5th – 6th October 2013
Bharati (133354001),
Mayank(09405009),
Indrayani(133350004)
Gautam(134350001)
TD 605, CTARA, IIT Bombay
Field visit to Pen & Khopoli
Faculty Members: Prof. Milind Sohoni Prof. Puru Kulkarni Prof. Ganesh Ramakrishnan
TAs: Abhiram Sahastrabuddhe Vishal Singh Pankhuri Agrawal
Page 1
First Day
Poha making factory:
Poha factory visit was on 5th October in Pen, Narangi. We saw it in batches. We started with the
main area where paddy (raw material) was kept.
Joshi Poha Factory:
Joshi Poha factory was established in 1948, the factory produces flattened rice (poha)
flakes which are an ingredient of a major snack, in Maharashtra. The raw material used
for this is paddy and is procured within the Taluka at the rate of Rs. 14/kg. If local
people get their own paddy to make poha then the cost if Rs. 5/-. Many varieties of paddy
are used like Ratna, Jaya, Suvarna, Karjat, Sahyadri. Capacity of the poha factory is 20
quintals.
Figure 1: Economic determinant for Poha factory
As can be seen from figure 1, the raw material (paddy) is taken from rural area and the
finished product is also consumed within the rural area. Surplus finished product is also
sent to outside environment.
The various steps followed in making of poha are as follows:
Page 2
Flow chart:
Figure 2: Flow chart of Poha making
• Paddy is cleaned and impurities are removed then it is soaked in hot water for 3
hours. If the paddy is straight from plant i.e. moist, one doesn’t need to soak it in
water.
• After drying i t in shade overnight, paddy i s pu t i t in the hopper and goes
i t in roaster (with sand) in an oven with big rotating s teel drum (a t 210
degree Cels ius) to remove moisture. Roaster driving motor was of 5 HP.
Page 3
Figure 3: Roaster in action
• Roasted paddy comes out and some fraction of it gets popped
• These flakes are then passed through sieves to remove unwanted material (husk)
• Husk obtained from sieve machine is treated as a fuel (put in hopper) for this oven. The
fly ash is used as an additive in brick making.
• These filtered flakes are passed through a roller to flatten them. Starch helps
in gett ing i t flat tened. The degree of flatness is adjusted by varying pressure
applied by hand.
• Flakes thus obtained are of fairly even size but some would be whole, some broken
in the process which are also separated.
• The residue or bran, locally called as bhoosa, is collected and is used as poultry or
cattle feed. The flattened rice flake is sold at the rate of Rs. 32-35 per kg. The major
markets where the flakes are sent are the ones in Pune or Vashi.
Page 4
Page 5
Economic Analysis:
C/L Ratio
Sno Item Units Unit Price
(in INR) Item Total
(in INR)
1 Blower Motor 2HP 1 11000 11000
2 Roaster Motor 5HP 1 19000 19000
3 Crusher Motor 5HP 1 19000 19000
4 Roaster assembly with
Blower 1 150000 150000
5 Crusher 3 10000 30000
6 Sieve Assembly with Motor 1 10000 10000
7 Water Tank 10000 Litres 1 10000 10000
8 Land 50 feet X 100 Feet 1 1200000 1200000
Total Capital - Land Owned 1449000
Total Capital - Land Leased 249000
Labour
1 Crusher operators 3
2 Roaster Operator 3
3 Sieve Operator 2
4 Helpers/Feeders 3
5 In charge 1
Total Labour 12
C/L for Land Owned 120750
C/L for Land Leased 20750
The capital required to create one job for the poha mill that we visited is estimated to be
about Rs.20750. Although the enterprise itself is not capital intensive, a major factor that
distorts the calculation is the cost of land. When the initial capital investment includes cost of
land (in current prices), the capital required to create one job is Rs.1,20,750. The process in a
poha mill is labour intensive; the distortion of initial capital investment due to land price
makes it look capital intensive.
Page 6
Sathe Rice mill:
After visiting the Poha factory, we headed towards Sathe rice mill situated further ahead.
The rice mill was established in 1910. It is a major industry in Pen since large number of
paddy fields exists. The mill employed a round 10 workers, out of which 2-3 handled the
milling jobs and the remaining handled the packing and transportation. As per the input from
some employees, they receive a daily input of about nearly 80 quintals. The f i n a l o u t p u t
i s s o l d a t R s . 1 5 0 p e r q u i n t a l . Being a medium scale set-up, a minimum of
30kg input is required for an individual operation cycle.
Figure 4: Economic determinant for Rice Milling
As we can see in figure 4, the raw material (paddy) is taken from rural area and the finished
product is also consumed within the rural area. Surplus finished product is also sent to outside
environment.
Page 7
The various steps followed in making of Rice Mill are as follows:
Flow chart:
Figure 5: Flow chart of rice mill
First the paddy is de-stoned and put through a conical structure below the ground
level from where the paddy is lifted using lifts.
Paddy is then put through de-husker (two rubber wheels) where the husk is removed.
The husk is removed through various zigzag sieves.
First level of polishing is done and bran is removed.
Final whitening (second level) of polishing is done.
Page 8
Economic Analysis:
C/L Ratio
Sno Item Units Unit Price Item Total
1 Motor 30 hp 1 95000 95000
2 Whole Machinery consisting Of Dehusking, Polishing 1 1500000 1500000
3 Variable Pulley mechanism For different RPM 1 50000 50000
4 Land 100feet X 100 feet 1 2400000 2400000
Total Capital - Land Owned 4045000
Total Capital - Land Leased 1645000
1 Feeders 2
2 Collectors 2
3 Operators 3
4 Supervisor 1
Total Labour 8
Page 9
C/L for Land Owned 505625
C/L for Land Leased 205625
Compared to a poha mill, the rice mill needs higher initial capital investment as the complete
process is mechanized. The capital needed to create one job in the rice mill that we visited works
out to about Rs.205625. This is ten times the amount of capital investment required to create a
job in the poha mill. The machinery used in the rice mill was imported which contributed to high
initial capital investment.
Page 10
Tabla and Mridangam workshop:
After visiting rice mill, we went to see tabla and mridangam workshop. We saw two
workshops. Tabla and mridangam are two of the most popular m u s i c a l instruments
used in the Hindustani and Classical music respectively. O n e o f t h e workshops that
we visited was a 3rd.
generation of the family. The first facility had two employees and
the second one had 5 people for day to day operation.
Figure 6: Economic determinant for Tabla making
As we can see from figure 6, the raw material comes from external environment and the
finished product also goes to external market/environment.
The membrane for drum is made from goat skin and is bought from markets in Gujarat and
Sholapur (Dilip Narayankar). The wood required for the drum is obtained from Gujarat and
Delhi. The ink required for ‘Sur’ or Shyahi or the Black made up of carbon. Sur has to
be rubbed by black stone for 8 hrs. It is bought from Surat in Gujarat. The body metal
for the Duggi (of Tabla) is bought from Mumbai.
Page 11
Cost of Goat Skin = Rs150- 200 per piece
Cost of Ink = Rs 250/kg
Cost of body metal = Rs 650/kg
The finished instrument is then sold in Mumbai and Pune. The workers were telling that
the business was growing and there was an increased demand these days.
Page 12
Ganpati idol making factory:
After visiting. Tabla and Mridangam workshop, we went to see Ganpatai idol
making in a nearby workshop. Ganapati idols were being made using plaster of
paris (POP). They also mentioned that some idols are made using “ shaadu
maati”, clay. Typically 5000-6000 idols are made for the season. Maximum of 5-
6 feet idols are made. They had about 10-15 workers.
Figure 7: Economic determinant for Ganpati making factory
As we can see from figure 7, the raw material comes from external environment and the
finished product also goes to external market/environment. Some finished products are also
consumed locally.
Page 13
Economic Analysis:
C/L Ratio
Sno Item Units Unit Price Item Total
1 Paint Sprayer 1 3000 3000
2 1hp air compressor 1 15000 15000
3 Racks 10 5000 50000
4 Land 50feet X 30 feet 1 600000 600000
Total Capital - Land Owned 668000
Total Capital - Land Leased 68000
Labour
1 Moulder 1
2 Painters 6
Total Labour 7
C/L for Land Owned 95428.571
C/L for Land Leased 9714.2857
Ganesh idol making enterprise which is a similar case to that of wooden toy making requires
an initial capital investment of Rs.10000. Ganesh idol making is a labour intensive process
which has traditionally been a source of employment for rural people in India.
For a country like India which has surplus labour available, capital intensive industries would
not be conducive to inclusive growth. Capital intensive industries generate much less number
of jobs for the same amount of initial capital invested when compared to a labour intensive
Page 14
industry. In a labour intensive setup, people can be trained and skills can be developed in an
informal way which will help people to find employment. In the case of capital intensive
industries, one needs specialized training which itself would incur a substantial expenditure
and which cannot be done in an informal way as it requires training using machines.
Therefore, a policy which promotes labour intensive small scale enterprises which can also
train and enhance people’s skills can go a long way in providing people employment in a
labour surplus nation like India. This would a paradigm where human development is the
priority rather than a capitalist paradigm where profit is the sole motivation
Ganesh idol making enterprise which is a similar case to that of wooden toy making requires
an initial capital investment of Rs.95428. Ganesh idol making is a labour intensive process
which has traditionally been a source of employment for rural people in India.
Page 15
Toy Making Unit:
The toy making unit was a very interesting visit. The production was confined to a single
room of 400 square feet. The owner was a very old person who told us that due to the new
generation's interest in video games these wooden toys are very low in demand.
As making wooden toys involved wood turning mechanism to shape the wood pieces, all the
toys made form it had circular shape. The interesting part was the painting. Coloured lac was
used for colouring the turning wood. Once the colouring is done certain leaves which had oily
texture were rubbed on the wood. The oil in leaves used to give a varnish kind of smoothness
and shine to the surface of wooden toy. As everything was done when the wooden toy was
rotating at high speed the quality of finished product was nice.
The assembly for wood turning was very simple. There was a 2hp motor which, through the
pulleys, rotated the wood piece. Workplace involved only a single person and was very
primitive. There seems to be no arrangement for safety as motor was installed very near to
the storage area. That coupled with the primitive electrical connection to motor and lots of
wood around posed a real danger of fire.
C/L Ratio
Sno Item Units Unit Price Item Total
1 Motor 5 hp 1 19000 19000
2 Pully mechanism 1 3000 3000
3 Wood Turner 1 5000 5000
4 Land 20feet X 20 feet 1 100000 100000
Total Capital - Land Owned 127000
Total Capital - Land Leased 27000
Labour
1 Operator 1
Total Labour 1
C/L for Land Owned 127000
C/L for Land Leased 27000
Page 16
In the case of a wooden toy making rural enterprise, the capital investment to create one job
was about Rs.27,000 without including the cost of land. Industries similar to toy making
which are traditional small enterprises are under threat from escalating land prices where
including land prices in the initial capital investment would render it unviable. The initial
capital investment which includes the price of land is about Rs.1,27,000.
RCC Pipe Making Factory:
RCC Pipe making unit was not functional at the time of visit though we were able to see the
machinery and moulds used in making the RCC pipes. The most interesting machinery was
the use of a Truck's Gearbox used with an electric motor to get a variable speed drive. It was
a pure innovation as it served the purpose of different RPM outputs without the use of a
costly motor.
Page 17
Figure 8 : RCC Pipe making from development point of view
RCC pipes, as the name suggest, make use of iron mesh embedded in concrete for strength.
Once the moulds are placed together sandwiching the mesh the concrete is pumped. The
interesting part is that the final mould is rotated at high speed to let concrete spread evenly.
This rotation is done at different RPM at different times and the duration is different for
different size of pipes.
Once the Rotation is done the mould is left to set for some time. This is done to let concrete
set. Once the concrete is set enough to be rolled, the moulds are opened and the piped is
rolled towards the curing tank. The pipes remain in the curing tank for few days depending
on the their demand and the size of pipe. After few days of curing the pipes are ready to be
transported.
Page 18
Page 19
Vinoba Bhave's birth place Gagode :
We ended our first day field visit by paying a short visit to village Dagode, which is birth
place of Maharshi Vinoba Bhave. We also visited Vinobaji's ancestral house where he had
spent the initial years of his life. We were informed about the ' Bhoodaan & Gramdaan
Movement' which emphasizes on community ownership. Brief introduction about the
biography of Vinoba Bhave enlightened us towards the simple ways of life & the philosophy
of community ownership.
Page 20
Second Day
Interaction with Rural Communes :
Rural Communes was established in 1976 and since then it has actively worked for the cause
of tribals and landless peoples. The main thrust of Rural Communes is training and capacity
building. It is also involved in natural resource management issues related with water, soil
and forests. For example, watershed development work done by Rural Communes at
Shedoshi village has changed the face of village completely. Due to availability of water for
most of the year people are now cultivating a range of vegetables and other crops which have
helped them economically.
Other fields in which Rural Communes is active are sustainable energy sources, Food
security through sustained agriculture, Appropriate Rural Technology development and
creating awareness among people for home garden for medicinal plants.
Page 21
Parle Biscuit Factory:
Figure 9 : : Parle Factory from development point of view
Page 22
Figure 10 : Parle Biscuit Making Process
Page 23
Figure 11: Parle Candy Making Process
Page 24
We visited Parle factory on 6th Oct morning. As it was a large scale factory the scene was
totally different from the factories we visited on 5th October.
We were first taken to an auditorium where were given clear and strict instructions that we
are not allowed to use mobile and cameras. We were shown a 15 minute animation movie
which pretty much showed the complete process of biscuit and candy making.
We were then taken to a candy making area where the famous "Kachha Mango Bite" candies.
The process seemed fairly simple as follows -
Liquid glucose and sugar are heated to melt till 140 degrees.
Water and steam are then used to make glucose and sugar mixture uniform and the
whole mix is then filter pressed.
Whole mix is cooked and then while blending the flavours are mixed.
The mixture is properly kneaded to get a uniform mix.
The kneaded mixture is then sent to tablet making machine where candies take their
shape.
The candies are then sorted and wrapped for packing.
After candy making, we visited the biscuit making facility where Parle-G and Coffee
biscuits were made in parallel conveyor belts.
Raw material like Flour, sugar, edible oil and milk are mixed and kneaded.
The kneaded mix is then moulded to get uncooked biscuits.
Biscuits are then baked in an oven over conveyor belt followed by cooling.
The biscuits are then wrapped and packed.
Page 25
Visit to Shedoshi Village:
Collaboration of Indo- German Scheme, NABARD & Rural Communes undertook the
project of watershed development in the village of Shedoshi. The project started in 1984 &
ended in September 1999. The hilly region was divided into 11 micro watersheds so that
each one can be considered individually for development project. The total cost of the project
is about Rs. 166,00,000. Villagers have collected Rs.1,31,000 as maintenance fund via
voluntary labour (Shramadan). Tribal people sacrifice their livelihood of the day in order to
contribute towards the project in the form of voluntary labour. Landless people also
contribute for the project even though they are not directly benefitted from the project. So
302 landless families have also actively participated in the Shramadan process.
Before the implementation of the Watershed project Yashodatai Waman Wagh had taken
initiative to address some problems of the village like drinking water, employment &
livelihood, migration, debt, etc. People were migrating for jobs & ignoring their health. First
intervention was in the form of formation of Women's Group. Women group started to grow
vegetables because of increased water availability for cultivation as a result of watershed
project. Plantation of Cashew nuts, Mango trees was done with the initiative of RC to
encourage horticulture.
Watershed project covered the area from hill top to valley through various interventions like
earthen dam, concrete dams, check dams, contour trenches, etc. Under the project a storage
tank was constructed on the hill top which served as a source of irrigation during the rabbi
season for the second crop. On the slope of the hill several contour trenches were dig in order
to conserve the soil & water flowing.
After completion of project villagers have been applying for various government schemes.
For upliftment of society only watershed development is not enough it needs social &
financial interventions as well. Rural communes (RC) helped villagers with seeds, pumps for
irrigation, etc.
This has reduced the migration of the local people to other places for livelihood. These steps
were taken in order to achieve the sustainable development.
Page 26
Vertical Shaft Brick Kiln:
Final visit place for the field visit was the Vertical Shaft Brick Kiln (VSBK) run by Waman
Bhau in Shedashi Khadki. VSBK is the joint venture of Centre for Technology Alternatives
for Rural Areas (CTARA), Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay & Rural Communes, an
NGO based in Narangi. This type of kilns are very rarely tried in India whereas this kiln type
is quite popular in China as well as some parts of India like Uttar Pradesh & some parts of
Maharashtra like Beed district. Main goal of the project was to help the local tribal
community. Main inhabitants of the area Katkari tribe whose traditional occupation was brick
making & as construction labours.
The VSBK method of brick making is more efficient in terms of energy consumption &
hence less polluting. Main fuel source for VSBK is cow dung which is easily available,
whereas main fuel for traditional process is coal. Brick making using VSBK is a continuous
process whereas traditionally it is a batch process which is goes for a month & 40,000 to
50,000 bricks are produced. VSBK produces around 2,400 bricks in a day, so around 72,000
to 75,000 bricks in a month. Hence in terms of production & energy efficiency it is better
than traditional brick making. It also requires less area for set up because of its vertical
structure.
Mixture for making bricks is prepared by mixing soil & fly ash, then it is moulded & dried.
Sun dried green bricks are then put in the VSBK for baking. Vertical structure of the shaft
makes it easier to operate as one just needs to put the bricks from upper opening of the shaft
in proper orientation for that elevator is used to transport the bricks there. But arrangement of
Page 27
the bricks plays important role in uniform baking of the bricks. Bricks are kept in the VSBK
in units of six layers & each unit requires about 4 hours of baking. Trolley mechanism
supported by the jack screw is used in the VSBK to move the bricks vertically within the
shaft & to take the ready bricks out of the shaft. Heat distribution is also uniform in case of
VSBK as main fire is lit up in the middle of the shaft so that, bricks at the lower end which
are already baked & ready.
Many employees are Katkaris who need special training while handling the bricks to avoid
the losses due to breakage. These bricks need careful handling & Katkari workers are
provided the special training to work on VSBK.
Brick making is huge industry worth of Rs. 50,000 Crores, which is bigger than another
important industry of air conditioning & refrigeration. Hence the industry needs attention
from researchers & academic community.
Page 28
Page 29
Conclusion:
The two day field visit, was highly beneficial in understanding the actual beneficiaries for
technology. It a was a good combination of various types and levels of industries and the
guiding principles of each. The main thrust was empowerment and self-sustenance through
technology and participation. Following is the conclusion based on various parameters we
experienced:
Technology and Self-reliance:
The poha mill was stark in contrast to the Parle biscuit factory. The modern industrial
manufacturing is capital intensive and uses technology that is imported. Most of the
production is automated which results in decreased number of jobs. The factory runs on
imported technology from Germany. The employees at the factory could not recall any
instance when lesser automation prevailed at the facility. It was made known to us that
certain machines have been made more efficient and advanced. They make much less noise
and are more efficient compared to the machines used before them. In contrast, the poha mill
runs on completely indigenous technology. The level of technology in use is not very
sophisticated (read western and imported technology). Except the belt drive (which is
manufactured somewhere in Madhya Pradesh), all the other parts are fabricated locally.
The local people manage the poha mill completely and they are not dependent on ‘experts’ to
maintain the plant. On the other hand, the Parle factory is completely automated which
requires special training for employees who would be operating these machines.
Employment:
The Parle biscuit factory only employs human labour for the most mundane tasks like sorting
and packing. Employees who work at the facility arrange the packaged biscuits and
confectioneries in cardboard boxes once they are ejected from the manufacturing conveyor
chain. The plant employs up to 25 people and most of these are locals. Compared to the
initial capital investment and the number of jobs created, the poha mill clearly is more
beneficial to the local community. The biscuit factory which has had to invest a huge amount
in terms of initial capital investment doesn’t create jobs which would support the local
community. Although the factory uses local resources (water, land etc), it doesn’t contribute
Page 30
enough (In terms of jobs to locals or community development) to the local community to
justify the amount of capital poured into building up the plant.
Resources:
Except milk and a few others, most of the raw material is brought to the facility from far off
places. And going by the same logic, the local economy does not have so much demand for
biscuits and confectionery from Parle’s factory. The products manufactured are sent to all
parts of India for consumption. It was clear that this factory operated on the ‘economics of
scale’ rationale where production in larger volumes with high capital investment results in
cost advantages and improved efficiency in terms of use of resources. In the poha mill, local
resources are processed locally.
Waste Recycling:
In the poha mill, the husk that is obtained after separating the rice is used as fuel for the
furnace. Thus, the waste is recycled effectively unlike the biscuit factory which uses
electricity produced predominantly from coal or nuclear energy. The externalities of the
biscuit factory are much higher in terms of effect on environment compared to the poha mill.
Another aspect of the poha mill was that the nutrients between the husk and rice is used a
fodder for cattle. The nutrient between the husk and the rice doesn’t go wasted and is used
effectively.
Alienation and Modern Workplace:
The more modern and automated the industrial facility which is followed by increased
‘professionalization’ of the workplace, human beings become resources which need to be
taken care to improve productivity. Alienation of the worker from his workplace becomes a
fact and it could be felt in the biscuit factory. Workers in the biscuit factory were working
like machines involved in excessively repetitive tasks. On the other hand, even though the
workers in poha mill also had to endure ‘repetition’, the condition perceived in poha mill was
different. Human beings were in constant conversation with other and each relied on the other
to complete their tasks. They were in constant conversation and there was an implicit feeling
of ‘recognition of the human in the other’ in the poha mill. Although the poha mill might not
pay as much as a biscuit factory and also looks decrepit and old, the work environment was
healthier from a psychological perspective.
Page 31
Rural Enterprises: On the brink
Small enterprises like poha and rice mill are struggling to remain economically viable due to
a number of reasons. Multi-national companies which operate on much larger scale are able
to offer similar products at cheaper prices and have flooded the local market. In order to
sustain economically and also employ local people, small enterprises have been dependent on
subsidies from government on tax rebates and electricity.
People in the rural and semi-rural places like Pen believe that there has been a transformation
in the way people perceive life with the gradual withering away of the traditional economy.
They don’t foresee a future for small enterprises like the poha mill in pen which is gradually
being transformed from being predominantly rural to an urban place where more people turn
away from agriculture due to its diminishing scale of return. With the turn away from
agriculture, people who were self-reliant (in terms of growing their paddy and getting their
poha from poha mill) have started depending on the market for their basic needs. There is a
gradual process of people giving up their direct relationship with nature and market has
become the mediator between man and nature. The people who we spoke to were feeling that
this process is inevitable.
The changing life style was termed as one of the prime reasons for lack of market for toys
manufactured by traditional means. With kids taking to video games and television in India,
the demand for traditionally manufactured toys has gone down. The traditional toy making
enterprises feel that it is vital to ‘remember’ and memory of their ancestral craft forms an
important part of their identity. The case is quite similar with tabla makers who felt that
electronic musical equipments which can mimic any traditional instrument as the major
source of concern for them.
The ‘Ganpati’ murti making industry in India is quite substantial in that it provides
employment to a number of people. When we spoke to the people involved in producing
these ‘murthis’, they said that the advent of eco-friendly murthis in the market poses threat to
their survival. The traditional murthis are made using plaster of paris which are not eco-
friendly. There is also the threat from Chinese made ‘murthis’ which are cheaper and have
flooded the market.