(iii) Soils, Climate and Crops. – The climate and soils have direct bearing on the cropping pattern of an area. The crops suitable to a particular type of soil and climate are sown there. Recently, there has been a new trend to sow better yielding crops and ignore those less paying. As a result of increase in water logging and more irrigation facilities, in Ludhiana district, the cultivators are putting less area under the less paying crops and more area under groundnut and paddy crops. Similarly, area under the gram crop has decreased while that under wheat has increased.
Soils. - The district forms part of the western Indo-Gangetic plain. It is a flat alluvial plain, drained by the river Satluj and some of its tributaries. The soils have been formed from material brought down the Shiwalik and Himalayan ranges and, geologically speaking, they are of recent origin and may be called as young soils. The actual depth of the material has not been determined ; but from the complete absence of out-croppings of native rock anywhere in the district, it may be said that the parent material of the soils is of great depth.
Every type of soil from hard clay to the lightest sand is found here. The district can be divided into three physiographic regions, viz., (1) Bet (river land frequently flooded), (2) Dhaiya Neecha (lower upland), and (3) Dhaiya Ucha (higher upland).
The predominant characteristics that help to classify these soils are the texture of the surface soil, rainfall, depth of water-table, kind and quality of water soluble salts PH depth5 of deposition of lime concretions and topography. Taking these factors into consideration, the soils of each of the above-mentioned three regions are classified as under :
5. PH is a logarithmic scale of acidity or alkalinity of
acqueous solutions.
(1) Bet or floodplain . - this area lies between a small and perennial stream called the Buddha Nala and the river Satluj, and is about 96 kilimetres in length. The width varies from about 0.8 kilometres. The soil is light in texture, i.e., sandy loam and loamy sand. The depth of water-table fluctuates between summer and winter season from 4’ to 8’ in Samrala tahsil and 6’ to 10’ in Jagraon and Ludhiana tehsils. Salt incrustration is visible at the top, whereas lime concretion is absent in subsoil. The PH value varies from 7.5 to 9.5 showing the problem of alkalinity in the area. At some places sand dunes are met with and land is of rolling topography resulting in soil erosion. Most of the bet area is subject to floods. Water logging has also affected some places near the Satluj and the Budha Nala.
(2) Dhaiya Neecha or Lower upland. – this tract lies between the Budha Nala on the north and Ferozepore-Chandigarh Road on the south. Its approximate area is 1,61,819 acres. The soil is very light and sandy in texture but gets heavier in the sub-soil. Sand dunes are often found in this area. Water-table varies from 20’ to 30’. PH value varies from 7 to 8.75. The soils are lower in organic matter and available phosphorus, which results in low fertility. In Jagraon tahsil loamy and sandy loam soils are also present.
(3) Dhaiya Ucha or higher upland. – This are lies to the south of the Ferozepore-Chandigarh Road and measures approximately 5,26,541 acres. The soil is of heavier texture and more fertile. Sand dunes and alkaline patches are often found in Ludhiana and Jagraon tahsils and lime concretion layer is present at 3’ to 6’ below surface. The sub-soil is invariably heavier than the surface soil. PH value ranges from 8.5 to 9.2. Water-table varies from 20’ to 25’ in Samarala tahsils and 10’to 15’ in Jagraon and Ludhiana tahsils.
In general, the soils of the district are affected with salinity and alkalinity, floods, soil erosion, defective soil structure, and soil fertility, which ar edealt with in detail hereunder.
Salinity and alkalinity. – In the south-west of Samrala tahsil near village Kamma, in the villages of Nasrali, Isru and Khurd, and in the bet areas of all the three tahsils, salinity and alkalinity is a serous problem. For the reclamation of the soils leaching, green manuring with Dhaincha, application of gypsum and fertilizers, rice cultivation, and ample quantity of manure and fertilizers are very essential. In some of the saline and alkaline soils of the bet areas, where water-table is high due to frequent floods, anti-flood measures and proper drainage need be arranged before any reclamation work can be successful.
Floods. – In the bet area of all the three tahsils, floods pose a serious problem. For successful cropping in these areas, measures like bunds, wat bunds, planting of trees, etc. may be of some help. Rice and sugarcane should replace maize and cotton in such areas.
Soil erosion,- It takes place both through water and wind. Sloping lands on the border of Dhaiya and bet are subject to water erosion. The loss of surface soil may be checked by wat bunds, contour bunding, and growing of cover crops during seasons.
The wind erosion is mostly confined to very light texture soils lying barren .Sand dunes are commonly seen in the lower and higher uplands (Dhaiya) areas of Samrala tahsil and belts, on either side of the Ludhiana-_Ferozepore Road and lower upland (Dhaiya) of Jagraon tahsil. These are shifting their position, thereby causing serious loss to the standing crops and damaging adjoining lands. These area need be brought under irrigation, planting of wind breakers, and seeding with grasses and legumes. Green manuring is also beneficial for these areas.
Defective soil structure;- In some soil series, there is the problem of bad soil structure. It can be seen in the belt near village Dakha, on either side of the Ferozepore-Ludhiana Road in tahsil Ludhiana. Deep ploughing sub soiling,green manuring with deep rooted crops and use of gypsum are some of the measures which might improve the soil structure and increase the yields in these soil.
Soil fertility,- The soil of the district are basically deficient in organic matter and nitrogen, particularly the sandy and loamy sand soil. Responses to phosphorus are also obtained when applied in addition to nitrogenous fertilizers.
Major and Subsidiary crops,- These are two main harvests in a year in the district, viz. Kharif and Rabi, locally named as sawni and hari , The former is the summer season harvest and latter the winter season harvest. There is another harvest which is assessed along with kharif and sometimes with rabi. The harvest assessed with rabi is called in the villages papers as zaid-rabi and that assessed with kharif as zaid-kharif. It includes mostly vegetable and fodder crops.
The major kharif crops of the district are maize, groundnut, cotton and sugarcane, while the minor or subsidiary kharif crops are rice, chillies, pulses(massh, masoor and moth ), sesmum and kharif fodders(chari, guare,bjra, etc.), The major rabi crops are wheat and gram and the minor rabi crops are barley, potatoes, oilseeds and some winter vegetables. Groundnut is the major cash crop of the district. Vegetables are generally cultivated in the vicinity of towns where these are in comparatively greater demand.
The major kharif crops of the district are maize, groundnut, cotton and sugarcane, Maizw forms the most important food crop of Kharif season in the district. It is the staple food in winter months of the people in general, particularly of the farmers with inadequate supplies of wheat. It is sown in the month of July and its harvesting takes place in October. It is sown mostly under irrigated conditions. Proper drainage facilities are, however, necessary. The crop is sown on the best soil with liberal quantity of compost and artificial fertilizers. The introduction of hybrid maize has created greater potential for agricultural production. The variety of foodgrain is gaining popularity due to its better performances. The production of the crop has considerably increased drom 18 thousand tons in 1950-51 to 134 thousand tons in 1965-66. Similarly, the area under it has increased from 70 thousand acres in 1950-51 to 132.5 thousand acres in 1965-66.
Groundnut occupies the second position in terms of acreage among kharif crops and is the most cash crop of the district. It is usually grown in poor sandy soils where irrigation facilities are hardly available. A fairly large area of this type of soils is available in the district. Irrigated groundnut is also being sown. Under the package programme, therefore, greater emphasis has been laid on the increase of the area and the yield per acre by introduction and adoption of package of practices for fertilizers, improved agricultural practices and better irrigation facilities. The crop has responded well to these practices. The area and production of groundnut has increased from 53.6 thousand acres and 15.2 thousand tons in 1950-51 to 132.9 thousand acres and 78.8 thousand tons in 1965-66, respectively. The production in the district in the same year was the highest in the State. The crop is sown in July and is ready for harvesting in October.
Cotton occupies the third position in term of acreage among the kharif crops and is one of the important cash crops of the district6. It requires good soil. Desi cotton is sown with the onset of monsoon, while American variety of cotton is sown during April and late sowing may continue up to the end of the first week of May. Picking of cotton starts from the end of August and the crop is over by the middle of November. The area under American cotton is decreasing due to excessive rains and flood waterlogging, while the area under desi cotton is increasing. The area under American cotton has decreased from 66 thousand acres in 1956-57 to 29.4 thousand acres in 1965-66. On the other hand, the area under desi cotton has increased from 12 thousand acres in 1956-57 to 46.7 thousand acres in 1965-66.
6. During
1967-68, the Cotton Package Programme was extended to the sub-divisions of
Samrala and Ludhiana of the district.
Next to cotton, sugarcane, is also an important kharif crop in the district. Its sowing starts from the middle of February and continues till the end of March. It requires very rich and well-prepared soil. The area under the crop has increased from 18 thousand acres in 1950-51 to 40 thousand acres in 1965-66.
Rice is a minor kharif crop of the distict. It is generally raised from the nursey which is sown in the month of June. The seedlings, when 5-6 weeks old, are transplanted in the month of July. Generally, Jhona 349 variety is sown in the district. The area covered by it and production have increased from one thousand acres and one thousand tons in 1950-51 to 12.6 thousand acres and 4 thousand tons in 1965-66, respectively.
The principal rabi foodgarin crops are wheat and gram. Wheat is the staple diet of the Punjabis throughout the year. Wheat covered about 45 per cent of the cultivated area in the district in 1965-66. The promoters of the Intensive Agricultural District Programme (introduced in 1961-62) while selecting Ludhiana, had mainly the wheat crop in view. The crop, therefore, received special attention of the extension specialists working on the programme. The area sown with improved varieties of wheat seed in the district increased from 76.7 per cent during 1960-61 to 89.1 per cent during 1963-64. It became 100 per cent during 1965-66. The improved strains were C-273 and C-306 for normal sowing and C-286 for late sowing. During 1965-66 the Maxican varieties like Lerma Roja and PV-18 were introduced and gained popularity as the high yielding varieties7. The are under wheat has increased from 218 thousand acres in 1950-51 and 279 thousand acres in 1960-61 to 374.9 thousand acres in 1965-66. The production has also jumped from 102 thousand tons in 1950-51 and 165 thousand tons in 1960-61 to 280 thousand tons in 1965-66. The average yield of wheat in Ludhiana district compares very favourably with the best wheat growing countries of the world. The crop is sown from the middle of October up to the middle of November, though late sowing continues up to the middle of December. It is ready for harvesting from the middle of April.
7. The
current process of developing high yielding dwarf wheat varieties had started
in 1963-64, when some new lines were developed out of the wheat lines received
from Mexico. The process has resulted
of several new varieties including the well known PV-18 and Kaylyan 227
developed by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana.
Gram is grown both under barani and irrigated conditions. The crop being very sensitive to natural extremities does not suit the cultivators economically. It thus mostly raised under the rainfed conditions. With increase in monor irrigation facilities, cultivators have preferred wheat, a better paying and more sure crop, to gram. The area under the crop and its production have decreased from 143 thousand acres and 37 thousand tons in 1950-51 to 69.4 thousand acres and 20 thousand tons in 1965-66, respectively. The area under gram was less than half per cent of the cultivated area in the district during 1965-66. Gram cultivation in the district is consumption oriented rather than market oriented.
Barley is a monor rabi crop. It is sown during October-November and harvested in April. It is generally sown on poor soil where wheat does not flourish. During 1965-66, the area under the crop was 21.7 thousand acres and the production was 11 thousand tons.
Besides groundnut, the other oilseeds grown in the district are rape and mustard, sesamum and linseed. Rapeseed in usually sown mixed with wheat and gram. It is sown in rows in wheat fields or on the borders of fields in irrigated areas and also in rows in gram fields under unirrigated conditions. The other oilseeds are generally grown on poor soils and mixed with other crops. During 1965-66, the total area under rape and mustard, seasmum and linseed was 3.5, 0.2 and 1.0 thousand acres, respectively ; and the production during the same period was 0.7, 0.04 and 0.3 thousand metric tons, respectively.
Vegetables. – To augment the production of vegetables in the district, a Vegetable Development Officer has been posted at Ludhiana besides an Agricultural Inspector (Vegetables) to guide the growers regarding vegetables growing and for making necessary arrangements for seed supplies, etc.
The climate of the district, being moderate, is quite suitable for growing vegetables, viz., potato, tomato, peas (bhindi) okra, carrot, raddish, turnips, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, brinjal, onion, chillies, etc. Previously, vegetables were mostly grown around cities and towns, but now these have been taken up by growers in the suburban areas as well.
The vegetables staff, in collaboration with the Intensive Agricultural District Programme staff, gives technical guidance to the vegetable growers in the district. Seeds of various improved varieties are supplied free of cost for demonstration in kitchen gardens ; and, for growing on commercial scale, these seeds are arranged through the Punjab State Co-operative Vegetable Development Federation, College of Agriculture, Punjab, Ludhiana. The vegetable seed multiplication is encouraged through and supervision of the staff employed under the Vegetable Development Schemes. These seeds, thus produced by the Agriculture Department are purchased by the Vegetable Federation at premium and are resold to the vegetable growers. This arrangement has facilitated vegetable seed production besides augmenting farm income. For multiplication of potato seeds, however, a seed farm of 500 acres was established at Mattewara, about 24 killometers from Ludhiana, in September, 1967.
The area under different vegetable in the district was 2,497 hectares in 1965-66. The main vegetables grown in the district and their improved varieties recommended by the Department of Agricultural are as under :
Potato is the most important vegetable grown in the district. The improved varieties recommended are up-to-date, Kufri (Sandhori) and new white variety A-2708 (Kufri Chandermukhi) and Kufri (Shakti).
Tomato is one of the highly prized vegetables and a favourite with most people. its important varieties are Best of All, Sionx Seed and Pusa Ruby, S-12, a new variety of tomato, has been approved for cultivation under fertility and irrigated conditions.
The major value of onion lies in its flavour. The variety recommended is Punjab Selection.
The varieties of cauliflower, recommended for growing in the district, are Early Kumari for early season, Giant Snow Ball for main season and Snow Ball-16 for late season.
Cabbage is low in caloric value. The value is, however, higher than that of lettuce and cucumber. Minerals in cabbage rank higher than in tomato. Pride of India and Early Drum Head as early varieties and Late Drum Head as late variety are recommended in the district.
Carrot No. 29, raddish White 5 and Nadauni, and 4 white and 4 Red of turnips are good desi type varieties recommended. In the case of English types, Nantes and Golden Heart varieties of carrot are recommended. For raddish, Japanese white and white Icicle are the recommended varieties, and for turnips the English recommended varieties are Purple Top, Yellow Ball and Golden Ball.
Detailed particulars regarding the area under different crops, their total production and yield per acre in the district during the year 1950-51 (year before the introduction of the First Five-Year Plan), 1955-56 (last year of the First Five-Year Plan,) 1960-61 (last year of the Second Five-Year Plan), and 1961-62 to 1965-66 (period of the Third Five-Year Plan) are given in Appendices I,II and III, at the end of the chapter at pages 243 to 245.
Fruit Crops and Gardens. – With better realization of the important role that the fruits play in human diet system, greater emphasis was laid in the Second and Third Five-Year Plan Projects for augmenting the production of fruits in the district.
Prior to 1958, the Horticultural Inspector, Moga (District Ferozepore), guided the growers of Ludhiana district in respect of fruit growing. This arrangement was inadequate to provide technical know-how for the new plantation and the maintenance of the old orchards. Under the scheme of Horticultural Development, a separate Horticultural Inspector for the district was, therefore, posted at Ludhiana in 1958. With the introduction of the Intensive Agriculture District Programme in Ludhiana district, a Subject Matter Specialist (Horticulture) was posted at Ludhiana in 1960-61.
The climate of the district is moderate as compared to other horticultural zones and is suitable for growing various fruit plants, viz., malta, santra, sweet lime, kaghzi lime, mango, guava, peach, plum, pear, papaya, grape and jujube. Spring and monsoon are the two favourable seasons for the plantation of fruit plants. The monsoon season is most suitable for plantation of the evergreen fruit plants and the spring for the deciduous ones.
The horticulture development staff, in collaboration with the Intensive Agricultural District Programme staff, is rendering technical guidance and assistance to the fruit growers in the district. The growers have now switched over to the cultivation of approved varieties of different fruits. In Samrala tahsil, where there are a good number of old seedling mango orchards, the growers have now taken up the plantation of grafted mangoes. Due to the adequate distribution of loans under minor irrigation programme, the growers have installed their own tube-wells and pumping-sets, which in turn have increased irrigation facilities so vital for fruit growing. Long term loans at Rs 300 per acre, advanced to fruit growers for planting new orchards, have gone along way in increasing the area under fruit orchards. The loans advanced for the establishment of new orchards, from 1957-58 to 1965-66, are as under :
|
Year |
|
Amount of loan advanced |
|
1957-58 |
.. |
Rs. 70,000 |
|
1958-59 |
.. |
60,000 |
|
1959-60 |
.. |
35,000 |
|
1960-61 |
.. |
18,400 |
|
1961-62 |
.. |
30,000 |
|
1962-63 |
.. |
15,300 |
|
1963-64 |
.. |
10,300 |
|
1964-65 |
.. |
3,300 |
|
1965-66 |
.. |
.. |
To encourage grape cultivation in the district, loans up to Rs 3,000 per acre are advanced. The total amount of loans advanced in this respect during 1963-64 and 1964-65 was Rs 72,000.
The area under fruit orchards in the district, during the decade and a half, from 1950-51 to 1965-66, has been as under :
|
Year |
|
Area (acres) |
|
1950 to 1955 |
.. |
790 |
|
1960-61 |
.. |
820 |
|
1961-62 |
.. |
947 |
|
1962-63 |
.. |
1,011 |
|
1963-64 |
.. |
1,071 |
|
1964-65 |
.. |
1,374 |
|
1965-66 |
.. |
1,553 |
Under the Punjab Fruit Nurseries Act, 1961, four nurseries have been established in the private sector in the district to supply the pedigree fruit plants of the recommended varieties, free from any kind of insect pest or disease.
(iv) Improved Agricultural Practices. – The spectacular rise in the agricultural production in the district has been due to the introduction of high-yielding varieties of crops and the adoption of improved agricultural practices such as greater and better use of fertilizers and green-manuring, sowing of crops according to pora method, line-sowing of cotton, the Japanese method the paddy cultivation, trench sowing of sugarcane, use of improved furnaces for gur-making, and installation of tube-wells and pumping-sets. The high-yielding varieties of different crops are as under :
|
Name of crop |
|
Variety |
|
Paddy |
.. |
Jhona-349 and Basmati 370 |
|
Wheat |
.. |
C-273, C-286, C-306 and PV-18 Mexican |
|
Gram |
.. |
Pb. 7 and S-26 |
|
Groundnut |
.. |
P.C.-1 and C-501 |
|
Sugarcane |
.. |
Co. 312 and Coj. 246 |
|
Cotton |
.. |
American 320 F and desi 231 R |
(v) Crop Competition Scheme. – The scheme was introduced in the district in 1951-52 to promote a spirit of healthy rivalry among the cultivators for maximizing per acre yield of important crops through use of improved agricultural practices. Crop competitions are organised every year at village, block, district, State and all-India levels. The district enjoys the distinction of producing two Krishi Pandits, viz., Sarvshri Gurdev Singh and Walyati Ram for wheat and gram in the all-India level crop competition held in 1963-64. Shri Chanan Singh of Jagraon stood second in the all-India competition for potato held in 1965-66.
(vi) Agricultural Co-o.-peratives In India the idea of co-operation took a concrete shape for the first time by the passing of the Co-operative Credit Societies Act, 1904, which provided for the formation of credit societies only. Since then, during its over sixty years growth, the co-operative movement in the country has passed through phases of rectification and cautious expansion, thereby expanding its scope to marketing, processing and many other aspects of economic and social life in India.
Agricultural technology is undergoing a change through the introduction of new machines, work methods, and input materials with a view to increasing productivity. This involves additional capital investment, such as improved seeds, and pedigree livestock, more and better fertilizers, insecticides, weedicides and increased use of propulsion fuels and electricity. The farmer’s requirements for capital to make permanent farm investments and to meet operational costs are thus increasing fast. Often the private resources of the farmer are insufficient and these have to be supplemented through credit. Credit in the modern age has actually become the sine-qua-non of agricultural progress, where the availability of credit facilities of the requisite type seems to have a close correspondence with the adoption of modern technology in farming. Such a built-in system of farm credit has, therefore, to be evolved as would meet the varied credit needs of the small, medium and large scale farmers for their short, medium and long term requirements.
To stimulate agricultural development and step up farm production, it is, therefore, imperative that a package of facilities should be given to cultivators in the form of production credit, supply of agricultural inputs, marketing processing and a host of other allied services. Unless these facilities for progressive agriculture are forthcoming in a steady and sustained manner, thousands of farmers scattered all over the State cannot avail themselves of them.
While each of these facilities can, perhaps, be individually made available through State or private agencies, it has been recognised that for providing these facilities in a package form to large groups of farmers, there is no better substitute than co-operatives, which are farmers’ own institutions and are fully responsive to their production requirements. As late as in 1927, the Royal Commission on Agriculture also emphasized this important aspect by observing that “there was no future for agriculture in India except through co-operation”.
Ever since the advent of the co-operative movement in India, conscious efforts have been directed towards “co-operatising” of important facts of agricultural economy and in this respect Punjab continues to enjoy a rare distinction of being one of the few co-operatively progressive States, particularly in the sphere of agricultural production.
Co-operative societies in India can be broadly classified under heads : primary and secondary. While the primary societies deal directly with the members, the secondary societies, including Co-operative Unions, Central Co-operative Banks and State Co-operative Banks, extend help to the primaries.
Of the agricultural co-operatives, the primary agricultural co-operative societies are further classified into primary agricultural credit service societies and agricultural non-credit societies as under :
(I) Primary Agricultural Credit/Service Societies. – The co-operative movement in India started with these societies and today they constitute the base of the co-operative credit structure in the country. Ludhiana has been one of the advanced districts in the country in the development of co-operative movement since its inception in 1904. With the registration of the Central Co-operative Bank, Ludhiana, in 1916, the agricultural credit societies expended their activities. Until the Punjab partition of 1947, these societies confirmed their activities to the taping of local deposits and advance of loans. By and large, the co-operatives were functioning merely as thrift and credit societies.
At the time of partition of the Punjab in 1947, the district was left with 300 societies, most of which were in a crippled condition due to the exodus of Muslims members and the blockade of funds in west Pakistan. In sprite of all these handicaps, the movement got rehabilitated and made steady progress. During the First Five –Year Plan (1951-56),the credit output and membership increased substantially. During the Second Five – Year Plan (1956-61), the credit societies enlarged their functions so as to include supply and marketing of produce. About 20 rural godowns were set up and all regulated markets were covered with marketing co-operatives. During the third Five-Year Plan (1961-66), the co-operatives made good progress both in terms of expansion programme and enlargement of activities. The number of primary co-operative agricultural credit/service societies increased from 933 in 1961-62 to 973 in 1965-66. The total amount of loans advanced increased from Rs. 174.38 lakhs in 1961-62 to Rs 369.24 lakhs in 1965-66.
The National Development Council defined the role of the co-operative movement in intensifying agricultural production and in mobilizing local manpower and other resources. The Council placed the responsibility for increasing agricultural production on the co-operative through the active participation of the village community. It recommended the representation of every rural family in village co-operatives and underlined the need for crop loans linked with comprehensive farming programme for increasing agricultural production. Farming programme for increasing agricultural production.
The role of co-operatives was clearly defined in the intensive Agricultural District Programme launched in the district in 1961-62. The farmers production plan based on improved practices, is effectively executed through service co-operative. On the input side, they provide credit supplies while on the output side, they cater for marketing services. The co-operatives put the I.A.D. programme on a permanent footing and continually motivate the cultivators to adopt new methods.
The number of service co-operative societies in the district was 899 in the co-operative year 1965-66 as compared to 932 in 1964-65.
All the service co-operatives are affiliated with the Ludhiana Central Co-Operative Bank Ltd., Ludhiana, which its turn is affiliated with the apex credit institution known as the Punjab State c0-operative Bank Ltd., with head quarters at Chandigarh. The Ludhiana Cetral Cooperative Bank has its branches at Jagraon, Samrala,Raikot, Khanna, Malaudh Gujawal , and Doraha.
The number of co-operative agricultural credit societies, including multipurpose societies, was 973 at the end of 1965-66 as compared to 1,016 at the end of 1964-65.
(1) Agricultural Non-Credit Societies. - Though the co-operative movement in India has been essentially a credit movement from its very inception, the non-credit aspect of the movement has received some impetus since World War II. The number of agricultural non-credit societies in the district was 134 in 1965-66 as compared to 138 in 1964-65. Their principal forms are as under :
(a) Co-operative Marketing Societies. – These grant loans only when the cultivators store their produce with them. The area of operation is wider and the members’ liability is limited. The cultivators deal directly with the consumers through the societies and the middlemen are altogether eliminated from the transaction. In 1965-66 there were 8 co-operative marketing societies in the district.
(b) Co-operative Farming Societies. – Co-operative farming refers to a system of agricultural organisation, wherein cultivators of an area voluntarily associate together pool their individual holdings for purposes of cultivation and manage the whole farm as one unit under an elected management. Its main object is to combing incentive of ownership with the ‘size economics’ possible in agriculture. The system is suitable for the small land holdings which are not economic units and the scarcity of labour and its high charges require that the cultivation of land be carried out on a co-operative basis. Either co-operative farming societies should be re-organised on some regular scale or some system of joint farming be evolved, so that modern improved agricultural implements might be used and the problem of scarcity of agricultural labour be solved. The Government, therefore, encourages farmers to group themselves voluntarily into co-operative farming societies.
There were 74 co-operative farming societies in the district towards the end of 1965-66. Of these, 70 were co-operative joint farming societies and co-operative collective farming societies, and 4 so-operative better better-farming societies.
(c) Other Societies. – The number of other societies in the agricultural land allied fields in the district, during the year 1964-65 and 1965-66, was as under :
|
Type of society |
|
Number |
|
|
|
|
1964-65 |
1965-66 |
|
Co-operative Garden Colonies Societies |
.. |
4 |
4 |
|
Co-operative Poultry Societies |
.. |
14 |
14 |
|
Co-operative Dairying and Milk Supply Societies |
.. |
31 |
31 |
With the adoption of modern techniques of agriculture, the farmer today needs financial assistance in the form of short-term loans to meet expenses on chemical fertilizers, improved seeds and implements, minor irrigation facilities, insecticides, etc. In view of the limited resources of the State, it becomes imperative to mobilize all the resources of the farming community, which is possible only by active participation of the persons concerned.
Co-operative societies, both service and stores, are thus playing an increasingly important role in helping the farmer augment the yield from his fields in many ways. The credit facilities cover all important inputs, minor irrigation works, such as tubewells, pumping-sets, percolation wells, agricultural implements, pesticides, etc.
All the villages in the district are covered by primary agricultural credit/service societies with a total membership of 1,42,698 (as on 30th June, 1966), covering 92 per cent of the rural population. The primary societies disbursed short and medium term advances to their members to the tune of Rs. 360.24 lakhs during 1965-66.
Primary Agricultural Credit/Service Societies provide fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides, and improved implements under one roof to all the members on cash or credit.
A network of 973 agricultural societies is spread all over the district and societies exist within two miles of the home of the farmer.
Beside primary agricultural credit/service societies advancing short and medium-term loans, the Land Mortgages Banks advance long-term loans for various major purposes like debt redemption, purchase of land, purchase of tractors, tube wells, etc.
The land mortgage banking structure in the Punjab Consists of one apex institution, know as the Punjab State Co-operative Land Mortgage Bank Ltd., Chandigarh, (established in 1958) and 25 primary co-operative land Mortgage Banks at various places in the State including 3 in Ludhiana District at Ludhiana, Samrala and Jagraon established in 1962. Since the Land Mortgage Bank in the Punjab was established very late, it could not divert the major flow of loans towards productive purpose till 1965-66. However, from July 1, 1967, it switched over to Productive finance, and these institutions have established a name in the entire country for the best recovery performances, maintaining a pool of trained staff and keeping lowest lending rates.