Read the passage given below and answer the question.
Often it is thought that imparting knowledge of 'scientific' farming methods will improve the conditions of Indian farmers. We should remember that Indian farmers have been cultivating the land for centuries, much before the advent of the Green Revolution. They have very deep and extensive traditional knowledge about the land they till and the crops they sow. Much of this knowledge, like the many traditional varieties of seeds that were developed over the centuries by farmers, is being lost as hybrid, high-yielding, and genetically modified varieties of seeds are being promoted as more productive and 'scientific' (Gupta 1998; Vasavi 1999b). In view of the negative environmental and social impact of modern methods of cultivation that have been observed, a number of scientists as well as farmers' movements now suggest a return to traditional, more organic seeds and methods of cultivation. Many rural people themselves believe that hybrid varieties are less healthy than the traditional ones.
Match the land reforms given in List - I with their characteristics given in List - II
| LIST-I (Land reforms) | LIST-II (Characteristics) | ||
| (A) | Land Ceiling Act | (I) | Regional inequalities |
| (B) | Green Revolution | (II) | Benami transfers |
| (C) | Globalisation of Agriculture | (III) | Regulate Rents |
| (D) | Tenancy Abolition and Regulation Act | (IV) | Ecological Crisis |
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (A)-(II), (B)-(I), (C)-(IV), (D)-(III)
(A) Land Ceiling Act — this matches (II) Benami transfers. The Act fixed an upper limit on the land a household could hold, but landowners found many loopholes to escape having their surplus land taken over. Some rich farmers even divorced their wives (and went on living with them), since the Act allowed a separate share for unmarried women but not for wives; such evasions were called ‘benami transfers’.
(B) Green Revolution — this matches (I) Regional inequalities. The areas that took up the new technology became more developed while other areas stagnated, so one negative outcome was the worsening of regional inequalities.
(C) Globalisation of Agriculture — this matches (IV) Ecological Crisis. Globalisation brought contract farming with multinational companies, and such farming needs high doses of fertilisers and pesticides, so it is often not ecologically sustainable.
(D) Tenancy Abolition and Regulation Act — this matches (III) Regulate Rents. These laws attempted either to outlaw tenancy altogether or to regulate rents to give some security to the tenants.
NCERT (2025-26): “4.2 The Impact of Land Reforms The Colonial Period … But in most of the states these acts proved to be toothless. There were many loopholes and other strategies through which most landowners were able to escape from having their surplus land taken over by the state. In some places, some rich farmers actually divorced their wives (but continued to live with them) in order to avoid the provisions of the Land Ceiling Act, which allowed a separate share for unmarried women but not for wives. These were also called ‘benami transfers’.…” “…Among the other major land reform laws that were introduced were the tenancy abolition and regulation acts. They attempted either to outlaw tenancy altogether or to regulate rents to give some security to the tenants.…” “4.3 The Green Revolution and its Social Consequences … Another negative outcome of the Green Revolution strategy was the worsening of regional inequalities. The areas that underwent this technological transformation became more developed while other areas stagnated.…” “4.6 Globalisation, Liberalisation, and Rural Society … Contract farming has sociological significance in that it disengages many people from the production process and makes their own indigenous knowledge of agriculture irrelevant. In addition, contract farming caters primarily to the production of elite items, and because it usually requires high doses of fertilisers and pesticides, it is often not ecologically sustainable.…” |