VACILLATIONS IN THE ORGANIZATION OF SOVIET
VACILLATIONS IN THE ORGANIZATION OF SOVIET
CIA/RR ERJ
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY Office of Research and Reports
The administrative situation in Soviet agriculture at the time of Stalin's death in3 and the administrative changes made before the end of that year are described ln this report. The planning "reform"5 and the adjustments7 are mentioned, and the reorganization8 in which the nachine tractor stations were abolished is highlighted. Subsequent changesnd3 are discussed, and the administrative situation in3 is described. Toe remaining sections Include discussionhe efforts to devise an acceptable organizationistribute capital goods to the faros and supervise maintenance of machineshe possibilities for raising agricultural production by increasing Incentives and Inputs and by relaxing central control.
ore detailed discussion of Soviet agricultural investment, procurement prices, crop structures, and production statistics than ie included in this report, see thc following reports: CIA/rR erurrent Problems ol Soviet Agriculture.I, and CIA/RRzp.ntInYift Apxtoul ticv, Novralfcr
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Page
Summary and
I. Introduction
II. Prom the Death of Stalin8
Changes3
C Further AdjustmentsT
D. Organizational Changes8
III. Further Changesnd
in
of March
Recognition of the need for Reorganization
Establishment of Territorial Production Direc-
torates for
Administrative Organs at the Oblast, Republic,
and mational
in2
in Kerch
in June
IV. Changes in the Organization of the Distribution and
Maintenance of Capital Goods
V. Other Possibilities for Stimulating Production
Appendix
Source References
Chart
USSR: The Apparatus for Administering Agriculture, as of
3 following
VACILLATIONS EI THE ORGANIZATION OF SOVGT AGRICULTURE
Summary and Cone lug lone
In thc decade since the death of Stalin, the Soviet leadership has made numerous important changec in the administrativethat governs the agricultural sector of the economy, but none of the administrative changes has made any noticeable improvement ID output or efficiency. The leadership has vacillated between organizational forms that control many of the minute details of agriculture and, in contrast, organizational forms that permit agriculture largely to take care of Itself, provided thatquotas are met. Another characteristic of theee administrative changes Is tbe variation in the role assigned to Party Inspectors and activists as opposed to the role assigned to governmentand bureaucrats. The result of the constant patching and renovating of the administrative structureontinuing confusion in the "chain of cossaand" in agriculture, and the Soviet leadershipdominated by the ebullient Khrushchevstill is trying to find new ways of organization that will increase both output and tbe level of technology.
*Unless specified otherwise, titles of organizations refer to the unit at the national, or all-union, level.
At the close of the Stalin era, collective fares (kolkhozes) were administered by the Ministry ofnd state farms (sovkhozeB) were administered by the Ministry of State Farms and by the Ministry of Cotton Growing. In3 these ministries, along with the Ministries of Agricultural Procurement and of Forestry, were merged toingle Ministry of Agriculture and Procurement, but before the end of the year the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of State Farms, and the Ministry of Agricultural Procurement were reestablished. The Ministry of State Farms was absorbed again by the Ministry of Agriculture The Ministry of Procurement was reorganized as the Ministry of Grain Productsnd this ministrytate committee
These high-level changes had little effect on the individual farms themselves or on the next higher administrative level. Through the3ocal officials of the Comaunist Party exerted great and probably growing influence on the work of kolkhozes and sovkhozes. An attempt to delegate greater planning authority to the farms themselves was madeut its effects were limited. achine tractor stations (MTS'e)mechanized operations for the kolkhozes and servedsuper* vlsory agents of the Ministry of Agriculture.
8 the MTS's were abolished, and their machinery was sold to the kolkhozes. Agricultural inspectorates were created under the rayon executive committees to supervise the kolkhozes for the Ministry of Agriculture.
After theI plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, the Ministry of Agriculture was relieved of all duties except the supervision of agricultural research andand the rayon agricultural inspectorates were abolished. tate Committee for Agricultural Procurements was formed on the base of the State Committee on Grain Products and was given asystem of subordinate units. At the local level, inter-rayon procurement inspectorates were established and were given authority not only to organize procurement but also to guide production operations on both kolkhozes and sovkhozes. Despite the fact that procurement inspectorates were to work with sovkhozes as well as kolkhozes, chief directorates of sovkhozes wereat the republic level.
At the2 plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party, it was admitted that the kolkhozeB and sovkhozes were not being supervised properly, even though oblast and rayon Party committees had expanded their supervisory rolexisting administrative bodies were abolished, and both kolkhozes and sovkhozes were placedew system of administrative bodies. Territorial production directorates, each embracing one or more rayons, were given comprehensive authority over the farms. Above them, oblast directorates and republic ministries ofand procurement were set up. ommunist Party organizer was assigned to each territorial production directorate andven greater power than was allocated to the nominal headirectorate. First secretaries of thc Communist Partyof the oblasts and republics were named the topAuthorities in their respective areas of jurisdiction.
After the2 plenum of the Central Cocnittee of the Communist Party, separate oblast Party committees were established
to supervise agriculture on the one hand and industry and construction on thc other. ureau for agricultureureau for industry and construction were established ln each republic Party committee. The boundaries of rural rayons and the areas under territorial production directorates were brought into harmony, and rural rayon Party con-alttees vere replaced by Party committees of the territorialdirectorates. The Party-State Control Committee was organized to expose fraud and nisconduct throughout the economy.
Inarious state coccitteec were grouped underbodies subordinate to the Council of Ministers, USSR. The Ministry of Agriculture and the State Comalttee for Agriculturalwere left directly under the Council of Ministers, but the AU-Unlon Para Machinery Association was placed under the Council of the National Economyhich in turn is under the Supreme Council of the National Economy- The Ail-Union Farm Machinery Association* had been establishedl to distribute machines and fertilizers to the farms and to operate repair shops for form machinery. The present-day administrative structure for Soviet agriculture is depicted in the accompanying chart.**
All-Unlon Association for thc Sole of Form Machinery, Spare Parts, Mineral Fertilizers, and Other Materials ond Equipment and for the Organization of the Repair ond Use of Machinery on Collective and State Forms-
Following p. *.
Other measures (incentives, more investment, greater authority for farm managers, and the like) doubtless would do for more to stimulate increases in production than would organizational reshuffling. More incentives resulted In greater production, but since then only minor changes have been aade. Inventments were stepped up greatly late2 and earlyut the results ore as yet Indeterminate. Bo evidence exists of any changes or Intent to change the scope of freedom of farm managers. In the absence of anylo tackle these fundamental and potentially fruitful approaches, the USSR probably will continue to seek panaceas in the form ofwith organizational management.
I. Introduction
3 the Soviet leadership has striven by trial and error to organize agriculture In an Ideologically acceptable maimer that would stimulate large increases in production. Growth or agricultural production has lagged far behind growth of industrial production and construction ever sinces, but Stalin's successors have committed themselves to the achievement of great agricultural progress. Organizational change has been one important approach to the problem of increasing agricultural production, and organizational stability has not yet been achieved.
A discussion of the administrative organization of agriculture must take account of the fact that considerable reliance is placed on informal administration through Communist Party channels in addition to formal administration through the agricultural agencies of the government. Informal administration consists of actions, often arbitrary, taken by Party officials from Khrushchev down to the lowest Party functionary to achieve particular objectives deemed by them to be important. These objectives frequently are short-run, ond, to achieve them, Party officials sometimes disregard decrees, laws, long-run policies, and thc dictates of common sense. Although lt can be argued that formal administration was relaxed1 and was only partly retlghtenednformal administration was increased to prevent any relaxation of over-all supervision during the period. Changes effected2 strengthened both formal and informal administration but intertwined the two and did notlear distinction between the agricultural duties of Partyand government administrators.
* Por serially numbered source references, see the Appendix. The sown area of other state agricultural enterprisesor example, farms attached to factories to supply the workers' dining hallsis included in the sovkhoz share.
A number of changes have been made In the organizationsthe farms, and other changes have affected thc farms themselves.3 aany kolkhozes haveinto larger units, and many have been converted into sovkbozes. Tbe number of kolkhozes declined0 at the close30 at tbe close During the same period the number of sovkbozes rose-he share of Kolkhozes in the sown area fell fromercent3 toercenthile the share of sovkhozeo rose fromercent to hU/ The remainder of
the sown area was accounted for by the private plots belonging to kolkhoz members and state workers. Various pressures have been exerted on the private plots, particularly those of state workers,ausing some reduction in the number of privately owned livestock and in the total size of the private plots. Khrushchev has called for early elimination of the private plots of sovkhoz workers.
II. From the Death of Stalin8
3fforts to raise agricultural output vere rewarded amply. According to Soviet figures, grossproduction in theasercent above that of theears, and production8 wasercent above the abysmally low level/ This remarkable increase in production usually is ascribed to increased inputs, expanded area of cultivation, increased planting of corn, Improved incentives, and better weather conditions. Labor, machinery, and fertilizers were made available in greater quantities, and the sown area was expanded by nearly one-fourth3 (Development of the new lands of Kazakh SSR and Siberia accounted for most of the expansion Of the sown area.) The area planted with corn8 was more than four times what it hod been rices paid to the farms for products delivered to the state were increased sharply, as were prices paid to individuals fordeliveries from their private plots. Quotas for deliveries from personal holdings were reduced3 andhe "agricultural tax" on private plots was reduced greatly As these measures increased the money incomes of the peasants, more consumer goods were mode available in rural areas, and real incomes increased accordingly. Extensive changes also were made in formal agriculturalduring38 period, but these changes probably hod little effect on output.
Changes3
Shortly after Stalin's death inomplex Ministry of Agriculture and Procurement was formed by combining the Ministries of Agriculture, Agricultural Procurement, State Farms, Cotton Growing, and Forestry. Working through subordinate bodies at the lower levels of government, this new ministry planned and directed the work of sovkhozes and kolkhozes, supervisedof agricultural products, and distributed agricultural capital goods- In3 the Ministry of State Farms and
the Ministry of Agricultural Procurement again were given autonomous status, and the title of the basic ministry was shortened toof Agriculture. Sovkhoz trusts of oblast subordinationsovkbozes during this period and indeed continued to do so After Stalin's death, agricultural inspectorates ln the rayon executive committees were abolished, and Increased dependence was placed on the MTS's to administer the kolkhozes. Because the MTS's performed all mechanized operations for the kolkhozes, they wereosition to observe conditions on the kolkhozes and totheir will in any disputes. Political sections in the MTS's gave theominant place in these local organs of thcof Agriculture.
C. Further Adjustments7
Inecree was issued that supposedly was to reform agricultural planning by delegating more authority to lower level bodies, including the kolkhozes and sovkbozes themselves. The basic Idea was to restrict planning at the national level to the development of procurement plans for the most important products for example, grain, potatoes, cotton, meat, milk, and wool. plans for certain other products were to be drawn up at the republic level. The kolkhozes and sovkbozes were to be free to plan their own operations, subject to the limitation that their plans mint provide for tbe fulfillment of the centrally established procurement goals. In reality, for several reasons, this "reform" of planning did not increase appreciably the autonomy of the farms. First, the existence of procurement goals closely restricted decisIon-making by farm officials. Second, the plans of kolkhozes were subject to influence from MTS officialsIncluding theheads of political sectionsand review by rayon executive committees, and sovkhoz plans were subject to review by sovkhoz trusts and oblast executive committees. Third, the amount ofadministration was increased as Party officials moved Into the vacuum left by the relaxation of formal administration. Party officials did not hesitate to interfere ln the most petty matters and enthusiastically pressed national campaigns, tbe biggest one probably being the campaign to increase the planting of corn.
6 the Ministry of Agricultural Procurement, the only national ministry in the family of agricultural bodies, was reorganizednion-republic basis as the Ministry of Grain Products." Thie organization seems to have been concerned chiefly
* ational, or all-union, ministryighly centralized body that does not operate through counterpart ministries at the republic level as do union-republic ministries.
with the collection and storage of bread grains and with theof flour mills.
The Ministry of State Forma vas merged back into the Ministry of Agriculture On the local level, however, kolkhozes and sovkhozes continued to be administered separately.
D. Organizational Changes8
The nost radical change in agricultural organization since the collectivization drive ofs was the abolition ln the spring8 of thc MTS's, which hadentral feature of the kolkhoz system since its creation, and the sale of their machinery to thc kolkhozes. This sale of property belonging to all the Soviet people (that is, to the state) to individual cooperatives seemed to be an ideological retrogression, but Chairman Khrushchev was not disturbed by ideological scruples. "We have two masters on the same landthe kolkhoz and thee said, "and where there are two masters, there can be no good/ The MTS's were, according torake on further agricultural progress. They were broken up, and their agricultural machinery was sold to the kolkhozesime-payment basis. Responsibility for immediate supervision of the kolkhozes passed into the hands of agricultural inspectorates under the rayon executive committees. The shops of the MTS's were turned into repair technical stations (RTS's) to service tbe machines sold to the kolkhozes and to distribute new machines and supplies to them. The elimination of MTS'sa reform in the system of state procurement of agricultural products- Payment ln kind by the kolkhozes to the MTS's came to on end, and the old custom of paying low prices for compulsory deliveries to the state and much higher prices for additional deliveries was discontinued. All state procurements were to be conducted as purchases at prices fixed considerably above thc former prices for compulsory deliveries. Higher prices were to be paid In zoneB having higher average coBts of production. Compulsion,was not eliminated from agricultural procurement- Delivery targets continued to bo established for the farms, and pressures for their fulfillment were continued. Also8 the Ministry of Grain Products became tho State Committee on Grain Products.
The abolition of the MT3'b in the spring8 must hove disrupted agricultural administration, nevertheless, the harvest8ood ono, and optimistic planners wrote into the Seven Yearn increase in agricultural production ofercent above the level
Ill- Further Changes3
A. General
If the abolition of the MTS's unleashed productive forces on the kolkhozes, as Khrushchev implied lt would, this result has not yet become apparent. The grain harvest8 vas not equaled Sot until2 did official reports claim that the grain harvest8 had been exceeded.otal agricultural output2 was slightly above thatccording to official claims, but it was far below the level called for ln the plan. Soviet figures on agricultural production typically are inflated, and total production2 probably was almost the same as This lag in agricultural production, coupled with other oggrovatlng problems such as fraudulent reporting; inefficient organization of maintenance and repair work; and shortages of machinery, spare parts, and fertilizer, caused rumbles of dissatisfaction within the leadership that resulted ln the Intensification of informal administration and the introductioneries of changes in the formal administrative structure.
8* ChangesL
The1 plenum of the Central Committee of thc Communist Party led to the dissolution of the rayon agricultural inspectorates, the reduction of the Ministry of Agricultureody supervising agricultural research and education, and the establishmentnified and comprehensive procurementhe procurement system, headedtate Committee for Agricultural Procurements formed on the base of the State Committee on Grain Products, was to provide central direction to the manythat collect fane products purchased by the state-"*
* For changes made early1 in the system of supplying capital goods to agriculture, see IV,elow.
** These Organizations Include republic societies for grain products and chief directorates for the procurement and fattening of cattle, consumers' cooperatives, organi stations under the trade ministries, workers' supply divisions of industrial and construction enterprises, and organizations that process agricultural products.
The new procurement system also represented theof efforts by the Soviet leadership to manage farm production through thc medium of state procurement. As noted above, state agricultural planning ostensibly had been reduced to the planning
of procurements5 The revamping of the procurement apparatusl was an admission that the planning of procurements could not guide agricultural production effectively unless further steps were taken to insure compliance with the plan by the farms. Working through rayon and inter-rayon procurement inspectorates, the new system was "to conduct organizational work on the kolkhozes and sovkhozes to Increase the output of form products" and to unify the organization of purchases and bringproper coordination of business relations between the kolkhozes and sovfchotes on the one hand and industrial enterprises receiving farm products on the
The new procurement system was constructed hastily1 and soon ran into difficulties. Output and procurementsT were far below expectations, and major causes of these shortcomings were said to be poor guidance of the farms by the procurement inspectorates and the failure of the Inspectorates to Improve relations between thc farms and the organizations receiving their products. The Chairman or tha State Committee for Agricultural. Ignatov, was dropped from the Presidium of the Communist Party in In November, Khrushchev woo saying, "It is necessary to consider rationally how to organize better the work of procurement/ Inonference of farm managers and specialists ln Kisvroposal to abolish procurement directorates in the Ukrainian SSF. No doubt thc setting up of the procurementhadertain amount of confusion ln agricultural operations, and, in many rayons, crops hod been or were being planted by the time procurement Inspectorates began to operate. ear or two of experience would hove improved the work of theinspectors. Nevertheless, the procurement system was criticized sharply at the? plenum of the Central Committee of theParty, and oil of its organizations below the national level were abolishedcant year oferiod ia which it could not possibly have reached its potential level of effectiveness.
C. Reorganization of
1- Recognition of the Need for Reorganization
A decree Issued by the Party and government on2 Incorporated the proposals mode by Khrushchev at the March plenumeorganization of agricultural management. It begantotement 0! *he need for organizational reforms:
The March plenum of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union demonstrated that the existing structure of agriculturaldoes not correspond to heightened demands. It restricts the possibilities of using the reserves contained in socialist agriculture, and it needs to
be fundamentally reorganized. In the country there is, in effect, no organ that can manage agriculture properly, concern itself with the organization of production and procurement, delve deeply into the needs of collective nnd state farms, and makethat there le the most effective use of land, machinery, and other means af
2. Establishment of Territorial Production Directorates for Apr:culture
The decree then proceeded to order the establishmentev structure of organizations to manage production, procurement,and other agricultural activities. The principal Innovations in the nev structure were thc Installation of Communist Party officials in key positions and the establishment of territorial productionto serve as the primary units of administration.* The territorial production directorates vereomprehensive list of duties. to the decree, they vere made responsible:
* Although most territorial directorates were set up to exerciseover tvo or moreew vere restricted to single rayons because of special conditions.
For the organization, execution, and control of the implementation of the decisions of the party and government on agriculture, the production andof agricultural products, and the strictof state discipline; for administering tbeof production and procurement of agricultural products, and insuring the fulfillment of production and state procurement plans by each collective and state farm; for the planning, calculation, andof the production and procurement of agricultural products; for examining the production and financial plans and the yearly accounting of collective and state farms; for working out and introducing rational systems of crop husbandry and an effective cropin the sownor the organization and highly productive use on the collective ond state farms of machinery and other means of production; for the organization of seed-growing and control overthat collective and state farms have their own high-grade seeds; for administering the service for protecting plants from disease and pests; for the organization and creation on every collective and
stale fnrtatable fodder base through theintroduction of the sowing of corn, sugar beets, peas, beans and other high-yieldorj* hn increase Ln the pr taeti*#lt| i* rtU typtH of cattle and fowl, the organization of pedigreed breeding, and the maintenanceeterinaryfor livestock farming; for carrying out aeasures for the organizational and economic strengthening of the collective and state farms and theirinto profitable agricultural enterprisesigh output of marketable produce; for theof intercollective farm enterprises and organ!-zotior.s, for the organization and conclusion of contract agreements on agricultural produce and raw material by the collective and state farms; for control over the correctness of the determination by reception points and enterprises of the quantity and quality ofproducts and rev materials procured, and also for the correctness and good timing of the accounts in collective and state farms; for insuring control over thc observance of the agricultural artel statute, and the democratic bases of the management offarm production; for the correct balancing of the personal and communal interests of the collective farmers; for carrying out control and revision work on the collective ond state farms; and for the protection of the collective and state lams from misuse andof their property.
The prime duty of the territorials to organize correctly the production, normlng and remuneration of labor on collective and state forms, to practice broadly the supplementary remuneration of labor ia all branches of collective form production, and to manage the piece-rate bonus system of labor remuneration ln all branches of state farm . The territorial production directorate must extend the Introduction of the achievements of science and the experience of the model and other best farms, insuring on thisteady rise ln the yield of agricultural crops and the productivity of stockbrecding on all farms. One of the main tasks in the work of thc territorial production directorates is the reinforcement of farms with cadres, selecting leading cadres and specialists and training them in progresuive methods of work. Il/
In brief, the territorial production directorates were to direct all the activities of sovkhoz, kolkhoz, and inter-kolkhoz organizations and to accomplish certain auxiliary functions as well-Each territorial production directorate wus given innpector-organizers to serve as the agents of the directorate, working in direct contact with the farms. These men were to study the operation of the forma, recommend changes in the conduct of their work, and negotiate procurement contracts between the farms ond the organizations thatproducts for the state. Inspector-organizers allegedly were to work through the boards of kolkhozes and administrations of sovkhozes, and the decree states that the lotter bodies are to have the final soy in questions of production. Inspector-organizers, however, wereto report refusals to comply with their recommendations to the territorial production directorates for appropriate action.
A Communist Party organizer of thc republic or oblast Party committee was installed in each territorial production directorate. The Party organizer was made responsible to the Party committee that appointed him rather than to the head of thc territorial production directorate and was given two to four instructors as assistants. The duties of the Party organizer ostensibly were centered on the conduct of organizational and mass political work but included extensive responsibilities and authority in other work. He was to take measures to Insure increases in agricultural productivity and yields and the proper execution of the duties of thc territorial production directorates. He was to bring about reforms ln incentive payment systems and to control the selection, placement, und training of cadres on the forms. He was mode responsible for increasing the effectiveness of thc crop structure, spreuding thc use of advanced techniques, enforcing tlie observance of proper procedures in the use and care of machinery and other capital goods, and guiding the work of Komsomol organizers assigned to the territorial productionto instruct the rural youth and mobilize them for Party
The Party organizerthe moat powerful figure in theproduction directoratewas putosition analogous to that of the head of thc political section of the former MTS. His authority actually extended over all local agricultural matters, and, unlike the Party functionary of the MTS, he was given authority over sovkhozes as well as kolkhozes. Sovkhozes were placed more directly under Party control than ot any time ln recent memory. As the representative of the oblast Party committee, the Party organizer who given greater nuthorlty than that of the nominal head of the territorial production directorate or that of thc first secretary of thc rayon Party committee. Efforts were made to alleviate frictions that noon developed between thc; Party organizer and other officialsparticularly the first secretary of the rayon Party committeeby clarifying the extent of the power of
the Party organizer. Inecree made the first secretary of the rayon Partyeputy of the Party organizer.
The staffing of the territorial production directorates in the Ukrainian SSR vas revealed innd it is probableimilar pattern of staffing occurred in the remainder of the USSR. Party organizers were selected from among "the best secretaries" or rayon Party committees. Of the heads of territorialere first secretaries of rayon or city Party committees;ere chairmen of rayon executive committees;ere chiefs ofdirectorates of agriculture, sovkhozes, or procurement organs; andere chiefs of departments of oblast Party committees or deputy chairmen of oblast executive committees. Ofere agronomists, zootechnicians, or other types of agricultural specialists. ere said to have had considerable experience in economic and organizational vork. lj/
Councils of production management vere formed under the chairmanship of the heads of territorial production directorates. These councils comprise chairmen of kolkhozes, directors or sovkhozes, first secretaries of rayon Party committees, heads of departments of the Ail-Union Farm Machinery Association, and thc Party and Komsomol organizers. The councils vere to convene only about onceonths and seem to have been considered of little importance.
3- Kew Administrative Organs at tlie Oblast. Republic, and National Levels
In oblasts, directorates of agricultural production andwere formed under the first deputies of thc executive committees, apparently to administer and manage the territorial production They also vere made responsible for agricultural production and procurement and for seed cultivation and questions of plant protection, pedigreed stockbreedlng, veterinary matters, soil improvement, and land use. The appointment of first deputies of oblast executive committees to head the oblast directoratesark of their importance- All organizations at the oblast level that were directly concerned with agriculture were subordinated formally to agricultural committeesof the heads of all oblast agricultural organizations under the chairmanship of the first secretaries of the oblast Party coemittees-
The new arrangement at the republic level vas similar to that in the oblasts. Here ministries of agricultural production and procurement were formed on thc basis of the former organizationsprocurement and managing sovkhozes, and, in small republics, they also absorbed the ministries of agriculture. The duties of these ministries were not listed, but they were Centered on the management
- lL
and administration of lover echelon organizations of production and Responsibility for the over-all supervision of agricultural activities was assigned formally to agricultural committees made up of the heads of all republic agricultural bodies under the chairmanship of the first secretaries of the Party central committees of the republics
The order to form agricultural committees at the oblast and republic levels formalized and emphasized the responsibilities ofParty first secretaries in agriculture. These committees vere given no administrative structures of their own, however, and their intended role was not fully explained.
The heads of agricultural organizations at the national level were named membersnion Agricultural Committee, . Ignatov, who previously had been removed from the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Communist l'arty, was appointed chairman of the agricultural body, and the duties outlined for the committee Involved mere verification and checking of activities in or affecting agriculture. Nostructure was given to the new committee.
D. Changes fn fro2
Khrushchev in his report to the Party plenum of? endorsed the agricultural administrative system as follows: "The March plenum of the Party Central Committee has drawnell-designed and, as it appears toood system for the management of Mo did find it necessary to reduce the areas administered by most territorial production directorates, increasing their number fromoecauae of "the cumbersome nature of certain existing territorial productione also brought about extensive changes In the structure of theParty that were intended to improve Party leadership inactivities. The rayon Party committees were replaced by Party committees of the territorial production directorates. Partypresumably became the chairmen of these cosmilttees. Theof rural rayons themselves were expanded to coincide with the new Jurisdictional boundaries of the production directorates and their Party committees. The Party committee in each oblast was replaced by two committees, one to guide Industrial production, the other Lo guide agricultural production. (Exceptions to this system of dual committees may be found In oblasts where cither industry or agriculture is of little Importance.) Thc Party committees ofwere not replaced, but, within each one, two bureaus were establishedresidium, one to nonage industrial production ond one to manage agricultural production. In the RSFSR, where the highest Party body has been the Bureau for thc RSFSR within the Central Committee of thc Communist Party, two additional bureaus of
the Party were established, one to manage industrial production and one to manage agricultural production. Separate bureaus for manaeinfl industrial and agricultural production in the USSRhole also were established in the Central Committee of the Communist Party.
The oblast and republic agricultural committees were not nen-tioned in the speeches and reports of the2 plenum. Because the Communist Party has been reorganized along production lines toand strengthen the role of Party officials in agriculture and other economic activities, there seems to be no need for the oblast and republic agricultural committees, and these committees may no longer be functioning. The Union Agricultural Committee also may haye passed out of existence. It was ignored at the November plenum,. Ignatov's position as chairman of this committee was not mentioned in reports of Ignatov's replacement as chairman of the State Committee for Agricultural Procurements by his former. Korniyets, in
The2 plenum of the Central Committee of theParty led to the formation of the Party-State Controloint organ of the Party and government intended to expose fraud and misconduct wherever they exist in the economy. This organization absorbed the State Control Commission, which had been formed from the Soviet Control Commission Although these organizations have been concerned with all sectors of the economy, exposures of fraud and misconduct in agriculture have been especially common and may have precipitated the reforms in control organizations. ublicity concerning agricultural scandalseak. Numerous chairmen of kolkhozes, directors of sovkhozes, and officials of Party and(ranking as high as the Parly first secretary and the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Tadzhik SSR) were dismissed from their posts and punished for implication in the scandals. Some increase inpractices by kolkhoz chairmen may have resulted from theof close observation through the KTS's, but another explanation must be found for the aberrations of sovkhoz directors and officials of Party and government- The principal cause of fraud at all levels is the pressure exerted on all responsible persons ln agriculture to report an unbroken series of successes- To some degree this fraud surely has been present for many years, but recent increases inprobably have increased its incidence-
E- Changes in3
Indjustments were made ir. Uie central economic administrative structure of the USSR that hud some ef'ect on acricul ture. The State Committee for Agricultural Procurement and the Ministry of Agriculture were left directly under the Council of Ministers; however.
the All-Union Farm Machinery Association was placed under the Council of the National Economy (USSR Sovnarkhoz). Besides directing the regional councils of the national economy, the USSR Sovnarkhoz is to supervise the implementation of state plans by the All-Union Farm Machinery Association and the State Committees for the Fish Industry and Domestic Trade. The Supreme Council of the National Economy (VSHKh) was created to coordinate the work of the State Planningthe USSR Sovnarkhoz, the State Committee for Construction Affairs, and state branch and production committees.
Also in March the replacement. Pysin as Minister of Agriculture was announced. The appointment. Volovchenko, an obscure sovkhoz director, to succeed him is an indication of the greatly reduced role of this ministry. The ministries of agriculture of themallest republics were abolishednd in3 the Ministry of Agriculture of Uzbek SSR and apparently that of the RSFSR also were abolished. It seems likely that the remaining republic ministries of agriculture will be eliminated soon.
F- Situation inj
Inhree agricultural organizations were in operation at the national level. These are the Ministry of Agriculture, which supervises agricultural research and education; the State Committee for Agricultural Procurements, which supervises procurement, storage, and processing of agricultural products; and the All-Union Farm Machinery Association, which supervises the distribution of capital goods to the farms and the maintenance and repair of farm machinery- Interestingly enough, there is no formal government body at the national level that is uniquely responsible for agricultural production. The highest government organizations with authority over the operation of kolkhozes and sovkhozes are the ministries of production and procurement at the republic level. Between these ministries and the forms are oblast directorates of agricultural production and procurement and local,production directorates. Communist Party organs supervise all agricultural organizations at all levels, usually on an ad hoc, semi-formal basis.
Changes in the Organization of the Distribution andCapital
The transfer of machinery from MTS's to the kolkhozes aggravated problems of distributing capital goods and supervising their At the endachines were being distributed from the factoriesovkhozesTS's- Distribution andof these machines was supervised by the Ministry ofear later, machines were being distributedovkhozes and
olkhozes, and problems of distribution hod been aggravated Much of the repair work for machines owned by kolkhozes was being performed by the RTS's, which had been formed on the base of the MTS's, but many kolkhozes were trying with varying degrees ofto perform the bulk of their own repair work. At the endhereTS's under rhe Ministry of Agriculture. Ig/ Theyear these were reorganized as machine repair workshops and were relieved of their sales and supply Republic offices for oil supply and sales under republic Goeplans were made responsible for providing petroleum products to the farms. nified organization for agricultural supply was set up in each republic to distribute machinery, spare ports, and mineral fertilizers to the farms. Deliveries of mo-chines nevertheless continued to be haphazardly timed, and machines were sent where they were not needed. The long-ctondlng shortage of spare ports continued, and the product mix of machine plants probably was poor. There was no means by which the farms could Influence the production plans of farm machinery plants-
Thc quality of maintenance and repair of form machinery probably declined after the MTS's were broken up. Skilled machine operators and repairmen were spread thinly among the farms ond shops. Farms locked maintenance and repair equipment and even buildings for sheltering their newly acquired machines. Repair technical stations or machine repair workshops under the Ministry of Agriculture and repair shops that had been turned over to the regional councils of the national economy did not provide on adequate supplement to thc limited repair facilities of the forms themselves. In some coses these councils of the national economy, which were basically oriented toward industry and construction, converted former MTS facilities to perform nonagricultural functions.
In on effort to Improve the situation in the supply of machinery, parts, and fertilizers and in the repair and maintenance of farm machines, the Communist Party and the Sovietecree published la Pravda onlathered these functions underew Ail-Unlon Kara: Machinery Association. This organization, having the statustate committee, was given subdivisions at the republic, oblast, and rayon or inter-rayon levels. 'Ihe All-Union Farm Machinery Association was to eliminate shortcomings in the assortment and distribution of agricultural capital goods by serving as abetween the farms and the factories, and it was to operate the machine repair workshops that hod been under the Ministry of (Other repair facilities were retained by kolkhozes, sovkhozes, and regional councils of the national economy-) Tc improve the care and use of machines on sovkhozes and porticularly on kolkhozes, local branches of thc All-Union Farm Machinery Association were given Inspectors with the authority to Investigate on the farms and reprimand or fine those
responsible for the abuse or neglect of farm machinery- The hand of these inspectors was strengthenedecree of1 that made maltreatment of farmrime punishable by prisonof upears-
This system probably has mitigated some difficulties, but it has not eliminated the problems in the supply, repair, and care of machines and other capital goods. Recognition of continuing problems in these areas frequently appears in Soviet publications:
In the planning and delivery to the New Lands ofparticularly harvesting equipment, astonishing confusion and irresponsibility are permitted. There are moreew examplesarmombine while its header is sent to another place. In Oktyabr' Rayon, Kustanay Oblast,ombines have stood without cutting devices for three years-In Rassvet Sovkhoz near Tselinograd, lUombines were received as early asugust of last year; afteronth, eight cutting devices came to them, but thc remaining machines stand incomplete to this day
Serious alarm is raised by the state of preparation of harvesting equipment in the present year. In Tselinnyy Kray0 combines and0 reapers were not reconditioneduly. In Pavlodar Oblast only one-fifth of the combines and reapers are
The clutch pedal of theombineimple item. But because it is lacking,ombines in Aktyubinsk Oblast alone cannot go into theong time the oblasts appealed to Alma-Ata: "We need hubs for the speed variator disks of ourack would come the answer from the Kazakh capital: "We will send them; republic plants are making them." But months passed, and the needed parts did not arrive- Thc repair of more0 combines could not An intolerable negligence has been shown in Kazakhstan. At the same time, it is incomprehensible why the officials of the All-Union Farm Hachineryand Gosplan, USSR, fail to exercise supervision over the supplier. It wouldistake to ascribe the lag in preparing thc machinery for the
* This decree is interesting in that it makesriminal offense to abuse or neglect machines owned by cooperatives, thc kolkhozes, as well as those owned by the
harvest to shortage of spare parts alone. Only slightly more than half of the combines in Kazakhstan have been overhauled, and not even that many Lastractors and0 combines here fin Tselinnyy KrayJ never did get prepared for the
At presentne-third of the motor vehicles of kolkhozes and sovkhozes [in L'vov Oblast] stand idle because of the lack of/
[The Party-State Control Committee] points outons of fertilizers are lying at railway
Last year outnterprises producing spare parts for tractors and agriculturalid not fulfill the. Altogether last year tractor and agricultural machine building enterprises turned3 million rubles worth of spare parts less than This] the deficit of the plants continues to . Recently, representatives of the All-Union Farm Machinery Association checked the fuel spray nozzles received at the Rostov Oblast base of the association. Outarts,urned out to be . The picture is the same in other enterprises too. Inractor andmachine building plants and atrade bases, the All-Union Farm Machinery Association examined the quality of parts. And here is thc result: at the Kirovograd plant "Krasnaya zvezda"ercent of the examined parts were condemned, at the Kursk tractor parts plantercent, at L' vovsel'mashercent, at Gomsel'mashercent, at Rostsel'mashercent,
In. Yezhevskiy was appointed Chairman of the All-Union Farm Machinery Association,- Kuchumov, who had headed the organization since its creationI- Although thc organization has been subjected to almost continuous criticismong period, it has been retained almost in its original form.
v- Other Possibilities for Stimulating Production
It is obvious that the Soviet leadership is dissatisfied with the level of agricultural production that has prevailednd it is likely that they will introduce further changes, including some of an organizational nature, in order to raise the level of production.
Increnoeo In material Incentives seem to have been effectiveto production in the first yeurs of the post-Stalin era, and it is likely that further increases also would be effective. Production in the private subsidiary economies of kolkhoz members and sovKhoz workers rose in response to reductions in taxes and compulsory delivery quotas after Stalin's death, but Ideological considerations have ledradual tightening of restrictions on activities of this nature It is not likely that the present leadership vill change this policy of discouraging work ln the private subsidiary economies. Increases in prices paid by thc state for agricultural products after the death of Stalin stimulated production In socialized agriculture, and more recently this approach was tried again. Prices for meat and butter were raised?evel that was supposed to covercost, and prices for cotton were raised The difficulty in making this sort of incentive effective is the problem ofthe increased incomes of the formsanner that will stimulate the efforts of Individuals. Wage scales and work norms vere revised on sovkhozes6? in ottempts to increase ond improve theof the sovkhoz workers, but the effects of these revisions seen to have been slight. Work norms hove been revised on some kolkhozes ln recent yearn, and some kolkhozes have begun to pay regular advances rather than distributing all income payments at the end of thcyear. Many, probably moot, kolkhozes are too poor to pay such advances, however, and some that tried were unable to continue the practice. It seems doubtful that many kolkhozes have accomplished thorough reforms of work norms, but little information is available on the subject. The problem of providing adequate incentives toeffort has not yet been solved in socialized agriculture.
Production of agricultural machinery and mineral fertilizers was increased significantly2 and early These Increases and increases in other types of agricultural investment by theand by the state could hove noticeable effects3 crops. If the trend of Increase is continued. Important long-run gains will be achieved.
A campaign toore effective crop structure began with9 season. This campaign probably vill bring some short-run gains, but ita long-run value is questionable.
Some observers believe that none of the approaches to the problem of logging production discussed above will be very successful unless formal snd Informal administration of the farms is relaxed greatly and unlessmanagers are allowed to workinimum of interference from above. Perhapsiew is too extreme,elaxation of administration surely would be beneficial. There ic uc yet nothat the Soviet leadership accepts this point of View.
t
APPENDIX
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USSR, Central Statistical Administration. ? godu (USSR in Figures,. (hereafter referred to as Tslfrokh)
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Original document.
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