XIV. RURAL INDUSTRIES AND LABOUR

CHAPTER XVI OF THE MAIN REPORT.

A problem of some importance is how the villager can best use his spare time for the improvement of his position. The amount of spare time which the cultivator has on his hands varies greatly according to the local agricultural conditions but it may be assumed, as a broad generalisation, that a large majority of cultivators have at least from two to four months absolute leisure during the year. At the census of 1921, only 10 per cent of the total working population in British India was shown as employed in industry of one kind or another, including factories. Apart from the large industries concentrated in industrial centres, the smaller concerns such as rice mills, oil mills, cotton ginneries, etc., engaged only some 250,000 people which is equal to about 0.03 per cent of the total number employed in agriculture. It will thus be seen that industries located in rural areas are at present unimportant from the point of view of their demand for labour. On the other hand, their multiplication within economic limits suggests one solution of the problem of spare-time employment in rural areas.

We have received various suggestions for the establishment of new industries which may offer increased employment to the rural population. An industry which seems to offer considerable promise is the extension of the local manufacture of agricultural implements. The engineering section of the agricultural departments can give valuable help in promoting such a development. Students who desire to be trained in implement manufacture should be encouraged by stipends to enable them to attend engineering schools, railway workshops or the workshops of the agricultural departments. Similar facilities should be provided for the training of the more progressive village artisans, such as blacksmiths and carpenters, who want to keep abreast of developments in agricultural machinery. Amongst other industries brought to our notice were paper manufacture from bamboo pulp, the oil-crushing industry and the handloom, pottery and rope-making industries, sericulture and lac. As regards sericulture, we would remark that there is a danger that the natural silk industry may be seriously affected by the increasing use of artificial silk, although at present high grade Indian silk meets the demand of the special luxury market. The lac industry appears to require organisation so as to bring together all the interests. affected, while further research is needed to ensure a regular output of good quality lac. An enquiry should also be made into the economics of lac production.

There are opportunities for the development of a poultry industry and we are glad to note that increased attention is being devoted by the agricultural departments in most provinces to poultry rearing and the work done, notably in the United Provinces, suggests that this industry has possibilities of expansion.

With regard to rural industries in general, it may be said that the chief needs are the stimulus of new ideas and the provision of adequate

instruction and advice on the commercial side. The opportunities which they present for improving the condition of the rural population are extremely limited, and as a general principle it may be laid down that the chief solution of the problems of the cultivator lies in promoting the intensity and diversity of his agriculture.

The development of village industries on a co-operative basis is essential if they are to survive increasing competition. The question of organising them on such a basis should receive the attention of the departments of co-operation and industries in all provinces. One direction in which help could be given by Government would be by advances in special cases to artisan co-operative societies for the purchase of improved machinery. As small local factories dealing with the produce of limited areas multiply, the co-operative movement can play an important part in linking up the cultivator and the cultivator's produce with these localised factories. The main lines on which assistance can be given to the smaller industries to enable them to hold their own in the intensive competition of modern times are co-operative organisation and the provision of facilities for technical education. For a long time to come, Government will have to be prepared to make suggestions for the development of these industries and to assist them by advice. In some instances, they may have to make themselves responsible for running a pioneer enterprise.

Government can do much to assist the mutual adjustment between the larger industries and agriculture by their policy in respect to communications and the development of power, by technical education, and by the collection of marketing information.

Departments of industries have been constituted in Madras, Bombay, Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, the Punjab and the United Provinces and amongst their functions is that of the supervision of rural industries. Madras and Bihar and Orissa have passed State Aid to Industries Acts and the Punjab an Industrial Loans Act. Under these Acts, assistance, subject to certain conditions, can be given from provincial revenues to private enterprise for starting new industries. The intention of these Acts is to help the development of industries generally. Other things being equal we hope that particular attention will be paid to the development of agricultural industries. In some provinces, technical institutes exist for the training of artisans and it is on this education, general or particular, that we lay the greatest emphasis.

It is essential for the success of the departments of industries that the Director should be an experienced administrator.

The Famine Commission of 1880 observed that "the numbers who have no other employment than agriculture are greatly in excess of what is really required for the thorough cultivation of the land." The labour problem of to-day is the same from the agricultural point of view as it was when the Famine Commission wrote these words, namely, to lessen the pressure on the land. This pressure might be relieved by permanent migration within India, but, while seasonal migration prevails to a considerable extent, permanent migration does not take place on

the scale that might be expected. We think that the State should encourage the free movement of labour, and that where any restrictions exist, they should be reduced or abolished as soon as possible. In certain areas, migration is impeded by malaria or lack of water. Such conditions should be investigated and improved and definite schemes of colonisation introduced. In this connection we would quote the example of Burma where colonies for Burmans from the congested areas have been established on lands which have been disafforested, or on waste lands coming under irrigation for the first time. These colonies have been formed on a co-operative basis and are financed through their societies by the ordinary taccavi loans advanced by Government.

Finally, there is the question of relieving the pressure of population on the land by emigration abroad. Consideration of such possibilities is confined to the tropical and sub-tropical parts of the British Empire. Ceylon and British Malaya at present attract a large amount of Indian labour, but the limits of absorption in these parts have probably been reached. The British West Indies, Mauritius, British Guiana and the Fiji Islands also attract a certain number of Indian emigrants but British Guiana seems to be the only country which offers scope for migration on any considerable scale. A scheme of assisted migration to British Guiana, now under discussion, is worthy of further exhaustive investigation, as it would seem that that colony is capable of absorbing over two million people, or more than the total Indian population at present resident abroad.

XV. HORTICULTURE AND PLANTATIONS

CHAPTER XVII OF THE MAIN REPORT.

The cultivation of fruit and vegetables can be regarded from two points of view-the supply of the household and production for sale. In one form or another, vegetables appear almost daily in the Indian home and fruit is a popular addition whenever it can be obtained free or at small In our Report, we deal in the main with the prospect of improving crops grown for the market. We assume that the relatively small number of market growers could be much more easily influenced by the advice and guidance of agricultural departments than could the growers for family consumption and that any improvements effected by the former would influence the cultivation of fruit and vegetables by the latter.

While there can be no question that there is much scope for the small cultivator who endeavours to supplement his income by growing cheap and hardy fruits for local sale, there are serious obstacles to be overcome by the grower who proposes to specialise in fruit-growing for the larger and more fastidious urban markets. The amount of capital required is, perhaps, the greatest single obstacle, especially as it appears from the information given to us that, in order to be successful, the small cultivator must rely on his orchard, once it has come into bearing, as his main source of income. In addition, the ordinary cultivator lacks the skill required in selecting varieties, planting, pruning and spraying which the successful production of high grade fruit for the market demands. Moreover, he does not, as a rule, live on his holding and the protection of small areas of fruit would be difficult even where the holding was in one compact block and quite impracticable if, as is so frequently the case, it consisted of a number of separate plots. The conditions, therefore, for the successful production of fruit for the market are that the grower, in addition to the possession of capital and acquired skill in the management of fruit trees, should have his holding in a compact block and be prepared to live on it in order to protect his crop during the ripening season. Further, supplies of water and manure must be readily available and a connection with a satisfactory market must be established.

The commercial fruit grower must in the main look to large urban centres for his market and he has to face the problems of transport and marketing. The difficulties of transport before the rail-head is reached are particularly great and can only be met by improvements in the packing of the fruit and the use of suitable containers. As regards marketing, sale takes place as a rule through an agent. The general absence of cold storage facilities and of an alternative market are obstacles to successful marketing. Regulated markets, when these are situated in areas in which fruit is grown to meet a local demand, might prove of much benefit to the wholesale vendor. The more immediate hope of expansion would seem to lie in the home markets, combined with the exploration of the demand in markets abroad for specially choice fruits, such as mangoes of good quality. These remarks apply with even greater force

to vegetables, because vegetables, to a much greater extent than fruit, may be regarded as having a potential market among the bulk of the population and, in these circumstances, the prospects of market gardening are more hopeful than those of fruit culture. Facilities for the disposal of fruit surplus to the demand for fresh produce become of great importance in the production of fruit on a commercial scale. It will be necessary to study the tastes of the mass of consumers in India as the home market is by far the most important, but an attempt might also be made to place one or two special products, such as mango pulp, on the foreign market.

There is much important research work to be done in connection with fruits and vegetables and the agricultural departments are devoting considerable attention to the subject. But, even more urgent than the need for research is the need to ascertain what the economic possibilities of increased fruit and vegetable production may be in order that the agricultural departments may know to what extent the development of their horticultural sections is justified in the interest of the small cultivator. Transport and marketing are basic difficulties and the provincial marketing officers should undertake the investigation of these problems.

While the economic possibilities of increased production are thus being worked out, we suggest that the agricultural departments should conduct experiments designed to ascertain the varieties of fruit and vegetables best suited to the various conditions of soil and climate. The information so obtained should be recorded in a form which will enable those intending to start fruit and vegetable production to profit by it. Should it become evident that there will be a large demand for young fruit trees and for seeds of improved varieties of vegetables, the agricultural departments should take steps to ensure that reliable stocks are obtainable by the public. The possibilities of introducing profitable exotics should also repay investigation. Nurserymen and seedsmen are making their appearance in India, but as a class they are not, as yet, fitted to make their own selections of fruit trees and vegetable seeds. The agricultural departments should use every means in their power to encourage and strengthen private enterprise in this direction.

The planting industries, which deal principally with tea, coffee and rubber, are well organised and both the Indian Tea Association and the United Planters' Association of Southern India maintain their own experimental stations and laboratories. They are in close touch with the Imperial and provincial departments of agriculture. We consider that the value of their scientific work should be recognised and co-operation between these associations and the agricultural departments secured by arrangements for their joint representation on the Council of Agricultural Research.