Land Reforms Administration in India: An Unfinished Task

Land Reforms Administration in India: An Unfinished Task
Beni A Ekka.
Xavier Institute of Social Service, Ranchi.
Pages xi+282 Rs 300/-

The author has examined the issue of land reforms administration in India from diverse perspectives in the book under review. The book tries to raise certain difficult questions and find appropriate answers to them in order to unravel land-caste-power axis in the context of land reforms policy under democratic rule. Basic purpose of any land reform endeavour is to rationalize the land holding by taking land from those who have a surplus and distribute the same among the landless peasants. The onus of implementing the reforms rests with the bureaucracy. As a large number of bureaucrats belong to the dominant caste who have traditionally owned huge tracts of land and who are yet to overcome their feudal mindset, their role in implementing the land reforms has always been viewed with suspicion by the social activists and the landless peasants themselves. This position is further reinforced by the dismal outcome of almost five decades of land reforms efforts in states like Bihar.
A comprehensive introduction in Chapter 1 is followed by a descriptive and analytical account of land reforms from historical and political perspectives. In Chapter 2, the author has examined the land reforms administration under Hindu period, Mughal period and British period. During the Hindu period, land belonged to the tillers and land of those who did not cultivate was confiscated and given to one having an intention to use the same according to Manu Smriti and Arthashastra. Quoting a number of authentic sources, the author has claimed that the king did not have any property rights in land except the right to share the produce to the extent of 1/6th to 1/4th. Moreover the community also owned large tracts of land all the members used the same for varied purposes. The king owned land, which was again given for sharecropping. During the entire Hindu period the concept of land revenue in cash was unheard of.
During the Mughal period, land belonged to the emperor and he appropriated the same among his vassals thereby creating a typical feudal system. The emperors also tried to systematize and standardize land revenue. During the reign of Akbar, 1/3rd of the 10 years' average produce was fixed as the land revenue which was payable in cash. The Mughal emperors had evolved an elaborate bureaucracy for administration land revenue rules. Many offices in due course became hereditary. Interestingly, the emperors had also appropriated land on tax-free basis to temples, mosques, centres of learning and other institutions. Sometimes noble families also befitted from such gratis of the emperor. The British devised their own method of land revenue administration, which is better known as land settlement. Initially the British Raj gave rights of land revenue collection to erstwhile landlords in lieu of a fixed amount. Later the offices of District Collectors were created for more efficient land revenue administration.
Land reforms measures under the planned economy have been discussed in Chapter 3. The author has succinctly outlined the objectives of land reforms as (i) changing the antiquated land ownership systems for equitable distribution of land; (ii) providing security to the tillers of land; and (iii) creating conditions for agrarian development and better land management. The government ushered in a number of legislative measures to accomplish the objectives of land reforms e.g. abolition of zamindari system and other intermediaries between the state and the tillers; tenancy reforms; fixation of ceilings on holdings and distribution of surplus land among the landless peasants; reorganization of agriculture through consolidation of holdings; and development of cooperative farming. The author has also examined various provisions of land reforms in the five year plan documents. He has also tried to explore the reasons of delayed implementation or non-implementation of land reforms in this chapter.
Chapter 4 of the book provides a critical insight into land-caste-power axis. The author has categorically mentioned that land reforms failed by and large due to implementation failure caused by lack of political will and commitment on the part of ruling party; absence of adequate infrastructure; absence of committed bureaucracy; absence of proper land records; absence of any significant lobby of the landless peasants and above all a remarkable conflict between ideological loyalty and caste loyalty. Bureaucracy is indeed very crucial to land reforms at all the three stages -policy formulation; implementation and monitoring. Unfortunately, the bureaucrats have taken up the land reforms only half-heartedly due to their caste affiliations because the majority of the beneficiaries of the land reforms would be Dalits and other vulnerable groups.
The author has examined the impact of land reforms administration across the country in chapter 5. He maintains that land reforms have failed in the country except a couple of provinces e.g. west Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir. He attributes the failure to the will of the political parties, which can otherwise get even the most difficult tasks done by the bureaucrats. Since the bureaucrats themselves lack a strong will to implement the land reforms, any legislative effort in this direction always meets the dead ends. The political leaders provide lip service to the poor and vulnerable segments sans any formidable zeal to improve the lot of the landless peasants by means of equitable distribution of land among them. They are cheated year after year through fake promises on the eve of every general election.
Chapter 6 of the book provides a blueprint of action for effective implementation of land reforms in the country. The author suggests that the Panchayati Raj Institutions should be empowered to take up the implementation of land reforms, special tribunals should be set up for speedy disposal of land and tenancy disputes, monitoring mechanism should be strengthened, all benami transactions should be declared illegal, land records should be updated and computerized, government should distribute the surplus land among the needy at the earliest and prepare a timeframe for the same, fake tenants should be identified and punished and cost of implementing the land reforms should be provided under the five year plans.
The book is a useful resource for the administrators, policy makers, academics, students, researchers, and social activists. However, there are a good number of editorial and proofing errors, which may be rectified in the second edition of the book.

Dr Srirang Jha