AN ASSIGNMENT AND PRESENTATION

ON

TOPIC:

Salient features of the Assam (Temporary Settled Areas) Tenancy Act, 1971 and
important changes by the Act in the field of Agrarian Reforms in Assam.

Subject:- Land Law of Assam

Paper Code:- 2.4

Under the guidance of

Sri Suresh Basumatary

(Assistant Professor, KLC)

Submitted By

Name:- Kamal Chand Bothra

Roll No:- 20

Class:- 2nd Semester

Date Of Submission:-
 Introduction

An Act to regulate the relations of landlord and tenant in the temporarily

settled areas of Assam. Whereas it is expedient to regulate to the rights and
liabilities of agricultural tenants and their landlords in temporarily settled lands
in the State of Assam

Short title, extent and commencement

(1) This Act may be called the Assam (Temporarily Settled Areas) Tenancy Act,
1971.
(2) It shall come into force at once (With effect from 10th December 1971).
(3) It extends to"
(a) the districts of Kamrup, Nowgong, Darrang, Sibsagar and Lakhimpur;
(b) Silchar and Hailakandi Sub-divisions of the district of Cachar ; and
(c) temporarily settled areas of Gossaingaon, Sidli and Bijni Circles of Kokrajhar
Sub-division in the district of Goalpara and the temporarily settled areas of
Karimganj Sub-division (Now Karimganj is a district).
(4) The State Government may, by notification, extend the whole or any part of
the Act to any other areas of the State:
Provided that no such notification shall be issued unless a notice of the
intended extension is previously published in the area concerned and any
objection received is disposed of after due consideration.

Definitions
In this Act, unless there is anything repugnant in the subject or context"
(1) "Agriculture" includes horticulture, pisciculture and other allied agricultural
pursuits;
(2) "Agricultural year" means the year commencing from the first day of
Baisakh and ending with the last day of Chaitra, according to Assamese
Calendar;
(3) "Agriculturist" means a person who cultivated land personally;
(4) "holding" means a parcel or parcels of land or an undivided share thereof,
held by a tenant and forming the subject of a separate tenancy;
(5) "improvement" means any work which adds to the value of the holding,
which is suitable to the holding and which is executed directly for the benefit
of the holding.
(6) "land" means "agricultural land"; and "agricultural land" means land used
for agricultural purpose or pur-poses subservient thereto.
 The Assam (Temporarily settled Areas) Tenancy Act was passed in 1971. The
Act received the assent of the President of India on the 3rd December, 1971,
was published in the Assam Gazette, Extraordinary, dated the 10th December,
1971 and came to operation on the same day. According to the Preamble to
the Act as set out it is to regulate the rights and liabilities of agricultural
tenants and their landlords in temporarily settled lands in the State of Assam,
The statement of objects and 4 reasons as published is as follows:- The rights
and protections given by the Assam (Temporarily Settled Districts) Tenancy
Act, 1935 (Assam Act III of 1935) have been found to be inadequate. The
Adhiars are not able to acquire the status of occupancy raiyats under the
provisions of the aforesaid Act, It is therefore, 370 deemed expedient to repeal
the existing Assam (Temporarily Settled Districts) Tenancy Act, 1935 (Assam
Act III of 1935) and the Assam Adhiara Protection and Regulation Act, 1948
(Assam Act XII of 1948) and re-enact their beneficial provisions in one single
comprehensive bill, along with new provisions in order to confer additional
benefits to the tenants.
The securities provided in the earlier Tenancy Acts, viz (i) The Goalpara
Tenancy Act, 1929 applicable to Permanently Settled Areas of Goalpara, (ii)
The Sylhet Tenancy Act, 1936 applicable to Permanently Settled Areas of
Karimganj Sub-Division, (iii) The Assam (Temporarily Settled District) Tenancy
Act, 1935 applicable to the Temporarily Settled Areas of all Plain Districts,
and (iv) The Assam Adhiars Protection and Regulation Act, 1948 have been
found to be inadequate inspite of the fact that the first two Acts have been
amended in the meantime to bring the share-croppers and Nankars, Chakran
(servants engaged in cultivation) within the definition of tenants so as to
enable them to enjoy the protection of the Tenancy Acts. So, it was felt
necessary to enact a new tenancy law applicable initially to the temporarily
settled areas with adequate provisions under which the State Government
could extend it to the erstwhile permanently settled areas in due course by
replacing the Tenancy Acts and the Adhiar Act. Accordingly, the Assam
(Temporarily Settled Areas) Tenancy Act, 1971 was enacted. This Act repeals
the Assam (Temporarily Settled District) Tenancy Act, 1935 and the Assam
Adhiar Protection and Regulation Act, 1948.

The features of this Act are as follows:

 Share-Croppers will be treated as Tenants.

 Right of Occupancy will accrue on occupation for 3 years as against 12

years prescribed in earlier laws.

 There will be only two classes of tenants as against 5 classes under the

previous law.

 Maximum of rent both in cash and in kind has been provided.

 Government have been given the power to acquire the Right of Ownership

and the Intermediary Rights for an Occupancy Tenent to acquire such right

by depositing the compensation.

 Occupancy Tenants are protected aginst eviction whereas the Non-

Occupancy Tenants can be evicted on breach of specified conditions

through due process of law.

 Unauthorised eviction in the form of voluntary surrender has been

prohibited.

 Eviction without the orders from the Court has been barred.

 Illegaly ejected Tenants will be restored possession through Revenue

Officers.

 A limited right to mortgage has been given to Non-Occupancy Tenants to

obtain credit from the recognised Financial Institutions for agriculture.

. Following changes have been taken in the field of Agrarian reforms:-

1. ALRR,1866 (Provisions of Assam Land Revenue Regulation) have been

extended to the erstwhile permanently settled areas of the districts –
Goalpara, Karimganj. Goalpara Tenancy Act, 1929 and Sylhet Tenancy
Act, the old Assam (Temporarily settled District) Tenancy Act, 1935,
Adhiar Protection and Regulation Act, 1948 were repealed consequent
upon introduction of Assam Tenancy(Temporarily Settled Area )
Act,1971. Adhiar was given the status of a tenant under the Assam
Tenancy Act, 1971. The Districts where temporary settled estates
existed, the intensive tenancy reforms were carried out under the new
Act. Government of Assam felt the necessity to introduce the uniform
pattern of tenancy and revenue administration for the whole of Assam (
covering permanently settled areas as well as temporarily settled areas
in Assam). So, Assam Land Holding( Adoption of Relationship under
Assam Land and Revenue Regulation Act, 1886 in the acquired
permanently settled estates) Act, 1974 was brought into being to bring
the tenants in direct relationship with the State Government. The State
now gets uniform land tenure system in which all rayats will enjoy equal
rights and privileges without any discrimination. All owners of Land
Holding ( including Tenants ) are now settlement holders who will be
under contract with State directly to pay Land revenue.

2. The rates of rent paid by the tenants in Goalpara would be incorporated

as revenue payable under Assam Land & Revenue Regulation Act, 1886
for a period of 25 years. All the persons designated as tenants in
erstwhile permanently settled areas would thereafter be governed as
settlement holders under Assam Land & Revenue Regulation Act, 1886.

3. The under tenants, adhiars in Goalpara, Karimganj i.e. erstwhile

Goalpara, Karimganj and all other districts (permanently settled and
temporarily settled areas would be governed by the provision of Assam
Tenancy Act, 1971.
 CONCLUSION

In fact, on perusal of the various provisions of Assam (Temporarily Settled

Areas) Tenancy Act, 1971 and Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holding Act,
1956(as amended), inference can be drawn that Legislature aims at protection
of right and interest of the tenants who cultivate agricultural land i.e. of the
tillers of the soil and for the purpose of ensuring justice, socio-economic
equality as cardinal principles of democracy.