10 pc rural households landless; OBC biggest landowning group

New Delhi, Nov 28 (UNI) About 10 per cent of rural households are reported to be landless with Other Backward Classes (OBCs) owning the maximum 44 per cent share among different social groups, the National Sample Survey (NSS) Report released today said.

The Report, 'Household Ownership Holdings in India, 2003', is based on the sixth nationwide land and livestock holdings survey.

The survey covered 52,265 rural households and 29,893 urban households spread over 6,638 villages and 3,764 urban blocks, respectively.

According to the Report, fourth in the series, the estimated total area owned by the households in the rural sector during 2003 was 107.23 million hectares, while the corresponding area in the urban sector was 7.21 million hectares only.

In the rural areas, the share of land owned by different social groups was 11 per cent for Scheduled Tribes, nine per cent for Scheduled Castes, 44 per cent for OBCs and 36 per cent for Others.

The per-household land area owned by them was 0.767 ha, 0.304 ha, 0.758 ha and 1.003 ha, respectively.

The Survey revealed that about 10 per cent of rural households were landless-- owning land either nil or less than 0.002 hectare.

The corresponding urban share was 49 per cent.

The percentage of landless households in the rural sector was highest in Sikkim (31), followed by Arunachal Pradesh (22), Maharashtra (18) and Tamil Nadu (17), the Survey revealed.

It pointed out that the share of marginal holdings (area less than or equal to 1.000 ha) in the rural areas rose over the past two decades with the figure increasing to 80 per cent in 2003 from 72 per cent in 1992 and 67 per cent in 1982.

It noted that the average area of land owned per household in the rural sector was highest in Rajasthan (2.077 ha) and lowest in Kerala (0.234 ha).

The per-household average area of land owned in the rural sector for 2003 came to 0.725 hectares, about 27 per cent less than the corresponding figure in 1992.

In the rural sector, about 2.8 per cent households reported leasing out of land, while 11.5 per cent households reported leasing in of land.

Among the households leasing in, 40 per cent contracted for share of produce, 31 per cent for fixed rent in cash and 15 per cent for fixed rent in kind.

Of the total land area under ownership holding in the rural sector, 15 per cent constituted of sand, 21 per cent of loam, seven per cent of silt, 41 per cent of light clay and 13 per cent of heavy clay, the Survey said.

UNI YJ SRS HS1839