Easy
What is the main production activity in Palampur?
Answer: Farming
What is multiple cropping?
Answer: Growing more than one crop on the same piece of land in a year. In Palampur, farmers grow jowar and bajra, followed by potato, and then wheat.
Why is land considered a scarce factor of production in Palampur?
Answer: Land in Palampur is fixed, and no further expansion is possible. With a growing population and division of land among families, plots have become smaller, making land scarce for farming.
How many families live in Palampur?
Answer: About 450 families.
How did electricity help farmers in Palampur?
Answer: It enabled the use of electric tubewells for irrigation, replacing Persian wheels, and helped irrigate the entire cultivated land.
Explain how modern farming methods increased crop yield but also harmed the environment.
Answer: HYV seeds, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides increased production, but overuse led to soil fertility loss, groundwater depletion, and pollution of rivers and lakes.
Which crop is grown in the winter (rabi) season in Palampur?
Answer: Wheat.
Why are wages for farm labourers in Palampur less than minimum wages?
Answer: There is heavy competition for work, many labourers are landless, and they agree to work at lower wages due to lack of opportunities.
Compare the conditions of small farmers with medium and large farmers in Palampur.
Answer: Small farmers have very small plots and little surplus, often borrowing at high interest. Medium and large farmers own more land, produce surplus crops, save money, and reinvest in farming.
What is the standard unit of measuring land?
Answer: Hectare
What are the four factors of production?
Answer: Land, Labour, Capital (fixed and working), and Human Capital (knowledge & enterprise).
Why do people in Palampur migrate to cities?
Answer: Due to limited farm work, low wages, and small land holdings, many people migrate to towns and cities for better jobs in industries, construction, or transport.
What percentage of people in Palampur depend on farming?
Answer: About 75%
How do medium and large farmers arrange capital for farming?
Answer: They use their own savings from surplus produce, unlike small farmers who borrow from moneylenders.
Suggest two steps that can be taken to increase non-farm activities in villages like Palampur.
Answer: Providing low-interest loans for small businesses and improving roads, transport, and market access so villagers can sell products and services outside.