Mains Practice Questions

Approach

• Briefly discuss the Land Reform measures in India.
• Discuss how land reforms are necessary to boost agricultural growth and to eradicate rural poverty.
• Give conclusion.

Introduction

• Agricultural land is the most important productive resource for rural India. Land is also an important form of property.
• In post-independent India, equity in agriculture called for land reforms which primarily refer to change in the ownership of landholdings.
• Land reform refers to institutional measures directed towards altering the existing pattern of ownership, tenancy and management of land.
• It includes measures and policies relating to redistribution of land, regulation of rent, improving the conditions of tenancy, cooperative organisation, agricultural education, and so on.

Body

Measures of Land Reforms

• Abolition of intermediaries between the State and tenants
• Tenancy reforms that provide
  
  • security to tenants,
  • rationalisation and regulation of rent, and
  • conferment of ownership rights on tenants
• Fixation of a ceiling on landholdings
• Consolidation of holdings

Objectives of Land Reforms

• Restructuring of agrarian relations to achieve an egalitarian structure
• Elimination of exploitation in land relations
• Actualization of the goal of “land to the tiller”
• Improvement of socio-economic conditions of the rural poor by widening their land base
• Increasing agricultural production and productivity
• Facilitating land-based development of rural poor; and
• Infusion of a great measure of equality in local institutions

Land reform and Rural Poverty Reduction

• Increased agricultural growth and productivity and thus enhanced farmers’ income due to land reforms is directly related to rural poverty reduction.
• Increased access to land for the poor landless masses by the redistribution of land ensures them an income guarantee.
• Land reform leads to increased rural agricultural wages that help in ensuring more income to the rural landless labourers and thus crucial to rural poverty reduction.
• Regulation of rents gives some security to the tenants.
• Abolition of intermediaries strengthenes the position of the actual landholders and cultivators that help them to enhance their social and economic stature.

Conclusion

The pace of implementation of land reform measures has been slow. The objective of social justice has, however, been achieved to a considerable degree. Land reform has a great role in the rural agrarian economy that is dominated by land and agriculture. New and innovative land reform measures should be adopted with new vigour to eradicate rural poverty. Modern land reforms measures such as land record digitisation must be accomplished at the earliest.