Agrarian
Structure of Indian society through the lenses of land reforms till date
History
of agricultural set up in India
Indian agriculture began in India in 9000 BCE.It is
one of the main occupation in India at that time and even today it one of the
main source of earning livelihood.
Vedic Period
The period also for the first time saw the domestication of animal elephant.Economy in the Rig vedic period was sustained by agriculture and pastoralism.Agriculture dominated the economic activity,its operations became complex with use of iron implements like black metal. Crops like wheat,rice,barley were cultivated,
Later
Vedic period
During this period wide range of cereals, fruits,
vegetables were cultivated. Animal husbandry was also prevalent. Agriculture
became much developed than the rigvedic period. Rice, wheat and barley was
mainly cultivated. Cotton cultivation was in vogue. Various domesticated
animals was used in ploughing.
Indus
Valley Civilisation
During this time though agriculture was important
for their livelihood but to some extent people were engaged in various other
types of trade in order to earn their livelihood. Indus people used to keep
cattles, goats, pigs, sheeps for food. Farmers grew fruits such as dates,
grapes, melons and also wheat and peas.
The Tamil people cultivated a wide range of crops such as
rice, sugarcane, millets, black pepper, various grains, coconuts, beans,
cotton, plantain, tamarind and sandalwood.Jack fruit,
coconut, palm, areca and plantain trees were also known. Systematic ploughing, manuring, weeding,
irrigation and crop protection was practiced for sustained agriculture.
Portugese
introduced the cultivation of tobacco. The Malabār Coast was the home of spices, especially black
pepper, that had stimulated the first European adventures in the
East. Coffee had been imported from Abyssinia and
became a popular beverage in aristocratic circles by the end of the
century. Tea, which was to become the
common man's drink and a major export, was yet undiscovered, though it was
growing wild in the hills of Assam.
Land management was particularly strong during the regime
of Akbar
the Great (reign: 1556-1605), under whom
scholar-bureaucrat Todarmal formulated and implemented
elaborated methods for agricultural management on a rational basis. Indian
crops—such as cotton, sugar, and citric fruits—spread visibly throughout North Africa, Islamic Spain,
and the Middle East.
Colonial British Era – Republic of India
(1757-1947)
Few Indian
commercial crops like opium, cotton, indigo and rice made it to the global
market under British raj in India. Due to increase in the production of
agricultural crops were seen in the 19th century, canals were built.
After independence
India focused on agriculture in order to become self sufficient in providing
food to its people. Special programs
were undertaken to increase the supply of food supply. A milestone in Indian
history in order to improve the food production was the introduction of the
Green Revolution in the year 1960. This helped to make India a self sufficient
country with increasing GDP growth. Even India’s export and import increased
through the agriculture.
Later many developments
took place in order to strengthen the sector of agriculture like constituting
NABARD,Council of agricultural research, National Dairy Development Board, etc.
Land Reforms in India
Introduction
Land Reforms in
India is done mainly help the poor farmers and land holders to get rid of
various difficulties like abolishing land tenure system,ceiling on land
holding, distribution of surplus land, consolidation of holdings, compilation
of land records.The main aim for introducing land reforms in India in order to
save the poor and landless poors from being exploited in land relations,
empowerment of women to ensure greater access to land and abolishing gender
bias in land legislation.
What’s the need of land reforms:
The need of land
reforms in India can be felt if we quickly take a look at the history of land
reforms which took place after independence in India-
1.Government came
up with the land reforms in the first five year plan started in 1951.
2. In the second five
year plan the abolition of intermediaries took place in order to give
protection to the tenants.
3. The second five
year plan categorically ruled out the procedure of land ceiling. The plan
proposed that the ceiling of the holding should be fixed at about three family
holdings.
4. Abolition of
Zamindars and other intermediaries (jagirdars, inamdars, malgujars, etc)
between the state and the cultivator.
5. A high powered
committee in 1948 with J.L.Nehru as its Chairman recommended that all
intermediaries should be replaced by non-profit making agencies like
cooperatives..
National Land Reforms Policy
This policy focuses
on those aspects of land reforms which if implemented in true letter and spirit
will have the potential to tilt the balance in favour of the landless and poor.
Recognising the
need for land among the poorer sections of the society, many S tate Governments
had come up with land distribution programmes to facilitate land ownership for
the poor.
In addition to the
govt. lands, other categories of land like the ceiling surplus lands, bhoodan
lands etc.were also distributed to the landless poor for cultivation purposes.
In order to provide
homestead land, minimum agricultural land, and shelter to every family, it is
essential that a land pool is created.
Evict ineligible
encroachers of government lands, ceiling surplus and bhoodan lands and
distributeto the landless poor.
Every state should
revise its ceiling limits, if the existing limit is more than 5-10 acres in the
case of irrigated land and 10-15 acres for non- irrigated land.
States shall adopt
single window system for re- distribution of ceiling surplus land within a
specified time frame.
There is an urgent
need to re- visit the land ceiling limits in different categories. Excluding
the achievements of some States like West Bengal, Kerala, and J& k.
Impact Of Land Reforms
End of feudalism,
feudal land owning classes.
Updation of land
records.
The land reforms in
India have led to emergence of a class of modern entrepreneurs of farmers.
It has reduced the
exploitation of tenants and income of the small farmers.
