octoBER 20, 2018
The Land Conundrum
The Agriculture Census 2015–16 establishes that structural constraints continue to exacerbate the agrarian crisis.
T
he provisional results of the Agriculture Census 2015–16,
confirm the persisting trend of fragmentation of land-
holdings and their skewed distribution across size classes.
As the size of the landholding itself is a significant factor deter-
mining the sustainability of farm incomes, these provisional
results are significant pointers that corroborate the observed
signs of agrarian distress and simmering discontent in the rural
heartlands across India.
According to the Agriculture Census 2015–16, the total area
under farming in India declined from 159.59 million hectares in
2010–11 to 157.14 million hectares in 2015–16. At the same time,
the number of operational holdings increased by 5.33%, from
138 million in 2010–11 to 146 million in 2015–16. Thus, the aver-
age size of operational holdings in India declined from 1.15 hec-
tares to 1.08 hectares, reflecting the pressure of the increasing
farming population on agricultural land, which is a critical
factor of production that is also limited in supply.
The data also illustrate the extent of fragmentation and the
skewed distribution of land across size classes. It shows that
there has been a proliferation of small and marginal landhold-
ings since the last agriculture census in 2011. In 2015–16, about
86.21% of the landholdings in the country consisted of small
and marginal holdings (0 to 2 hectares), while their share in
the operated area was only 47.34%. The average size of small
and marginal holdings was just 0.6 hectares, the majority of
which were in poorer states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
Semi-medium holdings (2 to 4 hectares) made up 9.45% of the
total, but the share in the operated area was 23.65%. Medium
holdings (4 to 10 hectares) constituted 3.76%, however, the
share in the operated area was 19.96%, while the large holdings
(10 hectares and above) comprised only 0.57% but operated a
share of 9.04% of the total area. The census also reveals that
Scheduled Caste (SC) groups operated only about 9% of the total
available area and that the average size of their holdings was
0.78 hectares. Also, about 92% of holdings operated by SC groups
comprised small and marginal holdings. These figures disclose
the extent of deprivation as a social group with respect to the
operation of landholdings. This also establishes that structural
constraints related to differences in the operational holding
size across caste groups had been overlooked by most states
and had not witnessed any major transformation so far.
Economic & Political Weekly EPW octoBER 20, 2018 vol lIii no 42
But, does the increasing fragmentation of landholdings augur
well for agricultural productivity? The observed inverse rela-
tionship between farm size and agricultural productivity per
hectare had led to intense debates in the 1960s and 1970s.
Recent research using National Sample Survey data, published
in 2011, confirms that smallholdings in Indian agriculture still
exhibit higher productivity than large holdings. However, it
also shows lower per capita productivity of smallholdings and
widespread incidence of poverty. Studies also show that only a
small proportion of the small and marginal farmers have had
access to institutional credit and that they often tended to
depend on middlemen.
Further, as the results of the situation assessment survey
(2013) confirmed, it is only to farmers with landholdings of
more than one hectare that positive net monthly income, which
is the difference between income from all sources and con-
sumption expenditure, accrues. Therefore, marginal holdings
of less than one hectare are too small to provide farmer
households with sufficient incomes. It is the low level of re-
turns from farming that has led to the persistence of agrarian
distress, and the fragmentation of holdings has significantly
contributed to this phenomenon. As per the Agriculture Census
2015–16, 68.52% of all operational holders fall under the
marginal category, but the proportion among the SCs is higher
as 78.06% of operational holders fall under the marginal cat-
egory. It is these farmers taken together who comprise the
most pauperised sections of the agrarian community in India
today. In addition, studies show that caste-based discrimina-
tion places socially marginalised groups like SCs at a dis-
advantage in agriculture, as they are likely to have lesser
access to resources, resulting in lower levels of productivity
and realisation of returns.
Given the lack of sufficient off-farm and non-farm employ-
ment, the increasing fragmentation is thus indicative of the in-
tensification of the agrarian distress and the pauperisation of
the peasantry tied to agriculture for livelihood, with no exit
options. To improve their lot, there is an urgent need to con-
solidate operational holdings through reforms so as to enable
the economies of scale to operate in farming. Although legalis-
ing tenancy, liberalisation of lease markets, and the setting up
of land banks have been discussed and deliberated for a while,
7
EDITORIALS

the consolidation of landholdings would not be an easy
process, especially for small and marginal farmers, due to the
dearth of accurate land records. Updating of land records and
titling would also be required before any attempts at consolida-
tion of holdings. Cooperative farming or organising small and
marginal farmers into producer companies would also be a
possible solution to overcome the problem of fragmented land-
holdings. However, the state would need to play an active role
as a facilitator in the consolidation process, especially to enable
socially marginalised groups to gain more access to land, as
most states have failed to implement the necessary land and
agrarian reforms.

8 octoBER 20, 2018 vol lIii no 42 EPW Economic & Political Weekly