DISTRIBUTION LAND TO THE LAND LESS

CPI(M) Calls For Implementation Of  Land Reforms

THE Common Minimum Programme of the UPA government has specifically committed itself to land reforms. The CMP states: “Landless families will be endowed with land through implementation of land ceiling and land redistribution legislation. No reversal of ceilings legislation will be permitted.” However, this assurance has not been seriously implemented till date. Therefore land reforms and distribution of surplus land to the landless would be a focal issue of the nationwide campaign, which the CPI(M) is going to launch in September. Local struggles for land and land distribution would be organized across the country.

IMPORTANCE OF LAND REFORM

The land question is not only crucial for the survival of the poor; it is a key to the development of the Indian economy. Land reforms are required to increase the food intake and purchasing power of the rural masses, which in turn will increase the demand for industrial goods and pave the way for sustained economic growth. Land reforms are also essential for social justice since the vast majority of landless or those households with negligible holdings belong to socially oppressed castes. The Mandal Commission looking into the problems of oppressed castes had emphatically observed in its report that if the problem of poverty and unemployment is to be solved, the only way is to implement land reforms and distribute land to the landless.

UNDERESTIMATION OF AMOUNT OF SURPLUS LAND

Successive Central governments have deliberately concealed details of the amount of surplus land available for distribution and in fact have scaled down the amount available without giving any explanation for the lower figure. In 1967, the Mahalanobis Committee was appointed to go into the question as to how much land could be made available for distribution if a ceiling of 20 acres per family was imposed. The Committee report stated that 63 million acres of land could be made available for distribution. In 1970 the government informed Parliament that if the land ceiling is imposed with the family as a unit, 40 million acres of land could be made available for distribution. The 26th Round of NSS 1971-72 estimated that figure as 12.2 million acres, a gross underestimate. No explanations have been given for this huge discrepancy in the estimates. It is therefore essential for organisations working among the rural poor, to identify surplus land over the ceiling and government vested land, which can be made available for distribution. In 1970-72 under pressure of kisan movements and the changing political situation at that time, all states were asked to introduce new ceiling laws. Many States adopted land reform legislations. However the powerful lobby of landlords and their representatives in different governments has ensured that the laws enacted by the States remain on paper.

FARCE OF LAND DISTRIBUTION

Even after three decades the pro-landlord character of different State governments and successive governments at the Centre has remained unchanged. The official estimates of land distributed, as informed by the government in Parliament last year shows that out of the original estimate of surplus land of 63 million acres only around 7 million acres was declared surplus, of which just 5.4 million was distributed. This is a most shameful record. Even in the bigger States like Uttar Pradesh only 3 lakh acres have been declared surplus whereas in West Bengal which is much less in size, 1.3 million acres have been declared surplus. Thus a big issue is the identification of surplus land itself. Left front led West Bengal has an outstanding record and alone accounts for around twenty per cent of the land distributed in the whole country.

In many of the States the position is even worse than the figures show. The powerful rich sections have occupied lands, which are officially recorded as being given to dalits or tribals. For instance, in Dindigal District in Tamil Nadu it was recently found that the rural elite has occupied more than 5,000 acres of land, which was distributed to the landless according to the government’s records. In Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, land, which was supposed to have been distributed to the dalits, is occupied by upper caste landed sections backed by the government machinery. Huge farms exist on the basis of benami transactions, false records, showing irrigated lands as unirrigated lands in the land records and using various other loopholes deliberately retained in the legislations to help landlords.

The concentration of land in a few hands is revealed by the fact that while on the one hand around 1.6 per cent of total landholders occupy approximately 17.3 per cent of the total operated area, on the other hand no less than 59.4 per cent of landholders operate just 15.1 per cent of it.

NEOLIBERAL POLICIES: DISTRESS LAND SALES

Since the inception of neo-liberal policies, the thrust of agricultural policies of successive Central governments has been on the retreat of the government from the sphere of rural development. The government while following policies leading to the impoverishment of the peasantry and making agricultural activity non-viable is encouraging corporatisation of land, as also the use of land for commercial purposes. Several State governments like Maharashtra, Orissa and Karnataka have removed ceilings on land holdings or handed over surplus land to private parties. After acquiring agricultural land in the name of road construction or some projects, substantial portions are handed over to corporates including multinational companies.

A process of reverse land reforms is also taking place wherein debt-ridden peasants are leasing out or selling their land to corporate houses and commercial interests. This has led to the expropriation of small landed property. In some States like Haryana and Punjab, panchayati land is also being leased out to commercial interests depriving access to landless workers who were using it for fodder for their cattle or to collect wood for fuel.

PRIVATISING WASTE LAND

In 1992, it was reported in the chief minister’s conference that 33 million hectares of wasteland and 25 lakh hectares of Bhoodan lands are with the State governments, which have not been distributed to the landless. It is essential for governments to develop wastelands so that the poor can benefit through distribution of wastelands. Instead various state governments are trying to hand over this wasteland and bhoodan land to big companies including multi nationals.

In Gujarat alone, the government estimate of wasteland is 25.99 lakhs hectares in non-cultivable wasteland and 19.84 lakhs hectares in cultivable wasteland. The BJP government in Gujarat is now planning to hand over these lands to the multinational companies. A resolution of 17 May 2005 of the Gujarat government says that since the government is not able to convert waste land into cultivable land, or utilize the cultivable land for agricultural activities it is compelled to take the following decisions: (1) Wasteland should be converted into agricultural land with the help of modern technology. (2) Big industrialists and big farmers should be encouraged to carry out this job. (3) The land can be utilized for gardening and cultivation of Bio fuel trees. (4) The government of Gujarat has further decided to allot land to the extent of 2000 acres on lease basis to the above category of persons for 20 years.

In Tamil Nadu recently, the State government has taken a decision to distribute 50 lakh acres of wastelands to big companies both domestic and foreign in the name of ensuring the growth of production. According to the government, these companies can have maximum of 1,000 acres and run contract farming. This will be given free of cost for 15 years. Some other States have similar plans.

EVICTION OF TRIBALS

A related issue is that of land alienation among tribal communities. In many States tribal land is being occupied by the State or by non-tribals. Large-scale evictions of tribals are taking place from land where they have lived for decades. Vast areas of traditional land belonging to adivasis have been arbitrarily declared forestland and those living on these lands have been evicted with utmost brutality. In the name of development, projects in schedule areas are being implemented with disastrous consequences mainly for adivasis whose land is being acquired with no alternative land sites or alternative employment opportunities being given to them. The State governments in Jharkhand and Orissa are allowing transfer of tribal land to non-tribals including big mining companies. This is further intensifying the exploitation and oppression of the vast numbers of landless rural masses while intensifying land monopolies.

DISPLACEMENT OF THE PEASANTRY

In other areas, peasants displaced by dams or other projects have still not been rehabilitated such as in the Narmada valley. In the Tehri dam project in Uttaranchal, hundreds of peasants have been denied full compensation even though their livelihood from agriculture has been destroyed. In many States, project affected and displaced people have become destitutes because neither land nor the promise of jobs as compensation has been fulfilled.

TENANCY RIGHTS UNRECOGNIZED

The rights of tenants have not been protected in most states with the exception of the Left led States of West Bengal, Kerala and Tripura. Today there are more than 30 million tenants unregistered all over India and can be evicted at any time by landlords with the connivance of the police and administration. Unregistered tenants are paying exorbitant rents and also are unable to avail of any facilities like bank loans, etc. For instance, in Andhra alone the majority of the more than 3 million tenants are unregistered. In Tamil Nadu out of 15 lakhs, only one third are registered. In States like UP the situation is worse with tenancy increasing but not being recognised

ACHIEVEMENTS OF LF GOVT IN W BENGAL

In contrast to the dismal all-India picture, the Left Front government in West Bengal has made serious efforts to implement a land reforms programme. This has resulted in a big boost to farm production contrary to the claim of the neo-liberalisers that only big farms can ensure higher productivity. West Bengal is the highest producer of rice and vegetables, the second highest in potato production and the highest in the production of fish.

The central feature of land reform under the Left Front regime has been the acquisition of surplus or benami land and distributing it amongst the landless. The total land vested in West Bengal in the last 25 years is 13.37 lakh acres, out of which 10.63 lakh acres have been distributed. A large majority of the beneficiaries belong to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, other oppressed castes and the landless sections among the minorities. West Bengal also holds the record in distribution of joint pattas of land in the name of both women and men, with approximately 4 lakh joint pattas and another 80,000 pattas to single women. 

Since the West Bengal government strictly implements the Land Reforms Act, the position of land concentration in West Bengal today is that 90 per cent of the landowners are small and marginal farmers and 75per cent of the land is with them. In other states, 65 per cent of cultivators are small and marginal farmers but they have only around 15 per cent of the land. When the Left government was voted to power in 1977 in West Bengal, the number of sharecroppers recorded was less than 5 lakhs. But, now the sharecroppers recorded in West Bengal is 14 lakh 50 thousand. Almost all the sharecroppers have been registered in West Bengal.

TOWARDS ECONOMIC & POLITICAL ADVANCEMENT

The experience of land reforms in West Bengal, Tripura and Kerala has led to the upliftment of the status of the poor in other spheres. For example, the Panchayat system in West Bengal where over two-thirds of the seats are won by scheduled castes, tribes and other oppressed sections including women is an example of how land reforms, by breaking land monopolies and distributing land to the landless, strengthens the democratic functioning of the Panchayats and ensures the advancement of the rural poor.

Land struggle, the seizure of government and ceiling surplus land is the key to change the balance of power in favour of the rural masses against the exploiters. It is high time that Land Reform is brought back into the national agenda through the militant struggles of the rural poor.

CPI(M) Demands

• Stop reversal of land reforms in various States and enact radical land reform legislations as in West Bengal and Kerala! Give joint pattas to ensure women’s equal rights to land distributed!

• Distribute government wasteland and excess land to landless, not to MNCs and big business!

• Give priority to landless scheduled castes in land distribution!

• Stop eviction of tribals from their land! Enact law to protect tribals’ right to forestlands!

• Stop eviction of tenants!. Register tenancy!

• Give homestead land to landless agricultural workers!

• Stop unfettered handover of land and mineral resources to foreign companies!

State-wise Position of Land Distribution