SELP JOURNAL OF SOCIAL SCIENCE Selp 17 final papers

SELP Journal of Social Science July -September 2013

Vol . IV : Issue. 17 ISSN:0975-9999

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A STUDY ON EXPECTATION OF RURAL CONSUMERS ON DURABLES(WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO MUSIRI TALUK)

Dr.T.UnnamalaiPrincipal (i/c)

Bharathidasan University Constituent Arts & Science CollegeInamkulathur , Srirangam(Tk) , Tiruchirapalli 621303

ABSTRACTAbout 70% of India’s population lives in rural areas. Rural population has grown by 12% in

last decade. Rural market has distinguished characteristics, accounts for 40% of Indian economy.Rural India has huge, heterogeneous and growing consumer market, which contributes morethan 50% to India’s total consumer market size. Rural India has witnessed significant developmentin last decade, with commitment of financial resources and launch of a range of programmes bygovernment towards physical and social infrastructure development. In rural areas there is nosupermarkets and malls within the radius of 30 to 40 K.m. With this background the study is to beconsidered to be an important one.

Key Words: Rural population, rural market, national income, consumer market, supermarkets

Introduction The Indian rural market has a huge

demand base and offers great opportunitiesto marketers. Two-thirds of Indian consumerslive in rural areas and almost half of thenational income is generated from there. 742million Indians constituting 138 millionhouseholds reside in 6, 38,365 villages(Census, 2001). The size of rural market itselfspeaks of its potential. The rural marketconsist 70 percent population, twice as entiremarket of USA and would become bigger thantotal consumer market in countries like SouthKorea/Canada in another 20 years. Theincome of the rural has been increasedsignificantly due to green revolution. A survey

by India’s premier economic research entity,National Council for Applied EconomicResearch (NCAER) indicates that rise inrural incomes is keeping pace with the risein urban incomes. The rural middle class isgrowing at 12 per cent, close to the urbanmiddle class which is growing at 13 per cent.The increased purchasing power of the ruralconsumer has enhanced rural demand forseveral products. With this back ground,Indian rural market has caught the eye ofmultinational corporations across the globeas a place of opportunity for exploring newmarkets. In this paper an attempt is made tostudy the rural consumer’s characteristics.

Available online at www.selptrust.orgSELP Journal of Social Science

ISSN : 0975-9999Vol IV : Issue. 17

July - Septemper 2013

9940026434



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Objectives of the StudyThe main objectives of the study are:1. To know about the availability of the

consumer products in Musiri market.2. To find out the inherent problems

associated with Musiri market.3. To find out the opinion of the Musiri

consumers about the consumer goods.

Study AreaFor this study Musiri is selected.

Musiri taluk is located on the river bed ofCauvery. It is in the central region of theTiruchirapalli District. The total populationof the taluk is 221055 lakhs. Out of which110763 are males and 110292 are female.The taluk has 64 villages. The literate peoplein this taluk are 145866. (Nearly 63.36 percent) (Source: census book 2001) Thedistrict has an excellent links with all thedistricts in the state. The economy of thetaluk mainly depends upon agriculture.Nearly 65 per cent of the work forces dependupon agriculture.

Distribution channel for consumergoods in Musiri taluk :

Fair price shops in this taluk are mainlydeal with the distr ibution of essentia lcommodities like rice, wheat, edible oil,kerosene, sugar etc. The co-operative banksdeal with the distribution of agriculturalinputs. The village shanty (usually onWednesday) is widely used channel forvegetables and fruits. The private shops arethe main channel for consumer products. Afew branded products are available in theirshops. There is no a departmental store orshowrooms in Musiri. The products availablein market includes different kinds of textiles,Jewellery, bathing shops, washing shops,

detergents, tooth paste, tooth powder, vessels,bicycles, motor cycle, scooters, televisionsets, etc. But all such products which areavailable in the market are of only from afew brands. There is no choice for selectingfrom among different types of goods.

Methodology of the study:Both primary data and secondary data are

collected for the study. Primary data arecollected from the 250 consumers. Thesample consumers are selected usingstratified random sampling method. Thesecondary data are collected from books andcensus book in Musiri.

Age wise classification of the respondentThe age of the consumers are

classified and presented in the followingtable.

Table-1 Age wise classification of theconsumers

Source primary data

With the help of the above table, it isobserved that 10 per cent of the consumerfrom the age group of 20-30, 26 per cent ofthem from the age group of 30-40, 32 percent of them from 40-50, 16 percent of themfrom the age group of 50-60 and remaining16 percent of them are above the age of sixty.This shows that the major i ty of theconsumers are in the age group of 30-50.



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Table-2 Educational qualification of theconsumer

Source primary dataWith the above table, it is observed that 39

per cent of the consumers completed theirS.S.L.C. level, 29 percent of them completedtheir higher secondary education18 per centof the consumers finished their graduations.12 per cent of them completed at their postgraduation and remaining 2 percent of themcompleted their certificate course, I.I.T, polytechnique etc. With the above analysis, it isobserved that majority of them completed attheir S.S.L.C.

Table-3 Number of the family members ofthe consumers

Source: primary data.The above table reveals that 12 per

cent of the consumer have 4 members in theirfamilies, 25 per cent of them have 5, 30 percent of them are having 6 members andremaining 33 per cent of them having 7 andmore than 7 members in their family. It is alsoobserved that there still exists of joint familysystem in rural areas.

Table-4 Income of the consumer

Source: primary data With the above table, it is observed

that majority of consumers (nearly 105)earning between Rs. 2,000-5,000, nearly 54consumers are getting up to Rs. 10,000, 47consumers are getting up to Rs.15,000 and36 of the consumers are earning nearly15,000-20,000 Rs. Per month. Only 8 of theconsumers are getting more than Rs.20, 000per month.

Table-5 Total income of the family

Source: primary data With the help of the above table,

it is observed that 55 per cent of the familiesare earning between Rs. 5,000-10,000-15,000per month and remaining 24 per centof the families have the income of more thanRs.l5, 000 per month. It is observed that inrural areas each family has more than singleearning members.

Table-6 Consumer articles in their home



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Source: primary data.With the above table, it is observed that 100

percent of the consumers are having Radio, fan,television sets and furniture’s. 70 per cent ofthem are having cooker, 40 per cent of themare having two wheeler, 44 percent of themhaving sewing machine, 16 per cent of themhaving CD/DVD players, 1 per cent of themhaving car and 4 per cent of them having aircondition and Air cooler and 24 percent ofthem having inverter at their houses.

Table- 7 Awareness about the products

With the help of the above table, it is observedthat majority (74%) of the customers knownabout the product through news paper andtelevision. The mass media is the power fullmedia to the companies to create the awarenessabout the availabity of the products in themarket. Now a day’s internet also has the power.But the user of the internet is very marginalTable-8 Factor influencing consumerpurchase decision

Sources Primary data

With the help of the above table, it isobserved that major ity (40%) of thecustomers are purchased the particular brandof the products with the advice and theexperience from their friends and relatives.In case of consumer durables, advice offriends and neighbors is found to be a majorsource, while family members, opinionleaders and shopkeepers are other importantsource influencing the buying decisions.

Table-9 Place of Market

Source primary dataWith the help of the above table, it is

observed that air condition, car, furniture,Fridge, CD/DVD players, sewing machineswere purchased by the respondent (100 percent of them) other than Musiri. Majority ofthe Respondent have purchased their articleslike Television set, cooker, Radio and Twowheeler other than cycle in the urban market.Table-10 Reasons for purchasing theproducts outside Musiri

Source Primary data



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With the above table, it is observed that 39per cent of the consumers purchased thearticles in urban markets due to the mainreason of price differences, 29 per cent ofthem for the availability of different kinds ofbrands, 14 percent of them for quality of theproducts, 10 percent of them for trust, and 8percent of them for going out of Musiri,exchange offer etc. In Musiri there is noentertainment facility.

Table-11 Rural Consumers Experiences onPurchase

Table-12 Opinion regarding theavailability of the product and Martialstatus of the consumers

With the help of the above table, it isobserved that 219 of the consumer are marriedand remaining 31 of them are unmarried. Itshows that the majority of them are married.With the help of X2 test an analysis is carriedout whether the opinion of the respondentdepends upon the marital status of theconsumers. The null hypothesis is taken as HO:The opinion of the respondent does not dependupon the marital status of them.

Here the table value is lesser than thecalculated value. So, the null hypothesis isrejected. The opinion of the respondentdepends upon the marital status of them. Thisis observed that the married persons have thetendency to purchase the products andmajority of them are not satisfied with theMusiri market due to the following reasons.(1) Price (2) Branded products (3) servicefacility (4) choice to select etc.

As per the analysis of the primarydata on consumption pattern, as a whole, theyspend nearly 60 percent of their income onfood items, like rice, milk, sugar, oil etc.About 10 percent of their total income isaccounted for clothing and other things,nearly 10 percent for transport and 15 percentfor rent, medical expenses, and educationsand repay their debts, etc. Nearly 2 to 5percent of their income is for savings for theirfuture. This habit is spread not only amongthe salaried people but also among thebusiness and agricultural people. Theanalysis shows that great changes are takingplace in l ife style and buying habits.Yesterday’s luxuries are becoming today’snecessities for the rural consumers. Now a day the banks are giving loans tobuy household articles. With the help of theanalysis, it is observed that each and everyhouse in Musiri has household articles liketelevision, Fridge, cooker, etc. All such articlesare also available on credit in the Market.

Findings of the study(1)Non availability of choices of brands In

each and every consumer product there aredifferent brands. In musiri only a fewbrands are available. There is no choicefor the consumers. If they wish to buy aspecific brand, they have to travel nearly50 k.m to purchase the products.



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(2)Price of the products: The prices of theproducts in Musiri are higher. In order tobuy the same brand at lesser price theconsumers have to travel to buy suchproducts.

(3)Non availability of Quality products:Many misbranded products are availablein the market at cheaper rate.

(4)Non availability of high cost productsNow a day the purchasing power of therural consumers has increasedconsiderably. If they want to buy an airconditioner, wooden furniture, computers,show case items they have to travel to buysuch a type of products.

Suggestion of studyThe progress of rural consumers has

led to a major transformation from a traditionbound, poverty stricken life to one of the newhopes. The expectation of the population hasalso changed. Now there is a large scope forthe companies to sell their products in therural market. In Musiri taluk there is no directcompany owned show rooms, dealers otherdepartmental stores or any big show rooms.The salesmen in Musiri are very small innumber, have to cover large territories andscattered customers. There is great demandfor products. It is time for the companies toopen show rooms or appoint dealers tocapture the rural markets like Musiri taluk.

Conclusion With the above analysis, it is observed

that the standard of living and purchasingpower of the people in Musiri has increased.They want choice. There is no choice to themto select the products. Most of the interestedpersons usually travel nearly 30 to 50 km topurchase expensive house hold articles likeT.V; Fridge, washing machines etc. Markets

in rural areas are fairly homogenous innature. It should be segmented.

Reference Books Bedi, R. V., and Badi, N. V. (1999). Rural

Marketing. Himalya Publishing house,New Delhi.

Chunawala, S. A., and Kumar, K. J.Advertising Theory and Practice. HimalyaPublishing house, Delhi.

Davar and Davar. Salesmanship andPublicity. Vikas Publishing N. Delhi.

Gupta, S. L. Rural Marketing – Text andCases. Wisdom Publications Delhi.

Gopalaswamy, T. P. Rural Marketing—Environment, Problems and Strategies.Wheeler Publishing, New Delhi.

Saxena, H. M. Rural Markets andDevelopment. Rawat Publ. Jaipur.

Shiffman, L. G, and kanuk, L. L.Consumer Behaviour. Prentice-Hall ofIndia.

Sontakki, C.N. Advertising and SalesManagement Marketing Management.Kalyani publishers, Ludhiyana.

Websites

www.nacer.org www.apastyle.org/style.htm www.bmsgroup.blog.co.in/files/2008/07/

final-pro.doc http://www.indiatogether.org/2009/apr/

eco-ruraleco.htm www.zenithresearch.org.in



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CHANNEL EFFICIENCY IN MARKETING OF TEA IN IDUKKI DISTRICTP.V Anil

Ph.D Research ScholarDr.M.P Mahesh

Associate Professor in Commerce,Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar Tamil Nadu.

ABSTRACTThere is large number of market intermediaries in the study area and most of them are

unorganised and hence convenient sampling method was adopted to collect data from them.Accordingly, a sample of ten village traders and ten primary wholesalers was chosen. In addition,service co-operatives and primary co-operative marketing societies numbering five each in thestudy area were chosen for collecting the marketing information.

Key words: Tea Board, channels of distribution, Exporters’ License

IntroductionTea is a controlled commodity in India. Its

production, consumption and sales aregoverned under licences issued by the TeaBoard, it plays a key role in the industry as aregulatory and promoting body. It is astatutory body set up under the Tea Act, 1953to promote all round development of the teaindustry and comes under the administrativecontrol of the Ministry of Commerce andIndustry, Department of Commerce. It alsohas certain regulatory functions such as issueof Exporters’ License, Tea Waste License andTea Warehousing License. By these Acts, allthe activities connected with tea, right fromthe production till consumption is regulated.A license from the Tea Board is a mandatoryrequirement to plant tea, deal in tea, processtea into consumable or marketable forms and

also for consuming tea for producing teaproducts.

ObjectivesThe main objectives of the study are:

1. To identify the most dominant problemsin marketing of Tea in Idukki district ofKerala and

2. To measure the efficiency of differentchannels of distribution of Tea to highlightthe most efficient one.

MethodologySurvey method was adopted to collect

required data from the sample respondents.The data were collected from farmers of smallholding and estates in the four revenue taluksof Devikulam, Udumpanchola, Peerumeduand Thodupuzha of Idukkidis tr ict andtherefore, the four taluks have been taken as






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sample taluks for the study. The sample taluks,which have been tea-growing regions forcenturies, are the main areas growing Tea inthe State of Kerala

Two separate interview schedules one forproducer s and another for marketintermediaries were used. At the time ofconducting survey, there were71,676(56.8%)tea plantations registered withthe Tea Board. Out of which, 240teaplantations (5%) were chosen as sample forthe study.Devikulam, Udumpanchola ,Peermade and Thodupuzha, the ta luksselected for the study have 12, 19, 23 and 10villages respectively, out of which six topranking villages*in each taluk identified bytheTea Board, were selected for the fieldsurvey. From each of the villages thusselected, eight owners of small holdings andtwo managers / owners of estates wereselected to form a total of 240 respondentsconsisting of 192 owners and 48 managers ofsmall holdings and estates respectively usingmulti-stage random sampling method.

Frame work of analysisThe predominant marketing problems

traced by the producers of Tea in the studyarea were highlighted with the help of GarrettRanking Techniques. .The channel efficiencyof the different channels was analyed usingShepherd’s method and Composite Indexmethod. The economic efficiency ofthe marketing system can be measured as theratio of the consumer price per unit of Tea tothe marketing cost per unit. The higher theratio, the higher is the efficiency of themarketing system.

Results and DiscussionPrice Fluctuations: The prices of Tea

fluctuate based on sentiments of the market

players and on economic forces like supplyand demand. Major consumers of Tea usedto wait to make their purchase till the pricescome down to their favour. The scrapping ofport restrictions followed by the slashing ofexport subsidy by 50 per cent, dispensing ofTea Board’s inspection of imported tea,abolition of purchase tax on imports and thelike attract the importers to import more teain recent years. Such practices on the part ofmajor consumers have made the domestic teamarket to stagger and resulted in down fallof prices of Tea in domestic market. Further,the monsoon rain during the months fromJune to August slows down the process ofharvesting and becomes the cause for poorarrival of Tea to the market. This leads to anuncertainty in the supply of Tea. T h eabove ups and downs in the demand andsupply position make the market for Tea morevulnerable and unpredictable.

Dominance of Private dealers: Tea isbought and sold at the primary market levelby the dealers authorised by the Tea Board.Apart from those authorised dealers, there arelarge numbers of private dealers who advancemoney to the owners of plantation at the timeof emergency with the condition that allproduction must be sold to them at theprevailing prices. Charging exorbitant rate ofinterest for the advance money, compellingthe producers to sell their produces at theprices lower than market prices and makingunwanted rejections and deduction are thecommon practices followed by those privatedealers.

Inadequate Market Finance: Theproducers of Tea always prefer to sell theirproduce immediately after harvesting in orderto settle the earlier loans and advances or tomeet domestic expenditure. Finance required



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to meet out the expenses in connection withperformance of major marketing functionswas scarce and costly and hence many of therespondents did not spend sufficient moneyto make their products fit for marketing.

Lack of Standardisation and Grading:It is highly essentia l to restructure theprocessing and marketing activities to makethe Indian Tea internationally competitive.Converting into technically specified teagrades is an essential function to maintainconsistency in the quality of Tea. Many ofthe respondents were unaware of theseprocesses and even if aware of, they did notventure up due to lack of knowledge of thetechnique.

Lack of Market Information: Marketinformation about the availability of bufferstock of Tea, periodical inflow and outflowin different neighbouring markets and thedetails about the prevailing price level are afew important parameters that may help theproducers to plan their activities in such amanner that gives maximum benefit .Unfortunately, the IdukkiDistrict lacks thisfacility making the producers to live at themercy of a few vested interest groups.

Inadequate Storage Facility: Adequatestorage facility is yet another vita lrequirement to seasonal products like Tea.This will help the producers in level playingin the pricing area. However, the owners ofsmall holdings do not have enough storagefacility either of their own or for lease forstoring Tea particularly during the harvestingperiod. This is one of the reasons why theproducers instantly sell their producesimmediately after harvesting.

Changes in the Import Policy of theGovernment: The policy of the Government

towards import of Tea has undergoneconsiderable changes during the recent past.The import of Teawas allowed free of licensefrom SAARC countries during 1988. Teawas under ‘restricted items’ of the ‘negativelist’ of imports under Export - Import Policyfor the period 1992-97 which was amendedby permitting the import against the freelytransferable Special Import License (SIL).Under the Export - Import Policy for theperiod 1997-2002 also Teas continued to berestricted items of import. The removal ofquantitative restriction on import of Tea in2001 resulted in free import by paying theprevailing customs duty.

Thus, the problems faced by theproducers in marketing Tea are many. Inorder to identify the most dominantmarketing problem in the Idukki District, therespondents were asked to assign rank toeach of the identified problems in their orderof priority. These ranks were converted intoscores using Garrett Ranking Technique andthe results obtained are shown in Table A.

Table A Problems faced by the Producersin Marketing of Tea in Idukki District

Source: Primary data.Table A shows that the problem due to

price fluctuation’ of Tea was the immediateconcern to owners of small holdings andestates. This problem ranked top in the list



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with the mean score of 57.45 and 61.58 forowners of small holdings and estatesrespectively. The second important problemwas the ‘dominance of private dealers’ in thecase of owners of small holdings with themean score of 55.35 and ‘changes in theimport policy of the Government’ in the caseof estate owners with the mean score 59.72.In the order of priority, ‘inadequate marketfinance’ ‘lack of standardisation and grading’‘lack of market information’, ‘lack of storagefacility’ were the other prominent problemsof owners of small holdings which rankedthird, fourth and fifth. In the case of estateowners, ‘lack of standardisation and grading’,‘lack of market information’ and ‘dominanceof private dealers’ were the most influentialproblems which ranked third, fourth and fifth.Changes in the import policy of theGovernment in case of owners of smallholdings and ‘lack of storage facility’ in caseof owners of estates were not treated asimportant problems.Marketing Channels of Tea

The channels of marketing of Teaidentified in the study area are given below:

Channel I Producer - Village Trader -Primary Wholesaler Secondary Wholesaler –Ultimate Consumer.

Channel II Producer - Pr imaryWholesaler – Secondary Wholesaler -UltimateConsumer.

Channel III Producer - Service Co-operative –Primary Co-operative MarketingSociety – Secondary Wholesaler - UltimateConsumer.

Channel IV Producer - Primary Co-

operative Marketing Society - SecondaryWholesaler - Ultimate Consumer.

The village traders and service co-operatives operate in the primary market tocollect Tea from the producers. A majorityof the producers prefer to sell their produceto the village traders who visit the interiorareas of cultivation. Besides, they advancemoney to the growers on condition that theproduce should be sold to them only. Theyassemble the produce purchased from theproducers and sort and grade the Tea. Theyopen the bundle and test the grading andrepack it and pass on to primary wholesalersin the market.

The service co-operatives also purchaseTea directly from the producers. But a veryfew service co-operatives functioning in thestudy area could purchase only a limitedquantity of the produce, which they sold tothe primary co-operative marketing societiesoperating in the market.

The primary wholesalers and primary co-operative marketing societies operate in theassembling market. The primary wholesalerspurchase Tea both from the village tradersand producers. Producers having large stockand good holding capacity contact theprimary wholesalers and sell their producedirectly. These producers are in a position totake advantage of the better price offers. Theprimary wholesalers do not hold Tea stockfor a long duration. They transport the stockto the terminal market as soon as theyaccumulate enough for a full truck load. Atthe terminal market primary wholesalersdeposit the stock in the godowns of



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commission agents and entrust the task ofselling it to them. The commission agentsmake an advance of about 60 per cent to 80per cent of market value of tea deposited bythe primary wholesalers. The commissionagents have to identify suitable buyers withprice offers that are acceptable to their clients.The buyers are secondary wholesalers.

The secondary wholesalers operating inthe terminal market make use of the servicesof brokers to purchase tea. The brokerscontact the commission agents and purchasethe quantity required by the secondarywholesalers. The brokers are paid brokeragefor the services rendered by them. Thesecondary wholesalers sell the produce to theUltimateconsumers. Figure 1 shows differentparticipants in the four channels of marketingof Tea explained above.Channel Efficiency

The channel efficiency refers to theeffectiveness or competence with whichintermediaries in the channel perform theirdesignated functions. It is directly related tothe cost involved in moving goods from theproducer to the consumer and the level ofservice offered. A reduction in marketing costwithout reduction in the level of consumersatisfaction indicates improvement inefficiency. A higher level of consumersatisfaction at higher marketing cost mighthave been the result of increased efficiencyif the additional satisfaction derived byconsumer outweighs the addit ional costincurred on the marketing process. But a

change that reduces cost as well as consumersatisfaction may not indicate increase in thechannel efficiency.

The channel efficiency of the differentchannels was worked out using Shepherd’sMethod and the results obtained are shownbelow:

Table B Efficiency Analysis of variousChannels of Distribution ofTea(Shepherds’ Method)

Source: Primary Data.The results reveal that amongst the four

channels, Channel IV was the most efficient.The efficiency index for Channel IV was themaximum with 12.75, followed by ChannelII with 12.67. The channel efficiency inChannel IV was better than that of the otherthree because of lower marketing cost.Shepherd’s method does not take intoaccount producers share and marketingmargin which are a lso the importantcomponents for calculating the channelefficiency. The composite index methodcovers those two factors. Therefore to testthe channel efficiency composite indexmethod was applied.

The results of the analysis of channelefficiency for different channels arefurnished in Table C.



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Table C Channel Efficiency AnalysisUsing Composite Index Method

Source: Primary data.The producers’ share, marketing cost and

marketing margin were ranked according totheir expenses per tonne. It is inferred fromTable B that Channel IV was the mostefficient, with mean score of 1.67, followedby Channel II with mean score of 2.Comparing Shepherd’s method andComposite Index method the Channel IVagain proves to be the most efficient.

ConclusionThe foregoing analysis reveals that among

the problems faced by the producers inmarketing of Tea, price fluctuation is foundto be the major problem and the Channel NoIV comprises of producer – primary co-operative marketing society – secondarywholesalers – industrial consumer is mostefficient.

ReferencesAsian Dipped Goods Handbook and

Directory 2012, Dhanam Publication PrivateLimited, Kochi, 2012.

Asian Tea Handbook and Directory 2010,Dhanam Publications Pr ivate Limited,Kochi, 2010.

Desalphine, S.M. Souvenir, Indian TeaIndustry Elastic Enough to Face theChallenges, Tea Board, Idukki, Dec, 2008.

Government of India, Tea StatisticalNews, Monthly issues from 1992 to 2008,Tea Board Kolkatta, 1992 - 2008.

Gupta, S.P. Statistical Methods, SultanChand and Sons, New Delhi 2005.

Ideen, H. Marketing Efficiency and PaddyFarm Economy in Alternative Channels,Indian Journal of AgriculturalMarketing,4(1), 1973.

Indian Tea Statistics, Vol. No.1 to 27, TeaBoard, Ministry of Commerce and Industry,Government of India, Tea Board, Kolkatta.1992-2008.

Philip, K.M. The Evaluation of the IndianTea Industry, All India, Tea IndustriesAssociation, Mumbai, 2003.

Shepherd, G.S.Marketing Farm Products– Economic Analysis, IOWA State UniversityPress Limited, USA, 1965.

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E-CRM GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY FOR INDIAN BANKS -A CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Dr.C.MathanakamarajAssociate Professor of Economics,

Department of Economics Kamaraj College, Thoothukudi

ABSTRACTe-CRM s 360 degree customer view provides a comprehensive, upto date profile that is as

reliable as it is easy to create. The e -CRM is also allowing sales representative to viewcustomer information from any where, anytime and has freed up customer servicerepresentatives to focus on obtaining new customer (Mc -Call, 2002). Businesses have becomeimpersonalized with vary powerful means of communication like body language and judgementskills becoming non-existent. These channels help the banks in understanding their needs andwants and providing them various services. In this way with the utilization of variouselectronic, automated channels banks are making long term relationship with their customersand gets various benefits.

Key words: e-CRM, customer information , automated channels ,Introduction

Over a century ago, in a small-town ofIndia, before the advent of the super-market,the shopping mall, and the automobile ,weeklyhaat or general, people went to theirneighbourhood weekly haat or general storeto purchase goods. The proprietor/owner andthe small staff recognized the customers byname and knew the customer’s preferences,needs, likings and wants. The customer, inturn, remained loyal to the store and maderepeated purchases. This idyllic customerrelationship disappeared as the nation grew,the population moved from the farmingcommunity to large urban areas, the consumerbecame mobile, and supermarkets anddepar tmental stores were established toachieve economies of scale through massmarketing. The last several years witnessed

the r ise of Customer RelationshipManagement (abbreviated CRM) as animportant business approach. Its objectiveis to return to the world of personalmarketing. The concept itself is relativelysimple. Rather than market to a mass ofpeople or firms, market to each customerindividually.

Statement of the Problem:The first surf of CRM solutions came in

the late 1980s and early 1990s (Exhibit No.1.0). The providers of these products wereclarify (now owned by Nortel NetworksCorp.), Onyx Software, Oracle, Vantive(acquired by PeopleSoft) and SiebelSystems. These packaged solutionsemphasized automating and standardizingthe internal processes which related to






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acquiring, servicing and keeping customers.These processes ranged from capturing salesleads to creating scripts for customer serviceagents to enable consistent service andsupport across product lines and divisions.The focus for these CRM solutions wereon automating and standardizing the internalprocesses to make the customers an asset.Although these processes addressed thecompanies’ needs, they were very expensiveand not easy to maintain. An attempt has beenmade in this paper to anlyse the concept ofCRM, and its various dimensions coveringevolution, objectives, areas, Techniques anddraw backs.

Concept of CRMThus “e-CRM is the phenomenon of

building relationship with customers via theinternet or the relationship that is web-basedis known as electronic CRM (e-CRM)”. e-CRM focuses on electronic channels mainlyon the Internet and on technologies thatenable automated and electronic managementof customer relations.e-CRM s 360 degreecustomer view provides a comprehensive,upto date profile that is as reliable as itis easy to create. The e -CRM is alsoallowing sales representative to viewcustomer information from any where,anytime and has freed up customer servicerepresentatives to focus on obtaining newcustomer (Mc -Call, 2002). e-CRMconcentrates on the retention of customers bycollecting all the data f rom everyinteraction, every customer makes with acompany from „all access point whetherthey are –

Online : E-mail, website, call centres,online chat.

Offline : Phone, mobile phones, fax, faceto face through sales agent. The followingtechniques are used by Indian banks :-

1. Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) :An ATM is a machine that can deliver

cash to the customers on demand afterauthentication. This service is made available24 hours a day. 7 days in a week and 365days of the year through ATMs.2. Phone Banking / Tele Banking :

The face of banking industry has totallychanged by the technology . Phone/ telebanking means carrying out of bankingtransaction through telephone. A customercan call up the banks help line or phonebanking number to conduct transactions3. Internet Banking – e-Banking :

Net banking means carrying out bankingtransactions through the Internet. It comprisesa variety of projects that aim to improve notonly the bank s efficiency, but customerservice levels as well. E-Banking programallows customers to use the Internet for basicfunctions in corporate and retail banking andcredit cards. Thus the technology hascompleted eliminated the need for branch .4. Mobile Banking :

Now banks help the customers to conductcertain transactions through mobile phonewith the help of technologies like WAP, SMSetc. This helps a bank to combine the Internetand telephone and leverage it to cut costs andat the same time provide its customer theconvenience.5. Total Branch Mechanization (TBM) :

Dr. Rangrajan Committee – II in 1988 hadsuggested TBM . Local Area Network hasinstalled by banks at the major centres of thecountry to make all banking servicesavailable at single window to their customers.

6. Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) :The RBI has introduced Electronic fund

transfer technique for public sector banks to



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help them offer their customer money transferservice from any bank s branch to any otherbank s branch. EFT system presently coversmore than 4800 branches of PSB s at fourmetro cities.

7. Communication Technology (SWIFT) :International banks and foreign investors

has forms a cooperative organization SWIFT. It stands for Society for Worldwide InterBank Financial Tele Communication (SWIFT.It provides a computerized network for stagetransmission amongst international banks inthe member countries. This technology madeavailable the fastest banking services/facilities to customers who are engaged ininternational business.

8. Wireless Banking Services :Wireless banking services is an imaging

trend in banking. Wireless banking serviceenables one to manage their accounts withGSM/GPPS WAP (Wireless applicationprotocol) technology to allow access toaccounts more convenient, secure andflexible.

9. Electronic Clearing Services :Electronic clearing service is a simple,

reliable and cost effective solution for bulkand repetitive payment transactions likesalary, pension, interest , commission,dividend etc. by public or private companiesand government departments through banks.

10. Point of Sale Terminal :It consists of two key components a

computer terminal that is linked on line tocomputerized customer information file in abank and a plastic magnetically encodedtransaction card that identify the customer saccount is debited and the retailer s accountis credited by the computer for the amount of

purchase.

11. Data Warehousing and Data Mining:This technique is used to develop and use

customer data to check their profile, retentionand loyalty patterns. They provide valuableinputs for reta ining customers anddeveloping products and services for thefuture.

Draw tacks: However there are somedrawbacks which are common to all e-CRMdependent businesses. There is no personalinteraction between the cus tomer and thesupplier. Businesses have becomeimpersonalized with vary powerful means ofcommunication like body language andjudgement skills becoming non-existent.Banks are not able to gauge their customersat all since the complete process has becomeover the computer screen.

Conclusione-CRM in banks has enabled banks to

get a global presence. They becomecustomer focused organizations by using thevarious electronic channels. These channelshelp the banks in understanding their needsand wants and providing them variousservices. All this make the customers loyaland happy. In this way with the utilizationof various electronic, automated channelsbanks are making long term relationshipwith their customers and gets variousbenefits.

References: www.delhibusinessreview.org/ www.domsnitt.in www.soliloquy.com en.wikipedia.org www.underwired.com



16

LEARNING FROM EVALUATIVE RESEARCH A DIAGNOSTICAPPROACH

Dr. Kankipati Srinivasa RaoAssitant Professor of Commerce

VivekVardhini PG College (AN), (Affiliated to Osmania University)Jambagh, Koti, Hyderabad-500095

ABSTRACTTeaching for successful learning cannot occur without high quality evaluation. Evaluation,

therefore, needs to be integrated with the process of teaching and learning. The first and foremostshortcoming of the evaluation system is that it focuses only on cognitive learning outcomes andcompletely ignores the non-cognitive aspects which are a vital component of human personality.The present paper analyses various Learning, Evaluation research methods, shortcomings andsuggestive steps to improve the situation in the process of learning from evaluation research.

Key words: Learning, Evaluation researchmethods, cognitive and non-cognitive areas oflearning

IntroductionEvaluation is a systematic process of

collecting, analyzing and interpretingevidences of students’ progress andachievement both in cognitive and non-cognitive areas of learning for the purpose oftaking a variety of decisions. Evaluation, thus,involves gather ing and processing ofinformation and decision-making. Evaluation,therefore, needs to be integrated with theprocess of teaching and learning. Hence,evaluation has to be so designed that it canbe used as a powerful means of influencingthe quality of what teachers teach and whatstudents learn. To enhance the quality, some

teachers use teaching aids, like, charts,models – static & working, specimen, slides,etc. because teachers are given training bothin preparation and use of Audio-visual Aids.They provide a means to judge actions andactivities in terms of values, criteria andstandards. At the same time evaluation is alsoa practice that seeks to enhance effectivenessin the public sphere and policy making.

It is a known fact that majority of schoolsdo not have appropriate teaching aids relatedto the school content. So teachers have nofacility to use A – V Aids during teaching.The use of A – V Aids get further restricteddue to unmotivated persons becomingteachers. The education system shouldprovide positive learning experiences so thatlearners become responsible citizens. Thepresent paper analyses various Learning,






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Evaluation research methods, shortcomingsand suggestive steps to improve the situationin the process of learning from evaluationresearch.

Cognitive learningCognitive learning is the acquisition of

knowledge and skill by mental or cognitiveprocesses, the procedures we have formanipulating information ‘in our heads’.Human beings can learn efficiently byobservation, taking instruction, and imitatingthe behavior of others. “Cognitive learningis the result of listening, watching, touchingor experiencing.” It is a powerful mechanismthat provides the means of knowledge, andgoes well beyond simple imitation of others.Cognitive processes include creating mentalrepresentations of physical objects andevents, and other forms of informationprocessing.

Teaching and LearningTeaching and learning is a process that

includes many variables. These variablesinteract as learners work toward their goalsand incorporate new knowledge, behaviors,and skills that add to their range of learningexperiences. Over the past century, variousperspectives on learning have emerged,among them —cognitive (learning as a mentaloperation); and constructivist (knowledge asa constructed element resulting from thelearning process). Rather than consideringthese theories separately, it is best to think ofthem together as a range of possibilities thatcan be integrated into the learning experience.During the integration process, it is alsoimportant to consider a number of otherfactors — cognitive style, learning style, themultiple natures of our intelligences, andlearning as it relates to those who have special

needs and are from diverse culturalbackgrounds.

Teaching and learning strategiesThe 6 E+S Model of instructionThe 6 E’s and S (Engage, Explore, Explain,

Elaborate, Evaluate, Extend, and Standards)lesson plan format was developed by teachersin consultation with faculty from schools ofeducation and is based on a constructivistmodel of teaching. The lesson plans arebased on constructivist instructional modelswith activit ies and sections of the plandesigned to have the students continually add(or construct) new knowledge on top ofexisting knowledge.

Each of the 6 E’s describes a phase oflearning, and each phase begins with theletter “E”: Engage, Explore, Explain,Elaborate, Evaluate and Extend. The 6 E’sallows students and teachers to experiencecommon activities, to use and build on priorknowledge and exper ience, to constructmeaning, and to continually assess theirunderstanding of a concept.

Cooperative LearningCooperative learning is one of the best

researched of all teaching strategies. Theresults show that students who haveopportunities to work collaboratively, learnfaster and more efficiently, have greaterretention, and feel more positive about thelearning experience. This is not to say thatstudents can just be put into a group andassigned a project to complete. There are veryspecific methods to assure the success ofgroup work, and it is essential that bothteachers and students are aware of them.

Role of ICT in the learning processIT has opened new avenues, like, Online



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learning, e-learning, Virtual University, e-coaching, e-education, e-journal, etc. ThirdGeneration Mobiles are also part of ICT.Mobile is being used in imparting informationfast and cost effective. It provides e-mailfacility also. One can access it anywhere. Itwill be cost effective. The ICT brings morerich material in the classrooms and librariesfor the teachers and students. It has providedopportunity for the learner to use maximumsenses to get the information. It has brokenthe monotony and provided variety in theteaching – learning situation.

Evaluation & Decision makingThe generic goal of most evaluations is to

provide “useful feedback” to a variety ofaudiences including sponsors, donors, client-groups, administrators, staff, and otherrelevant constituencies. Most often, feedbackis perceived as “useful” if it aids in decision-making. But the relationship between anevaluation and its impact is not a simple one— studies that seem critical sometimes failto influence short-term decisions, and studiesthat initially seem to have no influence canhave a delayed impact when more congenialconditions arise. Despite this, there is broadconsensus that the major goal of evaluation

should be to influence decision-making orpolicy formulation through the provision ofempirically-driven feedback.

Diversified EvaluationThere ar e many different ways of

evaluations depending on the object beingevaluated and the purpose of the evaluation.Perhaps the most important basic distinctionin evaluation types is that between formativeand summat ive evaluation. Formativeevaluations strengthen or improve the objectbeing evaluated — they help form it by

examining the delivery of the program ortechnology, the quality of its implementation,and the assessment of the organizationalcontext, personnel, procedures, inputs, and soon. Summative evaluations, in contrast,examine the effects or outcomes of someobject — they summarize it by describingwhat happens subsequent to delivery of theprogram or technology; assessing whetherthe object can be said to have caused theoutcome; determining the overall impact ofthe causal factor beyond only the immediatetarget outcomes; and, estimating the relativecosts associated with the object.

SuggestionsAn individual student can evaluate his

learning through Understanding Test thestudent can instantaneously get the feedbackabout the status of his understanding. If theanswer is wrong, he even can get the correctanswer. It goes a long way in improving thelearning and teacher has no role to play in it.

The proper implementa tion ofCooperative Learning can make learningenjoyable and helps the retention of students.

Create an environment conducive forlearning by developing relevant curricula,learning/ teaching mater ia l, teachingmethodology, teacher orientation and anyother

appropriate inputs to retain all childrenin schools till they complete at least the upperprimary stage of education.

Reach out to the communities byfacilitating existing bodies including GramPanchayats, and self-help groups to takeresponsibility for all children in the local areathrough appropriate support processes,especially in terms of consolidating theresource bank.



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Educational Institutions and NonGovernment Organizations to conductResearch Studies on Learning Programs andElementary Education related activities,innovative practices to understand the impactof the programs and also the bottlenecks,findings, suggestions to overcome theproblems.

A periodical meetings and workshops ofthe Resea rch, Evaluation, Learning,Monitoring committees and sub committeeswere organized at State & national level inreviewing the progress of the intervention.

The crucial determining factor for successis the interest and efforts of the teacher. Ifthe teacher is convinced and committed, theschool has efficient program implementationand if the teacher views the program as‘additional responsibility thrust upon her/him’, the program suffers.

Concluding RemarksEducational theory does provide insights

about learning condit ions that can beproductive, but these are not commonlypracticed. This study provides an exemplarof an evidence based practice of reflectiveteaching in an integrated learning context thatis essentially activity-based. The thematiclearning activities developed during thisresearch study will serve as an exemplar toenrich and improve the teaching of physicalgeography in secondary schools. A teachingstrategy is evolving, which develops students’skills and facilita tes active cognit iveengagement of students in understandingexplanations involving the integrated content.The theory driven design of innovations thusenables us to create opportune learningcondit ions, so as to conduct empir icaleducational research for understanding how,

when and why they are effective.

ReferencesAinley J. Pratt D. & Hansen A, (2006). Connecting

Engagement and Focus in Pedagogic Task Design, BritishEducational Research Journal, 32(1), 23-38.

Brophy, J. (1999). Teaching, Educational Practices Series 1,International Academy of Education & International Bureau ofEducation.

Chunawala, S., & Pradhan, H. C. (1993). A Study of StudentsAttitudes towards School Subjects: A Preliminary Report, Journalof Education and Social Change 7(2&3), 52-60.

Cobb, P., Confrey, J., diSessa, A., Lehrer, R., & Schauble, L.(2003). Design Experiments in Educational Research, EducationalResearcher, 32(1), 9-13.

Charles, C., & Mertler, C. (2002). Introduction to EducationalResearch. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Downs, R. M. (1994). The Need for Research in GeographyEducation: It would be nice to have some Data. Journal ofGeography, 93(1), 57-60.

ECD-LRC. Trial for Improved Practices for Evolving ECC-SGD program. Ed. Mohite P. Early Child Development – LearningResource Center, Department of Human Development and FamilyStudies, Faculty of Home Science, The M.S. University of Baroda,Gujarat. Supported by UNICEF, Gandhinagar, 2003 .

Gall, J., Gall, M., & Borg, W.(1999). Applying EducationalResearch: A Practical Guide. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Johnson, B. & Christensen, L. (2000). Educational Research:Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Maharashtra Textbook (2007). Physical EnvironmentGeography -Standard IX, Pune: Maharashtra State Board ofSecondary and Higher Secondary Education.

Reeves, T. (2000). Enhancing the Worth of InstructionalTechnology Research through “Design Experiments” and OtherDevelopment Research Strategies. Paper presented atInternational Perspectives on Instructional Technology Researchfor the 21st Century – A Symposium Annual Meeting of theAmerican Educational Research Association.

Saxena R.R, Satvir Singh, and V.K Jain. 1995. “Impact ofOperation Blackboard Scheme on Learner’s Achievement – ADPEP Baseline Study”. Department Of Measurement, Evaluation,And Data Processing, National Council Of Education ResearchAnd Training, New Delhi, Processed.

Vosniadou, S. (2001). How Children Learn, EducationalPractices Series 7, International Academy of Education &International Bureau of Education.



20

CREDIT RECEIVABLES MANAGEMENT IN STAINLESS STEEL SALEMR.Leelavathi,

Ph.d Research Scholar, Department of Commerce, Periyar University, Salem

ABSTRACTSAIL’s wide range of long and flat steel products is much in demand in the domestic as well as

the international market. The Environment Management Division and Growth Division of SAILoperate from their headquarters in Kolkata. Salem Steel Plant, a special steels unit of SteelAuthority of India Ltd., pioneered the supply of wider width stainless steel sheets / coils in India .The plant can produce austenitic, ferrite, martensitic and low-nickel stainless steel in the form ofcoils and sheets with an installed capacity of 70,000 tonnes / year in Cold Rolling Mill and 1,86,000 tonnes / year in Hot Rolling Mill. In addition, the plant has country’s first top-of-the-line stainless steel blanking facility with a capacity of 3,600 tonnes / year of coin blanks andutility blanks / circles. The study highlights about the various credit proposals applied to thecompany to different customers and t the various credit proposals applied to the company todifferent customers. The customers who are availing credit family from the company are bound torepay it in pre specified duration in agreed installments and interest rates.

Key words: SAIL, steel plants, galvanized sheets, stainless steel, alloy steels

IntroductionSAIL is also among the five Maharatnas

of the country’s Central Public SectorEnterprises. SAIL manufactures and sells abroad range of steel products, including hotand cold rolled sheets and coils, galvanizedsheets, electrical sheets, structural’s, railwayproducts, plates, bars and rods, stainless steeland other alloy steels. SAIL produces iron andsteel at five integrated plants and three specialsteel plants, located principally in the easternand central regions of India and situated closeto domestic sources of raw mater ia ls,including the Company’s iron ore, limestoneand dolomite mines. The company has the

distinction of being India’s second largestproducer of iron ore and of having thecountry’s second largest mines network. Thisvital responsibility is carried out by SAIL’sown Central Marketing Organization (CMO)that transacts business through its networkof 37 Branch Sales Offices spread across thefour regions, 25 Departmental Warehouses,42 Consignment Agents and 27 CustomerContact Offices. CMO’s domestic marketingeffort is supplemented by its ever wideningnetwork of rural dealers who meet thedemands of the smallest customers in theremotest corners of the country. With the totalnumber of dealers over 2000, SAIL’s wide






21

marketing spread ensures availability ofquality steel in virtually all the districts ofthe country. It is a fully integrated iron andsteel maker, producing both basic and specialsteels for domestic construction, engineering,power, railway, automotive and defenseindustries and for sale in export markets.

Importance of StudyThe study highlight on the various

aspects like company’s ability to get backtheir receivables at agreed duration andinstallments, the company’s ability to retrievetheir money from the defaulter or anycompensation for the same and legal actionstaken against default customer for the sameabout the various credit proposals applied tothe company to different customers. Thestudy says about the various credit proposalsapplied to the company to differentcustomers. The study says about the variouscredit proposals applied to the company todifferent customers. The customers who areavailing credit family from the company arebound to repay it in pre specified duration inagreed installments and interest rates.

Type of StudyThe method for the study of past and

current records of exist ing delinquentscustomer to analyze the default status of theiraccount and its significant in order to draw aconclusion. The research is descriptive innature as they were done on the existing date.The search design used in this study isdescriptive research design. Descriptive isundertaken in order to study and analyze thereceivables of the company with the availabledata.

It was from the published annual report andother report of the company for the correspondingyear for which study has been made.

In order to study and ana lyze thereceivables management of the companyfollowing tools are used Ratioanalysis, Comparison analysis, Creditanalysis

Objectives of the StudyTo study and analyse the

effectiveness of receivables management inSalem steel plant during the year 2006-2011

To do a comparative analysis between theyear 2006-2011 for discount sales.

Tabulation : Inventory

The above table displays that during theyear 2006-2007, inventory was low soliquidity of the firm was high, where it gavethe company an edge to convert assets in toquick cash. During the period 2009-2010,there was decrease in sales and so theinventory level was destabilized, which leadto decline in quick ratio.

Tabulation: Buyer Discount OfferThe above table shown that during the

year 2010-2011, the company had increasedsales due to development in its scheme whereit save the buyer an option “ If they pay creditbefore the dead line they would be offereddiscount”. This gave rise to increased



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business. During the year 2006-2007, thecompany had decreased growth in businessas it followed stringent rules, where they didnot offer buyer discount

Conclusion:During the year of 2007-2008 the current

ratio, quick ratios are maintained veryeffectively due to collection of receivableswithin the duration. In the year of 2009-2010 the company sales was high because ofhigh discount rate (8%). In the year 2009-2010 the receivables are not collectedproperly. So the company should be properlymaintained current ratio and quick ratio moreeffectively. The company takes necessary

steps for collection debt amount to improvethe Business Performance.

Reference:Prasanna Chandra “Fundamental of

Financial Management” by Tata McGrawHill, Delhi. 2001

I.M Pandey “Financial Management ByVikas publishing house, Delhi

Eugene F.Brigham “Fundamental ofcorporate Finance by Standard Publication,Indore, 1998

John.G ,Account Receivable BestPractices by Practical accountant,jun2004,vol 37,page no:14-45

RESEARCH EXPLORER(A refereed Bi Annual International Research Journal on multidisciplinary)

ISSN: 2250-1940

Articles are invited from the academician, research scholars and subject expertsfor the next issue of the RESEARCH EXPLORER (January - April 2013) which will bepublished in the month of October 2013.

RESEARCH EXPLORER is an official publication of the SELP Trust. It features theoriginal research in all branches of Commerce, Business Management and othercognate branches of sufficient relevance. The manuscripts should be submittedthrough mail to the Managing Editor to [email protected] .

To facilitate an editorial decision on the acceptabi lity, or otherwise, of theirmanuscript, and to speed-up subsequent publication, authors are strongly advised toconsult the format of papers in a recent issue of Research Explorer.

Review/Strategy/Case study etc should be comprehensive, up-to-date andcritical on a recent topic of importance. The maximum page limit is of 10 double spacedtyped pages including tables and figures.

At the bottom of first page, Postal address of the corresponding author and co-author(s), and also Departmental address with designation, Tel. No. Fax No. and E-mai l ID etc. must be specified.



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KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS ON ROAD SAFETY MANAGEMENT INCHENGALPATTU RTO DIVISION, KANCHEEPURAM DISTRICT OF TAMIL NADU

C.NedumaranResearch Scholar

Dr.T.RamachandranProfessor

School of Management, SRM University, Kattakulathur, Chennai.

ABSTRACT There is an increasing trend in the statistics of accidents and fatal deaths in India, As per the

global status on road safety 60 percent of road accident deaths belong to small group of 10countries which includes India. The main thrust of accident prevention and control across theworld has been on “4 Es”, mainly Education, Enforcement, Engineering and Environment andemergency care of road accident victims. Tamil Nadu is the first state in the country to havebrought out a Road Safety Policy At this crucial juncture, this study made an attempt to testifythe knowledge and awareness of the road safety management systems by the road users of theChengalpattu RTO division of Kancheepuram district and their suggestions to reduce theaccidents.

Key words : Road Safety Management, Road accidents , The Road Safety Fund

IntroductionEnsuring road safety is one of the priority

areas receiving Government’s constantattention. Tamil Nadu is the first state in thecountry to have brought out a Road SafetyPolicy. This policy has been brought out witha vision to stop and reverse the increasingtrend in the number of accidents, throughadoption of comprehensive measurescovering engineering, education, emergencycare and enforcement measures. The StateRoad Safety Committee has been constitutedunder the Chairmanship of HonourableMinister for Transport , to advise the

Government on all policies and programmesrelating to Road Safety at the State level. TheGovernment have constituted “The RoadSafety Fund” from out of the receipts ofcompounding fees and spot fines collectedby Transport/Police departments to financeroad safety activities.

Need for the studyIn Tami Nadu more accidents are taken

place in the capital city and its outskirtsespecially Sub-urban places that are locatedin the Kancheepuram and Thiruvallurdistricts. In this context it is an urgent need






24

to reduce the no. of accidents in the state,though various measures are taken by thegovernment and NGOs to create awarenesson road safety management. But, thesemeasures are not given expected results. Atthis crucial juncture, this study made anattempt to test ify the knowledge andawareness of the road safety managementsystems by the road user s of theKancheepuram district and their suggestionsto reduce the accidents. Based on the resultsof the study a report (viz., inclusion of roadsafety education in the curriculum of theschools and colleges, and enhancing of theenforcement aspects and so on) may besubmitted to the state/central governments soas to enhancing exist ing road safetymanagement.

Objectives of the study To study the public knowledge and

awareness of road safety regulations To identify the pattern of road safety driving

sense among the publics/drivers of thevehicles To identify the public opinionson the role of mass media for creating roadsafety awareness

To study the opinions of the public’s toimprove the road safety measures

Research DesignSampling Design: This study is the pilot

study of the on the going research project onroad safety management in the School ofManagement of SRM University. Thus, asample of 100 road users by the purposivesampling who are coming for various reasonsfor the RTO of Chengalpattu. Further thisstudy will be extended for the road users ofother RTO offices of the district along withth , road safety managers and enforcementofficials.

Data Collection tool: A structuredquestionnaire (See appendix) has beendesigned and administered to the respondentsof the study. And the administration of thequestionnaire was carried out during morningtime between 10.A.M. to 11 A.M for a periodof one week time.

Tools for data analysis: SPSS softwareis used for the data analysis. The followingtools are employed data analysis of the study

– Simple percentage methods– Cluster Analysis

Table No1 –Knowledge about road safetysignals

The road safety signals are five but the datapresented in the table no – 1 indicate that only28 percent of the respondents are opinedcorrectly about it and remaining 72 percentof the respondents are not having clear ideasabout the safety signals which are veryimportant while driving a vehicle on the road.

Table No2 – Hand to be used for signaling

The right hand is used for signaling sinceIndia follows right side driving procedure butthe data presented in the table no – 2 indicatethat 33 percent of the respondents areconfused with the left and both the handswhich can not be used for signaling.



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Table No – 3 Awareness on the Handsignal to turn right

The table no 3 presents the data related tothe hand signal to turn right while driving. Itis seen from the table that 31 percent of therespondents alone said correctly that ‘Extendright arm with palm of the hand turned to thefront . And remaining percent of therespondents have confusion over the use ofhand signals to turn the vehicle while driving.

Table No –4 Awareness on the Hand signalto turn left side

The table no -4 presents the data relatedturning the vehicle left side while driving. Itis seen from the table that only 36 percent ofthe respondents opined properly that ‘Extendright arm and rotate in an anti-clock wisedirection. And remaining 64 percent of therespondents are confused with the signalingat the left turning.

Table No – 5 Knowledge on changing ofvehicle position (Right or left)

The data related to the knowledge ofchanging vehicle position (Right or Left)have been presented in the table no – 5. It isseen from the table that only 40 percent ofthe respondents are correctly said ‘See thefollowing vehicle position through rear viewmirror well in advance say 30 feet and showthe signal and then turn or change the vehicleposit ion’ and remaining percent ofrespondents are lack of knowledge about thisaspect.

Table No – 6 Awareness about MSM

The table no – 6 presents the respondentsawareness on MSM. And interesting to notethat 77 percent of the respondents are awareof the MSM.

Table No – 7 Following MSM while driving

It is found out that 77 percent of therespondents opined that they aware of theMSM but as per the data presented in thetable no – 7 shows that 64 percent of therespondents are un answered for the querythat following of MSM while driving andonly a minimum of 14 percent answered‘Yes’ for the query. It indicates that almostall the respondents of the study are confusedwith the MSM



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Table No – 8 Road safety awarenessthrough mass media

As per the data presented in the table no –8, 96 percent of the respondents are opinedthat mass media is r ight choice for thepropagating/creating awareness on the roadsafety.

Suggestions to improve the road safetyRoad users suggestions are also sought

through the questionnaire with two point scalefor the analysis of the data emerged out ofthis has been analysed with Cluster Analysiswhich is a sophisticated Multivariate tool todeal with large data that can be reduced intointerpretable clusters in the form ofDendrogram. The variables that are used forthe analysis is presented in the table no – 33.

Table No – 9 Variables related to theimprovement of road safety

In the dendrogram at 70 percent distancelevel two interpretable clusters are formed.

In the first cluster there are 5 variables aregrouped, thus most of the respondents aresuggested for the induction of healtheducation in the school and higher educationcurriculum, More fine for the offenders andenhancing the existing road safety awarenessprograms. In the cluster – II only threevariables are grouped. It shows that they arenot favor for the severe punishments andcontent with the exist ing punishmentprocedures.

FindingsThe major findings of the study are as

follows: The road safety signals are five but a very

minimum percent of the respondents aresaid exactly though they are experienceddrivers. And most of them are unawareof the right and left turning signalingprocedures and MSM.

And almost all the respondents are opinedthat mass media is right choice for thepropagating/creating awareness on theroad safety.

SuggestionsBased on the results of the study the

following suggestions are made for theimprovement of the road safety measures. Most of them are experienced drivers but

they do not know the basics of the road



27

safety measures. So it is an urgentimmediate need to induct road safetyeducation in the school and collegecurriculum.

Most of them learned the driving throughdriving schools, but they unaware of theroad safety procedures. So, it is an urgentneed to r evamp the procedures andmodalities of the functioning of theseschools

Majority of the respondents opined thecancellation of the driving license of thedrivers who are involved in the severeaccidents but they sought for three monthscancellation only. And it is suggested tostudy the feasibilities of implementing thedeveloped nations enforcementprocedures.

In Indian context most of the road usersare expecting the other road users are takecare of their safety, thus, most percent ofthe respondents opined this phenomena.So, it is suggested to create awareness tochange this type of attitudes of the roadusers.

It is also suggested to the license issuingauthority not only making physical testwhile issuing the license but a lsotheoretical/oral test may also conductedbefore issuing the license.

It is right time to study and enhance theroles of mass media to create awarenesson road safety measures along with theenhancing the roles of the road safetyagencies in order to create awarenessamong the public.

ConclusionIndia is a more populous country in the

world and a statistics says that one roadaccident happens in every minute and onefatal accident happens every 4 ½ minute. 35

accidents occur per thousand vehicles. Moreover road crashes cost approximately one tothree percent of a country’s Gross NationProduct. So, it is high time that we have totake appropriate steps in a quick manner tomake road safety awareness among publicthrough mass media viz Television, Cinema,News Paper and so on.References1. Department of Road Transport and

Highways (2008b), ‘Annual report 2007-2008’, New Delhi: Ministry of Shipping,Road Transport and Highways.

2. Depar tment of Road Transport andHighways (2008c), Basic road statistics,retrieved July 21, 2008, from http://morth.nic. in/index2.asp? sublinkid=157&langid=2

3. Department of Road Transport andHighways (2008d), Traff ic data ,Retrieved August 24, 2008, from http://mor th .n ic . in/ index 2.a sp ?su blinkid=369&langid=2

4. Gururaj, G., 2006, Road traffic injuryprevention in India’, Bangalore: NationalInstitute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences.

5. Horberry, et.al.,2006, ‘Driver distraction:the effects of concurrent in-vehicle tasks,road environment complexity and age ondriving performance’, Accident Analysis& Prevention, 38 (1): 185–191.

6. Matthews , G. , 2002, ‘Towards atransactional ergonomics for driver stressand Fatigue’, Theoretical Issues inErgonomics Science, 3 (2): 195–211.

7. Saija, K. K. and Patel C. D. 2002, ‘Microlevel study of accidents on NH-8 passingthrough Valsad Distr ict’ , IndianHighways,30: 43-51.



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CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT THROUGH SHGDr.C.Paramasivan,

Assistant Professor of CommercePeriyar EVR College, Tiruchirappalli, Tamilnadu

ABSTRACTEmpowerment of women in the third world countries is important because the benefits will be

felt not only by the women themselves, but by their households as well. It may take a moreenlightened approach to ensure the empowerment of women in developing countries, but the returnsto their families and even the societies as a whole will be worth it. The conceptual developmentof the subject matter of research shall be arranged in a chronological order. This Paper highlightedthe Conceptual framework which was earlerly undertaken by various researchers.

Key words: Empowerment, welfare programme, social systems,SHG

IntroductionEmpowerment becomes a popular word

which dominates the overall growth anddevelopment of any developing society. SinceIndependence India has been changing in allfields including social systems but still agroup of people still struggle to acquire equalrights in the society. All the so-called changesin the developing economy has not touchedthe major part of their lives as the socialwelfare programmes have not trickled downto certain parts of the society.

It does not mean that the policy makers andthe government have not drawn any welfareschemes but the schemes and programmes havenot reached in whole for whom it was designedand hence it has lost its vigor and charm thusnot bringing any benefits to the society forwhich it was planned and women sector is themost affected population of that society.

Empowerment of women for socialdevelopment is a more complex process thatit appeared to be. It is now recognized thatempowerment involves advancement inseveral important and related spheres toensure the overall well-being of theempowered. The Benefits derived from theempowerment programmes must not only berelevant to the needs of the intendedbeneficiaries, but efforts must be made toensure that the target population is also ableto retain the benefits. This is particularlysignificant for women.

Murlidhar A. Lokhande (2009) said that,micro finance programme has a significantrole to play in Indian economy for bootingmicro entrepreneurial activities for creatingproductive assets coupled with employmentgeneration. So, in order to cover all the poorhouseholds, particularly BPL households,






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there is need for providing full support by thegovernment, financial institutions and NGOsto SHGs programme. So far the SHGs banklinkage programme has been much successfulin achieving quantitative targets. The need ofthe hour is to make the programme morequantitative, that is, enriching the lives ofpoorest of the poor in the context ofglobalised socio – economic environmentpolitical interference in the functioning if self– help groups should be avoided.

Mohantry B.K. (2009) observed that, ruralIndia is first emerging as a prospect for thebankers. This had become possible becausebanks have taken the extr a step inrediscovering their customers. They havestepped out from their narrow confines oftheir branches to nature SHGs, whichultimately give the feed back to the survivaland growth of banking business. This is agood opportunity of the public sector banksto boost the SHG movement to enable thevillages to absorb the benefits ofglobalization.

Jitendra Ahirrao (2009) Explained that, theSGHs of rural women consists of memberswho are the poor, having low saving capacityand who depend on money lenders formeeting their consumption needs and socialobligations. Formation of women into selfhelp groups paved a way to develop theireconomic standards, thereby building selfconfidence. Women in SHGs have beenencouraged by the government as well asNGOs to undertake self employment ventureswith locally available resources.

Muthalagu.K. (2008) noted that, what myconclusion is that there is no doubt that statusof women in India is developing over theper iod of t ime though there are manyincidence of crimes against women have been

reported now and then. Hence, transformingthe prevailing social discrimination againstwomen must become the top priority in ourpolicy and it must happen concurrently withincreased direct action to rapidly improve thesocial and economic status of women is India.

Raghuvansh Prasad Singh (2008) saidthat, the meeting at length discussed the role/functions of federations in sustainability ofSHGs, the future structure and legal statusof the federations, how to ensure theautonomous functioning of federation ;sources of financial sustainability offederations including founds required forcapacity building and management offederations; accountability, transparency;should federations be involved in financialintermediation; type of common gradingsystem for federations; role of NGOs andcollaborating agencies and NGOsfederations; relations with panchayat rajinstitutions (PRIs) a t different levels,Government role and support to thefederations and institutional mechanism forevaluation of federations.

Tangirala.H.S.K. (2008) Explained that,for the purpose of economic development, theco-operatives have to form the SHGs with thehelp of the members, increase theircompetencies and capabilities. The support,advice and coaching is required from the co-operatives through formal or informalnetwork, to the SHGs to get the business fromall the local people. The activities might bedeposit mobilization, recovery managementis case of credit co-operatives, procurementand sale activities in case of manufacture –based co–operatives. However, even therelated diversifications of the activities arejustified, provided the needs of the membersfulfilled and the ultimate goal of poverty



30

alleviation take place.Amarjeet kour (2008) reveals that, it is

deducted from the present research that thescheme of SHGs has not played a significantrole in rural development in this particularsresearch area. However it is generalized that,effective, functioning and implementation ofSHGs can lead to social change, mobilizationand involvement of people and thus, to theover all development. This scheme in thepresent r esearch has problem at theimplementation level. There would be adifferent situation if the local people wereproper ly motivated and informed andimplemented whole hear tely by theimplementing agency.

Ramachandran.T. and Balakrishnan.S(2008) noted that, SHGs have the power tocreate a socio – economic revolution in therural areas of our country. SHGs have not onlyproduced tangible assets and improved livingconditions of the members. But also, helpedin changing much of their social outlook andactivities. In the study area SHGs have servedthe cause of women empowerment, socialsolidarity and socio – economic bettermentof the poor.

Sivachithappa.K (2008) said that, Anumber of important results have emerged outof the study. These results are in contrast tothe findings of a number of earlier studies.Some of the disagreements of this study withthe earlier studies are: the income impact ofthe extreme poor is lower, the poorestborrowers may tend to have lower levels ofasset accumulation, borrowers taking morenumber of loans generate more income, largerorganizations have larger out reach andformal schooling is an essential criticalcriterion for exerting better effect of SHGson income generation.

Shyedra.H.S. (2008) noted that, there is amassive mobilization of women taking placeas a result of the SHG movement. The growthof SHGs incidentally has occurred during theeconomic reforms per iods. The SHGmovement has a good potential to serve bothas a human face of the economic reforms aswell as contr ibute towards women’semancipation. There is a major onus on allactors involved in SHGs promotion anddevelopment to further intensity their effortsin enabling SHGs to reach a mature stage.We need a major investment in capacitybuilding of SHGs and proactive policies tohelp overcome the constraints faced by SHGsto integrate them fully into the developmentprogrammer aimed at women’sempowerment.

Khullar.K.K (2007) observed that, thegreatest achievement of the mahila samakhayais to create an awareness of the need to strugglefor a gender just society where women can leada life of dignity, for a gender just society wherereliant India by 2010. It has increased women’srecognition and visibility both within thefamily and community.

Pargunan.M. (2007) explained that, thestrategies above would really empowerwomen and bring them into the mainstreamdevelopment. If employment, income andsocial security were improved, women wouldautomatically stronger which will lead themto become powerful in contributing to socialand economic development of India.

Snehalata panda (2007) noted that, womenmembers have played a key role in the gramsabha decision making in matters relating touse of forest, community land, irrigation,marketing of local products and constructionof roads and design of work for the newlyimplemented employment guarantee etc.,



31

Santosh gupta (2003) noted that, thepersonality of a celebrity plays an important partin a successful endorsement. The companiesmust have deep pockets to be able to afford thebest available celebrities. Recently a reportshowed how co firms had gone beyond theiradvertising budgets to get the best celebrities.But the company should see whether it suitstheir products & the sales results.

Suneetha. R (2007) said that , theempowerment of women become necessaryas they are a lmost fifty percent of thepopulation and are being discriminated at allfronts. Women play a vital role in the socialand economic transformation of a country.

Kala G.S. (2004) said that, “Economicempowerment of women through SHGs”,highlights mahalial thittam which is beingimplement in erode district since 01.05.1998to promote self help groups over a projectperiod of five years in rural areas the self helpgroups are not only engaged in saving internallending activit ies but a lso function asimportant on health and nutrition. Literacyeducation, adoption of new agriculturalpractices farm and non farm sector economicactivities and help to prepare women to takeup leadership position. Till the end of may2003, 4372 self help groups have been formedin rural areas and 159 self help groups inurban areas taking the total to 592 self helpgroups with membership of 85,530.

Rangi and Siddhuy M.S and Harjit Singh(2002) have revealed that, women underindira mahila yojana have borrowed bothfrom internal sources of self help group, andbanks for productive and non productive.Purpose which have benefited directed andindirectly their economic empowerment selfhelp groups have saved women fromexploitative money lenders and land lords and

have saved them from social and economicempowerment. Self help groups have savedthem from social and economic exploitationand the additional income has provided themmoral support to initiate new changes in thegrassroots.

Vijayanthi.K.N. noted that, “Womenempowerment through self help groups aparticipatory approach” attempts to explainthe process of women’s empowerment andfind out the levels of a awareness creation,decision making self and groupsempowerment among women from self helpgroups formed under comprehensivecommunity development programmeimplemented in five slum areas of Chennai.Empowerment should give women freedomof choice, equal access to domestic andcommunity resources, opportunities andpowers, the programmes of NGOs improvingincome for providing new opportunities ofskills tra ining, addit ional employmentproviding credit and market facilities werethe main areas of concern of SEWA.

Debotosh sinha (2008) said the,empowerment of women for socialdevelopment is a more complex process thatit appeared to be. It is now recognized thatempowerment involves an advancement inseveral important and related spheres toensure the overall well being of theempowered. Benefits der ived from theempowerment programmes must not only berelevant to the needs of the intendedbeneficiaries, but efforts must be ensure thatthe target population is also able to retain thebenefits this is particularly significant forwomen.

Tygai.D, Mitali chatterjee (2008) notedthat, “there is a need is a need for improvingthe position of women and empowering them



32

with more opportunities, greater access toresources and equal participation with indecision making processes. Empowerment isto share power. The different stages are powerover, power to, power with and power within.

Sundar raj.D, Venkata Ravi. R, Hemalatha.H.M., (2008) said that, “Women andempowerment” empowerment of womenmeans enhancing awareness of individualhousehold and community level. This helpswomen to be more aware of theirconstitutional, legal rights, opportunities.Available for them to make their lines better.More importantly, the str a tegy ofempowerment also helps women to achievecomprehensive development.

Ranjit karmakar and Bholanath ghose(2008) Expressed that, the “Role of womenin the self help group” is self – help groupsenhanced the quality of status of women aspar t icipants, decision makers andbeneficiaries in the democratic, economic andsocial activities, involvement of womenbecomes essential. They encourage women totake active part in the socio – economicprogress in the nation.

Ruby J.A. James Devassia and AbrahamGeorge (2009) said tha t , womenempowerment aims enabling them to realizetheir identity, aims enabling them to realizetheir identity, potentiality and power in allspheres of their lives. It has mainly fivedimensions viz., economics, political, social/ cultural, personal and familia l. Eachdimension is very important because the realempowerment of women is possible onlywhen a woman has increased access toeconomic resources, more strength andcourage for entering into the power structure,more involvement through social / culturalrelationships and participation, more self-

motivation and confidence, and more say inthe family matters. Women should be willingto take additional effort for building a mindset which is suitable for their overallempowerment.

David Jarachar.P, Usha Nandhini .S andShivachandran.M (2005) Noted that, thoughthe SHG movement has made an impact onthe lives of a number of individuals andcommunities, there are many pockets ofsocieties which have not been involved in themovement. Micro financing is yet to reachthe needy. An encouraging feature is thatseveral commercial banks including ICICIhave made a foray into this segment and areactively applying the Participatory RuralAppraisal techniques and SHG concept toachieve rural information. But one aspectstands out demanding our immediateattention and action-rural transformationneeds to be done on a war footing.

Pankaj Naithani (2001) viewed that, microfinancing has developed the self employmentactivities in rural areas over the last twentyyears. Micro financing means makingprovisions for smaller working capital loansto the self employment seeking poor.However, some strategic planners are fearingthat micro financing drive may seek. Re-allocation of anti-poverty programmes likebasic health, education, infrastructuredevelopment etc., are found to be sufferingthey may be true to some extent as targetbeneficiaries in most of the micro financeproject are women.

Stephen .J.K (2005) concluded, It isrealized that NGO’s can play a decisive roleas an effective delivery mechanism in ruraldevelopment they have innate advantage toinvolve people and ensure their participationin the agencies and fellow NGO’s is added



33

advantage to them. The NGO’s are takingkeen interest in providing micro financingpoor women. The success of NGO’s inhelping rural poor to organize SHG’s forcredit delivery in a way highlights theimportance of NGO-SHG’s linkage for thebetterment of the later.

Ashokan R.ponnarasu , kalavathi.M.S.(2005) concluded, womenempowerment depends upon the success ofwomen development programmer in terms ofwomen SHG’s. Many studies have shownthat SHG’s contribute scientifically to theoverall development of women.Tounderstand the level of success of SHG’, thispaper analyses the Inter-district variations ofSHG’s through performance index. Resultshave shown that out of twenty-eight districtsin Tamilnadu half them performed well. Asfar as Tamilnadu self help experiment has nofar been successful in few pockets.

Khanka S.S. (2006) suggested, Differentpeople have defined entrepreneur differentthe commonest definition of an entrepreneuris a person who organizes, manages and takesthe risk of running an enterprise. He arrangeseverything required to set up an enterprise(i.e) funds, lad people mater ia l andmachinery. They entrepreneur reta incommon character istics, Independence,motivation, optimistic, dynamic, innovatingand risk-bearing ability.An entrepreneurdiffers from a manager on various counts.The farmer is owner where as the latter is aservant entrepreneur are rewarded withprofit, which is highly uncertain. On the otherhand, Manager gets salary as a reward forthe services rendered by him in theenterprise.

Suseela menon .R (2003) said that, Indiais now facing a lot of family disputes and

increased rate of divorce , as is evident fromcases pending and cases ever increasing infamily courts to the conditions and shapethem in their favour. Monetaryempowerment alone will not make the womenempowered. A total empowerment is requiredthat is cognitive, behavioral and affective.There is a proverb that if six to nine is okay,then nine to six will be okay. It means that iffamily life is okay, work life is better bothare related. Thus women empowerment is anunavoidable element, if family is to beempowered, the society is to be empoweredpeople. Behavioral empowerment of womenwhich will permit them to utilize their ownunique potential to the point of excellence.

Debotash sinha .R (2005) expressed that,empowerment of women for socialdevelopment is a more complex process thatit appeared be. It is now recognized theempowerment involves an advancement inseveral important and related spheres toensure the overall well-being of theempowered. Benefits der ived from theempowerment programmer must not only berelevant to the needs of the intendedbeneficiaries, but efforts must be made toensure that the target population is also ableto retain the benefits. Empowerment ofwomen in the third world countr ies isimportant because the benefits will be feltnot only by the women themselves but bytheir households as well. It may take a moreenlightened approach to ensure theempowerment of women in developingcountries, but the returns to their families andeven the societies as a whole will be worth it.

Abdul raheem.A&Yasmeen sultana .H(2005) noted that , the unemploymentproblem prevalent in india sharply differsfrom that which prevails in the western



34

nations. There are a number of possible routesto the promotion of self employmentpromotion and strengthening of self helpgroups is one of them. So more and more selfhelp groups should be encouraged in order toeradicate poverty through self employmentand at the same time empower women whichin turn lead to overall economic development.

Lamaan sami (2008) observed thatmicrofinance has been found as theappropriate approach and effective tool forpoverty alleviation and empowerment, whichcan be internalized into cooperative systemthrough strategic and legal support, keepingin view long term sustainability ofmicrofinance within cooperative functioning.Conclusion

It has encouraged many to form SHG’sand avail the benefit since the schemeprovides finance to a SHG rather than to anindividual borrower as earlier done underIntegrated Rural Development Programme(IRDP). Meghalaya as one of the average statein terms of resource base, population andsocio economic infrastructur e is a lsoexperiencing similar type of upsurge in SHG-bank linkage activities in recent years. Theanalysis of the linkage activit ies in theforegoing clearly brings some general issueswhich need to be addressed.Acknowledgement

The author is greatly thankful to UGC forfinancial assistance to conduct this researchunder the major research project scheme2012-14.References.

Abdul Raheem and yasmeen sultana .H(2007), Empowerment of women through Selfhelp group : A view , Kisan world, Vol.34-No.03 P. 48 to 52.

Amarjeet Kour (2008), Self Help Group(SHG) and Group Development, Kurushetra,Dec. 2008, Vol.57, No.2, P.25.

Arujn. Y. Pangannavar (2008), Self HelpGroups and Poverty, Kurushetra, Dec. 2008,Vol.57, No.2, P.12.

Ashokan.R, Ponnarasu .S , Kalavathi.M.S,Inter District Variations in the Performanceof self-help groups in Tamilnadu, co-operative perspective , vol.40_No.2 , July-Sep: 2005.

David Jarachar. P , Usha Nandhini .S, andShivachandran .M , Women Entrepreneurshipleading of rural transformation , the ICFAIJournal of Entrepreneurship Development ,Vol.2, Vol.1, March 2005.

Debotash sinha.R (2005), Women inDevelopment (Challenges andAchievements) , serials publications , NewDelhi , 1st published 2005 , P. 3 to 19.

Jitendra Ahittrao (2009), Rural WomenEmpowerment Through Microfinance,Kurushetra, Feb 2006, Vol.57, No.4, P.23.

Kala G.S. (2004), “Economic of WomenThrough Self Help Groups” Kisan WordNov.2004, Vol.31, No.11, P.26.

Khanka S.S , Entrepreneur,entrepreneurial Development , S. Chand andCompany Ltd, Ram Nagar , New Delhi (2006).

Khullar K.K. (2007), Mahila SamakhyaEmpowerment of Women ThroughEducation, Kurushetra (A journal ruraldevelopment), March 207, Vol.55, P.9.

Lamaan sami (2008), “ Self help groupsand rural development “ , the Indian Journalof Commerce, Vol.61-No.4 , October-December 2008, P. 212 to 217.

Mohantry.B.K. (2009), SHG movement anemerging social innovation of micro



35

financing in orssia, kurushetra, February2009, Vol.57, No.4, P.19.

Murlidhar.A.Lokhande (2009),Microfinance Initiatives in India, Kurushetra,Febuary 2009, Vol.57, No.4, P.16.

Muthalagu.K (2008), Indian women inDevelopment Perspective, Kurushetra, Sep.2008, Vol.56, No.11, P.18.

Narayana Reddy, V.Vijiyakumar .S andNalini. B , Women Development (Challengesand achievements) ,serial publications , NewDelhi , First Published 2-2005 – P.18.

Pankaj Naithani , “ NGO and RuralDevelopment” , kurukshetra , April 2001,Vol.49_ No. 12 , P. 35-37.

Parguna .M.(2007), Polit icalEmpowerment of Women in I llusion,Kurushetra, March 2007, (A journal ruraldevelopment) Vol.55, No.5, P .12.

Pati .A.P., “ Subsidised Micro financingand financial sustainability of SHG’s” , theIndian Journal of commerce , Vol.61-No.4 ,Oct-Dec 2008, P.137 to149.

Raghuvansh Prasad Singh (2008), SHGFederations Should Play Proactive Role forthe Economic Empowerment of RuralMasses, Kurushetra, December 2008, Vol.57,No.2,P.11.

Ramachandran .T and Balakrishnan .S(2008) of Self Help Groups on Women’sEmpowerment a Study in KanyakumariDistrict, Kurushetra, Dec. 2008, Vol.57,No.2, P.31.

Ruby . J.A., James Devassia and AbrahamGeorge ,Women empowerment : Meaning ,Characteristics and Dimensions , SouthernEconomist , May1, 2009 , P. 41 & 42

Santhosh Gupta (2003), Strategy forEmpowerment of Women Indian Journal of

marketing, Vol. XXXIII, No.6, June 2003,P.26.

Shyledra .H.S. (2008), Role of Self HelpGroups, Yojana January 2008 (Microfinance) P.25.

Sivachithappa .K (2008), Success StoryPoverty Alleviation Through Self-HelpGroups, Kurushetra, Dec. 2008, Vol.57,Vol.No.2, P.35.

Snehalata Panda (2007), Polit icalEmpowerment of Tribal Women in Orissa,Kurushetra, March2007, ( A Journal RuralDevelopment) Vol.55, No.5, P.29.

Stephen J.K, Selian .A, Role of NGO’sin micro financing through SHG’s , IndianJournal of marketing , Vol.No.8 , August2005.

Sundar Raj. D, Venkata Ravi.R, Hemalatha. H.M. “Women and Empowerment”,Women in Development (Challenges andAchievements) Serials Publications, P.45 to59.

Suneetha .R (2007) is DWCR ProgrammeEmpowering The Rural Women, Kurushetra( A Journal Rural Development) March,2007, Vol. 55, No.5, P.17.

Suseela Menon R. “Womenempowerment through India traditionalclassical art forms”, Kisan world , Sep 2007, Vol.34-No.09 P. 60 to 62.

Tangirala .H.S.K.(2008) , SHG is a Toolof Economic Development of Co-operativesand its Members, Kurushetra, Dec.2008,Vol.57, No.2, P.22.

Tyadi. D, Mitali Chetterjee, “Women inDevelopment”, Women is Development(Challenges and Achievement), NarayanaReddy, V. Vijaya Kumar.S, Nalini B, SerialsPublications P. 35 to 44.



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BRAND LOYALTY OF HORLICKS - A STUDY WITH REFERENCE TO SALEMCITY

S.KavithaAssistant Professor

Department of Commerce, Mahendra College of Arts and ScienceKalipatti, Namakkal District

ABSTRACTBrands are said to be one of the important asset of any organization because it creates a

value for them. Almost all the organizations are always wanted to create that value through variousloyalty programmes. Horlicks is one of the world renowned brands of health drink for a longperiod of time. In this empirical work an attempt has been made to find the brand loyalty ofhorlicks in Salem city in order to know the various factors influencing the purchase of horlicksand the customer’s opinion about the brand. A purposive sampling has been adopted in the studyand suggestions also provided in a brief manner.

Keywords: brand loyalty, brand equity, brand recognition, brand insistence, perceived valueIntroduction

India is witnessing change in life styles oflarge section of Indian population. The needto understand the emerging markets andconsumers has become a big challenge for thecorporate world especially in creating andmanaging a powerful brand .By developing apowerful brand, corporate can establish‘brand equity’ and the equity assists firms ina variety of ways to manage competition andmaintain market share. Brands make money,brands make companies and brand makeimages. Branding is one of the most effectivecompetitive tools and it is a challenging taskfor the marketer to nurture a brand into astrong and profitable brand.

Brand loyaltyA brand is a recognizable and trustworthy

badge of or igin and also a promise ofperformance .Brand manager s’ job ischallenging to establish a brand and createbrand equity. Brand equity enhancescustomer’s confidence and results in brandloyalty.

A highly loyal customer base can beexpected to generate a very predictable saleand profit stream. Brand loyalty as an assetencourages and helps to create and enhancebrand equity. While brand loyalty is theultimate goal of the markets, loyalty patternsmay be shifting to a number of productcategories. For example, in the category ofhealth drinks the consumers may be loyal toa segment of a brand through qualitativeresearch, which may provide insights into






37

factors, which may trigger involvement. Thegreater the proliferation of the brands in acategory, the greater is the tendency on thepart of the consumer to try out new brands.Timely relaunches and adding new items inthe product line enhances the involvementlevel of the existing customer base.

Statement of the problemNow a day the health drinks usage is very

common among all the peoples. Fromchildhood to old age various kinds andcategories of health drinks are available forthe usage. In India, the market for healthdr inks is very potentia l and highlycompetitive. Many Indian and foreign playersare taking part in health drinks markets.Hence, it is essential to know the brandloyalty of health drinks among the users.Salem city is taken for this study due do itheterogeneous character. The problemconsidered here is in heterogeneouscharacterized market how for the brandloyalty is developed.

Objective of the Study To know the familiar brands of health drinks

in Salem city. To find the factors influencing the purchase

of Horlicks. To know the varieties of Horlicks used by

users and their opinion about the product.

MethodologyThe primary data was collected through a

well structure interview schedule. Apurposive sampling technique was used toselect the respondent in Salem city.

The secondary data was collected throughvar ious a r t icles, journals, books,Dissertations, and websites.

Brand Wise Classification in Horlicks

Source: Primary DateThe above table Shows that, out of 185

respondents a maximum of 48% ofrespondents are used Horlicks, 19% ofrespondents are used Women Horlicks,14%of respondents are used ChocolateHorlicks, 11% of members are used Horlickslite, and 8% of members used JouriniorHorlicks. There fore the maximum usedproduct is Horlicks.

Opinion about the Product Performance

The above table shows that, 32% of therespondents are highly satisfied with thequality of Horlicks.22% of the respondentsare highly satisfies with the price. The widerange of Horlicks varieties have attracted alot of customers. Moreover the availabilityof Horlicks products in petty shops, medicalshop and other common places satisfied theconsumers. As Horlicks has all the abovequalitative aspects it has gained a good brandimage. Besides the Horlicks brand has been



38

attracted due to its good package, salespromotion and unique technology.

Attributes of the Customers towardsHorlicks Products

In today’s marketing environment, themanufacturer’s activities do not end up withsatisfying the existing customers alone; theconcern has to widen his promotion activitiesto the extent that it is able to attract newcustomers towards its brand products. It canattract the new customers by establishing newmarkets & constant repetitive advertisement.

The above table shows that, as Horlicksfulfils all the health requirements 23%, around60% of the consumers adhere towards Horlickswithout switching-over to other brands.Moreover the impressive advertisement hasattracted nearly 64% of all the age groups. Eventhough the price is high the customers are readyto pay due to its high quality.

Findings of the Study A Maximum of 52% of respondents are

used Hor licks products , 17% ofrespondents are used Complan, 14%ofrespondents are used Boost ,10% ofmembers are used bourn vita , and 6% ofmembers used viva.

A Maximum of 48% of respondents areused Horlicks,19% of respondents areused Women Horlicks,14%of respondentsare used Chocolate Horlicks ,11% of

members are used Horlicks lite , and 8%of members used Jourinior Horlicks

Majority of 43% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with Quality of horlicksproducts where as 30% of the respondentsare satisfied, 11% of respondents areNeutral .Thereby where as 10% of therespondents are dissatisfied and 6% ofthem are highly dissatisfied of the qualityof Horlicks

Majority of 30% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with price of horlicksproducts where as 17% of the respondentsare satisfied, 46% of respondents areNeutural.Thereby where as 4% of therespondents are dissatisfied and 3% ofthem are highly dissatisfied of the priceof Horlicks.

Majority of 33% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with Wide varieties ofhorlicks products where as 49% of therespondents are satisfied, 10% ofrespondents Neutural.Thereby where as6% of the respondents are dissatisfied and2% of them are highly dissatisfied of theWide varieties of Horlicks.

Majority of 31% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with availability ofhorlicks products where as 50% of therespondents are satisfied, 9% ofrespondents are Neutral .Thereby whereas 5% of the respondents are dissatisfiedand 4% of them are highly dissatisfied ofthe availability of Horlicks.

Majority of 39% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with brand image ofhorlicks products where as 47% of therespondents are satisfied, 5% ofrespondents Neutural.Thereby where as4% of the respondents are dissatisfied and



39

3% of them are highly dissatisfied of theBrand image of Horlicks.

Majority of 35% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with package of horlicksproducts where as 50% of the respondentsare satisfied, 6% of respondents areNeutural.Thereby where as 5% of therespondents are dissatisfied and 4% ofthem are highly dissatisfied of the packageof Horlicks.

Majority of 29% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with discount and free ofhorlicks products where as 31% of therespondents are satisfied, 18% ofrespondents are Neutural.Thereby whereas 17% of the respondents are dissatisfiedand 5% of them are highly dissatisfied ofthe discount and free of Horlicks.

Majority of 33% of the respondents arehighly satisfied with unique technology ofhorlicks products where as 39% of therespondents are satisfied, 14% ofrespondents are Neutural.Thereby whereas 9% of the respondents are dissatisfiedand 5% of them are highly dissatisfied ofthe unique technology of Horlicks.

Majority of 22% of the respondents arehighly agree the close attachment withhorlicks products where as 58% of therespondents are Agree, 8% of respondentsare Neutral. Thereby where as 8% of therespondents are disagreeing and 4% ofthem are highly disagree close attachmentwith Horlicks.

Majority of 30% of the respondents arehighly agree the horlicks fulfills all healthrequirements where as 53% of therespondents are Agree, 10% ofrespondents are Neutural.Thereby whereas 6% of the respondents are disagree and

1% of them are highly disagree horlicksfulfill all health requirement.

Majority of 23% of the respondents arehighly agree the advertisement and otherpublicity aspects are Neutral where as63% of the respondents are Agree, 8% ofrespondents are neutural. Thereby whereas 5% of the respondents are disagree and1% of them are highly disagree theadvertisement and other publicity aspectsare natural.

Majority of 29% of the respondents arehighly agree the Horlicks price is alwaysacceptable where as 57% of therespondents are Agree, 8% of respondentsare Neutural.Thereby where as 4% of therespondents are disagree and 2% of themare highly disagree the Horlicks price isalways acceptable.

Suggestions In the light of the present study, few

suggestions have been made by the researcherto improve the marketing of Horlicks productand to obtain 100% brand loyalty. As for reason studies rural market is

potential. Hence the manufacturer ofHorlicks can considered to concentratemore rural.

Price is one of the factors considered bymany consumers. It is recommended thatthe company may try to the price of theproduct, which will br ing moreconsumers.

Horlicks is one of renowned health drinksin India . Hence, the manufacturersconcentrate to advertise the product withsome sentiment value. It will bring newconsumers also.

Offers and free gifts are an avoid



40

promotional strategies adopted by many ofthe manufacturer. But one thing has toconsidered the manufacturer never beensacrifice the quality.

Now days the consumers are very muchinterest on attractive and convenientpackaging. Hence it is suggested that themanufacturer can introduce new kind ofconvenient packaging system.

To retain existing customer banks themanufacturer can implement new kinds ofpromotional activities such as contents,offering premium gifts vouchers etc.

A perfect system of customer RelationshipManagement can improve and retain theexisting customers for long period.

Brand switching is one of the commonfactors identified among the customers dueto many factors. The manufacturer ofHorlicks can improve the loyal customerbank by improving loyal customers withwill reduce the brand switching behaviorof Horlicks users.

ConclusionThe design of the study reveals the Brand

loyalty of Horlicks products Consequently,Horlicks has a high image among theconsumer in respect of quality, price and taste.Most of the users are well aware of the brandand have been using it regularly over a periodof time. Although there are a number ofalternatives available, users still prefer tostick on to the well-known and trusted brand.The quality of horlicks has ensured continuedcustomer patronage and a high degree ofbrand loyalty. Users feel that the quality of

the product is high and therefore it can bepatronized. The brand loyalty makes senseto buy a particular brand [i.e., Horlicks byway of preference, patronage, and loyalty]instead of some other brand even if twoproducts are the same in means of attributes(i.e.) features, price and quality. Therefore,Horlicks maintains brand loyalty for all levelof peoples.

References:1. JC.Gandhi, (1985) “marketing” a

management introduction Tata Mc Growhill Publishing company Ltd., New Delhi.,

2. Walter,C.G, and G.W.Paul .”(1970) “Consumer behaviors and integratedfrawwork, home wood II I Riched,D.irwill,

3. Gundiff .E.W Ltd”(1997)” fundamental ofmodern marketing “ prentice hall Pvt Ltd.

4. Sontakki E.N (2002) “Principles ofmarketing”. Sultan chand and sons .NewDelhi.

5. Abhijit Bhandar i (31 st Dec 2000)“marketing loyalty” a & journal, P.2.

6. C.Rajendra Kumar (October –Nov 2003)Indian journal marketing P-25.

7. Frank marry and Lodahl (1967) “brandloyalty Delhi Himalaya publishing house,Delhi Vol 2.

Websites1. www.ieexplorer .com2. www.wikipedia.com.3. www.google.com4. www.sciencedirect .com



41

A STUDY ON CORPORATE LEVERAGE AND SHAREHOLDER VALUECREATION OF INDIAN TRANSPORT EQUIPMENT SECTOR – A PANEL

DATA APPROACHD.Vijayalakshmi

Department of B.Com (AM)

Dr.Padmaja manoharanHod & Associate Professor (Retd)

Department of Commerce, PSGR Krishnammal College for WomenPeelamedu, Coimbatore, Tamilnadu, India

ABSTRACTShareholder Value Creation has become the global standard for measuring corporate

performance. Every firm has to construct a corporate capital structure with the objective ofshareholders’ wealth maximization because they are the ultimate owners of the enterprises.Transport equipment sector is a capital intensive sector, where greater emphasis has been givenin framing the capital structure. Hence, the present study makes an attempt to examine the impactof leverage on shareholder value creation of Indian transport equipment sector for the period1995-96 to 2009-10. A panel data approach has been applied to analyse the data. The studyreveals that the leverage has a significant influence on shareholder value creation.

Keywords: Shareholder Value Creation, Capital structure, leverage

IntroductionShareholder value creation has become the

focusable area of corporate growth andsustenance. Init ia lly, the firms hadconcentrated on the important financial goalssuch as ensur ing fund availability,maximizing growth, operating profit andreturn on investment and the shareholderswere treated simply as investors. It was feltthat payment of dividend was sufficient fortheir satisfaction. In the LPG era, on accountof investors’ education, the scenario hasdrastically changed, the shareholders are moreconcerned with usage of their funds by the

firm for their value creation. Hence,Shareholder value creation has become theneed of the day for every firm. Companieshave adopted different modes ofmeasurement of shareholder value creationsuch as Economic Value Added, MarketValue Added, Shareholder Value Added, CashFlow Return on Investment etc., out of these,the familiar and the most prominent methodsadopted by the Indian companies areEconomic Value Added (EVA) and MarketValue Added (MVA). The present studymakes an attempt to examine the impact ofleverage on shareholder value creation of






42

transport equipment sector for the period1995-96 to 2009-10.

Transport equipmentTransport equipment sector consists of

automobile and auto ancillaries. Automobileindustry is one of the core sectors of Indianmanufacturing industry. It has been movingtowards international standards to meet theneeds of the customers globally. It has beencontributing a major share to the economicdevelopment of a nation. In the year 2008-09, automobile sector has achieved a turnoverof Rs 2,18,966 crore, out of which theautomobile vehicle industry has registered aturnover of Rs 1,42,646 crore and automobilecomponent industry with Rs 76,320 crore. Inregard to exports the automobile sector hasexported Rs 31,782 crore worth of equipment,out of which, the share of automobile vehicleindustry is Rs. 16,782 crore and automobilecomponent industry is Rs.15,000 crore. Theautomobile sector has provided direct andindirect employment for 10.5 million people.

Economic value addedThe Economic Value added concept has

been introduced by a New York City basedconsulting firm M/s Stern Stewart, a companyin the early eighties. In India, the Infosystechnologies Ltd is the first Indian companywhich has enclosed its EVA calculation in theannual report. According to Stern Stewartapproach, EVA is essentially the surplus leftafter making an appropriate charge for thecapita l employed in the business. EVAmeasures the earnings after the cost of capital.To compute EVA, the three inputs needed arei) Net operating profit after taxes ii) investedcapital or capital employed and iii) weightedaverage cost of capital

EVA can be computed as follows

EVA = NOPAT – WACC X Capitalemployed

i) NOPAT refers to Net operating profitafter taxes (NOPAT= PAT net of P&E +interest paid) ii) Capital employed = Total assets – current

liabilities and provisions iii) Weighted average cost of capita l

(WACC) = (paid up equity capital / capitalemployed X cost of equity) + (long termdebt /capital employed X cost of debt)

a) cost of debt = (Interest paid / long termdebt) X100Capital Asset pricing Model has been

employed to calculate the cost of equityb) cost of equity = Rf + bi (Rm-Rf)

Rf = Risk free rate of return = one yearterm depos it average interes t ra te ofnationalized banks

Rm = market return of a diversifiedportfolio

Risk premium = market return of adiversified portfolio – Risk free rate of return(Rm –Rf )

bi = Beta coefficient of the firms’ portfolio

Market Value addedMarket Value Added can be defined as the

excess of market value over book value ofthe company. Company value consists of debtand equity. With the simplifying assumptionthat market and book value of debt are equal,Market Value Added has been stated asmarket value of equity less book value ofequity. The MVA can also be stated as marketcapitalization less net worth.

Market capitalization = closing share priceX number of shares out standing as on thedate of balance sheet



43

Net worth = equity capital + reserves andsurplus net of revaluation reserve -accumulated losses and miscellaneousexpenditure.

MVA = Market capitalization – NetworthObjectives of the study To examine the impact of leverage on

shareholder value creation of the Indiantransport equipment sector

HypothesisThe following null hypothesis has been

framed for the purpose of the study: Leverage does not influence the

shareholder value creationResearch methodologySource of data

The study is primarily based on secondarydata. The data has been collected fromPROWESS 3.1 version maintained by Centrefor Monitoring Indian Economy Pvt LtdPeriod of study

The study has covered a period of 15financial years from post-liberalisation era,namely, 1995 -1996 to 2009- 2010.Sampling design

A sample of 35 firms, which havebeen listed at both BSE and NSE stockexchange by applying purposive samplingtechnique have been taken for the study.Tools of analysis

Pooled OLS regressions, Panel dataregression with Fixed Effect and RandomEffect have been applied to analyse the data.Two tests have been carried out to decide theappropriateness of these three models.

Initially, the Lagrange multiplier test has beenapplied to find the existence of panel effectin the values. The classical model (PooledOLS) and the Random Effect model arecompared and when there is no panel effect,the pooled OLS has been chosen for furtheranalysis; otherwise, the Random Effectmodel has been chosen for the next step ofapplication. As a second step, the RandomEffect model is compared with Fixed Effectmodel using Hausman Specification test andthe appropriate model is chosen for furtheranalysis based on the significance of the chi-square value.Results and Discussion

To ascertain the impact of leverage fromits different dimensions on shareholder valuecreation, the variables, namely, Long TermDebt (LTD) ratio, Short Term Debt (STD)ratio, Interest Coverage (IC) ratio, FinancialLeverage (FL), Operating Leverage(OL),Combined Leverage(CL), and WorkingCapital Leverage(WCL) are considered asindependent var iables. The dependantvariables are Economic Value Added (EVA)and Market Value Added (MVA).

The panel data analysis on theseparameters reveals the following results:Economic value added

The dependent variable (EVA) has beenregressed with the independent variables,namely, LTD ratio, STD ratio, IC ratio, FL,OL, CL and WCL with the following nullhypothesis.

H0: “The independent variables, namely,LTD ratio, STD ratio, IC ratio, FL, OL, CLand WCL do not have a significant impacton EVA”



44

Table 1- EVA - Pooled OLS and PanelData Regression-Transport

Source : Computed * significant at 5 percent level ** significant at 1 per cent level

It is vivid from the table that theregression co-efficient signs have beensimilar in both the FE and RE models andthey differ in the pooled OLS model. The R2

values have revealed a low correlationbetween the selected independent variablesand the EVA. The F-value and Wald-chi-square value have a significant correlationbetween the selected independent variablesand the EVA.

The result of LM test shows that the chi-square value (578.78) is significant at one percent level. Hence, the RE is preferred topooled OLS model.

The Hausman test has resulted that thechi-square value (4.66) is not significant;thereby, the RE model is found effective.Among all the three models applied, the REmodel has been taken to anlayse the impactof leverage on EVA.

The RE model has inferred that the IC

ratio has a significant positive impact on EVA.Hence, the null hypothesis has been rejectedfor this variable.

The six out of seven independentvariables, namely, LTD ratio, STD ratio, FL,OL; CL and WCL have not had a significantinfluence on EVA. Hence, the null hypothesishas been accepted for these variables. Inrespect of the transport sector, it is found thatthe IC ratio has favoured the EVA enhancingthe shareholder value of the company

Market Value Added The dependent variable (MVA) has been

regressed with the independent variables,namely, LTD ratio, STD ratio, IC ratio, FL,OL, CL and WCL with the following nullhypothesis.

H0: “The independent variables, namely,LTD ratio, STD ratio, IC ratio FL, OL, CLand WCL do not have a significant impacton MVA”

Table 2- MVA - Pooled OLS and PanelData Regression-Transport

Source : Computed * significant at 5 percent level ** significant at 1 per cent level



45

It is clear from the table that the signs ofthe regression co-efficient have been the samein the FE and RE models and they differ inthe pooled OLS model. The R2 values haveshown a very low correlation between theselected independent variables and the MVA.The F-value and Wald-chi-square value revealthe existence of significant correlat ionbetween the selected independent variablesand MVA.

The result of LM test shows that the chi-square value (343.12) is significant at one percent level implying the existence of paneleffect; thereby, the RE model is preferred.

The Hausman specification test revealsthat the chi-square value (4.84) is notsignificant indicating that the RE model ispreferred.

In all the three models applied, the REmodel has been found appropriate to analysethe impact of leverage on MVA.

The RE model has resulted that the ICratio has a significant positive impact onMVA. Hence, the null hypothesis has beenrejected for this variable. The other variables,namely, LTD ratio, STD ratio, FL, OL, CLand WCL have not been sta t ist icallysignificant. Hence, the null hypothesis hasbeen accepted with respect to these variables.It is concluded that in the transport sector,the IC ratio is the significant factor of MVA.

ConclusionThe study has concluded that leverage

ratios have proved to have influenced the

shareholder value creation metrics. Theinterest coverage ratio has played a pertinentrole in shareholder value creation. Thetransport sector can resort to more long termexternal funding and can enjoy a good taxshield. This in turn increases the profitabilityand shareholder value.

References1) Karam Pal and Jitender kumar, “Value

Creation: An empirical scenario of Indianinformation technology industry”, KAIMJournal of Management and Research,May-April 2012, Vol.4, Nos1-2, pp 8-18.

2) Madhu Sehrawat, “EVA and performancemeasurement- Text and case studies ofIndian companies”, Deep and Deeppublications Pvt ltd, New delhi, 2009edition.

3) Madhu Sehrawat, “EVA and performancemeasurement- Text and case studies ofIndian companies”, Deep and Deeppublications Pvt ltd, New delhi, 2009edition

4) Manpreet Kaur and Ravi kiran, “Indianmanufactur ing sector : Growth andproductivity under the new policyregime”, International review of businessresearch papers, March 2008, Vol.4, No.2,pp 136-150.

5) Roger A. Morphin and Sherry I.Jarrel,“Driving shareholder value – valuebuilding techniques for creatingshareholders wealth”, Tata MC graw –hilledition, New Delhi – 2004.



46

WORKING OF THE PONDICHERRY CO-OPERATIVE MILK PRODUCERS’UNION LIMITED: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY

N. GunasegariAssistant Professor,Dr.N.Periyasami

Associate Professor, Department of Commerce,Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar - 608 002.

ABSTRACTThe study is empirical in nature with a focus on assessing the working of the Pondicherry Co-

operative Milk Producers’ Union Limited from the point of view of financial and physicalperformance indicators, as well as the opinion of the member societies. The first-hand informationfor this study was collected from the establishment section of the Pondicherry Co-operative MilkProducers’ Union Limited. The primary data were collected from the Secretaries of the membersocieties with the help of the pre-tested questionnaire. A pilot study was conducted during theperiod August 2012, selecting 10 member societies. In order to study the perception of the membersocieties towards working of the Pondicherry Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union Limited, variousstatistical analyses such as chi-square test, student t test, analysis of variance, co-efficient ofvariation, multiple regression analysis and percentage analysis were employed.

Keywords: Dairy Industry, Milk Production, Poverty.

IntroductionDairy industry is of crucial importance to

India . India is the world’s largest milkproducer, accounting for more than 13 percent of world’s total milk production and it isthe world’s largest consumer of dairyproducts, consuming almost 100% of its ownmilk production. Dairy products are a majorsource of cheap and nutr itious food tomillions of people in India. Dairying has beenconsidered one of the activities aimed atalleviating the poverty and unemploymentespecially in the rural areas and drought-proneregions. According to the National SampleSurvey, livestock sector produces regular

employment to about 9.80 million persons inprincipal status and 8.60 million in subsidiarystatus, which constitute about 5 per cent ofthe total work force. The progress in thissector will result in a more balanceddevelopment of the rural economy. Milk iswell-known to mankind as a perfectwholesome food. Out of the total milkproduction, only a very small percentage isprocessed in organized dairy plant in Indiaas against more than 80 per cent in thewestern countries. It requires the paramountneed for developing the dairy industry in thecountry on modern lines. In this context, co-operative milk producers’ union and its






47

working is the subject chosen for research bythe researcher. The implicit problem raisedis: “Is the co-operative milk producers’ unioncapable enough by the required financialresources and facilities to survive against theencroachment of private dairies at present andin future under the delicensing policy ofgovernment? To find out the answer to thisproblem, the researcher has collectedinformation from both primary and secondarysources. In the emerging scenario, it isnecessary for the co-operative milk unions toidentify the perception of the membersocieties. This would facilitate the process ofefficient functioning. This micro levelinvestigation will throw more light on theseissues and thereby help policy formulation.Therefore, an endeavour has been made in thepresent study to examine the working of thePondicherry Co-operative Milk Producers’Union Limited.

Statement of the ProblemIn 1991 a new licensing policy was

introduced which made it easier to establishprivate processing plants than it had been inthe past. The new market-oriented policyprovided an opportunity for pr ivateentrepreneurs to enter all areas of the milkbusiness such as procurement, processing andmarketing. Over 100 new dairy processingplants were established within one year of thenew policy. At the same time, there were someprivate dairies producing milk in certainregions prior to 1991. These private plantsrequired government approval prior to 1991;hence, the co-operative sector was protected.At present, a large number of co-operativedairy plants have not been able to achieve asatisfactory level of capacity utilization dueto inadequate milk availability in the area.The low capacity utilization resulted in

doubling and trebling of processing costswhich could not be recouped by increasingmilk prices. As a result, many of the units haveincurred losses and become non-viable. Theco-operative dairies have to bear the losses andresort to additional borrowing from banks toreplenish their working capital which in turnleads to higher interest charge and furtherlosses thus creating a vicious circle. The co-operative dairy unions are engaged in theprovision of input services for animal health,breed improvement, feed resourcesdevelopment, extension services, finance andmarketing. However, the ability of such co-operatives to a tta in their objectives isinfluenced by the quality of services renderedto the members apar t from resourcemobilization and economic growth. Hence, thefulfilment of the members’ demand of timelyin cost effective manner is very important forthe success of co-operatives. Therefore, anunderstanding of the perception of the membersocieties is imperative. In this chapter, anattempt has been made to study the perceptionof the member societies towards working ofthe Pondicherry Co-operative Milk Producers’Union Limited.

Objectives of the Study1. To study the growth and progress of Indian

dairy industry.2. To review the dairy activities of the

Pondicherry Co-operative MilkProducers’ Union Limited.

3. To elicit the opinions on the working ofthe Pondicherry Co-operat ive MilkProducers’ Union Limited by membersocieties.

4. To offer suitable suggestions for the efficientfunctioning of the Pondicherry Co-operativeMilk Producers’ Union Limited.



48

Testing of HypothesesThe study is based on the formulation of

the following null hypothesis.Ho1: There is no significant association

among the satisfaction levels of the membersocieties belonging to different organizationalset up towards working of the PondicherryCo-operative Milk Producers’ Union Limited.

Ho2: There is no significant relationshipamong the satisfaction levels of the membersocieties belonging to different organizationalset up towards various activities of thePondicherry Co-operative Milk Producers’Union Limited.

Research MethodologyThis study has been undertaken to examine

the working of the Pondicherry Co-operativeMilk Producers’ Union Limited. The scopeof the study is delimited to study theperception of the member societies towardsworking of the Pondicherry Co-operativeMilk Producers’ Union Limited. The primarydata for the study were collected during theperiod from October 2012 to December 2012.As said already, the study is confined to thePondicherry Co-operative Milk Producers’Union Limited only. Regarding therespondents, the member societies areconsidered total population. The total numberof member societies was 97 as on 31.03.2012.By using simple random sampling, 73member societies i.e. 75 per cent of thepopulation were taken up for this study.

Findings1. According to 31.51 per cent of the member

societies PCMPUL has been establishedas the first co-operative milk society inPondicherry. 52.05 per cent of the membersocieties say that it is the only co-operative

milk producers’ union functioning inPondicherry Union Ter r itory.Manufacturing range of byproducts andsupply of quality milk are the specialfeatures of the PCMPUL according tomember societies at 57.53% and 69.86%respectively. Remunerative price for themilk procurement and extensive dairyactivities are also the special features ofthe PCMPUL according to membersocieties a t 84.93% and 91.78%respectively.

2. No significant association is foundbetween satisfaction level of the membersocieties belonging to varied years ofexistence, number of members, averagemilk collection per day, type of societyand economic status of the society andworking of the Pondicherry MilkProducers’ Union Limited.

3. Member societies having upto 10 years ofexistence, societies having 201-400members and above 600 members,societies collecting milk above 750 litresper day, mixed societies and loss makingsocieties are more satisfied with theworking of the PCMPUL.

4. There is no significant relationship amongthe satisfaction level of the membersocieties belonging to varied years ofexistence, varied number of members,collecting varied quantum of milk, typeof society and economic status of thesocieties towards various activities of thePCMPUL.

5. Member societies having existence upto10 years, societies having upto 200members, societies do collect an averagemilk of 501-750 litres per day, mixedsocieties and loss making societies are



49

more satisfied towards various activities ofthe PCMPUL.

6. Consistency is found (10.78) in thesatisfaction level among the membersocieties having existence upto 10 years,societies having upto 200 members,societies collecting below 250 liters ofmilk per day, mixed societies and profitmaking societies (11.86%) towardsvarious activities of the PCMPUL.

7. Years of existence and number of membersof the societies have significant effect onthe satisfaction towards various activitiesof the PCMPUL at 5 per cent level ofsignificance. Average milk collection, typeof society and economic status of thesociety have no significant effect on thesatisfaction level of the member societiestowards various activities of the PCMPUL.

8. Out of 73 member societies, majority ofthe sample societies are dissatisfied(50.68%), followed by highly dissatisfied(27.40%) and highly satisfied (9.59%)towards various activities of the PCMPUL.4.11% and 8.21% of the member societiesare satisfied and neither satisfied norsatisfied respectively with the variousactivities of the PCMPUL. The averagesatisfaction score reveals that the samplesocieties have higher satisfaction level(2.369) towards conduct of training,followed by supply of technical inputs andextension services (2.342), and animalbreeding services (2.260). However, themember societies have low level ofsatisfaction (2.95) towards supply of inputservices (1.945).

9. Ranging from 36.98 per cent to 56.16 percent of the member societies state thatpolitical interference, lack of value added

products, inadequate infrastructure andinadequate government assistance are theproblems encountered by the PCMPUL.Financial problems, increasing operatingexpenses and entrance of private milksocieties are also the problems of thePCMPUL stated by the member societiesat 71.23%, 79.45% and 86.30%respectively.

10. Ranging from 30.13 per cent to 50.68 percent of the respondents suggest thatprevention of polit ical intervention,launching value added products,development of infrastructure andgovernment assistance will get better theworking of the PCMPUL. 60.27%,67.12% and 79.45% of the respondentssuggest that remedies to the financialproblems, control over the operatingexpenses and cope up pr ivate milksocieties will make certain the efficientfunctioning of the PCMPUL.

Suggestions1. Scaling down the government participation

in the equity base of the PCMPUL,assisting the PCMPUL with the timelygrant of managerial subsidies and otherforms of assistance enabling the PCMPULfor its efficient functioning. Further theGovernment of Pondicherry shouldrecognize the role played by PCMPUL atall levels in increasing the milkproduction and in amelior ating theeconomic condit ion of the weakersections of society. The work related toartificial insemination, disease control,etc. now done by Animal Husbandry andVeter ina ry Depar tment should betransferred to the milk producer’s union.

2. PCMPUL has not been following aconcrete production policy for by



50

products. Innovations in dairy technologyfor the preparation of new products willmake the milk more effective in itsutilization in the PCMPUL. Therefore,PCMPUL should further develop proper dairy production, Processing andmarketing infrastructure, which is capableof meeting international qualityrequirements. Making infrastructure forrapid transportation, refrigeration andproper human resource development in thePCMPUL and arranging proper trainingfor the manager, and officials are need ofthe hour.

3. Efforts should be made to bring down thehigh incidence of procurement cost andbring it a t the level of profitability.In order to increase the competitiveness ofthe PCMPUL, efforts should be made toreduce the cost of production. This can beachieved through in creasing productivity, improve animal health care andbreeding facilities and management ofprofessional dairy management. ThePCMPUL and state government will needto play a vital role in this direction.

4. The Indian Dairy Corporation may bedirected to review the financial positionof the PCMPUL installed under OperationFlood and in appropriate case reschedulethe payment of interests and principles onthe loans sanctioned for PCMPUL toprevent from incurring continued lossesand becoming viability. The financinginstitutions may be directed to provideadequate working capital loans to thePCMPUL adversely affected by the lossescaused by low capacity utilization.

5. PCMPUL should be given maximumautonomy and there should be minimumgovernment interference in a day to day

working. For that self-reliance and self-management are required.

ConclusionIn this study, an attempt has been made to

study the perception of the member societiestowards working of the PCMPUL. To ensurea positive outcome, attention to the factorsidentified in the suggested framework isimportant for the efficient functioning of thePCMPUL. If this study provokes the peopleconcerned to take some positive measures,the researcher will feel amply rewarded.

References1. Jayachandra Reddy, Reddy, Y.V and

Ramakrishna, Y.S (2004). “A ComparativeStudy of Cost of Milk Production underDifferent Agro-Climatic Regions in Semi-Arid Regions”, Indian Journal ofAgricultural Economics,” Vol.59, No.3.

2. Kannan Elumalai and Birthal Pratap, S(2010). “Effect of Trade Liberalization onthe Efficiency of Indian Dairy Industry”,Journal of International and Area Studies,Vol.17, No.1.

3. Nishi A. K. Sah and Ram Kumar (2011).“Dairy Farmers’ Satisfaction with DairyCo-operative Societies: A Case Study”,Indian Research Journal of ExtensionEducation, Vol.11, No.1, January.

4. Sidhu, R.S and Bhullar, A.S (2004).“Changing Structure of the Farm Economyin Punjab: Impact of Livestock on Incomeand Employment”, Indian Journal ofAgricultural Economics, Vol.59, No.3.

5. Vinod, K, Duhan Khatkar, R.K and Singh,V.K (2004). “Nature of Markets and Roleof Co-operatives in Marketing of Milk inRewari District of Haryana”, Indian Journalof Agricultural Economics, Vol.59, No.3.



51

GENDER IMPACT ON COMMON PROPERTY RESOURCES INTHOTTIYAM TALUK OF TIRUCHIRAPPALLI DISTRICT -A CASE STUDY

K.ElangoAssociate Professor of Economics

The National College ,Tiruchirappalli

ABSTRACTThe rural poor particularly the rural women had a greater access to CPRs in the past,

which has come down by nearly 50 percent. The reduction in CPRs by encroachment of theseresources is a matter of concern. Even though the government gave priority to poor landlesslaborers, schedule caste people, widow and ex - service men, these CPR lands are largelyencroached by higher caste people in the form of adjoining their land and other political voice.

Key Words: Common Property Resources, medicinal herbs, ecological balance, deforestation

IntroductionCommon Property Resources (CPRs) play

a significant role in the Life of Rural Poor,Particularly the Rural Women. Since thehistorical past, the resources contributing lotto the rural economics. There is growingevidence that common pool resources at thevillage level are on the decline quantitativelyand qualita tively across the regions ofdeveloping countries. Besides maintaining theecological balance by a way of checking soilerosion, deforestation and salutation the CPRbenefits the rural masses in terms ofavailability of fodder, fuel wood, small timber,deriving of these materials for use by others,collection of fruits and medicinal herbs.

Statement of the ProblemThe study village Thottiyam avail more of

common resource in the past but now it is

degrading, because more lands areencroached landlords and dominant castepeople. But low percentage of common landwas encroached by lower caste particularlyin scheduled caste people. The study areapeople are rearing livestock in common landsbut the uncertainty and unsuitable rainfallcondition is the fist and foremost reason fortheir livestock maintenance.

It is true the women are more affected bydecline in CPRs as they are more dependenton CPRs particularly for fuel wood, folderand miner forest products, which form thebasis of livelihood of many households.Hence any decline in such resourcesincreases the drudgery of women in terms ofadditional hours of work, long hours of walkto long distances and as such in wearingrequirements of energy. Women are also over






52

burdened with household. It is also to bementioned that these women are made tocontinue this work though there has been achange in the composition of the commonproperty resources.

Objectives1. To identify the common property resources

and Gender impact on CPRs in the studyarea.

2. To analysis the impact of CPRs on womenemployment and empowerment in studyarea.

Area of StudyThe study area of Balasamuthiram block

is located in Thott iyam Taulk totalgeographical area of the village was 1087.28hectares. The present study relies on bothsecondary source and also primary surveyconducted in this village. The secondary datacollected was on yearly basis under 9 foldclassification handbooks, ‘G’ return and ‘A’register of district data.

Period of the StudyThis study covered the period of ten

years from 2002 to 2012, and the datacollection was undertaken during the monthof September to December 2012.

Table 1 No of years of dependence on CPRsby respondent Household

Sources: Primary Data.

The average number of years ofdependence on CPRs is 19. It is to bementioned that nearly 2/3rd of them dependof CPRs for needs more than 10 to 20.

Table 2 Fuel Wood collections of therespondents from the CPRs sources 4 pm

Sources: Primary Data,It is to be added that the fuel wood

collected by male is mainly for tradingpurpose and female collected fuel woodpredominantly is used for domestic use. Onlyfew female take the fuel wood collection andselling as their occupation in the study villageTable 3 Utilization of CPRs for variouspurposes

Sources: Primary Data,Table 3 shows that the utilization of the

CPRs to various sources. They are using itfor two purposes (I) self use and somerespondents are using CPRs collectedresources for making up their living.However 90% of them use of for domesticuse alone, which explains the hugedependence of the respondent households inCPRs in the sample villages.



53

Table 4 Income derived from CPRssources by the respondent Households.

Sources: Primary Data,

Table 5 Value of the Houses of therespondents

Sources: Primary Data, Average – Rs. 236254Out of 50 households 64 percentage of the

respondent are having above Rs. 40,000 valueof houses. Parts of them are having (36%)below of Rs. 40,000 as their value of houses.It reflects the status of the respondents. Theydepend on CPRs for their survival. Low valueof houses is due to the roof of titles for whichthey more. Hence right from the food, shelter,the dependency on CPRs is very high for therespondent households.

Table 6 Land Holding Size of therespondents (in area)

Sources: Primary Data,

The above table shows that land holding sizeof the respondent land size has been dividedinto different size class interval in which 14respondent out of 50, has a share of 28% it isto be mentioned that majority of them haveonly less than 2 acres majority of them beingmarginal farmers, they depend on agriculturalseasonal operations during peek seasons andin the off season they have to partly dependon CPRs for livelihood needs says collectingfuel wood and selling in the market. Thus andmaking up their living is largely dependent onCPRs. Deterioration of such resources onlyquestion the very survival of the population inthe sample village.

Table 7 Household Expenditure on FoodItems in Rupees

Sources: Primary Data, Average – Rs. 765.3This table represents the household

expenditure of food items of the selectedhouseholds in sample village per month. It isobserved that from the land they own, they areable to realize paddy needed for them domesticconsumption. Apart from this they need tospend on the fired items whose average has beenRs. 765.3. Majority of them spend in the rangeof Rs. 800 to Rs. 1000 per month.

Table 8 Household Expenditure on nonFood Items Per Month

Sources: Primary Data, Average Rs. 997



54

Non – food item like medicine, education,transport clothing and cosmetic etc has beenfound be on an average Rs. 997 for the samplehouseholds. It is observed further that nearly30% of them spend more than Rs. 1000 permonth on non – food items alone. Taking theaverage of food and non food items of Rs.881 and the average income per month at Rs.1831, there has been a large gap betweenincome and expenditure of the samplehouseholds, which may be made up thoughborrowing or taking from past savingshowever, it may be held tha t if CPRsavailability could be improved their incomebased may also be raised.

Table 9 Total Household Income of therespondent Households (in rupees) permonth

Sources: Primary Data,This table represent the income level of

the respondents households major ity ofresearchers respondents that is 21 from 50respondents are earning less than Rs. 1000per month and only 19 respondents i.e., 38%of the total respondents are earning theirincome in between Rs. 1001 – 2000 andearning per month more than Rs. 2001 inwhich only 5 respondents is earning morethan Rs. 4000 per month. From there table itshows that only very few people are earninggood income and lading a good life and theremaining majorities of the sample villagepopulation are living with less income andhave a low of living. The average income is

Rs. 1831, which is very low to maintain andto both the end meet. More over the incomeearned will be improving of more CPRs arebrought under the ownership of the samplehouseholds to female.

Table 10 Occupation of the respondentHouseholds

Sources: Primary Data,The particulars details of the sample

households revealed that they are either inself-cult ivation or wage laborers inagriculture. Only 5 households house boththat nearly 35% of them depend on wageearnings, their dependency on CPRs may notbe. At least this 35% must be encouraged todiversity their occupation to non – formactivities so their dependence on CPRs bereduced however, due to be declining CPRs,many households and migrate to other areas.This must be arrested.

Table 11 Caretaker of the Livestock of therespondent Household

Sources: Primary Data,Table 10 brings out the details of the

availability of livestock. For majority of therespondents in rural areas rent to agriculture,



55

livestock maintenance and the income. It isfound in this study that around 13 householdsdo not own any livestock, of the remaininghouseholds in nearly 7 households, in whichmale are taking care, households, both maleand female are taking care of their livestock.Maintaining livestock is not an easy task. Itrequires full time labourers to attend to theirfodder, water, and cleaning, grazing, and otherneeds. This is mainly done my female inmajority of the household.

Table 12 Gender Crises: Average collectionof materials from CPR

S ou r ces : P r ima r y D a t a , Ave r a gecollection Male – 855, Female – 1223.34

Average collection is higher for malethan female from CPRs. Actually femaledependence is higher on CPR r elateda c t iv i t i es f or t hei r d a y- t o-da y l i f es u s t en a nce. T he c ol lec t ion s hows agr ea t er va r i a t ion a mong t he ma lememb er s . I t is r ef lect ed in s tanda rddeviation, which is higher for male. Thep oin t t o b e ment i oned i s t ha t mea ncollection is higher for male because thema le memb er s of t he r es p ondent ’shouseholds collect fuel wood or othermatters from CPRs not only for domesticself-use but a lso for trading purpose.Hence the higher collection explains theincome gener a t ion a c t i v i t i es o f t herespondents.

Summary of FindingsThis study has analyzed the various

CPRs available in the sample villages and theincome generation through CPRs andresources available for domestic use fromCPRs. In a way the sample village populationis dependent on CPRs for both.

domestic and commercial use. Theresources identified the socio-economicconditions of the sample villages’ populationand income generation and gender wisedepended on CPRs etc were analyzed.1. The average number of years of

dependence on CPRs has been majorityof them depend on CPRs for 19 years.

2. Mean value of fuel wood collection is maleis higher than female

3. The average income received by therespondents has been for male and forfemale

4. Value of the house of the respondents revealedthat they have average value of Rs.1831.which is basically made out of CPRs.

5. Average land size of the householdrevealed that they have acres.

Conclusion It is observed in this study that the village

population in general and female populationin particular on CPRs both for their livelihoodand domestic use needs. Male members arepredominantly dependent on these resourcesfor meet their livelihoods. It is necessary thatirrespective of the areas, irrespective of thepopulation on the one hand and protect theenvironment on the other. A more in depthstudy on the extent of impact on differentsections of the population and environmentalmust carr ied out, so that better policyrecommendations may be made.



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Reference:1. Amita Shah (1997) “Food Security and

Access to Natural Resources”, A Reviewof Recent Trends: Economic and PoliticalWeekly. Vol.32. No.26. June 28, July 4.

2. Damodaran. A. (2001), “WTO AgricultureAgreement, Common Property Resourcesand Income Diversification Strategies”.Economic and Political Weekly. Vol.36.No.38, September 22, 28.

3. Emmanuel Bon (2000) “Common PropertyResources; Two Case Studies”. Economicand Political Weekly. Vol.34, No.28 and29, July 15, 21.

4. Jodha N.S. (1986) “Management ofCommon Property Resources in SelectedDry Areas of India”. Economic andPolitical Weekly. Vol.21, No.27, July 5th,1986.

5. Kanchan Chopra (1996) “The Managementof Degraded land: Issues and Analysis ofTechnological and Insti tutionalSolutions”. Indian Journal of AgriculturalEconomics. Vol.51, No.1, and 2 January-June.

6. Karam Singh. Et.al. (1996) “Utilization andDevelopment of Common Proper tyResources. A Field Study of Punjab”.Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics.Vol.51, No.1 and 2 January-June.

7. Marothia D.K (1993) “Property Regimesand Institutional Arrangements; Conceptsand their Relevance in Managing theVillage Commons”. Indian Journal ofAgricultural Economics. Vol.48, No.3,July-September.

8. Nadkarni M.V and Syed Ajaml Pasha(1991) “Developing Uncultivated lands;some issues from Karnataka’s Experiencein Social Forestry”. Indian Journal ofAgricultural Economics. Vol.46, No.4,October-December.

9. Ratna Reddy V (2000) “SustainableWatershed Management InstitutionalApproach”. Economic and Polit icalWeekly. Vol.34, No.38, September 16.

10. Ravichandran M and Boopathi S (1999)“Sustainability of Grazing and Pastureland and Livestock in Tamilnadu”. (ed)Subramanian et.al, “Emerging issues inIndian Agriculture”. M.K.U. Co-operativePrinting Press ltd, Madurai-21.

10. Srivastava H.C and Chaturvedi M.K(1989) “Dependency and CommonProperty Resources of Tribal and RuralPoor”. Common Wealth Publishers, NewDelhi-110002.

11. Syed Ajaml Pasha (1992) “CommonProperty Resources and the Rural Poor; AMicro Level Analysis”. Economic andPolitical Weekly. November 4th. PP-2499-2503.



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GREEN MARKETING – A. NEW MARKETING STRATEGYDr.G.VenkatesanAssistant Professor,

Department of Commerce, M.G.R College of Arts and Science, Hosur.

ABSTRACTEnvironmental sustainability is not simply a matter of compliance or risk management. Business

is increasingly recognizing the many competitive advantages and business opportunities to begained from eco-sustainability. World-wide evidence indicates that people are concerned aboutthe environment and are changing their behavior accordingly. As a result there is a growingmarket for sustainable and socially responsible products and services. The types of businessesthat exist, the products they produce and their approaches to marketing are changing.

Key words: Environmental sustainability, Green marketing, start-up costs

IntroductionGreen marketing involves developing and

promoting products and services that satisfycustomers’ wants and needs for quality,performance, affordable pr icing andconvenience without having a detrimentalimpact on the environment. People generallywant to do the right thing, so the challengeand opportunity for the green marketer is tomake it easy for people to do so. When allelse is equal – quality, price, performance andavailability – environmental benefit will mostlikely tip the balance in favour of a product.The marketing industry can ‘walk the talk’ andbecome the new corporate champions of theenvironment. Successful green marketers willreap the rewards of healthy profits andimproved shareholder value, as well as helpto make the world a better place in the future.Importance of Green Marketing

Green marketing offers business bottom

line incentives and top line growth possibilities.While modification of business or productionprocesses may involve start-up costs, it willsave money in the long term. For examplethe cost of installing solar energy is aninvestment in future energy cost savings.Companies that develop new and improvedproducts and services with environmentalimpacts in mind give themselves access tonew markets, substantially increase profitsand enjoy competitive advantages over thosemarketing non-environmentally responsiblealternatives.

Socially Responsible Investment (SRI) inAustralia is no longer a niche investment.Potential investors increasingly look tocompanies to demonstrate their social andenvironmental responsibility as well astraditional financial objectives and outcomes.Competit ive businesses with an eye toemerging market forces address their triple






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bottom line performance. For example, tosupport its a im of being a sustainablebusiness, The Body Shop produces a socialand environmental performance report, ‘TheNew Bottom Line’, every two years.Challenges of Green Marketing

Green Marketing strategies provide morebenefits to consumers as well the society. Italso helps to create green environment byadopting eco – friendly marketing practices.Even though getting more benefits from greenmarketing, there are lot of challenges orhurdles also available for its development. Green products require renewable and

recyclable material, which is costly Requires a technology, which requires huge

investment in R & D Water treatment technology, which is too

costly Majority of the people are not aware of

green products and their usesThe Four Elements of Green Marketing

Like conventional marketers, greenmarketers must address the ‘four Ps’ ininnovative ways.Product

Green Marketing begins with ‘greendesign’. Product design constitutes an activeinterface between demand (consumers) andsupply (manufactures). The product itself hasto be made in such a way that it satisfiesconsumer and manufacture’s needs. Forecologically sustainable products to besuccessful, green branding attributes have tobe efficiently communicated. Most buyerdecisions are influenced by the labeling,(green labeling) that states all that makes theproduct green compliant

PricePricing is a cr it ical element of the

marketing mix. Most customers will only beprepared to pay a premium if there is aperception of additional product value. Thisvalue may be improved per formance,function, design, visual appeal or taste.Environmental benefits are usually an addedbonus but will often be the deciding factorbetween products of equal value and quality.Environmentally responsible products,however, are often less expensive whenproduct life cycle costs are taken intoconsideration. For example fuel-efficientvehicles, water-efficient printing and non-hazardous products. The price of greenproduct has to be affordable for the customerto encourage purchase. Industrial differ-entiation works only when products reduceclient’s cost.Place

The location must also be consistent withthe image you want to project and allow youto project your own image rather than beingdominated or compromised by the image ofthe venue. The location must differentiateyou from your competitors. This can beachieved by in-store promotions and visuallyappealing displays or using recycledmaterials to emphasise the environmental andother benefits. Green distribution is a verydelicate operation. Customers must beguaranteed of the ‘Ecological nature’ of theproduct. The green environment is aconstantly regulated environment and as suchhigh level of compliance is necessary whencarrying out distribution of green products.This is a common procedure in the unitedstate.



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PromotionPromoting products and services to target

markets includes paid advertising, publicrelations, sales promotions, direct marketingand on-s ite promotions.Smart greenmarketers will be able to reinforceenvironmental credibility by usingsustainable marketing and communicationstools and practices. For example, manycompanies in the financial industry areproviding electronic statements by email, e-marketing is rapidly replacing moretraditional marketing methods, and printedmaterials can be produced using recycledmaterials and efficient processes, such aswaterless printing.

Green Marketing and Customer’sSatisfaction

Customer satisfaction has been defined intwo basic ways: as either an outcome or as aprocess. As an outcome, satisfying the endstate result ing from the consumptionexperience . As a process, it is the perceptualevaluative and psychological process thatcontributes to satisfaction. The definition isvaried with regards to their level of simplicitywhich includes;o Product satisfactiono Satisfaction with the purchase decision

experience.o Satisfaction with the performance attribute

o Satisfaction with the store or institutiono Satisfaction with pre-purchase experience.

Marketing literature suggests that there isa relationship between customer satisfactionand loyalty. Satisfaction leads to attitudinalloyalty. It could be seen as the intension topurchase. Satisfaction is an outcome thatoccurs without comparing expectations.Customer satisfaction could also be definedas an evaluative response to perceivedoutcome of a par t icular consumptionexperience.

ConclusionGreen marketing is a tool for protecting

the environment for the future generation. Ithas a positive impact on environmentalsafety. Because of the growing concern ofenvironmental protection, there is anemergence of a new market which is thegreen market. For companies to survive inthis market, they need to go green in allaspect of their business. Consumers want toidentify themselves with companies that aregreen compliance and the premium to pay fora greener life style. As such, green marketingis not just an environmental protection toolbut also, a marketing strategy.

Reference1. Kotlor. Philip, marketing management2. Pillai.R.S.N&Bharathi Modern Marketing

S.Chand Publication, NewDelhi.



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MARKETING OF HOSPITAL SERVICESS. Gurusamy

Ph.D. Research scholar,Dr. E. Mubarak Ali

Associated Professor and Research adviser,PG and Research Department of Commerce.Jamal Mohamed College, Trichy -20.

ABSTRACTService quality has been revealed as a key factor in search for sustainable competitive

advantage, differentiation and excellence in the service sector. Besides, it has been recognizedas highly important for satisfying and retaining customers. Accordingly the two questions firstly,‘What is perceived service quality? And secondly, ‘How must service quality be three decadesnow and is of utmost interest. Moreover, the ongoing debate on the determinants of servicequality and issue such as ‘Is there a universal set of determinants of service quality and issuesuch as ‘Is there a universal set of determinants that determine the service quality across a sectionof services?’ remains unanswered. Additionally, there is concern for the identification ofdeterminants of service quality.

Key words: Service quality, Healthcare, retaining customers, service sector, allopath

IntroductionHealthcare is a rare service that

people need but do not necessarily want but,remarkably healthcare is the fastest growingservice in both developed and developingcountries. The traditional services that oncedominated the service sector - lodging,foodservice, and housecleaning have beenincreasingly supplemented by modernbanking, insurance, computing,communication, and other business servicesand the interest in the measurement of servicequality is understandably high in addition tothe delivery higher levels of a service qualitystrategy being suggested as critical to serviceprovider’s efforts in positioning themselvesmore effectively in the marketplace. The

Different types of hospitals, the classificationon the basis of objective, ownership, path andsize. On the basis of the objective, we findthree types of hospitals. E.g. Teaching – Cu–research for developing medicos andpromoting research to improve the quality ofmedical aid, General hospital four treadinggeneral ailments and special hospitals forspecialized service in our or a few selectedareas.

On the basis of ownership, there are fourtypes of hospitals e.g Government hospital.Which is in owned, managed and controlledby Government semi government hospitalwhich is partially shared by Government thecharitable trust also run hospitals.

On the basis of path of treatment we find






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allopath (or) say the system which is promotedunder the English system. Ayurved is basedon Indian system where herbal are used forpreparing medicine like this we find unani andothers.

On the basis of size, we find variation inthe size of hospitals, such as teaching hospitalgenerally have fine hundred beds which canbe adjusted in true with number of students,the district hospitals generally have twohundred beds which can be raised to threehundred in the face of changing requirements,the taluk hospitals generally have fifty bedsthat can be raised to one hundred dependingupon the requirement the primary healthcanters generally have six beds that can beraised to ten beds.

Marketing of Services in IndiaMarketing of services in India has gained

momentum in less than a decade with theservice industry gaining importance as anessential support system. The latest servicesector to join the marketing bandwagon ishealth care. With a spurt in the number ofprivate hospitals and clinics in the country,health care has today become a buyer ’smarket.

In a far cry from the earlier scenario whenhospitals viewed their services as essential,today’s health care institutions fall over eachother to draw in the patient, primarily usingthe quality platform to position themselves.One client segment practically all health careinstitutions are concentrating on corporatehouses-perceived as the fastest emergingbreed of the rich and famous. Under thesecircumstances, the focus has shifted from thecurative to the preventive aspect of healthcare. Just when the ailing health care systemin India was gasping for breath, revolutionary

trends abroad were changing the whole faceof medicine. New gadgets, diagnosticequipment, aggressive t reatmentmethodology and new concepts in patientmanagement were some of the index to thesewelcome changes. Ironically, catalyzingthese changes abroad, and even leading themoccasionally were the Indian doctors. Allthese factors led to a pressure building up inthe arteries of the government and finally theRajiv Gandhi Government declared hospitalsas an industry for the limited purpose ofborrowing money. This triggered a boom inhospitals in the private sector

Objectives of Hospital Services Assure quality nursing care according to

ANA/WLN nursing standa rds fourgeriatric and home health nursing.

Offer home care as a reasonable alternativeto acutely of terminally ill clients.

Offer care and support four terminally illclients and families, including but notlimited to Physical, Psychosocial andSpiritual Care, as they desire.

Provide high quality health care servicesin cost-effective manner.

Provide and promote continuity of care forclients at home, to and from the hospital,nursing home, or extended care facility.

Promote the highest level of rehabilitationand independence through restorativenursing care using a team approach andcollaborating with therapy disciplines asappropriate.

Provide Knowledgeable staff in numberssufficient to provide an appropriate levelof care and frequency of visit in the home.

Provide quality care by teaching andmonitoring clients response.



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Marketing Mix of Hospitalsi) ProductHospitals today offer the followingservices: Emergency Services – Emergency

services and care at most of the hospitalsis unique and advanced. The hospitals havestate-of-the art ambulances. The CCU’son Wheels under supervision by medicaland para-medical staff. There is hi-techtelecommunication available to a patientin an emergency at any given time.

Ambulance services – Hi-tech ambulanceslinked by state of the art tele communications are fully equipped with doctorsthat are available to render medicalattention and assistance in case ofemergencies at the patient’s doorstep.

Diagnostic services- Modern Hospitals aremulti-speiality and multi-disciplinary, thatcan handle any kind of ailment, they oftera wide range of facilities for instance,Oncology, Orthopedics, Neurology, Plasticsurgery and so on.

Pharmacy services- Most of the hospitalsalso have a pharmacy which is open 24hours. It caters to the needs not only ofthe inpat ients and outpat ients andoutpatients, but also patients from otherhospitals who require emergency druge.

Causality services- Causality service includesa 24 hrs. causality department, which attendsto the accident or emergency cases.Apart form the above mentioned services,

hospital also offers “ Health DiagnosisProgramme” which is a complete,comprehensive, periodic health check upoffered for busy executives, professionals,business persons and so on. The healthdiagnosis programme comprises of thefollowing.

Master health check up Executive Health check up Diabetics health check ups etc.,

Generally, the service offering in a hospitalcomprises of the following levels: Core level-it comprises of the basic

treatment facilities and services offered bythe hospital like diagnostic services,emergency services, casuality services etc.

Expected level- it comprises of cleanlinessand hygiene levels maintained in thehospital

Augmented level- it comprises of dresscode for staff, air conditioning of thehospital, use of state of art technology,services of renowned consultants.

ii) PricePrice usually depends on treatment

prescribed by the respective consultants andthe facilities offered to the patient. As aservice is intangible, it is very hard fordeciding the price of the particular serviceoffered. Pricing strategy adopted does notdepend on the price offered by competitors.The pricing strategy is formulated afterconsult ing the concerned heads ofdepartment. Prices of various facilitiesrevised every year depending on the changein technology. Before fixing pr ices,government controls are also taken intoconsideration.iii) Promotion

Hospitals do not normally undertakeaggressive promotion, they rely a lot on afavorable word of mouth. To crease theclientele, a hospita l may continuouslyintroduce different health services like theacupressure clinic, master health checkupsoffered to different companies. Hospitalsconduct camps in rural areas to give medicalcheck ups at a reasonable price so that the



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rural people approach the hospital again in thefuture. They also sponsor frequent visits tothe spastic society, old age homes, etc.Hospitals generally advertise in health andfitness magazines.iv) Place

The People component reflects theimportant role played by individuals in theprovision of services. People are also animportant element in the marketing mix.Service personnel play an important role inan organization which offers service. Thebehavior and att itude of the personneloffering service will influence the customer’soverall perception of the service. Customersare a source of influencing other customersby word of mouth.

It is necessary that the staffs in hospitalare trained to offer quality patient care withhuman touch using state of the art technology.The objectives of offering quality serviceto the patients can be attained by: Motivating employees to be efficient,

dedicated and loyal to the organization. Offer ing regular on-job tra ining of

employees to ensure continuousimprovement in health care.

Utilizing services of professionalcompetent medical consultants.

Use of latest technology.Motivation is not necessarily by giving

high salaries. There are many other ways tomotivate the employees. Concessions shouldbe given to the employee’s near ones. Thereshould be regular liaison with them at alltimes. Knowing what the employees in theactivities of the hospital.

In a hotel, where the clientele is happy,free from any kind of tension, the job of thestaff becomes much easier, whereas in ahospital, the staff has to cater to the needs of

sick, depressed and an agitated lot. Warmambiences with efficient and cheerful staff helpmake the experience of the public a memorableone. Therefore, it is very important that thestaff of the hospital is friendly and comforting,always wearing a smile.v) Process

Process is a set of activities that take aninput, convert it and add value to the inputand finally create an output. Process has onlyrecently been given much attention in theservice sector although it has been the subjectto study in manufacturing for many years.Processes are designed by blue a print, whichsets a standard for action to take place andto implement the service.Conclusion

Marketing is a function by which amarketer plans, promotes, and delivers goodsand services to the customers. In the servicesmarketing, the providers are supposed toinfluence and satisfy the users. When peoplebuy services offered by a service provider ina true sense, they buy the time, knowledge,skill or resources. Marketing the service ismeant marketing something intangible. It islike marketing a promise. The applicationsof marketing principles in the services sectorare the main things in the services marketing.It is the managerial process of managing theservice.Reference1. Youssef et a l. , Journal of Service

Marketing, Sep. 20102. Michal R.Bowers, “journal of Health Care

Marketing, - June 20113. Croni J.J, Taylor S.A (2010) Measuring

Service Quality, Journal of Marketing.4. Berry L.L.Parasuraman (2009) Marketing

Service.5. Website – www.healthcare-marketing.net6. Website– www.hospital services indianic. net



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EMERGING TRENDS IN AGRICULTURAL GROWTH IN INDIA - ISSUES& CHALLENGESMr.Kandula Salaiah,

Lecturer, Government Degree College,Ramannapet, Nalgonda District, A. P

ABSTRACT India is basically rural dominated country agriculture still remains a main occupation. This

agriculture sector has huge potential for growth which needs a lot of continuous investments.However, still major portion of Indian farmers are having only small lands. In the same wayurban India has also major poverty ridden region. Recent report says more than 27 percent ofurban population are living under poverty. Even though, trickledown theory effect of economicgrowth works in a long-run experts have felt need to focus on rapid inclusive growth of the poor.Despite a strong growth linkage between agriculture and other economic sectors, agriculturehas not received the required attention during the reforms period. The neglect of Agriculture andrapid growth of Non-agriculture Sector has led to serious agrarian crisis and increased disparitybetween urban and rural incomes.

Key words: Sustainable Agriculture, Inclusive Growth, Agriculture Pr ice Policy,Institutional CreditIntroduction

India is basically rural dominated countryagriculture still remains a main occupation.This agriculture sector has huge potential forgrowth which needs a lot of continuousinvestments. However, still major portion ofIndian farmers are having only small lands.In the same way urban India has also majorpoverty ridden region. Recent report saysmore than 27 percent of urban population areliving under pover ty. Even though,trickledown theory effect of economic growthworks in a long-run experts have felt need tofocus on rapid inclusive growth of the poor.Indian GDP is normally and basicallydepending on manufacturing and service

sector. More demand for manufacturing andservice sector is coming from the rural endonly. Hence, it is needed to take policydecision to increase the growth in agriculturein rural areas. If agriculture growth is rapidone, manufacturing price will be reduced andinflation will be under controlled.

At the time of independence, the shareof agriculture in total GDP was more than55 percent and about 70 percent of thepopulation was dependent on the agriculturesector for their livelihood. In the post-independence era, stagnant production, lowproductivity, traditional technology, and poorrural infrastructure were the major challengesfor the Government. Not surprisingly, food






65

self-sufficiency became a key national policygoal. To achieve this goal, agriculturaldevelopment received the highest priority andin the First Five-year Plan, about 17.5 percentof the plan outlay was allocated to agricultureand about 22 per cent to irrigation, multi-purpose ir rigation, and power projects.However, in the Second Five-year Plan, theemphasis shifted from labour-intensiveagriculture and small scale production tolarge-scale capital-intensive heavy industry.Consequently, food grains production duringthe first three Five-year Plans remainedstagnant, and India faced crisis in foodproduction.

The introduction of High YieldingVarieties (HYV) technology (commonlyknown as Green Revolution) in mid-1960syielded spectacular results and the productionof food grains increased from about 83.4million tonnes in the triennium ending 1964-65 to 104.4 million tonnes in 1971-72 (GOI,2012). Subsequently, the country which wasthreatened by hunger and high dependence onimports as late as in mid-1960s, became oneof the largest producers of many agriculturalcommodities such as rice, wheat, pulses,fruits and vegetables, etc., thus being selfsufficient in staple foods. In aggregate, thefood situation is quite favourable in thecountry and the problem of hunger is one ofaccess and income distribution rather thanshortages. Today, about 407 million peoplein India live below poverty line (GoI, 2009)and about 42 percent of all children under 5years suffer from unhealthy nutrition.

Objectives of the Study1. To review the Inclusive Growth of

Agriculture in Andhra Pradesh2. To analyse the average growth rate of

Agriculture GDP during plan periods3. To examine the challenges of Inclusive

Growth in Agriculture

MethodologyThe study is an empirical investigation

based mainly on the secondary data. It wouldbe of interest to mention a fewmethodological issues involved in the presentstudy. As a matter of fact, considering the sizeand the scale of operations, the uniformperiod for all the activities is required.However, varying period for each activity isconsidered because of non-availability ofdata. The secondary data are collected fromannual publications of the CSO, EconomicSurvey GOI & AP and other unpublishedsources. Further, simple statistical tools andtechniques such as percentages, averages areused in the study.

Inclusive Growth in Agriculture - AndhraPradesh

The objective of this paper is to examinethe challenges in some elements of inclusivegrowth in Andhra Pradesh (A.P.).The aboveproblems of exclusion in all India applies toAndhra Pradesh also. The state of A.P. wasformed by combining regions with widelydifferent endowments, historical legacies andinstitutional arrangements. The challenge ofdevelopment policy in the period subsequentto the formation of the state was to integratethese diverse units into a single economicentity and to accelerate the growth of itsproductive sectors along with the promotionof adequate opportunities to ensure broadbased participation by all sections of society.Growth may be higher in the last two decadesbut inclusive growth or equitabledevelopment has been missing. It is likerunning a train with engine only without



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connecting bogies and people to the engine.Growth r ate of GSDP increased

continuously from 1.8 percent in the 1960sto 2.8 percent in the 1970s and to 4.9 percentin the 1980s and to 5.2 percent in the 1990s.It was 5.9 percent in the First five-years ofthis decade. However, the growth of GSDPin the last ten years (1994 to 2004) was lowerat 5.8 percent as compared to 6.9 percentduring the decade 1984 to 1994. As comparedto all India, the growth rate of GSDP washigher in A.P. in the 1990s and it wasmarginally higher during 2004-05.

Growth rate in Per capita GSDP increasedsignificantly over time. It is increased from2.8 percent in the 80s to 4.32 percentduring1984-94 and to 4.3 percent during1994-2004. The growth rate in Per-capitaGSDP was slightly higher in A.P. than allIndia in the last Ten years. This high growthwas partly due to lower population growth inA.P. than all IndiaProblems & Prospects

There are three goals ofagricultural development. These are: (a)achieve 4 percent growth in agriculture andraise incomes by increasing productivity(land, labour), diversification to high valueAgriculture and rural Non-farm bymaintaining Food Security, (b) sharing growth(equity) by focusing on small and MarginalFarmers, Lagging Regions, Women etc., (c)third is to maintain Sustainability ofAgriculture by focusing on Environmentalconcerns.

There are basically, Nine (9) factorswhich need to focuses on short and mediumterms. These are: (a) Pr ice Policy, (b)Subsidies and Investments, (c) LandIssues,(d) Ir r igation and Water

Management,(e)Research, Extension andTechnology,(f) Climate Change (g) RegionalDispar it ies, (h)Small and MarginalFarmers,(i)Institutional Credit and DomesticMarket Reforms.

Price PolicyPrice policy is to protect both producers

and consumers. Currently, food securitysystem and price policy basically consists ofthree instruments: procurement pr ices/minimum support prices, buffer stocks andPublic Distribution System (PDS). There isa need to provide remunerative prices forfarmers in order to maintain food security andincrease incomes of farmers. There has beena debate on Price vs. Non-price factors in theliterature. In our view both Price and Non-pr ice factors are important in ra isingagricultural production. The cost ofcultivation is increasing due to increase ininput prices. Particularly agricultural wageshave incr eased due to National RuralEmployment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) inseveral sta tes. They want to resor t tomechanization due to labour shortages inpeak season. Farmers respond to prices asshown by increase in yields of Cotton in APand other states.

Subsidies and Investments in AgricultureOne major reform needed in agriculture

sector relates to reduction in subsidies andincrease in investments. Agr iculturalsubsidies are fiscally unsustainable andencourage misuse of resources, leading toenvironmentally malignant developments.There is Trade-off between subsidies andinvestments. Public investment declined from3.4 percent of Agriculture GDP in the early1980s to 1.9 percent in 2001-03. At the sametime subsidies increased from 2.9 percent to



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7.4 percent of Agriculture GDP (GOI, 2007).Raise in public and private investment iscrucial for enhancing agricultural growth.Fortunately, gross capital formation inagriculture has increased from 12 percent ofAgricultural GDP in 2004-05 to 14.2 percentof GDP in 2007-08. Public sector investmenthas increased significantly during this period.However, it is needed 16 percentAgricultural GDP as investment in order toget 4 percent growth in agriculture.

Land Issues Small farmers should be assisted to buy

land through the provision of institutionalcredit on a long-term basis at a low rate ofinterest and by reducing stamp duty. At thesame time, they should be enabled to enlargetheir operational holdings by liberalizing theland lease market. The two major elementsof such a reform are: security of tenure fortenants during the period of contract and theright of the land owner to resume land afterthe period of contract is over (GOI, 2007).Basically, we have to ensure land leasing,create conditions including credit, wherebythe poor can access land from those who wishto leave agriculture. There are some emergingland issues such as increase in demand forland for Non-agricultural purposes includingSpecial Economic Zones, Displacement ofFarmers, Tr ibals and others due todevelopment projects. There is a need forcareful land acquisition. Land alienation is aserious problem in tribal areas.

Irrigation and Water ManagementWater is the leading input in agriculture.

Development of ir r igation and watermanagement are crucial for raising levels ofliving in rural areas. Major areas of concernin irrigation are: decline in real investment,

thin spread of investment, low recovery ofcosts, decline in water level, wastages andinefficiencies in water use and non-involvement of users both investment andefficiency in use of water are needed. Majorareas of reforms needed in irrigation are:stepping up and pr ior it izing publicinvestment, ra ising profitability ofgroundwater exploitation and augmentingground water resources, rational pricing ofirrigation water and electricity, involvementof user farmers in the management ofirrigation systems and making groundwatermarkets equitable. Watershed developmentand water conservation by the community areneeded under water management. Newwatershed guidelines based on ParthasarathyCommittee recommendations were acceptedby the Central Cabinet in March 2009. Theimplementation has to be stepped up in orderto obtain benefits in rainfed areas. NationalRainfed Area Authority has big responsibilityin matters relating to water conservation andwatershed development. Assets created underNREGS can help in improving land and watermanagement.

Research, Extension and TechnologyThe yield growth for many crops has

declined in the 1990s. Technology plays animportant role in improving the yields. TheNational Commission on Farmers indicatesthat there is a large knowledge gap betweenthe yields in research stations and actualyields in farmer’s fields. The yield gaps givenby the Planning Commission (GOI, 2007)range from 5% to 300% depending on thecrop and State.National Food SecurityMission (NFSM) has been launched in 2007to increase 20 million tonnes of food grains(10 m.t. for rice, 8 m.t. for wheat and 2 m.t.for pulses) during the 11th plan period. It has



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already shown some results by increasingyields in different regions. There is a need tostrengthen this mission to increaseproductivity.

Climate ChangeClimate change is a reality. India has

reasons to be concerned about climate change.Vast majority of population depends onclimatic sensitive sectors like Agriculture,Forestry and Fishery for livelihood in thecountry. The adverse impact of climatechange in the form of declining rainfall andrising temperature and thus the increasedseverity of drought and flooding, wouldthreaten food security and livelihood in theeconomy. Rise in temperature would affectwheat yields. India has prepared a documentnamely the National Action Plan on ClimateChange. It provides a direction for changesat the national level.

Regional DisparitiesGrowth rates in agriculture SDP were high

for many states during the period 1984-85 to1995-96. However, growth decelerated in allthe states except Bihar during the period1995-96 to 2004-05 (GOI, 2007). Thedeceleration is the highest in the states withgreater proportion of Rain-fed areas (Gujarat,Rajasthan, M.P., Karnataka and Maharashtra).Recent experience, shows that Gujaratrecorded the highest growth of around 9percent during 2000-01 to 2007-08 .Duringthis period, six states viz., Gujarat, Rajasthan,Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh,Chhattisgarh and Bihar recoded more than 4%growth per annum. Public investment ininfrastructure like Irrigation, Power, Roads,Watersheds, Check Dams, Technology likeBT cotton and diversification in agricultureplayed crucial roles in raising agricultural

growth in Gujarat. Other states can learn fromthe experience of Gujarat. There is a need toshift rice cultivation to Eastern region fromPunjab and Haryana for growth, equity andenvironment reasons. In order to encouragethe States to invest more towards agricultureand allied sectors and to achieve 4% growthin agriculture, the government launched theRashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) in2007-08 with an outlay of Rs.25,000 Croresfor the 11 th Five-year Plan. The schemerequires the States to prepare Distr ictAgriculture Plans and provides adequateflexibili ty and autonomy to StateGovernments. The States should make use ofthis scheme to improve the agriculture sector.

Small and Marginal FarmersIt is known that more than 80 percent of

Indian farmers belong to the categories ofsmall and marginal farmers with an area shareof more than 40 percent. The support systemand policy changes have to support in raisingproductivity and incomes of the small andmarginal farmers. National Commission onEnterprises for Unorganized Sector (NCEUS,2008), suggests special programmes for smalland marginal farmers. Principal activitiesproposed under this include promotion ofMarginal Small Farmer Groups, enablinggreater access to Institutional Credit, Trainingand Capacity Building, Support forStrengthening and Non-farm Activit ies,Gender-focussed activities and Planning forDevelopment of Marginal and Small Farmers.

Institutional Credit Although, the flow of institutional credit

to agriculture sector has increased manifoldduring the last decade. There are some issuesrelated to its composition, access to small andmarginal farmers and cer ta in regions



69

particular ly the east and North-easternStates. Cooperatives, which have a strongpresence and reach in rural areas, have losttheir share from 58.3 percent in1993-94 to15.8 percent in 2010-11. The share of directinstitutional credit has declined from over 80percent in early 1990s (Pre-reforms period)to about 33 per cent in early 2000, the numberof rural branches has declined in the Post-reforms period and the definition of prioritysector lending has been diluted, all thesechanges have led to low availability of creditto farmers. The share of investment credit inthe total credit has also declined which mayadversely affect sustainable agriculturalgrowth. Therefore, policy interventions areneeded to correct these dis tor t ions/imbalances. The government has reduced costof credit to farmers (5-7 percent), which is awelcome step but it is more important toensure t imely and adequate access toinstitutional credit for the small and marginalfarmers and other weaker sections to enablethem to adopt new technology and improvedagricultural practices as less than half of thefarmers have access to institutional credit.

ConclusionDespite a strong growth linkage between

agriculture and other economic sectors,agriculture has not received the requiredattention during the reforms period. Theneglect of agriculture and rapid growth ofNon-agriculture sector has led to seriousagrarian cr isis and increased dispar itybetween urban and rural incomes. There hasbeen some revival in the recent period asagricultural GDP growth accelerated to about3.6 percent during 2007-08 to 2010-11.But,it is still below the 4.0 percent target for theEleventh Plan. High food inflation due to

increase and volatility in world prices as wellas drought in 2009 has adversely affected theinclusive growth objective.

References1. Bhalla. GS, “Globalisation and Agriculture

Policy in India”, Indian Journal ofAgricultural Economics, Vol. 50(1), 1995.

2. Bhattacharya. BB, “Trade Liberalizationand Agricultural Price Policy in Indiasince Reforms”, Indian journal ofAgricultural Economics, Vol. 50(3), 2003.

3. Mahendra dev. S, “Inclusive Growth inA.P”. Working Paper No. 71, CESS,Hyderabad, March 2007.

4. Srinivasan. N, “Profitability in Agricultureand Inclusive Growth”, NABARD,Hyderabad, Jan - March 2007.

5. Bhalla . GS & Singh, “EconomicLiberalization and Indian Agriculture”,Economic and Political Weekly, 44(52),2009.

6. Ahluwalia Montek. S, “Prospects andPolicy Challenges in the 12 th Plan”,Economic and Political Weekly, 46(21),2011.

7. Vijaypaul Sharma, “AcceleratingAgricultural Development for InclusiveGrowth: Strategic Issues and PolicyOptions”, Vikalpa, Vol. 37(1), 2012.

8. Mahendra dev. S, “Policies for RaisingAgricultural Growth and Productivity inIndia” Indira Gandhi Inst itute ofDevelopment Research, Mumbai, 2012.



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EMPLOYMENT GENERATION AND TOURISM SECTOR IN INDIADr.Pallavi. S. Kusugal,

Assistant Professor,Dr. Nagaraja. S,Assistant Professor,

Department of Studies & Research in Sociology Tumkur University, Tumkur, Karnataka

ABSTRACTTourism is term which is popularized as an instrument for employment generation, poverty

alleviation and sustainable human resource development. Tourism has been a major socialobservable fact of the all the societies. It is motivated by the natural urge of every human beingfor new experience, adventure, wellbeing, health consciousness, education and entertainment.The motivations for tourism also include social, religious and business interests also employmentopportunities. A World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) study has estimated in 2010 that thecontribution of travel and tourism to the world GDP was to the tune of 9%, whereas, its totalemployment effect was more than 235 million jobs, representing 8% of global employment. Hence,any formulation on tourism and its role in the society and economy must be rooted in duecognizance to the contribution of tourism in the development process and according its rightfulplace and position in the economic planning and programming. Tourism is important for economicdevelopment and Global solidarity. Different types of tourism are like eco-tourism, Rural Tourism,Medical Tourism, Wellness Tourism and so on. Tourism has also become an instrument forsustainable human development in poverty elimination, Environmental regeneration, Job creationand advancement of women and other disadvantage groups.

Key Words: Employment Generation, Tourism Sector, WTTCIntroduction

Tourism is termed as an instrument foremployment generation, poverty alleviationand sustainable human resource development.Tourism has been a major social observablefact of the all the societies. It is motivated bythe natural urge of every human being for newexperience, adventure, wellbeing, educationand enterta inment. The motivations fortourism also include social, religious andbusiness interests. The spread of educationhas promoted an aspiration to know more

about different parts of the world. The basichuman des ire for new exper ience andknowledge has become stronger, astechnological advances are overcomingcommunication barriers. Progress in airtransport and development of tourist facilitieshas encouraged people to venture out to theforeign lands. Tourism’s coined itsimportance, as an instrument for economicdevelopment and employment generation,particularly in remote and backward areas,rural areas has been well recognized the






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world over. That’s reason only rural tourismpopularizing and got much share in Economicdevelopment. Tourism gaining morepopularity in world over, there has been focusin recent years on rural tourism and ecotourism. The properly planned, developed andmanaged tour ism can change the livingstandards of the local people, by supportingthe conservation of natural ecosystem andpeople.

It is the largest service industry globallyin terms of gross revenue as well as foreignexchange earnings. Tourism can play animportant and effective role in achieving thegrowth with equity objectives, which we haveset for ourselves. Tourism is one economicsector in India that has the potential to growat a high rate and can ensure consequentialdevelopment of the infrastructure at thedestinations. It has the capacity to capitalizeon the country’s success in the services sectorand provide sustainable models of growth.

Tourism sector’s contribution in creatinga global and regional socio-polit icalenvironment for peaceful co-existence of thecultures and societies has been equallyestablished at various levels. This realizationtook many advocators to position tourism asone of the biggest ‘peace industries’, a meansto strike equilibrium of global peace processthough development. Because, tour ismpracticed in responsible and sustainablemanner bring about the peace and prosperityof the people and that its stakeholders sharebenefits in fair manner, which is a necessarycondition for the equilibrium of sharing tosustain.

The appreciation of key role of tourism indevelopment and global harmony is helpfulin recent years. The U.N systems have beenwell on record about the growing significance

of tourism, which can be traced back to the1980s. The la test being the candidendorsement of U.N Secretary General whowent on to state as precursor to his WorldTourism Day 2011 message is that “tourism’sability to generate socio-economicopportunities and help reducing the gapbetween rich and poor is more important thanever”. This statement attains significance inthe face of the economic crisis in recenttimes. Hence, any formulation on tourism andits role in the society and economy must berooted in due cognizance to the contributionof tourism in the development process andaccording its rightful place and position inthe economic planning and programming.

Objectives of this paper to study:1. Contribution of tourism sector to Indian

Economy2. Employment generation by tourism sector

Methodology:This paper mainly based on secondary

data. The data’s are collected from Journals,various reports of Government and researchinstitutes.

Tourism sector and Indian economy:Tourism is an important mechanism in the

socio-economic development in the moderntimes, contributing in various ways andstrengthen the inter-connected processes.This sector often reveal as solution for manyproblems such as underdevelopment,unemployment, poverty eradication, socialdiscrimination, ill health and so on; itscontribution in creating a global and regionalsocio-political environment for peaceful co-existence of the cultures and societies hasbeen equally established at various levels.The travel and tourism industry has evolved



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to become one of the largest and mostdynamic industries of the global economy. AWorld Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC)study has est imated in 2010 that thecontribution of travel and tourism to the worldGDP was to the tune of 9%, whereas, its totalemployment effect was more than 235 millionjobs, representing 8% of global employment.Table No 1 shows the total contribution ofTravel and Tourism sector to the economicdevelopment, during 2011 and it mightchange in 2021.Employment generation and Tourismsector:

Tourism sector is important factor increating employment generation. If weconsider employment generation in 2011, thesectors’ direct contribution worked out to be5% and the total effects- direct and indirecttogether- to stand at 7.5% in the country’stotal employment pie. Respective figuresmight rise to 5.2% and 8.1% by 2021 and suchprospects need to be taken as an importantindicator for concerted policy interventionsand programming for tourism sector. Because,as already established, the sector has a keyrole to play in the eradication of poverty andunderdevelopment by way of creatingemployment and income opportunities formillions of the marginal and less empoweredsections across the country.Table No 1: Employment Generation through Tourism

in India (In Million)

Year Total Employment (in million)2002-03* 38.6

2003-04** 41.82004-05** 44.72005-06** 47.82006-07** 51.1

Table 1 gives the employment generation

by Tourism Sector in the year 2002-03 totalemployment was 38.6 million, which wasincreased by 51.1million in 2006-07. Thistable clearly shows the Tourism sectorplaying vita l role in Human resourcedevelopment through employmentgeneration.

Conclusion:India has tremendous potentia l for

development of Tourism Diversity of India’snatural and cultural richness provided thebasis for a wide range of Tourist productsand experiences, which embraces business,leisure, culture, adventure, spirituality, eco-tourism and many other pursuits. Tourism isimportant for economic development andGlobal solidarity. Different types of tourismare like eco-tourism, Rural Tourism, MedicalTourism, Wellness Tourism and so on.Tourism has also become an instrument forsustainable human development in povertyelimination, Environmental regeneration,Job creation and advancement of women andother disadvantage groups.

References:· Kurukshetra , Special Issue on Rural

Tourism, A Journal Of RuralDevelopment, Ministry of RuralDevelopment, Government of India ,Vol.60, No.7, May 2012

· Report of Indian Institute of travel &tourism management (IITTM) (2011),organization of Ministry of Tourism,Government of India, New Delhi

· Report of Depar tment of Tourism,Government of Karnataka, Bangalore

· The Steering Committee On Tourism for theEleventh Five-Year Plan (2007-2012),Government of India, New Delhi



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A STUDY ON AWARENESS OF HIGHER SECONDARY STUDENTSABOUT THE WORLD THREATENING VIRAL DISEASES

K.Vijaya RaniAssistant Professor

B.KamalakannanM.Ed Scholar,

J.J. College Of Education, Trichy.

ABSTRACTViruses are a very common type of infectious disease. Many of the most common human diseases

are viral. There are literally hundreds of types of viral conditions. Viruses are the smallest life-form existing, since they are not even a single cell. It is almost like they are not alive at all. Theyare small strands of DNA-like cell material. A virus consists mostly of RNA and cannot survivewithout host cells.

Key words: Infectious disease, Human diseases, DNA, Host Cells

IntroductionA viral infection is any type of illness or

disease caused by a virus, a type of microbe.Microbes are tiny organisms that cannot beseen without a microscope and includebacteria, fungi, and some parasites, as wellas viruses. A viral infection occurs when avirus enters the body through such processesas breathing air contaminated with a virus,eating contaminated food, or by havingsexual contact with a person who is infectedwith a virus. Common symptoms of a viralinfection include fatigue, flu-like symptomsand fever. However, some people are at riskfor developing serious complications of viralinfection. There are many types of virusesthat cause a wide variety of viral infectionsor viral diseases. The Epstein-Barr virus andthe cytomegalovirus cause infectiousmononucleosis. A complete blood count

measures the numbers of different types ofblood cells, including white blood cells(WBCs). Different types of WBCs increasein number in characteristic ways during aninfectious process, such as viral infection. Aculture test may also be performed. Commonsamples tested with a culture include thosefrom the throat, blood, and sputum from thelungs. The sample of CSF is tested for whiteblood cells and other indications of viralinfection that may be in the spine or brain,such as viral meningitis. It is possible that adiagnosis of viral infection can be missed ordelayed because some symptoms, such asfever, headache, nausea and vomiting, aresimilar to symptoms of other diseases.

Need For This StudyOur environment is threatened due to

many hazards .Viral, Bacterial, Fungal, are






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on increase causing diseases of humanpopulations which in turn results in manyproblems. Therefore, there is a great need toprotect diseases preserve our humanpopulation .The role of students would go along way in achieving such a desired goals.Hence including an awareness of diseasesamong students is the responsibility ofteachers and to carry out this noble task, theinvestigator has chosen this work.

Statement Of the ProblemThe problem of the study is stated as “A

STUDY ON AWARENESS OF HIGHERSECONDARY STUDENTS’ ABOUT THEWORLD THREATENING VIRALDISEASES”.

Objectives1. To find the level of Awareness among the

higher secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases.

2. To find the level of Awareness among thehigher secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toGender.

3. To find the level of Awareness amonghigher secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toLocality.

4. To find the level of Awareness amonghigher secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toTypes of Management.

5. To find the significance of differencebetween Male & Female students of XIstandard with regard to their Awarenessabout world threatening viral diseases.

6. To find the significance of differencebetween Rural & Urban students of XIstandard with regard to their Awareness

about world threatening viral diseases.7. To find the significance of difference

between Government & Aided studentsof XI standard with regard to theirAwareness about world threatening viraldiseases.

Hypotheses1. The level of Awareness of higher

secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases is average.

2. The level of Awareness of highersecondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toGender is average.

3. The level of Awareness of highersecondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toLocality is average

4. The level of Awareness of highersecondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases with regard toTypes of Management is average.

5. There is no significant difference betweenMale & Female students of XI standardwith regard to their Awareness aboutworld threatening viral diseases.

6. There is no significant difference betweenUrban & Rural students of XI standardwith regard to their Awareness aboutworld threatening viral diseases.

7. There is no significant difference betweenGovernment &Aided students of XIstandard with regard to their Awarenessabout world threatening viral diseases.

Methodology

Preparation of the ToolThe inves tigator perused the tools

available in the market. Some of the tools



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are available for this “Awareness of HigherSecondary Students about World ThreateningViral Diseases”. However as the tools werestandardized on a different population theinvestigator has decided to prepare andvalidate her own tool.

Statistical Techniques UsedThe investigator has planned to make use of· Percentage Analysis· Differential Analysis

Hypothesis 1The level of Awareness of higher

secondary students about world threateningviral diseases is average.

Table - 4.1 Awareness of higher secondarystudents about world threatening viraldiseases

From the table, it is inferred that 45 % ofhigher secondary students about worldthreatening viral diseases is average.

Hypothesis 2 The level of Awareness of higher

secondary students about world threateningviral diseases with regard to Gender is average.

Table4.2 Awareness of higher secondarystudents about world threatening viraldiseases with regard to Gender

A large percentage of higher secondarymale & female students fall under averagecategory of Awareness of world threateningviral diseases.

Hypothesis 3The level of Awareness of higher secondary

students about world threatening viral diseaseswith regard to Locality is average

Table 4.3 Awareness of higher secondarystudents about world threatening viraldiseases with regard to Locality

A large percentage of higher secondaryrural & urban students fall under averagecategory of Awareness of world threateningviral diseases.

Hypothesis 4The level of Awareness of higher

secondary students about world threateningviral diseases with regard to Types ofManagement is average.

Table 4.4 Awareness of higher secondarystudents about world threatening viraldiseases with regard to Types ofManagement

A large percentage of higher secondarygovernment & aided students fall underaverage category of Awareness of worldthreatening viral diseases.



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Hypothesis 5There is no significant difference between

Urban & Rural students of XI standard withregard to their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases.Table 4 .5 Difference between Urban &Rural students of XI standard with regardto their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases

As the calculated ‘t’ value 2.910 is greaterthan the table value 1.97 at 5% level ofsignificance for degree of freedom 298, thestated hypothesis is rejected

Hypothesis6There is no significant difference between

Urban & Rural students of XI standard withregard to their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases.

Table 4.6 Difference between Urban &Rural students of XI standard with regardto their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases

As the calculated ‘t’ value 1.575 is lessthan the table value 1.97 at 5% level ofsignificance for degree of freedom 298, thestated hypothesis is accepted.

Hypothesis 7There is no significant difference between

Government &Aided students of XI standardwith regard to their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases

Table 4.7 Difference between Government&Aided students of XI standard withregard to their Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases

As the calculated ‘t’ value 3.406 isgreater than the table value 1.97 at 5% levelof significance for degree of freedom 298,the stated hypothesis is rejected.

Findings1. The Awareness of Higher Secondary

Students about world threatening viraldiseases is found to be average.

2. The Awareness of higher Secondary Male& Female students about worldthreatening viral diseases found to beaverage.

3. The Awareness of Higher Secondary rural& urban students about world threateningviral diseases found to be average.

4. The Awareness of higher secondarygovernment &aided students about worldthreatening viral diseases is found to beaverage.

5. It is found that female students (X= 22.93)are better than male students (x=20.72)with regard to Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases.

6. It is found that urban students (X=22.46)



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are better than rural; students (x=21.25)with rega rd Awareness about worldthreatening viral diseases.

7. It is found that Aided students (X= 23.27)are better than government students(X=20.68) with regard awareness aboutworld threatening viral diseases.

RecommaendationsBased on the findings and discussion, the

investigator would like to recommend thefollowing to develop disease awarenessamong high school students.1. World health day should be celebrated in

the schools by conducting competitions,processions etc. The winner should beawarded properly at the end of function.This will certainly increase the students’participation and develop the diseaseawareness.

2. Teacher should insist the students to keepthe disease information waste separately.This sort of action will increase theknowledge related to disease awareness.

3. Environment clubs and Eco Clubs shouldbe established in the schools. These clubsshould organize exhibitions regardingdisease awareness. All the students shouldbe invited to present their articles, thingsin the exhibition.

4. Health club should have close contact withthe social welfare agencies like NGO,Lions Club and conduct Disease awarenessprogramme to the public in general andstudents in particular.

5. Seminar, debates, group discussion andessay competitions on ill effects of diseasemay be conducted in schools.

6. Health education should become anintegral part of science education.

ConclusionThis process of viral infection results in a

variety of symptoms that vary in character andseverity depending on the type of viral infectionand individual factors. National policy oneducation of 1986 stresses the importance ofhealth education and lays down that it is veryimportant to create disease awareness in allpeople’s right from a child to an old person, anddisease awareness should spread all sections ofthe society. In the current context, it is veryessen t ial for each individual to developawareness about profession and preservation ofdiseases.

References1. International Committee on Taxonomy of

Viruses. “The Universal Virus Database,version 4: Influenza A”. h t tp: / /www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ICTVdb/ICTVdB/00.046.0.01.htm.

2. “Swine influenza”. The Merck VeterinaryManual. 2008. ISBN 1442167424. http://w w w. m e r c k v e t m a n u a l . c o m / m v m /i n d ex . j sp?c fi l e = h t m / bc/ 1214 07 . h t m .Retrieved April 30, 2009.

3. Heinen PP (15 September 2003). “Swineinfluenza: a zoonosis”. Veterinary SciencesTomorrow. ISSN 1569-0830. h t tp: / /www.vetscite.org/publish/articles/000041/print.html. “Influenza B and C viruses arealmost exclusively isola ted from man,although influenza C virus has also beenisolated from pigs and influenza B hasrecently been isolated from seals.”.

4. Bouvier NM, Palese P (September 2008).“The biology of influenza viruses”. Vaccine26 Suppl 4: D49–53. PMID 19230160.

5. Kimura H, Abiko C, Peng G, et al. (April1997). “Interspecies transmission of influenzaC virus between humans and pigs”. VirusResearch 48 (1): 71–9. doi:10.1016/S0168-1702(96)01427-X. PMID 9140195.

6. Thiel V (editor). (2007). Coronaviruses:Molecular and Cellular Biology (1st ed.).Caister Academic Press.ISBN [[Special:BookSources/978-1-904455-16-5] |978-1-904455-16-5]]]. h t tp: / /www.horizonpress.com/cor.



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SOCIO ECONOMIC ANALYSIS ON INHABITANTS OF WESTERN GHATSWITH REFERNCE TO TAMILNADU

Dr. M. Nazer,Associate Professor & Ph. D. Research Advisor,

PG & Research Department of Commerce, Khadir Mohideen College,Adirampattinam, Thanjavur District - 614 701.

MS. Mariam JenabharGuest Lecturer & Ph.D Research Scholar,

Department of Business Administration, Alagappa Govt. Arts College,Karaikudi, Sivagangai District- 630 003.

ABSTRACT The study is an exploratory study that focuses on various reports and secondary data

gathered on socio economic conditions of inhabitants living in western Ghats. The socialparameters that are analysed are ‘Education’, ‘Living standard’, ‘Health care’, ‘ Safety’, ‘ Crimerate’ and ‘ Political involvement’. The economic factors analysed were ‘Wage and salary’ , ‘Wealth and Property’, ‘ Savings and Investments’, ‘ Loans and borrowings’ and ‘ Welfare schemesby governments’. The study was able to gather socio economic issues and problems and alsovarious means through which the issues could be addressed. The study would contribute to anywelfare planning for the inhabitants of western Ghats forest in Tamilnadu.

Keywords : Living standard, Health care, Safety, Crime rate, Political involvement.

Introduction The positioning makes the Western

Ghats biologically rich and biogeographicallyunique - a ver itable treasure house ofbiodiversity. Though covering an area of180,000 square kilometres, or just under 6%of the land area of India, the Western Ghatscontain more than 30% of all plant, fish,herpeto-fauna, bird, and mammal speciesfound in India. Many species are endemic,such as the Nilgir i tahr (Hemitragushylocrius) and the Lion-tailed macaque(Macaca silenus), in fact 50% of India’s

amphibians and 67% of fish species areendemic to this region. The region has aspectacular assemblage of large mammalsaround 30% of the world’s Asian elephant(Elephas maximus ) population and 17% ofthe world’s existing tigers (Panthera tigris)call this area their home. Protection for theseis extended through several nationallysignificant wildlife sanctuar ies, t igerreserves, and national parks. The WesternGhats include a diversity of ecosystemsranging from tropical wet evergreen foreststo montane grasslands containing numerous






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medicinal plants and important geneticresources such as the wild relatives of grains,fruit and spices.

Tribes in western ghats The profiles of some of the major

tribes of the Western Ghats are as follows:The Tribes of the Nilgiris: Before the

British opened up the high pastures of theNilgiris in 1818 to the western civilisation,they were the preserve of four tribes: TheKotas, who gave their name to Kotagiri, madetools and music; the Badagas, who cultivatedthe land, the forest dwelling Kurumbas whocollected honey and wood and also performedsorcery; and the Todas, who with their herdsof sacred buffalo, provided milk and ghee.

The Todas : The Todas have uniquetraditions revolving around their buffalo andtheir temples, which are dairies. Unlike theirneighbours on the plains, in feature or build,they are tall athletic and well-proportion builtand variously described as being Italian,Mesopotamean, Arabic or Jewish origin.Today there are about 60 Toda settlementsaround Ooty.

The Soligas: The forest regions ofYelandur, Chamarajnagar, Nanjangud andKollegal which include Biligiri Rangaswamyand Malai Mahadeshwara hill ranges in thesouthern part of Karnataka are inhabited bynearly 20,000 indigenous people calledSoligas. The Soligas have co-existed with theforest for centuries in quiet harmony. Thoughprimarily semi-nomadic, in recent years withthe imposition of forest regulations, theSoligas have taken to more or less sedentaryexistence in small forest villages called podusor doddi or hadi.

Halakki Vokkals: They are confined tothe coastal talukas of Uttara Kannada district

of Karnataka. They are agriculturist living onfarm lands located at the outskirts of townsthat are sandwiched between the WesternGhats on the east and the expanse of theArabian sea to the west. 75,000 Halakkis livein Koppas under direct control of theircommunity heads.

The Siddis: The Siddis are thedescendants of African Negroes, who werebrought to India mainly by Arabs, thePortugese and the Dutch. They are chieflyfound in the forest areas of Ankola,Mundgod, Haliyal and Yellapur taluks.

Tribals of Wayanad : Wayanad districtis predominently a tribal district and themajor tribes are : Paniya, Adiya, Kuruchiya,Kathinayaka and Kuruma tribes. The Paniya,a major tribal community in Kerala live inthe hills of Wayanad. The headman of Paniyasettlement is called Kuttan, and the head ofthe family is Mudali. The Paniya priestChemmi wields authority over a group ofsettlements.

The Adiyas: The slave tribes and thecommunity is divided into subgroups calledthe mandu. The headman of the Mandu iscalled Peruman.

The Kattunayakans: This is a primitivetribe and the Kattunayakans literally live injungles and are mainly engaged In collectingforest produce and honey. They do not minglewith other tribes. The headman is calledMuthan whose decisions are always final.

The Kuruchiyans: The Kuruchiyans arean agricultural tribal community and they areexcellent archers who joined Pazhassi Rajain fight against British. They live in smallthough clean houses and do not encouragedrinking alcohol except on festive occasions.

The Kuruma: The Kuruma tribals are



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supposed to be the original inhabitants ofWayanad. They are also good archers and hadjoined Pazhassi Raja in his fight against theBritish.

The proportion of people classified asscheduled tribes is less than 5% in the fourbiodiversity rich states viz Goa, Karnataka,Kerala and Tamil Nadu. In fact the populationclassified as scheduled tribes in the states ofGoa, Tamil Nadu and Kerala is hardly 1%.

Bhils are considered to be amongst theoldest settlers in the country. They derive theirname from the Dravidian word Billu, whichmeans bow. Bhils are thus seen with bow andarrow which is their traditional weapon. Theylive in isolation, go for hunting, fishing,practice shifting cultivation and have escapedto a large extent the influence of Brahmania(upper caste) culture.

Warli Tribe has become famous becauseof their traditional folk painting art. TheWarlis are mainly residents of Thane districtof Maharashtra spread out in the villages ofDahanu, Talasari, Mokhada, Vada, Palgharaand extends up to the Gujarat border.

Two groups of tribes, Muthuvans and HillPulayas, inhabit the sanctuary in 11 hamletsor kudies. The life world of the two tribalcommunities are very different. The Sanctuaryprovides the livelihood options for the tribesand helps in maintaining their culturalheritage. All along the Western Ghats in fivestates, there are lakhs of tribal people whohave made their homes in the ghats. TheThodas of Nilgiris, Soligas of BR Hills,Malekudiyas of Belthangady, Halakki Vokkalsof Uttara Kannada, the Sidhis of Kumta,Paniyas of Waynad, Kattunayakans ofMalabar and many others in Goa andMaharashtra are some of them.

Social conditions of Tribes in westernghats- Tamilnadu

The tribal people’s lives in Tamilnadu getshattered by a nexus of police, the forestdepartment,politicians and smugglers. Theirbasic human rights are cynically violated.Despite being protected by law againstencroachment into tr ibal ar eas, landalienation is increasingly becoming an issuein tribal areas. Their right to preserve andenjoy their cultural heritage in harmony withnature is severely threatened by the processof modernization and economic growth.“There are 36 Tribes and the population asper 1991 Census is 5.74 lakhs, representing1.03% of the Tamil population...” The majortribes in Tamilnadu are Malayali, Toda,kurumba, Paniya, Irular, Kattunayakkan,Kani, Palliyan, Sholagar, Kadar and Veddar.Most of the tribal communities are small insize and the exceptions are Malaiali andIrular tribes. Majority of the tribal populationin Tamilnadu live in hilly ranges viz., EasternGhats, Western Ghats and the discontinuoushill tracts adjoining the plains and the hills.These tr ibals live in forests. Irular inKancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts forman exception to this general trend and arefound to live in the plains. The basic humanrights of tribals in Tamilnadu are cynicallyviolated. Land alienation is increasinglybecoming a major issue in tribal areas(Tamilnadu Social Development Report2000). The literacy levels of Tribals VS NonTribals in tamilnadu were recorded andprojected as ST : 1971 ( 9.02%) ,1981(20.46%), 1991 (23.35) 2001 ( 26%)and 2011(30 %). Non SC/ST : 1971 (43.58%) , 1981(51.01%), 1991 (58.27)2001 ( 65%) and 2011(72 %). Women ST :



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1971 ( 4.48%) , 1981(14%), 1991 (16.94)2001 ( 19%) and 2011(22.5 %).Non-SC/STwomen : 1971 (30.47%) , 1981(39.04 %),1991 ( 48.57%) , 2001 (56%) and 2011(64%).The health care facilities and sanitation levelof Tribes could be indexed as 1971( 14%),1981(19%), 1991 ( 23%), 2001(28%) and2011 (35%). The safety level of Tribes couldbe indexed as 1971( 20%), 1981(27%), 1991(33%), 2001(39%) and 2011 (45%). Thecrime rate among Tribes could be indexed as1971( 12%), 1981(14%), 1991 (12%),2001(15%) and 2011 (14%). The politicalpowers of Tribes could be indexed as 1971 (6 %), 1981(11%), 1991 (17%), 2001(23%)and 2011 (35%).

There are many positive changesin the lifestyle, customs, culture and practicesof Tribes. The cultural diffusion and reach ofmedia, education, cultural exchanges and alsolegal regulations have forced the tribes tochange and restructure their norms, customsand traditional practices.

Economic value of forest produces ofwestern Ghats in Tamilnadu

Western ghats has been the richsource of bio diversity. The forest area issuitable for many plantations like Rubber,Tea,Coffee(Coorg), Bamboo, Banana andEucalyptus. The timber obtained from varioustrees has been a dominant contributor ofeconomic contribution of western Ghats.Medicinal herbs and trees are abundant inwestern ghats and the value of these medicinalplants has been very good. More than 200million people are directly dependant onforests for their livelihoods. The Indiangovernment’s national forest policy supportsthe promotion of a community based forestmanagement approach (CBFM) for

conservation, which allows communities toshare the benefits. A World Bank study foundthat the total forest income from Joint ForestManagement areas from commercial timber,bamboo and non timber forest products couldrise from US$ 222 million in 2004 to US$ 2billion in 2020. India is likely to face severeimbalances in supply and demand of wooddue to inadequate supply of wood fromdomestic sources. The small holders can playa major role in providing sustainable woodand non wood forest products, if suitableincentives are ensured. In this regard,promotion of forest certification is relevant.

In the Kotagiri area, there have also beenchanges in the rituals carried out during resinharvest and in who was tradit ionallypermitted to harvest resin. For example, theKurumbas related that in the past it was onlythe priest—after keeping himself rituallyclean for a period of time—who started theresin harvest rituals, and only he was allowedto harvest the resin. However, this is nolonger the case today.The grades of resinproduced by the different villages variedgreatly

The major issues in economiccontribution of western ghats are 1. Overexploitation of natural resources 2. Not ableto avoid procurement losses 3. Poor storageand processing facilit ies 4 . Lack ofinfrastructure 5. Lack of professionalmanagement 6. Corruption and legalviolations 7.Inability to monitor efficiently8. Exploitation by agents and middlemen 9.Not much value addition done in the product,in most cases marketed in raw form and 10.Lack of integrated planning.

The natural calamities and inability topreserve the valuables often impact thesummated economic value of produces in



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western Ghats. Rainfall, floods, erosion andlandslide were able to affect the quantity andquality of natural resources. Inability tomaintain bio diversity and also inability to plana sustainable strategy with an assurance for biodiversity were costly and were able to influencethe economic value of western Ghats.

Economic status of Household tribals ofwestern Ghats in Tamilnadu

There are 3 to 4 lakhs of Tribal peopledirectly depend on western ghats in tamilnadu.Plantation activities, Honey collection andother Non timber produces from the forest.The living standards of these dependents hasbeen improving for the past 3 decades. Thereare many initiatives taken to safeguard theincome and living conditions of these people.Poor infrastructure and lack of marketingsupport have affected their financialprosperity. Many schemes don’t reach thembecause of poor implementation andprevailing corruption in large scale.

Information on NWFP collection, sellingand prices was obtained from households.Income from commercial NWFPs wascalculated at the prices offered by the LAMPSto collectors. Income for subsistence NWFPswas based on surrogate prices, where valueswere inferred from prices of a lternativeclosely-related goods. For wild tubers andgreens, prices of their nearest substitutes wereconsidered for valuation; thus the price ofwild tubers was based on the price of potatoor sweet potato at the local market, and thatof greens on that of traded greens such asAmaranthus. Income from shoots, fuelwoodand fish was computed from the local marketpr ice. Labour earnings f rom wageemployment were calculated by multiplyingthe number of days worked by the wage rate.

Number of days of wage employment andwage-rates for various wage activities wereprovided by the household members.

The wage and salary were recorded andprojected as ST : 1971 ( 14.5%) ,1981(17%), 1991 (23%) 2001 ( 26%)and 2011(32 %). Non SC/ST : 1971 ( 16.5%), 1981(21 %), 1991 (27%) 2001 ( 33 %)and 2011 (37 %). The savings were recordedand projected as ST : 1971 (2.5%) ,1981(4.0%), 1991 (6 %) 2001 (7.5 %)and 2011(8.5 %). Non SC/ST : 1971 ( 3.5%)1981(6 %), 1991 (9%) 2001 ( 11.5 %)and 2011 (15%). The investments made,mostly on lending, gold, land, animals andtools and Food grains. The var iousinvestments made by them shall be recordedas ST : 1971 ( 1%) , 1981(2%), 1991(3.5%) 2001 (6%) and 2011(7.5%). NonSC/ST : 1971 ( 3%) , 1981(6.5 %), 1991(9%) 2001 ( 12.5 %) and 2011 (15 %). Theproperty and wealth are in many cases land,homes, animals, machinery, Gold, vehicles,etc. The property and wealth recorded as ST :1971 ( 100 %) , 1981(85.5%), 1991 (75%)2001 ( 80 %) and 2011(70 %). Non SC/ST :1971 ( 100%) , 1981(95 %), 1991 (105%)2001 ( 120 %) and 2011 (115 %).Theeffectiveness of welfare schemes by state andcentral government are recorded as ST : 1971( 10 %) , 1981(15%), 1991 (18%) 2001 (22 %) and 2011(26 %). Non SC/ST : 1971 (4%) , 1981(6 %), 1991 (9%) 2001 ( 12%)and 2011 (14 %). It could be noted that theeconomic situations and also investmentoptions for the tribes are very narrow.However the migrants from these areas tovarious other parts of state and also the peoplewho come to towns and cities for educationwere able to contribute to the development ofthe tribes and the area they stay.



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Conclusion and recommendationsThe study recommends integrated plan by

the state and central government in ensuringbasic facilities, infrastructure, safety, Income,better lifestyle and culture. The variousschemes announced by the government is notreaching the deserved tribes. The marketingof forest produces would ensure better incomeand elimination of middlemen and no valueadded middlemen would ensure betterprofirability. The prevention against naturalcalamities has to be given at most importance.Development in the field of education,healthcare, safety, information sharing,cultural interactions, involvement andinclusion in the policy making regarding forestdevelopment would ensure better socioeconomic conditions for the inhabitants. Manystorage and processing units shall be arrangedto ensure employment opportunities in thoseareas. Improvement in the infrastructurefacilities like Telecommunication, Electricity,Roads, Hospitals, Educational Institutions andBanks would improve the socio economicconditions of the tribes staying in the area.Most of the government records, ration cards,Community cer t ificates and otherauthorization of identity and community ismissing in many areas. Government shouldensure proper distribution of such essentialidentities. Toursim development, Powergeneration and a forestation efforts should berestricted. Minimum living conditions shouldbe given. Employability training andimprovement in education should be given toeveryone, especially women. The tribes shouldbe brought in to governance also.

References· Abeygunawardena, P & wikramasinghe,A. (1992),

‘An Economic evaluation of non-timber productsof Hantana Forest, paper presented at the Workshop

on Methods for Social Science Research on Non-Timber Forest Products’ , May 18 -20, 1992,Bangkok,Thailand.

· Alibaba, Md: Subba rao, D.V., & Vasudev, n.(2000), ‘Economics of minor forest products inAdilabad district (Andhra Pradesh)’, Indian Journalof Agricultural Economics,55(3): 451-452.

· Anonymous, (1985). ‘Tarzan of Keralai primeralforests’, Indian Express, 53 (314).

· Arnold, J.E.M. & Perez, M.R. (2001), ‘ Can non-timber forest products match tropical forestconservat ion and developmen t objectives?Ecological Economics 39 (3):437-447.

· Belcher, B.M., (2003) ‘ International ForestryReview’, 5(2), 65p.

· Centre for Indian Studies, ‘ Interdisciplinaryconference’, Mysore, India, and 17–19 October2003

· Chakravarty, & Verma, R. (1991), ‘Marketing ofminor forest products in tribal

· sub-plan area through co-operatives in Rajastan’,Indian Jou rnal of Agricu lturaleconomics,71(282):311-320

· DFID (Department for International Development),(2007). Securing livelihoods in India’s tribal areas.

· Ganapathy, M.S. (1998) , ‘ Collection andmarketing of non_timber forest products –A studyin Kollegal taluk of Karnataka.’ , MSc thesis,University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore.

· Gubbi, & Macmillan, (2008), ‘ Can non-timberforest products solve livelihood problems? A casestudy from Periyar Tiger Reserve India-WildlifeConservation Society-India program’, Centre forWildlife Studies, 1669, 31st Cross, 16th Main,Banashankari 2nd Stage, Bengalooru 560 082,India and Durrell Institute ofConservation andEcology, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NR,Kent, UK.

· Manjula., (1991), ‘Participation of tribal womenin agriculture’ , M.Sc. (Agri.) thesis, TNAU,Coimbatore.

· Martin, A. (1999), ‘Background to Western Ghatsof Karnataka’, De Montfort University, Leicester,UK, Ministry of Stat istics and ProgrammeImplementation, Government of India, 2008 –Available at http://www.indiastat.com/

· Mishra, S. (2007), ‘Household livelihood andcoping mechanism during drought among OraonTribe of Sundargarh District of Orissa’, India J.Soc. Sci., 15(2): 181-186.



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OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION IN PUDUCHERRYV. Ganeshkumar,

Ph. D Full Time Research ScholarsDr. C. Paramasivan,

Assistant Professor & Research SupervisorPG & Research Department of Commerce, Periyar E. V. R. College, Trichy – 23, Tamil Nadu

ABSTRACTEvery man needs certain amount of money to meet their requirements and in some cases; men

need money to meet his basic needs life food, shelter, cloth etc. This is the basic concept of thehuman begins to earn up to the maximum level and save up to sufficient level. In this regardsbanking industries performed well and concentrated in all the walk of human beings. In India,banking sector have an old age concept and involve long evolutionally history since 1850’s. Nowit has diversified into commercial banks, development banks, investment banks etc. Commercialbanks are well known institutions which are closely associated with the socio-economicdevelopment of the nation. In this regard, Financial Inclusion play a key role in the field of ruraldevelopment and how it can be implemented effectively through Indian Bank in the selected districtis study in this research. This study focus on operational efficiency of financial inclusion inPuducherry

Key words: Inclusive growth, Financial inclusion, Borrowers, Banking services.

IntroductionFinancial inclusion is an innovative

concept which makes alternative techniquesto promote the banking habits of the ruralpeople because, India is considered as largestrural people consist in the world. Financialinclusion is aimed at providing banking andfinancial services to all people in a fair,transparent and equitable manner a taffordable cost. Households with low incomeoften lack access to bank account and haveto spend time and money for multiple visitsto avail the banking services, be it opening asavings bank account or availing a loan. These

families find it more difficult to save and toplan financially for the future. Thus, theunbaked public is largely cut off from theBanking products/services. It is the endeavorof the Bank to provide the basic bankingfacility of SB a/c’s to all the unbanked.

Statement of the ProblemSocial & Economic position, low-income

people normally do not feel the need to bankas the transaction carried out by them ismostly in cash that too with low amount.Secondly, many times people do not want todisclose the information which would berequired for accessing any financial service.






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Thirdly, poor people, mostly, do not have anyidentification/introduction, which is acceptedby banks to open an account (or) access otherfinancial services. Fourthly, lack ofunderstanding of financial services and theoperations to be carr ied out is a lso ahindrance. Fifthly, poor people do not havemuch absorptive capacity for all the financialservices. Need for different financial services.Finally, the spread of customers is very thinwhich makes the operation of reaching out tothem a costly affair.

Objectives1. To identity the financial inclusion on

purpose of opening account in Puducherry

Hypotheses1. There is no significant relationship among

the respondents of differ ent socioeconomic profile to level of interest inlocal financial services.

2. There is no significant relationship amongthe respondents belongs to different socio-economic profile to under bankingservices.

MethodologyThis study is an empirical one. The data

and other information required for the studywere collected from both pr imary andsecondary sources. Pr imary data werecollected from the no frill account holdersdirectly, using a structured interview scheduleand the secondary data were collected fromvarious sources of books, journal, articles,magazines and related web sites informationfrom retailers Other information pertinent tothe study has been collected by means ofinterviews and discussions with theGovernment officia ls and Indian BankJournals Office.

Sampling DesignThere are 23 Public Sector Banks, 13

Private Sector Banks, 1 Co-operative Banks,and 1 Regional Rural Banks in operation inPuducherry as on March 2012. In order tocollect primary data for the purpose of thestudy, multi-stage sampling technique isadapted. At the first stage, 7 banks whichoutnumber in number of branches wereselected out of the 38 banks. In the secondstage, 5 per cent of the branches i.e 125branches were selected out of the 7 selectedbanks. In the final stages, from each of thebranch 80 no frill accounts holders wereselected on the purposive basis. Therefore,the sample size consists of 500 respondents,of the following table shows the samplingdistribution of the present study.

Period of studyThe primary data required for the study

was collected dur ing the month ofDecember-2012 from no frill account holdersin the Puducherry.

Table 1: Gender Vs of Household AccountsHo: there is no relationship between

gender and household accounts of therespondents and financial services related

Source: Primary Data. (2012).

Household Account between Genders

The calculated chi square value is (71.616)greater than the table value (11.341) at 1 per



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cent level of significance, the test issignification; Therefore, there is significantrelationship between different householdaccounts which gender used in Puducherry.Therefore, the null hypothesis is (Ho1)rejected. There, the male respondents arehighly in number of house holders inPuducherry.

Table 2: Age Vs of Household AccountHo: There is no relationship between age

and household account of the respondents andfinancial service related


Household Account between Ages

The calculated chi square value is(161.441) greater than the table value(21.666) at 1 per cent level of significance,therefore, there is significance relationshipbetween different household account with ageused in Puducherry. Therefore, the nullhypothesis is (Ho1) rejected. Therefore, the41 above respondents are highly in numberof house holders in Puducherry.Table 3: Marital Status Vs of HouseholdAccounts

Ho: there is no relationship between maritalstatus and household accounts of the respondentsand financial services related factors.


Household Accounts between MaritalStatuses

The calculated chi square value is (33.859)greater than the table value (21. 666) at 1per cent level of significance, Further, thereis significant relationship between differentmarital status with household accounts usedin Puducherry. Therefore, the null hypothesisis (Ho1) rejected. Therefore, the marriedrespondents are highly in number of householders in Puducherry.

Table 4: Occupation Vs of HouseholdAccounts

Ho: there is no relationship betweenoccupation and household accounts of therespondents with related factors.




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Household Account between Occupations

The calculated chi square value is (99.942)greater than the table value (21.666) at 1 percent level of significance, Therefore, there issignificance relationship between differentoccupation with household accounts used inPuducherry. Therefore, the null hypothesis is(Ho1) rejected. Therefore, the occupationrespondents are highly in number of householders in Puducherry.

Table 5: Qualification Vs of HouseholdAccounts

Ho: There is no relationship betweenqualification and household accounts of therespondents and financial service relatedfactors.


Household Accounts betweenQualifications

The calculated chi square value is (139.21)greater than the table value (30.578) at 1percent level of significance, Therefore, there issignificant relationship between different

qualification with household accounts usedin Puducherry. Therefore, the null hypothesisis (Ho1) rejected. Therefore, the educationrespondents are highly in number of householders in Puducherry.Findings1. A significant relationship is found among

the no of account your household of therespondents of gender, age, marital status,education, occupation, in financial servicein Puducherry therefore, the nullhypothesis is (H01) rejected.

2. A significant relationship is calculatedamong the no of accounts your householdof the respondents of annual income, infinancial service in Puducherry therefore,the null hypothesis is (H02) accepted.

Suggestions1. Banks will have to take steps to reduce

the legal procedure and insistence ofcollateral while lending to increase thenumber of customers.

2. Building customer awareness andinforming the public on use of M-bankingmodes is required.

3. Bank should enhance their refundfacilities concerns to if wrong transactionsmade by customers by mistake or if any.

4. The banks may adopt a policy of assessingthe genuine requirements of sociallyexcluded group and cover all the needs ofsmall and petty borrowers instead ofproviding a single loan only.

5. Banks should leverage technology to themaximum to introduce the new accountholders to use and transact the accountsmore and save more.



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ConclusionPuducherry is successful financial

inclusion, the banks need to pay attention onthe following: The rural branches of the banksmay be equipped with motivated and trainedstaff having some marketing skill andknowledge on appraisal of small loan Afteropening ‘no frills’ account, proper measuresmay be made to organise them into groups forinculcating the habit of thrift which willult imately enable them to avail creditfacilities. Utilise the services of MFI, NGOs,SHGs, Business Facilita tors andCorrespondents, etc. to extend the financialinclusion with reasonable cost.

Reference1. Amol Agrawal. (2008). “The need for

Financial Inclusion with an Indianperspective”, Industrial DevelopmentBank of India, pp -1-10.

2. Goodwin. D Adelman. L Middleton. S andAshworth. K. (2000). “Debt, MoneyManagement and Access to FinancialServices: Evidence from the 1999 PSESurvey of Britain”, Entre for Research insocial policy, Lough borough University.

3. La Francophonie. (2011). “The G20 andFinancial Inclusion”, CommonwealthSecretariat, pp 1-30.

4. Mihasonirina Andrianaivo and KangniKpodar. (2011). “ICT, Financial Inclusion,and Growth: Evidence from Afr icanCountries”, International Monetary Fund,pp 1-46.

SELP AWARDScientist and academicians with outstanding contribution in their

academic and social service fields are honoured by the trust by confirmingthem awards on the recommendation of the experts. Resume should besubmitted to the president of the trust in the concerned application forms.SELP- Young Social Scientist Award

Academician and researchers in the field of social sciences belowthe age of 40 are motivated in their field.SELP - Best Faculty Award

To motivate the college teachers belong to the social sciencessubject with the age of below 35 years are eligible to apply.Ambethkar Social Service Award

Those who are contributing outstanding performance in the fieldof upliftment of weaker sections are eligible to apply.Periyar Social Reformer Award

Those who are contributing outstanding performance in the field of intercaste marriage, abolition of caste and religions are eligible to apply.



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WORD OF MOUTH COMMUNICATION WITHIN ONLINESHOPINGCOMMUNITIES

P.Murali,Research Scholar,

Research Department of Business Administration,Rajah Serfoji Government College(Autonomous), Thanjavur-613 005

ABSTRACTThe word of mouth (WOM) industry is experiencing massive growth—since 2004 the Word of

Mouth Marketing Association (WOMMA) has grown from 3 to 350 corporate members (WOMMA,2007). This growth is particularly evident in online and social networking media. Researchestimates that while 90% of WOM conversations take place offline (Keller & Berry, 2006), just15% of consumers account for one third of WOM conversat ions in America, and those“Conversation Catalysts” rely heavily on the Internet as a resource for the information theypass along to their family and friends.

Key words: word of mouth, consumer interactions, Conversation Catalysts.

IntroductionWord of mouth (WOM) communication is

a major part of online consumer interactions,particularly within the environment of onlinecommunities. Nevertheless, existing (offline)theory may be inappropriate to describeonline WOM and its influence on evaluationand purchase.The authors report the resultsof a two-stage study aimed at investigatingonline WOM: a set of in-depth qualitativeinterviews followed by a social networkanalysis of a single online community.Combined, the results provide strongevidence that individuals behave as if Websites themselves are primary “actors” inonline social networks and that onlinecommunities can act as a social proxy forindividual identification. The authors offer a

conceptualization of online social networkswhich takes the Web site into account as anactor, an initial exploration of the concept ofa consumer–Web site relationship, and aconceptual model of the online interactionand information evaluation process.

Existing interpersonal communicationtheories may be inappropriate to describeonline WOM behavior, since they havetended to focus on face-to-face interactionin which the communicators are in closeproximity and can draw upon a wealth ofsocial context cues. However, researchfocusing on the socialemotional nature ofcomputer-mediated communication (e.g., Lea& Spears, 1995), based on principles in socialcognition and interpersonal relationship






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development from social psychology, suggestthat given enough time, individuals can createfully formed impressions of others basedsolely on the linguistic content of writtenelectronic messages. It is imperative thatmarketers understand how these impressionsaffect the assessment and use of WOMinformation about products, brands, andfirms, and consequential consumer behaviorboth online and offline.

Both scholars and practit ioners ofmarketing are particularly interested in WOMcommunication behavior in the context ofonline communities because of theextraordinary popular ity, growth, andinfluence of such communities. For instance,according to ComScore Media Metr ix,MySpace boasts more than 100 millionmember profiles, the site registers 13 millionhits per day, and more than 3 million artistsand bands use it to promote albums andengage fans. Google Inc. recently agreed toprovide at least $900 million in advertisingrevenue over 31 2– years to News Corp. forthe right to broker advertising that appearson MySpace and other sites (Vara, 2006).

Online communities form when enoughpeople ca rry on computer-mediatednonprivate discussions long enough, withsufficient human feeling, to develop what areconsidered “social relationships” with otheronline participants (Rheingold, 1993). Thesecommunities are fluid and flexible, and maybe based on a wide range of cultural interestsand social affiliations. Consumption-relatedonline communities are those networks ofpeople whose online interactions are basedupon shared enthusiasm for, and knowledgeof, a specific consumption activity or relatedgroup of activit ies (Kozinet s, 1999).Examples include members of an online

forum that share knowledge and experiencesof a musical instrument, or readers of andcontributors to an online bulletin boarddevoted to a particular novelist.Conceptual FoundationsWord of Mouth Communication

WOM is a consumer-dominated channelof marketing communication where thesender is independent of the market. It istherefore perceived to be more reliable,credible, and trustworthy by consumerscompared to firm-initiated communications(Schiffman & Kanuk, 1995. Traditionalcommunications theory considers WOM ashaving a powerful influence on behavior,especially on consumers’ information search,evaluation, and subsequent decision making(Cox, 1963; Brown & Reingen, 1987; Money,Gilly, & Graham, 1998; G. Silverman, 2001).It provides information concerning productperformance and the social and psychologicalconsequences of the purchase decision (Cox,1963). Offline, WOM can convert lowerorder cognition and affect into higher ordercognition and effect, subsequently leading tocommitted behaviors (Bristor, 1990). It is thecredibility of WOM that, when combinedwith the premise that a receiver will be moreinvolved in a WOM exchange than in anadvertisement, lends itself to the formationof such higher order beliefs and cognitions.Through multiple exchanges, one WOMmessage can reach and potentially influencemany receivers (Lau & Ng, 2001). Theoutcome of the interpersonal exchanges areprovision of, and/or access to, consumption-related information that holds some“informational value” over and above theformal advertising messages provided by thecompany and that holds influence over theindividual’s decision making.



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Tie StrengthLittle attention has been paid to the impact

of social structures on WOM transmission orits relational form (e.g., Brown & Reingen,1987; Anderson, 1998; Bansal & Voyer, 2000).Yet the properties of the linkage between pairsof communicators that exist independently ofspecific contents are crit ical to anunderstanding of the process of WOM (Knoke& Kuklinski, 1982; Brown & Reingen, 1987).All WOM communication takes place withina social relationship that may be categorizedaccording to the closeness of the relationshipbetween information seeker and the source,represented by the construct tie strength(Money, Gilly, & Graham, 1998; Duhan,Johnson, Wilcox, & Harrel, 1997; Bristor,1990). Tie strength is “a multidimensionalconstruct that represents the strength of thedyadic interpersonal relationships in thecontext of social networks” (Money, Gilly, &Graham, 1998, p.79) and includes closeness,intimacy, support, and association (Frenzen& Davis, 1990).

The strength of the tie may range fromstrong to weak depending on the number andtypes of r esources they exchange, thefrequency of exchanges, and the intimacy ofthe exchanges between them (Marsden &Campbell, 1984). Strong ties are characterizedby “(a) a sense that the relationship is intimateand special, with a voluntary investment inthe tie and a desire for companionship withthe par tner ; (b) an interest in frequentinteractions in multiple contexts; and (c) asense of mutuality of the relationship, withthe partner’s needs known and supported”(Walker, Wasserman, & Wellman, 1994, p.57).Consumer–Web Site Relationship

The above findings present evidenceof the concept of a consumer–Web site

relationship. The analysis now moves to anexamination of the type of relationshipsexhibited in this study and is based onFournier’s (1998) typology of consumer-brand relationships.

There are two broad categories ofrelationship presented: the “formal” or“functional” rela t ionships , and the“personal” or “emotional” relationships.Consumers have formal relationships withonline communities/ Web sites that arevisited purely to meet informational needs.Conclusion

Customer Service is not a cost but anopportunity. An opportunity to correctproduct faults in the consumer’s mind. Anopportunity to identify new features for ourproduct. Most importantly, an opportunity tofind new sales leads.

Research in marketing is currently in anembryonic state regarding the electronicmarketplace, both in terms of how consumersinteract with each other online and how firmscan utilize the Internet to drive value creationactivities. Of central concern to marketers isthe exploration of the consumer experienceand attitudes to interaction within onlinecommunities. Online consumers are moreactive and discerning, are more accessibleto one-on-one processes, and can provide awealth of valuable cultural and marketinginformation that enables consumers to havea major hand in both the design of productsthemselves and the attachment of socio-cultural symbolism or “meaning” to thoseproducts. WOM has a greater impact onproduct judgments, attitude formation, anddecision making than formal marketingcommunications (e.g., Herr, Kardes & Kim,1991; Bone, 1995).



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Marketers should be aware of the risksinvolved in attempting to influence onlineWOM—dialogue should be open, honest, andauthentic, or marketers risk a costly backlash.Cillit Bang created a fictional character thatposted a comment to a blogger’s story abouthis reconciliation with his father after a 30-year sepa ration that contained anadver tisement for bleach, prompting amassive wave of negative publicity bothonline and offline.

ReferenceWOMMA (2007). Press Release: Word of

Mouth MarketingIs Here to Stay: WOMMAReaches Membership Milestone, LooksForward to Industry Growth. RetrievedFebruary 15, 2007, from http://www.womma.org/news/008905.php

Keller, E., & Berry, J. (2006). Word-of-Mouth: The Real Action is Offline.Advertising Age, 77, 20.

Lea, R., & Spears, M. (1995). Love at FirstByte? Building Personal Relationships overComputer Networks. In J. T.

Wood & S. Duck (Eds.), Under-StudiedRelationships: Off the Beaten Track (pp.197–233). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Vara, V. (2006). MySpace, ByeSpace?Some Users Renounce Social Sites as TooBig. Wall Street Journal, 26 October, B1.

Rheingold, H. (1993). The Vir tualCommunity: Homesteading on the ElectronicFrontier. Reading, MA: Addison-WesleyPublishing.

Kozinets, R. V. (1999). E-tribalisedMarketing? The Strategic Implications ofVir tual Communities of Consumption.European Management Journal, 17, 252–64.

Schiffman, L. G., & Kanuk, L. L. (1995).Consumer Behavior, 9th Ed. Upper SaddleRiver, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Cox, D. F. (1963). The Audiences asCommunicators. In S. A. Greyser (Ed.),Proceedings, American Marketing

Association, December (pp. 58–72).Chicago: American Marketing Association.

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93

A STUDY ON EVALUTION OF EMPLOYEE TRAINING NEEDS IN WEBHOSTING COMPANIES IN COIMBATORE

Vasanth.DM.Phil Research scholar

G.Siva KumarAssistant Professor

SNR IMS, SNR Sons College,Coimbatore.

ABSTRACTThe analysis of training needs is not a task for specialists alone. Managers today are often

responsible for many forms of people management, including the training and development oftheir team, and should therefore have an understanding of training needs analysis and be able toimplement it successfully. Effective TNA involves systematic planning, analysis and coordinationacross the organization, to ensure that organizational priorities are taken into account, thatduplication of effort is avoided and economies of scale are achieved. All potential trainees shouldbe included in the process, rather than rely on the subjective evaluation of managers. Ideally,managers should also receive training in the process of TNA itself, to clarify what they aretrying to achieve and what their approach should be.

Key words: Effective training, working practices, cost-effective solutions

IntroductionEffective training or development depends

on knowing what is required – for theindividua l, the depar tment and theorganization as a whole. With limited budgetsand the need for cost-effective solutions, allorganizations need to ensure that theresources invested in training are targeted atareas where training and development isneeded and a positive return on the investmentis guaranteed. Effective TNA is particularlyvital in today’s changing workplace as newtechnologies and flexible working practicesare becoming widespread, leading tocorresponding changes in the skills and

abilities needed. Analyzing what the trainingneeds are is a vital prerequisite for anyeffective training even cover areas that arenot essential. TNA enables organizations tochannel resources into the areas where theywill cont r ibute the most to employeedevelopment, enhancing morale andorganizational performance. TNA is a naturalfunction of appraisal systems and is keyrequirement for the award of investors inpeople.

Review of LiteratureChiu Warren and Thompson David (1974)

review the literature on tra ining needs






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analysis with the intention of organizingconceptually the various approaches. It offersa way of going beyond simple descriptions toa quantitative approach.

Gould_D, Kelly_D, White I and ChidgeyJ (1988) said that training needs analysis isthe initial step in a cyclical process whichcontr ibutes to the overall t ra ining andeducational strategy of staff in an organizationor a professional group. The cycle commenceswith a systematic consultation to identify thelearning needs of the population considered,followed by course planning, delivery andevaluation.

Vivek Achary (1987) in an ar t icle“Training need analysis helps to shine”presents information about a six-week trainingneeds analysis (TNA) commissioned by SunLife Financial Inc. to facil ita te thedevelopment of appropriate training materials.

Robin Snell’s (1889) paper examinesthe pressures on central training function in alarge organization to conform to things thatby means of its works it wishes to change. Itprovides a case study of how the occasion ofa needs analysis for a new programme wasused to develop the difficult interface betweenthe line and development functions.

“Hitting the training target” is an articlefocuses on guide t itled “training NeedsAnalysis and Evaluation,” by Frances Bee andRoland Bee from the Institute of PersonnelManagement, Emphasizing the need of propercorporate training plan and evaluation.Statement Of The Problem

The significance and value of training haslong been recognized. Given the today’sbusiness climate and exponential growth intechnology with its effect on the economy andsociety at large the need of training is morepronounced than ever. Employees should have

the ability and aptitude to cope up with criticalsituations. It believes that the human resourceshave to be equipped with necessary level ofprofessional qualification to face challenges.This project seeks to understand the trainingneed analysis and the impact of this onimproving organizational performance withreference to the employees of W3certTechnologies.Objective of the Study· To identify the technological training and

its need for employees.· To measure the personality development

of employees.· To identify preferred method of training

and its factors.· To identify the effective training analysis

process.Methodology Of The Study

In this study a standard questionnairemethod was used for collecting primary data.The questionnaire was given to the personsconcerned with a request to answer thequestions and return the same. The secondarydata for the study was collected frommagazines and other documents of thecompany and also from the company website.Research design:

Sampling is the selection of some part ofan aggregate or totality on the basis of whicha judgment about the aggregate or totality ismade. In this study, the method used by theresearcher was convenient sampling. Toconstitute a sample, the number of itemsselected from the universe was 70.Tools Analysis

In this project, the following statisticaltools are used:· Simple percentage analysis method and

Chi-Square.



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Table 1: Personal Factors of TheRespondents

Table 1 is showing the personal factors ofthe respondents, (54%) of the respondents aremale and the remaining (16%) are the femalerespondents. Majority (33%) respondents werein below 25 years age category, (26%)respondents are in 26-35 years age category andthe remaining (8%) of the respondents were inthe 36-45 age group. The married respondentsare (28%) and the unmarried respondents are(42%). (38%) of the respondents are graduate,(26%) of the respondents are diplomaqualification and the remaining respondents arehaving other qualification. Monthly income ofthe respondents showing that (25%) of therespondents are getting 1000 – 10000, (24%)of the respondents are getting 10000 – 15000and (21%) of the respondents are getting above15000 salary. (29%) of the respondents arehaving 1-5 years of experience, (26%) ofrespondents are having 5-10 years experienceand (15%) of the respondents are having 10-15years experience.

Chi-Square Analysis

A.0 cells (.0%)have expected frequencies lessthan 5.the minimum expected cellfrequency is 14.0.B.0 cells (.0%)have expected frequenciesless than 5.the minimum expected cellfrequency is 17.5.By comparing the table value and calculatedvalue of that we found the table value islower than the calculated value. so we canreject the null hypothesis. Here there issignificant relationship between theleadership skills and team building.A.0 cells(.0%)have expected frequencies less than5.the minimum expected cell

A.0 cells (.0%)have expected frequenciesless than 5. the minimum expected cellfrequency is 17.0.

B.0 cells (.0%)have expected frequenciesless than 5. the minimum expected cellfrequency is 14.0.

By comparing the table value andcalculated value of that we found the tablevalue is lower than the calculated value. sowe can reject the null hypothesis. Here thereis significant rela t ionship between thenegotiation skills and conflict resolution

Findings Of The Study Majority of 77.1% of respondents are

male. 37% of respondents are belonging to the

age between 26-35. 54.3% of respondents are post graduate. 32.9% of respondents are working in the

current job for the years between 1-2.



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45.7% of respondents are opined that theprofessional journals were moreimportant for their continuous source ofeducation.

51.4% of respondents are opined thatSupervisory skills were more importantunder the organization Training needs.

52.9% of Respondents are opined thatAssistive technology was most importantunder the Technology Training needs.

58.6% of Respondents are opined thatEthics were more important under thepersonal development needs.

50% of Respondent are opined thatMethods to improve communication weremost important under customerrelationship training needs.

50% of Respondents are opined thatsufficient training notifications was mostimportant under Factors influences thetraining.

47.1% of Respondents are opined thatworkshop and seminar was moreimportant under the preferred methods oftraining.

45.7% of Respondents are opined thatManpower inventory was most effectiveand objectives, management requests arealso under the effective training needanalysis.

In chi-square test 1 there is a significantbetween the leadership skill and teambuilding. So we can reject null hypothesisand accept the Alternative hypothesis.

In chi-square test 2 there is a significantbetween the negotiation skill and conflictresolution. So we can reject nullhypothesis and accept the alternativehypothesis.

In chi-square test3 there is a significantbetween the professional journals andweb based education. So we can rejectnull hypothesis and accept the alternativehypothesis.

SuggestionsThe following Major suggestions of the

Research studies are,Organizing the available resources is

necessary so we suggest a separate team toprevent wastage of resources and maintainproper reach to the employees. Trainersshould have per iodic examinations tomaintain the quality level in training to newemployees. Virtual Resources should bemanaged with the internal team whomaintains the resources and technical processtraining is must, based on the technology inplace.

E-Training should be practiced toencourage the trainers get more exposure andsee growth in the web based training businessas well. More digitized training materials(like eBooks, subscription based magazines)should be used across internal training andalso with clients to save resources.

Ideally, organizations should conductsome type of performance analysis byaccessing current performance againstdesired performance – the resulting gap iswhat soft skills or People skills strategies aredesigned to close. Barriers to transfer oftraining back on the job should be evaluatedto minimize their impact.

ConclusionIn conclusion, if employees are to remain

productive, career development and trainingprograms need to be available that cansupport an employee’s task and emotional



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needs at each stage. Current and futuretraining needs of each region have beendefined and based on these needs. Trainingneed analysis should be integrated with everyorganization to develop their strength ofemployees and also its leads to theminimization of resources wastage.

Bibliography Payne.R.L (1998), “Organization And

Management”, Tata McGraw HillPublication Company limited, New Delhi.

K.Aswathappa(2000), “Human ResourceAnd Personal Management”, 4th edition,Tata McGraw Hill, New Delhi.

Edition, Paul Hersey, Kenneth.H.Blanchard, (2003), “Management Of

Organizational Behavior”, 8th Edition. NewDelhi.

Gary Dessler, (2005) “Human ResourcesManagement”, 11 th Edit ion, PearsonEducation Pvt ltd, New Delhi.

George Bohlander, Scott Snell, (2008),“Managing Human Resources”, 13 t h

Edition, International student edition.New Delhi.

Stephen.P.Robbins, Seema Sanghi,(2009), “Organizational Behaviour”, 11th

edition, Pearson Education Pvt ltd, NewDelhi.

www.businessperform.com www.trainingprogateway.com www.trainerslibrary.com

ISSN : 2320 - 3412

TAMILAIVU SANGAMAM(An International Research Journal on Tamil Lilterature )

S EL P

PUBLICATION“”

[email protected]

www.selptrust.org



98

A STUDY ON MARKET ANALYSIS OF PONLAIT DAIRY PRODUCTS INPUDUCHERRYL.vijayakumarResearch scholar

Dr.R.KrishnakumarAssociate Professor of Commerce

St. Joseph’s college of Arts and Science, Cuddalore-1.

ABSTRACT This study is an overcome of the title called “Market Analysis of Ponlait Dairy Products in

Puducherry”The core objective of this study is to analyze the market of ponlait existing productsand new products to be launched by ponlait dairy.To achieve this core objective sample size of200 customers were chosen for the study, which includes both male and female customers ofponlait dairy. Questionnaires were given to them who have consumed various ponlait productsalready. Through the finding of the study, it is suggested that ponlait yet to increase the supply ofproducts at a correct delivery time and make availability of it at all the time in the ponlait parlor,and to increase the no of varieties in dairy products by increasing more number of parlor in allthe major areas of the city. This will help ponlait to cover all the customers of ponlait as wellcompetitor customers.

Key words: Dairy Products, milk production, green fodder, milk animalsIntroduction

The importance of dairy (industry)development cannot be over emphasized inour country where the main contribution ofgrowth and strength for a bulk of populationare derived from milk and its products.Dairying is a good source of the small andmarginal farmers as the feeds required formilk production can be met from their limitedland resources without increasing muchadditional cost. Since the milk producinganimals are ruminant and majority of theirfood can be derived from green fodder, grass,roughage and by products not utilized byhuman beings. The milk animals also provide

manures needed for cultivation apart frommilk.

The main factors regarding low milkproduction in rural areas are local breed ofcattle, lack of green fodder and concentratesand lack of marketing techniques. Under theSocio Economic planning of the country, theabove factors are now duly considered. Tobring the weaker strata of rural populationabove the poverty line, integrated efforts arealso being made to organize the dairyingbusiness in the country which will not onlyaugment milk production and producersincome but also creates lot of employmentopportunities n rural as well in the urban area.






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Anand Dairy has been a provoking examplefor other states in the country.Need For the Study

The success of any organizationdepends on markets. The study was mainlyundertaken to analysis the market forknowing the need and wants of the customertowards ponlait new and existing products.If the Market is being analyzed, it would bepossible for the management to take thenecessary action for the further improvementin sales of the products will be madeeasy.The need of this study can berecognized when the result of the relatedstudy requires suggestions andrecommendations to the similar situation etc.and it can be very helpful in launching ofnew products by knowing the customerspreferences

Objectives of the study· To analysis the market of existing product

and new product to be launched by ponlaitdairy.

· To know the consumers a tt itude andpreference toward ponlait various productand new product.

· To find out the consumption pattern ofdairy product of ponlait customers.

· To identify the various factors this affectsthe ponlait dairy market.· To give suggestion and

recommendation for launching new productthat best suits the customers.Methodology

Questionnaires are prepared andObservation and interview was conducted.Most of the questions are consist of multiplechoices. The questionnaires were conductedin English. Generally, these questionersfocused 5 systems to Analysis the Market and

it carrying 24 questions. This was observedand asked to the customers of Ponlait Dairyproduct, Puducherry. Secondary data wascollected from Internets, various books,Journals, and Company Records. Nearly 200samples are colleted with the customers ofponlait dairy. The period is from Januaryto April 2013.statistical tools used, WeightedAverage method, Chi- Square method, KarlPearson’s Coefficient of Correlation.Null hypothesis H0:

There is significant difference betweenFamily Type and Purchasing Frequency ofdairy productsAlternative hypothesis Ha:

There is no significant difference betweenFamily Type and Purchasing Frequency ofRespondentsInterpretation

Calculated value of c2 is less than thetable value. Hence, Null hypothesis isaccepted.Result

There is significant difference betweenFamily Type and Purchasing Frequency ofdairy productsCoefficient Correlation Method

Hypothesis: There is positive correlationbetween income and frequency of purchase.Income Vs Frequency

Source: Computed from Primary Data



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ResultFrom the above calculation, hypothesis is

not accepted. So there is no relationshipbetween income and frequency of purchaseFindings of the study

About half of the respondents are under theage level from 35-45 years old and thenfollowed by 45-60 years. Majority of therespondents are male than the female topurchases from ponlait. Most of the respondentsare earning 5000 to 10000 per month. TheMajority of consumers are from nuclear familymembers. Most of the respondent’s educationqualification is higher secondary. The Majorityof respondents are working in public sector thenthe private sector.Suggestion and Recommendation

The company has to improve theirdistribution channel because the products arenot available at the right time to booth.It isfound that there is no awareness of some ofthe ponlait dairy products like Panner andCheese to the consumers. So the organizationcan take necessary steps to createawareness.It has been observed that most ofthe consumers of ponlait dairy products feelsthat they don’t have ponlait booth in theirliving area, and they need to come from faraway distance to purchase ponlait dairyproducts. So the company can take necessarysteps to set up many more ponlait parlors inall major areas of the city .to meet out thedemand with supply. There are a largenumber of demands for the milk khova. Sothe organization can increase the supply. Thecompany if possible can increase number ofvarieties of dairy productsConclusion

PONLAIT, a firm that has been able toprove its strength in the dairy industry. Thecompany has been to cover all types ofcustomer in Puducherry. Now the products ofPONLAIT have become a household

name.From the study it is clear that Ponlait ishaving excellent processing facilities and ithas having good quality product among thecompetitor. It is a time for Ponlait to improvethe distribution channel and to take necessarysteps to improve the sales by increasing no ofponlait parlors in all the major areas of thecity to cover entire population of Puducherryand their by increasing the availability ofproducts at all time in the ponlait parlors willbe appreciable by all the customers.The studydeals with the market analysis of ponlait dairyproducts in Puducherry, Finally, it isconcluded that there will be a high demandfor their existing and new products infuture. So the company should concentratemore on increasing supply and to increase theponlait parlors, so that demand and supply willmatch.Bibliography· Kothari C.R., Research Methodology, New

Age International (p) Ltd ., New Delhi.· Dr C.B.Guptha Business Management

Published by Sultan Chand & Sons· VS. Ramaswamy & S. Namakumari

,Marketing Management ,Mac Millan IndiaLtd

· Haper W.Boyd , J r.Ralph Westfa ll ,Marketing Research ,Ricdad .D Irwin ,IncWebsites

· www.india dairy .com· www.amul.com/ kurien_annual/01.html· http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing· h t t p : / / w w w . r e f e r e n c e . c o m /

search?q=market%20analysis&db=web· h t t p : / / www. t he f r eed i c t i ona r y. co m/

market+analysis· http://www.answers.com/topic/market-

analysis-2?cat=biz-fin· http://en.wikipedia .org / wiki /

list_of_marketing_topics



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STUDY ON ISSUES AND CHALLENGES OF LEGAL PROVISIONS INNAVIGATING THE MARINE INSURANCE MARKET – AN INTERESTING

FACTSDr.D.Rajasekar,

Assistant Professor, AMET Business School,AMET University, East Coast Road, Kanathur, Chennai – 603112

ABSTRACTInsurable Interest that forms the basis for the purchase of insurance is itself unique in the

class, apart from other aspects like the amount of insurance, multiple claims etc. Marine insuranceis a very fascinating area for insurance underwriters. It tests their skills not merely in the areaof insurance but in a host of other aspects as well ranging from their knowledge of geography,sea-routes, international business formalities etc. Further, they need to update their skills withregard to global trends and keep track of the vulnerabilities associated with their business.

Key words: Marine insurance, international business, sea-routes, global trends

IntroductionGlobalization and the steady growth in

world trade have meant a growing demand forglobal insurance programs and in particularfor marine insurance. Fifty years ago, shippersdon’t know if their cargoes reach theirdestinations due to poor communications andinadequate infrastructure. They relied on theexpertise of marine underwriters to assess andassume much of the r isk. But now thesubsequent rush to get new products createda somewhat cavalier attitude among exportersin the market and at the same time, theeconomic downturn and uncer tainty inshipping has resulted in a fundamental changein the area of compliance, and this has had amajor effect on the purchasing of marineinsurance.

Marine insurance business is mostlyinternational and subject to law andinternational regulations in every stage ofoperations. It is governed by the oldestinsurance law called the

Marine Insurance Act 1906 subsequentlyamended as the Marine Insurance Act 1963in India and guided by the various clausesformulated by the Institute of LondonUnderwriters and the InternationalCommercial Terms now known as Incoterms2000 developed by International Chamber ofCommerce. Thus in India Marine insuranceis subject to the following statutes andinternational regulations for import andexport insurance and hulls insurance.

Underwriting Marine InsuranceMarine Insurance underwriting is an art






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or a science. Insurance contract have alwaysremained a very challenging thing for theunderwriters to frame and for the insured tounderstand. The applicability of actual totalloss and constructive total loss, the generalaverage clause where the voyage itself isthreatened.

The following factors analyse the marineinsurance underwriting on a different pedestaland make the job of an underwriter trulychallenging.

Movement of Goods: Insurers have alsoto fully assimilate the applicability of rulesgoverning the movement of goods and thepoints at which risk assumption changeshands.

Verification: Banking tr ansactions,insurers should remember that bankers dealonly in documents and physical verificationof the goods involved is beyond theirresponsibility.

Exporters Depend Upon MarineUnderwriters

Exporters have always relied heavilyon marine underwriters, knowledge ofgeography, history, economics and worldtrade. But over the past half century,predictability in how and where trade is beingconducted has helped breed complacencyamong shippers. As trading parameters andpartners became more established due to thepost-war industrial boom, the subsequent rushto get new products to market created asomewhat cavalier attitude among exporters.In addition, technological improvements suchas advanced shipping, vessel and aircraftdesigns, modern containerization techniquesand an increase in sophist icatedtransportation infrastructure reduced lossincidence and damage to goods in transit.

Principles of Marine Insurance Act 1963Contract of Indemnity: Sec. 3 of the

Marine Insurance Act provides that a contractof marine insurance is an agreement wherebythe insurer undertakes to indemnify theassured, in the manner and to the extentthereby agreed, against marine losses, thatis to say, the losses incidental to marineadventure. The contract of marine Insuranceis a contract of indemnity, which protectsagainst physical and other losses to moveableproperty and associated interests, as well asagainst liabilities occurring or arising duringthe course of a sea voyage. Marine insurancepolicy is a contract of indemnity, which is abasic principle of the law of insurance.

Utmost Good FaithSec.19: Contract of marine insurance is a

contract based upon utmost good faith andif the utmost good faith be not observed byeither party, the contract may be avoided bythe other party.

Sec.20: The assured must disclose to theinsurer, before the contract is concluded,every material circumstance which, is knownto the assured, and the assured is deemed toknow every circumstances.

Sec 21. An agent to insure is deemed toknow every circumstance where insurance iseffected for the assured by an agent. Veryimportantly the duty of disclosure continuesto apply even after the conclusion of thecontract as decided. Case Law: Shipping Co.Ltd. v. Uni-Polaris Insurance Co. Ltd. andLa Reunion Européene (The Star Sea) 2001.

Measure of Insurable ValueOne of the major problems an insurer

generally faces is determination of insurablevalue of the subject matter of marine



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insurance. To sort out the problem we arerequired to refer to the provisions of theMarine Insurance Act over and abovetechnical aspects.

Sec.18 - provides that “Subject to anyexpress provision or valuation in the policy,the insurable value of the subject-matterinsured must be ascertained as follows:-

Ship: In insurance on ship, the insurablevalue is the value at the commencement ofthe r isk of the ship including outfit ,provisions, and stores for the officers andcrew.

Freight: In insurance on freight whetherpaid in advance or otherwise, the insurablevalue is the gross amount of the freight at ther isk of the assured plus the charges ofinsurance:

Goods or Merchandise: In insurance ongoods or merchandise, the insurable value isthe prime cost of the property insured, plusthe expenses of and incidental to shipping andthe charges of insurance upon the whole:

Subject Matter: In insurance on any othersubject matter the insurable value is theamount at the risk of the assured when thepolicy attaches, plus the charges of insurance.

Losses and abandonmentSec. 55 to 66 - provide for the various

losses for which the underwriters are liablein various situations in various subject mattersof insurance:

Included and excluded losses S.55.Unless the policy otherwise provides the

insurer is liable for any loss proximatelycaused by a peril insured against but subjectas aforesaid, and not liable for any loss whichis not proximately caused by a peril insuredagainst.

Sec. 55(1) says about included loss andSec 55(2):

Partial Loss and Total Loss· Sec.56 provides that a loss may be

either total or partial. Total loss may be eitheran actual total loss or a constructive total loss.

· Sec 57 provides that where thesubject-matter insured is destroyed, or sodamaged as to cease to be a thing of the kindinsured, or where the assured is irretrievablydeprived thereof, there is an actual total lossand in the case of an actual total loss nonotice of abandonment need be given.

Constructive Total Loss Sec. 60a. Where the subject-matter insured is

reasonably abandoned on account of itsactual total loss appearing to be unavoidable.

b. Because it could not be preservedfrom actual total loss without an expenditurewhich would exceed its value when theexpenditure had been incurred.

General Average S.66General Average loss is a loss that arises

from a general average act.General Averageexpenditure or General Average sacrifice,General Average loss, the party on whom itfalls is entitled, subject to the conditionsimposed by maritime law, to a rateablecontribution from the other parties interested,and such contribution is called a generalaverage contribution.

Insurer’s Liability S.67The sum which the assured can recover

in respect of a loss on a policy by the partyinsured. In the case of an unvalued policy tothe full extent of the insurable value andvalued policy to the full extent of the valuefixed by the policy, is called the measure ofindemnity.



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Where there is a loss recoverable underthe policy, the insurer or each insurer shouldbe more than one is liable for such proportionof the measure of indemnity as the amount ofhis subscription bears to the value fixed bythe policy in the case of a valued policy, or tothe insurable value in the case of an unvaluedpolicy.

Insurer ’s r ights in respect of cla imsettlement (S.79 toS.81)

Insurers do have certain rights as per thefollowing provisions of the Marine InsuranceAct in order to limit his liability for paymentof claims:

f& Right of subrogation –Sec 79Underwriters find it difficult to exercise

the subrogation rights due to lack of clarityof legal perspectives thereof. The MarineInsurance Act is very clear in this regardproviding specifically that “Where the insurerpays for a total loss, either of the whole, or inthe case of goods of any apportionable partof the subject-matter insured, thereuponbecomes entitled to take over the interest ofthe assured in whatever may remain of thesubject-matter so paid for, and rights andremedies of the assured in respect of thatsubject matter as from the time of the casualtycausing the loss.

Right of Contribution- Sec 80Insurer’s right of contribution is more

important because the insurer ’s right tomaintain suit against other insurers forcontribution as per the provisions of the Actproviding that “Where the assured is over-insured by double insurance each insurer isbound to contribute rateably to the loss inproportion to the amount for which he is liableunder his contract. If any insurer pays morethan his proportion of the loss, he is entitled

to maintain a suit for contribution against theother insurers, and is entitled to the likeremedies as a surety who has paid more thanhis proportion of the debt.”

Deduction for under-insurance- Sec 81Marine Insurance Act 1963 says “Where

the assured is insured for an amount less thanthe insurable value, or, in the case of a valuedpolicy, for an amount less than the policyvaluation, he is deemed to be his own insurerin respect of the uninsured balance”. Sounder insurance will apply to marineinsurance as per the Marine Insurance Act.

Payment of the Premium in MarineInsurance

The Marine Insurance Act 1963 has foursections 23, 33, 54 and 86 that elaborate theposition on premium payment.

Section 23 : A contract of marineinsurance is deemed to be concluded whenthe proposal of the assured is accepted bythe insurer. Whether the policy is issued ornot, reference can be made to the slip covernote although unstamped.

Section 33: Insurance is effected at apremium to be arranged and no arrangementis made a reasonable premium is payable.Where insurance is effected on the terms thatan additional premium is to be arranged in agiven event and that event happens and noarrangement is made then a reasonablepremium is payable.

Section 54: Unless otherwise agreed, theduty of the assured to pay the premium andthe duty of the insurer to issue the policy areconcurrent conditions. The insurer is notbound to issue the policy until payment ofthe premium.



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Section 86: Any right, duty, or liabilitywould arise under a contract of marineinsurance by implication of law it may benegative or varied by express agreement, orby usage, if the usage be such as to bind bothparties to the contract.

Consumer Protection LawsIncreases in consumer protection laws have

been driving the need for locally admittedpolicies. Countries are increasingly lookingto protect consumers in their territory by onlyallowing insurance with insurers that areregulated by the country. Governments wantto ensure that there is recourse to a localinsurer in the event of something going wrong.Use of non-admitted insurance is simply notan option in many countries. Countries mayinsist on an admitted insurer for all insurancesor for compulsory insurances.

Protection and Indemnity ClubsThe Clubs are associations of ship owners

and charterers, owned and controlled by theinsured ship owners or charterer “Members”.They operate on a nonprofit making mutualbasis. The Members pool their resourcestogether in order to meet losses suffered byeach individual. The members are thus self-insured and the ship owner could be said tobe both the insurer and the insured.

Risks covered by protection & insuranceclubs: The risks covered by P&I Clubs are mainly: Loss of life & personal injury risks Collision risks Cargo risks Harbour etc. damage risks Wreck risks Life & other salvage & General Average risks

Quarantine & Infectious disease risks Risks in respect of distressed or sick

seamen, sick passengers & stowaways Fines Costs War Risks Freight war risks

Regulatory RestrictionsMany countries around the globe have

some form of regulatory restrictions, whichare designed to protect the local market.These include: Local policy taxes on admitted insurance Restrictions on non-admitted insurance Compulsory insurances Reinsurance restrictions Exchange controls National pools

Existing regulations aim is simple to keeppremiums within the country and to raiserevenue by taxing those premiums. As a resultof the downturn, many countries are lookingto have their own internal insuranceindustries, even if it is just for tax revenuepurposes, and this is driving a lot of theregulatory issues.

Findings Consequently, in recent years the marine

market has sustained worldwide lossesthat dir ectly impacted corporateprofitability. Although many losses couldbe minimized or prevented through properpacking, loading and stowing. Marineinsurance still effectively transfers thefinancial loss resulting from damaged orlost merchandise to professional risktakers-the marine insurance underwriters.



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The Indian marine insurance market is stillgoing through a stage of upheaval. Thecargo insurance market detariffed in 1994,though fairly stabilized, is yet to see priceson par with international market rates,mainly because the market is alreadyattuned to the present levels of premium.However, improved condit ions intransportation and trade have broughtdown the claim ratios making it profitableeven at these low premium rates.

The world is partial towards Marineinsurance practitioners who are judgedmainly on the relative small size of marineinsurance premiums, while thecomplexities and intricacies of marineinsurance business are sadly ignored. It istrue that marine is only responsible for asmall percentage of a composite insurer’spremium income, but the success of aninsurance operation is not really measuredby premium income but by result - or losspotential. And here marine, being exposedto natural perils, liability issues and typicalaccumulation in ports and on vessels,plays an important role.

Corporations involved in internationalshipping can significantly lower costs,broaden coverage and improve controls byconsolidating domestic and foreign transitrisks into one insurance program, whichcan be negotia ted with a singleunderwriter. Besides broad terms, poolingworldwide premiums reduces companycosts and provides unique tools to managemarine risks, including standardizedglobal claims control, data processing andloss control.

For many companies, the first question iswhether marine insurance is financiallyworthwhile. If it is, the next consideration

is the proper level of retention ordeductible. Loss or damage of a repetitivenature, whether involving the commodity,transit or final destination, should be dealtwith on an annual aggregate basis ratherthan valuing each occurrence. If theselosses can be eliminated, or at leastminimized, it is less expensive to absorbthem. Conversely, catastrophic losses,which could jeopardize the financialstability of the company or its client,should be covered by marine insurance.

Many companies have not fully embracedthe use of electronic networks andelectronic data interchange. Increasingly,r isk managers are demandingcomputerized access to their carriers,claims information. Marine insurers mustprovide this access as well as services suchas electronically transmitted shippingorders and computerized vessel data.

ConclusionToday, many marine insurance

underwriters, as well as insurance brokers,have sophisticated operations and coveragesthat can be arranged under broad terms.Shipments are also subject to various foreignlaws, customs regulations and exchangecontrols. For example, depending on thecountry of destination, the shipper may ormay not cover customs duties. In manycountries duties for some commodities maybe substantial and, in many instances, arepayable whether or not the goods arrive attheir final destination.

Trade opportunities, risk managers andunderwriters need to become reacquaintedwith some marine market essentials likeroutes, destinations, and the political climatein the various countries being shipped to andthe types of losses to expect.



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Marine underwriters traditionally offeredvery broad coverage the market is now takingsteps to reduce insurance for exposures suchas floods, earthquakes and windstorms,par t icular ly when storage coverage isprovided under a cargo policy.

Recent court decisions are also creatinguncertainty in the marine insurance marketplace.

Exporters will face higher costs inpursuing subrogation and reduced chances forobtaining reimbursements.

As these various issues of challengesdemonstrate, the marine market is undergoingchanges that require careful attention frominsured’s, shippers and underwriters. Byfocusing on basic business practices, shippersand marine insurers can help the industrysuccessfully meet these challenges. It is alsoimportant for the insurer to understand thelaws governing in marine and shippingoperations to avoid the risk. Indeed MarineInsurance is an integral part of foreign trade.As business becomes even more global,marine insurance needs the attention of riskmanagement.

Bibliography1. T.L. Wilhelmsen, Duty of disclosure, duty

of good faith, alteration of r isk andwarranties, 2000.

2. UNCTAD Secretar ia t , Legal anddocumentary aspect of the marineinsurance contract, 1982

3. Richard D. DeSimone, Navigating themarine insurance market, Journal of RiskManagement, Risk Management SocietyPublishing Inc. Dec., 1995.

4. Robert Sommerville. , Improving thequality of merchant ships, Journal of RiskManagement, Risk Management SocietyPublishing Inc. Sep, 1993.

5. Evelyn Thom chick, Marine Insurance andGeneral Average in the United States,Book review, American Society ofTransportation and Logistics, 1992, P54.

6. J.J. Launie., Ocean Marine Insurance.Journal of Risk Management, RiskManagement Society Publishing Inc. July1990.

7. C.S.Rao, Journal, Volume VI, No.4,March 2008.

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