Critically exaine the achievements land reform of india
Answers
1. Abolition of Intermediaries:
Intermediaries like Zamindars, Talukdars, Jagirs and Inams had dominated the agricultural sector in India by the time the country attained independence. Quite naturally top priority was accorded to the abolition of intermediary tenures. Congress had long ago been committed to the idea of the removal of intermediaries between the peasant and State.
The Orissa Estates Abolition Act was passed in 1951. By 1955, the progress for the abolition of intermediaries had been completed in almost all the states.
Advantages:
(a) As a result of the abolition of intermediaries, about 2 crore tenants are estimated to have come into direct contact with the State making them owners of land.
(b) The abolition of intermediaries has led to the end of a parasite class. More lands have been brought to government possession for distribution to landless farmers.
Disadvantages:
(a) Abolition of intermediaries has resulted in a heavy burden on the state exchequer .The ex-intermediaries have been given a compensation amounting to Rs. 670 crores in cash and in bonds.
(b) It has led to large-scale eviction. Large-scale eviction, in turn, has given rise to several problems – social, economic, administrative and legal.
2. Tenancy Reforms:
Rural India witnesses three types of tenants. They are- (a) permanent or occupancy tenants, (b) temporary or non-occupancy tenants, and (c) sub-tenants. The permanent tenants have the permanent ownership right over the land. The rent for permanent tenants is fixed. The right to cultivate land goes from generation to generation so long as they pay rent.
These are- (i) security of tenure for the tenants, (ii) fixation of fair rent and (iii) grant of ownership rights to certain types of tenants.
(i) Security of tenure:
Sir Arthur Young rightly observed: “Give a man the secure possession of a bleak rock and he will turn it into a garden; give him a nine years lease of a garden and he converts it into a desert.” This remark very pithily sums up the need for providing security of tenure. Security of tenure creates interest among the cultivators for improving their land.
(ii) Regulation of Rent:
In Pre-Independent India rents were high for obvious reasons. A number of factors such as defective land tenure systems, pressure of population on land, absence of non-farm employment opportunities and the apathetic and lukewarm attitude of the government towards the tenants’ interest were responsible for the continuous rise in rents. Fifty per cent of the total produce was paid as rent.
(iii) Right of ownership:
In some states provisions have been made allowing the tenant to purchase the leased land on payment of a price to the landlord. If any dispute arises between the tenant and the landlord over the payment of price, this may be referred to a land tribunal. The tribunal will decide the price to be paid by the tenant to the landlord.