing it to be that way. So if you were going to have a bus- near-term work with a conscious eye toward commercial and
stop interface or a McDonald’s drive-up window interface, each personal financial gains. Universities, then, can be lured into
of those contexts is narrow enough that perhaps you could engi- abdicating their traditional role of working on big problems. It
neer a very natural user interface. It’s the engineering com- also changes the nature of the industrial relationship with the
plexity that limits our ability to put the technology into those universities—large companies may view funding university
settings, because there are so many and they’re so diverse. So research as potentially funding competition, as opposed to fund-
76 IEEE Concurrency
ing the creation of fundamental intellectual property of long- They’re different in Europe than in the US. It’s actually coun-
term significance. There’s a whole different ecosystem that terintuitive in some ways. I’d say the biggest issue for the US
needs to evolve between startups, industrial labs, and universi- government deals with taxation. Too much of our govern-
ties in the Internet space because the rules have changed. mental infrastructure depends on sales taxes associated with
We’ll see how open-source companies fare. They depend the physical presence of the purchaser and the distributor.
on an emotionally committed community of technical talent. Once that’s all been virtualized, all the revenue dries up. That
Tim O’Reilly recently [see xml.com/pub/1999/10/tokyo.html; can’t happen, so they’re going to have to tax. I just don’t know
this is an xml.com article based on a Linux World Keynote] how they’ll get around to doing it.
pointed out that almost everything that’s great about the Inter-
Gary Herman is director of the Internet and Mobile Systems Laboratory
net was a result of an essentially open-source process, but it
in Hewlett-Packard Laboratories, Palo Alto, CA, and Bristol, UK. His
also pointed out why, once such technology becomes impor- organization is responsible for HP’s research on technologies required for
tant commercially, forces work to destroy the open source’s deploying and operating the service delivery infrastructure for the future
openness. So the democratization of technology—the multi- Internet, including the opportunities created by broadband and wireless
ple participants and the rabid competitiveness—has served to connectivity. Prior to joining HP in 1994, he held positions at Bellcore,
Bell Laboratories, and the Duke University Medical Center. He received
greatly accelerate the evolution and commercial application of his PhD in electrical engineering from Duke University. Contact him at
Internet technologies. It would seem desirable to maintain that Hewlett-Packard Laboratories 1U-19, 1501 Page Mill Road, Palo Alto,
quality of rapid competition, but large, commercial interests CA 94022; herman@hpl.hp.com.
naturally work to try to constrain it.
What major application areas will dominate the Web in the future?
Web-mediated personal communications will eventually
displace the telephony-based model that has dominated per- Franklin Reynolds
sonal communications to date. I’m not talking about voice over
IP. I’m talking about interpersonal communications applica- In retrospect, what were the decisive turning
tions where the visual parts of the interface are tightly inte- points for the Internet and WWW to become
grated with the aural or auditory parts of the interface, based ubiquitous and pervasive?
on the Web, and without the relatively heavyweight use model One of the first decisive events happened
and underlying infrastructure of telephony. We’re starting to in the 1980s when Unix and TCP were made
see a bit of this, but the infrastructure is not in place. You need available on most workstations and minicomputers. The Berke-
persistent IP connectivity to have that work, and that’s just ley Software Distribution was particularly influential. Instead of
starting to emerge. a proprietary solution like SNA or Decnet, different vendors
Another big application area is to have the Web and the began to deliver Unix- and TCP-based networks on many dif-
Internet start to permeate everyday things, so that things that ferent platforms. TCP/IP was available with very little effort,
are commonplace—automative diagnostics, routine monitor- which provided a business motive that was separate from any tech-
ing of appliances and mundane infrastructure services of all nical reasons for distributing and adopting the technology. Unix
types—start to work in a transparent way. The important appli- was particularly popular in universities and organizations affili-
cations become embedded and transparent, so the user’s not ated with the US Department of Defense. The early Internet users
aware they’re working. were predominately in the DoD or universities. Before the wide-
One important use of Internet technologies has to do with the spread deployment of IP-based networks, Usenet was the most
delivery of “passive” media (that is, traditional entertainment and important large-scale Unix network. Electronic mail, news groups,
information) to the mass market. The Internet is a potentially and other Usenet applications were quickly developed for IP. The
good way to push goods and services to consumers—so then Internet grew rapidly and began to replace Usenet.
there’s an immense amount of money that now goes into broad- I remember that in the mid 80s a lot of people thought TCP
cast, print, and other distribution channels that could flow into was “not quite real” and the OSI protocols were “industrial
computing and communications infrastructure to enable the strength.” Many governments, including the US government,
Internet to perform similar functions. It’s hard to predict, because announced plans to make OSI support mandatory for future
it deals with user behavior and people’s ability to use a new dis- procurements. But it turned out that OSI’s technical advan-
tribution medium and new channels to accomplish those ends. tages were not compelling (some would argue that they did
not exist). The Internet’s rapid growth and the proof of the
Do you think that it will also bring more charges for Internet use? underlying technology’s interoperability and scalability cre-
I think that the Internet will be more successful if the charg- ated an insurmountable barrier to the widespread deployment
ing is carried in the cost of goods and services, rather than as of OSI protocols.
an explicit fee you pay.
Linux also bears some contributions to the Internet because all the
What about security and privacy? How is the government involved? Web servers are hosted by it.
Because we live with pretty insecure systems today, we’ve I think that very few people would have predicted the cur-
just chosen to accept their vulnerabilities and the consequences. rent commercial success of Linux. Certainly, I never would
People’s anxieties about privacy, however, are very powerful. have guessed that Linux would enjoy the kind of success it has.
January–March 2000 77
The ability to use Linux in a commercial environment would record the office, classroom, shopping mall, lawyer’s office,
have been scoffed at by most people five years ago. police on the beat, construction sites, operating rooms, nurs-
I don’t think we should understate the importance of Tim ing homes, playground, and almost anything else.
Bernes-Lee and the World Wide Web. The Web has popu- Pervasive wireless networks will make it possible for mobile
larized the Internet. However important computer-to-com- users to be always on and always connected. Ubiquitous
puter communications become, the Web has made interactive embedded-computing devices will make it practical to deploy
use of computer networks interesting to millions of people. If smart environments, which will lead to personal digital assis-
the Web had not been invented, however, something else stants becoming the most important Internet access device for
would have come along. It is easy to forget how quickly things most people. PDAs will provide personal information man-
such as Usenet, Gopher, Archie, and online bulletin boards agement applications, games, Web access, storage farm access,
gained popularity before they were all swept away by the Web. video and audio recorning, communications (telephony and
Perhaps, the most important factor in the Internet and the broadcast), and universal remote control. Think Star Trek
WWW becoming ubiquitous has been the continuing im- communicator and tricoder.
provements in performance and reduction in price of personal
computers and network technology. As the price comes down, Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs,
it becomes reasonable for more consumers to test drive the universities, open-source companies, and the standard organizations
Internet and the Web. User population growth provides in shaping the future Internet? What do you think about this gold
opportunities and incentives for the development of new uses rush in the Silicon Valley? Will it improve the future Internet, or is
of the Internet. These new applications and services attract it just muddying the water?
more users, which in turn.... Well, you get the idea. It seems to me that there has been a gradual shift away from
corporate research. Fewer companies fund significant internal
What are the next likely disruptive technologies in the Internet space research groups, and the work of most industrial research
that might make new marks in the way we live and work (agent groups is more akin to advanced product development than
technology, voice/text recognition, wireless, and so on)? research. Most research is conducted in academic settings.
My favorite candidates include large-scale wireless networks, Startup companies seem to be one of the preferred ways to bring
such as third-generation cellular, and small-scale wireless net- research results to market. Even large companies that own a
works, such as Bluetooth. I also think really cheap mass stor- crazy idea sometimes spin it off into a startup, limiting their
age and tiny, ubiquitously deployed, embedded computers cou- risk. Successful startups are then candidates for acquisition.
pled with small-scale wireless networks will be important. A difference between the startup craze of the 1980s and
These technologies will make possible new applications that today is the emphasis on acquisition. Companies increasingly
change the way we use computers and networks. grow by acquiring technology and products rather than devel-
Another interesting technology with tremendous potential oping them. I think this trend will continue.
is mobile code. Possible uses range from low-level network
infrastructure, such as active networks, to high-level applica- What is the most controversial and unpredictable technology in the
tion platforms, including mobile-agent systems. If we include Internet space?
Java applets and JavaScript, then applications based on mobile Security and privacy-related technologies are already the
code are already an important part of the Web. The most most controversial, and I expect the controversy to intensify
important characteristic of the various mobile code platforms in the future. There are many issues, for example, should a
is the ability to deploy new behavior or functionality on de- government be able to eavesdrop on your Internet use? Should
mand. There are still some hard problems associated with secu- your employer? During the November 1999 Internet Engi-
rity and performance, but as mobile code technologies mature, neering Task Force meeting, there was a vote on the issue of
their influence will grow. wiretapping the Internet. The idea of adding support for wire-
tapping to the core Internet protocols turned out to be very
What will be the major application areas dominating the future Web? unpopular, but it is unlikely that this has settled the issue.
In the near term, the next five years, there are some safe bets: Another example is the amount of information about you avail-
Digital network convergence (telephony and data and broad- able on the Internet and who can access it. What are reason-
cast networks) and electronic commerce will undoubtedly con- ble privacy policies? How should privacy contracts be negoti-
tinue to grow. Going a little further out on a limb, the Web will ated and what are the enforcement mechanisms? I recommend
revolutionize education and training. Not that the techniques an article in the January 2000 Harper’s (Mark Costello et al.,
and technology used will be dramatically different than what we “The Searchable Soul: Privacy in the Age of Information
have today. What will be important is that it will be available to Technology,” pp. 57–68.) for a thoughtful discussion of privacy
everyone—especially for the economically disadvantaged. and the Internet.
If we have really cheap mass storage, we will start to record
everything. Digital cameras and recorders will be everywhere Franklin Reynolds is a senior research engineer at Nokia Networks and
and will not be limited by storage capacity, because they will works at the Nokia Research Center in Boston. His interests include ad
hoc self-organizing distributed systems, operating systems, and commu-
use the wireless network to ship the data to storage farms. The nications protocols. Over the years he has been involved in the development
motivations for recording everything will include personal of various operating systems ranging from small, real-time kernels to fault-
security, liability management, curiosity, and so on. We will tolerant, distributed systems. Contact him at franklin.reynolds@nokia.com.
78 IEEE Concurrency
Security next
The next Trend Wars installment will focus
on security.
Munindar Singh We have invited Dan Geer, Li Gong, Marcus
Ranum, Clifford Neuman, and Mary Ellen
What were the decisive turning points for Zurko to participate.
Internet and Web technology to become ubiqui-
tous and pervasive? If you have any specific questions that you
want our guests to answer, please send
The key turning point has got to be the
them to cbaltes@computer.org.
appearance of useful interfaces such as
Mosaic and of enough nodes being around on the Internet to
make it worthwhile for you to use the Internet to find some-
thing. Tools like Mosaic made it simple for you to find infor-
mation. Many people could see the commercial possibilities some other way of handling disconnected operations.
and that’s where it took off. Also, wireless technology makes more demands on the user
interface itself. Wireless can make you mobile, but only if don’t
What bottlenecks do you foresee? carry around a big monitor! And if you have a PDA, there’s a
I don’t think that the future of the Internet depends on fast small screen and low bandwidth that is susceptible to broken
networking. There’s enough bandwidth to go around, at least connections. That gives you an entirely different Internet expe-
for now. In computing power, yes, more development is rience. Increasingly, people are going to want that technol-
needed. We need better Web servers and so forth. But I don’t ogy. In Italy, there are more wireless telephones than there are
see that as a bottleneck. wired telephones, and in Japan the number of wireless tele-
The bottleneck is going to be the user interface. Right now, phones exceeds the number of desktop computers. Some stud-
the Internet does well up to a point, but it is certainly not very ies suggest people like telephones a lot more than computers.
good in terms of how people interact with each other, how So, wireless is the way of the future, and it is going to shake
they interact with services, how they find services. The Inter- things up quite a bit. I think agent technology will provide
net doesn’t give you a semantics, and you’re stuck with using solutions to many of the problems caused by going to wireless.
keywords. Keywords might be acceptable in a circumscribed
domain. They are much less effective as the domain grows, Do you think also on the programming paradigms side there will
when precision declines. need to be a parallel thing? So far, we have kind of a nomadic
computing where you would have laptops that move and periodically
What are the next likely disruptive technologies in Internet space that connect and disconnect. But would wireless require much more
might make new marks in the way we live and work—agent dynamic disconnected behavior?
technologies, voice/text recognition, and wireless? Yes, I think so. And I think it would change the way we set up
User interfaces will need to improve a lot, especially long- our desk systems. They would have to be a lot more open, a lot
lived interactions between the user and something on the other more context sensitive. With a laptop, you pretty much have a
end—the Internet. In terms of specific technologies, all of the fixed context. Maybe the numbers you dial out change a little,
technologies that you mentioned will have an increasing role but for practically everything else, a laptop is just like a desktop.
to play. We really must think of more dynamic changes in context,
However, I would say wireless technologies are going to have say, where you’re walking down the street and you want to
the biggest impact on how we think of the Internet. Right now, know what’s around you at that time. User expectations will
we conceptualize the Internet as wired. We can remain con- be different, and at the same time the demands on the systems
nected for long periods of time, and those of us with dedicated that we build will be different, as will the techniques that we
modems or LANs can stay connected almost perpetually. But use to build the systems.
wireless connectivity is generally unreliable and expensive, and
also of a low bandwidth. That changes the way we look at things, Do you think that wireless will justify the need for more mobile
even from the technology standpoint. Several problems that agents? I recall somewhere your statements that there is no need for
appear solved right now with the wired technologies will that.
reemerge in a wireless setting. There’s a distinction between mobile objects and mobile
If you can’t even take for granted that you will stay con- agents. In some cases, mobile objects might be a good tech-
nected, you have to think of different computational metaphors nology to have. For example, if you have a long-lived compu-
altogether. For example, the Jini specifications (from Sun) that tation, survivability of the computation beyond the lifetime of
came out publicly about a year or so ago have this notion of the hardware is important. Clearly, it’s good to have mobile
leasing. As its defined, leasing is an attractive notion for open objects in those settings. In other settings, and in particular
systems in which you get a resource, but you get a resource where mobile agents are involved, I don’t think they really buy
only for as long as a lease lasts. When the leases expire, unless you anything else. You just need more sophisticated commu-
you renew them, they soon go away. The way they set it up, nication standards.
leasing doesn’t consume resources forever, but the leases must Another significant thing that’s going to happen is in adding
be renewed in the order of several milliseconds. This is semantics to the Internet. That’s a difficult problem that’s not
demanding in a wireless setting, and you might want to have going to go away. The Internet’s success in connectivity only
January–March 2000 79
Technical Committee on Operating Systems,
Applications and Environments (TCOS)
http://www.tcos.org, tcos-[announce,discuss]@tcos.org
IEEE-CS TCOS is a large membership organization (over materials available on the TCOS Web site and pursuing joint
3,500 members), an affinity group of developers and users publications. TCOS seeks to actively cooperate with other
interested in Operating Systems (OS), applications and envi- organizations such as ACM SIGOPS and USENIX and has
ronments. TCOS is to IEEE-CS what SIGOPS is to ACM been cosponsoring several events with them
(though TCOS membership is free). TCOS sponsors The Hot Topics in Operating Systems
TCOS is involved with theoretical and practical aspects of OS (HOTOS) Workshop which is its main event. TCOS cospon-
design and implementation, including system organization, sors the USENIX OSDI Symposium, Virtual Enterprises and
resource allocation policies, measurement, performance evalu- Mobile Technologies, Workshop on Mobile Computing Sys-
ation, and system reliability. It is also involved with OS tems and Applications (WMCSA), and WEISS (see last page).
aspects affecting system interface, the completeness of ser- TCOS membership is free. You can register on the Web:
vices, and portability of applications and environments. through IEEE-CS (on www.computer.org/members/, follow
There are two main types of activities of the TCOS of benefit Other Services) or on http://www.tcos.org.
to members and to community in general: the organization of We are actively looking for new ideas, but even more for new
OS-related events (see the list below), and gathering and dis- volunteers to make the ideas happen. Please take a look at our
tributing OS-related information, mainly on the Web site. We member survey and tell us what else you would like TCOS to
publish a Newsletter a few times a year. offer. The form is available at:
TCOS collaborates with IEEE-CS publications, such as IEEE http://www.tcos.org/forms/feedback.html
Concurrency. Examples include making some of the magazine
makes the semantic problem harder, because, again, you want ity to write a script. In that sense, universities will have an
to find things that are relevant and meaningful, and there’s no increasing role to play. The entry requirements will be higher,
current way of handling that. That would be a good place for so people will need more university training. I suppose start-
agent technology. If agents can understand what the user needs ups will continue to be the place where good ideas come out,
and help find what the user wants to read or buy or whatever but better-qualified people will more often found the startups.
more effectively than if the user had to go unprotected into
the Internet, then technology of that nature will develop. Do you think that the current negative trend of people not going for
PhDs will reverse again?
Where do you see the roles of industry, startups, research labs, Not right away. The economy is booming and people can
universities, open source companies, and standard organizations in achieve a lot of things in industry, so they will continue to do
shaping the future Internet? that. Universities are going to have a tough time retaining fac-
The Internet has to become professional. The way things ulty and PhD students for another few years. However, as the
have been done so far; it’s very amateurish. Any kid in any Internet becomes more professional, people will realize that
garage can start a new company and do stuff with the Internet. they need more formal education as opposed to taking off with
Someone comes up with a design and they make it work. a minimal courses in programming, which frequently seems
Because there’s nothing else to compare it with, we are happy to work these days.
that it works. But it’s as if people are doing things off the top of But the PhD question, that’s difficult. Some students will
their heads: for all its success, the work sounds ad hoc. get enough experience doing a good masters, as opposed to
In the next few years, the Internet is going to become more necessarily sticking around for a PhD. Universities that are
professional. It’s going to be done by real computer scientists, entrepreneurial and find interesting challenges for students
as opposed to the physicists in their spare time! It will have a will do well. Universities that retain a traditional orientation,
different kind of a flavor to it. That might be controversial, resisting dealing with companies, will generally not do as well.
but the role of computer scientists in the Internet is going to Again, as the Internet becomes more professional, people
grow significantly. will want more standards. But like in the rest of computing,
For example, look at the recent success of companies like standards have often brought up the rear.
Akamai. That’s the kind of thing we’ll see more of—hard core
computer scientists applying graph theory, for example. The There is this old saying that standards should come in the middle of
Internet is reaching the fundamental limits of how far the ad the technology development. If they come too early or too late, it’s not
hoc approaches will go. Soon, we’ll have to do things more as good.
carefully, more as engineering, more studied. That’s right, yes. We certainly don’t have the too-early
So, it’s actually a good time for computer scientists—peo- problem right now.
ple with interest in concurrency and knowledge of concur-
rency, among other areas. They will stand apart from those What major application areas will dominate the Web in the future?
who are unqualified in the details of computer science, those Two kinds of applications will dominate: e-commerce, of
whose only computer science qualification might be the abil- course, and then personal technologies. By personal tech-
80 IEEE Concurrency
"From the Trenches", The First Workshop on Industrial Experiences with System Software (WIESS’2000)
Co-located with OSDI 2000 October 23-25, 2000, Paradise Point Resort, San Diego, CA
http://www.usenix.org/events/osdi2000/wiess2000/
Co-sponsored by USENIX, IEEE-CS TCOS, and ACM SIGOPS (pending approval)
Important Dates Papers will be valued for the relevance and usability of the
Paper Submissions due: Mon, May 15, 2000 work more than for the presentation. The best 20-30 papers
Notification to authors: Thu, June 29, 2000 will appear in the conference proceedings. The other accepted
Camera-ready papers due: Tue, August 31, 2000 papers will appear as short abstracts. Most papers (except those
WIESS’2000: Sun, October 22, 2000 that clearly did not meet the above criteria) will be provided an
opportunity to present their work as a poster at WIESS 2000.
Overview. WIESS’2000 will feature short papers (5-10
Papers should be submitted using Web:
pages), abstracts, and posters on designing, implementing, and
using industrial system software and applications. It is an http://tesla.hpl.hp.com/wiess/forms/authpaper_reg.html
attempt to allow people from “the trenches” to present their
Submitted papers should be 5-10 pages, single-spaced 8.5x11
work. SOSP and OSDI conferences feature very high quality
inches, including figures, tables and references. Only printable
technical programs that have also “raised the bar” for paper
PS and PDF (preferably) will be accepted.
acceptance. It has therefore become more difficult for authors
of papers presenting industrial experience to be included in Program Committee:
these programs. WIESS is an attempt to complement SOSP Gaurav Banga, NetAppliance Eduard Bugnion, VMWare
and OSDI, and focus primarily on industry results of immedi- Rob Gingel, Sun Fred Glover, Compaq
ate benefit and use rather than long-term research. Ira Greenberg, Oracle Larry Huston, Intel
Rodger Lea, Sony Udi Manber, Yahoo
Submission Guidelines. WIESS will focus on papers that
Franklin Reynolds, Nokia Toshi Sakuraba, Hitachi
draw important conclusions from practical experience in
Indira Subramanian, HP Franco Travostino, NortelNetw
developing and using system software solutions. War stories,
Richard Wheeler, EMC Mark Brown, IBM
outrageous conclusions, and negative results are especially
Dejan S. Milojicic, HP Labs, Chair
welcome. Topics of interest should include, but not be limited
Steering Committee
to: Operating Systems, Distributed Systems, Real Time &
Jean Bacon, Cambridge University, SIGOPS Member
Quality of Service, Embedded Systems, Security and Privacy,
Andrew Hume, AT&T Research, USENIX President
Networking, Internet, Web-Based Technologies, Program-
Valerie Issarny, INRIA, ACM SIGOPS Vice Chair
ming Environments and Tools, Fault Tolerance and High
Mike Jones, Microsoft Research, TCOS Vice Chair
Availability, Middleware, Appliances and Personal Digital
Marshall Kirk McKusick, Self Employed, USENIX Member
Assistants, and System Administration.
Dejan S. Milojicic, IEEE-CS TCOS Chair
nologies, I mean things that help people go about their daily tually all other countries will see a growth—even regimes that
lives. For example, technology can help people find informa- by our standards are not very nice will support the growth of
tion, help people find other people, help people do community the Internet, perhaps with some kinds of control over it.
work. Many of the noncommercial applications will be of the That brings up another controversial point—content-rating
personal technologies variety. services. A recent CACM had an article about how simple key-
word matches seem to eliminate good content more than bad
What is the most controversial or unpredictable technology in the content. For example, they might eliminate Superbowl XXX
Internet space? Is there something that some people believe in, but because of the letters “X-X-X.” Although content-rating ser-
that others violently oppose, for example? One example might be vices are controversial, content rating by consumers themselves
privacy. It’s not really technology, but it’s a topic that’s being discussed by having ways to manage reputation might work. I have a per-
a lot lately. sonal interest in technologies for reputation management.
That’s a good example. With security, people are either Again, the success of content-rating by individuals might
extremely careless about it or they’re really paranoid about it— depend on the kind of society you live in. In the US, we can get
with nothing in the middle. Maybe standards will get estab- away with expressing our opinions, although at the risk of a
lished and people will be able to check their privacy require- lawsuit. Other countries might not appreciate the dissemina-
ments automatically, making sure that they preserve those. tion of certain kinds of information, for political or religious
reasons. Such societies might not appreciate the right of ordi-
How do you see development of the Internet infrastructure over the nary citizens to publish ratings.
years, with respect to continents, governments, and so forth?
It will spread. Wherever there’s an economic motive
involved, it will generally spread fairly well. Even in a country Munindar Singh is an assistant professor in computer science at North
that isn’t as fully wired as the US, if the government sees advan- Carolina State University. His research interests are in multiagent systems
tages, it will expand the reach of the Internet. Countries like and their applications in e-commerce and personal technologies. Singh
received a BTech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and a
North Korea might not, because of extreme politics and PhD from the University of Texas, Austin. His book, Multiagent Systems,
because the people running the country might not see the eco- was published by Springer-Verlag in 1994. Singh is the editor-in-chief of
nomic advantages of having net access for everybody. But vir- IEEE Internet Computing. Contact him at singh@ncsu.edu.
January–March 2000 81