Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act, 2016 – Indian Economy UPSC Notes
After India got independence, the government wanted to break the old zamindari system and give land to the farmers who actually worked on it.
Model Agricultural Land Leasing Act, 2016 : 🌾 Background – Why this Act was Needed After independence, India wanted to end the zamindari system and give land to those who worked on it. States banned or restricted land leasing (renting), hoping it would help tenant farmers. But the reform failed — by 1992, only 4% of farmland had transferred to actual cultivators. 🚫 What went wrong? To force land transfers, some states banned renting farmland completely (no tenants allowed!). This didn’t help much. Instead, it made things worse because: Tenants had no legal protection anymore. Future rental deals went "underground" – meaning they were done secretly and not on paper. Some states allowed renting but capped the rent at a very low rate (like 20–25% of the produce). Since this wasn’t fair for owners, they avoided official contracts. Tenants ended up paying more (like 50% of the produce), but the deal stayed unofficial, and tenants had no rights. 🗺️ Different state rules Banned leasing : Telang…