Tractors in transit – some observations !!

Have you heard of  - Arjun, Angad, Balwan, Captain, Atmak…..  – you need not scroll down to know.  These are some of the popular tractors in India.  There are many manufacturers like Indofarm, TAFE, Mahindra, Eicher, Escorts, HMT and more. 

Tractors are workhorses – generally classified as two-wheel drive – front wheel assisted or four wheel drive.  These are primarily farm equipments, a simple open modelled ones, with two large driving wheels on an axle, single seater, engine placed in the front of the driver.  Though there can be multiple variations to suit to the needed utilities, generally they do fit for cultivation and sowing seeds; what the bullock carts once used to do.  To plough the field making them suitable for agriculture.

In Indian farms, traditionally mechanisation has been low and most of the farming work were manual activities with the use of cattle.  In Tamil literature to glorify some Kings, it was stated that they used elephants for ploughing the field as the produce was more high, unmanageable for the bullocks !!  Besides the land holding pattern in villages are often small thereby making them not viable for mechanisation.  Due to 5 year plans and Green revolution, some modernisation did take place and the fourwheeled tractor became the integral part on the agricultural field. 

Tractor, by definition, is a vehicle specifically designed to deliver high torque at slow speeds – i.e., providing high tractive efforts for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery or tills used in agriculture or in construction.  The bulky agricultural equipments can be towed or mounted on the tractor and farming can be done efficiently and faster.  It can supply power to the mechanised unit as well.  Tractor in latin means to pull. 

In India, you can often see these workhorses not only fields but driven on roads – even on wrong side of roads.  Trailers – mostly agricultural would be attached to the tractor primarily for the purpose of agriculture.  One would be astonished to see the number of people travelling on a trailer and in fact many would be seated on the tractor on the mudguards and on the link between the driven and pulling vehicles.  Certainly not a safe mode of transportation but a common mode of transport in rural India – especially when people travel for marriages or for local festivals.  As this is not contrapted for passenger traffic, there are accidents resulting in fatalities and injuries and one could observe many petitions filed in MACT claiming compensation.  Insurers would struggle to prove that it was violative of the intended / permitted use and that no liability should dwell on them.

One gets overawed by their size and power but the otherday when driving on the  National Highway , saw many of them being transported on an open truck.  They looked much smaller and aroused curiosity.

On a closer scrutiny found them to be Kubota tractors.  Kubota Corporation  is a tractor and heavy equipment manufacturer based in Osaka, Japan. The company was established in 1890 and produce many farm equipments including tractors.   Their web claims that they are a popular brand in North America, Europe, and Asia and export tractors to more than 150 countries.  Read that Kubota tractor has its roots on the Japanese farm. Although Japanese farms are traditionally smaller than those in America, the need for high performance and powerful maneuverability is the same. Kubota Corporation introduced its first tractor to the United States in 1969. 

The product catalogue of B 2420  reveals that this tractor has a very narrow width – measures about just 1015 mm from outside of one rear tire to the other allowing easy manouverability.  This 4 wheel driven tractor has liquid cooled 3 cylinder diesel engine with total displacement of 1123 cc and tank capacity of 26 litres.    It can do bigger jobs as well and has  the lifting capacity of 615kg at the lift points, which will enable attachment of  a wider variety of implements.  When used as a tool, the  9 forward speeds and 3 reverse speeds allow matching the job’s needs. 

Looks attractive proposition – but from a transportation angle, vehicles tied to the hooks on the body by means of ropes – is not apt enough.  From an Insurer’s angle, these vehicles are open to weather and with no packing, there are some chances of dents, peeling of paints and other associated damages in handling.    The strength of ropes are questionable especially when they are old ones.  There should be fixed platform like structures or  wooden blocks made specifically to the size of the vehicles restricting the movement. 

When the pull of gravity and distribution of weight  is not properly taken care of, there is possibility of vehicles getting detached due to sudden movement when the  carrying truck comes to a violent stop or meets with an accident.  This could be propitiated when the tensile strength i.e., the stress that the rope can bear while stretched is low when the rope is old and used one.  Rather than the ropes, lockable stirrups or wheel chocks and lashing belts would be stronger options.  When the tractors are properly blocked, the movement would get arrested thereby the probability of them getting out of the board would be restricted.  When using lashing belts, extra care needs to be applied as they should not be attached to wheel rims, bumpers or steering but to chassis, vehicle frame or axles. 

Generally, the care in transportation is lax.  Once I have seen a oxyarc cylinder transported in loose, coming out of a partly closed lorry.  There was a ditch, the lorry driver  negotiated it without reducing the speed – the heavy cylinder was thrown into air and fell out of the vehicle.  Fortunately, no vehicle or person was following the vehicle closely – otherwise it would have been a big casualty.

Regards – S. Sampathkumar.