T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y A u g u s t 20, 1955

Economic Study of a Malabar Village Thomas Shea

M O R A Z H A v i l l age and the aur-r o u n d i n g area const i tu te one of

the chief s t rongholds of the C o m m u ­nis t P a r t y i n M a l a b a r . The K i s a n Sangham ( the peasant o rgan i sa t ion sponsored by the C o m m u n i s t P a r t y ) has a large b r a n c h office there w i t h 400 members . M o r a z h a became famous in 1940 as the scene of w h a t was re fe r red to in the courts as the M o r a z h a Conspiracy Case, in w h i c h a large number of persons were sent to pr ison, a n d a p rominen t Communi s t leader was sentenced to death. (He was subsequently re­leased when the Congress came to power.) In September 1940, a Sub-Inspector of Police who was k n o w n to be a v i r u l e n t a n t i - C o m m u n i s t l e f t the area of his j u r i s d i c t i o n , w h i c h l ay outside of Moraza, w i t h a p a r t y of a rmed cons tabulary to smash up a Communi s t mee t ing be­ing held there. On his a r r i v a l , he ordered the c rowd of over 3000 w h i c h h a d ga thered in the square to disperse i n s t a n t l y on threa t of opening fire. The c r o w d became un ru ly , a n d in the ensuing period of confusion, the Sub-Inspector was murdered . M o r a z h a has ever since been regarded popu la r ly as a centre of turbulence and discontent . The f o l l o w i n g s tudy of the economic causes of unrest in th is v i l l age was car r ied out d u r i n g the months o f F e b r u a r y and M a r c h , 1955.

Morazha Desam M o r a z h a desam is s i tua ted about

13 miles nor th -wes t of Cannanore i n C h i r a k k a l T a l u k , M a l a b a r Dis ­t r i c t . I t lies about 1 ½ miles f r o m the m a i n r o a d to T a l i p a r a m b a w h i c h has recent ly been conver ted i n t o a n a t i o n a l h i g h w a y . I t can be reached by a subs id iary road const ructed by the Madras Govern­men t fo r m i l i t a r y purposes d u r i n g the per iod of widespread a g r a r i a n unrest w h i c h upset th is p a r t of the d i s t r i c t f o l l o w i n g independence. I t is one of the fou r d rsnms w h i c h make up M o r a z h a amsam, w h i c h in M a l a b a r is the revenue v i l l age over w h i c h the a u t h o r i t y o f v i l l age off i ­cers extends.

The out l ine map shows the con­f igu ra t ion of the v i l lage , a n d the loca t ion of paddy flats, garden lands a n d d r y lands. W e t holdings (paddy flats) occupy 338 acres, or 21.9 per cent of the assessed lands in the v i l l age a n d account f o r nea r ly h a l f of the t o t a l l a n d revenue assess­

ment ; garden lands comprise 443 acres or 28.7 per cent of the asses­sed area and pay 42.9 per cent of the revenue assessment.

Population and Land Use The t o t a l area of the v i l lage is

1,591 acres and the popula t ion is, accord ing to the 1951 census, 3,036 —this gives a densi ty of r ough ly 2 per acre, or about 9 per acre of paddy l and . On the very ex t ra ­vagan t assumpt ion t h a t each acre of paddy l and in the v i l l age pro­duces on an average 1000 lbs of paddy per year, th is w o u l d provide jus t over 100 lbs of paddy, or 60 lbs of rice per person per year. On the equal ly e x t r a v a g a n t assumpt ion t h a t each acre of ga rden l a n d was p lan ted w i t h the o p t i m u m number of coconut trees per acre, 120, and each tree yie lded the d i s t r i c t average of about 25 nuts per tree per year, there w o u l d be 443 nuts per year per person, or 9 per week. There are, accord ing to the census. 1316 persons classified as engaged p r i ­m a r i l y in agr icu l tu re , a densi ty of a lmost four per acre of wet. l and . I f the same assumptions r ega rd ing v i l l age product ion are used fo r pur­poses of ca lcu la t ion , each a g r i c u l t u ­r a l i s t produces 250 lbs of paddy per year, or 150 lbs of rice a da i ly a l lowance of less t h a n 8 ounces per

person—and 1000 coconuts per year, or less t h a n 20 nuts per week.

Not Producing Enough These figures show t h a t the v i l ­

lage is no t p roduc ing enough paddy a n d coconuts—the staple crops of the vi l lage- to feed itself . At one t ime 150 fami l ies were w h o l l y or p a r t i a l l y m a i n t a i n e d on the earnings oi' those v i l l age rs w h o w o r k e d in the nearby A a r o n sp inn ing and weav ing m i l l s . Th i s fac tory , one of the largest in M a l a b a r , closed down about two years ago o w i n g to mis ­management and the v i l l age rs w h o f o r m e r l y w o r k e d there have been unable to f ind a l t e rna t i ve employ­ment . A p a r t f r o m paddy a n d coco­nuts, the v i l lage produces several hundred lbs of cashew nut , a n d there are a few vegetable gardens. but in the aggregate th i s cont r ibutes l i t t l e to v i l l age income. Some paddy is impor t ed f r o m Coorg ; th i s is bought w i t h the proceeds w h i c h a few famil ies receive f r o m members w h o earn money outside. The b u l k of the inhab i t an t s of M o r a z h a are s lowly s t a r v i n g to death.

Salt Water Damage N a t u r a l causes are p a r t i a l l y to

blame. On the n o r t h , the desam is bounded by the K u t t i k o l River , a b ranch of the T a l i p a r a m b a River ;

A u g u s t 20, 1955 T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y

th is r ive r , w h i c h is r ea l ly a back­water , i s a t Morazha , o n l y four miles f r o m the ocean, and is m a i n l y com­posed of sea-water. E a c h year, dur­i n g the monsoon i t overf lows i t s banks a n d submerges 1|3 of the paddy lands of the v i l l age in a foot o r t w o o f b rack i sh wate r . T w o dams have been b u i l t by some of the la rger l and lords to res t r i c t the overf low of the b rack i sh water , bu t one of these has in recent years been a l l o w e d to f a l l i n t o disrepair , a n d each year, th is b r a c k i s h over­f low spreads to new lands. L a s t October (1954) the M a d r a s Gove rn ­m e n t opened an extension service b lock in this pa r t o f N o r t h M a l a b a r as pa r t of the C o m m u n i t y Pro jec t development scheme, a n d has in con­nect ion w i t h t h i s sanct ioned 25,000 rupees for the cons t ruc t ion of an improved bund. The bund chosen for i m p r o v e m e n t (B on the map) lies f a r south o f the o r i g i n a l bund ( A ) . W h i l e i t w i l l prevent f u r t h e r encroachment on lands l y i n g to the south, i t w i l l increase dra inage problems for those l y i n g between i t a n d the r i v e r w h i c h a m o u n t to near ly 100 acres of paddy l and . The v i l l agers fear t h a t the Government ' s plans, i f car­r i ed out, m a y render the whole of th is area uncu l t ivab le a n d force more t h a n 100 cu l t i va to r s to aban­don the i r hold ings .

Special Type of Cultivation

Thi s annua l overf low of sa l t wa te r is responsible f o r a peculiar type of paddy c u l t i v a t i o n found on ly i n N o r t h M a l a b a r i n areas s i m i l a r l y s i tua ted near the coast, cal led K a i ­pad. I n F e b r u a r y o r M a r c h , t o ­w a r d the end of the d r y season, when the backwa te r s have receded

a n d the fields have become dry , mounds are ra ised on the f ie lds a t i n t e rva l s of about one every t w o square feet. A f t e r they have been b u i l t up, d u r i n g the m o n t h o f A p r i l o r M a y , wa te r f r o m nearby chan­nels is a l lowed to enter the fields t h r o u g h sluices in order to decrease the s a l i n i t y of the soil , f o r f o l l o w ­i n g the evapora t ion of the f lood waters d u r i n g the d ry season, the soil is of ten coated w i t h a layer of sal t . In June, seeds w h i c h have been a l l owed to ge rmina te are sown on top of the mounds. A f t e r a m o n t h or six weeks, when the seed­l ings have sprouted and the onset of the monsoon has fu r the r decreas­ed the s a l i n i t y of the w a t e r in the fields, the mounds are level led over the f i e lds , w h i c h t hen t a k e on the appearance of o r d i n a r y paddy f la ts . The crop is harves ted in October, when the f loodwaters have tempo­r a r i l y receded. F r o m then u n t i l Februa ry , the f ie lds r ema in a lmos t c o n t i n u a l l y submerged by the chan­nels and backwa te r s w h i c h are re­plenished by the nor th-east monsoon.

Cost Lower But Crop Precarious

T h i s type of c u l t i v a t i o n i s s l i gh t ­ly less expensive t han o r d i n a r y c u l t i v a t i o n . A l t h o u g h labour costs are subs t an t i a l l y more , on ly 113 of the seed necessary in t r ans ­p lan ted crops i s requi red in K a i p a d c u l t i v a t i o n ; th is usua l ly more t h a n cancels out the increase in l abour costs. However , the crop is an ex­ceedingly precarious one; s l i gh t bu t unexpected v a r i a t i o n s in the level of w a t e r d u r i n g the seedling stage can, a n d f requent ly do, des t roy the ent i re crop. Moreover , m u c h of th i s K a i p a d l a n d could produce t w o

ins tead of one crop year ly , were i t possible to regula te the f low of w a t e r f r o m the r ive r .

However , the p l i g h t o f M o r a z h a is due chiefly no t to the vagar ies of na ture bu t to the inefficient o rgan­iza t ion o f a g r i c u l t u r a l p roduc t ion a n d th i s is, in t u r n , an o u t g r o w t h o f the p r e v a i l i n g l a n d tenure struc­ture . The f o l l o w i n g p ic tu re m a y be dupl ica ted in any one of M a l a b a r ' s 2,222 desams a n d is l a rge ly respon­sible f o r l ow s tandards of ag r i cu l ­t u r a l p roduc t ion t h r o u g h o u t the d i s t r i c t .

Concentration of Holdings

E i g h t devaswoms, o r temples, h o l d the j a n m a m , o r p ropr i e to ry r i g h t t o h a l f of the l a n d in the v i l l age . They pay more t h a n 25 per cent of the l a n d revenue, and ho ld 1|3 of the wet lands. F o u r of these devas-woms are managed by t w o of the five la rges t landholders of the v i l ­lage. O n l y one of the temples, however, is managed by a resident o f the desam. A l l ho ld lands scat­tered t h r o u g h other vi l lages as w e l l . The largest p rop r i e t a ry holder, or j a n m i , in the v i l lage , one of the e ight devaswoms, holds nea r ly ¼ of the wet lands, and pays 13 per cent o f the t o t a l l a n d revenue. The f ive larges t j a n m i s h o l d 47.5 per cent of the w e t lands, 49 per cent of a l l lands, and pay more t h a n 40 per cent of the t o t a l l and revenue. J a n m a m t i t l e t o the r emainder o f the lands is he ld on more t h a n 250 pa t tas by app rox ima te ly 200 i n d i ­v i d u a l s ' .

None of the large j a n m i s h o l d the i r l a n d i n compact b locks . L i k e the hold ings of the devaswoms, t h e i r

998

T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y Augus t 20, 1955

lands are scat tered t h r o u g h o u t th i s a n d o ther v i l lages In haphaza rd con-fus ion. O n l y one, the manager of one of the temples, w h o is also the v i l l age headman o r a d h i k a r i , has any precise knowledge of the ex-l e n t of his lands. E v e n he is u n ­able to give deta i led i n f o r m a t i o n concern ing the ac tua l cu l t i va to r s , fo r the temple account books show on ly the names of the immedia t e lessees; as there is no r e s t r a i n t on sub- le t t ing , i t i s impossible in mos t cases fo r j a n m i s to say whe the r or not t he i r immed ia t e lessees are c u l ­t i v a t o r s o r in te rmediar ies . No re­cords are kep t of yields, a n d no interest I s o r d i n a r i l y t a k e n in ra is­i n g s tandards o f c u l t i v a t i o n .

* F o r a discussion of the m e a n i n g of the t e r m " p a t t a " see my a r t i c le "Travancore -Coch in L a n d Tenure R e f o r m " i n the Economic W e e k l y of September 18, 1954. In M a l a b a r D i s t r i c t , un l i ke In Travancore -Coch in , the j a n m i is the pa t ta -holder ; ten­ants, i f they h o l d pat tas , h o l d t h e m j o i n t l y w i t h the j a n m i . See also the M a l a b a r L a n d R e g i s t r a t i o n A c t , 1895, as modif ied up to M a y 1, 1948, Madras , Gove rnmen t Press, 1948.

J a n m i ' s Powers Rest r ic ted

The j a n m i i s no longer the o m n i ­potent l a n d l o r d he was a genera t ion ago. Successive tenancy leg i s la t ion has cu r t a i l ed his power to evic t a n d to raise rents . He m a y ev ic t ten­ants fo r the purpose of t a k i n g to d i rec t c u l t i v a t i o n himself , and t h i s device has been resorted to frequent­ly in recent years by j a n m i s desir­i n g to augment the i r incomes by a p p r o p r i a t i n g the f u l l economic rent . As a l a rge number of leases are o r a l (o f the leases of a l l types w h i c h I examined in th is v i l l age , I f ound 85 to be o r a l a n d 94 regis­tered) ev ic t ion , especially f r o m we t lands, should n o r m a l l y be an easy t a sk . M o s t j a n m i s w o u l d be dis­couraged f r o m e v i c t i n g tenants f r o m garden lands because of the f ac t t h a t they w o u l d usua l ly be obl iged to pay heavy compensat ion f o r i m ­provements made by the t enan t dur­i n g his per iod of tenure, such as newly-p lan ted trees a n d bu i ld ings . In the case o f paddy lands, how­ever, no compensat ion need o r d i ­n a r i l y be paid , because the o n l y " i m p r o v e m e n t s " o r d i n a r i l y made on paddy lands are the a n n u a l rou t ine tasks o f b u n d i n g and l e v e l l i n g o f the f i e ld s . My enquiries concern­i n g evic t ions i n M o r a z h a v i l l age b r o u g h t t o l i g h t on ly fou r incidents , a l l o f w h i c h i n v o l v e d evic t ions o f sub-tenants by an i n t e r m e d i a r y .

A l t h o u g h the j a n m i i s no longer a social menace, i t is d i f f icu l t to Bee w h a t posi t ive c o n t r i b u t i o n he makes to ag r i cu l t u r e as i t i s car­r i ed o n today i n Morazha . Th i s , of course, i s no t t r ue of the smal le r j a n m i s , w h o are of ten themselves c u l t i v a t i n g tenan ts (see Table V ) ; bu t i t does apply to the f ive largest ones w h o o w n h a l f the l a n d in the v i l l age . O n l y one is a resident; none have ever t a k e n a n y interest wha teve r in a g r i c u l t u r a l operations. H a d they ever chosen to do so, they w o u l d have f o u n d the task o f m a n ­agement s tagger ing , since t he i r lands are scat tered in the mos t i n d i s c r i m i ­nate manne r over the countrys ide . I t i s t rue t h a t the rents w h i c h they charge f o r m a n y of t he i r ho ld ings are n o m i n a l . Yet m a n y of the c u l t i ­va to r s examined by me w h o held leases d i rec t f r o m t h e m were as bad­

ly r ack- ren ted as those h o l d i n g leases f r o m Intermediar ies . The j a n m i , a t i l l ca l led the "absolute p ropr ie to r o f the s o i l " i n the M a l a b a r Tenancy A c t as i t s tands today, has been shorn of m u c h of his power. H i s v e r y existence as a passive rent-receiver is, however, a l o n g w i t h t h a t o f the n o n - c u l t i v a t i n g i n t e rmed ia ry , s y m p t o m a t i c of a misuse of econo­mic resources.

D a t a o n Concen t r a t i on o f Ho ld ings N . B . — T h e da t a s h o w i n g concent­

r a t i o n o f ho ld ings on the j a n m a m level is the on ly p o r t i o n of th i s en­q u i r y not based on con tempora ry (1955) evidence. I t was compi led f r o m the v i l l age regis ter w h i c h was prepared i n connect ion w i t h re­set t lement operat ions in 1936. Since t h a t t ime , there has been a sub­s t an t i a l change in the p a t t e r n o f j a n m a m holdings . I f ound i t , how­ever, impossible to keep t r a c k of

999

T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y A u g u s t 20, 1955

the enormous number of sales, par­t i t ions , a n d re-combinat ions of Jan-m a m proper ty w h i c h have t a k e n place over the i n t e r v e n i n g 19 years, fo r m a n y of the changes have never been entered in the v i l l age records. The f i rs t permissive l eg i s la t ion en­a b l i n g p a r t i t i o n o f p roper ty be long­i n g t o H i n d u j o i n t f ami l i e s i n M a l a b a r to t a k e place was f i r s t passed in 1933. I t was several years before people genera l ly began to t ake advantage of i ts provis ions . Since 1936, when the register was prepared, however, cour ts in M a l a b a r have been swamped w i t h p a r t i t i o n suits. W h e n fami l ies of ten number­i n g t w o dozen or more sub-divide a n d p a r t i t i o n ho ld ings w h i c h even before p a r t i t i o n were d i m i n u t i v e and f ragmented , i n d i v i d u a l ho ld ings often become too sma l l to be w o r k ­able and are sold. P a r t i t i o n has gone on no t on ly the j a n m a m level , but a m o n g a l l categories of tenants as w e l l , and it f u r the r complicates a set of l and tenure pat terns a l ready complex in the extreme. T w o of the f ive larges t j a n m i s shown in Table I I are devaswoms, whose pro­pe r ty is impa r t i b l e . One of the r e m a i n i n g three s t i l l holds an un-part i t . ioned estate; p a r t i t i o n proceed­ings are now in progress for the second and t h a t estate has been placed in the hands of a receiver. The last of the three has lost v i r t u ­a l l y every scrap of h is l and ei ther t h r o u g h l i t i g a t i o n or sale d u r i n g the past 19 years.

Subinfeudat ion Table V I i l lus t ra tes the prevalence

of subinfeudat ion in the ho ld ings studied. I t is based chiefly on en­quir ies i n t o paddy hold ings of c u l t i ­va to r s . At first glance, it. w o u l d appear tha t tenure pat terns in the v i l l age were on the whole quite simple, a t least f o r paddy lands . In 63 per cent of the lands s tudied the j a n m i ei ther he ld his l a n d direc­t l y , or leased i t to a c u l t i v a t i n g tenant . In on ly 5 per cent of the lands s tudied were there t w o or more in te rmedia r ies between the j a n m i a n d the c u l t i v a t o r . However , 42 of the 67 c u l t i v a t o r s whose ho ld ­ings were s tudied in de ta i l he ld some l a n d in M o r a z h a desam as sub­tenants . There are a few fields in the v i l l age by no means the mos t p roduc t ive o r desirable lands- w h i c h have been parceled out by in te r ­mediar ies i n t o t i n y f r agmen t s w h i c h are leased ou t on exceedingly h i g h rents to an enormous number o f pe t ty c u l t i v a t o r s . One such f ield, 16 acres in ex tent w i t h an a p p r o x i ­ma te y i e l d of 750 lb per acre, was

le t by the j a n m i to an i n t e r m e d i a r y , by the i n t e r m e d i a r y to t w o sub­tenants , and by these t w o sub­tenants to about 30 c u l t i v a t o r s . Rents pa id by these c u l t i v a t o r s averaged 80 per cent of the gross y i e ld . The t w o second in te rmedia ­ries pa id about 50 per cent of the gross y i e l d to the f i r s t i n t e rmed ia ry .

Extreme concentration

E x t r e m e concen t ra t ion o f ho ld ­ings p reva i l ed no t o n l y on the j a n ­m a m level , bu t in the case of lands he ld by in te rmediar ies as w e l l . The la rges t i n t e r m e d i a r y tenant resident in the desam he ld in a l l 22 per cent of the t o t a l wet lands in the v i l l age . N o t a l l o f th i s was held, however, a s an in t e rmed ia ry , a s Table I I I w i l l show. In Ma laba r , a s ign i ­f i can t f r ac t i on of a g r i c u l t u r a l i s t s h o l d l a n d in more t h a n one capaci ty . E v e n the poorest c u l t i v a t o r m a y h o l d l a n d under half-a-dozen l and­lords and be h imse l f the l a n d l o r d of one or t w o tenants . As is the ease w i t h the l a rger j anmis , his ho ld ings as a j a n m i , as an in ter­m e d i a r y and as a c u l t i v a t i n g tenant were not confined to the v i l l age . He held leases under t w o j a n m i s in

th i s v i l l age , a n d h a d ho ld ings i n another revenue v i l l age as w e l l un­der three o ther l and lo rds . F o r t y per cent of the in te rmedia r ies h o l d ­i n g lands i n the v i l l age w h i c h were subjected to enqui ry were non-resid­ents, a n d others p resumably had ho ld ings in o ther v i l l ages as w e l l . Seventy per cent of the 11 resident in te rmediar ies of these lands held l a n d In o ther v i l lages . A n d a l l o f the resident in te rmedia r ies e x a m i n ­ed held l a n d in some other capaci ty - i.e., as j a n m i or cu l t i va to r—as we l l .

Type Case of an Intermediary

In his capac i ty a s j a n m i , th i s i n ­t e rmed ia ry h a d three t enan ts under h im , a n d as an i n t e r m e d i a r y , 37 more. As his paddy ho ld ings alone were studied, and o n l y those he ld in M o r a z h a Desam, a f u l l s t a tement o f a l l l a n d held by h i m w o u l d re­veal an even more compl ica ted pa t t e rn . A l t h o u g h his t o t a l j a n m a m holdings in th i s desam aggrega ted on ly 11 acres, they were he ld under 5 p a t t a numbers . In the a n n u a l j a m a b a n d i , or s ta tement of revenue col lect ion, f requent ly c i ted by Gov­ernment officials as an i n d i c a t i o n of

1001

Augus t 20, 1955 T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y

l andho ld ing pat terns on a j a n m a m level, he w o u l d thus appear as five separate "pat tadars ." The reason w h y his j a n m a m holdings are not a l l l is ted under one pa t t a number is t ha t since the last revenue settle­ment in 1935, he has purchased land f r o m several j anmis who held i t under other pa t ta numbers, and continues to pay revenue in the i r names, or ra ther under the i r n u m ­bers. The difficulties of expressing the degree of concentra t ion of ho ld ­ings in M a l a b a r in any mean ingfu l f o r m is amply i l l u s t r a t e d by this case. In any statement showing concentra t ion of holdings on a j a n ­m a m level, he wou ld appear to be a smal l j a n m i ; only about 65 per cent of his l and is held as an in ter ­mediary; the rest he holds as a cul ­t i v a t i n g tenant . However, nei ther he nor his f a m i l y themselves w o r k in the fields. The ac tua l physical labour of c u l t i v a t i o n is ca r r ied out by hired labourers. U n l i k e most in termediar ies or cu l t iva to rs , most of his l and in th is v i l lage is held in a single compact block, and is located near his residence. I t i s thus possible fo r h i m to exert effec­t ive supervision over lands in his direct possession. He has, however, made no a t tempts to introduce i m ­proved methods of c u l t i v a t i o n . H i s best lands he has re ta ined in his own possession; for the most part , the lands leased out are infer ior . The bulk of his lands are located in t i le zone devoted to K a i p a d cu l ­t i v a t i o n . Most of t hem are held under one j a n m i , a devaswom, the largest j a n m i in the v i l lage .

Rent Paid to Temple Deity To th is j a n m i he pays a ren t of

6.450 lbs of paddy a year w h i c h w o r k s ou t at 104 lbs per acre (ve ry rough ly 17 of the t o t a l y ie ld) plus another 450 lbs of paddy and Rs 150 as perquisites. These perqui­sites, not ment ioned in the lease document, are annua l offerings to the temple dei ty w h i c h have been made for generations by his an­cestors, w h o have been tenants of the devaswom f r o m t ime imme­m o r i a l . He receives a ren t of about 8000 lbs of paddy f r o m his 40 ten­ants , and another 17,000 lbs f r o m hold ings under his direct cu l t i va ­t i o n . F r o m this 17,000 lbs gross y ie ld , he mus t pay the wages of a g r i c u l t u r a l labourers , a t most about 6,000 lbs in the aggregate. He ob­tains, therefore, a net income of app rox ima te ly 18,000 lbs of paddy per year, provided the yields are nor­m a l and rents are pa id i n l u l l , wh ich i s no t of ten the ca se . A t the pur-

1002

T H E E C O N O M I C W E E K L Y A u g u s t 20, 1955

chase pr ice o f paddy in M o r a z h a In M a r c h 1955 of 3 annas 4 pies per l b , h is net income f r o m paddy lands w o u l d thus be Rs 3,750 per year, or s l i g h t l y over Rs 300 per m o n t h .

Income from Fishing Rights He derives, besides th i s , income

f r o m lands i n ano ther v i l l age , a n d f r o m ano the r source as w e l l . T h e K a i p a d lands, d u r i n g f lood periods, teem w i t h fish, w h i c h together w i t h toddy, were f o r m e r l y the staple d ie t o f mos t o f the v i l l age r s . T w o years ago (1953) the above-ment ioned in t e rmed ia ry , w h o holds on lease m o s t o f the K a i p a d lands in the v i l l age , leased fo r a 5-year per iod f ishing r i g h t s over these lands, w h i c h were h i t h e r t o free t o a l l v i l ­lagers d u r i n g flood seasons, to a S y r i a n C h r i s t i a n f r o m Cochin on

Export of Electric Power from Yugoslavia (Contributed)

E L E C T R I C power as an expor t p roduc t has been a special con­

cern of the Economic Commiss ion fo r Europe. The subject has been touched upon in m a n y of i t s pub l i ­cat ions but m o s t l y in passing. Some sale of electric power across the n a t i o n a l f ron t i e r s takes place in Europe even n o w ; thus in 1951, t o t a l expor ts of e l ec t r i c i ty fo rmed 1.6 per cent of t o t a l p roduc t ion as compared w i t h 1.4 per cent in 1950. B u t th i s i n t e r n a t i o n a l t rade has so f a r been in the na tu re of an exchange between h y d r o a n d t h e r m a l power. Schemes fo r expand ing i n t e r n a t i o n a l t rade i n electr ic power are no longer a nove l ty . The proposal fo r l a y i n g t r an smi s s ion cables across the E n g ­l i s h channe l fo r connec t ing the g r i d systems o f B r i t a i n a n d France has been in the a i r fo r somet ime. The scope of i n t e r n a t i o n a l t rade in power, as in o ther th ings , rests on m u t u a l advan tage a n d depends l a r g e l y on the seasonal v a r i a t i o n s in demand a n d supply. To the extent t h a t n a t u r a l condi t ions influence the l a t t e r in a f avourab le d i rec t ion , there is scope f o r prof i table t rade . I f t w o countr ies do n o t have peak demands a t the same t i m e a n d in add i t i on , supply condi t ions also differ , one c o u n t r y m a y be in a pos i t ion to spare power j u s t w h e n the o ther passes t h r o u g h i ts peak demand a n d also experiences, because of the f reezing o f i t s wa te r - supp ly fo r i t s hydro-e lec t r i c s tat ions, f o r example, a decline in i t s power supply.

E x p o r t Prospects Unique I n Europe In t h i s respect, the prospects o f

p a y m e n t of Rs 5000. T h i s S y r i a n C h r i s t i a n has made a subs t an t i a l c a p i t a l inves tment In sluices, cer­t a i n improvemen t s in one of the dams, nets and d r y i n g a r range­ments a n d i s n o w e x p o r t i n g m o s t o f the f i s h w h i c h was f o r m e r l y a n i m p o r t a n t component o f the loca l d i e t

Rents f rom Cult ivat ing Tenants Tab le IV i s based on d i rec t en­

quir ies i n t o rents pa id by c u l t i v a t ­i n g tenants fo r leases of paddy lands he ld under t h i s i n t e r m e d i a r y . The 12 s ta tements inc luded in the tab le were care fu l ly checked and were the most re l iable t h a t cou ld be obta ined. A l l of the leases in the table are of K a i p a d l a n d . Cost of c u l t i v a t i o n was computed at a u n i f o r m ra te based upon loca l en-

e x p o r t i n g electric power f r o m Y u g o ­s l av i a are perhaps unique in Europe a n d i t i s not su rp r i s ing t h a t they shou ld be s tudied by the E C E. The C o m m i t t e e of the E C E on E lec t r i c Power appointed a group of experts f o r m a k i n g th is s tudy on a request by the countr ies w h i c h are mos t l i k e l y to benefit f r o m the expor t o f power f r o m Yugos l av i a . T h i s i n ­t e r - g o v e r n m e n t a l body, k n o w n as Yuge lexpor t , ca r r i ed on i t s s tudy of the technica l , economic, f inanc ia l a n d legal aspects of the project dur­i n g 1954. The f ina l t ex t of the s tudy was approved by the l iason Group of the Commi t t ee on E l e c t r i c Power a t its mee t ing in Geneva on December 14. 1954. Th i s is n o w a p r i o r i t y project .

The decision on i t was t a k e n by the Commi t t ee on Economic Power a t i t s seventh session, conf i rmed a t i t s t e n t h session a n d ampl i f i ed a t i t s t w e l f t h session. The reso lu t ion adopted at the las t session of the Commiss ion reads as fo l l ows :

" N o w t h a t the technica l , economic, f inanc ia l a n d legal s tudy o f the pros­pects of e x p o r t i n g electric power f r o m Yugos l av i a has been approved, e s tab l i shment a t the i n t e r -gove rn ­m e n t a l level of a Co-o rd ina t i on C o m ­m i t t e e cons i s t ing o f t w o representa­t ives each of A u s t r i a , the Wes te rn zone o f Germany , I t a l y and Y u g o ­s l a v i a was agreed, w i t h the f o l l o w ­i n g t e rms of reference:

" T o study, i n the l i g h t o f deve­lopments in the s i t ua t ion , the va r ious a r r angemen t s w h i c h m i g h t b e con-

1003

quir ies ; l abour charges per acre for a l l operat ions were on an average 47 man-days at 3 lbs of paddy per day, a n d 40 man-days a t 1½ lb of paddy per day, or a t o t a l of about 200 lb of paddy; seed rates were 1/3 the usua l ra te p r e v a i l i n g in the v i l l age of 100 lb per acre. F o u r of the 12 c u l t i v a t o r s paid v i r t u a l l y t h e i r en t i re surplus as ren t . In no case d i d rents con fo rm to the ra te l a i d d o w n fo r K a i p a d lands in the M a l a b a r Tenancy A c t of 1954, S. 6 (25 per cent of the gross produce) ! Rents for th i s ca tegory of l a n d were on the whole lower t h a n rents pre­v a i l i n g genera l ly , as reference to Table V I I w i l l show. T h i s is, how­ever, explained by the g rea te r r i s k i nvo lved in th is type of c u l t i v a t i o n .

( To be continued)

t empla ted for the execution of the scheme;

"To fac i l i t a te the nego t i a t i on of i n t e r -gove rnmen ta l agreements to m a t c h the b i l a t e r a l con t rac t s con­cluded between the u n d e r t a k i n g s of the countr ies concerned; a n d

"General ly , to co-ordinate the s tudy and execution of the several stages",

Yugelexport Study The Yugelexpor t s tudy, i t m a y

be noted, was not o n l y t a k e n up by the U n i t e d N a t i o n s Economic Commiss ion fo r Europe on i t s o w n ; i t h a d been d r a w n up j o i n t l y by experts of the Governmen t s of Aus ­t r i a , Germany , I t a l y and Yugos lav ia ,

countr ies w h i c h have a v i t a l in te r ­est in the success of the project . Fo r t w o f u l l years, these experts h a d been successfully co-opera t ing on a r e l a t i v e l y compl ica ted task , elabo­r a t i n g not o n l y the technical side, bu t also the economic, f inanc ia l and o rgan i sa t i ona l — legal aspects of ex­p o r t i n g electric power f r o m Y u g o ­s lavia .

The s tudy has es tabl ished:

(a) T h a t export o f considerable quant i t ies o f electr ic power f r o m Yugos l av i a is t e chn i ca l l y possible;

(b) T h a t such expor t could go on for decades; a n d

( c ) T h a t the expor t o f power w i l l not o n l y benefit Yugos l av ia , but w i l l a lso help the economic development o f the n e i g h b o u r i n g states w h i c h purchase w i n t e r cu r r en t f r o m Y u g o ­s lav ia .

T h e s tudy goes i n to detai ls a n d