CENSUS OF INDIA, 1951 VOLUME XIII TRAV ANCORE-COCHIN Dy. Registrar Genera.l, ADMINISTRATION REPORT India. by U. SlVARAMAN NAIR, M. A., ph. D., F. A. SC., F. N. I., S1Lperintend'ent of Census Operations, Travuncore-Cochin PRINTED BY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF GOVERNMENT PRESSES AT THE GOVERNMENT CENTRAL PRESS> TRIVANDRUM. CONTENTS PART I-ENUMERATION Page CHAPTER I House numbering and other preliminade~ CHAPTER 2 The Census Questionnaire 8 CHAPTER 3 Arrangements for Census Enumeration 10 CHAPTER 4 Enumeration-Detailed arrangemt'nts 16 CHAPTER 5 Enumeration 22 ApPENDIX A Notifications and Circulars 2S ApPENDIX B Statements 43 PART II-TABULATION CHAPTER (> Preliminaries 65 CHAPTER 7 Sorting and compilation 68 CHAPTER S Census Expenditure 7 1 CHAPTER 9 Recommendation ... 73 ApPENDIX C Statements 75 PART I Enumeration CHAPTER I HOUSE-NUMBERING AND OTHER PRELIMINARIES Section i. Formation of the Census Department ,1. Census work had a rather late start in B-2) requesting all heads of departments, offices this state this time. The Government of Tra­ and local bodies to treat all communications from vancore-Cochin appointed me Census Commis­ the Census Commissioner as urgent. I took sioner for the state (vide G. O. No. RM3-992I stock of details of work to be executed emer­ 491RD. dated 23-11-1949, Appendix B-1) and gently and submitted to State Government on the I took charge as Census Commissioner on the 8th December, 1949, my budget proposals for 24th November, 1949. Under the above order, 1949 to 1950 and 1950 to 1951. I included in I was to attend to census work in addition to my proposals the expenditure for (a) agricul­ the duties of my substantive post viz., tural and live-stock census and (b) miscellaneous Professor of Statistics in the University of Tra­ sampling studies as these two would be of great vancore, till June 1950. My office was formed importance to the state and the people and would with a small staff consisting of a Personal furnish valuable material to supplement the Assistant, one Accountant and one Typist in population data. February, 1950. Owing to the prevailing short­ 3. During the third week of December, 1949, age of accommodation, created probably by the I went to Delhi to discuss with the Registrar­ integration of the states, it was not possible General, details relating to the preliminary items for Government to provide me a suitable of census work that had to be attended to im­ building for housing my office. This would have mediately. My discussions with the Registrar­ created serious difficulties but for the generosity General were extremely useful. I realised for of the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the first time that Travancore-Cochin was far Travancore and the Director, Central Research behind any other state in the basic preliminary Institute in the University, who very kindly arrangements for census and that unless things allowed me the use of a few rooms in the moved pretty quickly, the position would prove Division of Statistics, pending the selection of dangerous. The Registrar General emphasised a building for my office. I had my office in the that I should immediately make arrangements for Central Research Institute building till the end numbering houses, formation of blocks and cir­ of May,1950. I have to acknowledge my grateful cles and the appointment of Census Officers. thanks to the Vice-Chancellor and the Director 4. On my return from Delhi, I was compelled of Research for their kindness in the matter. to report to Government in January, that census 2. Soon after my appointment as Census work required my full-time attention and to Commissioner, the letters from the Census request relief from my duties as Professor of Commissioner for India to the State Govern­ Statistics from 31-3-1950. This was sanctioned ment on house-numbering, preparation of in Government Order RM3-36150IRD. dated house-lists and of maps, enactment of the 16-2-1950 (Appendix B-3) and I was relieved of necessary legislation empowering levy of my duties as Professor of Statistics on 31-3-1950. contribution to census charges from local I started upon the immediate work before me bodies and the printing of enumeration slips, -house-numbering. In the Travancore area, sent during the years 1948 and 1949, were house numbering had not been brought up-to-date forwarded to me. No action had been taken since the 1941 census. As regards the Co chin on any of those letters. As census work required area, it was reported that house-numbering was inter-departmental co-operation and as the done in a systematic manner by the village officers arrangements had to be made without any delay, and municipal authorities under the supervision Goverpment at my request, published a notifica­ of the Chief Electoral Officer f'4r the preparation tion RM3-2939!49[RD. dated 8-12-1949 (Appendix of electoral rolls for the recent elections and also 132/H that it had been kept up-to-date. The immediate had to arrange for the lion's share of the work problem was, therefore, the organisation of house­ may be authorised to draw an advance of numbering work in the Travancore area. Rs. 20,000. Government sanctioned these pro­ posals for house-numbering work in February Section ii. vide G. O. RM3-35150jRD. dated 6-2-1950. The House-numbering advances required for the house-numbering work At previous censuses house-numbering was could, however, be drawn and the work started done by the subordinate staff of the Land Reve­ only in March. nue Department. Conditions were, however, now 5. I had already considered the allocation of very different; the officers and subordinate staff geographically compact areas and systematically of the Department were being put to great strain code-numbering them, as census units for the . in connection with the procurement of foodgrains, 1951 census operations. For administrative grow-more-food schemes and the rationing of purposes, the state is divided 'into four districts civil supplies. It was felt that to burden them and each district is divided into taluks. Taluks with the additional responsibility for house­ are further sub-divided into pakuthies (or rev­ numbering would involve serious delay in the enue villages) in Travancore and villages in work. I, therefore, held consultations with the Cochin, each with its pakuthy or village staff. officers of the Land Revenue Department, the Director of Public Health and the Chief Conser­ While the village in Cochin with an average vator of Forests with a view to distributing this area of 4 sq. miles (the area of the state under work. I requested the Director of Public Health Reserve Forests has been excluded in this cal­ who has a large staff under his control to take up culation) and an average population of 4,000, the work in those taluks and portions of taluks according to the 1941 Census, offered itself as a where his staff could operate efficiently; he very convenient unit for census operations in rural kindly agreed to do so. The areas assigned to areas, the pakuthy in Travancore was too large the Public Health Department totalled to about and unwieldy. The average area of a pakuthy was three-fourths of the area of the Travancore Dis­ 10 sq. mil~s (the area of the State under Reserve tricts excluding Reserve Forest areas. The Chief Forests has been e:xcluded in this calculation) Conservator similarly consented to attend to and the average popUlation, according to the house-numbering in the Reserve Forest areas ex­ 1941 census, 12,000. tending to about 2,456 sq., miles. House-number­ It was, therefore, considered advisable to ing in the remaining areas had to be done by the adopt as in the past, the kara, a sub-division staff of the Land Revenue Department, the num­ of the pakuthy but not an administrative unit. bering work in the estates being done as in as the census unit for rural areas in Tra­ the past, by the estate people themselves. In vancore. The average area of a kara was municipal areas, the work was to be done by 1.2 sq. miles and the average population, accord­ the municipalities, the expenditure incurred ing to the 1941 census, 1,300. Compared to being met out of municipal funds; in all the village in Cochin, the kara is very. small, other areas the expenditure was to be charged but for want of a more suitable unit it was re­ to Government. The rate of expenditure to be tained. The formation of an intermediate unit sanctioned for house-numbering was left for later between the kara p,nd the pakuthy is a consum­ decision on the basis of the cost actually incurred mation devoutly to be wished for. in trial operations. It was also agreed that advances should be paid to the departmental In municipal areas in both Travancore and agencies concerned and they were to buy locally Cochin, the ward was selected as the unit for the materials required for the numbering work. the census. Proposals on the above basis were submitted to There were besides, a few localities which Government on 28-1-1950 and in G. P. No. RM3- were treated as census towns at previous censuses 351501RD. dated 6-2-1950, Government sanc­ on the ground that they had more or less urban tioned them (Appendix B-4). characteristics. I decided to retain this cate­ I estimated the expenditure for house-number­ gory of towns also at the present census, the ing in Travancore area at Rs. 34,000. I also selection of such localities being made in con­ proposed that the I5irector of Public Health who sultation with administrative officers concerned.