Land Reforms History — Set 8

Correct Answer: B. Two-thirds share of produce for bargadars instead of one-half

The Tebhaga movement of 1946-47 was a mass peasant uprising in Bengal led by the All India Kisan Sabha demanding that bargadars (sharecroppers) receive two-thirds (tebhaga) of the produce instead of the customary one-half. The movement involved over 60 lakh peasants and was violently suppressed. It influenced subsequent tenancy legislation including the Bengal Bargadars Temporary Regulation Act 1947. The struggle's memory later informed Operation Barga (1978) when the Left Front government finally registered and protected sharecroppers.

Correct Answer: B. It was an armed peasant uprising demanding redistribution of land to landless laborers

The Naxalbari movement of 1967 began in Naxalbari, Siliguri subdivision of Darjeeling district, as an armed peasant uprising led by Communist leader Charu Majumdar and Kanu Sanyal. Peasants seized land from jotedars (rich peasants) and forcibly redistributed it to landless laborers and poor peasants. The movement rejected the parliamentary path and advocated revolutionary land redistribution. Though crushed militarily, Naxalism spread to other states like Andhra Pradesh and Bihar where land distribution was most unequal, highlighting the urgency of land reforms.

Correct Answer: B. Tenants could be evicted at landlord's will with no security of tenure

Tenancy at will meant the landlord could evict the tenant whenever they wished without any legal process or compensation, leaving tenants with maximum insecurity. This insecurity made tenants unwilling to invest in land improvement and compelled them to accept exploitative rental terms. Colonial land revenue systems created widespread tenancy at will. Post-independence tenancy reforms specifically addressed this by providing statutory security of tenure, requiring formal eviction procedures, and limiting grounds for eviction.

Correct Answer: B. Gandhian Sarvodaya (welfare of all) through voluntary sacrifice

The Bhoodan-Gramdan movement was rooted in Sarvodaya philosophy — the Gandhian concept of welfare of all achieved through non-violent means and voluntary sacrifice. Vinoba Bhave believed that large-scale redistribution could be achieved without class conflict if the wealthy voluntarily gave up surplus land. He saw Bhoodan as applying Gandhi's principle of trusteeship — that the wealthy are merely trustees of resources that belong to society. The movement also drew inspiration from the Sermon on the Mount and Bhagavad Gita's concept of nishkama karma (selfless action).

Correct Answer: B. 1999

The Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act 1976 (ULCRA) was repealed by the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Repeal Act 1999. ULCRA had set limits on urban land ownership and required surplus land to be surrendered to the state. However, it failed to create affordable housing stock as intended and instead created a land market freeze. Only a few states including West Bengal, Maharashtra, Nagaland, and J&K chose to retain the act after the central repeal. The repeal was part of economic liberalization to stimulate urban housing and real estate development.

Correct Answer: B. Creating formal written tenancy agreements with arbitration for disputes

The Model Tenancy Act 2021 recommended by the Central government to states aims to regulate rent agreements between landowners and tenants through formal written tenancy agreements registered with a Rent Authority. It provides for a fast-track Rent Court and Rent Tribunal for dispute resolution, eliminating lengthy civil court cases. The model law balances landowner rights (to recover possession at end of tenancy term) with tenant protection (against arbitrary eviction during tenancy). It aims to bring leased-out land into formal arrangements, as about 10-20% of agricultural land is informally leased.

Correct Answer: B. Uneconomic land holdings too small for efficient farming

Land fragmentation creates holdings so small that they are uneconomic — insufficient to generate adequate income for a household. The average land holding size in India has fallen from 2.3 hectares in 1970-71 to about 1.08 hectares in 2015-16. Fragmentation results from both land reforms distributing larger holdings into smaller ones, and inheritance laws (Hindu Succession Act) dividing family land among heirs. Small and fragmented holdings make mechanization difficult, reduce bargaining power, increase supervision costs, and push farmers toward subsistence rather than commercial farming.

Correct Answer: A. Preventing further fragmentation of already small holdings

Some state governments proposed preventing further subdivision of agricultural holdings below an economic minimum size through legislation. The idea is that when inheritance would divide a holding below the minimum viable size, the land should remain undivided (with compensatory payments to other heirs rather than physical partition). This would prevent progressive fragmentation. However, such laws face constitutional challenges as they interfere with inheritance rights. The concept of 'chak bandi' (consolidation of holdings) tries to address fragmentation from the opposite direction — merging scattered plots.

Correct Answer: B. Merging scattered small plots owned by a farmer into one compact holding

Consolidation of holdings involves rearranging scattered, fragmented plots of land belonging to a farmer into one compact, contiguous block of equivalent value. A farmer may own ten small plots in different parts of a village; consolidation exchanges these for two or three compact blocks. Punjab and Haryana were most successful in implementing chak bandi, contributing to efficient mechanized farming in the Green Revolution. Consolidation improves irrigation efficiency, reduces transportation time, enables mechanization, and allows better planning of field operations.

Correct Answer: C. Indira Gandhi

The Land Reforms Implementation Committee and related review bodies worked under the Indira Gandhi government's direction in the 1970s. The Emergency period (1975-77) saw acceleration of land reform implementation as part of Indira Gandhi's 20-Point Programme which included distribution of ceiling surplus land, homestead sites to landless, and liquidation of rural debt. The government announced targets for ceiling surplus land distribution and launched special drives for implementation. The 1972 Central guidelines for stricter land ceiling laws were also a product of this period.