Agrarian Social Structure

7/21/2019 Agrarian Social Structure

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/agrarian-social-structure 1/16

Agrarian Social Structure: What is Agrarian Social Structure?

The dictionary meaning of ‘agrarian’ means anything related to land, its management or

distribution. Related to land distribution is also the aspect of ‘equitable division of land’. It refers

to the political movement in favour of change in conditions of propriety in land. It is called

‘agrarianism’.

Agrarian system also includes land tenure system. Beteille has defined agrarian social structure.

To him agrarian system does not mean only peasantry.

He observes:

omething more specific than the study of peasant societies and cultures, as this is generally

understood by anthropologists! The term ‘peasantry’ has variety of referents. But it is most

meaningfully used to describe a more or less homogeneous and undifferentiated community of

families characterised by small holdings operated mainly by family labour.

The agrarian system is related to"

#i$ land and its utilisation% and

#ii$ productive purposes. &e observes"

The study of agrarian systems 'ill centre round the problem of land and its utilisation for

productive purposes.

Beteille, to refer to him again, it would be said that the land problem in India and for that

matter the study of agrarian social structure revolves round two maor issues as under:

(. Technological arrangements, and

). ocial arrangements.

Technological arrangement means the management of land. It includes lando'nership, control

and* use of land. Technological arrangement is discussed in relation to variations in ecological



conditions. In other 'ords, land is loo+ed in terms of the geography 'hich surrounds the land.

The ecological setting of agriculture in India is highly variable. The diverse nature of ecological

conditions in India has been described by Beteille as under"

There are areas of heavy rainfall and areas 'ith hardly any rainfall. There are irrigated and

unirrigated areas. Irrigated areas themselves differ according to the dependability of irrigation!.

The different regions sho' different patterns of diurnal and seasonal variations in humidity,

temperature and sunlight. All these factors have a direct bearing on the +inds of crops that can be

cultivated and the technology employed in their cultivation.

The technological arrangements, thus, include ecological conditions along 'ith the ne'

agriculture technology, such as 'ater pumps, thresher, chemical manure, improved seeds, etc.

Another aspect of agrarian system is that of social management.

It includes land control and lando'nership. It is found that the Indian agricultural communities

have recently been highly stratified. It sho's that there is close relationship bet'een the system

of stratification and the division of 'or+.

or instance, the census figures sho' that in -unab and &aryana the proportion of agricultural

labourers in the total agricultural population is relatively lo', 'hereas in /est Bengal,

Tamilnadu and 0erala, it is high. In the three states the prevalence of sharecropping is also high,

but this fact is not easily recorded in the censuses and large1scale surveys.

0.2. harma has discussed the problem of agrarian stratification and argues that agrarian

structures in India have al'ays been uneven. ie observes that despite the abolition of

intermediaries not much substantive change in agrarian relations has come. The uneven

structures of landholdings have also resulted in ‘diverse land tenure systems’. The land tenure

system, according to harma, has greatly affected the social structure. &e 'rites"

The variations in the relationship bet'een land tenure system and social structure created an

uneven feudal order in the pre1British and British periods. The shado' of the colonial and feudal

inequality is still seen by us in various aspects of society.



ociologists and anthropologists, 'ho have recently studied agrarian system, have very strongly

argued that changes in land relations have affected the stratification pattern of villages. The

crucial aspect of agrarian structure is the control over land.

It is the basis of agrarian stratification. /hen agrarian social structure is discussed invariably 'e

refer to lando'nership, land control and use of land. uch an approach to land helps us to find

out agrarian hierarchy. /hat has happened so far is that the dominant castes 'ho, have control

over maor portions of land, suppress and e3ploit the subordinated classes.

4liver 5endelsohn and 5ari+a 6ic7iany, 'ho have discussed the rural land reform 'ith

reference to untouchables, argue that the subordinated people have gained nothing out of land

reforms. The present social stratification of the village is due to our failure to settle land reforms.

The authors observe as under"

2and control is the basis of the agrarian hierarchy and, therefore, the means by 'hich the

dominants have subordinated untouchables the village. mall resources li+e a home site of one’s

o'n and even a very small plot of productive land can effect a po'erful liberation of the

subordinate untouchables from total and arbitrary dependence on their oppressor.

8et, another aspect of rural stratification is the pattern of cultivation adopted by the peasantry. If

the cultivators ta+e to crops 'hich require hard labour, naturally it 'ould require larger number

of agriculture labourers.

In the states of -unab and Bihar 'here paddy is gro'n, larger number of labourers is hired.

9ven landless labourers migrate from Bihar to -unab for transplanting paddy. The agrarian

hierarchy, therefore, is the resultant of the crops gro'n by the peasantry.

Beteille has discussed the rural stratification pattern in terms of land control and land

management. The productive organisation of land consists of three main patterns" the first is

based on family labour, the second on hired labour and the third on tenancy conceived in a broad

sense.



He observes:

or in tal+ing about production based on family labour, 'age labour and tenancy, 'e are tal+ing

also about landlords, o'ner1cultivators, tenants, sharecroppers and the agricultural labourers.

These categories and their mutual relations constitute the heart of 'hat may be described as the

agrarian hierarchy! the most crucial features of India’s rural social system and unless 'e

understand its nature and forms, our understanding of caste itself 'ill remain incomplete.

The rural India’s basic problem today is the understanding of agrarian system. :ontrol over land

determines the rural hierarchy. /hat is interesting is that the state does not impose any income1

ta3 on the far production.

As a result of this state policy, those 'ho control larger portions of land, benefit the most. The

rural agrarian hierarchy has today become more complicated o'ing to the land policy adopted by

the state. But the state land policy, as 'e have in India today, has not evolved overnight.

It is the result of the colonial land policy 'hich 'e have inherited and have carved it in post1

independent India in such a 'ay that it has ta+en a capitalistic mode of production instead of

minimising the hiatus bet'een the big farmer and landless labourer. /e have intensified the

social inequality. /e no' trace the land policy adopted by the colonial rulers and later, the

nationalist government.

!A"# $%&'$(S #)$I"* +-./.0

Agrarian social structure 1 evolution of land tenure system, land reforms

The main characteristics of the agrarian structure 'hich independent India inherited 'erea$ absentee land o'nership% b$ e3ploitation of tenants through high rents and insecurity of tenure%c$ unequal distribution of land%

d$ tiny and fragmented holdings% ande$ lac+ of adequate institutional finance to agriculture.4n this agrarian structure 'as imposed a situation in 'hich bul+ of the cultivators 'ere short of fixed as 'ell as working capital. This resulted in lo' investments and thereby lo' yields inagriculture.Agrarian structure, as you +no', is a broad concept comprising land tenure system as 'ell ascredit, mar+eting, etc.





ormal definitions

2and reforms mean"

G( Improving land tenure and institutions related to agriculture.

G) redistribution of property rights or the benefit of the landless poor.G>integrated program to remove the barriers for economic and social development :aused bydeficiencies in the e3isting land tenure system

Tenancy"Tenancy in derived from the 'ord ‘tenure’ H ‘to hold’.TenancyH Agreement under tenant* holdsthe landJbuilding of the original o'ner.





Land Tenure System: British Legacy In the initial years, 9ast India company faced follo'ing problems"(. @emand for British goods in IndiaHnegligible. #Because 9ast India company 'as yet todestroy our handicraft and artisans$). ?nder the 5ercantilism policy of British" one country’s gain required another countryJcolony’s loss. Therefore, British Kovernment prohibited 9ast India company frome3porting gold and silver from 9ngland to pay for Indian goods import.

>. :ompany needed truc+load of caL& to maintain an army for defeating and subugating nativerulers.9ast India company came up 'ith follo'ing solution"(. start collecting revenue from Indians). ?se that Revenue to buy Indian ra' materiale3port to 9ngland>. Import finished goods bac+ to IndiaHM ma+e profit.But this solution had a problem" the revenue system under 5ughals and Fative rulersHtoocomple3 for the British to understand.2ord :orn'allis comes 'ith a novel idea" ust ‘outsource’ the ta3 collection 'or+ to desimiddlemen" ;amindars, Nagirdar, Inamdars, 2ambardar etc. :onsequently, British introducedthree land tenure systems in India"



Permanent Settlement: Features(. :orn'allis O Nohn hore. In Bengal O Bihar. (<=>). All the land belonged to the state and 'as thus at their disposal.

>. British designated 7amindars #local ta3 collectors$ , as o'ners of the land in their district.This system 'as adopted in several forms such as ;amindari, Nagirdari, Inamdari, etc.D. These 7amindars had to collect revenue from farmers and deliver to the British.C. :onverted ;amindars into landlords. The right to the land conferred on the 7amindarsP. Revenue amount 'as fi3ed at the beginning and remained the same permanently.<. ;amindar 'ere given freedom to decide ho' much to demand from the cultivators. tiff penalties on defaulters.. there 'as a provision of +eeping a portion of ta3es for the 7amindar himself.



=. ;amindar’s right over land 'as (. Alienable" meaning British could ta+e it a'ay and give it to another ;amindar, if first;amindar did not meet the Revenue collection ‘targets’. ). Rentable" meaning ;amindar himself could further outsource his 'or+ among moresmaller 7amindars

>. &eritable" meaning ;amindar dies, his sonJbrother etc 'ould get it.(E. armers became tenants. T'o types (. Tenants at 'ill" farmers 'ho cultivated on ;amindar’s land. They had no rights. Theycould be evicted as per 'hims and fancies of ;amindar. ). 4ccupancy Tenants" farmers 'ho o'ned land. Their occupancy rights 'ere heritableand transferrable and 'ere not tampered 'ith as long as they paid their ta3es.

Permanent Settlement: Consequences#for Britishgave financial security for the British administration.:ost of running administration decreased. Because British had to collect Revenue from only afe' ;amindars instead of la+hs of farmers.

British got ne' political allies #;amindars$. They 'ould +eep their o'n militia to suppress peasant revolts, and act as ‘informers’ and remained loyal to British rule.#learning from mistake-ermanent settlement system led to many agrarian revolts.Kovernment’s income declined over the years, Because Revenue 'as permanently fi3ed Onumber of intermediaries +ept increasing.&ence, British learned from the mista+e and did not e3tent this permanent settlementJ;amindarisystem to the 'hole of India. Instead, they established Ryot'ari and 5ahal'ari systems in theremaining parts.#Farmers lose argaining !o"erTe3tile industry 'as the driver of industrial revolution in Britain. H ra' cotton imported O

finished te3tile e3ported to India.To prevent any ‘competition’ from @esi te3tile industries, the British imposed variety of ta3esand tariffs on themHMdesi te3tile business collapsed. 2a+hs of 'eavers became unemployed,migrated to villages in search of 'or+.ince they did not o'n any land, they had to become tenants at 'ill for ;amindars. Fo' ;amindars had the monopoly of controlling livelihood of thousands of people. Theye3torted more and more ta3es.5oreover, the begar*, unpaid 'or+ 'hich the tenants 'ere forced to perform on the 7amindar’sland, too+ larger proportions. 4n the average, it amounted to )E)C Q of the lease./estern Bengal" armers got divided into t'o categories i$ Notedars #Rich farmers$ii$Bargadar #harecroppers$

9astern Bengal" Nute cultivation. Independent farmers 'ith small to middlesi7e land holdings#ore outsourcing-ermanent settlement system created landed aristocracy for the first time in India. ;amindarsused to cho' do'n part of the land Revenue collected. Thus they became 'ealthy and la7y.They ‘outsourced’ their 'or+ to more intermediaries J subtenants.It became quite common to have (E to )E intermediaries, more or less 'ithout any specificfunction, bet'een the government and the farmers, And they all had a share in the cultivationyield O other illegal ta3es.



As a result, <EEQ of farmer’s produce 'ent to ust Revenue and commissions onlyHM poverty,debts. Fone of these middlemen or ;amindars invest money in agricultural improvement or ne'technology. They ust +ept increasing rents. &ence traditional agriculture did not shift tocapitalist agriculture, unli+e other economies.

$yot"ari SystemBy ir Thomas 5unro at first in 5adras tate and then adopted in Bombay, and Assam. But/hy(. In permanent settlement areas, land Revenue 'as fi3ed. But over the years, agriculture pricesJe3ports should increase but government’s income did not increase. #Because middlemen7amindars cho'ed it do'n$). ;amindars 'ere oppressiveleading to frequent agrarian revolts in the permanent settlementareas.>. In Bihar, Bengal, there e3isted ;amindarJfeudal lords since the times of 5ughaladministration. But 5adras, Bombay, Assam did not have ;amindars J feudal lords 'ith largeestates. o, hard to ‘outsource’ 'or+, even if British 'anted.

D. Fo middlemen in ta3 collectionHM farmer has to pay less ta3esHMincreased purchasing po'erHM'ill improve demand for readymade British products in India.:onsequently, all subsequent land ta3 or revenue settlements made by the colonial rulers 'eretemporary settlements made directly 'ith the peasant, or ‘ryot’ #e.g., the ryot'ari settlements$.This model 'as based on 9nglish yeomen farmers.

$yot"ari System: Features(. government claimed the property rights to all the land, but allotted it to the cultivators on thecondition that they pay ta3es. In other 'ords, It established a direct relation bet'een thelandholder and the government.). armers could use, sell, mortgage, bequeath, and lease the land as long as they paid their ta3es. In other 'ords Ryot'ari system gave a proprietary rights upon the landholders.>. I they did not pay ta3es, they 'ere evictedD. ta3es 'ere only fi3ed in a temporary settlement for a period of thirty years and then revised.C. government had retained the right to enhance land revenue 'henever it 'antedP. -rovided measures for revenue relief during famines but they 'ere seldom applied in real lifesituation.

$yot"ari System: Consequencesarmers had to pay revenue even during drought and famines, else he 'ould be evicted.Replacement of large number of 7amindars by one giant 7amindar called 9ast India :ompany.Although ryot'ari system aimed for direct Revenue settlement bet'een farmer and thegovernment but over the years, landlordism and tenancy became 'idespread. Because te3tile

'eavers 'ere unemployedH they started 'or+ing as tenant farmers for other rich farmers. Inmany districts, more than )J> of farmland 'as leased.ince Kovernment insisted on cash revenue, farmers resorted to gro'ing cash crops instead of food crops. And cash crop needed more inputsHMmore loans and indebtedness.After end of American civil 'ar, cotton e3port declined but government didn’t reduce therevenue. As a result most farmers defaulted on loans and land 'as transferred from farmers tomoneylenders.



ahal"ari System2ocation" Kangetic valley, north'est provinces, parts of central India and -unab. But 'hyIn Forth India and -unab, oint land rights on the village 'ere common. o, British decided toutili7e this utili7e this traditional structure in a ne' form +no'n as 5ahal'ari system.

ahal"ari System: Features(. unit of assessment 'as the village.). ta3ation 'as imposed on the village community since it had the rights over land.>. The village community had to distribute these ta3 collection targets among the cultivatorsD. 9ach individual farmer contributed his share in the revenue.C. 9veryone 'as thus liable for the others’ arrears.P. armers had right to sell or mortgage their property.<. The village community did not necessarily mean entire village population. It 'as a group of elders, notables of high castes.. A village inhabitant, called the lambardar, collected the amounts and gave to the British

=. British periodically revised ta3 rates.

ahal"ari system: Consequencesince -unab, Forthern India H fertile land. o British 'anted to e3tract ma3imum Revenue outof this region. 2and Revenue 'as usually CEQ to <CQ of the produce.As generations passed fathers 'ould divide land among sonsHM fragmentationHMfarms becamesmaller and smaller and productivity declined.But still British demanded Revenue in cash. o, farmers had to borro' money to pay ta3es in thecase of crop failures.As a result, more and more farms passed into the hands of moneylenders. /hen farmer failed torepay debt, 5oneylender 'ould ta+e a'ay his farm but he has no interest in self cultivation sohe’d leasing it to another farmer.

Thus, subleasing, indebtedness and landlessness became more and more common in 5ahal'ariregion/hy is it called 5odified ;amindari systemBecause in 5ahal'ari areas, the 2and revenue 'as fi3ed for the 'hole village and thevillage headman #2arnbardar$ collected it. 5eaning theoretically 6illage itself 'as alandlordJ7amindar.4ther names for this system" Joint rent, ‘joint lease’, ‘brotherhood’ tract (mahal) holding and

‘gram wari’ etc.

Result of British 2and Tenure system" -erpetual indebtedness, e3ploitation. /hen 'e gainedindependence, picture 'as follo'ing"





at independence India 'as faced 'ith an acute food shortage nearfamine conditions in manyareas.Bet'een (=DP and (=C> about (D million tonnes of foodgrains 'orth Rs (E,EEE million had to beimported H this 'as nearly half of the total capital investment in the irst ive 8ear -lan #(=C(S

CP$.

armers shifted from food crop to :ash crops. But cash crops need more inputs in terms of seeds, fertili7er, and irrigation, hence farmer had to borro' more.This brought moneylenders, hroff, 5ahaan, Baniya, into limelightthey 'ere in control of village land 'ithout any accountability.



Thus British land revenue system transfered o'nership of land from farmer to moneylender.to'ards about the end of the colonial period, The total burden on the peasant of interest payments on debt and rent on land could be estimated at a staggering Rs (D,)EE millionAccording to RBI’ss survey in (=CD"

SerfdomBefore" slaveryJbonded labourJBegari almost none3istent.But @uring British ra;amindars gave loan to farmersJlaborers and demanded free labour in return.This practice prevented farmersJlaborers to bargaining 'ages. Begari, Bonded labour, or debt bondage became a common feature in large parts of the country.9ven in ryot'ari areas, upper caste controlled the land. 2o'er caste 'as reduced tosharecroppers and landless laborers.



2ac+ of :apitalist AgricultureIn most economies, the evolution is traditional farmingHMcapitalist farming methods. But inIndia, it did not happen, 'hy(. 2arge lando'ners in 7amindari and ryot'ari areas leased out their lands in small pieces to

tenants.). mall tenants continued to cultivate them 'ith traditional techniquesH lo' productivity.>. Rich farmersJ 7amindars lac+ed the ris+ bearing mindset for capitalist mode of production #i.e.invest more money in seeds, fertili7er, animal husbandry, contract farming, large scale capitalistagriculture using hired 'age labour under their direct supervision. etc$.D. 9ven if they 'anted to ta+e ‘ris+’, government did not give any agricultural support, credit,insurance etc. yet demanded high ta3es.C. It is not surprising, therefore, that Indian agriculture, 'hich 'as facing longtermstagnation, began to sho' clear signs of decline during the last decades of colonialism.

Date post:	05-Mar-2016
Category:	Documents
Upload:	samadhan-kakade
View:	21 times
Download:	2 times

Agrarian Social Structure

Documents