India's Green Revolution

Author(s): Biplab Dasgupta

Source: Economic and Political Weekly , Feb., 1977, Vol. 12, No. 6/8, Annual Number
(Feb., 1977), pp. 241-243+245+247+249+251+253+255+257+259-260
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly

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 India's Green Revolution
Biplab Dasgupta

This paper examines the social and economic consequences of the introduction of high-yielding
varieties in Indian agriculture.
I ;)a irtictilatr, it tries to, identify the factors wthich explain the initial success of the HYV as well
as the stagnation following the peak year of 1971.
The author attempts, in the light of this examiniation, to indicate the future scope of the high-
yielding varieties programme in solving India's food problem.

THE main objective of this study is to
examine the social and economic conse-
quences of the introduction of high-
yielding varieties to India. In particular
it seeks to identify the factors which
explain the success of the initial period
with HYV as well as stagnation
of the period following the peak
year of 1971 and then, in the
light of this examination, to indicate,
subject to the constraints of data,
the future scope of the high-yielding
programme in solving India's food prob-
lem. This study is a part of a bigger
worldwide study on the social and eco-
nomic impact of high-yielding varieties
sponsored by the United Nations Re-
search Institute for Social Development.1
DATA BASE
The main data base of the study
consists of seven micro-level studies
mark; major industries were severely
wndertaken in different parts of India
under the auspices of the UNRISD
Global 2 project. Four of these micro-
studies were undertaken in wheat prod-
ucing areas: Ferozepur (Punjab), Kar-
nal and Hissar (Haryana), Muzaffar-
nagar (Uttar Pradesh) and Kotar (Ra-
jasthan); in rice producing areas -
North Arcot (Tamil Nadu) and Burd-
wvan, Sambalpur and Sahabad (three
eastern region districts) - and one on
rice from a wheat-producing area -
Gurdaspur (Punjab). While these stu-
dies contain many common elements
the world, and the only way to save
and cover c, common set of issues, these
were conducted more or less indepen-
dently in terms of research design and
methodology.
There is no standardised data format
applieable to all the studies, which im-
plies that the results from individual
micro-studies are not easilv amenable
to statistical manipulation excepting for
crude averages. It is also important to
note that these studies do not consti-
tute a random sample of India's rural
area. These have been purposely select-
ed to highlight some of the essential
features of the areas where the new
varieties have been introduced on a re-
latively large scale. The conclusion
drawn from these studies are indicative
of the main trends, but their statistical
significance remains suspect. However,
we have tried to be cautious in our in-
terpretation of data, and have refrained
from jumping to conclusions without
corroboration from a good number of
other studies. Among the crops, rice
and wheat have been extensively exa-
mined in these studies, while the cove-
rage of other crops is not too good.
In addition to Global 2 micro-studies,
we have used evaluation reports pre-
pared by PEO and various AERCs.
BACKGROUND
The economic conditions in India
during the mid-sixties, on the eve of
the introduction of the new high yield-
ing seed varieties, were the worst ever
during the post-Independence period:
per capita income reached its low water
hit by recession; unemployment was
mounting. The country was heavily de-
pendent on food imports from the Uni-
ted States, for which India had to pay
a heavy political price. Besides, there
was uncertainty about the ability of the
food-surplus countries in the world to
continue to supply the nieeds of the
food deficient countries. In India's case
this uncertainty turned into horror when
the Paddock brothers put forward their
thesis that by 1975 there would be
widespread famine in different parts of
the maximum number from death
would be for the United States, by then
the only food surplus country, to adopt
a policy of discriminating in favour of
only those countries who could be sav-
ed.2 The Paddock brothers considered
India a hopeless case, and listed her
under 'can't be saved' category. Not
everyone took the Paddock brothers'
thesis seriously, but it was clear that
the supply and demand conditions in
the world food market was decidely
turning against India.
There was therefore virtually no op-
tion but to seek self-sufficiency in food
production. However, the possibility of
increasing food production through ex-
tension of land under cultivation was
limited; for the future, an overwhelming
part of the increased production had
to come by way of increase in the prod-
uictivity of land. One way of achieving
this was by arranging a more egalita-
rian distribution of land under the
given technology, as many of the em-
pirical studies conducted during the
sixties showed the smaller holdings to
be more productive than their larger
counterparts; but this could not be ac-
complished without hurting the rural
elite, the 'vote banks', who formed the
backbone of the ruling party's support
in the countryside. The government
was therefore looking for an alternative
which, while increasing land producti-
vity and food surplus, could be pursued
without upsetting the existing agrarian
structure.
It was against this background that
the new varieties, imported from Mexi-
co and Philippines, were introduced.
Because of their very high yields, these
were greeted as 'miracle seeds'; their
arrival was expected to herald an era of
growing prosperity. Hopes were raised
of achieving at long last the cherished
goal of self-sufficiency in foodgrains, of
winning the war against the unpredic-
table monsoon by stabilising food pro-
duction, and of producing enough both
to match the population increase and
to clear the enormous backlog of nutri-
tional deficiency. With a decade's ex-
perience with the new seeds behind
us, we are now able to assess its per-
formance objectively; to identify its
strong poin-- as well as the weak ones.
The first and foremost question is,
is the new technology 'revolutionary' in
the limited sense of making a rapid in-
crease in food production possible?
Since the protagonists of the new tech-
nology have made production their
strongest argument, hoping that in-
creased production through a technolo-
gical revolution would eventually take
care of the other problems, such as
poverty, unemployment, maldistribution
of resources and benefits, it is only fair

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 Annual Number February 1977 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY
that its success or otherwise would be
largely judged against the criterion of
production. It is true that the results
from controlled field experiments fully
justified this claim. One study went as
far as suggesting the possibility of pro-
ducing ten tons per irrigated hectare;
on that basis, less than half of India's
irrigated acreage would have been
needed to fulfil the fifth-five-year-plan
target of producing 140 million tons by
1978-79. Figures from real life experi-
ence are much less dramatic, but, even
these confinn the considerable produc-
tion potential of the new high yielding
varieties. If the production conditions
prevailing in the wheat production in
Ferozepur or Ludhiana were universal
in the country as a whole, or even in
the irrigation tracts, the miracle in food
production anticipated in the mid-sixtieN
could have happened.
THiREE PHASES
The period since the introduction of
high yielding varieties can be conveni-
ently divided into three phases. The
first phase, from 1966 to 1971 was
characterised by a rapid increase in the
area under HYVs, and the overall food
production increased from a low 72
million tons to 108 million tons. The
fourth plan target of 129 million tons
of food by 1973-74 looked feasible.
Imports declined from 10 million tons
in 1966 to 2 million tons in 1971.
The literature of the period, however,
expressed two types of worries; the re-
lative failure of the HYV programme
among non-wheat crops, particularly
rice which is the main food item in the
country; and the growing inequality in
the countryside largely because of the
early adoption of new varieties by the
larger farmers and the institutional
bottlenecks which were preventing the
small farmers from participating in the
programme. In the case of rice, the res-
ponse of the government was to inten-
sify its research programme for breed-
ing viable high-yielding rice varieties,
while attempts were made through the
establishment of specialised agencies,
like the Small Farmers Development
Agency, to cater for special needs of
the underprivileged sections in the
countryside. It was expected that, in
time, with better access to credit and
information, the smaller farmers would
succeed in overcoming their initial dis-
advantage, while a technological break-
through in breeding viable rice varieties
would widen the scope of the pro-
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gramme. In general, the first phase of from the new varieties. The food pro-
the HYV programme was characterised duction consistently declined, from 108
by a mood of optimism, there was million tons to 101 million tons, food
widespread feeling that at long last In-imports began soaring again, from a
dia's food problem could be solved low figure of 0.45 million tons in 1972
with the aid of 'miracle seeds' and the to 7.41 million tons in 1975. The high
country's dependence on imports of yielding varieties programme, as view-
food would end. ed at the end of 1975, seemed to have
reached a state of stagnation. All the
Despite the impressive performance
familiar problems of pre-HYV era, de-
of the new varieties in some regions,
pendence on imports, harvest failure,
there was no solid statistical foundation
and famine conditions in various parts
for the uncontrolled optimism of the
government in the early seventies. As of the country, were visible again. The
objective of self-sufficiency in foodgrains
the Agricultural Prices Commission in
seemed as elusive as ever.
the heady days of 1970-713 noted, al-
though the bumper crop of that year The third phase, limited to only one
had swung the pendulum 'full length year, 1975-76, with an estimated food
from the psychological trough of the production of 116 million tons, marked
exceptional drought years of 1965-66 an end to the declining trend in food
and 1966-67 to a new peak of optimism production with the highest ever pro-
marked by a certain pre-occupation duction figure for the country. As in
with the problems of plenty, there 1971, the previous peak year, those in
seems little basis here for the inference
authority are presently claiming the in-
that the foodgrain output of the countryauguration of an era of plenty; but with
in recent years has moved away to a the experience of one full decade under
higher growth path'. Not only that the the new technology behind us, and with
experience with the new varieties until the full knowledge of the continued
then was too short, and the available dependence of India's agriculture on
observations therefore too few, to war-monsoon, we should be cautious in
rant any confident assertion with regardreading too much from the data for
to the new trend rate of growth in only one year.
foodgrains output, in fact, the state-
Taking the entire HYV period into
wise figures suggested that most of the
account, including the latest and the
8.3 million ton increase of that year
best year, the rate 'of growth in food
came from the states which are poorly
production (at 2.5 per cent a year) is
endowed with irrigation water and
less than the historical growth rate du-
which had not been subjected to the
ring the pre-HYV period with a less
influence of the new technology: Rajas-
advanced technology.
than (4 million tons), Bihar, Madhya
Pradesh and Gujarat (another 2.7 mil- This is not to suggest that India
would have been better off without the
lion tons). In contrast, the production
high yielding varieties or that without
increase in Punjab, the heartland of
the new technology, was no more than these the country's food production
figures would have followed the his-
a hundred thousand tons in that year.
torical trend. Whereas most of the in-
The conclusion the Commission drew
crease in the food production in the
from these figures was that the high
figure of 1970-71 reflected the unusual- fifties came from an expansion of ac-
r-eage under cultivation during the six-
ly favourable weather of that year. On
ties only a marginal increase in pro-
the negative side, it showed the con-
duction could be accomplished by ex-
tinued vulnerability of the Indian ag-
tending acreage. The modest production
riculture to bad weather: "if nature
increase during the late sixties was lar-
can be bountiful in one year, it can be
gely a product of increased land produc-
niggardly in another", it concluded.
tivity, a great deal of it through the
The second phase, from 1972 to 1975
adoption of high yielding varieties and
characterised by unfavourable weather,
their associated inputs. Without the
vindicated the cautious stance of the
contribution of the new varieties to
Agricultural Prices Commission.
land productivity, and given the
While the overall acreage under HYV country's socio-political structure, In-
increased substantially, the spread of dia in the late sixties and the
the new technology to less resourceful early seventies cpuld have been
areas and farmers, a serious shortage visited by large-scale starvation and
of inputs and a consequent deteriora- famines. In that sense the new seeds
tion in their qual ty, affected the yield
have prevented a disaster, at least for
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ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977

the time being; but this is as far as one
could say to their credit. On the other
hand, the hopes raised by the new vari-
eties in the early years have been dash-
ed by the reality of their performance.
The agriculture in India is almost as
much a prey of the unpredictable mon-
soon today as it was until the mid-six-
ties; the path followed by food produc-
tion figures continues to run almost
parallel to the graph of weather index.
What explains the dismal performance
of the new varieties? WVas there some-
thing wrong with the seeds themselves?
Or with the complementary inputs?
Should the explanation for this be
sought in the new agricultural strategy
accompanying the new seeds and in-
puts? Did the fauilt lie with the institu-
tional framework within which the new
strategy was ptut into operation? A re-
lated question is, how does one explain
the differences in performance of the
new varieties between the period up to
1971 and the subsequent period? Why
the technology was more successful
with wheat, and in Punjab?
'MIRACLE SEEDS'
Considering the seeds first it is clear
from the experience over the past ten
years that the high yielding wheat seeds
have, on the whole, acquitted themsel-
ves well in terms of productivity, pest-
resistance and culinary characteristics;
although over the last two years there
have been reports of some decline in
production due to rust. The experience
sets of problems. Firstly, the high turn-cides and weedicides its output would
with rice varieties tells a different story.
The first seed variety, Taichung Native over rate of the varieties, particularly be highly variable, and without resort
1, was an unmitigated disaster and,
although varieties introduced in subse-
quent years have proved themselves less
vulnerable to pest attacks and diseases,
the variability of their output - over
seasons, years and regions - is still
qtuite hiigh. A major problem with HYV
r-ice seeds is that these are cultivated future production. However, the high
in an environment which helps the
breeding of insects and pests. The
unsuitability of the dwarf rice varieties vise his crop calendar and learn a new
in flooded monsoon conditions is ano-
ther major problem. Efforts to produce
breeds which can adapt themselves to
the monsoon has so far met with limit-
ed success, which largely explains the
hiigh uncertainty and low profitabiliLy
of HYV rice cultivation compared to
HYV wheat cultivation. Given the im
portance of rice in Indian agriculture - ding varieties. Thirdly, the new seeds
both in terms of acreage and the pro-
portion of population for whom it is
thoe main food item - the success of
the new technology in future is condi- proper machinery for the certification
tional on its ability to achieve a break- of seeds for preserving their quality
through in breeding a new rice variety and guaranteeing against adulteration.
which will combine the high yielding
NENv INPUTS AND PRACICELS
properties with a high degree of resis-
tance of pests with ability to grow with The technology of 'green revolution
rain water, and with desirable culinary the name given to the technology
characteristics to make its production associated with the new seeds, can be
worthwhile to the great: majority of defined in terms of a package of agri-
subsistence farmers. The high-yielding cultural inputs and new agricultural
varieties for the oth three major crops practices. The core of this package is
- maize, sorghum and millet - also the 'miracle seed' discussed above.
suffer from the high variability of out- with yield figures much higher than
put due to their susceptibility to pest- those for both traditional and locally
attack. improved varieties, which have been
The battle with pests and diseases developed through selective breeding
canniot be won overnight, even with to be highly responsive to fertiliser
wheat varieties which have so far per- input. The vulnerability of the nev
formed quite satisfactorily in this res seeds (particularly of rice and hybrid
pect. Whereas the traditional varieties crops) to pest attacks and -the fertiliser-
have passed through nature's selection induced growth of weeds, have led to
process under a variety of conditions increased use of pesticides and weedi-
over hundreds of years and have bz- cides with the HLVs. A controlled
come a part of the eco-system, for the water supply is another essential inputt
new varieties the tests and trials have since even too much water is bad for
just begun. Varieties equipped to cop" the new dwarf varieties unsuited tc
with one set of pests might be con- flooded conditions. While the shortei
fronted after a few years of success maturing period of the new varieti'as
with another set which had remainedi permits double-cropping, the bottleneck
dormant for many years and for whom created by the need to complete the
the former created favourable conditions land preparation for the new crop
for growth. As the human experience soon after the harvesting of the pre-
in other fields shows - e g, the prob- vious crop can be more easily re-
lem of malaria control with the growth moved with machines, particularly
of DDT-resistant mosquitoes - the tractors.
scientists can ill afford to relax their All these inputs together form a
guard in this continuous battle with 'package'. New seeds without wa-er
nature. and fertiliser would be unable to
The new seeds also face three other realise its full potential, without insecti-
in cases of rice and hybrid varieties. to mechanisation its potential for multi-
Most varieties are being replaced by ple cropping would remain underutilised.
the new and better ones within two The 'package approach' is a major
feature of the 'new agricultural strategy
or three years of their introduction. This
in one sense indicates the rate of pro- associated with HYVs.
gress with research in breeding and is The 'green revolution' also incorpo-
important from the point of view of rates a package of new agricultural
practices, and the two together form
tumover confuses the illiterate and the technology of the high-yielding
traditional farmer who is forced to re- varieties. The new technology follows
a new crop calendar, given the shorter
set of agricultural practices every timo maturing period of the new varieties
a change is made. Secondly, the new and the possibilities of multiple crop-
varieties require regular renewal, parti-ping. Each new input brings with it a
cularly in cases of hybrids, whereas thenew set of cultural practices. The
traditional farmer is not used to buying farmer should now know how much
seeds. The neglect of this need for the fertiliser to use in which- type of soil,
renewal of stock is an important factor when and in what proportion between
behind the declining yield of high yiel- nitrogen, phosphate and potash. Simi-
larly, the farmer should now know
are often of low quality due to inade- which type of insecticide to use and by
quate germination tests and seed-treat- how much according to the type of
ment arrangements, and a lack of a insect to which the particular variety

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 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977

of seeds is vulnerable. Farmers using insistence on security have made so fortunate with respect to water
tractors, seed drills, threshers, and so it almost impossible for the availability and other resources. A kind
on should learn their use and main- poorer farmers to get financial of Ricardian Law was in operation, as
tenance. support for buying indivisibles. more of the less developed areas were
Compared with traditional agricultural Among the inputs the prices of being brought under cultivation.
inputs, some of the major characteristics 'indivisibles' like tractors and Secondly, the input constraint, which
of the new inputs are as follows: tubewells are too high for any- was not so serious in the first phase,
(a) Market-orientation. Unlike the body but the richest among the now became a major obstacle to
traditional cultivation, where the farmers to afford. WVhile the use growth. The production and import
farmer largely uses the last of these inputs is spreading of fertiliser, tractors, and other inputs
year's seed, manure produced bv among small farmers, this is mak- were not expanding as fast as the
farm animals, home-made tools, ing them increasingly dependent spread of the new technology. In parti-
family-owned bullocks, and family on their richer counterparts. Be- cular, the oil crisis of 1973 dealt a
labour as the major inputs, the sides, the small farmers do not heavy blow to the new technology,
new technology makes him de- always obtain these inputs in dependent as it was on imported energy;
pendent on the market for the time, the owners naturally pre- in the case of fertiliser, the four-fold
supply of new seeds, chemical ferring to give priority to their increase in prices following the oil
fertiliser, pesticides and herbi- own needs. crisis discouraged demand by so much
cides, hired labour and hired (c) Impoit and energy intensity. Not that the country even managed to show
agricultural machinery. only that the modem input, are a surplus out of the available meagre
(b) High cost. In the case of wheat, market-oriented, these are often supply. As for irrigation, the estimates
the high cost of HYV cultivation dependent on markets outside showed that even by the end of the
is more than neutralised by high the country. The domestic seventies more than two-thirds of the
productivity per unit of land and production of fertiliser, although cultivated land would remain unirrigat-
a lower cost per unit of output growing, is a long way behind ed, while even a most optimistic esti-
than its traditional counterpart. the domestic need even at a mate of the available tractors showed
The picture is hazy with respect much lower level of input per that by the end of the seventies only
to the other crops, particularly unit of land than many other about 3 per cent of the total cultivated
rice. In terms of profitability countries of the world, notably land would be covered.
also, while the cultivation of HYV Japan. The same is true of the Thirdly, the scarcity of inputs led to
wheat seems worthwhile, the other petro-chemicals, and the a deterioration in their quality. (If
picture is unclear with respect to oil needed for driving the trac- account is taken of adulteration, the
rice. tors, irrigation pumps and other amount of input available per unit of
Most of the money for financ- farm machinery, and of modern land would appear even less satisfactory
ing the purchase of new inputs farm machinery. Therefore, their in the second phase.) The maintenance
has come from the farmers availability in the country is of the standard of inputs which was
themselves, institutional cre- largely conditional on the com- not easy, since the administrative ap-
dit being responsible for less peting demands on the scarce paratus - not known for its efficiency
than one-tenth 'of the total. How- foreign exchange resources of the in the best of times - came under con-
ever, with further expansion of country from various sectors of siderable strain with the spread of the
HYV programme, particularly the economy and on their price. new technology. Not only was the dos-
among the poorer sections who Given the above three characteristics age often inadequate, and the quality
cannot afford the heavy financialof the modem inputs, it is not surprising poor, the scarcity of inputs also had its
demands of the new technology, that the progress of the new varietieseffect on the timeliness of their supplies.
it is imperative that institutional came to a halt after 1971. In the first In the absence of storage facilities at the
credit bears a significant propor- phase the available inputs were applied village level, it was necessary that the
tion of the total cost. At the vil-to a selected number of areas which inputs would be supplied at the right
lage level, the primary co-opera- were known for their developed infra- time. Often bad transport systems pre-
tive societies are responsible for structure, particularly irrigation and vented the timely arrival of the inputs;
allocating credit; and largely be- credit facilities as well as a developed villages where the new varieties were
cause of bureaucratic formalities transport and communication network, introduced in the second phase were
associated with their functioning and the presence of a group of rich more likely to suffer from this untimely
a large part of the inodest farmers who were prepared to experi- arrival as their transport and storage
amount made available through ment with the new technology. The facilities were comparatively less deve-
them has not been disbursed; success of the new varieties during this loped.
many fairmers, particularly thephase largely reflected the rich endow- These three factors, in addition to
poor landless and tenants, have ment of the host areas, the intensive several bad monsoons, largely explain
faced institutional difficulties in application of inputs, and a remarkably the failure of the new technology during
gaining access to the benefits favourable run of good weather for the second phase.
being distributed by the co-ope- three years. In contrast, in the second It is often argued, on the basis of
ratives. Similarly, the rigid lend- phase, the new strategy faced a seri-s field experiments, that the new seed
ing practices followed by the of difficulties. varieties are more productive than the
land mortgage banks and com- First of all, the new technology was traditional ones even when these are not
mercial banks, particularly their now spreading to arreas which were not applied in conjunction with fertiliser.

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 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977
Even if this is true its implication
cannot be that the new technology can
(lo without fertiliser. In the first place
given the heavy investment required
for introducing the new seeds plus the
uncertainty associated with it, the smallertionable whether in a country wlhich is
farmers could not be expected to give
tip the traditional varieties and practi- capacity to import is limited, an im-
ces unless the yield differential was
substantial. Secondly, given the heavy
loss of soil nutrient caused by HYV
cultivation (which is barely compen-
sated by the present level of fertiliser
use), and the tendency towards double
cropping and a declining share of fallow
land, to cultivate the new seeds withb
out fertiliser might lead to an alarming
decline in soil fertility in the long run.
No less important is the impact of
the new technology on another highly
important natural resource: under-
grouind water. The unregulated, wide-
spread installation of tubewells and
pump sets in some areas of Punjab has
caused the water table there to fall,
which puts the future production
possibilities in these areas at risk. The
environmentalists also argue against
the use of pesticides which pollute the
environment and cause the death of
non-target organisms (like birds,
fishes and many other living crea-
tures), although, given the present
low level of pesticide use in the coun-
try, this argument need not be taken
too seriously.
Perhaps the most serious environ-
mentalist argument against the new
technology is that it disrupts the existing
ecological balance. This by itself can-
not be a strong argument against the
new technology since too much concern
for the prevailing eco-system is inimical other criteria set up by the government.
to any measure for change and pro-
gress. But to the extent this argument
is a warning against experimentations
whose likely consequences on the eco-
system are unknown, it deserves serious
attention. For example, it is important
to know to what extent the new varie-
ties, while resistant to one set of pests
and diseases, are vulnerable to another
set of pests and diseases. It is impor-
tant to know to what extent the drastic
decline in the number of planted
varieties with the large-scale adoption
of the standardised new varieties is
exposing the globe's agriculture to a
serious risk of a gigantic crop failure
due to an epidemic. s
Our study clearly shows that even on
purely technical grounds the new
technology is not viable in the Indian
context. This is largely because of
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various constraints on the supply, quality
and timing of inputs which arise when
the HYV acreage is extended beyond a
small number of richly endowed enclaves.
In the light of these factors it is ques-
deficient in energy and capital and whose
port-intensive, energy-intensive, and
capital-intensive technology, like the
one associated with the HIWs can ever
work.
It may also be asked whether a more
viable alternative would not have been
to seek a technology which largely
relied on indigenous inputs and recy-
clable resources, and which could be
more easily blended with local land-
scape, culture, and vast human resources.
SELECTIVE STRATEGY AND DISTBUIION
OF GAEs
Having examined the major limitations
of the 'green revolution' technology in
offering a lasting solution to India's
food problem, let us now briefly exa-
mine the 'new agricultural strategy'
within the framework of which it was
introduced.
The cornerstone of the new agricul
tural strategy of 1965, was its selective
approach: selection of areas endowed
with a favourable inf* astructure, and
within these areas the selection of 'pro-
gressive farmers' (who were usually the
larger farmers) for the distribution of
inputs. The allocation of inputs at each
level of administrative hierarchy -from
state, through district to block - was
dependent on its resource endowments,
past performance and fulfilment of
At the village level, the allocation was
done on the basis of a list of farmers
prepared by the Village Level Worker.
The rationale behind this strategy was
quite simple: given the limitations
of supply of modern inputs, these
should reach those areas and people who
are likely to make their most optimum
use. Rather than thinly spreading the
inputs over a large area and among many
farmers, this strategy called for the
intensive use of 'package' of inputs.
The selective approach of the new
agricultural strategy stood counter to
the declared objectives of the commu-
unity development or co-operative
movement of involving the masses in
rural development. It presented a
technical solution to the country's food
problem and bypassed the insiitutional
issues. Rather than smashing or even
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weakening the village power structure
through land reform and other mea-
sures, attempt was made to enlist their
support to the exclusion of the rest of
the village population. Through the
new agricultural strategy, the govemment
chose to rely on modem inputs and
'progressive farmers' for increasing land
productivity; if this strategy succeeded,
the calculation was, there would be
plenty of food and employment for the
poor. The question of distribution was
considered a separate issue to be hand-
led through suitable fiscal and relief
measures, and the creation of special
agencies for target groups.
While this selective strategy was
successful in the resourceful wheat
areas of Haryana and Punjab, and some
other pockets of India, it was realised
by the late-sixties that the food prob-
lem for the country as a whole could
not be solved without extending HYV
cultivation to new areas, and perhaps
also to less prosperous farmers. But
when attempts were made to extend
HYV coverage, the severe limitations
on input supply, whit were not so
apparent as long as the HYV cilltiva-
tion was restricted to a small area,
became evident.
In areas where the new strategy has
been successful in terms of food pro-
duction, it is argued by several re-
searchers that its introduction has
favoured the richer farmers.
Some argue that the bias against
the small farmers is built into the new
technology by the very costly nature
of the inputs, the role of indivisibles
like tractors and also by the selective
strategy accompanying the new techno-
logy. Some, while accepting that the
technology is 'scale neutral', put for-
ward the view that the 'access to re-
sources' is not scale neutral. The argu-
ments put forward by the protagonists
of the new technology on this issue are
as follows:
(a) While it is true that initially the
new technology is adopted by
the large farms, over time its
use would 'percolate down' to
even the smallest of farmers.
Therefore, the Inequality evi
denced in the early years would
gradually disappear.
(b) The new technology, with its
strong emphasis on mechanisation
and modernisation of agricultu-
re, which helps to increase out-
put and employment, brings
additional income to all sections
of the rural population including
247
ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977

the very poor and landless, al-
though it might bring relativelv
more income to the richer sec-
tions.
Taking the first argulment first, it is true
that over time the new technology is
spreading to smaller farmers. Not only
the use of divisible like seed, fertiliser
or insecticide, even the use of tractors,
threshers and other farm machinerv
are expanding among the smaller farm-
ers in areas where the new techlnology
has been relatively successful. Our stu-
dv also slhows that once thevy decide
to adopt the new seeds they usually
put a higher proportion of their acre-
age under it than their larger counter
parts. But this by itself does not con-
stituite firm evidence in suippo-rt of the
'per-colation' tlheory.
Ouir studv shows that, unlike tradi-
tional agriculture, wbere the smaller
farnmers cuiltivate their land more inten-
sively in terms of both family laboum
and other inputs and show a higher
production figure per unit of land than
their larger counterparts; under the
new technology, the tendency is for
the larger farms to input as much as,
or even more than, the smaller farms
and to secure a yield which is no
worse, than the yield figures for the
smaller farms. Among various size ca-
tegories, in the case of rice cultiva-
tion, the profit is largest for farms of
10 acres plus size category, which is
large by standards of rice cultivation
in India and other par-ts of South and
South East Asia; and in the case of
wheat, the mechanised farms above
30-40 acres enjoy a clear advantage
in terms of costs and profits than their
smaller neighbours. The cost advan-
tages of the larger farms would seem
greater if the imputed cost of main-
taining family labour is added to the
accounts of smaller farms.
To what extent this relatively low luced by our study is the growing skew-
nless in the distribution of assets, parti-
pr-ofitability of snmaller farms has affect-
e.( the distribution of land, asset and cularlv of farm assets like tubewells
income in the 'green revolution' areas? and tractors. This shows that in future
Otur study clearly shows that the skew- the larger farms would be able to re-
ness in the (listribution of land is in- tain their advantage over the smaller
creasing; and tllis is despite the fol-
lowing, factors which would tend to
shiow, at least statistically, a more ega-
litarian land distribution:
(a) Oxver time, because of thc ope-
ration of inheritancce laws, the
lholdings woluld be getting frag-
menited.
(b) Since the land distribution fi-
glures cio not usually take into
account the landlless househlolds,
and assuming the possibility of
some of the landowning house-
holds (usually the ones with
smaller holdings) dropping off
the list of such households thro-
ugh transfer of their land,
there would be tendency to-
wards a more egalitarian land
distribution among the landown-
ing households, although the
concentration of land measured
by taking into account all house-
holds would show an increase.
(c) The tendency among the large
landowners to conceal a part of
the land under their ownership
or operation, to avoid the ceil-
ing laws or to make them eligi-
ble for concessions and benefits
given to smaller holdings.
The significance of our findings on
the growing inequality in the land dis-
tribution is partly tempered by lack of
any positive finding on the impact ol
the new- technology on income distri-
bufion. Since the smaller holdings
usuiallv earn from many diverse sources,
whlile the larger farmns depend nearly
exclu-sively on farm business income,
other things remaining the same, one
would expect a somewhat less skewed
distribution in terms of household in-
come, compared to the figure for land
distribution. However, one should be
careful about reading too much from fi-
gures of income of rural households,
which is probably by far the most diffi-
cult item to measure in the contpxt of
the economy of a poor country. And,
irrespective of whether the income
distribution has worsened withn the in-
troduction of the new technology, one
shotuld note that the distribution foi
any given time period or region is very
higlhly skewed indeed.
The most damaging piece of eviden-
ce against the 'percolation theory' pro-
farms partly because of their greatei
credit-worthiness and risk-bearing capa-
city based on the high value of 'heir
asset holdings, and partly because of
the higher earning capacity generated
by their ownership of productive farm
assets.
Attemupts made by the government
to remove the handicaps of the smaller
farms by creating special agencies to
lookd after their interests have mzade
very little impression, partly because of
administrative drawbacks and partly be.
cause of the hindrances created by so-
cio-political structures of the v'llage
life in India. The Small Farmer's De-
velopment Agency is no more than a
subsidy-giving agency which operates
with an inadequate administrative back-
up through the existing credit institu-
tions, which are knowin for their bias
against the small farm.ers and 1anants.
Furthermore, as most evaluation re-
ports on SFDA show, many of the be-
nefits of the agency have been rc'aped
by richer farmers who, by manipulating
records and the administration, lhave
presented themselves eligible as bene-
ficiaries. It is very clear from. the cx-
periences of SFDA and similar othei
agencies set up to cater for the special
needs of the' unprivileged sections of
the population that suclh administrative
actiolns for target groups have little
clhanice of success as long as the exist-
ing village institutions remain unre-
formed.
SoIm1e of the studies for which data
exist show that the percentage of agri-
cultural labour households is much
higher than the percentage of house-
holds with agricultural labour as their
traditional occupation, but these do not
indicate the time span over which
such occupational shift had taken place.
Although the Census data for 1971 in-
dicate a radical increase in the per-
centage of households for which agri-
culture is the occupation, again it is
not clear bow much of it has been -'e
result of the agricultural crisis of thte
first half of the sixties and how mucl
a product of the 'green revolution',
leaving aside the question to what ex-
tent the increase reflects definitional
changes between the two census years.
In the absence of alternative employ-
ment opportunities in the village o r
outside, it is highly unlikely ihat a
small farmer would part with tne
land in his possession excepting as a
last resort. It is clear that a large pio-
portion of the new entrants to the ag-
r icultural labouir force are former te-
nants who have been evicted by tlhe
resumption of land by self-cultivating
owners. Some of the small farming
households encage in ag-icultuiral la-
bour as a subsidiary oocuption: over
tinme with population increase and frag-
mentation of small holdings, some of
them move to agricultural labour as the
primary occupation.
WVhat has been the effect of the new
technology on the life and work of the

249

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 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977
agricultural workers? As regards em-
ployment, our study suggests that,
while the mechanisation of ploughing
operation has displaced human labour
this has been more than offset by addi.
tional employment created through a
greater labour need for application of
fertiliser, weeding and harvesting, and
other activities, and also due to increase
in the area under double crop. While
the amount of work has increased, lar-
gely because the degree of mechanisa-
tion of agriculture is still not high and
in many places bullocks are still used
alongside tractors, in the long run, with
a wider application of tractors, and par-
ticularly of harvesters, there is a serious
risk of a sudden decline in the nurner
of labour days needed per unit of land.
The introduction of machines has in-
duced changes in the pattern of work.
The richer houselholds are now dispens-
ing with the services of their farm ser-
vants, particularly in view of the in-
crease in the participation of family iaS
bour in cultivation, and are relyirng
more on casual or contract lal-our.
Even the smaller households are being
constrained to hire labour during haxr-
vesting, both because of the sheer vo-
lume of work associated with highei
productivity and also because of the
time constraints when they are under-
taking double cropping.
Two other phenomena are worth.
noting. MWhile the amount of work
in terms of labour days has increased,
such work is now being performed by
a smaller number of hired people. elie
participation rate of the village popu-
lation i-n the work force is declining,
particularly of the women and children,
as well as the old, who are opting out
of work. Secondly, the areas wkich
have been successful in their applica-
tion of the new technology are at.
tracting workers from the neighbouring
areas who are working as casual oi
contract labour and are moving from
village to village particularlv during
harvest time. Wages are being paid
mostly in cash. While the money wa-
ges have undoubtedly increased, thete
is conflict between studies undertaken
in different areas which used differenthaps the location factor. To quote
cost of living deflators regarding the
movement of real wages as a resuXlt or
ofless a continuous area with a lar ge
the 'green revolution'. To summarise degree of ecological and agro-climatic
while the new technology has expandeduniformity, unlike the rice or millet
employment in the short run, in the
long run, with further advance in me-
chanisation, there is a serious risk of a
negative employment effect from it.
While the new technology has increas-
202.41.10.102 on Sat, 23 Apr 2022 08:56:28 UTC
ed the money income of all sections of
the population, and probably also real
income in some 'green revolution' areas
(e g, Punjab and Haryana), as most
studies confirm, there is no doubt that
their relative position vis-a-vis 'the
richer sections of the rural population
has weakened over this period.
WHY IS IT 'WHEAT REVOLUTION'?
In the view of the failure of the new
technology in meeting the expectations
of the officials, academics and lay pub-
lic alike on an aggregative basis, it is
important to explain the success achi-
eved with wheat, and in certain regions
of the country.
It was the spectacular performance
of the new technology on wheat pro-
duction which earned it its nickname
'wheat revolution'. By 1971-72 about
two-fifths of the wheat area was
brought under the new varieties; by
1973-74, the last year of the fourth five-
year plan, the actual acreage unn'ls
HYV wheat at 11.30 million hectares
far exceeded the targeted 7.20
million hectares. In terms of yield per
unit of land, whereas virtually no
progress was registered at the aggre-
gate level in the case of rice, the achi-
evement with the high-yielding wheat
varieties was tremendous. The aggre-
gate wheat production increased from
10 to 24 million tons in five years be-
tween 1965-66 and 1970-71, a consider.
able achievement by almost any stand-
ards.4 Even the cautious report of the
Agricultural Prices Commission refer-
red to above noted that the perform-
ance of wheat during the 'green r!(vo-
lution' period was at a much highlex
level than suggested by the trend line
based on the production figures for
1949-50 to 1964-65. But why wheat,
when the other crops, notably rice,
failed? The credit for this should go
foremost to the breeders of the high-
yielding wheat varieties, both in Mexico
(who first developed them) and in
India (who through cross-breedirng
made them suitable to Indian concli-
tions). No less significant was per-
V S Vyas,5 "The wheat belt is more
zones which are interpersed all over
the country". This made the adaptive
research in wheat relatively simpler.
The wheat growing areas are also co-tn
paratively more developed in terms of
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infrastructure, particularly irrigation
and are economically more advanced
than the rice or millet growing tracts.
Wheat being a 'rabi' crop also helped.
To quote Vyas again, "In most of the
areas, wheat, even though the principal
crop, is a second crop, which makes it
possible for the growers to depend on
funds obtained from the sale of the
first crop."8 This enhances the capacity
of the farmers to innovate and take
risks. In addition, the 'rabi' wheat did
not have to face the problems of mon-
soon cultivation, such as the survival of
dwarf crops in flooded conditions, or
the harvesting of the crop under rain,
due to its short-maturing period, or
the risk of massive attacks of insects
which thrive in damp conditions.
WHY IS PUNJAB ITS HEARTLAND?
It was fortunate that the new wheat
varieties were first introduced in Pun-
jab. For a variety of reasons, this state
was ideally suited to make the best of
the new technology.
It is almost unbelievable today that
at the time of the country's Indepen-
dence, Punjab was a food-deficit state,
a state which is today freely described
as the 'granary of India'. But over
the two decades following Inde-
pendence an infrastructure favourable
to modem agriculture was built in that
state.
The first to contribute to agricultui-al
development in Punjab was the Ianid
reform legislations passed during the
early and the middle fifties, which
took away land from the very large in-
termediaries and vested those In nwn-
er-occupiers.7 Traditionally, Punjab ag-
riculture was always dominated by tli
owner-occupiers, because of the preva-
lence of the ryotwari system but these
reforms increased the area under the
owner-occupiers from 51.4 per cent in
1947 to 66.4 per cent in 1957. By 1969-
70, the percentage of owner-occupiers
had increased further to 80.89 per
cent, largely due to the phenomenon
of resumption of land by the owners
and eviction of tenarnts; the percenitage
of tenancy holdings dropped from 47.2
per cent in 1947 and 32.5 per cent in
1957 to a small 19.11 per cent in 1969-
70. So the new technology was first
introduced in a state where cultivation
was largely undertaken by the owners
themselves with the help of their em-
ployees.8
The development of agriculture in
the state was prompted in no smnal
251
 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977
ineasure by the relative prosperity of
the state; both in terms of the rich enl
dowment of land as wvell as in terms
of the motivation and ability of its peo-
ple. The average holding size in Pun-
jab is larger than in the rest of the
country,9 and a higlh percentage of the
cropped area is irrigated,10 two of the
necessary conditions for the successful
application of the niew technology. Be-
sides, the degree of mechanisation was
very high compared to other states, even
before the introduction of the n-ew
seeds. Whereas there was not a sinig,le
thresher in 1947, their number stood
at 20,000 in 1964, and in 1970 it in-
creased further to 80,000 whiclh ac-
counted for the threshing of 98 per cent
of the state's wheat area. Similar pro-
gress was achieved with tubewells,
tractors and other farm machinery.t1
The mechanisation was partly helped
by the larger size of the land holdiings
anid partly by the fact that owner-
occuipiers dominatecl the tenurial sys-
tem, whlo were interested in economis-
ing on labour costs and in reducing the
problems associated with the supervi-
sion of a large labour force. Thb in-
t-roduction of machines, in its turn, en-
couraged the familv members of even
quite rich houLseholds to undertake cul-
tivation, whereas previously they shun-
ned manual labour.'2 The availability
of repair service facilities for farm rna-
chinerv in most of the medium-sized
towns of the state meant that the su-b-
stitution of bullock and manual labour
could be carried to a much greater ex-
tent in this state than was possible in
other Indian states. The availability of
electricity, largely from the hydro-
electricity generation plants of the river
valley projects, was another contributo-
ry factor.13
On the financial side, Punjab's agri-
cultural progress w7as facilitated by the
following two features of Punjab"s so-
cio-economic life. First, is the high mi-
gration propensity of the population
and the practice of the miiigrants to
send remittances in bulk back to theii
villages for the purchase of land and
maclhinery. Orver the years, the migra-
tory flows have increased to other sta-
tes of India, mainly in the transport bu-
siness, as well as to countries outside
India. The actual amounit of remittance
sent back by the Punjab workers in the
Ulnited Kingdom, Canada, East Africa
and the United States can never be
properly estimated in view of the role
played by the 'black market' in foreign
currency, hut there is no doubt about
202.41.10.102 on Sat, 23 Apr 2022 08:56:28 UTC
the impact of remittances sent by re- partly because of the degree of mecha-
latives working abroad on the purchase nisation of its agriculture and partly
of farm machinery. Secondly, no less because its chief source of electricity is
significant has been the long tradition river-valley hydro-electricity projects
of Punjabi village folk of work in the whose power production suffered from
army, which again creates the opportuni-low rain-fall.
ty for saving and remitting it back to No doubt the agriculture in Punjab
the vilage for buying machinery. The will be on its way up again in the near
experiences of Punjabis working in the future. But the prosperity of Punjab's
army or living abroad but maintaining agriculture is now creating another
a regular contact with the village, have problem: the widening disparity be-
also been valuable in widening their ho- tveen regions in terms of their living
rizons, in bringing them into contact stan dards. WVhereas at the tine of In-
with new ideas, and in makiing them dia's Independence, Punjab's position
aspire for a better life. The technolo- was hlardly better than the average
gical awareness of a Punjabi villager, a among the states, by the early seven-
product of work in the army, or in ties tlhis state has emerged as the most
other states with transport trade, or prosperous among them. The prospe-
abroad as a factory hand in the found- rity built on the solid base of its agri-
iies, by himself, or his relatives or ac- culture has enabled the state to diversi-
quaintances, is also an important factor fy its economn by promoting many in-
botlh in the adoption of farm machinery dustries, and to move further away
and in the growth of their servicing in- fromn its rivals in the hierarchy of sta-
dlustries. Credit facilities also have tes. A village in Punjab today, with
been more generous and much less ob- brick-built houses, developed roads,
structive, even to the small farmers, electricity, schools and hospitals, be-
than in the other states.14 longs to a different world from its po-
It is the combination of all these fac- ver-ty-stricken, dark counterparts with
tors which has made Punjab the heart- muddy roads and mud-walled thatched
land of green revolution in India. It roofed houses and very few social ame-
is surprising that, despite Punjab's pre- nities in most other parts of the coun-
eminent role in this field, very little trn, particularly in the eastern region.
r esearch has been done so far to ex- WVhat has been said here about
plore tlhe sociological, economic and Punjab applies to enclaves of new te-
political explanations behind this state'5chnology in other parts of the country
success. The relative success achieved (e g, West Godavari in Andhra).
in Harayana and some parts of Uttar The issue here is not simply one of
Pradesh in tlhe successful adoption of differential living standards between
the new technology can also be largely regions. It raises the fundamental issue
explained by the existence of some of about the exchange price between food
the factors enumerated above in con- and industrial goods and raw materials
nection with Punjab: the high share of in inter-state dealings; the issue of state
owner-occupier holdings, the develop- autonomy, to what extent the food-
ment of credit and irrigation facilities, deficit states (e g, West Bengal and
and the pr-esence of an enterprising Kerala) which produce foreign exchange
group of rich farmers with a back- earning crops are to be allowed to en-
ground in the army or outside the state courage a shift in the cropping pattern
with a high propensity to save and in- in favour of food crops and against
vest in productive farm assets. commercial crops in order to achieve
It is also important to remember state self sufficiency in foodgrains; or
that, despite its spectacuilar success in how the procurement and distribution
the earlier years, even in Ptunjab, the of food crops would be regulated, and
rate of growth of prodluction has slowedhiow income generated from agricultural
down after 1970-71. W17ithin the state,income would be taxed, and so on. If
some areas have been more receptive of the inequality widens, this will, on the
the new technology than others (e g, one hand, encourage the more prosper-
Ludhiana or Ferozepur). WVith the ous states to ask for more autonomy,
spread of the new technology to newer particularly fiscal autonomy, while it
areas, all the problems discussed in re- will generate demand in the poorer
lation to limitations of input capacity states for a redistribution of gains
have also cropped up in Punjab. In through the national fiscal system.
addition, the state has been severely Given India's experience of many
affected by the power crisis, but Punjab l)attles fought between the states on
is mzore vulnerable to it than others border, location of industrial plants,
253
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 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEIEKLY Annual Number February 1977
allocation of river water, the issue of
priority given to the members of a given
state to employment there, and so on,
there is no doubt that the growing
inequality between areas, which benefit-
ed from the new technology and which
did not, would lead to growing tension
among various nationalities and groups.
The phenomenon of migratory move-
ment of landless labourers from less
privileged areas to 'green revolution'
areas for jobs, particularly during the
harvest time, is another source of ten-
sion of this type.
POLIIICAL ECONOMY OF GREFN
RE:VOLUIoN
Although this paper has highlighted
the main causes behind the failure of
the new technology to substantially
increase land productivity, this should
not be interpreted as suggesting that
India's prospects for achieving self-
sufficiency in foodgrains are non-existent.
On the contrary, compared to most
other countries in the world the amount
of cultivated land as a proportion of
the total land mass is surprisingly high
in India. With one-third of China's total
land mnass, the aggregate cultivated
area in India is larger. If the yield
figures in India were as high as those
in Japan, the United States or Belgium,
for example, it would be well within
the capacity of the available cultivated
area to feed a population three times
as large as the current population. A
technological breakthrough in the breed-
ing of rice varieties adaptable to flooded
conditions and pest-resistant can by itself
push food production figures to new
heights. The increased food production,
however, would not by itself solve the
major social and economic problems
created by this new technology.
Nor would it be fair to conclude
from the above discussion that the
modern inputs are by themselves
responsible for the adverse distributional
effects of the new technology. Selec-
tive breeding of seed varieties which
are both robust and high-yielding, is an
important task of agricultural planners
irrespective of the prevailing social
system in the country concerned. Simi-
larly, tractors and threshers can play a
useful role in removing seasonal bottle-
necks -tnder different social svs-
tems. Fertilisers, we have already
noted, would be required to replenish
the fertility of the soil which loses an
enormous amount of nutrient every time
the new high-yielding varieties are
202.41.10.102 on Sat, 23 Apr 2022 08:56:28 UTC
cultivated. The main criticism against
the strategy incorporating these inputs
is its selective approach and reliance
on imported, capital intensive inputs,
whose supply is inadequate in compari-
son with the overall needs of the coun-
try's agriculture, coupled with its
failure to use the most abundant indige-
nous resource: human labour, which is
grossly undertilised in the country-
side. An altemative strategy of encou-
raging social participation of all sections
of rural masses in rural development,
and social ownership of major agricul-
tural inputs is expected both to opti-
mirse the social use of their limited sup-
ply and to prevent the growth of in-
equality which arises from their pri-
vate ownership.
The technology associated with the
new seed varieties needs to be evaluat-
ed in the specific socio-political context
in which it is operating. It is important
to note that our conclusions regarding
some of the major social and economic
consequences of the new technology-
proletarisation of the peasantry and a
consequent increase in the number and
proportion of landless households, grow-
ing concentration of land and assets in
fewer hands and widening disparity
between the rich and the poor house-
holds, and a fall in the rate of partici-
pation of the village population in
work alongside a substantial increase in
the total work load - closely correspond
to those reached by the author's other
study based on village level data of the
pre-HYV period on the impact 'of agri-
cultural modernisation.15 In other
words, what our present study suggests
as consequences of the adoption of
HYV technology, can be generalised as
the consequence of agricultural modem-
isation in a particular socio-political
context characterised by the domination
of village life by a powerful elite.
The new agricultural strategy, we
have already noted, can be seen as an
attempt by the government to solve the
food problem of the country without
upsetting tht existing land relations. It
r elied heavily on those who had to
lose most from a policy of radical land
reform. One leading advocate of the
new technology commented, "the major
constraints on India's agricultural growth
has been technical rather than institu-
tional" 16 Another leading proponent
of the new technology argued, "at this
stage of economic growth and develop-
ment in India, an overriding 'objective
should be the enhancement of agricul-
tural production, and mobilisation of
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agricultural surpluses", while the lower-
ing of ceiling might lead to reduction
of output, surplus, and employment.17
Another argued, "If redistribution
assumes the shape of a process of ato-
misation of land holdings, there will be
little scope for the intsoduction of the
elements of modernisation and improved
production methodology".'8 It is note-
worthy that very often those who dis-
pute the large farmer bias of the new
technology argue in the same breath
against land reform on the ground that
the new technology would lose its effi-
ciency in the hands of smaller holdings,
without recognising the inconsistency in
their argument.
Our study shows that, while the
relationship between farm size and
yield under the new technology is not
negative as under traditional agriculture,
there is no firm evidence excepting in
cases of very highly mechanised farming
of the relationship turning positive.
Since agriculture in India would conti-
nue to be subjected to severe capital
constraints for quite some time to come,
the empirical evidence does not justify
large holdings on grounds of larger
output. As regards marketed surplus,
both the traditional and the new techno-
logy demonstrate its positive relationship
with farm size; but a significant feature
of the data under HYV is that the
proportion marketed by the small farmers
is increasing with time and further adop-
tion. In the case of HYV wheat, the
data suggest that the larger, particularly
highly mechanised, farms enjoy an
advantage over the smaller farms in
terms of cost per unit of output. How-
ever, since the data was collected in
1971-72, these do not account for the
increased costs of modem inputs since
October 1973. Furthermore, cost con-
sidered here is 'private cost', - which
does not allow for the subsidy element
in the credit and input concessions at-
tained by the farms purchasing
machinery, 'or the 'social cost' - of low
participation rate in the work force in
the modern, mechanised agriculture. A
radical land reform measure, on the
other hand, would provide the neces-
sary psychological support to the village
small farmer and landless to look for
a better life, to participate on an equal
basis in the community activities, and
to gain access to resources which were
so far denied to them by the dominant
village elite. Experiences in Kerala and
West Bengal suggest that radical land
reform is likely to be followed by an
inlcrease in food production due to more
255
 ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977

intensive family labour input and care. decision to make a larger provision for emment; nor is there any evidence
Experience in these two states, and out- rural credit could be interpreted as an that the terms of trade between the
side India in Japan, also suggest that attempt by the government to win over city and the countryside are in the
even the most egalitarian distribution of the largest possible section of this parti- former's favour. On the contrary, all
land among the rural households would cular group. The failure to impose an through the sixties, the food prices
not necessarily make the farming units effective tax on the agricultural earnings in India have increased faster than
too small and non-viable. Lastly, the of this class, despite repeated pledges the prices of manufictured goods;
smashing of the village power structure by the ruling party over the past de- and more often than not it is
through land reform would also provide cade, is another indication of the con- the increased food prices which have
the basis for the development of co- siderable influence this particular group forced the manufacturing concerns to
operative activities in the field of farm- exerts over the government of the hike their prices in order to meet the
ing, while under the present set up the country. inflated wage bill. These higher food
inequality of power makes such activi- Often, some scholars have attributed prices have not helped the rural com-
ties unworkable at the viLlage level. India's failure in achieving self-suffi- munity as a whole, but only particular
Given the inability of the new techno- ciency in food production to the sections: rich farmers who contribute
logy to make much headway under supposed neglect of the country's agri- a large share of the marketed surplus,
conditions of severe shortage of capital culture by the Indian planners, and to and the middlemen who either own
and foreign exchange, and the need for the mobilisation of a surplus from the storage capacity or are able to hire such
an alternative technology with a high countryside by the government through capacity with their own or borrowed
labour-land and labour-capital ratio, as procurement policies, for feeding the finance. While the question of urban-
we have argued above, it is all the population in the cities. This view has rural balance is not unimportant, this
more necessary that such land reform been extended further to give an im- is certainly not the major issue in Indian
takes place and both land and capital pression of a continuing 'class conflict' agriculture, as Lipton or Griffin would
is widely distributed among the rural between the entire urban population, like us to believe.
households. The issue now is not so on the one hand, and the entire rural Nevertheless, one should recognise
much whether a radical land reform is population, on the other, where even the role of the Indian industrial elite
necessary, but whether the government the poor sections of the urban popula- in the formulation of the country's
has the necessary political will to im- tion have sided against the villagers.'9 food policy. The industrialists in India
plement it. The main opposition to a The major weakness of this approach are deeply interested in a food policy
radical land reform programme comes, is that it describes the rural population which would provide their workers with
understandably, from those who are as a whole as the 'undexprivileged', a regular food supply at a cheap price,
likely to be affected most by it: the ignoring the powerful class of rich and would reduce the cost of food im-
rich peasants and landholders, the 'co- peasants and small landlords who have port so that more of the precious foreign
operative' rural elite which has replaced amassed a huge fortune from cultiva- exchange could be made available to
the big zamindars and jagirdars after tion and exploitation of poor peasantry import materials for industrial develop-
the first round of land reform. Unlike and the landless, while it describes the ment. Which explains the support
the landed gentry which lived in the entire urban population as 'privileged', traditionally given by the industrialist
city and took no interest in cultivation, ignoring the slum dwellers, pavement lobby of the country to radical agri-
the present rural elite is enterprising traders, and the participants in the city's cultural programmes, based ion large-
and very muchl rooted in the village
huge 'informal sectors', many of whom scale food procurement, co-operative
socio-political system, and so is much live in more miserable conditions than farming, land reform and taxation of
more difficult to remove. Moreover,the
in poorest in the village. This approach agricultural income. The very fact that
addition to the economic power it holds,
also ignores the necessity to squeeze the policy declarations of the Central
the rural elite wields an enormous the rich in the village in order to government often include these elements
amount of political and social power finance long term projects and to pro- reflects the influence of the industrial
through its control over village institu-
vide subsistence to the indusuturial lobby over the government at the
tions such as co-operatives and pancha- workers without which the country cenral level, while their non-imple-
yati raj and through its contacts with would not develop; and wrongly mentation is evidence of the influence of
the administration at different levels. equates a policy of procuring food from the rural elite over the government
Furthermore, through its association this class or taxing their income with machinery at the state level, agriculture
with various political parties including the exploitation of the countryside. It being a 'state subject' under the Indian
the ruling party, the rural elite its cap- is true that many poor farmers are constitution. The conflict between
able of makina its voice heard at the forced to make 'distress sales' at the these two most powerful economic
highest level of the government. The time of the harvest, but this they will groups in the country - the industrial
partial election debacle of the ruling continue to do as long as the inequ- and rural elite - is an important factor
party during the fourth general election ality in the countryside persists and in the policy decisions of the govern-
in 1967 was largely a consequence of the rural elite is able to tie their poor ment.20
the support given by a section of this neighbours with debt and other obli- The new agricultural strategy can be
elite to the dissident organisations be- gations independent of the procure-viewed as having been devised by the
cause of their annoyance with the food ment policy. Moreover, there is no policy makers for resolving the essen-
procurement policy of the government. factual evidence - in terms of thetial per-
conflict of interest between these
The nationalisation of commercial banks, centage share of planned investment two power groups on this issue. Under
which were controlled by the indus- going to industry or urban areas - this, while the food production is in-
trial finance capital, in 1969, and the that the latter is favoured by the gov- creased and distributed at a cheap-

257

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ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL WEEKLY Annual Number February 1977
price, this is accomplished without up-
setting the existing correlation of forces
in the countryside. To the extent the
new strategy makes demand for manu-
factured produucuts like fertiliser, pestici-
des and farm machinery, and provides
encouragement to the establishment of
workshops and distribution networks,
it is compatible with a programme for
industrial development. Furthermore,
the increased concentration of surplus
in the countryside in the hands of a
small elite (a result of the growing in-
equality in the income distribution) also
helps in expanding the market for con-
stumer goods produced by the indigen-
ous industrialists.
The new technology has not only
brought about a convergence of inte-
rests of these two power groups - the
rural elite which is powerful at the lo-
cal level, and the industrial elite which
is powerful at the national level - it
is also compatible with the interess of
a large section of the international ca-
pital, particularly the multinational fLrms
wsNhich specialise in produsing petro-
chemicals and farm machinery. In
some countries 'of Asia (e g, Indone-
sia), the multinational firms have play. [This paper is mainly based on the au-
ed an active role in sponsoring the new
technology with the blessings of the
government. In India, although the ad-
option of the new technology has ex-
panded the market for imported ferti-
lisers, pesticides, and various types of
farm machinery, the multinational cor-
porations have not been allowed to play
any part in the implementation of the
HYV programme.
WN,hatever the influence of the indus- sundaram, who undertook seven micro-
trial capital and the multinational firms level studies in different parts of the
on the formulation of the new agricul-
tural strategy, there is no doubt that
its adoption has strengthened the posi-
tion of the ruling elite in the country-
side. Firstly, it has increased the pro-
fit and assets, and consequently the
economic power of this group. Second-
ly, through this new technology a new
type 'of patron-client dependency rela-
tionship of the small farmers on the
rich farmers has been created for the
use of means of production which are
owned by the latter, especially tractors
and other farm machinery. Thirdly, the 8
rural elite has emerged as an interme-
diary through whose hands the inputs
supplied by the government are deli-
vered to the village. We have already
noted the control of the rich farmers
over co-operatives; in addition, in most
villages retail shops for fertiliser, seed
and other inputs are owned by the rich
202.41.10.102 on Sat, 23 Apr 2022 08:56:28 UTC
farmers. No less important is the role
of the village level worker in this res-
pect, who is usually a matriculate and
a member of a rich farmer family, and
is often eager to maintain close contact
with the rich families, 'providing them
with useful information and services in
return for small favours'.21 Rather
than undermining the existing rural in.
stitutions by bringing about a radical
transformation in the agricultural scene,
the new technology has strengthened
them and the groups in control of them.
Whereas it was a difficult political task
to antagonise the rural elite before, it
is even more difficult today as the for-
mer is now deeply entrenched in power
in the Indian countryside.
Interpreting the rural situation this
way leaves very little scope for econo-
mic arguments. The radical land reform
we so strongly argued about above,
and which has been repeatedly pledged
by the Indian government in the past,
becomes almost an impossibility within
the existing socio-economic set up.
Notes
thor's forthcoming book, "Agrarian
Change and the New Technology in
India", UNRISD, Geneva. I am grate-
ful to UNRISD, particularly Andrew
Pearse, D Macgrananlan, Wolf Scott,
Bridget Dommen, and many others in
UNRISD who encouraged me to un-
dertake this study and provided the
necessary financial and secretarial sup-
port. I am particularly grateful to H
Laxminarayan, Roshan Singh, A S Kah-
lon, Gurbachan Singh, S L Bapna, G
C Mandal, M G Chosh, and V Sanmug-
country under the auspices of the
UNRISD Global 2 proiect. Also thanks
are due to Susan Simmonds who typed
the manuscript of this paper.]
1 Biplab Dasgupta, "Agrarian Change
and the New Technology in India",
UNRISD, Geneva (forthcoming).
2 William Paddock and Paul Pad-
dock, "Famine-1975", Boston, 1967.
3 Mlinistrv of Agriculture, Report of
the Agricultural Prices Commission
on Price Policy for Kharif Cereals
for the 1971-72 season, 1971.
4 Ministry of Agriculture, op cit.
5 Vyas.
6 Ibid.
7 Randhawa.
Ibid.
9 More than half the holdings are
bigger than 4 hectares, and about
10 per cent are bigzer than 12 hec-
tares. See Randhawa.
10 By the early seventies, 70 per cent
of the net sown area of the state
was irrigated, compared to about
20 per cent irrigated area for the
country as a whole. More thain
half the total irrigated area is serv-
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ed by wells and tubewells. See
Randhawa.
11 Whereas there were no tubewells
in Punjab in 1950, between 1968-
69 and 1971-72 the number of T)ri-
vate tubewells increased from 112,
280 to 232, 280. The fertiliser use,
at 29 kg per hectare in 1968-69
was much higher than the national
average of 9.63 kg. See Randhawa.
12 Hanumant Rao.
13 In terms of annual per capita elec-
tricity consumption for irrigation,
Punjab with 10.86 kwh stood third
to Tamil Nadu and Haryana. See
"Statistical Abstract of Punjab",
1969.
14 By 1963-64 all the villages of Pun-
jab were covered by the co-opera-
tive societies, and by 1965-66 all
the cultivator households were co-
vered. The loan recovery rate, at
82 per cent, is surprisingly high,
compared to a national average of
67 per cent. (Randhawa.) Hanu-
mant Rao found that for Punjab
the correlation between the co-
efficient of concentration of co-
operative credit in Punjab was one
of the weakest amonig the Indiain
state.s. (See Rao.)
15 Biplab Dasgupta, "Village Society
and Labour Use", IDS-ILO publi-
cation, Oxford University Press
(forthcoming).
16 Sen.
17 Randhawa.
18 S S Johl, "Mechanisation, Labour
Use and Productivity in Indian
Agriculture", Ohio State Universi-
ty (mimeoed draft), 1974.
19 Keith Griffin, "The Political Eco-
nomy of Agrarian Change: An Es-
say on the Green Revolution",
Macmillan, 1975: Michael Liplon,
"Why Poor People Stay Poor:
Urban Bias in World Develop-
ment", Temple Smith, 1977.
20 See K Mathew Kurien, (ed),
"India - State and Society", Ori-
ent Longmans, 1975, for an analy-
sis of the correlation of class forces
and the contradictions amongst
them in the Indian society.
21 Joan P Mencher, "Conflicts and
Contradictions in the Green Revo-
lution: the Case of Tamil Nadu",
Economic and Political Weekly
(Annual Number), February, 1974;
S M Hale, "Barriers to Free Choice
in Development", (mimeoed draft)
1973.
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