Survey and Fencing - Part 2

Waiting for the surveyor to come had become an endless wait.  So many execuses everytime i call my broker or farm supervisor. Meanwhile time is running and seasons are changing. I cannot keep endlessly waiting for the sequence of events to happen. The sequence and hence the constraint is as follows;

If you want to do farming, you need fence and fencing require survey to happen.
Survey require all registration to be complete and surveyor to be in place along with VAO. Since this is physical group activity, waiting for everyone's convenience is wasting time.
 

This is how the land looked with top soil with sand and salt.


In order to keep myself busy and the team, i decided to press on levelling the ground, come what may. Removing thorns, levelling and ploughing twice are the targets set for the team.  I am going to do very minimal or nil ploughing subsequenlty in the farm after organic cultivation starts. Therefore i want to complete the activity now and re-kindle the soil.  I also had the curiosity to see what does the bottom soil looks like.  As you can see in the below pictures it is not bad. Strokes are following tractor proves, there is life in soil.

 


JCB pulling down the thorny bushes (Burma weeds)



Having started the activity, the resource was consumed continuously.  Nothing can be stopped. Around 600/- to 800/- per hour for JCB and Bulldoser each and depending on area and complexity they must be run for 2 to 3 days for 8 hours per day.  We also had adventures like JCB bucket failing, the joint getting broken. Spares used to be obtained form nearby town Tirunelveli with downtime of around 3 days.

After all that you get satisfaction to see a vast expense of your land devoid of thorns, bushes and exposing the red earth.



Finally the levelled ground

Then on a fine day, the surveyor and VAO were invited as per their convenience.  This second visit also cost me more, but gave a satisfaction that atleast something is getting completed.  In farming activity, you are so pushed to the corner (like a waiting patient in Govt. Hospital taking the token) sometimes that you start accepting everything as Gods gift.

Farm got surveyed and borders identified.  Now I have to depend on the guy who got the briefing from the surveyor and some of the markings on the ground we had made with pebbles.  If there is any land dispute, that has to be settled on the way.  So far as the guy to the east who created dispute, we thought of giving some buffer zone while fencing.  We can sort out this later. This decision was taken so that we proceed with rest of the activities.

On the north, I asked my guys to leave about 12 Feet distance for any lorry or vehicle to pass through. Even I wanted to have the main gate towards north.  Ahead of my land was alread a plot whose ends were irregular. Moreover my land was being used by villagers as road for long time. Therefore I did not want to block anyone's access to go inside.  Sacrificing 12 feet for a length of around 200 feet made sense.

Next is west.  There is a main road at an elevation (Tank bund). Already there is some buffer space for road widening. Otherwise I have no issues on finding the border.

Finally the south. Here is the catch. I was told there is a worshipping stone in this area. Now to allow it inside or leave it outside is the question. I took a call to leave it outside so that those who workship (Once a year, i believe someone comes to workship the deity) donot disturb farm activity. Presently this consists of few broken stones (Someone attempted to make some pillars ages ago). It could be some demi-God of village or a family deity or even a samathi of a saint. I donot know. I allowed around 25 cents outside and planned to fence not disturbing the spot.  Over a period of time, planning to plant some trees over there.

Otherwise south is full of small land holdings with paddy cultivation going on whenever there is water.

Thus border identification is completed. next to plan for actual fence.

Survey and Fencing - Part 1

Fencing Dream

"Fencing is no big deal. Just ask the company who deals with it and pay them. They will do it for you" is what the assumption I also had before I started this activity. I never felt this fencing itself will become a major activity and an achievement for the farm. 

I decided to go ahead with fencing for the following considerations;

a)  Fencing will clearly demarcate our land from that of neighbours and the common land of Government. So earlier we go for fencing the better so that disputes if any will be settled at early stage.

b) It will protect the crops from stray Cows and other animals.

c) Theft of farm implements and equipments will be minimal

d) It will offer a curtain from outside so that the farm activities can be carried out peacefully.

e) It gives a beauty, elegance and increases the farm value.

Survey Ordeal

Stop.  Before proceeding with fencing i was told a clear survey is required to demarcate the land borders.  That is where the trouble started.  Days on end, i used to wait for a surveyor to come and inspect the farm.  The surveyor should be volunteered by Village officer. Therefore presence of both are required. It is a physical activity and they donot give time so easily.  There are different surveyors, but the land records and patta copy should be identified by Village officer. Though there is nomimal charge for survey officially, there is a fee that you have to pay for his and village officer physical visit. That is not small.. They are like Doctors. They spend less time, are swift and fast and seek fee by hour.  Added to that you may have to be ready with some lunch if required.  Climate conditions also should cooperate.

Meanwhile my friend had cleared the land of any thorny bushes with JCB / excavator and bulldozer. I paid heavily for it. But the work was satisfying. Many a times we used to wait in the land for surveyor who would never meet his appointment.  It happened for many months like this. Finally i got so frustrated with Govt machinery.  One day and it happened to be coincidence that I was there, surveyor agreed to come.  We went to the land, waited and there at the horizon, two angel heads appeared. Surveyor has come.

The minute he stepped into the land, he wasted no time.  He was literally running with inch tape and we were running behind him. He was searching for corner stones with special signs and we were helping him locate them. Luckily for me the progress was good.  Since my farms was in the shape of Amoeba it had many sides and many owners.  The records were jumbled and my broker's accomplice helped surveyor with ease.  They used to cross verify with north, east, south and west border and the adjascent land

owners. 

Generally in villages, once some activity like this happens, people from neighbouring farms

automatically appear there. Same happened here also. There was one dispute which become big. Yes. the farm owner to the east of my farm put his foot and said all belongs to him.  No one could convince him. Perhaps because he never saw a neighbour for a long long time and was trespassing the land to the extent he owned everything mentally.  We asked him to come with his original land records to the office (Which later he never did). But neighter Village Officer nor the surveyor nor any of my friends could pacify him. 

Without being aggressive, we left the case and closed the day.   So some of the land remained unsurveyed till next visit. In addition we could not trace one of the corner stone for the surveyor. I also searched. There were wild growth of thorny busines. We decided to clear off some more bushes for searching and then invite the surveyor again.

Journey to Registration

The land was coming in small pieces. I never got tired, nor the broker. Every time we wait for few to accumulate and go for registration. Some will be only 20 centers, some about 1.5 acres. Every time the broker would announce that one more acre is coming for sale, I would have to make a quick decision to go for it after referring my map, at what rate and pay advance. Over a period of time the broker and myself got used to this cycle.  It appeared that each of the petty land owners came forward only, after hearing that the sale of his neighbor went through properly. Most of these people had just kept their land without doing anything for a generation. It was their inherited property and hence did not make any difference to them. They were in need of money. We call it "mootu vali" (Knee Pain in Tamil).

I used to book the train ticket in advance or the flight if it happens to cheaper. The journey was a roundtrip from Hyderabad to Nanguneri via Chennai a distance of 1400 Kms.  Friday would be registration, I would stay back on Saturday and return by Sunday. That way my work will not be disturbed. However this put a lot of pressure on myself to inspect, decide and go for it in short notice. Registration office was predictable. There were no surprises given by them. The sub-agent had two typists who would type out the registration papers promptly and keep them ready. Registration was a routine.  What I started by Dec, 2010 ended by July, 2012. Back home I assembled everything on excel sheets and keep pondering on the original documents to get a picture of it.  I was satisfied that the lands could be grouped in to three clusters, call it A, B and C. These are discussed elsewhere.  A was the first one to go and was dear to me. Being adjacent to road, this will be the head quarters for the farm.

 

Land Purchase at Nachankulam

Nachankulam  is a small village south of a major town Tirunelveli in South Tamil Nadu.  It is a dry land. It falls on a rain shadow region with western ghats mountains to its west at a distance of around 20 Kms and bay of bengal to the east at around 40 Kms.  Rain fall is noted only in October and November.  It is surroundered by rain catchment ponds (kulam) on 3 sides which will be dry for most of the year. The ponds are either filled by rain water or by runoff water from western ghats which fill many many ponds before reaching here.  My plot, being just on the other side of one of the dry pond,  I believe should have plenty of ground water. I used to think for days keeping Google earth in front of me and zooming in and out imagining an underground river. I am not wrong, for the path that the invisible river traverses (which I guessed to be) has greenery all along its way upto the sea. This land falls on the border of that green belt.

I have no experience of purchasing a land. The sheer joy of getting a strech of land for my hard earned money kept me going. City dwellers think only in feet and cents. To think of a stretch measuring 100 cents is thrilling.  "This is YOUR land. Seeee over there upto that single palm tree, here upto that bund..." broker used to say, I nod my head with wide eyes.In scrotching sun, we used to go on two wheeler through bumpy roads. Me with a shoulder bag, Blackberry with GPS ON, Camera in Hand, my notebook and water bottle. Pillion riding with both hands busy taking photos, hearing broker commentry, juggling with my GPS and compass, trying to record coordinates and always fail. Sometimes a local broker would join with survey map in hand. I generally decide anything fast. Ask few questions and go for it and take any risk that comes on the way afterwards.I will be careful about lowerbound and upperbound nothing in between. There is a small sastha temple which was the only roof for shade in about 2 Kms radius. (That roof is also gone now by cyclone winds. More on that in another story).

Land has to be so chosen that it is near to your Native Place for all practical purposes. Though no help can be expected from your native, it gives an introduction, an address and local acceptance value for you.  The Villagers donot accept strangers so easily. For my project, I need cooperation of neighbourhood. The land also should be away from the vicinity of any industrial or developmental activities. It should be somewhere near the road so that you are not blocked off. The land must be cheap. Must be obtained from known broker as registration is a long drawn process, especially when you are purchasing and going to manager from remotely.

You need to travel many times if the land holdings are very small and belong to different families.Importantly a dry land in the interior will always come cheap. Affordable and least risk. But many of us start calculating the appreciation value, return on investment etc which is not relevant in farming ventures. I am not going to sell this anyway, it is for farming and hence have no worry about those things.  I have delibratly chosen an uncultivated land.

The following were my considerations in favour of choosing this one.

1. Land is near to my native place. So whenever I go there I can drop into the farm.
2. It is dry, but I hope there will be enough ground water. 3 ponds on either side,  rainwater from western ghats flowing undergoing to the sea and good rainfall during October, November should go in my favour.
3. It is adjacent to a bird sanctury.  A tiger reserve forest at a commutable distance.  Nearby is a major ancient temple town called Nanguneri (Vanamamalai). In case I want to promote eco-tourism, I have some entertainment and purpose to show.
4. Some central Govt projects are coming up at some distance which will bring migrant population who can become my customers later for my organic produce.
5. Peaceful people in the neighbourhood. This is important given the facts that communal violance were very common in this part.

The following are risks that i have factored and some solutions.

1. Being from non-agriculture background i may fail to raise crops and make profits. I need to find then an alternate use like growing agro forestory, promote eco tourism, build godown etc.
2. For next few years i cannot live in the farm. I have to manage from 1000+ miles away.  Need to create a loyal local team and be liberal on video conferencing, skype and keep close followup.
3. There can be spells of dry weather for long time destroying crops.  This is the fun part and a challenge that i need to work on. Presently I am atleast creating a micro-climate to bring some moisture in the area. that means keep planting anything that comes on the way.
4. Family may disapprove the venture.  I need to keep them cool by alternate compensations...hmmmm let me think.
5. Some litigation may come in land by either Government or Private parties.  I need to do some PR on Health and wellbeing in that area with Police, Taluk Office, Colletorate and Village panchayats.  There are some plans I will discuss later. 

Practical advise on Land purchase

Many a checklists have been published in various blogs about things to take care on land dealings, therefore i am not repeating them. However the following of mine could value add;

1. Most (In fact all) of the small land dealings happen with cash. Remember someone is selling you because he is in need of cash. Therefore keep cash ready.  How you do this is a challenge. Keep in mind ATMS will fail when you want them.
2. Broker may give surprises in last minute. Therefore 20% buffer is a must.
3. Be prepared with registration charges and commission, tips along the way. Generally broker will not mention these at the beginning when mentioning the land value.
4. Donot get into any land dealings if the link document is not original, not clear or not available. It may be possible that they have been mortgaged by the ower for a loan.
5. Try and seek Sitta, Patta and Adangal if possible and cross verify the names.
6. A single survey number may have multiple owners. THe land you are buying may be a part of that. Be aware of who is your neighbour.
7. Try and seek survey measurement through Village Officer as soon as registration is over. Generally there will be delay as either VCO or Surveyor will not be available and may not give date to you. If you happen to be in outstation it makes all the more difficult.
8. Be aware of holidays, local holidays, local festivals during which period they may be absent. Sometimes their computer will not work, there will be record keeping work which will add to delays.
9. Under certain circumstances if you unable to travel and If you are willing to spend some money and take some risk, you can ask someone close to you to take power of attorney and later you can register when you visit. But oflate the rules have become more stringent and donot encourage this practice. Moreover there is a risk that you may ignore registring on your name and forget altogather.

In all I had to travel 12 times to register 28 small holds and make them into big 3 pieces. Let me call them A, B and C.  Only after purchase that I realised, contrary to the promises made by broker and his accomplice that B and C have very poor approach. There is no approach road, but you need to traverse through someone else's land. My attempt to purchase small strip of land from my neighbour to approach B has failed. There is a family dispute on that land which they need to solve. Only then will one of the brother who has promised me will sell it. Till then, i can cultivate on B, but cannot frequent it with vehicles too often.

Well these are part of the game. If you had flown in a window seat and looked outside the window on a clear day, anywhere in India, you might have noticed acres and acres of farm underneath beside river beds, forests and mountain side. Does all of them have comfortable roads ?  There seems to be some understanding between the farmers. Let it prevail !.

For me A is near the road,  C has some approach, but not from A, but otherwise through a roundabout route.  There are four options for me.

1. I donot worry and accept and proceed.  After all transportation through heavy vehicle is a very minuscule part of farming. Farming is do-able.
2. Wait for someone to sell intermediate pieces of land so that I get comfortable contigeous space.
3. Claim some approach road which is on revenue records, but no more visible on land. You need go appeal through petition etc. But that is not preferred now as it will lead to litigation with fellow farmers even before relationship is built
4. The best option is to have some understanding, agreement with neighbours. Everyone has some need and you can always benefit each other mutually through adjustments.

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