strength of the staff at Pusa, it should be borne in mind that Pusa is not an ordinary research institute, as the term is used in other countries, but a group of institutes and that the sections into which it is divided have, up to the present, been staffed on a less generous scale than, for example, institutes in Great Britain. The Director and heads of sections will require to be most carefully selected. Whilst we have no desire to debar the appointment either as Director or Head of the Section, of any officer of exceptional merit already in the service, we consider it necessary under existing conditions, that these appointments should, in the main, be filled by direct recruitment from abroad. Other Class I officers should be recruited either directly or by selection from the Indian Agricultural Service or the superior provincial agricultural services. We prefer that the staff required both for Pusa itself and for its sub-stations should be recruited as members of a permanent service and not on short-term agreements; and we propose that this service should be called the Central Agricultural Research Service. For the Director it will be necessary to fix such a rate of pay as may be required to obtain the services of the best man available. Although we find it difficult to suggest an appropriate scale for the heads of sections, we consider a scale of Rs. 1,500-50-2,000 to be the minimum that is likely to attract men of the calibre that we regard as essential. Provident funds should be established for both the Director and heads of sections where these officers do not already possess pensionary rights.

Although we are unable, as we have stated, to estimate the number of posts required, we consider that, as a commencement, there should, in addition to the heads of sections, be at least one Class I officer attached to each section. The relationship between the heads of sections and these Class I officers will be very much the same as that between the incumbent of a Chair at a university and the lecturer on the subject for which the Chair is founded. We contemplate that these officers after a limited period of probation, which might suitably be fixed at three years, will either be confirmed in their appointments and ordinarily remain in the Central Agricultural Research Service for the remainder of their service, or be reverted to their provinces. For these officers we consider that the existing time-scale of pay of the Indian Agricultural Service with a suitable addition to the time-scale in substitution for the existing Pusa allowance is sufficient. In order to secure uniformity, provident funds should be established for officers directly recruited to these appointments. Officers of the Indian Agricultural Service or of Class I of the provincial services would continue to earn pension under the ordinary rules.

The superior staff at Pusa has at present the assistance of officers who are designated Class II officers in the Imperial Department of Agriculture. They are, as a rule, graduates or holders of diplomas of the agricultural colleges or graduates of universities who have distinguished themselves in science. We consider that this valuable class should be developed and its status raised. We think that it would be an advantage if appointments to this class were largely filled by promising junior

Class I officers in the provinces and partly by Class II officers in the provinces who have done work of outstanding merit. With a view to forging an additional link between the Pusa and the provincial services, we think that the tenure of these appointments should be limited to five years when held by Provincial Service officers. Graduates of Indian universities and passed students of agricultural colleges who have undergone a period of post-graduate training would continue to be eligible for direct appointments to this class. As regards pay, we suggest that provincial service officers should receive their provincial scale of pay with a Pusa allowance of Rs. 150 per mensem and those directly recruited should receive pay on the scale of Class II officers in the Provincial Service with a similar allowance. Appointments in this class should in every case be pensionable.

We hope that, as the result of the establishment of the Council of Agricultural Research, the Pusa staff will be brought into far closer relation with the provincial agricultural departments than now exists. Their visits to provinces cannot fail to enlarge the outlook of members of the Central Agricultural Service and to increase their experience. The cost of short visits should, we consider, be regarded as part of the normal expenditure of the Pusa Institute; and any obstacle to this course arising from existing rules governing the financial relations between the Imperial and provincial governments should be removed.

In conclusion, we record our considered opinion that restriction of recruitment for the new superior provincial agricultural services to a province or even to India would tell seriously on efficiency. From the point of view of wider outlook and variety of experience, officers recruited from abroad can make a valuable contribution to the development of Indian agriculture and we, therefore, strongly endorse the hope expressed by the Royal Commission on Superior Civil Services in India in regard to the continued co-operation of European officers.

CHAPTER XX THE MAIN REPORT.

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Agricultural development in the minor provinces, which remains under the direct control of the Government of India, deserves, in our opinion, more attention than it has hitherto received. Much the most important of these provinces, though it is not the largest in area, is the North-West Frontier Province. The agricultural and other rural problems of this province have been examined with those of the nine major provinces of India in the previous chapters of this Report and it is, therefore, unnecessary to discuss them further here. The other five minor provinces under the control of the Government of India are Baluchistan, Ajmer-Merwara, the Andaman Islands, Coorg and Delhi. We consider that, with the exception of Delhi, they should have a definite agricultural organisation which, if they cannot finance it themselves, should be a charge on central revenues. For research, they should rely on Pusa and the research staff of the neighbouring major provinces. As regards district work, the staff of a deputy director's circle would form a suitable unit for Baluchistan, Ajmer-Merwara, Coorg and the Andamans. The deputy director should be obtained on deputation, preferably from the neighbouring major province, and should be given a special allowance in view of his increased responsibility. The directors of agriculture and the heads of the veterinary departments in the major provinces concerned should act as advisers to the heads of the minor provinces and should visit them periodically. Subordinate staff should be recruited on the advice of the deputy director. The Province of Delhi should continue to look for assistance to the Punjab Agricultural and Veterinary departments.

We trust that the Council of Agricultural Research will take a special interest in the agricultural development of these tracts. In order that agricultural progress in these provinces should be on sound lines it is essential that increased attention should be paid to the development of education and co-operation.

The foundations of an active policy of co-operation in agricultural and co-operative matters between the Government in British India and Indian States have already been laid through representation of some of the States on the Indian Central Cotton Committee and the Board of Agriculture. It is hoped that the manner in which co-operation can be rendered more effective, and more especially the manner in which Indian States can best be brought into the organisation for research in British India, will receive early and careful consideration from the Government of India and the rulers of Indian States.

From the point of view of rural welfare generally, we welcome the foundation in 1927 of a Local Self-Government Institute for the Bombay Presidency. The object of the Institute appears to us an admirable one. It is "to acquaint the people with the meaning and ideal of local self-government, its importance, its problems and the methods of dealing with these problems." The Institute will have local branches throughout the presidency and one of its main activities will be the

organisation of district, divisional and provincial conferences. The district conferences will be held once or twice a year and will provide an opportunity for representatives of local bodies in the district to meet and discuss local problems and difficulties. The scheme appears to us to hold out great promise of advantage to rural as well as to urban interests. It also provides a common meeting ground for both, and, by so doing, should do much to bring about an increasing sense of mutual interest and an increasing spirit of mutual help. We commend the principles of the Bombay scheme to the notice of other provincial governments and to the local self-governing bodies in their provinces.

The close relations of meteorology and agriculture are obvious. The study of the laws governing weather is the concern of the meteorologist the effect of weather on crops is a matter for the agriculturist. The transfer of the headquarters of the Meteorological Department from Simla to Poona makes opportune an examination of the action which should be taken to promote the investigation of the problems of agricultural meteorology and to decide which departments shall be responsible for the different branches of the work. Investigations by scientists interested in agriculture can be undertaken in two directions; the first is statistical and the second biological. Much useful light would be thrown on agricultural questions if the weather data collected by the Meteorological Department were correlated with the statistics of area sown and yield of crops collected by the Revenue Department. Agricultural departments should make themselves responsible for meteorological studies relating to the influence of weather conditions on the growing crop. Such observations and study seem to be particularly necessary in Sind in view of the possibility that the completion of the Sukkur Barrage will produce a pronounced effect on the climate.

India should continue to adhere to the International Institute of Agriculture at Rome and to send representatives to the meetings of the General Assembly. As regards representation on the Permanent Committee of the Institute, the interests of India can, as at present, be adequately looked after by the British representative. The Institute has collected much information of the greatest value to India and its usefulness has recently been further enhanced by the establishment of a Bureau of Tropical and Colonial Agriculture. It is, therefore, very desirable that officers of the agricultural and allied departments should be encouraged to visit the Institute for the study of a specific subject when on leave or duty in Europe.

The principal functions of the Imperial Institute in London are to serve as a clearing house for information relating to the production and utilisation of the raw materials of the Empire and to carry out preliminary investigations of such materials in its laboratories. The Institute can render much useful help to agricultural workers and commercial interests in India and wide publicity should be given to the facilities it offers. The reorganisation of the Indian gallery at the Imperial Institute, on the lines followed by the Dominions and Crown Colonies and the renewal of the subscription for its maintenance, should be considered.

XIX. CONCLUSION

We have been directed to examine and report on the present conditions CHAPTER XXI OF of agriculture and rural economy in British India THE MAIN REPORT. and to make recommendations for the improvement of agriculture and the promotion of the welfare and prosperity of the rural population.

The aim of the suggestions and recommendations we have made in the preceding chapters has been to bring about greater efficiency throughout the whole field of agricultural production and to render the business of farming more profitable to the cultivator. Throughout our Report, we have endeavoured to make plain our conviction that no substantial improvement in agriculture can be effected unless the cultivator has the will to achieve a better standard of living and the capacity, in terms of mental equipment and of physical health, to take advantage of the opportunities which science, wise laws and good administration may place at his disposal. Of all the factors making for prosperous agriculture, by far the most important is the outlook of the peasant himself.

This, in the main, is determined by his environment and it follows, therefore, that the success of all measures designed for the advancement of agriculture must depend upon the creation of conditions favourable to progress. If this conclusion be accepted, the improvement of village life in all directions assumes at once a new importance as the first and essential step in a comprehensive policy designed to promote the prosperity of the whole population and to enhance the national income at the source. The demand for a better life can, in our opinion, be stimulated only by a deliberate and concerted effort to improve the general conditions of the country-side, and we have no hesitation in affirming that the responsibility for initiating the steps required to effect this improvement rests with Government.

The realisation of this important truth has led, in recent years, to a large increase in expenditure on the departments concerned with rural welfare. None the less, we feel that its force is inadequately appreciated by the Government of India and by local governments and that the necessity that the rural problem should be attacked as a whole, and at all points simultaneously, is still insufficiently present to their minds. We cannot but think that the failure to grasp the full significance of the proposition we have laid down in some measure explains the absence of any co-ordinated attempts to effect that change in the surroundings and in the psychology of the peasant without which there can be no hope of substantially raising his standard of living.

If the inertia of centuries is to be overcome, it is essential that all the resources at the disposal of the State should be brought to hear on the problem of rural uplift. What is required is an organised and sustained effort by all those departments whose activities touch the lives and the surroundings of the rural population.

It is, no doubt, the recognition of the need for co-ordination that has given rise in many quarters to the view that lasting progress is unlikely