The Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics

Home , Jagir, Madhya Bharat

964538 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

(Organ of the Indian Society of Agricultural Economics

MARCH 1953 No. I Vol. VIII 1

CONFERENCE NUMBER

/PROCEEDINGS of the THIRTEENTH CONFERENCE held at Trivandrum, December 1952 /

SUBJECTS

1. Problems in the Implementation of the Agricultural Plan in the Five Year Plan.

2. Role of, Agricultural Economics in the Development of Agriculture.

3. Critical Review of Land Reform Legislation since 1945 in various States.

Rs. 6-8 CONTENTS PAGE Welcome Address-SIR A. RAMASWAMY MUDALIAR . . • • • • • 1 Presidential Address-PROF. C. N. VAKIL • • • • • • • • 4

Problems in the Implementation of the Agricultural Plan in the Five Year Plan A T (1) M. SRINIVASAN • • • • .. • • .• • • .. 19 fl (2) C. W. B. ZACHARIAS .. • . • • • • • • • • •. 24 I] (3) R. S. SHIWA.LKAR • • .• • • • • • • • • . • .. 30 (4) B. S. BHANAGE • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .. 33 A Role of Agricultural Economics in the Development of Agriculture n (1) G. D. AGRAWAL • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 41 tc (2) P. N. DRIVER • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 48 rl (3) S. THIRUMALAI • • • • .. • • • • • • .. 58 (4) M. SRINIVASAN .• • . • • • • • • • • • • • • 66 C (5) S. V. DURAISWAMI .. • • • • 70 • . • • • • • • • • S (6) R. C. HEATH • • •. • • . • • • •. • • • • 73 7 (7) S. B. MAHABAL .. • • • • • • • • • • • • 83 tc (8) A. SUBBIAH • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 85 (9) S. D. MEHTA • • • • •. • • • • • • 87 (10) R. K. HAZARI .. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 92 il b Critical Review of Land Reform Legislation since 1945 in various States

(1) M. L. DANTWALA .. .• • • • • • • • • .. . • 95 0 (2) G. B. AGRAWAL .. • • • • • • • • • • •. 99 P (3) B. NATARAJAN • • .• • • • • •. • • •. .. 106 I_ (4) S. KESAVA IYENGAR • • • • • • .• • • .. 114 C (5) M. SRINIVASAN • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .. 119 (6) N. N. NATARAJAN • • • • • • • • •. .. •. 128 (7) K. G. SIVASWAMY • • ,• • • • • • • • • • • 133 (8) V. R. PILLAI • • • • • • • • .• • • .. 143 (9) G. B. PATEL • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 155 1 (10) GOVERNMENT OF BIHAR .• • • • • • • • • . • 159 (11) B. R. PATEL • • • • • • • .- • • • • • • • . .. 165 (12) DOOL SINGH • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 171 • (13) LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN ASSAM, WEST BENGAL, HIMACHAL PRADESH, PEPSU AND MADHYA BHARAT • • • • • • • . 182

Appendices • • •,• • • •. • • • • • •. 192 P REFA CE

This issue of the Journal contains the Proceedings of the Thirteenth Annual Conference of the Society held in December 1952 at Trivandrum. The Conference was attended by nearly 60 members and delegates from the Central and State Governments, Universities and Research Institutions.

A large number of papers were read on 'Land Reforms' and 'Role of Agricultural Economics in the Development of Agriculture'. The mingling of academicians and administrators provided a healthy frame to the discussions. It is our regret that we are not able to record and report these discussions to our readers.

We were happy to welcome in our midst at the Conference Prof. Giuseppe Medici and Prof. Giuseppe Orlando the President and the Secretary respectively of the Italian Institute of Agrarian Economics. Their valuable report on land reforms in Italy provided a new dimension to the discussion on the subject.

As promised in the Preface ,to the previous Conference Number, a monograph titled 'Problems of Farm Costs in Indian Agriculture' has now been published by the Society.

We take this opportunity of expressing our thanks to the University of Travancore under whose auspices the Conference met. We specially place on record our gratitude to Shri M. Sankara Menon who acted as Local Secretary to the Conference and to the members of the Reception Committee for their generous hospitality.

MANILAL B. NANAVATI President. 15th March, 1953. LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN RAJASTHAN 171

; as lakhs in a short period of 2 months as loans to nearly 18,000 tenants. Steps will be taken to allot land for personal cultivation to the remaining Girasdars during the next year and if there is a good season, the remaining cultivators will acquire occupancy rights on land. There are some special features of the Agrarian Reforms Acts o Saurashtra. Even though the problem in Saurashtra was a very com- plicated one, the Reforms Acts have been evolved on the basis of a fbr-, mula agreed to by all, and this has contributed materially to the success in implementation. The' representatives of both Girasdars and cultivators help the Government officers in the work of implementation. As a result of this co-operation the implementation' would be completed within two years instead of four or more years which it would have normal- ly taken. The second special feature is that in many other states of India where similar legislation has been undertaken some financial liabilities have been incurred by the respective Governments. The position of ‘ges Saurashtra is quite different on this point. As already explained above, )uld no liability or burden is incurred by the state. This was made possible of by taking all three issues mentioned above simultaneously for solution. lest The third important feature is that as a result of implementation gh- of Land Reforms, those who were tenants-at-will so far as also those who were superior landholders become occupants of the state and except to a very small extent in respect of land held originally by Girasdars as Ave gharkhed, there will be no tenants as such. The net result of the the implementation is that not only the intermediaries are abolished but also for the tenancy system is almost ended. )me The fourth special feature of the Land Reforms is that in the allot- 3ar- ment of land for personal cultivation, the maximum allotment to 'A' of Class Girasdar is three economic holdings. As a result of this there will irs, be left no big holdings and automatically a ceiling on the holdings is incs achieved. In the khalsa areas there were only a few substantial holders. 3ar- me net —,L7AND REFORM LEGISLATION IN yAJASTHAN SINCE 1945 \ 'ars by ent Dool Singh, of Birla College, Pilani. ese the INTRODUCTORY . Ind In no other sphere of Indian economic life has the imperative need for ear reforms been so keenly felt as in the agricultural sector. It is quite lti- appropriate, therefore, that the states should have been vigorously im- ss plementing the scheme of agrarian reforms, notably the abolition of Jagirdari the and Zamindari systems. And, Rajasthan is no exception to ual this. ree Jagirdari ans System in Over greater part of Rajasthan the Jagirdari system is in existence. ;ta- According to the Venkatachar Committee the existing systems of Jagir 20 tenures in Rajasthan may- be grouped under eight categories, namely, 172 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

Jagir, Juno Jagir, Bhom, Charitable Grants, Bhomichara, Inam, Service Grants and permanently quit-rented estates and lands. ,The term Jagir is used both in generic and specific sense. In its generic sense it con- notes all non-khalsa area. In its specific sense it means grants in land consisting of a whole or a part of village or villages. Fundamentally the tenure of different classes of Jagirs is the same and the Jagirdari system in its present form has in its essence four main attributes. There is, in the first instance, a recognised distinction between property rights and "Chief's" rights. In the former, division of rights is according to the Hindu Law of inheritance whereas in the latter case rights are not divi- sible. Secondly, Jagir estates cannot be alienated, nor can they be fore- closed for mortgages. Thirdly, the assignment of Jagir does not confer any property rights on the assignee. Fourthly, the rule of primogeni- ture had invariable application in the distant past and that maintained the estates intact. But in certain areas there was a deviation from the rule and the result was extreme fragmentation of the Jagirs. Land Tenures in Mallani Jodhpur Division and in Shekhawati in Jaipur Divi- sion afford a suitable example. In 1741, the estate of Sardul Singh in Shekhawati was divided amongst his five sons and the whole group was known as Panchpanas. The five thikanas have since been sub-divided into as many as 5481 sub-units with a total area of 13,57,807 bighas. Except 28 sub-divisions the units are relatively small; for holdings below 5,000 bighas, the average size being nearly 474 bighas. The subdivision and fragmentation of Jagir lands in Rajasthan has been more marked in the former Torawati and Udaipurwati Tehsils of Jaipur State, but the statistics for the same are not available. The Jagirdari system prevails in 16,780 whole villages comprising an area of 77,110 square miles whereas the khalsa villages are 16,638 and the area covered by them is only 50,126 square miles. These figures do not include the scattered holdings of Jagirs in khalsa villages. Thus even judged by wholly Jagir villages alone the area under the system is nearly two-thirds of the whole rural area in Rajasthan. The Jagirdars have to pay an annual tribute to the State which has been computed at Rs. 44,98,278 (exclusive of Chakari levied in kind in Bikaner Division) by the Rajasthan Jagirdari Abolition Committee. Jagirdars enjoy not only the income from their land but they also claim some fiscal powers which have been recognised by the Rajasthan Govern- ment in lieu of which the State has agreed, for the time being, to payment of compensation for Excise, Opium, Customs, Salt, Mines, Cattle Pound., Kodi, Hawala and Forest rights. There being no reliable data on the subject we take only one figure of compensation to illustrate the extent of loss suffered by the Rajasthan Government. The amount of compensation paid in cash and kind to the Jagirdars in respect of Excise, Opium and Customs alone is estimated at Rs. 3,04,227.2

Zamindari System The Zamindari system is a relic of the British rule in India. In Rajasthan it is found in the former non-Rajput states of Bharatpur and. Dholpur, over a greater part of the Alwar state, in the Parganas of Kot- Kasim and Kotputli of Jaipur, in the Tibi villages of Bikaner, and to a very limited extent, in the states of Kotah and Jhalawar. The zamindars 1. Report of the Jagirdari Abolition Committee, 1949. 2. Report of the Jagirdari Abolition Committee, 1949. LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN RAJASTHAN 173 ice in these tracts hardly possess property rights of a nature which entitife them to compensation as such. They are only intermediaries between the state and the actual tiller of the soil; and the excess of what they col- md lect from their tenants over what they have to pay to the state represents the em their income. in and Settlement Ind Survey the Survey and settlement operations have been completed in the khalsa areas of all the former states comprised in the Rajasthan Union with the )re- solitary exception. of Jaisalmar. But the position regarding settlement fer operations in Jagir areas is in a striking contrast to this. According to the Venkatachar Committee which submitted its report in December ed 1949, out of 16,780 Jagir villages only 5,454 are reported to have been the surveyed and settled, representing about 32% of the Jagir villages. In tnd terms of area, the percentage of the work accomplished comes to 18%, or 13,773 square miles out of 77,110 square miles have been surveyed and in settled. In khalsa 73% of the area has been settled, which comprises vas 86% of the total number of villages. Settlement operations were in progress in 1949 in 6,042 Jagir villages with an area of 25,518 square miles. las. This still leaves 5,284 villages with an area of 37,819 square miles where rigs settlement operations have yet to be initiated. It is estimated that the completion of regular settlement in Rajasthan will take about a decade. ore In view of this fact the Rajasthan Government has under contemplation the passing of the Rajasthan Lands Summary Settlement Bill, 1952. This bill when passed by the State Legislature will empower the Stat Government to order wherever necessary the introduction on a tem- ing porary basis of cash rents in respect of lands and holdings in the un- 338 settled areas of Rajasthan by means of a sort of summary settlement. ese The factors to be taken into consideration for the determination of the extent of lands and holdings, assessment circles, soil classes and the basis of rent rates have been specified in the draft bill. It is hoped_ that the summary settlement will take about two years. This is un- en doubtedly a step in the right direction looking to the fast deteriorating in relations between landholders and tenants particularly because of the ,ee. steep rise in the price level during recent years. Lim rn- nt RECENT LAND REFORMS nd, The Land Reforms legislation in Rajasthan can be studied under the following headings:— of Tenancy Legislation in the former states of Rajputana passed ion I before the formation of the United State of Rajasthan; and md II Land Reforms effected by the Rajasthan Government since April 1949; they are, 1. The Rajasthan (Protection of Tenants)* Ordinance, 1949 as In amended to date; Lnd 2. The Rajasthan Produce Rents Regulating Act, -1951 as :t- amended to date; 3. The Rajasthan Agricultural Rents Control Act, 1952; ars 4. The Rajasthan Land Reforms and Resumption of Jagirs Act, 1952; and 5. The Rajasthan Tenancy Bill, 1952, THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

ancy Legislation in, the Rajputana States All the integrating States except Jaisalmar had their own tenancy laws even before the formation of Rajasthan, notable among them being the Jaipur'Tenancy Act, 1945, the Bikaner Land Revenue Act, 1945, the Jaipur State-Grants Land Tenures Act, 1947 and the Marwar Tenancy Act, 1949. These enactments are, however, very conservative in nature and at best seek to give some kind of legal shape to prevailing customs or practices which differ widely from place to place. These laws do not seek to introduce tenancy reforms of any marked signi- ficance, nor do they aim at securing tenancy rights to the rack-rented peasantry which have been denied to them in the past. Except the Jaipur State Grants Land Tenures Act and the Marwqr Tenancy Act, no serious attempt has been made to bring the rights of'tenants in Jagir areas on par with those of the tenants in the khalsa or even to bestow on the tenants any right better than what they actually possessed. These two Acts confer on the Jagir tenants khatedari or occupancy rights in respect of the lands in their occupation, but they still fall short in one essential respect in that they fail to bring the tenancy rights in Jagir areas exactly on the same level as in khalsa. There is considerable divergence in the Acts regarding the classes of tenants and the nature and extent of their rights. Conditions for acquiring rights, either of inheritance or of transfer, are not uniform. The right of inheritance is more common as compared with the right of alienation. Full right of transfer is recognised in the cases of Pattedari tenants in Jaipur, occupancy tenants in Bikaner, Bapidars and Khadamdars in Udaipur, Jodhpur, Banswara and Kishangarh and khatedars in Partabgarh, Tonk and Kotah. All these, with the exception of khatedars of Tonk and Kotah, and Khadamdars and Bapidars of Udaipur, have to pay nazarana as the price of acquiring rights of transfer. The payment of wazarana is not necessarily the only condition to be fulfilled for the acquisition of rights of transfer nor does it follow that the right conferred is absolutely unfettered or unrestricted in each case. For instance, in Bikaner where the rule in this respect appears to be the most stringent, • a tenant in khalsa must pay 16 times the revenue as premium to become an occupancy tenant and, even then, his right of transfer is subject to the previous consent of Government. Another interesting feature of these tenancy laws is that in comparatively smaller states the tenancy rights, both in khalsa and Jagir, are almost the same. This state of affairs prevails in Kotah, Banswara, Dungarpur, •Shahpura, Kishengarh, Bundi, Tonk, Jhalawar, Karauli, Alwar and Dholpur; whereas the principal states had so far stood out in this respect.

Prevention of Uneconomic Holdings With the solitary exception of the Jaipur tenancy laws none of the Tenancy Acts reviewed above contains safeguards against division of agricultural holdings below economic size. Section 29 of the Jaipur Tenancy Act which is also applicable to the State-Grants Land Tenures, provides that no holdings shall be divided so as to constitute holdings of less than fifteen bighas of uniirigated or five bighas of irrigated land, one bigha of irrigated land being equal to three bighas of dry land. Besides, the Jaipur laws also facilitate the consolidation of scattered LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN RAJASTHAN 175

holdings by permitting mutual exchange of land on the initiative of incy the tenants. be- The 945, Problem of Khudkasht under the Tenancy Laws 'war The question of Khudkasht, Sir or Hawala is of particular impor- itive tance in Rajasthan. Khudkasht means the land under the personal ding cultivation of the Jagirdar. This has come into prominence only during hese the last decade due to the recent scramble for land because of the steep gni- rise in the prices of agricultural produce. The growing craze for farm- ated ing is also noticeable among the bigger jagirdars motivated by the hope the that even if the Jagir goes, they might be permitted to retain whatever Act, lands they have under their own cultivation. Moreover, the problem agir would not have assumed a serious aspect had the petty landholders not ;tow been faced with the introduction of cash rents. ,sed. The Jaipur and Jodhpur tenancy laws contain specific provisions ghts for the determination and appropriation of Khudkasht lands. In Jaipur t in the relevant provisions on the subject of Khudkasht are contained in 3 in section 152 of the Jaipur State-Grants Land Tenures Act, 1947 and the First Schedule of that Act. The Jodhpur provisions are to be found sses in section 6 of the Marwar Tenancy Act, 1949. The distinctive features for of these provisions are as follows:- wm. 1. The Jodhpur laws provide a sliding scale of Khudkasht land ight whereas under the Jaipur State-Grants Land Tenures Act ; of there is no such scale. Jars 2. The Sir lands of a Jagirdar consist of the land already under and his cultivation at the commencement of the Act or the lands tion continuously cultivated by him for not less than six years at 3 of any time after the commencement of the Act; but there is no ans- provision for appropriation of new lands for Khudkasht. The to Jaipur Act, on the other hand, provides for such apppropriation [low to meet the bonafide needs of the landholders from lands which ach have been sublet, those held by non-agriculturists. Ghair- ?,ars khatedar's holdings, Jaos of masonry wells constructed by the the estate holders at their own expenses and lands held by other his ,Khatedar tenants of less than 12 years standing. The difference in the two laws is explained largely by the difference in in the local conditions obtaining in the two areas. In Jodhpur enough Lgir, land is available whereas in certain areas of Jaipur, e.g., Udaipurwati, ara, Torawati and Shekhawati, the problem of Khudkasht has assumed seri- Lull, ous proportions and has become a thorny and vexed question for the out Government due to the smallness and fragmentary nature of the petty land-holdings. Soon after the enactment of the Jaipur State-Grants Land Tenures Act, a spate of litigation was observed in the state courts of law in the of shape of demand for Khudkasht lands. The principal defect in the ;ion Khudkasht provisions in the Act was the absence of security to the pur tenants who had conventional rights of occupancy. The condition of res, the tenants-at-will became most miserable of the whole lot. Another ngs important shortcoming of the law was the absence of 'adequate protection to the tenants against wrongful ejectment by the Jagirdars with- Ind. out any recourse to the procedure provided in the Act. The problem red Would not have tortured the tenants to such an extent and subjected 176 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS them to unnecessary miseries and atrocities committed by the Jagirdars, had the framers of the Act put one more clause in the provisions to the effect that no land could be appropriated by dispossessing the tenants with conventional rights of occupancy. • The Rajasthan (Protection of Tenants) Ordinance, 1949. The Rajasthan Government promulgated in June 1949 the Rajasthan Protection of Tenants Ordinance of 1949 with the object of safeguarding the tenants against unlawful ejectment. According to this legislation, all tenants who were in occupation of any land on April 1, 1948, and who may have been dispossessed since, are entitled to be reinstated to their holdings in accordance with the provisions of the Ordinance. Section 4 of the Ordinance provides that no tenant shall be liable to ejectment or dispossession from the whole or a part of his holding on any ground whatsoever. Section 7, however, of the aforesaid Ordinance provided for the re-instatement of only those tenants, who were in occupation on the first day of April 1948, and thereafter ejected or dispossessed thereof; (a) before the commencement of the Ordinance otherwise than by process of law, or (b) after the commencement of the Ordinance in contravention of the provisions thereof. The interpretation of the words "on the first day of April, 1948" by the Revenue Board of Rajasthan as excluding a possession of a subsequent origin was, in many cases, instrumental in creating hardships for such tenants as were dispossessed wrongfully after the commencement of the Ordinance but were not in possession on April 1, 1948. Thus, the re-instatement was restricted. The Rajasthan Legislature had, therefore, to pass recently the requisite amendment to remove the dis- crepancy and to bring law in conformity with its spirit. The amendment came into force on May 5, 1952. The principal advantage of the Ordinance is that it provides speedy re-instatement of the ejected tenants by a simplified process through the anti-ejectment courts. Another point worthy of note in this con- nection is that the party which is not satisfied with the decision of the anti-ejectment officer can .appeal only to the Revenue Board; whose decision is final and hence the cost of litigation is minimised to a large extent. The Rajasthan Produce Rents Regulating Act, 1951. In many parts of Rajasthan the Jagirdars have been recovering rents in kind for many centuries in the past. The share of the Jagirdar in the produce varied from one-sixth to one-half according to the nature of the soil and the competition amongst the tenants. The system work- ed well except during periods of rising prices. During and after the World War II the stupendous rise in prices of agricultural products gave rise to innumerable litigations and quarrels. The Rajasthan Government, therefore, had to promulgate the Rajasthan Produce Rents Regulating Act in June, 1951. The Act was a temporary measure for one year for unsettled areas of Rajasthan. As a consequence of this enactment no Jagirdar could recover more than one-fourth of the gross produce of a holding. The Act was almost a haphazard• piece of legis- LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN RAJASTHAN 177 [ars, lation and the following defects were marked within a few, months of 3 to its ants operation. 1. Being a temporary measure most of the landholders could evade its enforcement. 2. The proportion fixed exceeded in some cases the actual pro- ihan portion which was being charged as rent. The maximum was ling also high as compared to the same in the adjoining state of ion, Ajmer. 948, 3. The term "gross produce" was not defined and hence in many ated cases it became a cause for dispute. flee. unnecessarily restricted to unsettled areas. to 4. The scope was on 5. The Act does not empower the State Administration to use any ince special force for protecting the peasantry against forceful rent ccu- collections in excess of the prescribed maximum. dis- Some of these defects have been remedied by an amendment of the Act in April, 1952. The period has been extended by one year and its by scope, widened so as to make it applicable to all .agricultural lands. The expression "gross produce" has now been so defined as to exclude the straw chaff or the dry stalks of a crop or grass or any other natural a of produce. The most outstanding change effected by the amending Act, is the ' by reduction of the maximum proportion from one-fourth to one-sixth. bse- This change alone cannot benefit the rack-rented tenants in the absence ; for of special administrative powers to the district officials for the imple- aent mentation of the change. hus, had, The Rajasthan Agricultural Rents Control Act, 1952. dis- aent The Rajasthan Agricultural Rents Control Act was passed in May 1952 and it applies at present only to the Alwar and Bharatpur districts. The principal object of the Act is to control the rack-renting activities .edy which are being indulged in deliberately by landholders (specially )ugh zamindars) in some parts of the State to the detriment of tenants. The con- Act fixes twice the assessed land revenue as the maximum rent, ex- the cept in the case of agricultural lands situated in urban areas (having de- a population of 15,000 or more) and the lands owned by widows, arge Minors, disabled persons and students below 21 years of age, where the maximum is thrice the assessed land revenue. Another important feature of the enactment is that it provides for a summary method of converting produce rents into cash rents. The tehsildar, on receipt of ring an application from a tenant, can convert rents in kind into cash rents rdar on the basis of assessed revenue rates in the adjoining settled villages ture for similar soil classes. The party which is not satisfied with the assess- ork- ?Tient made by the tehsildar can appeal to the collector whose decision ifter 15 final. ucts than The Rajasthan Land Reforms and Resumption of Jagirs Act, 1952. ents The Rajasthan Land Reforms and Resumption of Jagirs Act is the for Most outstanding measure adopted by the state. Soon after the for- this mation of Rajasthan in 1949, the Venkatachar Committee was appointed Toss by the Central Government to enquire into the Jagirdari and Zamindari -bis Systems in Rajasthan and, Madhya Bharat and to suggest measures for 178 litit INDIAN 301111NAL Or ACRICULIVIIIAL ECONOMICS

reform of the land system, The Committee submitted its report December, 1949. An impartial examination of the Report convinces one that the committee steered clear of all extreme views, feudal or com- munist. The committee recommended unanimously that Jagirdari and Zamindari systems had out-lived their Utility and as such their abolition was inevitable. According to the committee jagirdars and zamindars do not possess any property rights in their holdings and as such cannot claim any compensation as a matter of right. It was, however, suggested that they should be given financial assistance based on considerations of social justice. The committee did not recommend the wholesale abolition of all the Jagirs. It seems in formulating its recommendations the Committee has aimed at the immediate, rather than the ultimate; the practical, rather than the ideal and the expedient, rather than the doctrinnaire; because at every stage of its conclusions a spirit of compromise is more marked than logic. ' The Rajasthan Government could not take any action on the Re- port of the Committee till the end of October, 1951, It was on November 15, 1951 that the Rajasthan Government came out with the Rajasthan Jagirdari Abolition Bill. But the Bill was shelved for the time being in pursuance of the Centre's directive that, in the absence of a legislature in Rajasthan, the responsibility for the abolition of the Jagirdari system in the state lay with the Government of India. The Vyas Ministry, however, persisted, and pressed the centre for obtaining the assent of the President to the Bill mainly with a view to strengthening the position of the Congress Party in general elections, The Act received the assent of the President on February 13, 1952 and the Rajasthan Government notified February 18, 1952 as the date for the commencement of the Act. It is now proposed to examine briefly the salient features of the Act, Scope of the Act Though the Act extends to the whole of the state of Rajasthan, it has excluded from its purview the following two categories of Jagirs, (a) Sagirs the income of which is utilised for the maintenance of any placei of religious worship or for the performance of any religious service; and (b) Jagirs, the rental income of which is legs than R. 5,000, The exclusion of the jagirs of the second category seems to have been effected on -;11e basis of the view taken by the Venkatachar Com- mittee. The Committee classified the jagirs into three categories, namely, jagirs of one or more villages, scattered land assignments in khalsa villages and jagirs dedicated for the maintenance of religious or charitable institutions. The committee was of the opinion that from the point of view of agrarian reform there is not that imperative need for the abolition of the small assignments as there is in the case of larger jagirs. The view is no doubt erroneous in that it loses sight of the crimes and atrocities committed on the rack-rented peasantry from time to time mostly by the petty landholders, The Bhomias almost everywhere are in revolt and in some of the areas notably? Shekliawati, Torawati and Udaipurwati, have been notorious for their criminal activities. Only a few months ago they butchered two promi- nent public workers in Udaipurwati. Never in the history of feudalism in Rajasthan Since its inception, nearly 700 years ago any group et: LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN RAJASTHAN 79

Thikanedars having comparatively larger estates resorted to such d es- perate action. This leads us to the inevitable conclusion for that the ni.ed the resumption of smaller holdings is more imperative than that., of abolition of the larger estates. In respect of religious and charitable grants the Committee had suggested their abolition and creation of a statutory endowment the board. But Act has failed to implement their recommendation in asmuch as it has excluded religious and charitable grants from the operation Act. of, the This is in striking contrast to the action taken by Madras and Mysore states in respect of their counter-parts. Fixation of Date of Resumption Let us hasten to say that the date of commencement of the namely, law, February 18, 1952, is not the peasant's day of deliverance. It is by a subsequent notification of the Government that the to be date or dates are' appointed for the resumption of any class of jagir lands and ferent dif- dates may be appointed for different classes of jagir lands. This Provision has also met with much adverse criticism. It appears Government the wishes to be over-cautious in that it may select the .line of least resistance on the part of the landholders. This only could, however, delay the much needed relief to the peasantry and would keep feudal the interests in suspense as the Damocles sword would always be hanging over their heads. Consequences of Resumption As from the date of resumption of a jagir the various rights of jagirdar in the respect of his jagir lands, forests, trees, wells, village sites, bazars, minerals, etc., shall stand resumed to all the Government "free from encumbrances. All rents and cesses accruing on the land after date of the resumption shall be payable to the Government. The Government shall not recognise any rights or interests created by a jagirdar in favour of third parties, nor shall it be liable for the payment of the any debts incurred by jagirdar. The state will cease to pay to the jagirdar Inents all cash pay- in respect of his rights; and the jagirdar will also cease to to pay any be liable tribute or land revenue to the Government. But he shall not be relieved of his existing indebtedness to the Government, nor shall he he debarred from recovering his past arrears of rent and other dues in respect of his jagir rights. All buildings used for schools, and offices, hospitals other public purposes shall be deemed to have been transferred Government. to the On the other hand, private lands, buildings, wells, house sites, tanks, enclosures, groves, etc., shall continue to belong to the jagirdar. Further, leases and contracts made in anticipation sumption of the re- and not in the normal course of management on or after January 1, 1949 may be cancelled by the Jagir Commissioner. Jagirdar recovers If any rent to which he is not entitled under the Act after resumption of his jagir, the collector may impose .a penalty on him up to Rs. 500 and direct him to refund such rent. Payment of Compensation The Government shall be liable to pay compensation to for resumption the jagirdar of his jagir, the amount being ten times his net income calculated in accordance with the provisions in to the the second schedule Act. The zamindar shall also be entitled to receive compensation 18(., • THE INDIAN JOURNAL OP AGRICULTURAL. ECONOMICS from the estate holder out of the amount payable to the latter. His corn pesation shall be ten times his net income computed according to the thu d schedule to the Act. The amount of compensation is to be determined by the Jagir Com- misioner who will also determine the maintenance allowance payable out of the jagir income, compensation payable to the zamindar and the 'other amounts payable to co-shares, if any. He will then deduct thew':'amounts, together with the debts due to the Government by the jagirdar from the amount of his compensation and the remainder would be regarded as the amount payable to the jagirdar in fifteen equal annual instalments or at the option of the jagirdar into thirty equal half-yearly instalments. The compensation payable under the Act is deemed''to be due as from the date of resumption and hence it shall carry simple interest at the rate of 2-Wo per annum from that date upto the date of paynient. The other claimants (for whom deductions are made while computing the amount of compensation) shall be paid their dues in the same number of instalments as the jagirdar. In the event of death of a jagirdar, the balance, if any, of the instalments be- comes payable to his legal representative. In matters of compensation the Act deviates from the recommendations of the Venkatachar Committee which had suggested more liberal assistance for the smaller and the poorer jagirdars as compared to the bigger and the richer ones. It would have been much better had the compensation been based on such considerations of social. justice.

The Problem of Khudkasht under the Act The Act recognises the need for allotment of khudkasht lands to the jagirdars. If any jagirdar does not possess any khudkasht land or has less than the maximum allowed, he will be allotted khudkasht lands by the Government on the basis of the enquiry made by the collector and the recommendations of the Committee specially appointed by the Government in this behalf. The maximum holding of khudkasht is to be calculated on the basis of the area of a jagir on the sliding scale, In no case the khudkasht lands of a jagirdar shall exceed 500 acres. The lands needed for the khudkasht shall be appropriated out of land surrendered or abandoned by tenants, land held by sub-tenants, or culturable unoccupied land within the jagir. In case the lands of the foregoing categories are not available culturable land held by a tenant of the jagir land in excess of the prescribed area may also be allotted as khudkasht. Thus the law provides for allotment of khudkasht from the land which may be in the occupation of tenants. This has been vehemently criticised for though the right of the jagirdar to cultivate some land personally may be accepted, it would be against the spirit of the times and the accepted principle of the security of tenure to dispossess a tenant of whatever class of his holding to augment the area of khudkasht for the jagirdar. We are at a loss to understand how such a derogatory provision could find a place in the statute book. The Venkatachar Committee has clearly voiced the opinion that the jagirdar should not be allowed to add to his khudkasht by dispossessing any tenant of his holding of whatever class he may be. The draft Bill had a clause to this effect; but one does not know how and on what grounds that clause was omitted. Another glaring defect in the LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN -RAJASTHAN 181

khucikasht provisions is the fixation of a very high maxim-um rOr the size of khudkasht. a- Assessment of Jagir Lands to Land .Revenite le Another outstanding feature of the Act is the evolution of a slow Ld process of converting the tribute hitherto payable by the jagirdars Ct into land revenue. The revenue payable by a jagirdar in respect of le his jagir is to be based on the rental income of his lands which is to Ld be determined by the collecter. The land revenue payable by him in al respect of his jagir will then be as follows:— al is (a) for the agricultural year 1951-52 an amount equal to the amount L11 of tribute payable by him to the Government for that year; te (b) •for each of the succeeding five agricultural years, one-eighth iS of the rental income or the amount of the tribute, Whichever id is greater; and Le (c) for the agricultural year 1957-58 and subsequent years, one- fourth of the rental income from the jagir lands. n- Acquisition of Khatedari Rights by Tenants al Except the tenants who already possess heritable and full transferable rights in the tenancy as khatedars, pattedars or khadamdars, all other tenants shall have to acquire khatedari rights by depositing in the State coffers a sum equal to ten times the annual rent. The sum so received shall be appropriated entirely by the Government in the case of resumed jagirs and in other cases two-third of the sum shall be paid to the jagirdar and the balance shall be appropriated by the to or State. Under the existing tenancy laws practically no jagir tenant ht Possesses unrestricted right of transfer whereas the right of customary )1- inheritance is enjoyed by almost all of them. The premium fixed is ed somewhat exorbitant looking to the economic and geographical condi- ht tions obtaining in the desert. Consequently, the acquisition of the right le, of transfer would be a luxury to jagir tenants which they can ill afford. !s. Moreover, the right of unfettered transfer is not an unmixed good as ad is very often results in alienation of land to non-agricultural classes or Which is fraught with possibilities of absentee landlordism. he In addition to the various defects which have already been pointed nt out above, there are some more serious defects in the Jagir Resumption as Act. In the first place, the Act makes no provision for the tenancy yrn rights of those cultivators who may be unable to acquire the so-called en full-fledged khatedari rights under the Act though they possess at pre- LIR sent the right of inheritance. Another defect is that the Act provides rit no safeguards against passing of land into the hands of non-cultivating to Persons through transfer, sub-letting or usufructuary mortgage. Such he contingencies which ultimately lead to a gap between the state and the nd actual tiller of the soil, should have been prohibited outright on the )k. lines of the corresponding provisions in the U.P. Zamindari Abolition. ,he Act. Then there are no safeguards for preventing subdivision and frag- ng Inentation of holdings nor is there any provision for facilitating consolidation of small holdings. Thus the Act as a whole is not a comprehensive at xneasure. Hence it needs a thorough overhauling. The sooner it he accomplished, the better it would be. 182 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

The Rajasthan Tenancy Bill, 1952. It was in April 1952 that the Bill was introduced in the State Legislature. It seeks to consolidate, amend, unify and declare the law ar relating to agricultural tenancies and land tenures in Rajasthan. The Bill is almost on the lines of the Jaipur Tenancy Act, 1945 and to S01110 extent it may act as a supplement to the Jagir Resumption Act. It \V provides for three categories of tenants, namely, khatedars, ghair-khate- fiE dars and sub-tenants. Khatedar tenants will have heritable and trans- Jr ferable rights provided the total holding of the transferee after transfer is: does not exceed 75 acres of dry land. Sub-letting is allowed except in A: the case of khudkasht lands provided the tenant does not pocket any Pr profit as an intermediary between the state and the actual tiller. re Tenants will have a right to make improvements and to cut trees for domestic and agricultural purposes. Further, tenants will be liable w: to ejectment for non-payment of arrears of rent, non-cultivation for three continuous years or breach of any material condition of tenancy. th Usufructuary mortgages may also be effected by tenants upto a period of 20 years; but after the expiry of the period the mortgagee's rights at in land wil cease even though his claim might be outstanding. The al] Bill also provides for remedies for wrongful ejectment. fo: CONCLUSION The land reform policy in Rajasthan has woefully lacked in foresight and planning. The Government has passed a series of Ordi- le nances and Acts which can hardly be said to achieve even the most commonly accepted objective of land reforms, namely, the elimination la] of all intermediaries between the state and the actual tiller of the soil. ar To think that with the promulgation of a few piece-meal ordinances and Acts all agricultural problems have been solved is grossly to under- estimate the intricate and complex nature of the land problem. It is, therefore, suggested that the state should formulate a comprehensive land policy in respect of the abolition of jagirs and zamindaris, tenancy la] rights, size and productivity of farms and redistribution of land. After deciding such a land policy the Government should implement it with top priority. in W( lac LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN OTHER STATES 'ev (In order to present a fuller account of land reform legislation in ar India we approached the governments of those States on which no papers 'co on the subject were received. The notes from the Governments of of Assam, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Pepsu and Madhya Bharat who were good enough to accede to our request are published below:— Managing. Editor) pc Assam "Pa (0_ The Assam Land (Requisition ez Acquisition) Act, was passed ba in 1948 and necessary amendments were made in subsequent years ed (1949-50). This Act provides for requisition of waste lands and their fo allotment to landless and displaced persons; -LAND REPORm LtGisLATION IN 01111Ett sTATtS 18

(b) The Assam Adhiars Protection & Regulation Act passed in ate ib48 affords relief to and safeguards the interests of crop-sharing tenants aw and is now in operation in all plains districts of this state except a 'he certain specified area. ma (c) The Assam Management of Estates Act was passed in 1949 It with a view to protecting the natural wealth of the estates, forests, Lte- fisheries, etc. which were being wantonly destroyed by the zamindars. ns- In June 1950, necessary orders for taking over the managements were fer issued and all preliminary arrangements completed, when suddenly the in Assam High Court, on petition filed by some proprietors, stayed further ny proceedings till disposal of the said petitions. The High Court has very .er. recently passed orders declaring the Act as intra-vires and Government for have decided to take over the managements of the zamindari estates ble with effect from the 23rd April next (1953) under this Act. for (d) The Assam State Acquisition of Zamindaris Act, 1951 received cy. the assent of the President on July 27, 1951. iod The Act was, however, challenged in the Assam High Court by some proprietors while it waS Its still a Bill. Very recently, the cases have withdrawn. he been But almost all the proprietors have given notices under section 80 of the C.P.C. for filing suits against the validity of• this Act. Rules under this Act, have since been framed. The Act has not yet been brought into force. in (e) The Government are contemplating to enact di- this year (1058) legislation relating to the Non-Agricultural Urban Areas ost Tenancy. The legislation will aim at making better provision relating on to the law of landlord and tenant in respect of non-agricultural tenancies in the urban areas of this state. .;es- er- is, West Bengal .ve In the state of West Bengal the following legislation relating to cy land reforms have been enacted. ter Eth (1) The West 13engal Non-Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1949 Prior to the passing of this enactment, the /position of the tenants in urban areas was insecure. Their rights in the lands held by them Were governed by the terms of the contract with the landlord. , Having no statutory rights in the lands held by them, they were liable to be evicted by the landlords at their will. This measure was passed with a View to giving protection to the tenants of non-agricultural lands against 'arbitrary evictions and enhancement of rents by landlords. The Act has nc conferred permanent, heritable and transferable rights on certain classes of Of non-agricultural tenants in urban areas. Tio (2) The West Benya1 Bargadan Act, 1950 r) The barga (share-cropping) system of cultivation of lands is an important feature in the agricultural economy of this State. Before the "Passing of the Act, the relationship between the owners of lands and the bargadars (share-croppers) was found to have been greatly strain- rs ed which ultimately led to agrarian troubles and adversely affected the jr food production in the State. With a view to improving this strained relationship between the oWners and the bargadarS, the West Bengal 1 g4 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS

Bargadars Act was passed in 1950. The Act provides for regulation of rights of bargadars (share-croppers) and the owners of land, establish- ku ment of bhagchas (conciliation boards) for settlement of disputes relating to certain matters between bargadars and owners of land. loi in Himachal Pradesh un (1) A committee of official and non-officials under the chairman- le ship of the Chief Minister, Himachal Pradesh, has been appointed to go eh, into the question of revising the existing Land Revenue and Tenancy law of the state. The committee has not yet finalised its recommendation and the report has not become available. (2) The question of abolition of zamindari in Himachal Pradesh is Vic still engaging the attention of the Government and the Committee ap- on pointed to go into the question of revising the existing Land Revenue en and Tenancy law of the state, will include this item in its recommenda- ha tion, on which the Government will finalise its proposals. pe The following steps have been taken to provide relief to the tenants Pe as an interim measure. These in itself are great steps towards building T1 the structure of the society on new lines. of (a) In many of the units merged in H.P., the Darbar or the Ruler tei used to be recorded as "Ala Malik" in the Revenue Records in pa; respect of the whole area of the state. Such entry limited the rights of the inferior maliks, who were the actual owners, to ty] alienate their property. Orders have since been issued to (1 delete the entry of the Darbar or the Ruler as "Ala Malik" WI from the Revenue Records. Aj (b) There has been a special class of tenants called Bethus in thi Himachal Pradesh for a long time past, who owed an obliga- aci tion to render personal service to the landowners in return for certain cultivating rights. Occupancy rights as specified in the to Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887, have now been conferred on an all Bethus who have been in cultivating possession of state iss lands for three generations on payment of rents equal to 11 times the Land Revenue and cesses for the time being chargeable on lar the land. Such Bethus as acquire occupancy rights under the ly. said orders have further been given the right to acquire full proprietory rights in such lands on payment of a sum equal to Nc ten times the land revenue and cesses assessed on such lands. th( (c) The State Legislature has passed the following two bills, and ow these only await assent of the President:— pe of (1) The Punjab Tenancy (H. P. Amendment) Bill, 1952. Ac (2) H. P. Tenants (Right and Restoration) Bill, 1952. of These two Bills provide Al ril (1) non-ejectment of tenants except in cases of non-payment of land revenue and utilization of land in a way which renders it unfit for the purpose for which the tenants held it; of (ii) restoration to the tenant of his holdings from which he was ca: ejected after the 30th August, 1950. The tenants are required to file pri an application in this behalf within six months; and co: LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN OTHER STATES 185

1 of (iii) restricting the rent of the land in cases where it is paid in ish- kind, to lth of the actual produce. :ing The question of extinguishing the proprietory rights of the landlords in the lands held by the occupancy tenants and vesting such rights in the occupancy tenants on 'payment of reasonable compensation is . under active consideration of this Government and it is expected that a Ian- legislation to this effect will be placed before the next session of Hima- go chal Pradesh Legislative Assembly. ncy ida PEPSU a is The object of all agrarian reforms is to remove intermediaries, provide ap- security of tenures and to prevent fragmentation of holdings in order to make agriculture nue more productive to the cultivator. With this end in view, the Government of Patiala and East ida- Punjab States Union have endeavoured to extinguish occupancy rights on payment of compensation to landlords. The last legislation on this subject was the tnts .Pepsu Abolition of Biswedari Ordinance No. XXIII of 2006 Bikarami. Eing The total number of occupancy holdings was 68,657 comprising an area of 6,16,799 acres. Proprietary rights haveS been transferred to occupancy iler tenants in 45,972 holdings comprising an area of 3,76,898 acres, after ; in payment of compensation. the In the former Faridkot and Kapurthala states there were special , to types of tenants in the areas in Faridkot (60,969 acres) and Kapurthala to (11,323 acres). Ordinarily, they paid rents in cash but unlike tenants at Lik" will, they were not liable to ejectment. By notification No. 8B dated April 28, 1951 the Pepsu Government conferred occupancy rights on in them. In common with other occupancy tenants they were entitled to [0- acquire proprietary rights under the Abolition of Biswedari Ordinance for No. 23 of 2006 Bk. On further consideration government has decided the to vest proprietary rights in them without payment of any compensation on and Notification No. RD 8(54) 52-95 dated 5-11-52 has been accordingly ,ate issued. nes The rulers of Faridkot and Nalagarh were recorded as superior on landowners or Ala Maliks in 4,90,392 acres and 1,74,563 acres respective- the ly. After the formation of Patiala and East Punjab States Union Ala Cull Malkiat rights devolved on the State Government. By Notification L to No. 14(17) B-51-13-B and No. 14(17) B-51-14-B dated June 7, 1951, Is. the Pepsu Government conferred full proprietary rights on inferior land- tnd owners in Faridkot and Nalagarh areas without payment of any compensation, exempting the area allowed as personal property to the ruler of Faridkot. An act called the Pepsu Abolition of Ala Malkiyat Rights Act 2009 has been passed by the Legislative Assembly for liquidation of Ala Malkiyat rights in the remaining area of 36,023 acres, in which Ala Malkiyat rights were enjoyed by persons other than rulers, on payment of due compensation. tnd the There are tenants at will in an area of 10,46,532 acres out of which 3,75,960 acres are held by 50,838 tenants at will who do not possess land of their own. In order to provide security of tenure to them an Act vas called the Pepsu Tenancy (Temporary Provisions) Act, 2008 has been file Promulgated which prevents ejectment of tenants save under certain conditions. 186 Tilt INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL tCONOMICS

The greatest drawback from which the rural economy suffers is the fragmentation of holdings. An Act called the Pepsu Holdings (Consoli- 1ar dation and Prevention of Fragmentation) Act 2007 has, therefore, been cr€ enforced. The Government have formulated a Five Year Plan to com- plete the work of consolidation of holidings by 1955-56 in total area of 42,08,333 acres, An area of 4,43,926 acres has so far been consolidated of benefiting 51,036 landowners. ter 'MT Further measures aimed at making cultivation and ownership coin:: be cide are under contemplation and the following agrarian bills have been pe: introduced in the State Assembly. 1, PEPSU Occupancy Tenants (Vesting of Proprietary Rights) Bill, 1952. 2. PEPSU Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Bill, 1952. From the date of commencement of the PEPSU Occupancy Tenants (Vesting of Proprietary Rights) Bill all occupancy tenants will become co] full proprietors immediately, leaving the determination and payment of th( compensation to a later date. The rate of compensation which was pre- -w viously 100 times has been reduced to 12 times the land revenue or annual rent, whichever is less. Under the previous law, the arrears of rent had to be paid by occupancy tenants along with compensation at na 100 times the land revenue. The proposed bill extinguishes proprietary -ter rights of landlords and their right to collect the arrears of rent. In order th( to give further facility to occupancy tenants, it has been provided that, th( if the amount of compensation exceeds Rs. 250/- it will be recoverable ;ac( in twelve equal six-monthly instalments. toi The PEPSU Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Bill aims at raising set tenants-at-will to the status of full proprietors in some cases and pro- -co] .ly viding adequate safeguards for the remaining tenants. The Bill gives the option to acquire proprietary rights to all tenants, regardless of the duration of their tenancy, if they happen to be occupying area owned mi by a landlord above the limit of 100 acres. The compensation payable lT1-] for acquisition of proprietary rights would be 100 times the land revenue bo: or Its. 400/- per acre, whichever is less. It will be payable in six 'to annual instalments. The rights of tenants to exercise this option will :ed not be adversely affected by gifts and gratuitous transfers, which might Va have been made during the last 2 years by landlords to their near rela- TIi tions. Tenants or their descendants who have been ejected since May 1, ,asE 1951 will be deemed to be tenants entitled to exercise this option, if 'ob they are otherwise entitled. thi dr Proprietary rights will pass to tenants as soon as they have paid the first ja instalment. In order to ensure that the period of suspense is ar not prolonged indefinitely, it has been provided that tenants who want WE to purchase proprietary rights must do so within a period of two years, Adequate safeguards have been provided also for 'cis tenants at will who 11-1E will be left in the area within the limit of 100 acres permitted for self- cultivation. The Or minimum period of tenancy in their case has been pa fixed at five years. lar Tenants-at-will have also been given the right to make improvements at their own cost and claim compensation for the same if they are 11e ejected. Protection against ejectment from dwelling houses is also given In to tenants by granting them an option to purchase the sites of their ter houses at reasonable prices, oc( LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN OTHER STATES 87

"l•The tenants who acquire proprietary rights will be able to transfer land only to those who are cultivators which will minimise chances of creating new tenants. it is expected that the above measures will provide maxiinum good of the maximum number provided the parties concerned, especially tenants, co-operate with government in their implementation. Peasants, who are the back-bone of the economic structure of the society, will thus be relieved of the ever hanging fear of ejectment and from a state of 'penury will be ushered into an era of prosperity. Madhya Bharat A few days before the merger with Madhya •13ha-rat the GwTalior- state Government had passed measures by which the police and revenue powers of the jagirdars had been withdrawn, while the Indore state had conferred rights of pakka tenants on the tenants in the jagir areas. With the formation of Madhya Bharat the whole question of land reforms was taken in hand on a systematic basis and was pushed forward with 'vigour. Broadly speaking the two major systems of land administration, namely the zamindari and ryotwari were prevalent in this area. The -territories of the former Gwalior state comprising a little more than half the total area of the Union were settled on the zamindari system, while those of the Indore state and most of the other small states were settled according to principles akin to the ryotwari system. Most of the terri- tory was regularly surveyed, soil-classed and assessed at the time of settlements undertaken from time to time. There was only a small area -comprising the territories of three smalled states which was not regularly settled prior to its inclusion in the Madhya Bharat Union. The Madhya Bharat Government had from the very beginning,formulated a very clear policy for tackling the problem of land reforms. They held the view that agricultural land should be in possession of the bona fide agriculturists and that there was no room for intermediaries to exist between the cultivators and the state. They were also motivated by the principle that the profits of agriculture should go to the culti- Vator himself rather than to be shared by him and any intermediaries. The Government also considered that security of tenure, leniency of assessment and fixity in demand for a considerable period should be an objective that should be achieved in any measure of land reforms. With this objective in view certain important measures were taken to with- 'draw the quasi-independent administrative and judicial powers of the jagirdars. The police stations and the magisterial courts in the jagir -areas came under the jurisdiction of the Government. The jagirdars were deprived of their revenue powers through which they could exer- 'cise coercion in recovering the land revenue from their tenants. Another measure taken was the promulgation of the Land Records Maintenance 'Ordinance followed by an Act by which the officials in- jagir areas like ipatwaris came directly under the control of the Government and the land records were maintained on the same system as in khalsa villages. Pot the khalsa areas the Land Administration and Ryotwari Land 'Revenue and Tenancy Act was passed which was mainly based on the Indore Land Revenue and Tenancy Act. All these measures were intended to secure to the tenants adequate rights over the lands in their occupation. ECONOMICS 188 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL

This left the two major problems, viz., (i) the abolition of zamindari and (ii) the liquidation of jagirs still to be tackled. By the very nature of the problems these measures could be undertaken only after the fullest study. The Government, therefore, appointed a committee consisting of 5 non-official and 2 official members to enquire into the problem and recommend measures for the abolition of the i system. This committee after detailed study of the whole problem suba- mitted its report in November 1949. This was followed up byzamindaril:- the pointment by the Government of India of another committee commonly known as the Rajasthan Madhya Bharat Jagir Enquiry Committee pre- sided over by Shri Venkatachar, the then Regional Commissioner of Rajasthan. With the object of bringing about direct relationship between the state and the tillers of the soil, the committee was asked to examine and report on the existing structure of the jagirdari system, the state of land revenue administration, the existence of tenancy legislation, the need for improving agrarian conditions and the desirability of extinguishing all differences between the khalsa and jagir areas, so that a uniform revenue and land tenure system might be established throughout Madhya Bharat-Rajasthan. This committee submitted its report in December 1949. The recommendations of these committees were followed up by legislative action and the Madhya Bharat Zamindari Abolition Act was passed in June 1951 and the Madhya Bharat Abolition of Jagirs Act was passed in November 1951. These two important measures were intended to remove the intermediaries that had existed for a long time between the state on one side and the cultivators on the other and whose existence was detrimental to any progress in the matter of land reforms. As soon as the Zamindari Abolition Act was passed the zamindars moved the High Court with writ applications challenging the validity of this Act and though the measure came into force at the beginning of October 1951, the provisions of the Act could not be implemented till the middle of December. Similar writ applications challenging the validity of Jagir Abolition Act, were submitted by jagirdars and the implementation of the measures is still in abeyance under interlocutory order of the High Court. The main features of the Zamindari Abolition Act can be sum- marised as under: (1) The vesting in State of all areas which were not under khudkashta of the zamindars or under occupation of tenants; (2) Conferment of rights of pakka tenants on zamindars cultivating khudkasht lands as well as on all tenants; (3) Provision to enable the sub-tenants of either zamindars or the tenants to acquire pakka tenancy rights over lands in their occupation; (4) Determination and payment of compensation to zamindars whose proprietary rights over their lands were abolished; (5) Determination and settlement of the claims of secured creditors against the zamindars; (6) Settlement of disputes in regard to title to zamindari lands; (7) Payment of rehabilitation grant to the outgoing zamindars ho were earning their livelihood mainly from agriculture; and LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN OTHER STATES 189

(8) Introduction of ryotwari system in these areas by the appoint- ment of village patels, village officials and maintenance of pro- per system of land records. The territories of the former Gwalior state were settled on zamindari system. The total number of zamindars was approximately 1,22,000 spread over in about 8,640 villages. They realised from these zamindari areas an amount of just over Rs. 2 crores, out of which they paid in the State treasury as land revenue an amount of just under Rs. 1 crore. In order to implement the provisions of this Act the Government established a Land Reforms Department under a Commissioner of Land Reforms assisted by a Deputy Commissioner. The Government have also sanctioned formation of 6 districts, each under a compensation officer who will be assisted by deputy compensation officers and claims officers in addition to the land records staff which consists of sadar kanoongos, girdawar kanoongos and moharirs and patwaris. The question of land reforms is closely integrated with the problems of land administration and has been considered along with it. The revenue administration has been reorganised recently and the tahsildar has been appointed ex- officio deputy compensation officer for his tahsil. Wherever his work was found to be heavy he is being assisted by an additional deputy compensation officer. The question of examination of titles and adjudica- tion of claims is mainly of a judicial nature and arrangements are being made for the deputation of sufficient number of judicial officers to work as claims officers. Provision has been made for appeals against the order of the deputy compensation officer to the Compensation Officer and to the Land Reforms Commissioner and against the order of the claims officers to the Board of Revenue. The compensation to be paid to zamindars is on the basis of their net assets arrived at by calculating their income from -various sources and deducting from it the land revenue they paid to the state and the expenses incurred on management. The compensation to zamindars has been fixed at a uniform rate of 8 times of the net assets of the zamindars and its payment would be made by ten equal annual instalments. In addition to the compensation, the zamindars who earned their livelihood mainly from agriculture will receive a rehabilitation grant which will be given on a sliding scale in accordance with the land revenue that they paid to the state. This ranges from 12 times the net assets in the case of the zamindar paying as land revenue below Rs. 25 to an amount equal to the net assets in the case of those who paid land revenue between Rs. 2,000 and 3,500. The total amount that will thus be paid to the zamindars has been calculated to be about Rs. 10 crores. While the state would be required to pay this amount to the zamindars it will get an additional income from the zamindari lands which will now be managed under the ryotwari system. The additional net revenue which is expected to accrue as a result of the measure will be about Rs. 80 lacs and is likely to go on increasing steadily as the unoccupied land is allotted to cultivators. It is expected that in about 12 years the whole of the amount that will be paid to the zamindars will be recovered from the additional income. While as a result of the implementation of this Act the zamindars will lose their proprietary rights in land, they will receive adequate com- 190 THE INDIAN JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS for pensation and will also have their secured debts adjudicated' and settled wa: out of the amount of compensation to be paid to them. They will thus be be freed from their burden and will be placed in a position to take to agriculture free of any, encumbrances. To enable them to do so, provi- on sion has been made in the Act by which they acquire the rights of pakka ded tenants in respect of the land which was under their khudkashta and edu which they will continue to hold after the abolition of the zamindari. pON In cases where the khudkashta land is not sufficient for their agricul- 5% tural use steps are being taken to enable them to get more land from out Rs. of their former areas which have vested in the state. Similar steps are Rs. being taken to enable them to get some Bir areas for their cattle. the The former tenants of the zamindars irrespective of the difference tim in their tenures will as a result of this measure acquire the right of bas pakka tenants over the lands in their occupation. This has been done of( with a view to achieving uniformity of tenure throughout the whole rev of Madhya Bharat. These benefits have been 'conferred on these tenants are without requiring them to contribute anything towards the implementation of this measure. dar Provision has been made in the Act to enable sub-tenants to acquire agr pakka tenancy right, but in their case they will have to acquire their res rights by compensating the proprietors, tenants or sub-tenants from zan whom they hold the land. The amount to be paid has been related to the nature of their tenure. This is calculated to confer a real boon on ten the sub-tenants who can now look forward to holding their lands on Ab pakka tenancy tenure without any kind of interference .from their OVE former superior tenants. the A considerable area which was not under occupation has now ren vested in the state. Arrangements are being made to reserve sufficient mt land from this area for the common requirements of the village as a ten whole in the matter of nistar, while the remaining area would be allotted to bona fide agriculturists in accordance with the rules sanctioned for ten this purpose under the Land Revenue and Tenancy Act. Provision has tioi been made in the rules for allotment of land with a view to meeting the be needs of the smaller tenants whose holdings are not economic and to full the landless labourers anxious to take to agriculture. avz After the abolition of zamindari the whole of the area will be ad- agr ministered 'in accordance with the ryotwari system prevailing in rest hoc of Madhya Bharat. USE rev The Jagir Abolition Act has been passed but as stated above its eco implementation . has been withheld in compliance with the orders of High Court. It is hoped that the High Court decision will be given soon. The Act provides for the resumption of all jagir areas in the whole of Madhya Bharat. The total number of jagirs is 1,329 comprising an area of 8,449 sq. miles spread over 4,249 villages containing a population of 11,25,000. The total income of jagirdars is about Rs. 74 lacs out of which they pay a little under Rs. 12 lacs to Government. The Jagirdari Abolition Act provides for the resumption of all jagir areas and conferment on the tenants of the jagir villages the rights of pakka tenants in the same manner as is done in zamindari areas. The ryotwari system of land administration has been prevalent in the jagirdari areas excepting in the case of very few jagirs where also the same system will be introduced. Government have already taken measures LAND REFORM LEGISLATION IN OTHER STATES 191 for the maintenance of land records papers of jagir villages in the same way as in khalsa villages and the whole of the land records staff would be under the control of the Land Records Department. The compensation to be paid to the jagirdars under the Act will be on a sliding scale. The net assets of the jagirdar will be calculated by deducting from the basic income in varying proportions on account of education, public health, roads, etc., and for police, revenue and judicial powers. The deductions on these accounts are, however, not to exceed 5% of the basic income in the case of jagirdars whose income is below Rs. 2,000/-, while in the case of jagirdars whose basic income exceeds Rs. 40,000/- an amount of 50% of the income can be deducted under these heads. The compensation to be paid to the jagirdars will be 7 times of their net income arrived at after making deductions from their basic -income under the various heads. It is expected that the amount of compensation to be paid will be met from the amount of the additional revenue that the state would derive after the resumption of all jagir areas. Provision has been made in the Act for allotment of land to jagir- days for khudkashta purposes, so that they may be enabled to take to agriculture in case they wish to do so. The unoccupied land in the resumed villages would be allotted in the same manner as in the former zamindari tracts. There is one class of assignees of proprietary rights which has been temporarily excluded from the operation of the provisions, of the Jagir Abolition Act. These are assignees of small plots of lands spread all over the state who mostly themselves cultivate the lands assigned to them. Their number is estimated to be about 5,000. Some of them have rented their lands to tenants and the Government have already taken into consideration the question of safeguarding the interest of these tenants. As a result of all these measures there would be uniform system of tenure throughout Madhya Bharat which will be based on direct *relationship between the state and the tiller of the soil. There will also be a uniform system of land records. The rights of the tenants will be fully defined and properly safeguarded and the lands that are made available as a result of these measures would be allotted to bona fide agriculturists to make up economic holdings and provide means of livelihood to landless cultivators. The cultivators would also be enabled to use in full the profits of agriculture after meeting the demands on land revenue based on light assessment. It is confidently hoped that their economic condition would steadily improve in future.