Indian Agricultural: Growth, Generation, Policy & Problem Indian Agricultural | Page 23

Pg.no. 22
Land reform in India
Since its independence in 1947, there has been voluntary and state initiated/mediated land reforms in
several states with dual objective of efficient use of land [3] and ensuring social justice. The most
notable and successful example of land reforms are in the states of West Bengal and Kerala. Other
than these state sponsored attempts of reforming land ownership and control, there was another
attempt to bring changes in the regime which achieved limited success; famously known as Bhoodan
movement (Government of India, Ministry of Rural Development 2003, Annex XXXIX). Some other
research has shown that during the movement, in Vidarbha region, 14 percent of the land records are
incomplete, thus prohibiting transfer to the poor. 24 percent of the land promised had never actually
become part of the movement. The Gramdan which arguably took place in 160,000 pockets did not
legalize the process under the state laws (Committee on Land Reform 2009, 77, Ministry of Rural
Development).
After promising land reforms and elected to power in West Bengal in 1977, the Communist Party of
India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) kept their word and initiated gradual land reforms, such as Operation Barga.
The result was a more equitable distribution of land among the landless farmers, and enumeration of
landless farmers. This has ensured an almost lifelong loyalty from the farmers and the communists
were in power till 2011 assembly election.
n land reform in Kerala, the only other large state where the CPI(M) came to power, state
administrations have actually carried out the most extensive land, tenancy and agrarian labour wage
reforms in the non-socialist late-industrializing world. Another successful land reform program was
launched in Jammu and Kashmir after 1947.
All in all, land reforms have been successful only in pockets of the country, as people have often
found loopholes in the laws that set limits on the maximum area of land that is allowed to be held by
any one person.
Ramesh Kumar P