Govt. of Orissa has initiated a number of measures to make agriculture better productive and remunerative. Moreover, for this, access of land to small and marginal farmers is necessary. Earlier State Govt. had taken minimal steps of changing land policy to appease farmers. Nevertheless, at present Orissa is among the few states, which has adopted progressive Land Reform Act.

In order to discuss the various dimensions of existing land policy for the poor and land less, prospects of its revision, which may have a bearing on agricultural production, a seminar on "Land Policy for Accelerated Agriculture Growth and poverty reduction in Orissa" was organized in Hotel Swosti Plaza, Bhubaneswar.

Duration: 2-days seminar was held on 5th & 6th September 2007

Objectives:
1. To review the existing land policy of Orissa and the reform measures in a common platform of concerned Govt. dept officials; NGO functionaries of state, national & international arena; activists working on land right issues and media people.
2. To recommend appropriate policy for land leasing and allocation of homestead lands to poor and landless families.

Organizers: NYSASDRI, a state level Non Governmental Organisation had organized this congregation of participants in collaboration with

# The Department of Revenue and Disaster management , Govt of Orissa;
#Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), Govt. of India;
#F.A.O, New Delhi; R.D.I, Bangalore and
#Utkal University, Orissa.

Participants:
A total of 83 participants representing from various Govt. departments including Revenue and Disaster Management, Agriculture, Commission of Agricultural Costs & Prices. Also Minister of Revenue, functionaries of International, National and State level NGOs, Academicians, Activists from different forums, Media persons etc had participated in this two-day programme.

Agenda: The seminar covered two technical sessions. Presentations were made in two separate technical sessions under broad themes of--
a. Allocation of Homestead plots to landless poor
b. Land leasing policy
c. Working group recommendation

RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE WORKING GROUP
1. Allocation of Homestead plots to landless poor
a. Form a Land Rights Task Force.
Government of Orissa should form a high-level Land Rights Task Force to gather information and present policy recommendations related to providing land rights to the landless.
Composition: Representatives from the government, NGOs and activists working on land rights, and researchers.
Objectives:
• Gather information directly from the field and public meetings, through commissioned research, experience of civil society organizations, and experience of other states and countries.
• Develop specific recommendations and a proposed time-bound action plan for providing land to the landless.
Research: Independent researchers commissioned to gather and analyze data related to various topics, including
• Bhoodan land
• Endowment land
b. Make certain improvements to Vasundhara scheme
• Wife or women's name first on the patta
• Introducing land purchase mechanism in the models of West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka.
• Provide extra of land - at least 0.10 acre (and up to 0.16 acre). Where eligible landless families are already occupying government land to that extent, legitimise that occupation, not just 0.04 acre.
• Providing land as close as possible to village habitations. Where government land for allocation is not available near the habitations, the land purchase mechanism be used.
• Land received should be inheritable, but not saleable.
• Prioritize female-headed families, especially trafficking victims and widows.
• Govt of India to provide central funding for such schemes
c. Civil society should fully involve themselves in the Mo Jami - Mo Diha Campaign of the Revenue Department.
• NGOs and CBOs should respond to the government's invitation in the August 28, 2007 Circular by:
• Raising awareness of villagers about the government campaign.
• Helping the poor to prepare claims and grievances.
• Participating actively in the "Mo Jami Mo Diha" Melas.
• Identify existing cases of the poor in the revenue courts and assisting the poor through legal aid.
• Record oral evidence of the poor for the "Camp Courts"
• Documenting the land related issues of poor in the village where they reside
2. Land Leasing Policy for Agriculture Growth and Poverty Reduction
• The poor can increase their income by farming by taking the land on lease.
• Land leasing is linked with poverty reduction.
• Need of new policy initiative to ensure the livelihood of the poor landless family of the village through land leasing (in case of government land leasing preference should be given to the poorest of the poor)
• Law does not recognize sharecropping in Orissa. The govt should recognize sharecropper. Agriculture Officer should issue the farmers an identity card.
• Leasing to outsiders should not be allowed. It must be limited within the community and within the same village. A special precaution must be required in the scheduled area.
• Gram Sabha / Panchayat along with the local civil society and the Rev. Deptt. Need to be authorized to monitor the lease issues, so that no stake from outside are allowed leasing in land.
• Government should accordingly review and amend the existing law for legalization of land leasing in the previously mentioned manner as soon as possible.
• Leasing to group is not allowed legally. However, it is widely practiced in different parts of the country. Only informal arrangement exists in the villages of Orissa. Government should allow group leasing especially to women SHG.
• Leasing in and leasing out of agricultural land for agricultural Purpose within a defined village say within 4 to 5 kms radius, within the farming community and within ceiling need to be permitted legally.
• Establishing a separate Task force to monitor the leasing issues involving people and Civil society actors.

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