ABSTRACT
This chapter examines land reform and agrarian change in the post-Independence period. The abolition of the intermediary land tenure system was given top priority immediately after Independence as this system was known for its exploitation of tenants. In this system, by fixing abnormal rents arbitrarily, Zamindars used to extract surplus from the peasants. As they were required to pay only a fixed amount in the form of land tax to the government, the rest they used to fund their ostentatious lifestyle. On the eve of Independence, more than 40% of cultivated land was under intermediate tenures.
Various land reforms were initiated immediately after attaining the independence to bring equity into Indian agriculture, and to raise the agricultural productivity while providing security to tenants. Land reform was successful to the extent of removing Zamindars and reducing the incidence of tenancy significantly, but failed in terms of introducing equity into agriculture. Land concentration persists in the post-Independence period. Land changed hands, that is, from the rentier class to owner cultivator class. However, land reform did not benefit the marginal farmers and agricultural labourers who come mostly from socially disadvantaged sections, such as the Dalits.
