9. Suggestions for the Future

a) Awareness Creation: Making farmers aware of their rights and familiarising them with official procedures will go a long way in building confidence and removing their fear of big landowners. At the same time, large landowners should be sensitised to the vulnerability of the landless and the important role of the owners in ameliorating their situation. A simple step towards this would be making available all rules and guidelines in the local language.

b) Collective action: Government should facilitate organization of farmers’ groups and cooperatives so that they can lobby together for the fulfilment of their demands and also act as protection against abuse and exploitation. Collective action, especially for women, through self-help groups can greatly aid their empowerment.

c) Preventing loss of farmland: Farmers also lose land by a high degree of distress sales done due to lack of access to institutional credit, unfavourable pricing, contract farming, etc. Implementation of a Debt Relief Act to help with debt management as well as amendment to property law will help prevent loss of farmland.

d) Plugging loopholes in existing land reform framework: Often, landowners evade land ceiling laws by taking advantage of the loopholes in the existing system, by selling or transferring land to family members or through other subterfuges.

e) Introducing a comprehensive reform package: A land reform legislation is not complete without support policies and hence it is necessary to ensure that a comprehensive package is introduced, including easy credit facilities to farmers, asset and food subsidies, infrastructural facilities, establishment of cooperatives, etc.

f) Drafting model central legislation: A central legislation could be drafted that acts as a model for the states to use as a guide for framing their own law. Such legislation could suggest a common ceiling limit and include provisions for support facilities, etc.

g) Inclusion of special protection for women in legislation: It is important to make special provisions for the protection of women, by ensuring them individual land rights and granting equal status in credit and subsidy schemes.

h) Periodic assessment of implementation: Periodic assessment by independent research groups will help determine the effectiveness of the reform and make necessary changes.

i) Updated recording of land title: In many cases, existing land records are false or obsolete, and these need to be updated and verified to reflect the actual situation. Moreover, documentation must be modernized and computerised.

j) Fast track courts on land disputes: Setting up of fast track courts for the adjudication of land disputes and dealing with grievances related to land, can reduce the delays in acquiring title and reduce harassment and expense. Cases that involve Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes should be given special cognizance.

k) Strengthening National Land Reform Council: The National Land Reform Council lacks mandatory powers as Land Reform related issues essentially fall under the domain of state governments. This can be remedied by amending the Constitution to include the National Land Reform Council and giving it powers to, among other things, ensure proper implementation of legislation. This is an important step in the struggle for emancipating the estimated forty percent of our population that forms the rural landless.

l) Role of panchayats and gram sabhas: Consultation with local bodies such as the gram sabha before framing rules on land distribution will ensure a more participatory process and will also hold greater chances of success, provided the landed gentry is not given a greater say.