Land rights on pastures empower deprived communities in Maharashtra
Giving land rights to the landless and nomadic people in Maharashtra on degraded pastures have provided marginalised communities with a reasonable livelihood
Sada Dake grows soybean crop in his 2.5 acres of land. But the land does not belong to him, and he had encroached on it. However, Dake’s encroachment was legalised by the government three years ago, after he fought a long battle.
The privatisation of grazing land is often decried because it favors the rich and deprives the poor. However, Beed district in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra presents a peculiar case where encroachment of grazing lands has favored the landless.
Pastoral lands have been playing a significant role in the lives of the rural poor in India. Called gairan, gavran, malran or padik zamin in Maharashtra, access and usage rights of these pastoral lands lay with the community.
Landless communities in Maharashtra are encroaching common grazing lands with the hope the government will legalise the encroachments.
(Photo Credit: Rashmi Komal)
As these grazing lands started losing significance due to various factors, landless and nomadic communities encroached them. Land rights movements have led to government regulations that allow legalisation of these encroachments.
Legalisation of encroachments
The gairans or grazing lands in Marathwada is 240,800 ha, spread across 7,786 villages. Thus, each village, including Beed, has an average of about 30 ha of gairan. Landless communities in each village, generally belonging to backward castes, constitute 10-15 percent of the total population.
Many landless communities have been illegally encroaching public lands, residing and cultivating in these lands over the past 40 years. In 1978, Maharashtra passed a government regulation (GR) to legalise these encroachments. But the eligibility criteria regarding land, community, and income were many and only a few people benefited. Also, the encroachments that took place after 1978 were considered illegal.
By 1990, around 2,400 ha of gairans had been encroached in Beed. Then a GR passed in 1991 made the encroachment of gairans that took place between April 1, 1978 and April 14, 1990 legal, benefiting minorities and landless communities.
Declining commons and droughts leading to fodder and water scarcity have led to many people selling their livestock.
(Photo Credit: Rashmi Komal)
At present, with some exceptions, the majority of the landless communities in villages, through land rights movements, have invaded the gairans in the hope that a new GR would be introduced, and the land will be transferred to their name.
Land rights movement
“People who were able to turn their encroachment to legal land through GRs was less than 20 percent,” said Ramesh Bhise, head of Janvikas Samajik Sanstha, a local NGO based in Beed.
Janvikas and other NGOs have been leading land rights movement in this region from the mid-1990s, and have fought for the land rights of more than 55,000 families.
In the beginning, land rights movement turned into a big conflict within villages, and involved police complaints. However, majority of the villages have now accepted the encroachment. In a few villages, where a dominant community holds power, villagers view the encroachment as illegal, and oppose it.
Benefit for nomads
Primarily, Dalits and other landless communities encroach on these grazing lands. One of the communities that has been favoured by such encroachment is Paradhi, a traditional hunter-gatherer community.
“Back in the days, we had to move from place to place with family and poultry. Now we can send our children to school and get benefits from government schemes,” said Kadya Shinde, a Paradhi, who has encroached half an acre of land.
“The land is an important asset, and if it lies idle, it is better we live on it,” Shinde notes.
Being a nomadic community and carrying the stigma of criminal tab given by the British, Paradhis have been isolated from the development agenda. Hence, they did not own any land and lived far from villages. Poverty and illiteracy had sealed their fate for centuries.
Livelihood from encroachments
Shinde, along with other members of Paradhi community in Dhakefal village in Beed district, now cultivate the occupied land. They are able to sustain a livelihood only because of encroaching the grazing land.
Other than the Paradhis, many landless communities of Scheduled Caste (SCs) category, especially Mahar and Mang too have encroached the grazing lands. Traditionally, these communities worked on affluent people’s farms as daily wage workers. Deep-rooted caste system provided minimal opportunities for their growth as the dominant communities in villages shaped the village rules.
Villagers are interested more in utilities such as schools and community centers than on conservation of common grazing lands.
(Photo Credit: Rashmi Komal)
Sada Dake, who belongs to the Mahar community, fought for legalising his encroached land. “Now, we have got dignity, and with land rights, we have some status in the village,” says Dake.
The families of Dake and 12 others, who are historically landless people, settled in the outskirts of Dhakefal village decades ago. However, each family has a legal entitlement of two to three acres of land now.
Declining commons
In India, common property resources are declining in area as well as in quality. The same is the case with grazing land in the study areas of Beed.
For cattle owners, grazing lands no longer serve the purpose. As a result, these lands are neglected and remain barren. The reasons for the decreased dependence are multifaceted and intertwined with each other, the most significant being decrease in the number of livestock due to lack of water and fodder.
Many villagers had sold their cattle because of drought. Around 50 cattle had died last year in Dhakefal village, since drought had to led to inadequate fodder and water.
Villagers are shifting towards keeping selective and profitable livestock. Maratha community that generally owns cattle in this region reported lowering their livestock number on purpose and shifting to other occupations because of the drought.
Degraded lands
Lack of conservation efforts by the government and communities has caused severe deterioration of the quality of grass available for the cattle. One of the villagers pointed at the invasive parthenium plant growing in plenty.
“These plants have grown in major useful tracts of common as well as private lands to such an extent that the animals do not have palatable grass. The lands are so degraded that they hardly suffice any livelihood need,” he said.
It was very evident from the discussions in the villages that other public utilities such as a community centre, schools, and cremation ground held more importance to the villagers than on conserving grazing lands.
Way forward
Privatisation of grazing lands needs to be assessed in two contexts, namely equity and sustainability. In the present form, neither of the goals is met. In the absence of any legal regulation, equitable distribution of lands is in question.
Further, it becomes imperative to understand what is more important – legal entitlement of grazing lands for landless people or conserving these lands for common use?
Land ownership rights of the gairans can improve the socioeconomic status of the historically oppressed communities. However, in the light of decreasing commons, some institutional arrangement for equitable and sustainable distribution of commons is the need of the hour.
(Edited by Megha Reddy)
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