6. SETTLMENTS  AND TENURE

 

6. 1   Background

 

Settlement Projects or colonisation Schemes as they are called in Sri Lanka were commenced under the I triad Development Ordinance in mid 1930’s. At present there are about 85,000 farmers settled in Settlement Projects covering an acreage of about 40,000 acres. these Settlement Projects have come in for criticism on several grounds. these include the comparative low returns for the high capital investment, poor physical planning. the reliance of the settlers on continued Government patronage and inadequate agricultural productivity and lack of social cohesiveness and poor selection of settlers. Some of these aspects, poor physical planning and selection of settlers have been improved in the recent past. It has also to be borne in mind that the established settlement scheme, provide direct employment in agricultural pursuits to about 200,000 people, and indirectly on trade, transport services and supplies to an equal number and production from these Settlement Schemes amount to about 35% of island’s paddy production. Considerable attention and thought has been given in the planning of settlement schemes for the Mahaweli project.

 

6.2    Physical Planning of Settlement Schemes

 

The physical planning of Settlement Schemes was governed by m lie topography of the land arid lay out of the irrigation channels. The unit of high hand was also large comprising of 2 - 3 acres arid as a result the homesteads of the allottees was spread out in a linear mariner, while the linear planning of homesteads to a certain extent reduced the distance from homesteads to farm. It makes the cost providing access to electricity, water supply and other amenities at later stage prohibitively costly. In the Walawe Project, the size of the homestead was reduced to ½ an acre and it was provided adjoining the upland farm. The distance to civic amenities was also considerably reduced. Proximity to the farm, the raced provision of amenities like access. water supply, electricity at reasonable  cost. social cohesiveness and co-operation among settlers and easy access to the civic centres  providing facilities such as. Schooling, medical etc. have

 

been borne in mind in the phasing of  Mahaweli Settlement Schemes. It is proposed to settle farmers iii clustered groups, each cluster more or less corresponding to an irriga­tion block. Each cluster consists of a group of not more that 4-5 villages of 100-125 settlers cad’. At tile village level the facilities to be provided include a co-operative stores avid a junior school. Where the grouping of 5 - 6 villages into a cluster is not possible it is proposed to hive a single cluster with no separate sub-units. The grouping of small villages of IOU — 125 settles will reduce the distance to the farmers while providing essential amenities within reasonable cost. It will also tend better relation­ships, co-operation avid solidarity among thy settlers. Each village will have a popula­tion of approximately 700 persons, while a cluster will consist of about 400 - 500 families, and a population of 3,000. The amenities to be provided at the clustered level will be a community hail and a recreation centre, a sub-post office and a co-operative store. The cluster has been limited to 400-500 families as this is the size which can best promote social cohesiveness without increasing the cost of providing amenities. A larger number of settlers in cluster is unfavorable to the development of social cohesiveness, solidarity and co-operation. A larger community by its very size tends to isolate the individual family. A group of 3-6 cluster will together form a suburban township with a D.R.O’s  office, a primary co-operative store and a rural bank, a senior secondary school and a central dispensary avid other facilities. The project area has been divided into 47 clusters and 189 villages.

 

6.3   Selection and Training of Settlers

 

6. 3. 1    The success of the project will to a large extent depend on the selection of the right type of settlers. Special recruitment and selection procedures will be set up. Emphasis will be given to agricultural experience and educational receptiveness of the settler to adopt new processes and crops, his ability to work in a group. physical fitness, community leadership and involvement. Selection will be from the younger age groups and a marking system has been devised. It is proposed to set tip special recruitment and selection units under the Settlement and Planning Division of the Board, with opera­tional itinerant selection teams, to recruit 3,100 new settler families. per year during five years.

 

6. 3. 2    All new settlers will be submitted to a one-week preliminary training in groups of 30 in two training centres in the project area. Their leadership ability will be studied there. They will be briefed on farmers’ organisation and participation, community development, water management, extension, relationships with officials and, recommend­ed cropping patterns. -

 

6. 3. 3     Once in the settlement area, the farmers will have to build their temporary houses. prepare for the agricultural seasons avid set tip co-operatives. This will take eight weeks during which daily allowances in food worth Rs. 5/- per farmer has been envisaged for cost computation loans will take over from allowances. The availability of all public facilities, extension services and community development agents from the onset is an essential pre-requisite for the settlers to be ready to operate and able to form their own organizations in two months’ time. Training will be provided to farmers at existing training schools in all aspects of community and agricultural development.

 

6.4   Farm Size

 

Sue of the farm has been determined based on family farms relating primarily on family labour. Exchange of labour between families is contemplated to the use of hired labour is not contemplated. The family size should also be such that after providing for pro­duction cost, land rent and water charge, it should provide. the settler with adequate income to maintain a satisfactory standard of living. A three-acre family unit in the initial stages will provide an income of Rs.3,000 rising up to amounts exceeding up to Its. 9,000 after 9 - 10 years.

 

6.5   Community development, agricultural extension and training

 

6. 5. 1   Planned community development   is considered essential to achieve the social and economic objectives of five project community development workers in each village cluster, one working with the men, the other with the women will serve each village cluster. Their activities will be co-ordinated with that of the block extension officer and irrigation overseer and with the training centres, within a programme designed to co-ordinate the various development activities within the project area.

 

6. 5. 2    The improvement of the economic level of farmers is to be considered as the basic goal of this programme. High priority should be given to the budgetary aspects of the farmer’s life for a safe balance between their income, their expenditure and their savings.

 

6. 5. 3    The function of extension officers will be to introduce new methods of farming and farm organisation and to help farmers, village organisations and staff for co-operatives to put into practice the principles they would have been taught at the training centres. To this end they will keep in direct contact with all farmers, hold meetings and establish demonstration plots at one of the best farms.

 

6. 5. 4    Extension services will have benefited from a two year research programme at the Maha Illuppallama Station, by the time the first settlers arrive. This programme should cover sub surface tillage and stubble equipment for 2 wheel tractors, furrow irrigation on the RBE type lands, standard farmsize, and the development of irrigation methods suited to small plots and short cycle crops.

 

6. 5. 5    As indicated earlier each settler will receive a training of one week’s duration prior to his being placed on his farm. In addition each settler will have three one week training sessions at a Sub-Area Training Centre. During 10 years the Training Centre will receive and train 15 to 20 percent of the farmers of the Sub-Area each year. During these training sessions farmers will be taught modern cultural and irrigation practices and the reasons therefore. After 10 years, these centres could be used for agricultural or other training purposes.

 

6. 5. 6    A main training centre will be established for the training of promising farmers to hold positions of responsibility in farmer organisations. They will gradually replace exten­sion personnel at field level. Two percent of the farmers will attend the main training centre each year. In addition each year, 300 employees in ancillary agricultural services will also receive a special training. All training programmes will be gradually improved to keep farmers up to date in technological progress.

 

6.6   Land Consolidation

 

Investigations made in the project area indicate the necessity for consolidation of paddy holdings to achieve efficient mechanised agricultural production. This would receive greater emphasis with the spread of mechanised cultural operations. It is socially desirable that land consolidation be made on a voluntary basis. In implementing the project construction programme, it will be essential to acquire land for construction works. It will also be necessary to consolidate land so as to provide viable agricultural holdings. The procedure to be adopted for the creation of such holdings should be carefully studied and implemented in accordance with the development proposed under the project. Since land consolidation is necessarily a time consuming operation, the legal framework will have to be set up as early as possible and accurate cadastral surveys also made.

 

6.7   Supply and Marketing Circuits

 

The supply of requisites will be improved through the reorganisation of credit as planned by the government and through the development of extension services. Sufficient storage capacity will be made available in the area for providing a quick supply to the farmers.

 

The purchase of paddy is under the official responsibility of the Paddy Marketing Board. Maize, groundnuts and soya beans will be sold through co-operatives to the Oils and Fats Corporation under Government control. Onions, chillies and pulses which are in high demand and not subject to further processing will be marketed by private traders.

 

However, co-operatives should be able to obtain the best prices for the producers. Cotton will be marketed either by the Textile Corporation or a subsidiary to it.

 

6.8   Credit

Credit facilities will be extended to farmers by the People’s Bank through Co-operatives under the control of farmers’ organisations and of the project authority. Institutional credit will finance the purchase of farm machinery on five-year loans. The provision for working capital will be initially supplied by settlement loans of Rs. 600 per farmer resident in the area and Rs. 1,200 per new settler to be repaid within three years and supplemented by short term loans generally in kind, for the supply of agricultural inputs and the operation of farm machinery. The proposed loan and repayment sche­dule fits both the credit requirements and the repayment capacity of farmers.

 

The accumulated balance of loans will reach about 50 million rupees, on the 5th and 6th years of agricultural development and will decrease afterwards as farmers develop a self-financing capacity.