Change and Development in Rural Society Class 12 Important Extra Questions Sociology Chapter 4

Change and Development in Rural Society Class 12 Important Extra Questions Sociology Chapter 4

SIQ 12TH
Published on By Amresh Academy

 


Class 12 Sociology Chapter 4 Important Extra Questions Change and Development in Rural Society

Change and Development in Rural Society Important Extra Questions Very Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What is the main occupation of rural people?
Answer:
The main occupation of rural people is agriculture. Production through the land is their main source of income. 70% of the Indian population directly or indirectly depends upon agriculture.

Question 2.
What is required to increase farm production?
Answer:
Farm production can be increased by many land reforms, use of new technology, new machines, new seeds, new chemical fertilizers, etc.

Question 3.
How rich farmers got more advantage from the Green revolution?
Answer:
New technology, seeds, and fertilizers were used during Green Revolution and it was possible for rich farmers to buy these costly things. That is why the rich farmers took maximum advantage of it.

Question 4.
Give two reasons for bringing land reforms.
Answer:

  1. The first reason for bringing land reforms was to increase productivity in the agricultural sector.
  2. The second reason was to stop the exploitation of poor farmers by eliminating intermediaries so that farmers could get land.

Question 5.
What is meant by the consolidation of land?
Answer:
If any farmer has agricultural land in different villages then the government allowed him the same size of land in one place, thus, organized his land. It is known as the consolidation of land.

Question 6.
What is Co-operative Farming?
Answer:
The meaning of co-operative farming is that when some farmers, with a smallholding of land, come closer to each other to do joint agriculture on a co-operative basis. They do not only share the income according to their share of the land but they also share the labor required for agriculture. A person remains the owner of his land.

Question 7.
Why North Indian states got more advantage from Green Revolution?
Answer:
North Indian states got more advantage from Green Revolution because these states have good fertile land and more means of irrigation.

Question 8.
What is economic development?
Answer:
When all the necessary means of living the good life are available, such as education health, per capita income, etc., then, we can say that economic development has taken place.

Question 9.
How production can be increased?
Answer:

  1. Production can be increased by using seeds of high yield.
  2. Production can also be increased by using-chemical fertilizers and new technology.

Question 10.
When was Zamindari System eliminated in India?
Answer:
Zamindari System was there in India before Independence. But this system was eliminated after 1950. Most of the Indian states made laws against this system and it came to an end.

Question 11.
What is Green Revolution?
Answer:
An increase in agricultural production, due to high yielding variety of seeds (HYV), fertilizers, new technology, and irrigation methods is termed as Green Revolution. It took place in the 1970s and later period in India.

Question 12.
How economic development of a country depends upon agriculture!?
Answer:
India’s economic development depends upon agriculture in the way that 70% of the Indian population depends upon agriculture and related occupations. These people directly or indirectly depend upon agriculture for their income. If we want to develop the country then the development of these people is necessary. So if these 70% people would progress then country will develop.

Question 13.
What was the situation in India, before the Green Revolution, in the field of grain production?
Answer:
Before Green Revolution, India was unable to produce the required grains and it imported grains to meet its needs.

Question 14.
Why caste is changed into class?
Answer:
There were many restrictions in the caste system regarding marriage, eating habits, social interaction, etc. The caste system has been weakened due to urbanization, industrialization, westernization, etc. and the caste system is being replaced by the class system.

Question 15.
What is an Elite Group?
Answer:
The meaning of elite is special, and it refers to the one who has some special or higher status in the society. In this way, an elite group is a group that has some special position or status in society.

Question 16.
Who are gentlemen farmers?
Answer:
Gentleman group of farmers who get retired from their government, non-governmental, military, or civil services. They invest their money in agricultural farms and develop them in an efficient way.

Question 17.
Who are middle caste farmers?
Answer:
This type of farmer belongs to the group of middle castes. They are neither very rich poor. That is why they are also known as middle-class farmers.

Question 18.
Who are Capitalist farmers?
Answer:
Capitalist farmers belong to that group of farmers who invest their capital in agricultural works, to earn more profit. They use loans, grants, markets, means of transport and communication, cheap labor, new technology, etc. to increase their agricultural production.

Question 19.
What is Liberalisation?
Answer:
Liberalization is removing certain restrictions in a controlled economy, so that economy could become more competitive, open, and progressive.

Question 20.
What is Globalisation?
Answer:
Globalization is that process in which the economy of one country is attached to the economies of other countries. It means the unrestricted exchange of things, services, capital, and labor of one country with other countries.

Question 21.
What are the two reasons for liberalization?
Answer:

  1. To develop more means of employment.
  2. To produce more and more competition among industries so that consumers should get more and more benefit.

Question 22.
What is Privatisation?
Answer:
Socialist and democratic countries have mixed type of economy. This type of economy has public enterprises that are under the direct control of the government. Sometimes government sells these public enterprises to private parties and this process is known as privatization.

Question 23.
What is meant by Zamindari System?
Answer:
This settlement of land was introduced by Lord Cornwallis in Bengal. According to this system, zamindars were considered as the owners of land and the government fixed their land revenue. Zamindars further gave their land on rent to small farmers and started collecting land revenue according to their wish. It led to the exploitation of small farmers by zamindars.

Question 24.
What is meant by Mahalwari System?
Answer:
This system was started by the British at the beginning of the 19th century. It started to consider the whole community of the village as the owner of the land and fixed its land revenue. One individual of the community used to collect the fixed land revenue from all the houses of the village and deposit it to the government. But the fixed land revenue was very high in this system.

Question 25.
What is meant by Ryotwari System?
Answer:
The meaning of ‘Ryot’ was a farmer. This system was started by Lord William Bentinck in which the government had a direct contract with farmers or Ryot. The revenue of every Ryot was fixed and they used to pay revenue directly to the government. Land revenue in this system was also very high.

Question 26.
What is a proprietory caste group? (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
A proprietary caste group, in most regions of the country, is that group that owns most of the resources in a village and which can command labor to work for them.

Question 27.
In what ways are agriculture and culture linked? (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:

  1. Cultural practices and patterns can be traced to our agrarian backgrounds such as Baisakhi, Ugadi, etc.
  2. Celebration of new year festival in different regions of India – Pongal, Bihu, Onam, etc.

Change and Development in Rural Society Important Extra Questions Short Answer Type

Question 1.
What are the main objectives of liberalization?
Answer:

  1. the Main objective of liberalization is to create more opportunities for employment.
  2. To attract foreign investment to create employment opportunities.
  3. Making Indian companies competitive in the Indian market.
  4. To give more and more freedom to the private sector.
  5. To increase the production capacity of the country.

Question 2.
Give some features of liberalization policy.
Answer:

  1. Except for few things, the policy of taking licenses was eliminated so that all the industries could develop very easily.
  2. Privatization of public enterprises was started so that the deficit making enterprises could turn into profit-making enterprises.
  3. Very few industries were left for the public sector so that all the industries could
    be encouraged.
  4. The limit of foreign direct investment has been increased. In some sectors it is up to 51%, in some, it is 74% and in many sectors, complete investment has been permitted.

Question 3.
Give some characteristics of Globalisation.
Answer:
United Nation development program has given four characteristics of globalization and these are:

  1. New tools and things have come for people in globalization because large companies of the world are going in every country.
  2. New markets have been opened for companies because, in globalization, companies can do free trade in any country.
  3. New organizations are coming forward to do work for Red Cross, World Trade Organisation, etc.
  4. New laws and rules are coming forward due to globalization like jobs on contract instead of permanent jobs.

Question 4.
In how many phases process of liberalization in India can be divided?
Answer:
The process of liberalization in India can be divided into 4 phases:

  1. First Phase of 1975-1980
  2. The second phase of 1980-1985
  3. The third phase of 1985-1991
  4. The fourth phase of 1991 onwards.

Question 5.
Give four principles of Globalisation.
Answer:

  1. The opening up of the economy of the country for foreign investment.
  2. To reduce custom duty up to a maximum extent.
  3. Disinvestment of public enterprises.
  4. To encourage investment in the private sector.

Question 6.
What was the Zamindari system?
Answer:
Zamindari System was there in our country before Independence. Around one-fourth of the total agricultural land was under Zamindari System before Independence. This system was started by Lord Cornwallis in 1793. According to this system, Zamindar was made the owner of the land but it was not necessary that he should till the land himself. He used to give the whole of his land to farmers. He used to collect tax from farmers and paid a fixed amount of tax to the government. This system was popular in Bengal, U.P., Rajasthan, M.P., Bihar, and Madras.

Question 7.
Give features of the Zamindari system.
Answer:

  1. Zamindar was the owner of the land.
  2. Zamindar used to give land to marginal and landless farmers to till.
  3. Marginal farmers used to pay tax to zamindar.
  4. Zamindar used to pay tax to the government.

Question 8.
What was the Ryotwari system?
Answer:
Around 36% of total agricultural land was under Ryotwari System at the time of Independence. William Bentinck started this system to remove shortcomings of the Zamindari System. According to this system, that person or family will pay tax to the government which holds and till the land. The meaning of ‘Ryot’ is farmer or tiller. After giving taxes to the government for a definite time period, he becomes the owner of the land. That Ryot or farmer was free to give his land to other farmers on rent.

Question 9.
What was the Mahalwari system?
Answer:
Mahalwari was another important system of the land. Under this system ownership of land was with the whole of the village. Land under the control of the village was known as Shamlat land. This land was further divided among different families who used to pay definite tax. Lambardar used to collect taxes from the village and used to get a 5% commission of the total. After this, the village used to pay fixed tax to the government. Farmers, in this system, also had no direct contact with the government.

Question 10.
What were the features of the abolition of Zamindari?
Answer:

  1. Barron land and pastorals of the village came under the possession of the government.
  2. The land was taken away from zamindars and compensation was given to them.
  3. Some states gave this compensation in cash or installments.
  4. Only that land remained with the zamindars from which they themselves used to earn their livelihood.

Question 11.
What was Green Revolution? What is its importance in India?
Answer:
Agricultural production increased by making Five Year plans in India and it led to great output in the field of production. This surplus growth in the field of agricultural production is known as Green Revolution. In this way word, Green Revolution is used for that quick change that came in the field of the production of eatable things. There is a great importance of the green revolution in India because this revolution has made India self-reliant in the field of the production of food items. Before 1965, India had to import its food items but after this Green Revolution came and India became self-reliant.

Question 12.
What were the land reforms that took place in India after Independence?
Answer:

  1. Zamindari system was abolished.
  2. The ceiling on landholding by any person was kept.
  3. Consolidation of land was implemented.
  4. Many tenancy reforms were introduced.
  5. New records of land and co-operative farming were maintained.

Question 13.
What is meant by the Ceiling of land? How reforms were brought into it?
Answer:
The meaning of ceiling of land is that in which an individual should possess cultivable land according to a prescribed limit and not more than that. Before this limit, many individuals had thousands of acres of land, and the majority of people had no land. That is why, to provide cultivable land for all, this ceiling was fixed and it came to be known as ceding of land. Many laws were made regarding this. After 1973, this limit was fixed at 18 acres in Haryana and 27 acres in Punjab. If anyone possessed more land than the ceiling, then it was taken away from him and was distributed among landless farmers.

Question 14.
Why land reforms were introduced in India?
Answer:

  1. Many farmers of India had hundreds of acres of land and some had none. So land reforms were introduced to provide land to landless farmers.
  2. After independence, political leaders felt that there should not be economic inequality in the society and wanted to establish socio-economic equality, hence, land reforms must be introduced.
  3. The biggest reason for the lower status of farmers was the existence of intermediaries between the government and small farmers. So, the government thought that abolition of intermediaries is necessary to improve the economic status of farmers and this was the main objective of land reforms.
  4. At the time of Independence, India was forced to import grains to meet its needs. The government implemented land reforms to fulfill the local needs.

Question 15.
Highlight the advantages and disadvantages of contract farming. (C.B.S.E. 2015)
Answer:
Advantages of contract farming:

  1. The company provides technical know-how and working capital.
  2. Farmer is assured of a market that his product will be sold.
  3. The company guarantees that it will purchase the product at a pre-determined fixed price.
  4. Financial security is there for farmers and company identified the crop to be grown.

Disadvantages:

  1. Farmers become dependent on companies for their livelihood – insecurity.
  2. It makes indigenous knowledge of agriculture irrelevant.
  3. It only caters to the production of elite items.
  4. Crops require high doses of fertilizers and pesticides – not ecologically sustainable.

Question 16.
Explain contract farming and also highlight its advantages. (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:
Contract farming – explanation and advantages.

  1. The farmer enters into a contract with a company.
  2. The company identifies the crop to be grown.
  3. The seeds are provided by the company.
  4. The know-how, and many times the working capital is also provided by the company.
  5. The assurance to the farmer that his produce will be bought at a predetermined price is given by the company.
  6. Commonly practiced for special products like grapes, figs, pomegranates, cotton, etc.

Change and Development in Rural Society Important Extra Questions Essay Answer Type

Question 1.
What do you know about Zamindari System? Give its meaning, features, and demerits.
Answer:
Zamindari System was there in our country, before Independence, in the field of agriculture. Around one-fourth of the total agricultural land was under the Zamindari system. This system was started by Lord Cornwallis in 1793. According to this System, Zamindar was made the owner of the land but it was not necessary that he should till the land himself. He used to give the whole of his land to the farmers to till. He used to collect tax from the farmers and used to pay a fixed tax of his land to the government.

The British government gave ownership of a large area of land to Zamindars so that they could get definite income from Zamindari in the form of taxes. It was very easy to keep in contact with fewer Zamindars. Generally, Zamindars gave their land to other land tillers practice agriculture and even those tillers give land again to other persons. In this way, the land was divided between tillers and sub-tillers. Everyone had to pay a definite amount of tax to Zamindar and Zamindar had to pay a fixed tax to the government. This system prevailed in Bengal, U.P., Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Madras State.

Features of Zamindari System: Features of the Zamindari System are given below:

  1. the First feature of the Zamindari System was that ownership of land remained with Zamindar yet it was given to tillers or sub tillers on rent.
  2. Zamindars were not used to till the land themselves but it was given further to small marginal farmers to do agriculture.
  3. Marginal farmers used to give tax to the Zamindars.
  4. Many times, tillers used to give land further to sub-tillers to do agriculture.
  5. Zamindar used to collect tax from the tillers.
  6. There was no direct relationship between the actual tiller and the government. That is why Zamindar used to play the role of mediocre between them.
  7. There was a lot of difference between tax collected from the farmers and tax paid to the government as the Zamindar had to pay a fixed amount to the government. They used to collect a lot of tax from actual tillers of the land.
  8. Farmers in this system were very much exploited by the Zamindars because they were forced to pay heavy taxes to the Zamindars.
  9. There was a lack of any security for tillers from Zamindars or the Government in case of a situation like a flood, epidemic, drought, etc. It was so because Zamindars and the government were only concerned about tax.
  10. Tillers hardly cared about increasing the productivity of land because they were aware of the fact that the land did not belong to them.
  11. There were many drawbacks in the Zamindari system because the Zamindars started to use the money to live a life of luxury.

Demerits of Zamindari System

  1. One of the major demerits of the Zamindari system was a division of land into small parts because it was divided into tillers and sub-tillers.
  2. There was no security of land of the tiller because they were aware of the fact that this land did not belong to them and it belonged to someone else.
  3. There were no rules in the collection of taxes. Zamindars used to collect tax according to their wish. Many a time the was half of the total produce.
  4. Actual tillers of the land were very much exploited because most of the part of their produce was taken away by the Zamindars.
  5. The tillers had no ownership right of land because it was given to them on rent and it could be taken away from them at any time.
  6. The government had no direct contact with actual tillers because Zamindars used to pay the required amount of tax to the government.
  7. Zamindars used to collect heavy taxes from farmers. Many a time it was two-thirds part of the total production of farmers.

Question 2.
What were the problems that originated with the advent of the Green Revolution? Explain them.
Or
What were the adverse effects of the Green Revolution? (C.B.S.E. 2012)
Answer:
1. Limited States: The first problem which came with Green Revolution was that it came in some states and not in the entire country. Punjab and Haryana had very good means of irrigation and that is why it brought a revolutionary change in these states. But most of the other states remained unaffected by the Green Revolution. There was a lot of economic inequality due to this. For example, small states like Punjab became one of the richest states in the country. In this way agriculture developed only in those states which had developed agricultural means, Backward states remained backward.

2. Limited Crops: Another problem that came with Green Revolution was that it was limited only to very few crops. That is why the production of only rice, paddy, wheat, Jowar, etc. was increased. There was no increase in the production of commercial crops like cotton, tea, jute, etc. Their situation remained as it was. In this way, it was unable to bring revolution in other sectors.

3. More Profit to Rich Farmers: Another problem that arose with Green Revolution was that rich farmers got more profit from it. The condition of poor farmers remained miserable. For Green Revolution, high yielding variety of seeds, fertilizers, improved means of irrigation, etc. were needed. Money was required for all these things and money was with rich farmers. Farmers, who had landed more than 10-15 hectares, took maximum advantage of it. But the situation of farmers with small pieces of land worsened. In this way, it became a revolution of big farmers but became a curse for small farmers.

4. Increase in Economic Inequality: Green revolution increased economic inequality in society. Big farmers were able to spend a lot of money and they spent. But small farmers were unable to take advantage out of it and their situation remained as it was. This brought economic inequality in the society.

Question 3.
What were the land reforms that were introduced after Independence? (C.B.S.E. 2010, 2013)
Answer:
India was an underdeveloped country at the time of Independence. Industries were not developed. Technology and science lagged behind. The main source of income for people was agriculture. More than 80% of the total population was living in rural areas were involved in agriculture and related occupations. The situation of people, in villages, was pitiful. So, governmental and non-governmental steps were necessary to bring reforms in agriculture. The government made certain laws to bring reforms that were implemented. Some of the land reforms are given below:
1. Consolidation of Land: Land of lakhs of farmers was scattered in the country. Fields were at far off places. They were provided the same area of land in one place so that they could be able to till their land easily.

2. To encourage Cooperative Farming: Cooperative farming was encouraged in different Five Year planer. That is why lakhs of members are doing cooperative farming on land under cooperative societies.

3. Abolition of Intermediaries: The government made certain laws for the abolition of intermediaries between farmers and the state after Independence. The custom of intermediaries was very complex in West Bengal in the form of Zamindars and absentee Landlordism. Zamindari Abolition Act was first passed in this state. Zamindars were compensated when their land was taken away by the government.

4. Records of Land Ownership: The government started to keep records of land ownership. Himachal Pradesh has made farmer books, in 2000-2001, in which complete information of their land is given. Nowadays, computerized records are maintained.

5. Ceiling of Holdings: The government has kept a ceiling on landholdings. Two stages were made in different states regarding this ceiling. The first one was before 1972 and the second one was made after 1973. Punjab and Haryana have kept a ceiling of 27 hectares for irrigated land and 100 hectares for non-irrigated land in the stages before 1972. But this ceiling was reduced to 18 hectares and 27 hectares after 1973. In Himachal Pradesh, this ceiling was kept at 10 hectares and 15 hectares.

6. Reforms in Tenancy System: Before Independence, actual tenants had to pay around half of their products in the form of taxes. But the first Five Year plan has suggested that it should not exceed 20-25% of total production. That is why many states have passed many laws related to this. Tenants were given ownership and security of land.

Question 4.
What is Green Revolution? On what basis it was implemented.
Answer:
Green Revolution is a planned and scientific way to increase the production of agriculture. After analyzing Five Year plans, it became clear that if we want to become self-dependent in food production then we have to use new ways and technology related to production. So, technical changes were brought in agriculture, in 1966-67, keeping this aim in mind. New experiments were started to bring new seeds for more productivity especially wheat and rice. New means of irrigation, pesticides, and fertilizers were also used for this. The use of developed means in agriculture was given the name of the Green Revolution.

Here, the word ‘Green’ was used for the green fields of farmers, and the word ‘Revolution’ was used for wide change. Intense agriculture district programs were started in which only three districts were included, but later, 16 districts participated. Selected districts were provided developed means of farming, seeds, and means of irrigation. This program was also called a package program. The program was also started in other parts of the country by 1967-68, but it could not reach a higher level. During this program, farmers were given knowledge of new technology, and new means of production so that agricultural output could be increased.

Main bases of Green Revolution
1. Determination of price of produce: The government gave a guarantee of a good price of produce to farmers to give them security from the fluctuation of price and to save them from exploitation. A commission was made to regulate the price of different crops. This commission gave its recommendations from time to time for minimum support price of crops.

2. Development of Animal Husbandry: Enough importance, was given to the development of dairy farming, poultry, piggery, sheep rearing, developing a new breed of cows and buffaloes, etc. India is an agricultural country where there is a great relation between agriculture and animal husbandry. Agricultural productivity can be increased if our animal husbandry could be based on developed means So, to increase rural employment and dairy development, a technological mission was established in 1988 for dairy development. That is why milk production was 6.8 crore tonnes during 1966-1967 but it increased to 7.2 crore tonnes in 1997-98.

3. Establishment of Corporation: Government has formed an Agricultural Industrial Corporation for the development of agricultural tools, machines, and arrangement of godowns. In 1953, the government started the National Government Development Corporation for the sale, processing, and collection of produced things of agriculture. National Seed Corporation was also established for the sale of a high yielding variety of seeds. Different states also started their seed corporations.

4. Use of Insecticides: It was believed that one-fourth of total produce gets destroyed by rats and other animals. It was very necessary to save this much of production from animals. For this, the use of insecticides was necessary so that production could be saved. Farmers started to use medicines, insecticides, and pesticides.

5. Multicrop Programme. Only those crops are sowed in multi-crop programs which could be riped in less duration of time like vegetables, com, Jowar, etc. Short term cropping pattern was followed in Green Revolution. New methods for crops were used with which production was increased. Today, this program is going on 930 lakh hectares of land and positive results are seen.

Question 5.
Explain the social and economic consequences of the Green Revolution.
Or
What were the social consequences of the Green Revolution? (C.B.S.E. 2010)
Or
Highlight the social consequences of the Green Revolution? (C.B.S.E. 2017 (D))
Answer:
1. Class Struggle: Class system of villages was changed due to Green Revolution. Many small and marginal farmers became rich. This has changed the traditional class system of villages. Now, lower classes and small farmers started attaining power which was only confined to higher castes in earlier times. Green Revolution was one of the reasons for the class struggle in villages.

2. Increase in the price of food grains: Farm production was increased due to the Green Revolution. But the cost of agricultural production was also increased due to costly fertilizers, seeds, and machines. That is why small and marginal farmers were unable to use these methods and big farmers drew maximum profit from these methods. Expensive agriculture technology increased the cost price of food grains.

3. Agriculture laborers became poor: Many scholars are of the view that unemployment has been increased due to the impacts of the Green Revolution. The actual wages of agricultural laborers were reduced. Some scholars are of the view that the Green Revolution has lowered the social status of laborers.

4. Political impact: Rich farmers became more powerful due to Green Revolution. Rich farmers created obstacles in various land reforms. That is why the government had to face many problems to implement laws regarding land reforms. Even farmers of the middle class raised their income by using new technology and they became more powerful politically.

5. Advance Technology was out of reach for small farmers: Social and economic status of poor farmers and landless agricultural laborers became weak due to Green Revolution. New technology, developed seeds, pesticides, means of irrigation, etc. are very expensive and that is the reason it remained out of reach of small and marginal farmers. It created a gap between marginal and rich farmers.

6. Increase in Economic Inequality. Green Revolution developed inequality in the income of different sectors. Its reason is that seeds of more yield were used in certain areas of the country. But most of the other parts of the country are using traditional methods of agriculture. That is why inequality in production developed. Thus, Green Revolution encouraged economic inequality in the country.

Question 6.
What was the type of classes that existed in the rural areas? Explain them.
Answer:
India’s economic progress was quick after Independence. Planned efforts are put for economic development and that is why new groups and classes emerged in rural areas. Some of these main classes are given below:

1. Landowner farmers: Steps were taken, after Independence, to change the existing systems related to land. The land was taken away from Zamindars by making laws and was distributed between lakhs of landless farmers. Every landless farmer was given the land of one hectare free of cost. That is is how the landless farmers became landowners. Before this, they used to do agriculture on the land of Zamindars.

Now, they started practicing agriculture on their own land. 50 lakh hectares of land was given to 50 lakh people till 1992. They began to take interest in agricultural works on their land. Production on their land was increased after Green Revolution with which their economic condition improved. They started to invest money in developed seeds, fertilizers, agricultural tools, and means of irrigation. Now, even small farmers could afford tractors of their own.

2. Gentleman Farmers: Gentleman farmers were also a class of landowner farmers. They did not have much of the land like zamindars. Those farmers were included in this group who either got land from their ancestors or have bought that land themselves. Many of those people are included in this group who were retired from their government jobs or military or non-military services. Gentlemen farmers sow traditional crops like wheat, rice, maize, fruits, vegetables, etc. They use developed seeds, fertilizers, mechanical tools, new means of irrigation, thrasher, etc. with which production increased.

3. Middle caste and Middle-class farmers: Powerful middle caste and middle-class farmers emerged in rural areas after Independence. They are known as middle caste because their position was lower than higher castes and higher than the lower castes in the caste hierarchy. This class is also known as the middle class because they are neither zamindar and nor landless farmers. Many landlords and big farmers of higher castes migrated towards urban areas to take advantage of industrialization and urbanization. They started to invest their money in industries. Under these circumstances, middle caste and middle-class farmers emerged in rural areas.

4. Capitalist Farmers: Capitalist farmer class is that class that invests their capital in agricultural works to take maximum advantage of it. This class was different from the zamindar class because Zamindars served as the link between the government and farmers. It had done nothing to increase production and productivity. But capitalist class used many means to increase its profit like taking loans to increase production, food technology, markets, means of transport and communication, and cheap labor. The capitalist farmer class is a very small portion of the total population of the country but this class plays an important role in the local consumption and production of food grains for export.

Question 7.
What are the changes or transformations that came in rural society after Independence? Explain them.
Answer:
Many changes took place in the rural areas, after Independence, especially in those areas where Green Revolution was implemented. These included:

  1. Growth of intensive farming.
  2. A shift from payment in kind or grain to payment in cash,
  3. Changes in the traditional relation between farmers, land-owners, and agricultural workers.
  4. Rise of free wage laborers.

Sociologists have described changes in the nature of the relationship between farmers and agricultural workers. These changes came in all those areas where commercialization of agriculture took place, i.e., where crops were grown to be sold in the market. Some scholars are of the view that this change in labor relations helped capitalist agriculture. Production in a capitalist system is based on the separation of means of production from laborers and the use of free wage labor. These days, farmers of developed areas are producing for the market. Rural areas are becoming integrated with the wider economy due to the commercialization of agriculture.

That is why the investment of capital in villages has increased and chances of trade and employment have also been increased. But one thing should be kept in mind that these changes in the rural economy were started during colonial rule. In the 19th century, the British produced cotton on large pieces of land in Maharashtra and integrated its farmers directly into the world market. It spread after Independence because the government provided many modern facilities to rural areas to increase agricultural production. The government provided roads, facilities of irrigation, and cooperative societies. Government efforts for rural development not only transformed the rural economy and agriculture but also changed the agrarian structure and rural society itself.

The green revolution came in the decades of 1960 and 1970 and rich farmers invested in the agricultural field and became richer. Farmers of dominant castes of Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and central Gujarat invested the profit of the agricultural field into another type of trades. With this, new entrepreneurial groups emerged who migrated from rural areas towards towns. It led to the rise of new regional elite groups that became economically and politically powerful. This change in class structure led to the opening of higher education institutions in rural areas and rural people started to educate their children. Most of them joined professional or white-collar occupations or started businesses which led to an expansion of urban classes.

Question 8.
What was the impact of Globalisation and liberalization on rural society?
Answer:
India has been following the policy of liberalization since the late 1980s and has had a great impact on agriculture and rural society.
1. The policy of globalization means participation in a world trade organization, whose objective is to establish a free international market. The Indian market was a* closed market but it was ready to compete with the international market after globalization. There are many things, like many types of fruits and other food items, which were not available in the local market due to restrictions on import. India was self-dependent in the field of foodgrains. Thus, rural society started competing with the international market due to globalization.

2. Agriculture has been incorporated in the wider international market due to globalization and it directly influenced the farmers and rural society. For example, farmers of Punjab and Karnataka made contracts with multinational companies (like Coke, Pepsi) to produce fixed crops (like Tomato, Potato). These companies then buy their produce for processing or export.

In this way, companies ask to produce a particular crop in contractual farming. They provide seeds and other things in the form of investment. They also provide information and often also working capital. In return, the company guarantees that it will purchase the product at a predetermined fixed price. Flowers, grapes, figs, pomegranates, cotton, and oilseeds are the main crops of contractual farming. Contract farming diverts many people from the production process to other areas. Moreover, more fertilizers and pesticides are used to produce these crops which is not good for the environment.

3. Another aspect of globalization of agriculture is the entry of multinational companies into this sector as sellers of seeds, pesticides, and fertilizers. Over the last decade, agricultural agents were replaced by seed, fertilizer, and pesticide companies. These agents provided knowledge to farmers about seeds and agriculture and these agents wanted to sell their goods. That is why farmers are forced to use expensive fertilizers and pesticides. The farmers were caught in the debt trap which led to ecological crises in rural areas.

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Amresh Academy

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