LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1513
TO BE ANSWERED ON 26.07.2022
Effective Implementation of Land Reforms Act
†1513. SHRI ASHOK KUMAR RAWAT:
Will the Minister of RURAL DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has taken any action for effective implementation of the Land Reforms Act and proposes to take effective steps for the quick\ distribution of the extra land to the landless people; and
(b) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?
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ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
(SHRI FAGGAN SINGH KULASTE)
(a) to (b): As per Entry 18 and Entry 45 in the State List ‘Land’ is a State subject. Power to enact laws relating to ‘Land’ vests in Legislatures of States.
Provisions relating to ‘Land’ are also contained in Article 239AA: Special provisions with respect to Delhi; Article 371A: Special provision with respect to Nagaland; Article 371G: Special provision with respect to Mizoram; Fifth Schedule: Provisions as to Administration and Control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes; Sixth Schedule: Provisions as to Administration of Tribal Areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.
Each State has its own State-specific Revenue Laws to deal with ‘Land’ and its administration.
States have been undertaking (and will continue to undertake) State-specific Land Reforms broadly in the following areas at the wisdom of the lawmakers of the respective States (Legislatures of the States):
(i) Ceiling on landholdings
- for equitable distribution of land
(ii) Distribution of land for agricultural purposes, residential purposes, cottage industries (to landless / marginal and small farmers / village artisans etc)
- from land obtained from imposition of ceiling
- from community land with Gram Sabha
- from land with Government
(iii) Abolition of Intermediary between the State and the Tiller (Zamindari Abolition)
- abolition of intermediary between the State and the tiller
- tenure rights to the tiller
with transferable rights,
without transferable rights (inheritable),
lessee,
government lessee
(iv) Prevention of fragmentation of landholdings
(v) Consolidation of landholdings
- consolidate fragmented landholdings
- provide land for common/public requirements
(vi) Tenancy reforms
There is no central database as may contain information on all the State-specific Revenue Laws and all the State-specific Land Reforms undertaken to date by the various States across the country.
There is immense diversity across the individual States in the country in respect of ‘land’, the (State/s-specific) revenue laws, the socio-economic milieu in relation to ‘land’, the relevance / need / appropriateness / desirability of specific land reforms, etc.
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