Essay on Agricultural Labour

Here is a compilation of essays on ‘Agricultural Labour’ for class 9, 10, 11 and 12. Find paragraphs, long and short essays on ‘Agricultural Labour’ especially written for school and college students.

Essay Contents:

Essay on the Introduction to Agricultural Labour
Essay on the Conditions of Agricultural Labour
Essay on the Rate of Wages and Methods of Payments
Essay on the Minimum Wages Act, 1948
Essay on Agrarian Serfdom and Its Remedies
Essay on the Rehabilitation of Landless Agricultural Workers
Essay on Bhoodan
Essay on the Types of Agricultural Labour
Essay on the Magnitude of Agricultural Labour
Essay on the Duration of Work of Agricultural Labour
Essay on the Causes of Poor Economic Condition of Farm Labour
Essay on the Suggestions for Improvement of the Condition of Agricultural Labour
Essay on Government Measures Pertaining to Agricultural Labour

Essay # 1. Introduction to Agricultural Labour:

The Physiocratic leader, Quesnary, once said, “Poor peasant, poor king, poor country”. This may not be true of all countries, but it is certainly true of India where 70% of the people are engaged in agriculture and yet cannot produced food enough to meet the needs of all. Food enough to meet the needs of all.

The problem of agricultural labour has assumed great urgency in India. The ranks of agricultural labour have been fast swelling. Their economic condition, on the other hand, has been steadily deteriorating. They are perhaps the most neglected section of the Indian people.

While increasing attention was paid during the last quarter of a century to protect industrial labour, nothing was done till recently in regard to much more numerous class of agricultural labour. After India won her freedom, however, the Government has awakened to the urgent need for improving the condition of the village labour and efforts are being made through legislation and otherwise to do so.

Essay # 2. Conditions of Agricultural Labour:

In recent years, the Government of India conducted two comprehensive inquiries into the conditions of agricultural labour in which very useful data regarding employment, unemployment, wages and earnings, income and expenditure, indebtedness, etc., were collected.

The first inquiry was conducted in 1950-51 in 800 villages covering, 11,000 families. The report was published in 1954-56. The Second Agricultural Labour Enquiry was conducted in 1956-57 in 3,600 villages covering 28,560 sample agricultural labour households.

According to the census of 1951, the number of cultivating labourers in the country was 4.9 crores, constituting about 20% of the total agricultural population. The Second Agricultural Labour Enquiry 1956-57 revealed that in Indian agricultural labour families formed 24.47% of the total rural families. The total number of agricultural labourers who were actual workers was 35 million.

More than half of them were without land, while the rest owned only tiny bits of land, so that even in their case the bulk of their income, i.e., 73% (64% in 1950-51) came from wage employment on others’ farms. About 85% of the agricultural workers are casual workers. About 15% of them are attached to landowners.

The per capita annual income in 1956-57 was Rs. 99.4 (Rs. 140 in 1950-51) as compared to the national average in the same year of Rs. 291.5. The average annual income of an agricultural labour household was Rs. 437 (Rs. 447 in 1950-51). On average they were employed for 197 days (218 in 1950-51) in the year. About 15% of agricultural workers were attached land-owners.

Some 16% of them had no wage-earning employment at all during the year. It has been estimated that one-fourth to one-third of the existing agricultural labour is surplus. The growth of population has accentuated the problem. In the beginning of the present century, 62.5% of the working force was engaged in agriculture and by 1951 the proportion stood at about 70%.

Essay # 3. Rate of Wages and Methods of Payments:

Trustworthy statistics regarding wages of agricultural Labour are not available, owing to the prevalence of wages in kind and existence of supplements and concessions which differ from place to place. Field labourers are often paid in kind. They receive a share in the crop with other customary dues.

In spite of the rise in wages during the last decade, labourers have suffered much from the high prices due to the time lag between wages and prices. The Agricultural Labour Enquiry reveals that now cash payments and time rates are the predominant mode of payment to agricultural workers.

As a class, agricultural labour gets lower wages than industrial labour.

The reasons are as follows:

(i) The scattered nature of work, lack of organisation among the labourers and the seasonal character of agriculture reduce their bargaining capacity.

(ii) There is a social exploitation as labourers belong mostly to the depressed classes.

(iii) There is no legislation governing hours or other conditions of work as regards agricultural labour.

(iv) Landlords keep a labour reserve by giving them loans.

To make matters still worse for them, they have also to face long periods of unemployment. Recent inquiries suggest that period of employment for agricultural workers ranges from three to six months, interspersed in different seasons during the year. The Agricultural Labour Enquiry (1950-51) revealed that in a year on the average an agricultural worker remains employed for 218 days in the year, self-employed for 50 days, on wages for agricultural labour for 189 days and non-agricultural labour 29 days.

The heavy incidence of unemployment is a major cause of low incomes of agricultural workers. During the periods of unemployment, agricultural labourers get into debt. Having no security to offer, they fall an easy prey to the utmost exploitation of the money-lenders. This is another part of their tale of woe. They live mostly on semi-starvation level.

Essay # 4. Minimum Wages Act, 1948:

This Act provides that every State Government within three years should lay down minimum wages for people working in agriculture.

The rich peasants had benefited by the war-time boom in prices, but as the agricultural labour had nothing to dispose of, his condition did not improve. The Government, therefore, thought it necessary that the minimum wages of agricultural labour should be fixed keeping in view local costs and standard of living. Accordingly, a comprehensive enquiry was started in 1949 into agricultural labour conditions in about 2,000 villages.

During the First Plan wages were fixed throughout Punjab, Rajasthan, Ajmer, Coorg, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Kutch and Tripura. In seven other States, the minimum wages have been fixed in specified areas. During the Second Plan minimum wages were to be prescribed in all States and for all areas.

Owing to the already excessive and further growing pressure of population on land, the ranks of agricultural labourers are daily swelling. Whatever wage rate the Government may prescribe, the worker will be willing to accept lower wages.

Also the employment in agriculture is only seasonal and intermittent. Hence the workers prefer lower wages to unemployment.

The workers are illiterate and widely scattered. They have no organisation worth the name. The wages could be enforced through collective bargaining which is simply out of the question in the absence of workers’ organisation.

Most of the agricultural workers belong to the low castes and are socially handicapped. How can they assert themselves for the protection of their rights? They are so many dumb-driven cattle.

Moreover, wages in rural areas are largely governed by custom. A departure from custom is not easy. The indebtedness of the labourers to the landowners places them in their power. They have to accept lower wages.

The sites on which their houses are built do not belong to the labourers. They belong to the landowners of the village. This has the vicious effect of binding the workers to their employers irrespective of the wage.

There is also no agency which can enforce the Minimum Wages Act. In view of the widely scattered nature of agriculture and illiteracy, it is well-high impossible for the Government to set up an effective and adequate agency to check up and enforce wages prescribed by it.

In addition to the immensity of the task of collection of wage statistics in India, there is also the problem of inspection and checking. Agricultural labourers are scattered in villages. The problem, therefore, is all the more difficult to handle. Hence it is suggested that our immediate task should be to make agriculture a paying industry and to organise labour for collective bargaining between masters and men rather than to extend the Minimum Wages Act to rural areas.

Essay # 5. Agrarian Serfdom and Its Remedies:

The Agrarian Reforms Committee mentions land labourers who never receive cash payment and are no better than serfs. The Colis in Bombay, the Puleyan in Madras, the Kamya in Bihar, the Chakar in Orissa, and the Shalkari in Madhya Pradesh are some of them. They are practically purchased by their owners. Hallis in Bombay are no better off.

They usually get a small ration of food grains. The Halli becomes a life-long serf of the master who even purchases a wife for him. Some of these labourers perform beggar or forced labour. In States where there is sub-infeudation, the evil is much worse.

The villagers have to render some days’ forced labour to the landlord to pay nazranas in cash as well as to give a portion of the fowls and goats. The Indian Constitution has made serfdom a penal offence. In course of time, therefore, beggar will be eliminated and the status of the landless labourers improved.

Abolition of zamindari has been enacted in most States. Laws have been passed to help tenants and labourers. But such laws can never be effective unless labour is organised and can make their influence felt. The Agrarian Reforms Committee suggested that there must be a country-wide organisation of labourers, whose objective should be to carry on propaganda for lifting “this huge mass of population from sub-human levels of existence, which, in some places, have run to such depths as living on snails, rats and grains picked from cow-dung”.

The labours should be no longer exploited by the rich. The clash between rich and poor should be checkmated by organised unions of agricultural labourers, otherwise conflict may lead to bloodshed. To organise the vast number of agricultural labourers, who are scattered over vast areas, into unions is not going to be an easy task.

Their ignorance and illiteracy add to its toughness. Many of them belong to the depressed classes who still form an inferior stratum of society. The political worker has so far been busier in industrial areas. Besides, demand for labour in the village is casual and seasonal. The Kisan Sabhas, too, have so far almost neglected agricultural labourers.

Having diagnosed the condition of the agricultural labour, it is easy to suggest the remedies. But since the disease is the outcome of several unfavorable factors, there cannot be any simple or single remedy. The problem has to be tackled at several fronts. But tackled it must be.

As has been well put by the Agrarian Reforms Committee (1950)- “To leave out the problems of agricultural labour in any scheme of agrarian reforms—as has been done so far—is to leave unattended a weeping wound in the agrarian system of the country.” The continuance of such revolting conditions for such a large mass of population is sure, sooner or later, to lead to social and political upheavals.

The following measures suggest themselves:

1. To Begin with, Agrarian Serfdom must go at Once:

There is no doubt that our Constitution declares serfdom in any form a penal offence. But owing to the force of custom, social backwardness and economic helplessness of those classes of agricultural labour which are at present the victims, this serfdom may actually linger on unless vigorous efforts are made to eradicate it.

2. The most important step will be to raise the wages of agricultural labour from the present appallingly low levels. For this minimum wages should not only be fixed but energetically enforced in all States.

It is gratifying to know that the Government has been alive to the urgency of the problem. Accordingly, the Minimum Wages Act was passed in 1948. Under this legislation, minimum wages for agricultural workers have been fixed throughout the States of Punjab, Rajasthan, Orissa, Kerala, Delhi and Tripura, and for specified areas in almost all other States. The minimum wages fixed through State action range between Re. 0.62 and Rs. 1.50 in different States of the Indian Union.

3. Reclamation of culturable wastes and the development of co-operative farms of landless labourers on such reclaimed lands. A good number of them could thus be settled on these farms. Accordingly provision was made for such resettlement schemes in the First and the Second Five-Year Plans, and in recent years about 30 lakh acres of cultivable waste land have been distributed.

A number of State Governments have taken steps to provide house-sites free or on a subsidised basis to landless agricultural labourers. The Third Plan provides Rs. 4 crores for settlement plans by the States and Rs. 8 crores by the Centre and 7,00,000 families of landless labourers will be settled on 5 million acres.

4. Imposition of Ceilings of Land-Holdings:

Instead of depending only upon voluntary gifts of land from landowners, a legal ceiling on individual holdings has either been prescribed or is proposed to be laid down almost in all States, so that no holder can own and cultivate a larger holding. In this way, land in excess of the prescribed maximum will become available for settling landless workers. However, only a limited measure of relief can be expected from such redistribution of land, because of the large number of landless workers.

5. Land Gifts for Landless Workers:

Landholders should be encouraged to make land gifts to landless workers. The credit for starting this movement, called ‘Bhoodan Yajna’, goes to Acharya Vinoba Bhave. Of the total area of 4.4 million acres donated as Bhoodan, about 9 lakh acres have been distributed so far. About 10,000 families were settled in Bihar on Bhoodan lands under two schemes for which the Central Government provided assistance.

6. Extension of Irrigation, Intensive Cultivation and Improvement in Agricultural Practices:

Will increase rural employment and thus afford relief to agricultural workers. Moreover, these measures will add to productivity, increasing thereby the power of the employer to pay higher wages.

7. Organization of Suitable Agro-Industries (Rural Industries):

The establishment of rural industrial estates producing consumer’s goods, largely of rural consumption, will be an excellent idea and will provide means of employment during periods of unemployment and will also divert a part of agricultural labour permanently.

8. Re-Organisation of the Land System on the Basis of Cooperative Joint Farming:

This will place the agricultural worker in a position of near equality in status and opportunity with other sections of the village community.

9. Still another step will consist of well-planned works programmes for the utilisation of manpower resources in rural areas. Road building, digging of wells and canals, afforestation, etc., can be so timed that they might absorb the agricultural labour power during the period of seasonal unemployment. The workers should be organised into labour co-operatives.

10. Measures to promote inter-regional mobility of agricultural labour should also be taken. These will include cheap transport facilities and the establishment of rural labour exchanges.

11. Organisation of Agricultural Labour:

The principle of collective bargaining is a tried method of improving the condition of employment. Its adoption is, therefore, necessary in the case of agricultural labour also.

There is no denying the fact that the organization of such a mass of agricultural labourers, who are very widely scattered, is very difficult. Their ignorance and illiteracy and the casual and seasonal nature of their employment make the task still more formidable. But with honest and vigorous efforts, coupled with the measures suggested above for the improvement of their economic position, the work of organisation may succeed.

12. To ensure that the benefits of different development programmes reach the landless agricultural workers effectively, their problems should be dealt with in a co-ordinated manner at the district and block level as well as at higher levels. The Third Five-Year Plan, therefore, suggests the formation of a Board in each State for coordinating all measures proposed for the benefit of agricultural workers.

The most significant development proposed in the Third Plan, whose benefits will go largely to agricultural labour, is the programme for undertaking works projects in rural areas. Under this programme, it is hoped to provide additional wage-employment in rural areas for about 100 days in the year, especially during the slack agricultural seasons, for about 2.5 million persons by the last year of the Plan.

Essay # 6. Rehabilitation of Landless Agricultural Workers:

The future pattern of village development on the co-operative basis indicates that the distinction between those who have land and those who are landless must go. Feudal rights, misdistribution of land, exploitation of wage earners and caste disabilities must not exist.

To achieve this objective the following steps are essential:

(a) Redistribution of land voluntarily or by law,

(b) Increase in agricultural production,

(d) Educational facilities and concessions for the poor so as to give them confidence and initiative, and

(e) Improvement in living conditions.

The problem of the amelioration of agricultural labourers is intimately related to the basic problem of poverty. The solution does not lie merely in the redistribution of land. Thus apart from the general measures of economic development, especially more intensive and diversified agricultural production and a more diversified occupational structure in the rural areas, specific measures, such as resettlement schemes, formation of labour co-operatives, allotment of house sites and enforcement of minimum wages, should be implemented early as possible.

The Planning Commission has laid down the policy of providing land to the landless and to owners of uneconomic holdings. Blocks of newly-reclaimed land and culturable waste have to be set apart for them. Rs. 2 crores was allotted for the purpose under the First Five- Year Plan. During the Second Five-Year Plan, there was to be a large programme for giving land to agricultural labourers.

Census of holdings was to be completed and landless agricultural labourers settled on all land that became available. The number of persons settled like this can, however, is only small in comparison with total landless labourers. In the Second Plan, apart from a provision at the Centre, 14 States had schemes, estimated to cost about Rs. 5 crores, for the settlement of 20,000 families of landless workers on 1,00,000 acres.

The Third Plan provides Rs. 4 crores for settlement plans by the States and Rs. 8 crores by the Centre and 7,00,000 families of landless labourers will be settled on 5 million acres. In the structure of the rural economy, which the Five-Year Plans attempt to build up, agricultural labourers will participate fully and on equal terms with others and will achieve effective economic and social equality with the rest of the rural population.

Essay # 7. Bhoodan:

The object of the Bhoodan or gift-of-land movement is to provide land for the landless labourers by arousing the charitable instincts of the big landlords. It was started in 1951 by Acharya Vinoba Bhave, a colleague of Mahatma Gandhi, in the district of Telengana in Hyderabad, where there was agrarian disturbance due to land hunger of cultivators. The Gandhian principle of peaceful persuasion is used to make landlords make gifts of land for the landless.

Vinoba describes Bhoodan as a method to remove maladjustments in a peaceful way. Describing the aim of the movement, Vinoba Bhave says: “In a just and equitable order of society, land must belong to all. That is why we do not beg for gifts but demand a share to which the poor are rightly entitled”. The emphasis is not on mere charity but on the responsibility of the society for righting a social wrong or redressing a social evil.

The movement has spread all over India. The target is to collect 500 lakh acres-of land so that it may be possible to provide some land for cultivation to every rural family. Up to the end of September, 1963, over 40 lakh acres of land had been collected of which about 10 lakh acres had been distributed among the landless. They were given land on the condition that they would till it themselves, and would not sell or transfer it for 10 years. In the beginning, co-operative farming was a condition of land being given to a person.

The movement has now widened out into Gramdan, i.e., donations of entire villages. Since January 1957, the emphasis has shifted to Gramdan. So far (1962) 5,342 villages have been received in donations. In the non-agricultural sector, the movement assumes various forms such as Sampattidan (donation of money or other resources), Buddhidan, Jivandan (donation of one’s mental abilities and life) to the achievement of the Bhoodan ideals.

Several States have rendered active assistance to the movement. In order to facilitate donation of land to Bhooodan and the redistribution of such lands, necessary legislation has been enacted in Bombay (Berar and Saurashtra areas), Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh.

For instances, in Madras, Bhoodan Yajna Act, 1958, facilitates the donation of lands for the Bhoodan Yajna and the transfer and settlement of such lands for the benefit of landless poor peasants or for community purposes. The legislation in all these States deals with the procedure for giving legal validity, after necessary inquiry, to the Bhoodan donations and for vesting the lands in the Bhoodan Committees.

Recognising the importance of the Bhoodan movement, the Second Plan recommends that schemes for re-settlement on land of agricultural labourers should bring in Bhoodan lands. The Plan recognises that the practical success which is achieved in the development of Gramdan villages will have great significance for cooperative village development.

A number of shortcomings of the movement are commonly pointed out:

(1) It is alleged that much of the area donated consists of sub-marginal lands of poor quality or those over which the donors have doubtful rights.

(2) Since the recipients lack implements, cattle, seeds, etc., they are unable to make any use of the lands they receive.

(3) The pace of the distribution of collected land is very slow. Up to October 1954, less than 3% of the land collected had been distributed.

(4) By creating illusions in the minds of the landless and land- poor agriculturists about the efficiency of an alternative method of re-distribution of land, it may impede the quicker method of re-distribution through legislation.

But the significance of the movement lies in its contribution to the solution of the problem of land re-distribution among landless peasantry. No doubt several measures of land reform such as abolition of intermediary rights in land, prescription of ceiling on land holdings, etc., have been taken, but these measures will benefit, tenants rather than landless labourers. For making land available to the landless.

Its moral value is of special importance, it represents a voluntary, non-violent approach in matters which might have necessitated coercive and violent methods. It seeks to bring about a radical change in the psychology of the society by creating an atmosphere of equality, goodwill and co-operative effort.

Another great significance is that it is very helpful in creating the right climate for the introduction of far-reaching reforms in the country. The movement is making public opinion favorable for the implementation of the new land policy.

Without belittling its importance, it will have to be admitted that Bhoodan movement is no substitute for other ameliorative measures for the landless labour. Nor does it give an ideal system of land holdings; unless the peasants selected for land gifts are organized into co-operative farming societies, the newly created small holders may not thrive. Thus the movement cannot solve the problem of landless labour. Other ameliorative measures must be adopted simultaneously.

Essay # 8. Types of Agricultural Labour:

Agricultural labour may be divided into four types:

(a) Landless labourers who are attached to the landlords;

(b) Landless labourers who are personally independent but who work exclusively for others;

(d) Farmers who have economic holding but who have one or more of their sons and dependents working for other prosperous farmers.

The first group of agricultural workers has been more or less in the position of serfs or slaves. They do not normally receive wages in cash but are generally paid in kind. They have to work for their masters and cannot shift from one to another. They have to provide beggar or forced labour. In some cases, they have to offer cash and also supply fowls and goats to their masters.

They are attached to certain landed estates and when the latter are sold away, the workers who are attached to the estate will also be passed on to the new owners. The Kamay in Bihar, the Colis in Bombay, the Pannaiyal in Madras, the Shalkari in Madhya Pradesh, the Charkar in Orissa, etc., are some of the communities of landless labourers who still exist.

Essay # 9. Magnitude of Agricultural Labour:

Accurate figures about the number, income, standard of living, etc. of rural labour are not available. But some information is available in the form of the reports of committees and commissions. According to the Second Agricultural Labour Enquiry published in 1960, agricultural labour families constituted nearly 25 per cent of all rural families.

According to this, more than 85 per cent of the rural workers are casual, serving any farmer who is willing to engage them and only 15 per cent of agricultural labourers are attached to specific landlords. More than half of the workers do not possess any land, and even the rest of them own only very little of land. The number of those who have adequate economic holding but that work for others because of surplus manpower in the family is very small indeed.

Essay # 10. Duration of Work of Agricultural Labour:

On an average, according to the Second Enquiry, an agricultural labour gets employment for a little less than 200 days in a year. According to the First Enquiry (for the year 1950-51), an agricultural worker is employed for 218 days in a year, of which 189 days are for agricultural occupation and 29days as non-agricultural labour; over and above these a farm labourer is self-employed for 50 days. The fanner worker is not employed between one-third to one-half of the entire year. This explains his low income and consequent low standard of living.

Essay # 11. Causes of the Poor Economic Condition of Farm Labour:

The following important reasons explain low wages and poor economic conditions of agricultural labour:

(1) Low Social Status:

Most agricultural workers belong to the depressed classes which have been neglected for ages. The low castes and the depressed classes have been socially handicapped and they had never the courage to assert themselves. They have been like dumb-driven cattle.

(2) Seasonal Employment:

The agricultural workers do not have continuous work. It has been estimated by the Second Agricultural Labour Enquiry that on an average a farm labourer finds employment for about 197 days in a year and for the rest of the year he is idle. Apart from under-employment there is also unemployment in rural areas. Unemployment and under-employment are two important factors responsible for low income and consequently low economic position of the agricultural workers in India.

But then the nature of work in agriculture is such that a farm labourer cannot get work continuously. In most cases, work on the farms is seasonal and intermittent. In many cases, there is single cropping which means work only for six to seven months in the year. Only in those areas where there is double cropping (where irrigation facilities are available) there will be work throughout the year.

(3) Unorganised:

Agricultural workers are illiterate and ignorant. They live in scattered villages. Hence they could not be organised in unions. In urban areas workers could generally organise themselves and it was convenient for political parties to take interest in trade union activity. This is almost difficult in case of farm labour. Accordingly, it is difficult for them to bargain with the land owners and secure good wages.

(4) Paucity of Non-Agricultural Jobs:

Paucity of non- agricultural occupations in village areas is another important factor for the low wages and poor economic condition of the farm labourers. For one thing, the growing pressure of population is increasingly felt in rural areas and the number of landless labourers is steadily increasing. For another, the absence of any other occupation in rural areas and lack of inter-regional mobility have been responsible for worsening the pressure of population on land.

(5) Rural Indebtedness:

Agricultural labour is heavily indebted. Normally, the farm labourers borrow from the landowners under whom they work. Naturally, they are prepared to accept lower wages. Sometimes, the workers may not have their own houses, or if they have their own houses, they may have constructed them on land contributed by the landlords. For this also, the workers feel obliged to the latter.

Thus, partly because of factors beyond their control and partly because of their inherent bargaining weakness, the farm labourers have been getting very low wages and have, therefore, to live a miserable sub-human life.

Essay # 12. Suggestions for the Improvement of the Condition of Agricultural Labour:

The following suggestions have been given for the improvement of agricultural labour:

(i) Removal of Serfdom:

Agricultural serfdom which exists in many parts of the country should go. In fact, according to the Constitution of India, the practice of slavery in any form is prohibited. But agrarian serfdom which has been in vogue for centuries cannot disappear so easily. This is so because the labourers are helpless, ignorant and illiterate. Education of the rural masses and better opportunities are some of the remedies for the removal of the system of slavery. It is hoped that with the programme of community development for rural reconstruction, it will gradually disappear.

(ii) Rehabilitation of Landless Agricultural Workers:

In order to improve the condition of agricultural labour, the landless workers should be provided with land. This can be done in many ways. One way is that the newly reclaimed land may be allotted only to them.

Another method is to redistribute the existing land among all people either in a voluntary manner or by using a certain amount of pressure. The Bhoodan movement is also one of the methods by which those who have land contribute voluntarily for those who have not.

(iii) Better Implementation of Minimum Wages in Agriculture:

Agricultural workers have been getting very low wages except in the Punjab. Measures should be taken to raise the wages of farm workers. Unless this is done it is impossible to raise the economic condition of the agricultural workers. Minimum wage legislation alone is not sufficient but steps should be taken to enforce it. It may be pointed out that Minimum Wages Acts have been passed in most of the states. There are limitations in properly enforcing them.

(iv) Improvements in Agriculture:

The agricultural laboures do not have full-time employment because of seasonal character of Indian agriculture. Both intensive cultivation and extension of irrigation are very much needed to increase agricultural work. By these methods, there will be double cropping and employment will be available for the whole year round. Besides, there will be increase in the productivity of labour which will also increase the wages of workers.

There is very great scope for the setting up of village and rural industries which will use the raw materials readily available in the villages and which will provide occupation for the rural population. Examples of such industries are: cotton ginning, sugarcane crushing, production of oils and soaps, brick-kilns, manufacture of paper, etc.

There is no necessity for setting up of big industrial units. There can be small size industries employing modern techniques which can be easily set up now-a-days because of the extension of electricity to rural areas.

The setting up of such industries will help agricultural labour in many ways, as for instance:

(a) Seasonal unemployment will be reduced;

(b) Surplus labour power will be diverted to these industries;

(c) The pressure of population on agriculture will be reduced and this will help to raise agricultural productivity and also raise wages of agricultural labour.

(v) Public Works Programme:

One very good method of providing employment to rural labour and of utilising it fully is the construction of public works by the government. The government can plan its projects in the rural areas carefully, so that the workers who may be unemployed during the off-seasons may be gainfully employed.

Such projects include the construction of roads, the digging and deepening of tanks and canals, afforestation, etc. The setting up of small industries and public works programmes have great importance in the mobilisation of manpower resources in villages and in raising the wages of the rural masses and indirectly, the income of the country.

(vi) Co-Operative Farming:

Ultimately it may be necessary to fashion a society in which all the rural folk will be more or less equal. The differences between the large and small farmers will have to disappear and similarly the landless labourer who is suffering from so many handicaps will have to be brought to the level of all others.

The measures suggested above will help in promoting the economic conditions of agricultural labour, but the ultimate solution probably lies in the creation of co-operative village system in which all, including the present labouring class, will have equal rights, duties and opportunities.

Essay # 13. Government Measures Pertaining to Agricultural Labour:

Since the Independence of the country in 1947, the center as well as the state Governments has done commendable work in raising the conditions of agricultural labour. Some measures have been taken to raise the wages of agricultural labour. They include the passing of legislation to fix minimum wages for agricultural labour, the removal of disabilities, the ceiling on holdings and the redistribution of land among the landless labourers, etc.

(1) Indian Constitution:

The Indian Constitution has declared the practice of serfdom an offence. It has abolished agrarian slavery including forced labour by law but it will take some time before it is removed in practice.

(2) Minimum Wages Act:

The Minimum Wages Act was passed in 1948, according to which every State Government was asked to fix minimum wages for agricultural labour within three years. The minimum wages are fixed keeping in view the local costs and standard of living. Since conditions in various parts of the country are different and since even within a state the law allows different rates of wages to be fixed, the minimum wages vary from Re. 0.62 to Rs.1.50. In practice, it is very difficult to enforce it effectively. In many states the rates are fixed even below the current rates of wages. In practice it has failed to increase the wages and earnings of agricultural labour.

(3) Other Legislative Measures:

The zamindari system has been abolished by law in all the states and with that all the exploitation associated with the system has been removed. Besides tenancy laws have been passed in most of the states protecting the interests of the tenants and labourers, and enabling them to acquire the lands they cultivate.

Many states have passed legislation fixing ceiling on agricultural holdings by which the maximum amount of land which a person can hold has been fixed by law. According to these laws, the surplus lands of rich land owners are to be distributed to the landless labourers.

(4) Organisation of Labour Co-Operatives:

During the Second Five Year Plan, efforts were made to encourage the formation of labour co-operatives. These co-operatives whose members are workers undertake the contract of government projects, such as, construction of roads, digging of canals and tanks, afforestation, etc. They provide employment to agricultural workers during off-seasons and also eliminate the possible exploitation of workers by the private contractors. The basic idea of the movement is commendable.

(5) Proposals of the Third Five Year Plan:

The Planning Commission has rightly felt that the benefits of many of the development programmes have not reached the landless agricultural labour. The Planning Commission, therefore, has suggested the formation of a board in each state to co-ordinate all measures proposed for the benefit of the agricultural workers. The co-ordination should take place at the level of a community development block, at the district and at higher levels.

Further, the Planning Commission has decided to set up a Central Advisory Committee to advise the Commission on problems of landless labour in general and on the problem of setting them on land in particular. Another significant proposal is the emphasis on rural projects which are meant to provide additional wage-employment to agricultural workers for about 100 days, especially during the off-season.

Essay on Agricultural Labour | India | Economics