By
Mohanakumar S
Sponsored by V.V. Giri National Labour Institute, Noida

The study was undertaken in the light of the observation that Natural Rubber (NR) has been growing fast in Tripura, second largest NR growing state in India after Kerala. The study analysed the employment and income effect of the crop shift and also highlighted that there have been significant fall in employment for wage labour and the loss in employment days was mostly for workers in tribal and dalit communities. Hence, the immediate consequence of the shift in cropping pattern from food crops to NR was loss of employment and non-availability to food to vulnerable section in the society.

It has been estimated that 25 percent of the gross cropped area in the state of Tripura is earmarked for NR cultivation by the Rubber Board and the state government. Out of the total population, 31 percent are tribals and their main stay of livelihood continues to be traditional agriculture including bamboo flower, rice, fishery, vegetables and fruits. The study found that the promotion of commercial non-food crops (NR) in Tripura was a state-sponsored agenda introduced as a rehabilitation project for tribal who had been practicing shifting cultivation. For the last one decade, the NR price has been ruling high over the price of other major crops grown in the state and therefore farmers have shifted to NR. The current scenario is such that the spread of area under NR cultivation is beyond the regulatory power of the state government.

By
Mohanakumar S and Surjit Singh
Sponsored by National Dairy Development Board, Anand

The study was perceived in the background of a consecutive fall in milk pouring to Jalgaon Milk Union. Under Jalgaon Milk Union (JMU), there are more than 1000 dairy cooperative societies (DCS). The DCS collects milk from farmers and send it to JMU. It was reported that the pouring of milk to JMU by DCS has been on a decline, therefore, the study attempted to identify reasons for it. The study was based on a primary survey of 750 dairy farmer households in selected 30 DCS of live talukas in Jalgaon district. It revealed that the declining trend in milk pouring has been a recurrent phenomenon. This in turn implicates that the observed trend may turn around any time from now; farmers are shifting from buffalo to desi cow. The shift has been driven by the increased cost of production of milk and labour cost of rearing animal. (desi cow can be reared with family labour-female); shift in cropping pattern in the district from cattle fodder supplying food crops. Cost of production of milk of all types of animals is on the higher side as compared to the return from it. The study concluded that the observed decline in milk pouring is a reflection of the passive tendency of farmers to treat cattle rearing as a primary occupation. The trend can be reversed only by transforming functions of DCS as market facilitator to production facilitator while ensuring marketing of milk and milk products at a remunerative price.

By
Mohanakumar S and Surjit Singh
Sponsored by Ministry of Agriculture, New Delhi

The slow growth in agriculture in relation to industry and service sectors has been a matter of serious concern for policy makers especially since the introduction of economic reforms in 1991. Further, the crisis in the farm front by the late 1990s has pushed farmers to the extreme step of ending their lives out of sheer distress. Concerned due to these factors, the National Development Council resolved to launch a special Additional Central Assistance Scheme called Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) in May 2007. In the light of falling public and private investment in agriculture, it was envisaged that channeling the small savings of farmers as complementary to public sector investment would help enhance the much needed investment and overcome technology fatigue in the farm sector. It was resolved to implement RKVY by developing a comprehensive State Agriculture Plan (SAP) by integrating Comprehensive-District Agricultural Plan (C-DAPs) prepared by the District Agriculture Department in consultation with allied sectors. The Institute was entrusted with the task of peer reviewing C-DAPs for Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Chhattisgarh. The C-DAP evaluation reports confirmed the following: the states vary significantly in following the C-DAP guidelines with respect to: bottom-up participatory approach; comprehensiveness; convergence of C-DAP and write-up. Institutionalization and operationalisation of C-DAPs is still partial; participatory bottom-up approach is not sufficiently followed. Technical support institutions were mostly used to prepare C-DAPs rather than being facilitators; a majority of states focused C-DAPs on RKVY instead of integrating programmes and schemes of non- governmental organizations. Besides, there is little awareness about bottom-up approach of the planning process among farmers.

By
Surjit Singh and VS Bhaduaria
Sponsored by NABARD, Mumbai

This project aimed to assess the efficacy and impact of the Revival Package on the STCCS and to suggest measures to remove shortcomings observed in implementation as also to fulfill the requirements of the various covenants contained in Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by State Government/s with Government of India and NABARD. The results show that it would take time for DCCBs in Haryana to stabilize their performance. All the provisions in the MoU have been incorporated in the Amendments with the exception of 4 provisions. As regards one amendment (Section 27), it was suggested by NABARD, but the State government is of the view that this provision is not necessary.

In Haryana debt waiver and debt relief package and revival package has affected the performance of PACS that were better performing. The recovery rate fell drastically in 2008, but is slowly recovering. Merger has also not been well received by farmers. It appears that one-time revival would not help PACS in Haryana. The study has thrown up one or two points, which can be made use by other states: Merger of PACS was not a good experience in the state of Haryana .Therefore, any other state considering such a step should study the experience of the state of Haryana. Abolition of section 104 (on the strength of which a cooperative society can attach assets of borrowers) has not been a positive step in the state. Any other state considering such a step should therefore study the experience of Haryana first. Stability in the incumbency on the part of managers and secretaries has been observed to be useful in the state. The same can be replicated by other states.

By
KN Joshi
Sponsored by TISS, Mumbai

The objective of this report was to present the blue print and present status of urban reform in Rajasthan. It had three components: Status Report on Urban Reforms in Rajasthan, State Level Background Paper on Rajasthan and City Level Background Paper on Ajmer and Pushkar. The study highlights that the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act (CAA), 1992 was one such initiative, which gave constitutional recognition to the urban local bodies along with the constitutional right to exist. It provides a basis for the State Legislatures to transfer various responsibilities to municipalities and to strengthen municipal -level governance. Furthermore, the process was strengthened by launching Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewable Mission (JNN URM) to ensure improvement in urban governance and service delivery so that ULBs become financially sound and sustainable.