Peasant Organisations

♤ The rise of peasants groups in India has been mainly due to factors such as abolition of Zamindari System and other land reform measures, implementation of Panchayati Raj, and

Green Revolution Movement. They gained huge power since 1960s. Although, the peasant organisations such as the All India Kisan Sabha (1936) have been existing since pre- independence.

♤ Different parties have got their own peasant organisations. Like the trade unions, there is no peasant organisation, which may be independent of party control, though at the state level, their organisations are non-political, independent of the political parties and homogenous.

♤ Even though there are some important All India Kisan Associations like All India Kisan Congress, All India Kisan Kamgar Sammelan, Akhil Bharatiya Kisan Sangh, peasant groups have been mainly organised on territorial basis rather than on all-India basis. Their demands relate to procurement prices of agricultural products, fertiliser subsidy, tenancy rights, electricity charges, etc.

♤ The Bharatiya Kisan Party (BKP) in Western U.P. is considered the most significant pressure group. The interplay of language, caste factor, weak financial positions, etc. have been greatly responsible for lack of emergence of multiple national level peasants’ pressure groups.