Chapter - 7 Land Man Ratio

Transcription

1 Chapter - 7 Land Man Ratio Land and people are the two basic constituents of all forms of state. They are the most important natural resources that are mutually inter-related and inter-dependent for their sustainable development. Though land is a fixed, scarce, tangible and an immovable resource but being degradable and transferable entity it could be sustainable only if properly used by the human population which unlike land is in a continuous flux, growing with geometric progression. In order to understand the population-resource relationship in any geographic region, it is imperative to understand the distribution and density of the population. Although the concepts of distribution and density of population are not identical but being very intimately related to each other there is a genuine reason to discuss the two simultaneously 1. It is always a difficult task to define the spatial differentiation and organization of human activity and the human usage of the physical environment. With the passage of time, as knowledge grows and culture advances, the relationship between man and his land also changes. However, since land is fixed and immovable, therefore, it is the size of population and its growth-trend which have a direct bearing on the economic development, social well-being, cultural values and political stability of a region There is distinction between population distribution and population density. The distribution of population is more locational, while the density is more proportional. The former refers to the spatial pattern in which the population finds its location such as linear, dispersed, nucleated, agglomerate, etc and the later is concerned with the ratios between the size of population and the area. Therefore, distribution is more concerned with spread of population and density with some kind of man- land ratio. For more details see R.C. Chandana, Geography of Population (New Delhi: Kalyani Publishers, 2007), p. 39. Majid Hussain, Geography of Jammu and Kashmir (New Delhi: Rawat Publications, 2003), p

2 In the developing countries the rapid population growth has been of much concern as it reflects the fear of insufficiency in local food production 3. Despite a growing body of literature on the theme of population growth and its consequences much of the discussion in the third world countries is based on simplistic notions regarding the relationship between population growth and its consequences for agricultural production 4, thus bringing in focus the relation between man and land. According to Thomas Malthus, the economic progress of a state has negative relationship with the growth of the population. Towing the same line classical growth theorists consider population growth and diminishing returns to labour as the forces limiting all economic progress 5. Contrary to this, the most representative argument is that of Ester Boserup (1965) who states that population pressure might drive farmers towards the innovation of new land-use practices and mitigate resource degradation 6. Giving a very different treatment to the population factor, she argues that population growth tends to be the stochastic variable, with variation in the rate resulting from a host of natural, climatic, and biological forces as well as variation in economic conditions 7. In her view, the economic problem for most societies is how to adopt agricultural technology and land-use for population in the best possible way, given the supply of land and other factors 8. In other words, factor proportions and income per capita follow from population growth in relation to the land available, not the other way around 9. The shifts from primitive slash and burn agriculture to short- fallow rotation and ultimately to For details see, Lee, R. E., Arthur, W. B., Kelley, A. C., Rodgers, G., and T. N Srinivasan (eds.), Population, Food and Rural Development (Clarendon: Oxford, 1988). J. I. Uitto, (1995). Population, land management and environmental change: The genesis of PLEC within the United Nations University programme. Global Environmental Change 5: Warren Robinson and Wayne Schutjer, Agricultural Development and Demographic Change: A Generalization of the Boserup Model, in Economic Development and Cultural Change, Vol. 32, No. 2 (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, Jan., 1984), pp For details see, Ester Boserup, The Conditions of Agricultural Growth: The Economics of Agrarian Change under Population Pressure (Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co., 1965) Warren Robinson, Agricultural Development and Demographic Change: A Generalization of the Boserup Model, op. cit., p

3 settled annual cultivation are, in her model, the responses of society to population pressure 10. The basic point of view is optimistic and stresses that most rural societies have an unrealized potential for further technological adaptation, if and when population pressure does begin to build up. Boserup's theory derives agricultural development in many pre-industrial societies from population growth: "population growth is regarded as an independent variable which in its turn is a major factor determining agricultural developments" 11. A steadily increasing population within a given land area necessitates new agricultural techniques and more intensive land use in order to feed the expanding population. Notwithstanding the fact that there are both pessimistic and optimistic views regarding the population growth and its consequences but it would not be out of place to mention that land-man relationship had historically been highly uneven which could generally be attributed to the availability of arable land and water, age of civilization, accessibility of places and restrictions of the national boundaries. Therefore, in order to study the Land-Man relationship of any state, it is obligatory to study the physical features of its land, and the growth, pattern and density of population; and then the relative study of both i, e the analysis of each with respect to the other. Man-land ratio provides an important element in such analysis. The simplest measure, Crude Density of Population, is the number of people per square kilometer or per unit area and is most useful for small units such as districts and blocks rather than national states or continents, where internal environmental conditions vary markedly 12. This concept of the number of persons per unit area is particularly important in marginal regions where production of crops is precarious, however, it cannot be treated as a measure of population pressure on land because it merely spells out a simple quantitative Boserup Ester, The Conditions of Agricultural Growth, op. cit., p. 11 Majid Hussain, op. cit., p

4 relationship between man and land, both of which may be of widely varying quality 13. Moreover, as neither the whole population of a region is dependent on land for its livelihood nor all land available in a particular area is cultivated, therefore, the ratio which emerges from dividing population by total land area is misleading. Therefore, with an objective to arrive at a better understanding of the population-resource relationship geographers, demographers, economists, sociologists and statisticians have devised various other types of densities, Viz. physiological density, agricultural density and economic density, having a varying degree of utility in different situations. The Nutritional or Physiological density is the ratio between total population and the total cultivated area and is expressed in terms of persons per sq km of cultivated land or persons per unit of cultivated land 14. Though it gives rather a concrete picture, yet it again fails to convey the true picture of population pressure as all population of the area may not be dependent on land for their livelihood 15. In an overwhelmingly agricultural region like Jammu and Kashmir the pressure of population on land can thus be better expressed if the ratios are established between agricultural population and total agricultural land 16. It is known as agricultural density 17. Projecting deep into the heart of Asia, the state of Jammu and Kashmir is the North-western state of India. The state, richly endowed with natural resources and competitive advantages, covers a total geographical area of 2,22,236 Sq. km, stretching from / to / N latitudes and / to / E longitudes. 18 However, the original area of the state has undergone a considerable change as about an area of Km 2 are under the unlawful occupation of China and Pakistan, leaving thereby an area of km 2 on this Chandana, op. cit., p. 42. By Agricultural land is meant the net area sown and the Agricultural population comprises of both the cultivators and the agricultural labourers. Chandana, op. cit., p. 42. Techno-Economic Survey of Jammu and Kashmir (New Delhi: National Council of Applied Economic Research, 1969), p

5 side of the Line of Control. 19 Area wise the undivided state of Jammu and Kashmir ranks 6 th among the Indian states, but the area of Sq. Km on this side of the Line of Control /Ceasefire Line places the state 11 th in order. 20 Morphologically the state of Jammu and Kashmir can be divided into three main distinct physiographic units Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh which differ from each other not only in topography but also in culture. These regions are also referred to as Sub-Himalayan Jammu; Himalayan Kashmir and the Trans- Himalayan Ladakh. 21 The spatial distribution of population in Jammu and Kashmir is highly uneven. The distribution and density of population differ from district to district and from micro to meso regions. 22 In general, about 85 per cent of the total population of the state is occupying the Jammu plain and the Kashmir valley (Jhelum floor), and 14 per cent is sprinkled in the Kandi (lower hilly slopes) areas and the side valleys within 2000 m above the sea level, while remaining one percent is sprinkled in the high latitudinal zones of Himalayas, Zanaskar, Ladakh and Karakoram Ranges. 23 The physical factors like terrain, topography, slope, climate (temperature and precipitation), drainage soil, natural vegetation, mineral resources and accessibility have largely controlled the distributional pattern and density of population in the state. 24 Taking into account the total area of the state on this side of the cease fire line and the figures of population according to 1971 census, the density of population worked out to be 33 per sq.km was the lowest among the states of India except that of Nagaland and was very low as compared to the all Indian average 25. However, the figures may Government of Jammu and Kashmir, Economic Survey of Jammu and Kashmir, (Srinagar: Directorate of Economics and statistics), p. 8. p. 8. A. R. Khan, S. A. Bhat, Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh: A Geographical Study (Srinagar: Gulshan Publishers, 2001), p. 12. Majiid Hussain, op. cit., p p N.S Gupta and Amarjit Singh, Agricultural Development of States in India, Vol. 1: Jammu and Kashmir (New Delhi: Seema Publications, 1979), p

6 be misleading as a vast area of the state is mountainous and unfit for habitation- the district of Ladakh for example occupies 70 per cent of the geographical area of the state and habitats only 2-3 percent of its population 26 - therefore, causing the uneven distribution of population in the state. The following table shows the uneven distribution of the population in the state: Table 7. 1 Density of Population of Different Districts of the State, 1971 District Density of Density of Percentage of population per population per cultivated area to km 2 on Km 2 on cultivated total area. geographical area area Anantnag Srinagar Baramulla Ladakh N.A N.A N.A Doda Udhampur Jammu Kathua Rajouri Poonch Source: Census of India 1971 (Jammu and Kashmir), Director of Census Operation, Jammu and Kashmir. The table clearly reflects that the density of population had been more in those districts which had more percentage of land under cultivation. The high population density of Srinagar and Jammu was however, the cumulative 26 According to the 1971 Census the District of Ladakh accounted for about 70% area of the state and accommodated only 2.3 % of its population, Government of India, Report of the Census of India,

7 impact of the higher percentage of cultivated land as well the districts being the administrative headquarters of the respective regions. Demographically the state of Jammu and Kashmir had a much checkered history. Prior to 1921, the population of the state grew at a very slow rate. The beginning of the twentieth century i.e. the decade witnessed breakout of cholera three times in the Kashmir division, followed by pneumonia, both of which took heavy toll of life 27. It also witnessed three floods and eight earthquakes. In the Jammu Division plague, enteric fever and famine remained active throughout this period. 28 The following decade also witnessed four dangerous epidemics Viz. influenza, cholera, and smallpox in Kashmir and plague and small pox in Jammu. During the decade , the state experienced severe famine in Jammu division followed by cholera, smallpox and plague in the state. 29 After 1931, the population of the state increased steadily, however the increase in population was not the result of any improvement in the standards of living- the people continued to be poor, malnourished and there was no decline in the death rates- but can be attributed to the decline in the frequency of famines, epidemic, floods and earthquakes. 30 However, it was after 1961 that the population of the state increased at a very fast rate. In fact, the year 1961 can be termed as the year of great divide in the demographic evolution of the state 31. Between 1961 and 1971, the state registered a growth rate of percent as compared to percent for India 32. The same was the case during the decade with the growth rates of population being per cent and per cent for the state of Jammu and Kashmir and India respectively. The following table depicts the growth-trend of population in the state: Government of Jammu and Kashmir, State Development Report (New Delhi: Planning Commission of India, September, 2003), p. 25. p. 25. M.L Misri and Bhat M.S, Poverty, Planning and Economic Change in Jammu and Kashmir, (New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1992), P

8 Year Table 7.2 Decadal Population Variations in Jammu and Kashmir Population Absolute change % Decadal variation in Population J&K % Decadal variation in Population India ( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) # ( ) ( ) o ( ) ( ) * ( ) ( ) Source: Census of India, Part: Jammu and Kashmir #. There was no census in The figure given by the Census Department is the mean value of the 1941 and 1961 populations. *. The 1991 census was not held in J&K. The population of India includes the projected population of Jammu and Kashmir as on made by the Standing Committee of Experts on population projections (Oct.1989).The projected population of J&K excludes the population of area under occupation of Pakistan and China. The lower rates of population growth prior to 1961, besides the natural disasters, were the offshoot of high mortality rates caused by the cumulative effect of overall economic backwardness, natural calamities, lack of elementary medical facilities, poverty of large segments of the population, high incidence of fatal diseases and above all, illiteracy 33. The spurt in population growth since

9 1961 has been caused by a number of factors which according to the census report of 1971 included 34 : i) Eradication of epidemics like cholera, small pox, plague etc. which in the past were a recurrent phenomena taking a heavy toll of human lives; ii) Quantitative dispersal and qualitative improvement in the medical facilities ; iii) General economic prosperity and social change registered during the post- independence era; iv) Sizeable immigration of such elements as displaced persons, different categories of labor working on various central and state developmental projects, service personnel of all kinds, etc; v) Lesser impact of family planning programme in the state; and vi) Improved census methodology and techniques ensuring complete coverage of the population. Besides, the aforementioned factors the increase in population of the state resulted as a consequence of the decline in the mortality rates and constant high birth rate 35. The improvements in the levels of living, access to food, education and medical facilities even in the remote areas had also reduced the mortality rates considerably 36. Furthermore, in comparison to other states of India the state of Jammu and Kashmir had a younger population- a demographic situation (characterized by high percentage of young population) 37 which could have been turned out into an extraordinary opportunity had the state trained and educated its youth to fit the demographic gap that had opened up in the developed world (characterized by aging population). But instead of acting as productive asset contributing to Government of India, Census of India, 1971: Jammu and Kashmir, Series 8, p. 73. Misri M. L., op. cit., p. 25. p. 25. Government of Jammu and Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir: Fifty Years (Srinagar: Department of Information, 1998), p

10 economic growth, more level economic distribution and poverty alleviationthe Youth Bulge in the state in combination with urbanization, lack of professional education, lack of industrialization and high unemployment acted as a suitable ground for social unrest. In the absence of other suitable alternatives the population of the state, therefore, became increasingly dependent on the agricultural sector thereby increasing the pressure on the land. Here it is pertinent to mention that being hilly and mountainous and with a major area under thick forests the state had very little cultivable land. The impact of population increase on agriculture of the state can be gauged from the table below: Table 7.3 Physiological and Agricultural Densities in the State of Jammu and Kashmir, ( and ) Year Total population [TP] Net Area Sown [NAS] (000)hectares Agricultural Population [AG] NAS per capita of Agricultural population [NAS/AGP] * 596 N.A- Can t be determined Land-Man ratio [NAS/TP acres Agricultural Density AGP/NSA [Agricultural persons per Sq km] Can t be determined acres acres * 734 N.A- Can t be determined Can t be determined Source: i) District Census Handbooks for Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag. ii) Land Commission Report, 1968, Government of Jammu and Kashmir iii) Digest of Statistics (various issues), Department of planning and Development, Government of Jammu and Kashmir iv) Indicators of Regional Development, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Jammu and Kashmir 207

11 From the table above, it is very much clear that there had been a significant difference between the rate of increase of population and the corresponding increase in the Net Area Sown- the population of the state increased by about 119% between and where as the Net Area Sown increased by only 23% during the same period- leading to the continuous decline in the land-man ratio, availability of cultivated land per capita of agricultural population and increase in the agricultural density during the period except for the decade of The land-man ratio decreased from 0.45 acres in to 0.18 acres in , which means that there had been a decline of about 61 % during the period under reference, while as the Net Area Sown per agricultural person decreased a bit slightly- it was 1.4 acres in and in The unusual trend in the per capita Net Area Sown during the decade of was the result of a large scale conversion of nonagricultural lands into agricultural land through the development of irrigation facilities, introduction of tractors and high yielding varieties of crops 38. Afterwards the trend continued as before with the pressure on agriculture growing with the growth in population. Moreover, the increase in population in the state besides leading to sub-division and fragmentation of landholdings had also a direct bearing on the land use pattern of the state. According to the Economic Reforms Committee Report 1998, the total reported area, area under forests and other uncultivated land excluding fallow land had declined by 0.12%, 1.19 % and 27% respectively between and and area not available for cultivation and net area sown had increased by 5.3% and 0.59% during the same period. The following table showing the land use pattern in the state depicts the same situation 39 : Tractors played a key role in bringing the uncultivated lands under cultivation and the high yielding varieties worked as a main motivation for such a change. For more details on the impact of new technologies refer to the chapter Technological Changes in agriculture. The concepts and definitions used are the same as prescribed by the Union Ministry of Agriculture. For the sake of the proper understanding of the problem the different land categories are introduced as under: Total area according to Village Papers: Area according to the village papers comprises of the reported area or the cadastrally surveyed area i.e. the area for which data on land use classification are available. The estimates of the reported area are prepared by the village 208

12 Year Total area according to village papers forests Table 7.4 Land use Pattern in Jammu and Kashmir, Area under Area not available for cultivation Other uncultivated land excluding fallows Fallow lands Area (000 hectares) Area under Permanent pastures and Grazing lands Area under Miscellaneous trees Source: Compiled from Different Issues of the Digest of Statistics, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Government of Jammu and Kashmir The overall increase in the Net Sown Area, during the period to as shown in the table 7.3 can therefore, be attributed to the decline, as patwari. It does not correspond to the total geographical area which is not fit for habitation. The area maintained by the forest department also does not form a part of the reported area. Area under forests: They cover the berun-line forests viz. The forests falling outside the forest area, demarcated by the Forest Department for maintenance Area not available for cultivation: It consists of two categories of lands, i) land put to nonagricultural uses consisting of entire land occupied by buildings, rivers, canals and other lands put to use other than agriculture. ii) Barren and un-culturable lands- this category consists of lands like deserts, mountains and lands which cannot be brought under cultivation except at an exorbitant cost. Fallow lands: This includes all lands which were taken up for cultivation but are temporarily out of cultivation for a period of not less than one year and not more than 5 years. Area under permanent pastures and other Grazing lands: All grazing lands whether they are permanent pastures and meadows or not, are categorized as permanent pastures and other grazing lands. It also includes the common grazing land in the village. Area under Miscellaneous tree crops etc.: This constitutes the cultivable land which is not included in net area sown but is put to some agricultural uses. For example, the land under thatching grasses, bamboo bushes and other groves for fuel etc not included under orchards fall under this category. 209

13 shown in table 7.4, in the Area not available for cultivation, Fallow lands, Area under pastures and grazing lands, Area under miscellaneous trees and cultivable waste, and Area under forests which were brought under cultivation. The introduction of new technologies like fertilizers, high yielding variety of seeds, tractors and other modern implements also played a key in bringing such lands under cultivation 40. This is a dangerous trend as besides impeding the pastoral activities it also has a direct bearing on the ecological balance of the region. The increase in the population had not only drastically reduced the availability of the per capita cultivated land but had also led to the large scale fragmentation and sub-division of landholdings, which had enhanced in the presence of the prevailing law of succession. 41 It is worth to mention here that the size of landholding and fragmentation of holdings have a direct bearing on the agricultural practices, cropping patterns and yield per unit area 42. Moreover, the problem of operational holdings in Jammu and Kashmir had been more severe as compared to other states of the India, hence proving detrimental for the development of agriculture. 43 The following table substantiates the fact: For more on the technological changes in agriculture, see the chapter Technological Changes in Agriculture There are other causes of the sub-division and fragmentation of the holdings like laws of inheritance it leads to the division of the parental property between the children, the farms get split up further and further with every passing generation, decline of joint family system in the past land was held together even if the members of the family increased from generation to generation but the breakup of the joint family system as a result of modernization and other socio-economic factors led to sub-division and fragmentation of holdings with each passing generation. All of these factors can be seen in operation in the state of Jammu and Kashmir throughout the period under reference. Majid Hussain, op. cit., p Although the New agricultural technology had exploded the concept of large farms and large productivity yet there is no denying the fact that there is a minimum size of farm below which farming becomes unprofitable, whatever the technology may be. Also the sub-division and fragmentation of land leads to the wastage of land- sometimes the land holdings become so low that cultivation becomes extremely difficult and the land remains uncultivated, land is wasted in drawing boundaries and hedges as, difficulties in modernization especially mechanization, difficulties in land management, disputes over boundaries etc, for more details on disadvantages of sub-division and fragmentation. For more details see, S. K. Misri and Puri V. K, Indian Economy (New Delhi: Himalayan Publishing house, 24 th edition, 2006), p

14 Table 7.5 State-wise Average Size of Operational Landholdings State Number of operational holdings Estimated area of operational holdings in 000 Hectares Average size of an operational holding (hectares) Andhra Pradesh Assam Bihar Gujarat Jammu &Kashmir Kerala Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra Tamil Nadu Orissa Punjab Rajasthan Uttar Pradesh West Bengal Remaining states, union territories Karnataka Haryana Himachal Pradesh All India Source: Agricultural Census, 1972 The valley of Kashmir, nestled in the north-western folds of the Himalayas is a transverse valley surrounded on all sides by high mountain ranges, characterized by snow covered lofty peaks. In the opinion of Lydekker, the Kashmir Valley is distinctly basin shaped, and that it has a length of about 140 Km(84 miles) and a width varying from 53-55Km (20 to 25 miles) 44. The lowest point in the valley has an elevation of 1600 m (5,200feet) and the 44 Majid Hussain, op. cit., p

15 mean elevation is 184 m (60,00feet) above the sea level. 45 The oval shaped valley is filled with thick deposits of alluvium which have blanketed even the lower slopes of the surrounding ranges. On the borders of the Kashmir valley and even the valley floor occurs extensive elevated plateaus of alluvial and lucustrine material, locally known as karewas 46. Owing to their elevated positions the karewas cannot generally be brought under irrigation 47. Though the mountains have stood as sentinels guarding the valley, historically they have the character of no man s land 48. According to Monis Raza, The Kashmiri peasant never came to terms with the mountains. They remained alien to him the abode of gods and demons, to be dreaded and revered but not to be assimilated into the tamed environment. Such a negative attitude towards the surrounding mountains led to squeezing in the peasantry within the restricted confines of the valley floor 49. Within the valley, there are three important side valleys, namely: i) The Liddar Valley ii) The Sind Valley, and iii) The Lolab Valley. Moreover, owing to different topographical features the different regions of the valley are fit/unfit for different economic activities. The Valley floor is the rice bowl of the valley and hub of commercial activities and the major urban centres Srinagar, Sopore, Anantnag and Baramulla fall in the region 50. Horticulture is the predominant activity in the karewa regions while as the pastoral activity is the predominant activity in the side valleys which also have a good hydroelectric potential. 51 The demographic history of the valley was no different than that of the state as a whole. There was a tremendous increase in the population of the valley since 1961 the year marked a watershed in the demographic history of the state. It goes without saying that the factors responsible for the demographic changes, Viz. decrease in mortality rates, increase in birth rates p. 27. Majid Hussain, op. cit., p. 29 Monis Raza, The valley of Kashmir: A Geographical Interpretation (New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1978), p. x. Misri, op. cit., p p

16 and the less frequency of natural disasters etc, in the region/valley were almost the same as those responsible for the whole state. The increase in population of the valley and its subsequent impact on the agriculture can be gauged from the following table: Table 7.6 Land-man ratio, Land per capita of Agricultural Population, Agricultural Density in Kashmir valley Year Total Net area sown Total Agricultural population (NAS) In acres Population(Cultivars+ [TP] Agricultural labourers) [AGP] (NAS) per capita Land-Man Agricultural of Agricultural population [NAS/AGP] ratio [NAS/TP] density [AGP/NAS] Persons/SqKm NA Can t be determined NA acres acres 0.42 acre acres acres 0.35 acre acres acres 0.30acres NA Can t be determined NA Source: Compiled from i) Land commission Report 1968, Government of Jammu and Kashmir p. 116 ii) Techno- Economic Survey of Jammu and Kashmir, 1969, table No. 36 iii) District Census Handbooks, 1961, 71, and 81 iv) Digest of statistics (Different Issues) From the table it can easily be deduced that the rate of the increase of net area sown in the valley could not keep pace with the rate of the increase of population. While as the Net Sown Area increased from 8.14 lakh acres in to 8.48 lakhs acres in , the Net sown area per agricultural person decreased from 1.27 acres to 1.04 during the same period. While comparing the ratios (of the valley with the whole state) it is found that the pressure of population on agriculture in the valley was more than it was in the state the Net sown area per capita of agricultural population at the state level decreased from 1.40 to 1.15 acres between and while as in the valley of Kashmir it decreased from 1.27 acres to 0.30 acres during the same period. 213

17 Being topographically difficult to access, the valley of Kashmir witnessed almost the absence of industries and had therefore been exclusively dependent on the agricultural sector. Furthermore, owing to the uneven distribution of population in the valley the impact of population on agriculture was not the same throughout. The valley accounted for per cent of the state population in 1981, with an overwhelming part of the population concentrated in the valley floor and a very less population in karewas and side valleys and even lesser in the surrounding hills 52. The following table regarding the distribution of population in the valley highlights the same trend: Table 7.7 Region-wise Distribution of Population in the Kashmir valley Region Percentage of the total population of the region Percentage of the total population of the region Rural Urban Rural Urban Valley Floor Karewas Side valley Surrounding hills Kashmir valley Source: M. L. Misri, Poverty, Planning and Economic Change in Jammu and Kashmir, 1994, p The table above clearly reflects that the valley floor had been an abode of the maximum population of the valley. It accommodated 94% of urban population and 54% of the rural population. This indirectly substantiates the fact that the valley floor was the hub of the economic activities in the valley. Notwithstanding the fact that the pressure of population on agriculture of the state in general and that of the valley of Kashmir in particular grew after the end of the Dogra rule thereby, making agriculture a mere subsistence sector 52 Misri,, op. cit., p

18 especially in those regions of the valley which continued with the traditional cropping pattern, but there is no denying the fact that the pressure of population on agriculture was not the same throughout the valley and varied across the different regions. The karewa regions generally had high land-man ratios in comparison to the plain areas of the valley. The following tables- 7.7, 7.8 and 7.9- highlight the variation in the pressure of population on agriculture in the different districts of the valley. Table 7.8 Land: Man Ratio [District Anantnag] Area (in acres) Year Population Net Sown Area Total Agricultural Population NAS per capita of Agricultural population Land-Man Ratio NA Source: Different issues of the District Census Handbooks. Table 7.9 Land: Man Ratio [District Srinagar] Area (in acres) Year Population Net Sown Area Total Agricultural NAS per Capita of Land-Man Ratio Population AGP NA Source: Different issues of the District Census Handbooks. 215

19 Table 7.10 Land: Man Ratio [District Baramulla] Area (in Acres) Year Population Net Sown Area Total agricultural population NAS Per Capita of Land-Man Ratio AGP acres acres acres Source: Different issues of the District Census Handbooks. The comparative analysis of the above three tables reveals the fact that the pressure of population on agriculture had not been same in all the districts of the valley. Whereas the cultivated land per agricultural person increased in the district of Anantnag from 1.33 acres to 1.58 acres during the period to , the same ratio in case of the districts of Baramulla and Srinagar decreased from 2.23 to 1.58 and 1.98 to 1.60 respectively during the same period. The increase in the land per agricultural person in the district of Anantnag was most probably the result of the large scale conversion of other category lands Viz pastures, forests etc into agricultural land. This had been so because the new agricultural strategy in the state of Jammu and Kashmir had made its debut in the same district. Nevertheless, it is important to mention that land-man ratio and agricultural densities varied within the districts as well. Being less populous the size of landholdings in the karewa areas of the district had been comparatively bigger and so were the different types of land-man ratios. However, since most of the cultivated land in the karewas fell in the un-irrigated category, the bigger size of landholdings had but marginally helped the inhabitant population. The following table [7.10] highlights the non-uniformity of population pressure on agriculture within the Anantnag district. It is pertinent to mention here that 216

20 the choice of the district is simply based on the availability of data and not on any other criteria. The trend would have been the same in other districts of the valley but because of the paucity of datas the variations in other districts are not tabulated. Table 7.11 Population pressure on Agriculture in District Anantnag (Tehsil-wise) (1971) [Area in Acres] Tehsil NAS per capita of Agricultural Total Agricultural Net Area Land-man agricultural density Population Population Sown Ratio population [AGP/NAS] [TP] [AGP] [NAS] [NAS/TP] [NAS/AGP] = Persons/Sq km Pahalgam 40, Anantnag 274, Kulgam Shupiyan 98, , Pulwama , Tral , Source: Census of India 1971, District census Handbook, Anantnag District. The above drawn table shows that the population pressure on agriculture in the district of Anantnag had not been the same everywhere in the district. The Net area sown per capita of agricultural population was lowest in Pahalgam followed by Anantnag and highest in Pulwama followed by Shopian. The increase in population in the post-dogra period, however, did not only lead to the sub-division and fragmentation of landholdings in the state, as shown in table 7.5, but also created demand for additional housing which in turn led to the colonization of land. Very fertile tracts of land had been brought under non-agricultural use especially construction of buildings, thereby shrinking the agricultural land and increasing the cost of real estates. Furthermore, the process of bringing in more land under cultivation had reached its optimum and there were very limited possibilities, both in the state and in the valley of increasing the production by extending the cultivation 217

21 without disturbing the ecological balance. Therefore, the state needed (and still needs) to invest heavily in agricultural research to increase the productivity of the land so that the growing population s dependence on imported food and fibre could be kept under control. Also, in order to keep the population in control, there is an immediate need to popularize the programme of family planning. Nevertheless, it needs to be mentioned that the state had not been active in legislating new laws to stop the diversion of agricultural land to nonagricultural practices; the already existing laws in this regard had also fallen prey to the corrupt revenue officials and it is, therefore, not surprising to see that lands even under saffron cultivation had been brought under construction of real estates. The state apathy led to the large scale conversion of otherwise fertile tracts of lands into residential areas especially in and around the Srinagar city. Moreover, since the growing population had created demand for additional housing, therefore, the government had to take initiatives of providing housing to the people which, however, it did not. It ultimately led to large scale horizontal expansion of the construction work, consuming the fertile tracts of land, thereby shrinking the already meagre agricultural space of the valley. The state needed to take some remedial measures to tackle the alarming situation by constructing earthquake proof multi-storey buildings as were seen in the other states of India which, however, is still not in the priorities of the government. 218