Socio-cultural Processes and Livelihood Patterns at Tirurangadi - CDS

to the landlord was only possible only by transforming the tenant to tenant at will and to
increase the burden of the laborers. Arbitrary practices, such as forced labor by the
downtrodden groups, evictions and the issuing of melcharth became common, which has
been attested by the memory of the local people. Instances of forced labor were told by
the people of Vallikkunnu, which included the gruesome case of a laborer being applied
the yoke on his shoulders for ploughing, by a landlord named sankaranpillani nayar
instead of the bullock that could not be brought to the field, as it fell sick. These forms of
forced appropriation of labor and surplus product became the features of land relations,
particularly in the case of paddy production.
The situation was somewhat different in the case of production in the paramba lands. The
concentration of landholdings was less in the case of paramba lands. Much of the
cultivation in the paramba lands were for subsistence, but the production of certain crops
like coconut and in some places areca, apparently expanded. Immersion of coconut fiber
in the kuzhis prepared for the purpose, manual preparation of coir, particularly by
women, existed all along the banks of Kadalundi River, and the delta of the river was
particularly known for its coir works. The use of hemp to make threads has been attested
in the memory of the people of Vallikkunnu. Ginger was grown all over the region, and
was collected and sold in the markets. Betel leaves and a preparation of areca nut, called
kali atakka was also sold. Unlike the janmis, the smaller paramba holders were
apparently more enterprising, and their surplus produce was brought to the local markets
and to bigger markets such as Calicut, Feroke, Tanur and Tirur.
Was there any possibility for the expansion of the paramba cultivation? Since the
expansion was taking place mainly on the commercial crops, their sustenance depends
upon the expansion of the market. We have seen that in the medieval milieu, there was no
restriction on trade, if the traders paid their due chungam and other duties to the rulers.
After the British took over the administration a very important treaty was signed between