Land Tenures and Agricultural Development

Land tenures prevailing in a country has been recognized as an important determinant of agricultural development. ‘Land to the tillers’ is a valid slogan for a poor country like India where there is a sharp inequality in income and wealth distribution in rural areas. The present work deals with an evolutionary study of land tenure system in a northern part of West Bengal known as Duars region and its bearing on agricultural development in particular and economic development in general. The study traces the evolution of land tenure system in this tract of Bengal from the Bhutanese period to the post-independence period. This study demonstrates that although under the Jotedary system the Government itself was the landlord and the cultivators were under the direct supervision of the Government and, moreover, land of the area was fertile there was ample opportunity to improve agricultural production and productivity. But things did not happen just like that as the matters related to improvement of agriculture were neglected. Thus the Jotedary system under Temporary Settlement also like the Zemindary system of Permanent Settlement was not conductive to agricultural development. The study has placed a special focus on the evolution of rights of sharecroppers (adhiars/bargadars) over different phases of history. It has been shown how after independence through land reform act and its subsequent amendments the rights of bargadars have been established. The study however suggests abolition of sharecropping system and proposes conferment of ownership title to the bargadars. According to the author this is required to make the slogan ‘land to the tiller’ a reality. History and impact of Operation Barga programme of West Bengal Government has been delineated in considerable detail for the mid-1980s with special reference to the study area. This book will provide a rich research agenda to evaluate the evolution of agrarian relations and the consequences of land reforms on agricultural production and productivity and to suggest for further reforms.