Rural Livelihoods

Q42. Describe the work that Thulasi does. How it is different from the work Raman does?

Ans. Thulasi is a labourer who works on Ramalingam’s land. Apart from working on the land, she does all the tasks at home. She cooks food for her family, clean the house and wash clothes. She goes to the nearby forest to collect firewood and she fetches water from borewell which is about one kilometre away.

Raman is also a labourer. During work on farm, he sprays pesticides. When there is no work on the farm he finds work outside, either loading sand from the river or stone from the quarry nearby.

Q43. Have you heard of tsunami? What is this and what damage do you think it might have done to the life of fishing families like Aruna’s?

Ans. Yes, I heard of tsunami. Tsunamis are giant waves caused by earthquakes or volcanic eruptions under the sea. When tsunami waves become extremely large in height, they savagely attack coastlines, causing devastating property damage and loss of life. Tsunami waves destroy boats, buildings, bridges, cars, trees, telephone lines, power lines - and just about anything else in their way. The violent force of the tsunami results in instant death, most commonly by drowning. Fishing families, who live near the coast, may have lost their house and lives.

Q44. Poor rural labourers like Thulasi often do not have access to good medical facilities, good schools, and other resources. You have read about inequality in the first unit of this text. The difference between her and Ramalingam is one of inequality. Do you think this is a fair situation? What do you think can be done? Discuss in class.

Ans. This is not a fair situation.

                      i.        Government should put ceiling on land. This will lead to distribution of surplus land among the landless labour.

                     ii.        Government should made primary education compulsory to all in villages. This will help people to know about their rights.

Q45. Write a short note on activities of people of Kalpattu village.

Ans. Kalpattu is a village that's close to the sea coast in Tamil Nadu. The village is surrounded by low hills. Paddy is the main crop that is grown in irrigated lands. Most of the families earn a living through agriculture. Apart from agriculture, people do non-farm work such as making baskets, utensils, pots, bricks, bullock-carts etc. There are people who provide services such as blacksmiths, nurses, teachers, washer men, weavers, barbers, and cycle repair mechanics and so on. There are also some shopkeepers and traders. In the main street, which looks like a bazaar, there are variety of small shops such as tea shops, grocery shops, barber shops, a cloth shop, a tailor and two fertiliser and seed shops. There are some coconut groves around.

Cotton, sugar cane and plantain are also grown, and there are mango orchards. There are agricultural labourers also who works on people’s fields to earn a living.

Q46. Why do both Sekar’s and Aruna’s families have to borrow? What similarities and differences do you find?

Ans. Sekar’s family has to buy seeds and fertilizers as a loan. To pay back this loan they have to sell their paddy to him at a somewhat lower price than what they would get in the market. During monsoon season, Aruna’s family has to borrow money from the traders as they cannot go to sea. Because of this, later on they are forced to sell the fish to that trader, and cannot do their auction.

Similarities:

                       i.        Both have to work very hard to earn their living.

                      ii.        Both are under the clutches of the traders, from whom they have borrowed money.

Differences:

                       i.        Sekar is a small farmer who own only two acres of land and Aruna is a fisherwoman.

                      ii.        Sekar earns some extra money by working in Ramalingam’s mill. Aruna sells fish only.