Telangana SCERT Solution Class VI (6) Social Studies Chapter 8 Trade in Agricultural Produce.
( 1 ) How are agricultural products traded ?
There are several markets in which the agricultural products are traded. Street vendors, santhas and small shops, are for instance some of the places from where people acquires these agricultural products. Furthermore, Rythu Bazaar is a place where various kinds of fruits and vegetables are sold by the farmers. Future Contract has also become a popular mode of trading in present times. In this form of trading , a contract is shared by both the seller and the buyer that tightens their bonding in such a manner where both are obliged to buy or sell a specific product at an assured rate in the subsequent time period.
( 2 ) List the differences Gouri, Indraand Ramgopal on the following issues :
Where do they get money for doing business ?
Gouri
Gouriis a small vegetable seller who resides in the village of Sripuram. Her main task is to sell vegetables by wandering from door to door of the people. In this manner, she sells the vegetables and saves some portion of her income to purchase the vegetables for the next day. The life of Gouri was not very smooth and was constantly occupied with debt. When she fails to sell all her vegetables on the same day, then she have to borrow money from the moneylenders. The interest charged by the moneylenders are quite high in comparison to the banks. As, banks refuses to pay money to these small vendors, for this reasonthey are bound to borrow from moneylenders. As a result of which,she is compelled to pay a significant amount of her income to repay the loans. In this way , she arranges money for doing business.
Indra
Indra is also a vendor who sells dry chilles in the weekly market , which is known by the term of santhas . In order to sell dry chilles, she not only travels to three large villages but also travels to four weekly markets in a week . This depicts her weekly itinerary. Indrais also a member of the self – help group from where she borrowed a sum of Rs 30000 for the purpose of executing her business. The interest rate charged by the self – help groups are quite low then compared to that of the moneylenders. As for instance, for every hundred rupees, she only have to pay a interest of 25 paisa per month in self – help groups.
Ramagopal in Rythu Bazar
Ramagopal is a farmer in a market place, which is known by the name of Rythu Bazaar. He sells all his agricultural produce like vegetables in Rythu Bazaar. By selling his produce in Rythu Bazaar he earnsa quite profitable amount , with the help of which he executes his business.
Where are the goods sold ?
Gouri
Gouri is a small vegetable seller who resides in the village of Sripuram. Her main task is to sell vegetables by wandering from door to door of the people. In this manner, she sells the vegetables and saves some portion of her income to purchase the vegetables for the next day.
Indra
Indra is also a vendor who sells dry chilles in the weekly market , which is known by the term of santhas . In order to sell dry chilles, she not only travels to three large villages but also travels to four weekly markets in a week . This depicts her weekly itinerary. Furthermore , she keeps only one day to sell her chilles in her village and the rest of the day she has to travel to several different places from her village.
Ramagopal in Rythu Bazar
Rythu Bazaar refers to such a market place, where goods are sold directly by the producers to the consumers. Ramagopal is a farmer in such a market place, which is known by the name of RythuBazaar. He sells all his agricultural produce like vegetables in Rythu Bazaar.
How are prices fixed ?
Gouri
Gouri is a small vendor who sells vegetables by wandering from door to door of the people. If she invests 100 rupees for buying 10 kilo of tomatoes then she tries to sell it at 15 rupees per kilo by keeping a profit of 5 rupees for every kilo . Due to its over ripen nature, she fails to sell all her tomatoes at 15 rupees per kilo. In that case , she is bound to sell her tomatoes at quite lower prices . So, on an average she earns 100-150 rupees per day. In this manner, the prices of her vegetables are fixed.
Indra
In order to sell chilles, Indra has to perform quite strenuous job, where she has to constantly sit on the floor for a long duration of time. Furthermore , she keeps only one day to sell her chilles in her village and the rest of the day she has to travel to several different places from her village. On an average she earns 200-300 rupees on a daily basis. But there is no assurance, that she will always receive good quality chilles.
Ramagopal in Rythu Bazaar
In Rythu Bazaar, prices for the products are fixed by the officers in every morning , after a detailed discussion with a committee which comprises of nearly three members . The prices are fixed in such a manner that it should exceed atleast more than 25 per cent from the wholesale price but it should be below 25 per cent than the retail price.
( 3 ) List a few difficulties that retail traders face in their business.
The main purpose of doing business is to fetch a high amount of profit by selling the products at a comparatively higher rate. But in present times , due to the easy accessibility of online shopping people are preferring online platforms more than shopping from local markets and shops. Online shopping contributes in saving both time and energy of the consumers. So, as a result of which people are relying more on online mediums for shopping as it has become a quite convenient option for them .Due to this reason , the retail traders are facing enormous difficulty in executing their business , as their profit of income has declined to a great extent . Therefore, these are the several problems that the retail traders face in carrying out their business.
( 4 ) In what ways can the retail traders increase their income ?
The three effective methods that can help in enhancing their income are dividend, call revenue and price action. In case of dividend, an amount will be paid by the company in return for utilizing their own money .When a covered call is sold, an amount is paid by the investor and this process is known by the term of call revenue.In case of price action, an occurrence in the rise of stock is determined on the basis of the value.
( 5 ) Why it is better to borrow from self- help groups ?
It is always better to borrow from self- help groups because the farmers can benefit from Self Help Group in a variety of ways . Borrowing money from moneylenders is not considered as a good option because they generally charge a high rate of interest. As for example, for every hundred rupees the farmers have to pay 3 rupees interest per month, if they will borrow from moneylenders. On the other hand ,from Self Help Group the farmers can acquire loan at a much lower rate of interest . So, the interest rate is quite low in Self Help Group than compared to that of the moneylenders. As for instance, for every hundred rupees the farmers have to pay only 25 paisa interest per month in self help group. In short , it helps the farmers to get rid of any kind of exploitative situation. ‘ PaavalaVaddi’ is a government scheme that has been primarily designed for the low income groups with an aim of lending money at a much lower rate of interest. So , that the poor and marginal farmers does not face any kind of difficulty at the time of repaying the loan.
( 6 ) What are the differences and similarities between borrowing money from moneylenders, banks and self – help groups ?
The farmers / small traders can benefit from Self Help Group in a variety of ways . Taking loans from banks generally involves a quite lengthy process where several documentations are required. From Self Help Group the farmers or small vendors can acquire loan at a much lower rate of interest . So, the interest rate is quite low in Self Help Group than compared to the banks. As for instance, for every hundred rupees the farmers or small sellers have to pay only 25 paisa interest per month in self help group. On the other hand, borrowing money from moneylenders is not considered as a good option because they generally charge a high rate of interest. As for example, for every hundred rupees the small traders or farmers have to pay 3 rupees interest per month, if they will borrow from moneylenders. So, this clearly portrays that self – help groups contributes in protecting the low income groups from any kind of exploitative situation.
( 7 ) Why do you think selling through Rythu Bazaar is better than selling through wholesale shops ?
In wholesale markets, the prices for their produce were fixed by the wholesalers and the farmers were bound to sell their produce at a rate that was set by the wholesalers. As a result of which, the farmers encountered a tremendous amount of loss and were compelled to sell their vegetables at a much lower prices. In contrast to this, Rythu Bazaar provided a great support to most of the farmers . In Rythu Bazaar, prices for the products are fixed by the officers in every morning , after a detailed discussion with a committee which comprised of nearly three members . The prices are fixed in such a manner that it should exceed atleast more than 25 per cent from the wholesale price but it should be below 25 per cent than the retail price. Owing to these reasons , Rythu Bazaar acts as a quite better option than selling through wholesale shops.
( 8 ) Read the paragraph “ Vendors like gowri ……..small trader becomes poorer ‘’ , on page 66 and comment on it.
Gouri was among those vendors whose life did not run very smoothly and they were preoccupied with debt. Due to their insufficient income , they were compelled to borrow money from the moneylenders. The interest charged by the moneylenders are quite high in comparison to the banks. As, banks refuses to pay money to these small vendors, for this reason they are bound to borrow from moneylenders. As a result of which, they are compelled to pay a significant amount of their income to repay the loans . Additionally, they also did not possessed any kind of cold storage facilities , due to which they failed to preservetheir unsold vegetables. On the other hand , the big and wealthy traders had the facility to preserve their unsold vegetables in godown and cold storage systems. They also enjoyed the facility to avail loans at a much lower rate of interest from the banks . Therefore, in this way they get enormous chances to enhance their earnings whereas the conditions of the small traders deteriorates to a considerable extent.
( 10 ) What is Rythu Bazaar? What are its benefits and limitations?
Rythu Bazaar refers to such a market place, where goods are sold directly by the producers to the consumers.
Benefits
In wholesale markets, the prices for their produce were fixed by the wholesalers and the farmers were bound to sell their produce at a rate that was set by the wholesalers. As a result of which, the farmers encountereda tremendous amount of loss and were compelled to sell their vegetables at a much lower prices. In contrast to this, Rythu Bazaar provided a great support to most of the farmers . In Rythu Bazaar, prices for the products are fixed by the officers in every morning , after a detailed discussion with a committee which comprised of nearly three members . The prices are fixed in such a manner that it should exceed atleast more than 25 per cent from the wholesale price but it should be below 25 per cent than the retail price.
Limitations
In Rythu Bazaar, the farmers lacked sufficient space for the purpose of storing their vegetables. If the farmers failed to arrive at the exact time, then they encountered difficulty in acquiring a satisfactory place for selling their vegetables. Then they are bound to take the corner place. Furthermore, they also faced difficulty in parking their vehicles due to lack of sufficient space.
( 11 ) Why does panchayat or municipality collect money from traders in Chouttuppalsantha ?
The small traders in the santhas not only sold agricultural produce but they also sold various kinds of industrial products such as pots , clothes , ready made items , baskets and utensils etc. Each of these traders were required to pay an amount of 10 rupees as a tax to the Panchayat. Separate santhas were also designed for the purpose of selling goats, sheep and cattle.Most of the farmers were indulged in trading activities such as buying or selling of cattle. In order to take the assistance of the brokers, they also paid a considerable amount of commission to them.
Part B Solution
( 1 ) Make a list of the different paddy traders operating in Venkatapuram and the prices they offer for paddy per quintal.
In Venkatapuram, several differentpaddy traders are operating like retail traders, rice mill owners, wholesale traders and moneylenders.Rice mill owners and wholesale traders offer 1150 or 1100 rupees for paddy per quintal. Mill agents proposes a price of 1000 rupees for paddy per quintal. Moneylenders on the other hand offers 950 rupees for paddy per quintal. So, these are the several pricesthat are offered by the paddy traders .
( 2 ) Who purchases paddy in your place ? Collect details about how prices are fixed and what prices are paid by different traders and landlords?
Not only mill owners but also wholesale traders purchased paddy in my locality. Paddy was also purchased by the government agents on anoccasionalbasis only. On the basis of its quality, efficacy and variety , the prices of the paddy are fixed by the government. Within the period of two days , the fund will get deposited to the bank account of the farmer.
( 3 ) Compare the cost of one quintal of rice and one quintal of paddy. Find out the reasons for the difference ( 1 quintal = 100 kilograms ) .
As the fibre content of paddy is much more in comparison to the standard polished rice, for this reason the cost of paddy is quite high than the cost of rice . As a result of which , a major difference lies in the cost of rice and paddy. As the nutritional value of paddy is much low , due to this reason it is not considered as an appropriate source of food that can be served to the animals. Furthermore, the demand for white rice has increased to a great extent with an increase in the growth of population. So, the white rice has become a quite demanding product in the rising field of market .Owing to this reason , paddy falls under the category of luxurious item which has only a minimal life span.
( 4 ) Do you think it is necessary for the government to fix a single price for paddy ?
It is extremely essential for the government to set a single price forpaddy . The government should set the price in such a manner so that the farmers does not have to incur any kind of loss. In short, it should be beneficial to all the farmers. If a single price is fixed by the government then it will help the farmers to get rid of various kind of exploitation. Furthermore, it will also help them to make their ends meet because they no longer would be bound to sell their produce at a minimal rate.
( 5 ) In what ways do you think the farmers benefit from Self Help Group ?
The farmers can benefit from Self Help Group in a variety of ways . Taking loans from banks generally involves a quite lengthy process where several documentations are required. From Self Help Group the farmers can acquire loan at a much lower rate of interest . So, the interest rate is quite low in Self Help Group than compared to the banks. As for instance, for every hundred rupees the farmers have to pay only 25 paisa interest per month in self help group. In short , it helps the farmers to get rid of any kind of exploitative situation. Seeds and manures are also provided by self help group at a quite affordable rate. Self help group also renders help to the farmers in a variety of situations like bargaining, rate fixing and weighing paddy.
( 6 ) Read the para under the title ‘ Indebtedness and selling paddy ‘ on page 78 and 79 and comment on it.
As we know thatthe small and marginal farmers are bound to borrow money for the purpose of buying agricultural products , with an aim of enhancing the rate of productivity. These people does not possess sufficient quantity of land and lacks proper irrigational facilities. As it is not easy for these people to acquire loans from bank , due to this reason they are compelled to borrow money from traders , miller’s and moneylenders. These farmers are then forced to sell their produce at a much lower rate that are offered by these wealthy traders or millers because this is the only option that remains left for them. These farmers not only receives lower prices from the paddy traders but they also becomes the victim of fraudant situation in terms of weighing. Additionally, various kinds of commissions are also taken from these poor farmers . Most of the farmers does not receive their payment on time . Since, these traders and moneylenders help these farmers by lending money in times of their need , for this reason the farmers are also bound to sell their produce to these traders at a quite lower price then the actualmarket value. As , a result of which these small and marginal farmers face a tremendous amount of loss. From the above points it is clear that, the small and marginal farmers are exploited to a great extent by the moneylenders, traders and miller’s, which furtherdeteriorated their living conditions.
( 7 ) Imagine a situation where there is no AMY nearby your village. What challenges will the farmers face in this situation?
AMY plays an important role in rendering practical knowledge to the farmers in fields of agriculture and cultivation of crops. Without the presence of AMY, the accurate process of farming will not be known to the farmers. As a result of which, they will face a tremendous amount of loss. In the absence of AMY , farmers will not onlyface severe difficulty in selling their produce but they will also incur a severe loss ,as the prices of their produce will be set by the rice miller’s. Furthermore, minimum support price won’t be followed at the time of selling their produce. Lastly , they may face a fraudant situation in terms of rating and weighing of their produce. So, these are the several challenges that the farmers will face if there is no AMY in my village.
