CgHAPTER^>

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

1. Introduction

2. Study conducted in India

3. Study conducted in Orissa

4. Summary

***
 CHAPTER -3
Review of Literature

India is predominately an agricultural country with widespread

unemployment and underemployment in the rural sector. Even 50

years of planning and organised efforts of the people from all corner
have not enabled the country to solve the problem satisfactorily.

More than 70 percent of the total population are dependant on

agriculture directly or indirectly for their livelihood. Unfortunately

agriculture does not provide effective employment to its labour force

through out the year. This country is characterised with labour

shortage in busy season and under and unemployment during slack

season, resulting in large scale inter-regional movement of rural

labour force in search of gainful employment.

Every welfare state accepts the amelioration of the

socio-economic conditions of it’s rural people as.one of it’s main

objective . India is not an exception to this. After the independence,

Indian planners have measured the magnitude of rural under and

unemployment and since First five year plan incessant efforts are

being made to create additional employment opportunities in the

rural areas, specially during the off seasons, so that the labourer
can supplement his meagre annual income.

In order to create alternative employment opportunities rural

Industrialization and rural manpower utilisation projects came into force.

Research programme committee of the planning commission

initiated a phase of studies on the employment conditions of

agricultural labourers to facilitate planning of effective utilisation

of idle rural manpower and involving them in the reconstruction

and development of the country.

The socio-economic condition of agricultural labour is an

important issue and the prime concern of the planners because

they play a major role in production of agricultural output and take

active role in creation of demand in rural economy. So the

agricultural labourers are considered as agents to contribute

agricultural production and consumers to create demand in the
economy. Various studies have been made directly by the planning

commission or by prominent scholars to know the socio-economic

condition of agricultural labourer in general or employment and

wage among rural labourer in particular. So that it will be easy to

chalk out remedial measures.

A unique study has been made in this regard by Daniel and Alice

Thorner “Land and Labour in India”. Daniel and Alice in their study have

shown the employer, labourer relationship in Agriculture. *(1)

According to them like other elements of the Indian agrarian

structure, the relationship between employers and labourers take

numerous diverse forms.

In the literature hundreds of indigenous terms are found each

denoting a particular kind of labour or labourer. The terms of
employment, duration of the work, amount and form of payment
may vary from district to district and village to village.
* Foot Note -
(1) Land and labour in India
- Thorner Daniel Alice.
 CD
The study “Land and Labour in India” highlights the most
important distinction between the arrangements in which the
labourer contracts freely and those in which his bargaining power

is abridged. A free labourer is one who is able to accept or reject

the condition and wages offered by the employer. If he wishes he

may refrain altogether from working. An unfree or bonded labourer,
by contrast is one whose bargaining power is virtually non-existent

or has been surrendered. Such a labourer does not possess the

right to refuse to work under the terms set by his master.

Dr. R.G. Kakade in his study “Depressed classes of south

Kanara, servants of India society” ( Poona 1949) P. 81 *(2) observed

that the socio-economic conditions of agricultural labourers were

found to be materially unchanged. Slavery of course is legally

abolished but customs dies hard. Even in the present circumstances

instances were not wanting to show that an agricultural labourer

was not his own master for all practical purposes, not only as
regards his property but also with regard to his body.

Dr. A.M. Lorenzo in his work “Agricultural labour conditions

in Northern India”. (Bombay 1947) page 74 (3) depicted a clear
picture showing how the agricultural labourers are working under
the owner farmer to earn wage. There is no definite and specific

* Foot Note -
(2) Depressed class of South Kanara servants India society
(Poona 1949)
-Dr. R.G. Kakade

(3) Agricultural Labour condition in Northen India (Bombay-1947)

Page - 74
- Dr. A.M. Lorenzo
 C2D
principles for duration of working hour and wage payment. In most
of the cases the local condition and the whim of the owner
determines the fate of the labourer.

The most comprehensive work in this field was undertaken

by the Ministry of Labour of the Central Government in 1949. The
Ministry took an useful step of sponsoring a nation wide Agricultural
labour Enquiry. As per the report of the Agricultural labour Enquiry,
agricultural workers form the most disadvantaged economic group
in India. Their wages are typically low, conditions of work are often
onerous and employment frequently irregular. The level of living
which their earnings permit is very low. Prior to 1947 the
Government was interested to study urban workers particularly
those organised into strong or militant unions. Since the attainment
of Independence, the Government has shown extraordinary
awareness that the agricultural labourers constitute the largest
single section of the national labourforce. Their problem is of great
concern for the Government for successful execution of
developmental planning.

The agricultural labour Enquiry report was very elaborate,

comprehensive and substantive in regard to the problems of
labourer engaged in agriculture. The general summary and the
supplementary of the text covers, eleven volumes, totalling nearly
3,000 pages and furnishing 900 tables and numerous charts. Sri
V.V. Giri the then India’s Minister of Labour wrote proudly in 1954.
This is the first and largest socio-economic enquiry of it’s kind
conducted in Asia along the lines laid down by international bodies,
like the ILO and the UN and according to the scientific principles

of sampling under expert technical guidance.

In 1956-57 the second Agricultural Labour Enquiry was

started. It covered about 3,600 sample villages in the 14

reorganised states and four union territories. The number of

households covered was about 28,560. One of the main objects of

the second Agricultural Enquiry was to find out the extent to which

agricultural labourers had benefited by development schemes

implemented under the plan period.

There was some difference in the design of the two enquiries

and in their conduct. The enquiry was conducted in a fixed set of

800 villages for a period of 12 months and data on wage,

employment and family budgets were collected monthly. The

ministry of labour was closely associated with different phases of

the First enquiry. But the second Agricultural Labour Enquiry was

conducted under the active participation of the central statistical

organisation. While in the first enquiry the sample villages were

fixed, in the second enquiry, they formed a moving set of villages,
staggered evenly over a period of 12 months. The second Agricultural

Labour Enquiry was a detailed description of agricultural labour

problems and has separate analysis about agrarian background, land

reforms, occupational structure of agricultural labour households,

agricultural labour household with land and without land, casual and
attached agricultural labour households, size and earning strength of

households, employment and unemployment, wages, average daily

wages, household income and indebtedness.

 Prof. J.B. Bhattacharjee in his article “The puzzle of the
second Agricultural Labour Enquiry”*(4) discussed about the findings
of the second Agricultural Labour Enquiry. The report of the second,

Agricultural Labour Enquiry 1956-57 has come out with some

startling conclusions. These relate to the changes in the number,

composition, characteristics and conditions of agricultural labourers

in the country and are based on a comparison of the results of the
Second Enquiry (1956-57) with First (1950-51). Some of the rather

puzzling findings are -

(a) a decrease of 8.9 percent in the number of agricultural labour

households,

(b) a decrease of 21.7 percent in the number of agricultural

labour households with land,

(c) an increase of 3.8 percent in the number of agricultural labour

households without land,

(d) a fall in average agricultural wage rate and in the income of

the agricultural households and

(e) an increase in their expenditure, indebtedness and

unemployment.

Prof. B.N. Datar in his article “ second Agricultural Labour Enquiry

analysis of its results” (5) in the book ‘Agricultural Labour in India’

* Foot Note -
(4) The puzzle of the second Agricultural Labour Enquiry by
-Prof. J.B. Bhattacharjee

(5) Second Agricultural Labour Enquiry analysis of its results

-Prof. B.N. Datar
edited by V.K.R.V. Rao made a comparative study between the second

Agricultural Labour Enquiry and the first Agricultural Labour

Enquiry. The first enquiry was conducted in a fixed set of 800

villages for a period of one year, where as the information for the

second enquiry was collected from a moving set of villages

staggered over a period of one year. The total villages covered in

the process of the second enquiry were 3,696. The two enquiries

revealed that whereas there was an addition of about 8 million in

the number of rural households there was a fall of 1.6 million in the
agricultural labour households. There has been an adverse
comment on the change in the proportion of ‘attached’and ‘casual’

agricultural labour. The proportion of attached labour households

has changed from 10 percent in the first enquiry to 27 percent in

the second enquiry. The second Agricultural Labour Enquiry has
shown an increase in the number of children employed for

agricultural occupations. The second Agricultural Labour Enquiry

also reveals the increase in the percentage of agricultural labour

without land.

Casual adult male workers were employed on an average

for wage for 200 days in 1950 - 51 and for 197 days during 1956-57.

They were self employed for 75 days in 1950-51 and 40 days in

1956-57. Taking all adult male agricultural labourer together their

employment had increased only by about 4 days , the figures being

218 and 222 days in 1950-51 and 1956-57 respectively.

The report indicates that there has been ah increase in

payment in kind from 31 percent in 1950-51 to 40.5 percent in

 CE>
1956-57. With regard to household income, the fall has been from
Rs. 447/- in 1950-51 to Rs. 437/- in 1956-57. The average annual
consumption expenditure of agricultural labour household was
Rs.4617- in 1950-51 and Rs.617/- in 1956-57. The two enquiries
show that there has been a percentage reduction in expenditure
on food from 85.3 to 77.3 and the increase is mostly accounted for
by the group “ fuel and lighting” which has gone up from 1.1 to 7.9.

Commenting on the deficit of Rs.180/- between income and

expenditure, the report ( page 172 ) states that 90 percent of the
deficit is made up by (a) a sale of real estates,(b) transfer receipts
and (c) past savings. It is here that one finds some amount of
inconsistency in the argument . If it is past saving, it must have
been reflected in the first Agricultural Labour Enquiry, but even in
that enquiry a large percentage of families as high as 45 percent
were in debt.

Though the second Agricultural Labour Enquiry might have

been more scientific and may be reflecting better the actual
conditions of agricultural workers, its comparison with the first is
likely to be misleading . It is hoped that more stable and scientific
results will come in when the third Agricultural Labour Enquiry is
planned and executed.

Prof. D. Ghosh in his paper “The agricultural labourer” 1950-51

- 1956-57 published in the book*(6) “Agricultural labour in India”

* Foot Note -
(6) The agricultural Labour 1950-51 -1956-57 by
-Prof. D. Ghosh
edited by V.K.R.V. Rao made an attempt to describe a comparative

analysis between the two enquiry and the inconsistency lies in the

findings. His paper reveals that within 1950-51 to 1956-57 India’s

national income and income percapita-both at current prices -

increased by 19 percent and 10 percent respectively, and the

volume and value of agricultural output by 30 percent and 13

percent respectively. But the yearly income of the average

agricultural labour household fell from Rs.447/- to Rs. 437/- or by

2 percent even though the number of earners per family rose from
2.00 to 2.2 or by 10 percent. Similarly the income percapita of these

families declined from Rs.104/- to Rs.99.4 or by 4 percent. The

index of consumer prices was at, more or less comparable levels

in the two years so that the decline in money income was

accompanied by a similar fall in the real income of these families.

Thus over a period during which the national income, the income

percapita and the volume and value of agricultural output rose

significantly, the income per family and perhead of agricultural

labour families declined in monetary and real terms inspite of an
increase in the number of earners per family.

Prof. S.C. Gupta in his article “ The second Agricultural

Labour Enquiry : some problems of methodology”*(7) pointed out

some problems of methodology in the second Labour Enquiry for

which all the researcher and investigators should be careful and
take note of it. To him it was expected to make certain improvements

* Foot Note -
(7) The Second agricultural Labour Enquiry some problems of
methodology - by Prof. S.C. Gupta
- in concepts, definitions and procedures adopted in the second

Enquiry as compared with those of the first Enquiry. He disagreed

with the methodology adopted and of the view that, inspite of the
application of such advanced techniques the Enquiry has produced
results atall useful, either for an adequate study of the impact of
the First five year plan on the agricultural workers or for a better

and more national planning for their future in the coming five years

plans. There are a number of conceptual difficulties which vitiate

the results of the second Enquiry in comparison with those of the
First. The first conceptual difficulty lies with the method of selection
of sampled villages and the sampled agricultural labour households

on the basis of which all estimates regarding the number of

agricultural labour households and their conditions of work have

been arrived at.

The second conceptual problem lies with the definition of

“agricultural labour family.” The definition of “agricultural labour

family” in the second enquiry is fundamentally different from the

one adopted in the first enquiry. In the first enquiry, an agricultural

labour family was “one in which either the head of the family or 50
percent or more of the earners report agricultural labour as their

main occupation.” And ‘main occupation’ was defined only with

‘individual’ and not the ‘ family’ as the unit of enumeration. The

main occupation of a person was “the occupation in which he was
engaged for 50 percent or more of the total number of days worked
by him during the previous year”.

In the second Enquiry an agricultural labour family was

considered as such “If the major earnings of the households were

derived by the members pursuing the occupation of agricultural

labour”. Even if agricultural labour was a subsidiary occupation

for each individual earner in the family separately, and even each
of them individually devoted less than 50 percent of the total number

of days worked by them during the previous year to agricultural

labour, it could yet happen that agricultural labour provided 50

percent or more of the total household income.

The third problem is both the enquiry neglect to find out the
process of gradual conversion of cultivating families into agricultural
labour households which is really deplorable.

P.G.K. Panikar in his paper “Employment, Income and Food

Intake among selected Agricultural labour Households”*(8) published

in “Economic and Political Weekly” issued in 25th August 1979 has

made an attempt to study the level of employment, income and

food intake among selected agricultural labour households in

KUTTANAD the ‘ rice bowl’ of Kerala. Depending upon the source

of data on wage rates of male agricultural labour, the terminal years

used for comparison, the index numbers used for deflating money

wages and so on, the author have drawn different conclusions about

the trends in the real wage rates of agricultural labour. For studying

the level of living of agricultural labour, the level of income is more

important than the wage rate, nominal or real. The wage rate is

* Foot Note -
(8) Employment, Income and Food Intake among selected
agricultural Labour Households
- by P.G.K. Panikar- EPW- 25 Aug 1979.
only one of the determinants of income, the other crucial factor is

the levei of employment.

Kainakary, the area covered in this study is one of the 79

census villages in Kuttanad region in Kerala. The findings on

employment and income presented in this paper are based on the

results of a sample survey in the Kainakary panchayata during the

year 1976 - 77. The sample 56 agricultural labour households

comprises 10 percent of the total of this group. The study reveals

that a male agricultural worker had work for about 124 days and a
female agricultural worker employed for 132 days. Despite the

introduction of double cropping in this area, the intensity of

underemployment has not abated. The actual wage of male and

female agricultural workers in the region were Rs. 10/- and

Rs. 7/- per day where as the minimum wages stipulated by the

Government were Rs.9/- and Rs.6.5 respectively. Obviously the

total earnings of the agricultural labourer are a function of the wage

rate and number of days of employment. The average percapita

annual income of the selected households in 1976-77 came to

Rs.445/- as against the state average percapita of Rs. 900/-.

The findings of the study reveal that the agricultural labourer

in Kuttanad face acute unemployment and underemployment. In

the selected labour households, open unemployment rate works

out to 33 percent of the labour force. Among these who were
employed, a person on the average got work for a little over 1/3rd

of the number of days in a year. Naturally the total earnings among

these households are low, inspite of the fact that the wage rates in
the region are comparatively higher. Thus the percapita income

among the sample families was less than one half the state

percapita income.

Kripashankar in his paper “Agricultural labourers in eastern

U.P. ” published in “Economic and Political Weekly” June 12, 1993 *(9)

made a small survey of agricultural labour households in three

villages of eastern U.P. throughing interesting light on their levels

and sources of income, consumption and indebtedness. He was of

the view that there was a time when the woman folk of agricultural
labour households in eastern U.P. used to collect the undigested
corn from the excreta of bullocks which got ample opportunity to

eat the sheep while moving round the harvested crop during

threshing. The undigested corn would be separated from the dung

after churning it in water. The grain would be dried and then
converted into flour after grinding. Bread prepared out of it was

called ‘gobarha’ as it was prepared from corn separated from dung

or ‘gobar’. It was this bread which was shown in parliament by

Biswanath Gahanari, the then M.P from Gazipur in 1960 while

narrating the poverty of the eastern of U.P., parliament was stunned
and a committee known as Patel committee was later on

constituated to report on the backwardness of the region.

This situation has undergone a change now a days. More

investment in agriculture after the advent of the green revolution,

* Foot Note -
(9) Agricultural Labour in Western U.P.
- by Kirpa Shankar - Published in EPW-June 12, 1993.
has resulted in growth of agricultural production and productivity.

Labour absorption has increased in the wake of greater cropping

intensity and production. There is reduction in absolute dependance

of agricultural labourer on the land owner. Construction of all

weather roads enable the labourer for easy movement from one

place to other. Construction activities and Rickshaw pulling in cities

have appeared as alternative opportunities for employment. Spread

of education and the electoral process have increased awareness

among the agricultural labour.

The study covered all agricultural labour households of three

sample villages. Such households numbered 50. There were 21

households which were landless and the remaining 29 had some

land. The average size of their holding was roughly 0.5 ha. The
percapita land among such households was 0.1 ha only. The
agricultural labourers were employed on an average for 108.87 days

a year. Wage rates have risen overtime but it has been not through
any struggle of the workers. Employers feel that if they do not

increase the wages by bits it will be difficult to find workers for

agricultural operations. The prevailing wage rate was Rs. 15/-for

male workers for most of the agricultural operations like ploughing,

weeding, irrigation etc. For harvesting the paddy or wheat crop

the labourers get one thirteenth part of the harvested crop .

The tendency to take work on contract appears to be

increasing. With the introduction of tractors, tilling by tractor is

replacing the traditional bullock-ploughing. The current charges are

Rs. 60/- per hour and farmers who can not afford to keep a pair of
bullocks go in for it. Incidentally the study shows that Government

programmes for poverty alleviation and job creation are hardly

making any impact. IRD accounted for 0.4 percent of the income
and the solitary beneficiary was not from the landless category

but from the land owning category. Like wise, the JRY accounted

for 1 percent of the income of such households .

Indu Bharati in his study “mobilisation of agricultural labour

Jehanabad experience “ published in Economic and Political weekly

June 2 1990(1°) Shows the exploitation of the agricultural labourer

by the cultivators and no political party is looking to the interest of the

workers.Though congress socialists, the C.P.I. and its Khet-mazdoor

union, the Khet-mazdoor sabha led by Jagjiban Ram and
sarvodayites had a presence in Jehenabad none of these were

able to mobilise agricultural labourers into a militant organisation.

Agricultural wages, which were the focal point, though considerably

enhanced are still not what the minimum wage rules notified by
the government under the minimum wages act prescribed. The
district administration of Jehenabad has itself discovered that
prescribed minimum wages were not being paid in 785 out of 934

villages of Jehenabad.

Ashok Rudra in his study “Labour Relations in Agriculture A

study in contrasts” published in Economic and political weekly
Vol. XXII No. 17 April 25 1987 *(11) revealed an interesting finding.
* Foot Note -
(10) Mobilisation of Agricultural labour Jehanbad experience
-by Indu Bharati - Published in EPW June 2, 1990.
(11) Labour Relation in Agriculture a study in contrast
-by Ashok Rudra - Published in EPW-Vol -XXII
It is an implicit assumption that in developed region not only would
the different forces of production be developed but also the relations
of production would be more advanced. This comparative study of
two rural areas in West Bengal, one relatively developed and the
other relatively backward, seeks to test the above hypothesis. It
was expected that labour relations in the developed area would be
more advanced than those in the Bankura area. Actually the
investigation shows that labour relations in the backward area are
more advanced that those in the developed area. The study made
by Ashok Rudra presents the contrast between conditions relating
to employment of agricultural labourers in two small regions of
West Bengal. The results are based on two field surveys that were
carried out by the author. Labour relations was only one part of the
study which aimed at comparing different economic aspects of the
two rural areas like cultivation, animal husbandry, rural Industries
and marketing channels. The areas were so chosen as to provide
a contrast between a relatively developed rural area and a relatively
backward rural area. A cluster of four neighbouring villages in the
Bankura district was selected to represent the backward area and
the field survey was conducted in 1979. A pair of two very large
villages including ten and fourteen wards of ‘Memari’ thana of
Bardhaman district was chosen to represent the developed area
and field survey of labour relations was conducted there in 1983.

The picture obtained about labour relations in the two areas

studied is highly interesting, if some what coincidental. Both the
areas are marked by a scarcity of labourers on annual contract.
 K.N. Ninan in his article “Agricultural labourers and Poverty”

a study on Kerala state published in Economic and Political Weekly

in July 10-17,1982 (12) reveals some important issues. His study

examines two important issues (a) are agricultural labourers in

Kerala better off / worse off than their counterparts in other regions
of India and compared to their position in 1956-57 ? (b) can poverty

result in fertility decline. Does the Kerala evidence substantiate

this ? His study reveals that despite substantial increase in money

incomes of wage earners in all states a sharp rise in the cost of
living has to some extent eroded these gains. He concludes that
the situation of Kerala agricultural labourers has improved and

not deteriorated. Secondly there are strong grounds to doubt the

link between poverty and fertility decline. There is no doubt that in

order to enable the poor to rise above the poverty line a radical

transformation of the productive base of society is called for.

G.C. Mandal in his article “Share of agricultural labour in

National agricultural product” published in “Economic and Political

Weekly” (13) Shows the correlation between proportion of

agricultural labourer and unemployment rates. A comparison of the

proportion of agricultural labourers with unemployment rates will

indicate that in those states where the proportion of agricultural

labourers is above 40 percent the rates of unemployment vary

* Foot Note -
(12) Agricultural Labourers and poverty -by K.N. Ninan a study on
Kerala State Published in EPW in July 10-17-1982.

(13) Share of Agricultural Labour in National Agricultural Product

-by G.C. Mandal in EPW
from 1.8 percent to 10 percent. States where the proportion of

agricultural labourers is above 40 percent the unemployment rates

range from 9.4 percent to 24.2 percent. Thus the degree of
unemployment is associated with the proportion of agricultural
labourers to total agricultural workers. The co-efficient of correlation

between the two variables has been estimated at +0.80. It is thus

a case of high degree of positive correlation.

Pranab Bardhan and Ashok Rudra in their article “ Labour

employment and wages in agriculture-results of a survey in
WestBengal 1979”(14) published in Economic and Political Weekly

Nov. 8-15,1980. Shows results relating to labour employment and

wages yielded . They studied both casual and attached labourers.

The study reveals that fully attached labourers are mainly hired by
big farmers. In sample villages 60 percent of big farmers (loosely

defined as cultivating farms above 6 acres) and 14 percent of

medium farmers ( cultivating farms between 2 and 6 acres) employ

fully attached labourers. As noted most labourers in the village

are casual. The study shows only in three months :- Ashadha,

Shravan and Poush - nearly 80 percent or above of the villages

employ almost all labourers within the village. In four months of

the year Ashwin, Kartik, Falgun and Chaitra more than half of the

villages employ less than half of all the labourers in the village.
Baishakh and Bhadra are two other months when nearly 40 percent

* Foot Note -
(14) Labour Employment and Wages in Agriculture survey in
West Bengal
-by Pranab Bardhan and Ashok Rudra in EPW Nov. 8-15-1980.
of the villages employ less than half of all the labourers in the

village.

The study also shows that in 79 percent of sample villages

some labourers get employment outside their own village in the

lean months. In 55 percent of sample villages more than half of all

labourers get employment outside their own village in the lean

months. There is a remarkable uniformity in the wage rate received
by a daily contract adult labourer.

Alex George in his article “Social and Economic aspects of

attached labourers in Kuttanad Agriculture” published in Economic

and Political Weekly December 26 - 1987(15) shows the highly

oppressive feudal characteristics of the system of attached labour

prevailed in Kuttanad until 1943. The study gives priority on three

important issues, (a) transition from slavery to attached labour in

Kuttanad (b) the feudal character of the attached labour system

and (c) the prevalence of the attached labour system under

capitalist investment in agriculture. The author in his study

expressed deep concern over the issue and stressed that though
slavery was abolished in Travancore in 1855 it persisted in the veiled

form of attached labour system.

Jemol Unni made a study on “Agricultural labourers in Rural

labour Households, 1956-57 to 1977-78 changes in employment,

* Foot Note -
(15) Social and Economic Aspects of attached Labour in Kuttanad
Agriculture
-by Alex George - EPW December 26-1987.
wages and income”(16) published in Economic and Political Weekly,

June 25- 1988. The paper discusses trends in employment wage

earnings and incomes of agricultural labourers in rural labour

households during 1956-57 to 1977-78 at the all India level and

for the 14 major states of the country. The discussion on the trends

in the economic condition of agricultural labour households is

placed in the context of the debate on the changes in the conditions

of agricultural labourers. In the seventies there was an interesting

discussion on whether the conditions of agricultural labourers, in
terms of real wage rates and incomes had improved or deteriorated
with the advent of the Green Revolution. A number of scholars and

prominent economists started study on the issue. Pranab Bardhan

(1970) who used Agricultural Labour Enquiry (ALE) data for 1956-57

and 1964-65 and latter 1970-71. NSS data argued that male real
wage rate in Punjab and western Uttar Pradesh had declined while

it has risen in Kerala.

Krishnaji (1971)and Jose(1974) used agricultural wages in

India (AWI) data to make interstate comparisons and concluded

that agricultural wages are poorly adjusted to and lag behind the
rise in the cost of living.

Deepak Lai (1976) was the major exponent of the view

contradictory to the earlier authors, who arrived at their conclusions

using AWI data. Lai argued that (1) wages do operate within the
demand supply frame work and respond to agricultural growth.
* Foot Note -
(16) Agricultural Labourers in Rural Labour Households in 1956-57
to 1977-78 changes in Employment, Wages and Income
- by Jemol Unni in EPW- June 25, 1988.
 <68)
(2) consumption levels of rural poor households indicated a decline
in the percentage of households below the poverty line between
1956-57 and 1970-71 implying that their condition had improved .

In his reply Jose (1978) argued that real wage rates alone do not

tell us about the real earnings of agricultural labourers which are

dependant on (a) the agricultural wage rates (b) the quantum of

employment per year available per worker (c) the prices of wage

goods consumed by members of the household.

The annual money wage earnings per agricultural labourer

in rural labour households have been computed both in money and

real terms by multiplying the average daily wage earnings (money

and real) by the full days of agricultural employment available per
worker in the agricultural year. Annual money wage earnings per

agricultural labourer rose steadily and sharply between 1956-57

and 1977-78. This increase was however, much slower between

1964-65 and 1974-75 due to slower pace of increase in average
daily money wage earnings and fall in days of employment per
worker in this period.

On the changing conditions of agricultural labourers one is

inclined to conclude that there was an improvement in the standard
of living of agricultural labourers during the period of study.

H. Laxminarayan in his study “ changing conditions of Agricultural

labourers” published in “Economic and political weekly”(17) as a special

* Foot Note -
(17) Changing conditions of Agricultural Labourers in EPW-
Oct. 22-1977
by H. Laxminarayan.
-
article in October 22, 1977 attempts to throw light on the changes
which have taken place over a period of time in the socio-economic
condition of agricultnial labour households in three villages in

Punjab,Haryana and Eastern U.P. Attention has been focussed on

the demographic characteristics of these households and changes

in their income, employment, indebtedness and asset formation.

All the three villages surveyed by H. Laxminarayan show

substantial increases in real wages. This goes against the findings

of Pranab Bardhan that in the Green Revolution period real wages

have fallen in Punjab, Haryana and Western U.P. This also goes

against the findings of Krishnaji that wages in pockets of Punjab

are kept low by importing labour from outside. But the findings of

Laxminarayan are in conformity with findings of Deepak Lai that

between 1964-65 and 1970-71, real wages rose in all the states.

The findings of H. Laxminarayan’s study are (a) firstly

developments in matters of spread of literacy are rather disturbing.
While literacy is spreading to cultivating households, the progress

is very disturbing in the case of labour households, (b)secondly

the category called pure agricultural labourer is first disappearing

as income from agricultural labour is only a fraction of the total

income of agricultural labour households, (c) thirdly the Green

Revolution appears to have contributed to increase in wage income

and income from cultivation, (d) fourthly, income of agricultural

labour households has increased faster than prices, there by

keeping the real income of labour households intact.
 Dr. B. Sahoo in his book, “ wage, price and welfare A study
in relationships” in chapter four page 147 “Trends in wages and
prices in Agricultural sector”{18) intends to discuss the changes in

factor prices and product prices in agricultural sector. Prices of all

commodities including agricultural products have kept an upward
trend since the second world war except a brief break in 1952-56.
The ratio between prices received and prices paid by the

agriculturists is an indirect measure of the relative benefits of

cultivation to them. He shows in his study that in all states except

Kerala, Orissa and Punjab wage ratio declined and the all India
average also came down by 11.9 percent between 1950-51 and

1956-57 and the fall in real wage in 1956-57 compared with 1950-

51 was greater than the fall in money wage.

Dr. B. Sahoo in his book “Institution structure and

Development” in chapter 12 page 118 “Wage price trends in
Agricultural sector and their bearing on social Justice”(19) attempts

to highlight the trends in product and factor price in farm sector

and analyse their repercussion on distributive justice in the

economy. Price level, some argue is the product of human volition
and not a product of natural happenstance. Hence, it presents an
opportunity rather than an abstacle. When agricultural product

* Foot Note -
(18) Dr. B. Sahoo in his book, “ wage, price and welfare A study in
relationships" in chapter 4 page 147 “Trends in Wages and Prices
in Agricultural Sector.”
(19) Dr. B. Sahoo in his book “Institution structure and Development”
in chapter 12 page 118” wage price Trends in Agricultural Sector and
their bearing on Social Justice”
 <s>

prices are rising, factor prices going into production must be

expected to be rising in a similar way. Parity of input and output
prices change is an ideal condition. It is pertinent to study trend in
input prices, particularly price of labour or wage along with product

prices. Needless to say the level of agricultural wage in our country

is pathetically low. Facts reveal that prices of agricultural products

as well as other products are rising though not at a uniform rate.

Money wages are on increase no doubt, but real wages of the

agricultural labour have changed marginally. These wages are far

below the earnings of workers in industry and mines . Hence, the

demand for higher wages for the farm labourers. The constraint

lies in the capacity of the agriculturists to pay. The capacity may

be measured in terms of the difference between total revenue and

total cost minus wage, otherwise known as ’balance of value of

production’or ‘farm business income’.

Farm business Income per farm were Rs. 344/- in W. Bengal,

Rs. 525/- in Bombay, Rs. 927/- in M.P, Rs. 1,017/- in A. P. Rs. 1,084V- in

U.P. and Rs. 1,312/- in Panjab, forming 45 to 52 percent of their

respective total cost in 1954-56.

The study reveals some of the most important findings:-

(a) the compound rate of growth of prices of food articles has

been higherthan that of manufacturers in the periods 1951-70 and
1951-74,

(b) the difference between the rates of increase of prices of the

above two groups of products shrunk since 1971,
(c) the quinquennial rates of increase in prices of food article after

1971 and the increase in 1988-89 over 1975-76 have been higher

than that of manufacturers expect the period 1981-86,

(d) wage rates as well as wage earnings of the agricultural labourer

have remained very low in the period 1950-51 and 1974-75. The
increase in daily wage in the period has been very slow. In the

subsequent period minimum wage and actual money wage have

risen perceptively. But, thanks to rapid price rise, the real wage

does not appear to have gone up,

(e) compared to the average household earnings , earning of the

construction workers, mine workers and factory workers, the

earning of the agricultural labour beggars description.

In view of the above facts, the author suggested that well

planned determined efforts are to be made to improve the economic

condition of the agricultural labourers. The measures required are -

(a) provision of irrigational facilities to all farms,

(b) scientific crop planning and diversification of agriculture,

(c) price regulation of essential commodities and supply of such

commodities to agricultural labour families at subsidized rate,

(d) fixing minimum wage, suitably operation wise and area wise,

(e) area planning and its effective implementation to transfer surplus

labour from agriculture .

In the last few years a debate has been going on on the

socio economic condition of agricultural labourer. The studies on

the subject are mostly based on NSS and the ministry of agriculture
data. In the present study an attempt has been made to examine the
changing condition of agricultural labourers in twenty villages located

in one block of Keonjhar district of Orissa. The situation prevailing in

these twenty villages should give a fairly reasonable idea of the trends
in Orissa. Data used in this study differ from data used in other studies
in three respects.

1- Firstly data used in this study are based on surveys, resurveys.

Some of the sample villages are surveyed three times while other

villages are surveyed twice. The data used in this study are collected

directly with care from the chief member of the family.

2- Secondly data used in this study pertain only to those households

which have been in these villages through-out the period of study. An

attempt has been made to through light on changes which have taken

place over a period of time in .the socio-economic condition of 300

agricultural labour households in Ghasipura block of Keonjhar district

of Orissa.

3- Thirdly the block taken for study consists of twenty panchayatas

and one village is taken from each panchayat as the sample village.
So the total sample village comes to twenty and fifteen agricultural
labour households are taken for study from each sample village.
Hence, the total sample agricultural labour household comes to 300.

These fifteen households from each village are considered as the pure

agricultural labourer fully dependent on agriculture for their livelihood.

***