Development Research on Bihar, A Compendium

Transcription

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2 Development Research on Bihar, A Compendium 1

3 Institute for Human Development (IHD) The Institute for Human Development (IHD), a leading centre for studies on labour markets, livelihoods and human development, aims to contribute to the building of a society that fosters and values an inclusive social, economic and political system, free from poverty and deprivations. Towards achieving its goal, it engages in analytical and policy research, teaching and training, academic and policy debates, networking with other institutions and stakeholders, and publication and dissemination of the results of its activities. The major themes of current work of IHD are: poverty, inequality and well-being; labour markets and employment; social protection; women and children; marginalised social and economic groups and lagging regions; and governance and institutions for human development.

4 Development Research on Bihar, A Compendium Edited by Alakh N Sharma, Amrita Datta and Joyita Ghose A publication prepared under the aegis of the IHD Bihar Research Programme INSTITUTE FOR HUMAN DEVELOPMENT NEW DELHI

5 Published by Institute for Human Development NIDM Building, 3rd Floor, IIPA Campus I P Estate, Mahatma Gandhi Marg, New Delhi Phones: , ; Fax: mail@ihdindia.org; Web: ihdindia.org Department of Planning and Development, Government of Bihar All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of the Department of Planning and Development, Government of Bihar. First Published, 2012 ISBN: Price: Rs 600/ US$ 60 The financial support for this Compendium, prepared under the aegis of the IHD Bihar Research Programme, has been provided by the Department of Planning and Development, Government of Bihar. The views expressed in the summaries of the research works included in the Compendium are those of the respective authors and they should not, in any way, be attributed to the Government of Bihar, Institute for Human Development, the editors or the Editorial Advisory Board. The purpose of this exercise is to promote research and capacity building on development issues in the state. Cover Design: sauvcommunications@gmail.com Typeset and printed at: PRINT-WAYS, Delhi printways01@gmail.com

6 Contents IHD Compendium Team and Editorial Advisory Board I Foreword II Preface and Acknowledgements III Introduction and Overview 1-14 List of Publications and Research Documents Thematic Summaries 1. Bihar s Development in a Historical Perspective Political Economy of Development Agrarian Issues and Rural Development Irrigation, Floods and Water Management Industrialisation and Urbanisation Labour Markets, Employment and Migration Caste, Class and Conflict Politics and Electoral Processes Poverty and Human Development Health and Nutrition Education Women and Gender Issues Public Policy and Governance Appendices List of Research Documents by Type 2. Authors Index 3. List of Abbreviations

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8 Compendium Team and Editorial Advisory Board IHD Compendium Team Editors: Alakh N. Sharma and Amrita Datta Associate Editor: Joyita Ghose Research Team: Sapna Kedia, Rajini Menon, Rekha Gupta, Ashwani Kumar Editorial Advisory Board Chairman Shri Vijoy Prakash Principal Secretary Department of Planning and Development Government of Bihar Members Professor Janak Pande Vice Chancellor Central University of Bihar Vice Chancellor Patna University, Bihar Dr. Gerry Rodgers Visiting Professor, Institute for Human Development, New Delhi and Former Director, International Institute of Labour Studies, ILO, Geneva Dr. P P Ghosh Director, Asian Development Research Institute, Patna Director A.N. Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna Additional Director Directorate of Evaluation, Department of Planning and Development Government of Bihar (Convenor) Special Invitee Ms. Janine Rodgers Visiting Scholar Institute for Human Development, New Delhi

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10 Foreword Bihar is in the midst of tremendous change. In recent years, there has been progress on multiple fronts, be it law and order, expansion of infrastructure, or the spread of primary education to the masses. Today, Bihar is one of the fastest growing states in the country and the Government of Bihar is committed to sustain this momentum. The story of Bihar s turnaround is a story of both social and economic development. Indeed, this development is both a cause and effect of the deep changes which are underway in Bihar. The recent turnaround has brought about a new hope and also a firm belief that a transformation from poverty to prosperity is possible. While the centrality of economic growth in the discourse on development cannot be negated, effective policies for balanced and equitable economic development have to be built on a foundation of scientific research into the needs and demands of people, the social and economic relationships involved, the impacts of government policies, and the different ways Bihar s potentials can best be realised. There is a great dearth of research on socio-economic condition of Bihar. To sustain the economic growth achieved in the last few years, it is necessary to promote socio-economic researches on Bihar. Keeping this in view, a separate Directorate of Evaluation was created by Government of Bihar to facilitate the research and evaluation work in the state. Recently the State Government has come out with a policy to assist financially the research work in the state viz, Chief Minister Research Studies and Evaluation Promotion Scheme. Under this scheme assistance is provided to universities, research organisations, and voluntary organisations for conducting research on Bihar. The assistance is also given for conducting evaluation and workshops apart from the financial support for publication of the research and journals. This Compendium, produced by the Institute for Human Development, New Delhi, is a valuable contribution to understand the various facets of development of the state. It covers a wide spectrum of issues such as Bihar s development in historical perspective, social and economic development in the state, caste, class, politics and conflict, public policy and governance, etc. Studies in the Compendium are from diverse disciplines such as economics, history, political science, geography, and medicine among others. The referred studies, research or articles in the Compendium are collections of research materials related to Bihar, and they reflect the views expressed by the respective researchers and authors. The Planning and Development department in no way endorses or refutes the views expressed in the papers. The Compendium, while preserving the academic freedom of expression, makes an earnest endeavour to put the researches on Bihar at one place. The Compendium is a rich resource not just for scholars and academicians, but also for planners and policymakers who are working on Bihar, both within and outside the state. It is an invaluable contribution to the research and policy space in the state and I am confident that it would facilitate a more informed engagement with development issues. I express my thanks to Sri. Pramod Kumar Verma, Additional Director, Evaluation and his team of officers Sri. V.K. Jha, Sri. Prem Prakesh, Sri. Brajesh Kr. Sinha, Deputy Directors; Sri. Manoj Narayan and Ms Rupa Prasad, Senior Consultants, Unicef and Sri. Sunil Kumar Sinha, Assistant Statistical Officer for coordinating the Compendium work at the directorate level. Vijoy Prakash Principal Secretary, Department of Planning and Development, Government of Bihar and Chairman, Editorial Advisory Board, Bihar Research Compendium

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12 Preface and Acknowledgements Contemporary Bihar, despite having an abundance of natural and human resources, entered the 21st century as one of the least developed states in the nation. Why does Bihar remain one of the poorest and most backward economies of the country? What are the historical factors and processes which have contributed to its current state? What is the role of caste, and of class, in the development trajectory of the state, its social and economic institutions, and its electoral processes? Why has there been no industrialisation and why does urbanisation remain so low? What role has migration played in bringing about economic development and social change in the state? These are some fundamental questions which need to be addressed. Here, the role of research is crucial to understand the wide spectrum of development issues of the state. This Compendium summarises the various research documents that have engaged with these issues and we hope that this would contribute to knowledge development in the state. Given the wide-ranging, long-term changes in the economy, society, and the polity in the state since 2000, it is very important at this stage to document and collate important research on these changes to assist policymakers, researchers, and the wider audience to understand these transformations which are ongoing in the state. This Compendium summarises research conducted on various aspects of socioeconomic development in Bihar post 2000 which is relevant for analysis and policymaking processes in the state. The selection of research materials is informed by a perspective which prioritises a multi-disciplinary understanding of development looking at research conducted in the disciplines of economics, politics, sociology, development studies, and gender studies, among others. Studies from medical sciences and geological sciences, which are closely interrelated with development issues, have also been included. The selected research materials, we hope, will provide academicians, policymakers, and all those interested in the development issues in Bihar with a ready resource on socioeconomic and other contours of development conducted since 2000 by researchers in the disciplines mentioned above. A large number of articles are also inter-disciplinary, given the demands of research and policymaking process. There has been an attempt to cover issues as diverse, yet relevant, as agricultural development, conflict, urbanisation, migration, changing gender relations in the state, caste, social development, human development, and economic development in Bihar. This Compendium covers research materials produced after the bifurcation of Bihar in 2000 until December The process of preparation of this Compendium has been long drawn. First, a database of research materials, which consists of books and published articles on relevant research in Bihar, was created. This was enhanced by adding pertinent policy and action research reports on the state, which had been produced by multilateral organisations either unilaterally or in collaboration with other local organisations. At the same time, doctoral theses of academic institutions, both within and outside the state, were reviewed by the research team and quality dissertations have been added in the Compendium. The Institute for Human Development also listed a call for research studies on its website for the Bihar Compendium, to collate as many pertinent research studies as possible. After the summaries were prepared, we attempted to send these to the relevant authors for comments and possible changes, which further refined the quality of the summaries included in the Compendium. This research compendium emphasises a multi-disciplinary awareness of the socio-political and economic context in contemporary Bihar. To this end, we have included research summaries on thirteen broad thematic topics drawn from relevant literature which includes research projects, published articles, books, university dissertations, working papers, and unpublished monographs, outlining the objectives, methodology, and key findings of each study. Though much of the research material overlaps thematic sections, the broad classifications would be helpful for researchers and policymakers in accessing topical research literature. We hope the compendium provides the reader with a rich understanding of the multi-faceted nature of the challenges facing Bihar in the 21st century and is useful for researchers, policymakers, development agencies, and other stakeholders, interested and working on the development issue of Bihar. It emerges from the studies included in the Compendium that there is a dire shortage of research on specific topics in the state. These include, among others, industrialisation and urbanisation. It is crucial to engage with these deeply relevant issues if we want to study and understand the development of the state. We also need to undertake

13 research on labour markets and employment on various issues in gender, including women s work. Other research gaps are discussed in detail in the introductory section of the Compendium. I would like to draw the attention of the reader to a caveat here. While we have tried our best to include all possible research materials which are in our mandate, inadvertently, we may have missed some out. We apologise for this. I deeply appreciate the hard work undertaken by my colleagues Ms. Amrita Datta and Ms. Joyita Ghose in putting this Compendium together. We are extremely grateful to the Government of Bihar, particularly to Shri Vijoy Prakash, Principal Secretary in the Department of Planning and Development and the Chairman of the Editorial Advisory Board of the Bihar Compendium, who supported us through the completion of this project. The former Principal Secretary of the Department of Planning and Development, Shri Rameshwar Singh, provided us the opportunity to undertake this important and timely research endeavour, and for this, we are thankful to him. A special line of acknowledgement is due for Shri Pramod Kumar Verma, Joint Director in the Department of Planning and Development. We would like to thank other members of the Editorial Advisory Board of this research project Dr Gerry Rodgers, Dr P. P. Ghosh, Dr Janak Pande, and Ms Janine Rodgers for their keen interest in this project, and their help and support at every stage of this project. We would also like to acknowledge our gratitude to Mr R. N. Sharma and Mr B. P. Singh of Patna University for their immense help in the compilation of this Compendium. We appreciate the meticulous work undertaken by the research team comprising of Ms Sapna Kedia, Dr Rajini Menon, and Ms Rekha Gupta. Additional help was provided by Ms Angela Nath, Ms Shivani Satija, Mr Dhruv Sood, and Mr Balendu Mangalmurthy. A special word of acknowledgement is due for Dr Harishwar Dayal who led the work at the IHD Eastern Regional Office in Ranchi. Mr Ashwani Kumar and Mr Ravi Shankar Kumar coordinated the collection of research materials in Patna and other parts of Bihar, and we are thankful to them for this. We are indebted to Mr. Dinesh Kohli, who painstakingly edited the text of the Compendium, which became rather long over a period of time. We would also acknowledge the various journals, publishers, and authors, who have given their kind permission to summarise research documents for the Compendium. We hope that this Compendium will be a useful volume for scholars and academicians, planners, and policymakers alike. The financial support for this Compendium, prepared under the aegis of the IHD Bihar Research Programme, has been provided by the Department of Planning and Development, Government of Bihar. The views expressed in the summaries of the research works included in the Compendium are those of the respective authors and they should not, in any way, be attributed to the Government of Bihar, Institute for Human Development, the editors or the Editorial Advisory Board. Alakh N Sharma Director Institute for Human Development New Delhi

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15 Introduction and Overview

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17 Introduction and Overview Background At the turn of the century, the state of Bihar was bifurcated and a new state, rich in natural and mineral and resources was carved out from the southern part of erstwhile Bihar. With an area of 94,163 sq km, Bihar is the 12th largest state in the country, comprising about 3 per cent of the total geographical area of the country. However, the total population of the state as per the Census of 2011 was million about 8.5 per cent of the total population of the country, making it the third most populous state in the country. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the population density of the state stands at 1102 persons per sq km, which is the highest in the country, as against an All-India population density of 382 per sq km. From 2001 to 2011, the increase in population density for Bihar was as high as 25 per cent, whereas, it was only 18 per cent for all-india. At the same time, the rate of population growth in the state increased from 23.4 per cent in the 1980s to 25 per cent in 2011, as against an all-india decline from 23.3 per cent to 17.6 per cent in the same period. Characterised by low and stagnant economic growth, the state has high levels of poverty, second only to Orissa and the lowest levels of per capita income among major states in the country. It is also the least urbanised state in the country, after Himachal Pradesh. Historically, Bihar has been the cradle of Indian civilisation in ancient times, and the seat of the Maurya and Gupta Empires. It was marked not just by prosperity, but was also known for its centres of education and culture in the ancient and medieval periods. Thereafter, the region went into decline, and more so in the British period. The Permanent Settlement Act of 1793 was a landmark intervention in the appropriation of land revenue that brought about fundamental changes in the nature of tenancy per se. It led to the massive impoverishment of the peasantry and led to overall economic stagnation and decline. In particular, small industries were affected, the textiles industry declined, and artisans were distressed. The process of deindustrialisation set in, and this, along with considerably lower investment in both the public and private sectors, constituted the most important factors responsible for the economic stagnation and widespread poverty prevalent in Bihar during the two centuries of colonial rule (Das, 1987; Das, 1992). The decline of trade and industry went hand in hand with the lack of an agrarian transformation in the state. Post independence, while the abolition of the zamidari system freed a large number of peasants from the clutches of an exploitative agrarian system, it also led to a mass eviction of peasants (Sengupta, 1982). While the nature of land relations changed to some extent, the system still remained semi-feudal where, to a large extent, share-lease land markets interlocked with labour and credit markets and the rural landowning semi-feudal class, consisting largely of upper castes along with a small section of Muslims and middle castes, controlled the social, economic, and political power in the state. Apart from being exploitative, this system hampered the process of agrarian transformation (Prasad, 1989; Prasad, et al., 1988). The Freight Equalisation Policy of the Government of India (1948) for coal and iron deserves special mention here. The eastern region of the country, and, in particular, Bihar suffered as this policy did not allow the state to have a comparative advantage to be able to exploit its mineral resources. The richer and more advanced states of western and northern India were able to access these mineral resources at subsidised rates and, as a corollary, industrialisation could never take off in the Bihar, due to the flight of mineral resources and capital, facilitated by the Freight Equalisation Policy. The state could not take advantage of the Green Revolution which took place in the country in the mid-1960s and 1970s, as they were largely targeted to selected irrigation regions of the country. In fact, the Green Revolution further accentuated the divide between Bihar and the prosperous states. Nevertheless, partial land reforms and a small dose of investment in irrigation led to modest agricultural growth in the state during the 1950s. But due to the vicious cycle of widespread poverty coupled with a weak socioeconomic infrastructure along with low investment, the state experienced relative economic decline visà-vis the rest of India, since the 1960s. This decline was checked to some extent during the 1980s but again aggravated during the 1990s, after the liberalisation of the Indian economy, up to the middle of the first decade of the 21st century (IHD, 2011).

18 Development Research on Bihar, Economic stagnation and widespread poverty, along with the existence of semi-feudal production relations, had two major ramifications. First, it led to the heavy out-migration of agricultural labourers and poor peasants, mainly from north Bihar, to the developed north-west regions of the country. Second, it gave rise to the militant peasant movement in the southern plains of the state. The subsequent years witnessed the growth of migration from most parts of southern plains, as well, and also growth of the militant peasant movement in several districts of north Bihar (Sharma, 1995; Sharma, 2005). In addition, the rise in criminalisation, caste and class tensions, non-governance, and poor delivery mechanisms have given Bihar a notorious reputation of being a failed state and a lawless state, mired with corruption and weak institutions. However, in recent years, the image of the state has considerably improved. Another important development in contemporary Bihar is the rise of the middle castes. Heavy out-migration, a militant peasant movement, rising real wages and declining patron-client relationships led to the weakening of semifeudal agrarian relations, and, over the years, the ascendancy of middle castes over political power was almost total. This political empowerment without economic development was somewhat disjointed, but played an important role in breaking the semi-feudal relations and changing the rural landscape. In the last 5 6 years, the state has witnessed a turnaround in its growth rate and there has been a significant improvement in law and order. The former can be primarily attributed to the considerable rise in the growth rates of sectors such as transport and communication, trade, and construction. The higher growth rates in the secondary and tertiary sectors have led to significant shifts in the sectoral distribution of the state s output. Agriculture employs more than 60 per cent of the total workers of the state, while its contribution to the GSDP is only about 33 per cent. On the other hand, industry and services employ only 16 per cent and 22 per cent of the workforce, respectively, but contribute as much as about 12 and 54 per cent, respectively to the GSDP. These recent developments in the state are signs of positive change. The challenge of sustaining the momentum, and making economic growth more diversified, balanced, equitable, and inclusive, remains. This introduction gives an overview of the issues related to the 13 thematic sections in the Compendium, namely Bihar s Development in Historical Perspective, Political Economy and Development Issues, Agrarian Issues and Rural Development, Irrigation, Floods and Water Management, Industrialisation and Urbanisation, Labour Markets, Employment and Migration, Caste, Class and Conflict, Politics and Electoral Processes, Poverty and Human Development, Health and Nutrition, Education and Women and Gender Issues, and Public Policy and Governance. Each section analyses recent developments and emerging issues pertaining to that theme in the state. At the same time, there is also a short introduction at the beginning of each one of these 13 sections which briefly summarises the key research undertaken therein. Given the vast thematic areas, there is bound to be an overlap among some themes and this is subsequently reflected in the analysis herein. In the concluding section, key research gaps are identified. Bihar s Development in Historical Perspective A sound reading of the history is crucial to understand contemporary realities of any society. To understand the trajectory of Bihar s development, an engagement with its history becomes imperative. This section briefly discusses key landmarks in the history of the state which have had a bearing on the social and economic foundations of the state and its people. In The Idea of India, Sunil Khilnani (2004) writes, The belief that Indian nationalism had subsequently to unite and subordinate these regional identities is a curious misreading of the relationship between nation and region in India. In fact, a sense of region and nation emerged together, through parallel self definitions.. This certainly rings true in Bihar, which has one of the richest and most diverse histories of the states of contemporary India. Often described as the birthplace of Buddhism, ancient Bihar, a major part of which was also known as Magadh, was a centre of learning and culture for over 1,000 years, especially under the mighty Mauryan and Gupta empires. Nalanda and Vikramshila Universities, two of the oldest residential universities of India, were located in Bihar. However, this prosperous region went into decline, especially during colonial rule. In the decisive Battle of Buxar (1764), the combined armies of the Nawabs of Bengal and Awadh as well as the Mughal emperor lost to the English East India Company, which secured it the diwani, that is the right to administer the collection and management of revenues of the province of Bengal (which included present Bihar and Orissa, as well as Bangladesh), and parts of Uttar Pradesh. This made the English East India Company the virtual ruler of the state. Bihar was an important 4

19 Introduction and Overview centre of the Revolt of Kunwar Singh successfully led the revolt in Bihar, near Arrah, and made heroic advances against the British in Awadh and Central India. Bihar was also an important centre of the Indian freedom movement. The Champaran satyagraha and the Quit India Movement were two major landmarks. The former allowed Gandhiji to make inroads in Indian politics and political mobilisation by highlighting the plight of indigo farmers, while the latter was the final civil disobedience movement which ultimately led to the ousting of the British from India. Bihar was a part of the Bengal Presidency till 1912, at which time Bihar and Orissa were carved out as separate provinces. Patna was made the capital of this new province and it grew rapidly under British patronage. Historically, Patna was an important centre of trade during the colonial rule in India. Several educational centres such as Patna College, Patna Science College, Patna College of Engineering, and Patna Veterinary College were established here by the British. In 1935, Orissa was carved out of the old state of Bihar, but Patna remained the capital of the newly bifurcated Bihar. The Permanent Settlement Act, 1793, had a severe impact on agriculture, which in turn also had significant ramifications for the decline of trade and industry, as well as deindustrialisation in the state. It created a new system of zamindari, whereby there was an unprecedented rise in the number of rent-seeking intermediaries, and this led to absentee landlordism. The Act led to extreme exploitation of the peasants and had fundamental ramifications for generations to come, on land, land relations, and its interplay with class and caste in rural Bihar. The British rule did not provide economic conditions conducive for an agrarian transformation in the state. Quite to the contrary, the zamidari system perpetuated caste and feudalism in myriad ways. Das (1992) has argued that the caste system was an abstraction of a real situation of agrarian stagnation. Immediately after Independence, the state did see modest agricultural growth owing to investments in agriculture and partial land reforms. However, poverty and economic stagnation remained widespread and outmigration from the state, which has a long history, 1 since the 1960s, saw a large number of migrants going to the north western states of Punjab and Haryana to work as agricultural labourers. Another issue which deserves mention here is the division of the state of Bihar at the turn of the century. A new state, Jharkhand, rich in natural and mineral and resources was carved out from the southern part of erstwhile Bihar. Most of the mineral-rich areas, accounting for nearly 85 per cent of the known and certified deposits in the region, and a large part of the forest resources, have gone to Jharkhand, leaving Bihar with an enormous resource-crunch. However, in recent years, Bihar has charted a high growth path for itself and there seems to have been a turnaround from the economic stagnation of the past. The vision of a resurgent Bihar is gaining ground and while surging ahead, the state is also engaging with its rich history to chart a course for its future. Political Economy and Development Bihar is characterised as a state mired in economic stagnation, especially in the pre-2000 period. Its rate of growth of State Domestic Product was very low, especially in the decade of the 1990s. While in the 1990s, Bihar s per capita income was about 60 per cent of the all-india per capita income, in it declined to 40 per cent and in , it further declined to around 30 per cent, and remained the same, even in (Government of India, 2010). Coupled with high population growth, this led to economic retrogression; per capita income not only stagnated in the 1990s, but also declined in some years. Post liberalisation, backward regions and states like Bihar have not been able to take advantage of the market economy and inequality between states has worsened. While the political landscape in 2000 was one devoid of economic growth and development, the long rule of a charismatic leader, which would continue halfway through the decade for 15 years, appeared to have given izzat (self respect and dignity) to the poor and downtrodden castes (and people). In other words, there was social empowerment without economic development. Sharma (2005) observes that in the last three decades, semi-feudal relations in agriculture have considerably broken down because of a combination of factors such as militant movements launched by poor peasants and labourers, rising trend of real wages, declining patron-client relationships, increasing casualisation of labour, commercialisation and diversification of agriculture although limited, increasing migration, inflow of remittances, etc. 1. The earliest migration streams can be traced to the 1830s, when people migrated as indentured labour to British colonies of Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad, and Fiji. 5

20 Development Research on Bihar, Ghosh and Gupta (2009) draw our attention to an interesting phenomenon; that in the context of high economic growth which has not translated into a parallel improvement in human development outcomes for the whole of India; an inter-state comparison for the HDI value of different states in 1981, 1991, and 2001 shows that of the three states with the fastest improvement in Human Development outcomes (Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan), two are actually poor income states. Moreover, given Bihar s low economic growth levels, it has managed to sustain an improvement in human development outcomes compared to the all India level. Another issue which we touched upon in the earlier section and which also emerges here is that while there was no agrarian transformation or transition of the economy, and state institutions decayed, migration became not just a means of enhancing incomes but a survival strategy for the people of Bihar. Migrant Biharis were drivers of growth elsewhere in the country and significantly in urban centres, which were undergoing massive transformations. The process of migration played a crucial role in not just in increasing incomes, but also in enhancing social mobility. Modern methods of cultivation were adopted by migrants when they returned back to their villages and contributed to technological innovations in agricultural production as well. Last, and perhaps most important, is the complex role of the state in development issues and the political economy of development. The state, through the 1980s to past 2000, was largely predatory and conspicuous by its absence in the lives of the people of Bihar. With a change of guard halfway through this decade, there has been a resurgence of the state. People s perceptions of the government are very positive especially, first, in the restoration of law and order and, second, in the introduction and implementation of development programmes. At the same time, there is no evidence that the high economic growth witnessed by Bihar in the last few years has either been buoyant or inclusive. Supply side bottlenecks, such as inadequate infrastructure and lack of economic incentives, are generally cited as key reasons of agrarian stagnation in Bihar. However, for any kind of agrarian transformation to attain the goal of inclusive growth, and for overall economic development, we also need to pay attention to the historical context of the state, as well as social and power structures in society. Agrarian Issues and Rural Development Agriculture is the mainstay of Bihar s economy. Two-third of the total workers, and three-fourth of rural workers are engaged in agriculture and the contribution of the agricultural sector to Bihar s GDP is 21 per cent. There is a perception that agriculture in Bihar has remained feudal and stagnant, and had been on the decline. Quite to the contrary, the picture that emerges from Bihar is both dynamic and complex, rooted in the historical context as well as colonial policies, and interspersed in the dynamics of caste and land ownership. Bihar is blessed with rich fertile soil and benign water resources. In 1982, the per capita agricultural NSDP in Bihar was higher than the all-india level (111 per cent). However, it slipped to 90.7 per cent in 1992 and 72.7 per cent in This can be attributed to perennial floods and institutional constraints, and a massive underinvestment in infrastructure in the state. In fact, for more than a decade, both public and private investment in agriculture declined in the state. At the same time, since the 1990s, it appears that Bihar has made a beginning in exploiting its potential in certain areas within agriculture, such as vegetable and fruit production, dairy farming, livestock rearing, and agroindustries and these sectors are expected to play an important role in the future. While on the one hand, land reforms in the state met with dismal failure, particularly due to resistance from the landed gentry and legal obstacles, on the other hand, a high growth rate of population, coupled with fragmentation of land holdings, has led to a decline in the size of operational land holdings in the state. Sharma (2005) argues that the delay in the process of land reform led to large scale benami transactions and tenants were made to buy the land under their cultivation. As a result, only substantial tenants could retain ownership of land while the rest became either tenants-at-will or agricultural labourers. Thus, there emerged the new surplus-hungry landlords and big peasants as the economically dominant classes in rural Bihar. This class of landlords and big peasants also became the politically dominant class. Since the middle castes comprised the largest proportion of substantive tenants under the zamindari system, the inter-caste power relations started shifting in favour of the middle caste rich peasantry. This trend became increasingly dominant with the transfer of land from the upper castes to the middle castes, while it led to pauperisation and proletarianisation of a large number of peasants. We would also like to argue that there is no one size fits all solution or success stories from another part of the country (or the world) which can be easily replicated. The nature and form of state intervention will (and must) differ 6

21 Introduction and Overview in different social, economic, and institutional contexts. Many academicians and policymakers argue for a greater role of the state for agrarian transformation in Bihar on counts of both efficiency and equity. It is not surprising that the issue of tenancy reforms is revisited in most of the studies in this section of the Compendium and is perceived by many scholars to be the first step of agricultural reforms in the state. At the same time, adoption of modern technologies and specific attention to small and marginal farmers emerge as other realms for state intervention. Irrigation, Floods and Water Management Bihar is blessed with rich water resources. Both groundwater and surface water are in abundance and along with its fertile soil contribute to agriculture in the state. However, Bihar, and specifically north Bihar, is also struck by recurrent floods which create havoc on an annual basis and, ironically, south Bihar is prone to droughts. Given this paradox, it is imperative that water management is efficient. Irrigation in Bihar was a purely private enterprise until the British constructed the Sone Canal system. Thereafter, the state has had a long history of legislation, starting from the Bengal Irrigation Act of 1876, which was to facilitate the management of Sone and other river systems. Two Irrigation Commission Reports (1971 and 1994), followed by the Bihar Irrigation Act, 1997, and the Bihar Irrigation, Flood Management and Drainage Rules, 2003, are the recent laws which govern irrigation in the state. The main thrust of these legislations is towards a greater responsibility of the government in the operation and maintenance of headworks and government channels in major and minor schemes, as well as the maintenance of state tube wells and small river lift schemes. It is interesting to note that the erstwhile Irrigation Department of the Government of Bihar has been rechristened and is now known as the Water Resource Department, which is broadly responsible for construction, maintenance, and regulation of major and medium irrigation projects, flood control and drainage works (Water Resource Department Website, Government of Bihar). Old problems remain and there are some new areas of concern in water resource management in the state. Floods are a perennial problem for the people of Bihar. Over the years, the problem of flooding has intensified, and every year there is loss of lives and livelihoods. Many researchers attribute this mainly to embankments on the Kosi river a colonial legacy (Iyer, 2008; Mishra, 2001). The ramifications of the politics of flood control at the international, national, state, and local level is as devastating as the flood itself. While groundwater is present in abundance and the situation is among the best in the country, in recent years there have been reports of seasonal fluctuations in water availability, as well as depletion of groundwater resources. In this context, water conservation becomes crucial. Unplanned urbanisation has contributed to water pollution, especially poor sewage and drainage facilities in the capital city of Patna and other towns. A related problem is the pollution of Ganges due to the dumping of untreated sewage in the river. This water is no longer potable. There are also high levels of arsenic in groundwater in some districts of North Bihar and this is an area of concern. In this context, efficient water management becomes crucial. New technologies such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing are useful, not just for flood management but also checking water utilisation and use, ground water depletion, river basin development, water pollution, etc. Urbanisation and Industrialisation Bihar is one of the least urbanised states in the country, with only 11 per cent of the population living in urban areas. At the same time, the pattern of urbanisation is very lopsided in the state, with South Bihar being far more urbanised than the North. In fact, in the latter area, where around 6 per cent of the population resides in urban areas, is perhaps the least urbanised region in the world. Low urbanisation has led to the absence of pull centres of development in the state and rural-urban linkages within the state also remain weak. Research on urbanisation and urban issues in Bihar is extremely limited and this is reflected in the Compendium. It is now clear that the construction sector has seen a big boom in Bihar and has significantly contributed to the state s recent growth. However, infrastructure remains inadequate and is a major factor constraining Bihar s growth and development. Closely related to the low levels of urbanisation is the (lack of) industrial development in the state. The bifurcation of Bihar in 2000 saw all its mineral resources and industries go to Jharkhand. In the past, the pattern of industrialisation before bifurcation in the state was essentially enclave/entrepôt led. Policies of the central and 7

22 Development Research on Bihar, state governments (including the Freight Equalisation Policy, 1948, which has been discussed earlier), lack of infrastructure, and resource crunch/curse are often reasons cited for the lack of industrialisation in the state. Das Gupta (2007) argues that it is crucial to understand the historical and institutional context of the state, especially the Permanent Settlement Act of This created a rank of intermediaries whose main aim was rent seeking. There was no incentive to use agricultural surplus in improving productivity or diversification. The empirical path of rural urban and agriculture industry did not happen as there was no agricultural transformation in the state. Labour Markets, Employment and Migration There is a general lacuna in research studies on labour and employment in Bihar. A majority of the studies in this section look at the phenomenon of migration which, in our opinion, has been the most defining force of change in rural Bihar in the last 3 decades. This is discussed in detail later. The state of labour markets and employment in Bihar is characterised by deficiencies in both quantity and quality. The agricultural sector absorbs two-third of the workforce, while generating only around a fifth of the SDP. This explains high underemployment and disguised employment in the state. The unemployment rate in the state is also higher than the all-india average. Workforce participation rate for both males and females is lower than the all-india average. During the period , the state witnessed a casualisation of the workforce. While this trend reversed during the period , it would be naive to assume this as a positive development as it is most likely that self employment has been created in small, petty, and low paid activities, without much improvement in the livelihoods of the people. Only two per cent of the workers in the state are absorbed by the organised sector, and 70 per cent of these are in the public sector, reflecting the minimal role of private sector in employment generation in the state. More than 40 per cent of the workers are casual wage earners and among these, majority are agricultural labourers. While the agricultural wage rate in the state has been much lower than other states, in recent years, there has been a substantial rise in rural wages. Agricultural productivity in Bihar is one of the lowest in the country, as is the income generated from agriculture. In a rural income dominated economy, sufficient agricultural growth can reduce poverty. However, in the case of Bihar, low agricultural growth has come in the way of poverty reduction. At the same time, lack of infrastructure acted as a disincentive to private investment. Thus, the state became a laggard in growth. In recent years, the economy of the state has been dynamic and growth indicators are moving. Income growth is a major determinant of progress. The rate of growth of SDP, which is a summary measure of income, has picked up in recent times. While India achieved a record annual GDP growth, averaging 8.45 per cent, in the five years from to , during the same period Bihar averaged per cent annual growth. It was virtually India s fastest growing state, on par with Gujarat (11.05%). This represents a sensational turnaround. While urbanisation has remained low, rural-urban migration in the last few decades has been the main driver of economic development and growth. Bihari migrants have significantly contributed to the growth processes in other parts of the country. However, in recent times, they have also faced a backlash rooted in ethnocentric movements. In this context, the sustainability of migration as a means of development of the state and its people in the long run remains questionable. There is a school of thought that argues that government interventions such as the MNREGA can substantively uplift the rural economy and its people, and reduce out-migration. In another section in the Compendium, this is corroborated by Pankaj (2008) and other studies, which reveal that MNREGA has the potential to directly impact out-migration from rural Bihar. However, this potential is far from being reached and outmigration from the state continues to increase (IHD, 2011). Migration has played a significant role in social and economic mobility in rural Bihar. Apart from increasing incomes, male migration has also been quite a catalyst in enhancing women s mobility, especially among some very conservative communities in rural Bihar (Datta and Mishra, 2011). At the same time, one needs to critically look at the long-term impact and the sustainability of this development model, based on migration, remains to be seen (Rodgers and Rodgers, 2011). 8

23 Introduction and Overview Caste, Class and Conflict In Bihar, as is true of other parts of India, caste groups with varied origin tales, ideologies, and ritualised social practices exist with competing notions of superiority and, essentially, contested notions of hierarchy among the castes. Inter caste conflict has also been attributed to this phenomenon of multiple hierarchies. Major conflicts exist between castes, and these are of the nature of long term conflicts. Caste conflict manifests itself through the existence of a number of caste armies such as the Ranvir Sena, Lorik Sena, Brahmarshi Sena, Sunlight Sena, Bhumi Sena, etc. The capture of political power is another cause of inter caste conflict, but is not determined by any hierarchical caste principle. Caste alignments (and realignments) at the time of elections (at the Panchayat, Legislative Assembly and Parliamentary levels) are primarily influenced by the demands of the situation and less by any principles of caste hierarchy, and may differ widely from village to village. Upper caste groups like the Brahmins, Bhumihars, Rajputs, and Kayasthas made up only 13 per cent of the population in 1931 (the last time a caste census was conducted). While this small but powerful group has traditionally dominated the social and political life of the state, in recent years there has been considerable decline. A large number of communities are categorised as Other Backward Classes (OBCs), 2 and dominant amongst them are the Yadavs, Koeris, and Kurmis. There has been an improvement in their socioeconomic indicators because of affirmative action and political ascendancy, and the political power of the state is in their hands. At the same time, many OBC communities remain both economically and socially deprived. Even though contemporary Bihar speaks a language of development and economic growth, issues around caste and class remain central to its citizens, Whether it is the caste senas (armies), the Naxalite movement, or the manner in which historical oppression along caste and class lines shows itself in the abject poverty of a large section of its society; caste and class, whether conceptually or as they are manifested in the lived realities of Bihar s population, must be addressed by academia, civil society, and policy makers in the state. It is also important to acknowledge the complex interconnections between the two categories of caste and class, and the manner in which they are being redefined in contemporary Bihar. Chakravarti (2001) argues that given the current context in Bihar, where the ruling parties have been consistently opposed to the ideology of the left of centre factions, the situation of the underclass, engulfed by relations of unfreedom and dependency is not likely to change, as the social character of the state in Bihar is heavily weighted against them (pp. 293). In a similar vein, Beteille (2010) feels that recent development in Bihar would not put an end to the preoccupation with caste and community. What is important and challenging, and would, in essence, be a litmus test is not just development, but the (just) distribution of the fruits of development. Politics and Electoral Processes Bihar has been a very politically active state. It was an important centre of peasant struggle and freedom movement in the country in the pre-independence days. Historically, the Congress Party had a strong presence in the state from the time of independence until the 1980s. Prior to the 1984 elections (with the exception of 1977 elections), the Congress managed to easily secure the required number of seats in the Lok Sabha elections, usually a strong majority. From the 1989 elections, when it polled only 28 per cent of the votes, the Congress has demonstrated a steady decline in popularity and the vacuum left by it has been predominantly filled by regional parties. Caste has been a very important factor in politics and electoral processes in Bihar. Politics was dominated by upper castes in coalition with some elite sections of Muslims and upper middle castes in the pre-independence as well as in the post-independence period until the 1980s, although the challenge to their dominance had started in late 1960s. With the advent of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) government led by Shri Lalu Prasad, the dominance of the middle castes particularly the three numerous and influential among them (Yadav, Kurmi and Koeri) and subsequent decline of upper castes was almost complete. This is not to suggest that the upper castes have been completely marginalised. They are still important in tilting the balance in the electoral process as the caste politics has been further fractured with intense competition between various caste groups. The NDA Government led by Shri Nitish Kumar has further reinforced the dominance of the middle castes, although it is widely acknowledged that the development agenda has also acquired an important place along with caste in the electoral politics in the state. 2. In Bihar, the term Backward Class and Extremely Backward Class is used for OBC I and OBC II respectively. In several places, the latter has been used. 9