Peasant Struggles and Land Reforms in Malabar

Peasant Struggles and Land Reforms in Malabar P Radhakrishnan The history of land reforms in India shows that far from being a gift from an enlightened government, the modest reforms that have till now been legislated (though poorly, if at all, implemented) have been the outcome of long and protracted struggles by the peasants. This paper briefly chronicles such a struggle, lasting over a century, by the peasants of Malabar in present-day Kerala, Its conclusion is that even though Kerala has a relatively better record than many other states both in the legislation and implementation of land reform measures, the process is far from complete. Indeed, former tenants who now own land are not always themselves cultivutors of this land. The economic and social changes induced by the land reform measures have also affected the middle peasantry which has chiefly benefited from these measures. Hence, land reform cannot he said to have been achieved till the vast masses of agricultural labourers most of whom remain landless even today actually come to possess the land on which they work.