The main concern of the book is to find out the farm size of a hill state (Himchal Pradesh) and thereby determine the extent of poverty which prevails in that state. The work reveals that in real terms i.e. in terms of efficient working of farmers/cultivators in Himchal Pradesh, the farm size is too small to generate enough income and food. The poverty is confirmed from both nutritional and money-income angles. For arriving at the poverty level, the standards fixed by the Seventh Five Year Plan document are taken. A very simple analysis is applied to the data which is taken from Government publications, particularly Land Revenue directorate to Himchal Pradesh. Given the present level of the farm size and the technology adopted, it is expected that the poverty will persist and the subsistence level of farming will continue. As a correctional measure, capital formation is suggested as one of the ways out. It is expected that by effecting a small shift in the present cropping pattern, the farmers can generate capital and, thus, can improve their economic standards.
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