Study Area and Its Arecanut Economy
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CHAPTER - III Study Area and its Arecanut Economy Socio Economic Profile of South Canara District: Geographv;- The district of South Canara in Karnataka is popularly known as “Dakshina Kannada Jille”V It is situated on the western coast of India about half way between Mumbai and Capecomerin. From north to south, it is a long strip of territory and from east to west; it is a broken low plateau, which spreads between Western Ghats and Arabian Sea. It lies between 12®-17° and 13°-58° north longitudes and between 74°-35° and 75°-40° east longitudes having a geographical area of 4,843 square kilometers, vviiich is shown in table 3.1. The district is surrounded by North Canara on its North, the districts of Shimoga, Chickmagalore and Hassan in the East, Coorg and Kasaragod district of Kerala in the South and Arabian Sea in the West, Mangalore is its head quarters. The area is intersected by many rivers, streams and presents varied picturesque scenery. Abundant vegetation, extensive forest, numerous growers of arecanut and coconut palms along with the coast at area and rice field in every valley provide a refreshing greenness to the prospect. It is a most densely inhabited tract. The district comprises of Mangalore, Bantwal, Belthangady Puttur and Sullia taluks. Till 1998, the Udupi district was incorporated into the stream of undivided South Canara district. Climate and Rainfall: - The climate of this district is characterised by high rainfall^aterJ^miidity with a little seasonal variation in temperature. The southwest monsoon season is the coolest part of the year with minimum daily temperature below 29°c and March, April, May be considered as the hottest months of the year, the humidity is high throughout the year and particularly in the south monsoon months. The average rainfall in the district is 3,930 * South Canara was the previous name of the district. It was renamed as Dakshina Kannada district in 31-10-1977 — Economic and Social Survey of Dakshina Kannada (1988-89), District Statistical office, Mangalore 1992, - P-2. 92 Table No. 3.1 SOCIO-ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES OF SOUTH CANARA ALONG WITH STATE FIGURES KARNATAKA SOUTH CANARA SL. NO. ITEMS STATE DISTRICT 1 Geographical Areas in sq.kms(2001 ) 191,791 4,843 2 Population (2001 ) Male 26,856,343 937,651 Female 25,877,615 958,752 Total 52,733,958 1,896,403 3 Density of population 275 337 4 Rainfall ( Normal) ( 1999) in m.m 932 3,010 5 Forest ( 1000 h e )(1999 ) 3,063 128 6 No. of Talukas 175 5 7 No. of Panchayats 5,692 208 8 No. of Towns 270 8 9 No. of inhabited villages 27,575 371 10 Income at 97 - 98 prices ( in lakhs) 68,73,751 6,09,630 11 Per capita Income (In Rupees) 10,665 9,384 12 No. of Commercial Banks 3,608 296 13 No. of Regional Rural Banks 1,102 11 14 No. of Co-operative Societies 4,350 165 15 Regulated Markets 429 8 16 Road Length (2000 )Kms 1,42,801 3,399 17 State Highways 11,037 338.45 18 Major Dist. Road ( Kms) 28,361 1,471 19 Post Offices 9,852 447 20 Telephone Exchanges 2,239 168 21 No. of Health centres 331 8 22 No. of Vehicles 33,51,076 1,50,868 23 No. of Cenema Theaters 1,238 25 24 No. ofK.S.R.T.C. Buses 5,397 556 25 Fair Price Shops 20,292 577 26 Small Scale Units 2,52,671 16,372 27 Cultivators 59,15,633 10,086 28 Agricultural labourers 49,99,959 89,095 29 Mining 1,16,369 2,770 30 Manufacturing in Household Industries 3,22,151 5,634 31 Trade / Commerce 13,79,954 72,998 32 Education Literacy Rate ( 2001 ) 67.04% 83.47% Source ; Statistical Economic Survey of Karnataka, Bangalore (1999 - 2000,2000 - 2001). Census of India 2001-Karnataka 93 mms over an average of 123 days. In Karnataka state, an all time maximum rainfall i.e., 4,291.5 mms was recorded in South Canara district in 1983.^ Soil and Land utilisation It is marked by the pre-dominance of smallholdings. More than 80% of the land holding consists of less than 1.50 hectares. As far as cultivation of crop is concerned there are no major irrigation dams in the district. The prominent rivers in the district are Nethravathy in Bantwal. Kumaradhara in Puttur taluk and Gowri and Payashwini River in Sullia taluks, which is flowing from east to west. Fundamentally, Farmers depend on private wells and Government ponds. The total ground water potential is estimated at 118911 Ha.m with an utilisable potential of 101079 Ha.m. The total area under cultivation in the district is 2,16,973 ha. An area of 1,57,504 ha. is not available for cultivator as this area is under barren land put to non- agricultural uses. An area of 2,32,776 ha. is available for cultivation, which is presently classified as fallow land, permanent land, and other miscellaneous tree crops. The soil is of a laterite type characterised by iron and aluminum content. The soil is suitable for the cultivation of crops like small amount of spices and commercial plantation. The soil pH* ranges from 5.6 to 6 i.e., on the acidic side. Population. Literacy and Occupational Structure As per 2001 census, the population of the district is 1,896,403 out of which 937,651 are male and 958,752 are females. In the case of literacy level, the district has been declared totally literate. The literacy rate of the district for all is fairly high at 83.47% when compared with the state average of 67.04%. The work forces in the district are engaged in different types of activities viz: agricultural labourers (89,095), mining (2,770) trade and commerce (72,998) and other services. Apart from this there are cultivators (10,086) engaged in Forestry, Fisheries, Mining, Construction, transport, communication etc. ^ Dakshina Kannada at a glance 1990-91, District Statistical office, Mangalore 1991 PP 17-18 pH - Measurement Unit 94 Animal Husbandry and Sericulture Though there is no distinctive breed of cattie found in the district, artificial insemination centres have been set up in the district. Karnataka Milk Federation Diary is located at Mangalore. The total daily milk yield is about 4 lakh liters. There are 235 primary milk producer’s co-operative societies. There are about 8.65 lakh heads of cattle in the district. The South Canara District poultry producer marketing society, Mangalore is actively is engaged in the development of poultry farming in the district. Piggery is also becoming important. Sericulture activity is concentrated in Belthangady, Puttur and Bantwala taluks. At present about 2,660 acres of area is under mulberry cultivation constituting about 4,169 families. Allied Activities: - The coast of the district, which is one of the richest coasts in the country in respect of fisheries about V3 is of the total of the state. About 75,000 people are engaged in fish job and other related activities. Beedi rolling is also veiy important cottage a activity providing both direct and indirect employment to a large section of population in the district. The Mangalore Beedies are famous for their smart structures and tasty blend of tobacco. Infrastructures Facilities The district has a fairly developed road transport system, with a total of about 3,399 kms of motorable roads. This includes 126 kms of National High way and 696 kms of State Highway passing through the district. Out of total road length in the district, 22.35% is in Puttur, 21.69% is in Belthangady taluk, 20.59% is in Mangalore taluk 20.30% is in Bantwala and 15.02% is in Sullia taluk. The Konkan Railway lines are also passing through this district. The Bajpe Airport near Mangalore serves the needs of the industry and commercial activities. The New Mangalore Port at Panambur is a major port, which helps for the export and import trade of the district. The district is not lagging behind in the availability of telephone and other communication facilities and this is a boon to the trade and industry of the district. 95 Banking and Industry There is high incidence of the tertiary activities in the district. The district is the cradle of many commercial banks and four nationalised banks, which originated here^. The total number of commercial banks functioning in the district is 296. There is a relatively better industrial climate in the district. Tile factories, printing presses, clock making units, cashew nut industry, fisheries transport; professional and self-employed sectors have also developed rapidly over the years. The Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board is developing and allotting industrial land to the prospective entrepreneurs in the district. The Karnataka State Small Scale Industries Development Corporation is involved in the construction and allotment of industrial sheds. There are four industrial estates spread over 1,028 ha.s of land. By the year 2000 there were 16,72 small-scale industrial units registered as the district industrial centres. Brief History The word Kanara (or Canara) - The Kanaras, South and North are two coastal belts of Karnataka State. These two parts are popularly known as “Parashurama Shristi”- The creation of Parashurama who allegedly reclaimed the land west of western ghats with the divine power. When the Portuguese came to India and landed on the west coast, they came across this part of the country where they leamt that the people speak a language called Kannada. They were not familiar pronunciation of with the ‘da’ sound, which they replaced by ‘ra’ and thus Kannada became Kanara and was written in Portuguese as Canara"*.