What were the main causes of India's agricultural stagnation during the colonial period?

Question

Accepted Answer

Indian agriculture was primitive and stagnant at the time of independence. The main causes of the stagnation of the agricultural sector were as follows:

1. **Land tenure system**: There were three forms of land tenure system introduced by the British rulers in India, namely the Zamindari system, the Mahalwari system and the Ryotwari system.

In the **Zamindari system**, the zamindars or landlords were the owners of land. The actual collections by the zamindars were much higher than what they had to pay to the government. The system led to the multiplication of middlemen between the cultivators and the government, absentee landlordism, exploitation of peasants by unsympathetic agents and enmity between landlords and tenants. Under the system, intermediaries benefited at the cost of both the actual cultivators and the state.

2. **Commercialisation of agriculture**: Commercialisation of agriculture means the production of crops for sale in the market rather than for self-consumption. Farmers were forced to cultivate commercial crops like indigo, which was required by the textile industry in Britain for dyeing textiles. As a result, there was a fall in the production of food crops, and the farmers had to suffer from the frequent occurrence of famines. Indian agriculture was transformed into a raw material exporting sector for England.

3. **Partition of the country**: The partition of the country in 1947 also adversely affected India's agricultural production. The rich food-producing areas of West Punjab and Sindh went to Pakistan, creating a food crisis in the country. Also, the whole of the fertile land under jute production went to East Pakistan. The jute industry was most severely affected due to the partition.

Thus, Indian agriculture became backward, stagnant and non-vibrant under the British rule, and this legacy had to be overcome after independence.