Land reform refers to the changes in which the agricultural land is held, and it is cultivated so as to achieve the economic objectivesDue to the exploitative nature of British land revenue policies, post Independence India observed very high inequality in land ownership, with the small and marginal farmers being the worst affectedRole of land reforms in agriculture development
Abolition of Intermediaries: It included abolition of Zamindari, Ryotwari and Mahalwari systems checking the debt trap and dispossession of land of small farmers → Reduce the agricultural poverty
Tenancy Reform: It ensured Rent Regulation, Security of land tenure and conferment of ownership rights on tenants. It helped in increasing the agricultural productivity
Land ceiling act and Bhoodan Movement – Land for cultivation became available to landless labour → agricultural production increased.
Consolidation of landholdings – This prevented the ill effects of fragmentation like poor farm mechanization
Cooperative farming – This reduced input cost, allowed scaling of cultivation and access to large credit while minimizing risk in case of crop failure (Kudumbashree model in Kerala)
Land Records: Digitization of Land Records helps in reducing litigation
Land reforms in India was not an easy task, the Factors that were responsible for its success are –
Political willingness – Some state governments showed more determination to implement the land reforms like Jammu and Kashmir, West Bengal Kerala.
Public movements especially by Gandhian leaders like Vinoba Bhave who convinced landlords to give their land. This created a positive atmosphere towards the land reforms
Realization of ill effects of the British exploitative policies and willingness to correct them.
Increased democratisation of Indian polity and reduction in influence of the dominance of caste.
Despite the limited success enjoyed by land reforms in India, a lot needs to be done in land reforms if India wants to utilise its land resources full potential
