The surplus appropriation system in Tomsk Province in 1920-1921

One of the first activities the Bolsheviks launched after the restoration of its power in Tomsk Province was the surplus-appropriation system. It is a withdrawal of surplus grain from the peasants in favor of the starving regions of Russia. In the first phase, surplus appropriation was voluntary in nature and focused on the free delivery by peasants of their food surpluses at fixed prices while maintaining free trade of agricultural products. However, due to the insufficient number of products peasants supplied, in May 1920, by a decision of the Provincial Revolutionary Committee compulsory surplus appropriation was introduced in the province. The result of the first half of the food campaign in 1920 was the collection of 3423 thousand poods of grain and fodder, which was only 35.6 % of the total plan. One reason for this result was the lack of food workers, which was announced at a meeting of representatives of county and district party organizations at the beginning of June 1920. During the second half of the food preparations in 1920-1921, farms of Tomsk Province were supposed to give 19 million poods of grain and fodder. This volume was largely due to the tense food situation in the central regions of the country. Despite the decision of the X Congress of the Russian Communist Party of Bolsheviks on the transition to a food tax, the surplus appropriation system in Siberia and, in particular, in Tomsk Province continued. As a result of these efforts, by July 1921 the total amount of grain and fodder seized from peasants, was 12950 thousand poods. The plan was implemented by 68.2 %. The central governing body during the procurement activities was the Commissariat of Food. It appointed food jobs for a province giving appropriate instructions to the provincial food committee. The latter distributed the volume of products to be collected between counties establishing contacts with county food committees. They ordered to perform the surplus appropriation plan to volost authorities and volost authorities to rural authorities. Methods of surplus food collection from farmers included both persuasion and coercion. In particular, party and soviet workers of Tomsk Province were mobilized to participate as speakers and advocates in the villages. Regional non-party conferences on food were held. Coercive methods of the surplus appropriation system included the creation of armed food detachments and their sending with missions to the villages. For unsatisfactory results of the food campaign, members of the Volost Revolutionary Committee and executive committees could be subjected to the court of the Revolutionary Tribunal. The overall result of the food surplus appropriation in Tomsk Province was almost complete devastation of farms and subsequent famine. After the end of the surplus appropriation system, relationships of the provincial governing bodies with the peasant population consisted in the collection of a food tax that replaced surplus appropriation.

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