CONTENTS
RESETTLEMENT OF DISPLACED PERSONS ON LAND
On the l5th August, 1947, with the partition of India came the partition of the Punjab into East and West Punjab. Since June, 1947, the problems of partition had received close consideration both in Delhi and in Lahore, but the possibilities of mass migration of the population were not part of the agenda. Thus, the most overwhelming fact of the partition of the subcontinent caught the new Governments largely unawares. From the middle of August, 1947, events moved rapidly. In many places sparks of the preceding weeks turned into devastating fires; local resentment into hatred; bravado and revenge into hideous brutality. With the withdrawal of officials, the minority populations both in East and West Punjab were completely at the mercy of the majority community, whose mood was increasingly shared by those whose business it was to protect the population.
2. The movement of population between East Punjab and West Punjab began towards the end of August, 1947, At this date it seemed still a trickle of persons seeking perhaps temporary shelter across the new border Soon the numbers grew and the Government of East Punjab, still barely on its legs, had to find immediate answers to some of the most difficult problems which have ever confronted administrations, By the middle of September, 1947, it was clear enough that the movement, which had now grown into a flood was likely to be an almost permanent transfer of population. No one then knew how wide the sweep of this transfer would be, what numbers were to be expected, and how soon they might come.
3. The manner and method of resettlement of rural population In East Punjab and the East Punjab States bears the stamp of August and September, 1947, The problems emerged with bewildering suddenness. Tragedy and fear of the future were writ large on the faces of the millions entering the Indian Union. The local administration in East Punjab was unprepared and unequipped. Had events been less relentless, and a measure of planning and organization in the transfer of population been possible, the story of resettlement of 2% million rural refugees would have read differently. Yet, the experience of resettlement in East Punjab and Pepsu, with its peculiar difficulties and pit-falls, has an abiding interest, and a careful record of what was done and what was left undone, should be of value for the future.
4. As time passes and facts and statistics are gathered, it be-comes possible to place problems in a certain perspective. This is not possible at the first onrush of these problems. In the crisis, frequently, only one solution appears feasible, but in retrospect other considerations supervene. It is therefore, necessary in considering the facts of each event to see them both in perspective and as they presented themselves to those upon whom the responsibility for taking the first decisions fell. In the second week of September, 1947, the East Punjab Government first tried to find an answer to the problem of effecting immediate settlement of the several hundred thousand displaced persons who were then arriving in the Province. At that time there were no facts and figures to go by. It was known that the Muslim population from the Jullundur Division in East Punjab and the non-Muslim population from the Lahore and Rawalpindi Divisions in West Punjab would almost certainly migrate. The Muslim population in the Ambala Division in East Punjab and the non-Muslim population in the Multan Division in West Punjab (with the exception of two districts) were still in their homes and only the first signs of movement were visible. The districts of the Jullundur Division had long been linked with the canal colony districts in West Punjab through the peasants who had gone out in the last generation or two to colonise the new lands. These colonists now bent their steps homewards. It seemed natural for them to do so and indeed the problem of immediate settlement was substantially eased in this manner. There was no time or occasion to consider at this stage the possibilities of resettlement of the non-Muslim population of different districts of West Punjab with a view to maintaining their homogeniety.
5. The East Punjab States, which are now comprised in the Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU), were in September, 1947, independent units of administration, each with its own seperate policies and purposes. By the end of September, 1947, the Patiala Government announced that displaced persons from the tahsils of Shahdara and Nankana Sahib in Sheikhupura district, Gujranwala and Wazirabad in Gujranwala district and Pasrur and Daska in Sialkot district would be assisted in settling on evacuee land in the Patiala State. The other States had no policy to speak of and were inclined to look upon land abandoned by evacuees as State property in whose land revenue and produce they were interested, but which thy had a right to deal out to such persons as they chose. It was not until some months later that the close co-ordination between East Punjab and the East Punjab States, which became an important feature of the scheme of land resettlement, could be begun.
6. Mention has been made of the lack of facts and figures. No one knew in September, 1947, how much area precisely was being abandoned in East Punjab or East Punjab States or in West Punjab. A scheme of distribution of the displaced population having regard to the area abandoned by them or likely to be abandoned by them or area-available or likely to be available, and taking into account its chances of assimilation with the local population, could not be formulated at this stage.
7. It was against this background that on the 15th September, 1947, the East Punjab Government decided to allot evacuee lands for the current kharif and for rabi, 1947-48 to groups. For various reasons group allotment was considered to be the only practicable means of sending the incoming population rapidly into villages. Agricultural refugees were asked to proceed to headquarters of tahsils as far as possible in groups in which they had lived in West Punjab or in groups in which they wished to live in villages in East Punjab. Frequently it might be possible to allot a whole village to a group; sometimes two or three groups might be given possession in the first instance in one village. Possession was not to be delayed because two or three groups intended for the same village came separately or were settled separately. As soon as people had gone to the land, there would be opportunities for rationalising the groups. The principle of group allotment was specifically excluded in dealing with orchards, vegetable gardens and cultivated land situated in urban areas, but a general discretion was given to Deputy Commissioners to make individual allotments in circumstances which they considered appropriate. The main principles on which allotment to groups was made were:
(1) All agricultural refugees who had either owned land or held land by virtue of grant or purchase or had been cultivating land as tenants in West Punjab were eligible for the allotment of land. Thus, non-cultivating owners could also receive allotment of land;
(2) A unit of allotment was to be fixed for each district or part of a district. A work unit was defined as the area of land which, in given conditions, could be cultivated by a worker assisted by a family of average size. Ordinarily, a plough unit constituted a unit of allotment;
(3) The total area to be allotted to a group would be based on the number of families forming the group, so that there would be a unit for each family to work upon. To allow for variations in the number of workers in different families, it was indicated that where, for instance, the unit was 10 acres, an addition of 3 acres could be allowed for every married male adult worker and 2 acres for every unmarried male adult worker. No addition was to be made if the number of adult workers in a family was two or less. Additions were restricted to the third, fourth and fifth worker, no additional allotment being given if the number of adult workers exceeded five. Additional allotments could be given only to actual cultivators, not to non-cultivating families;
(4) Within the framework of group allotment, each family would be responsible for the cultivation of a definite piece of land. It was suggested that a panchayat representing the members of the group should divide the area allotted into the appropriate number of units, so that these were more or less equally productive; and
(5) Allotment was to be subjected to the payment of land revenue, cesses and water-rates and of rent duo to the evacuee owners.
The
Group Allotment Scheme
8. The scheme of group allotment was an expedient introduced in specially difficult circumstances. It was not to be confused with co-operative farming or with group cultivation, which represent social techniques requiring much preparation, training and organisation. The objects, which the scheme set out to achieve, were:
(i) to ensure quick distribution of land ;
(ii) to make it impossible for individuals to claim to be in possession, illicitly or otherwise, of specific pieces of land ;
(iii) to enable refugees from particular villages and areas in West Punjab to remain as much together as possible ; and
(iv) to enable peasants to pool their resources as far as possible for the sowing of the rabi and to share equitably the standing kharif crops,
As resettlement proceeded, there was a tendency for groups to become somewhat smaller than at first. In many instances sowing was done in common. At the time of the rabi harvest disputes were reported in a number of places among members of groups. By this time, however, new decisions had been taken by Government in regard to the policy of land allotment. Yet, in a large measure, the immediate objects of the scheme of group allotment were fulfilled.
Progress of Temporary Allotment
of Land
9. By the beginning of December, 1947, Deputy Commissioners reported a total settlement of 190-155 families on an area of 2,072.854 acres of cultivated land. Towards the end of December, 1947, the number of families to whom allotment had been made was reported as 209,106, the area allotted being 2,394,635 acres. In the beginning of February, 1948, an area of 2,581,819 acres was reported as having been allotted to 238,216 families. Early in January, 1948, it was felt that a number of refugees had taken double allotments in more than one district and sometimes in a district of East Punjab as well as in one of the States. It would happen that an allotment would be taken for a group, say of 50 families, of whom after a time a few would move elsewhere and secure fresh allotment. The total number of families to whom land had been allotted thus tended to be somewhat exaggerated and those who remained in possession of the entire allotment made to their group, even though some had left, had in many cases a larger area than they were entitled to. In the middle of January, 1948, therefore, detailed instructions for the review of allotments were issued and temporary allotment registers were prescribed for all abandoned villages in the Province. As a consequence of this scrutiny, the progress report on rural rehabilitation for the fortnight ending the 15th March, 1948, recorded a total allotment of 2,196,466 acres, the number of families to whom allotment had been made being 200,233.
10. From kharif, 1948 further temporary allotment to those who were not themselves landholders in Pakistan was discontinued, but tenants-at-will who were already in possession of temporary allotments were not to be displaced until allotments in the scheme of quasi-permanent settlement had been completed.
Decision to Introduce a New Scheme of Allotment
11. From November, 1947, members of the Provincial Relief and Rehabilitation Board began to urge upon Government the necessity of early settlement on land on a permanent basis. The facts that ownership in land continued to vest both in East and West Punjab in the evacuee owners and that no records were available, were conceded, but the pressure for a permanent settlement continued. It was felt that the future of the Province depended largely on giving every displaced landholder something that he could call his own. Prolonged consideration of this question led to the announcement on the 7th February. 1948 of the decision to replace the temporary allotment of evacuee land by a new system of quasi-permanent allotment which wouId take account of the holdings of displaced persons in West Punjab. The new allotments would not confer rights of ownership or of permanent occupancy but the possession of the allottees would be maintained. To this end claims were to be invited. In view of its importance, the press communique of the 7th February is given in full in the annexure. In the new scheme of allotment land was to be allotted only to those who in West Punjab were owners, occupancy tenants under the Punjab Tenancy Act and tenants under the Colonization of Government Lands Act and to certain other classes of grantees and holders of land to be specified by Government. It was proposed to give to small holders allotment of equivalent areas while in the case of larger holders there would be graded cuts. The definition of small holders and the details of the graded cuts were to be determined, when fuller information regarding the area available, the area held by the population to be settled in East Punjab and East Punjab States and other relevant information was forthcoming.
12. Government announced its intention to complete the now system of allotments in East Punjab and East Punjab States not later than the 31st May, 1949 but added that they were anxious to introduce the new scheme as early as might be feasible and steps to this end would be taken at once.
13. Resettlement of displaced persons on land, when the problem assumes large proportions, is a process which falls into five phases:
(i) immediate settlement;
(ii) consolidation of temporary
allotment;
(iii) permanent settlement on land.
(iv) restoration of the rural
economy ; and
(v) reconstruction and development
of the rural economy.
14. The
first phase has been explained in this chapter. The second phase comprises the
following principal features :—
(1) systematization of allotments of
evacuee land;
(2) financial assistance to
displaced persons ;
(3) a scheme of allocation of areas
;
(4) dispersal of the rural
population from relief camps according to the scheme of allocation of areas ;
(5) restriction of allotment to
landholders ;
(6) differentiation between large
and small holders in the scheme of temporary allotment ; and
(7) creation of the necessary
administrative organisation.
15. It
is sufficient to record here that during the two years September, 1947 to
September, 1949, the following assistance by way of loans and grants was
afforded in East Punjab to displaced persons setting in rural areas :—
Rupees
Taccavi for seed 55,71,011
Taccavi for bullocks 55,77,974
Taccavi for implements 9,61
,731
Loans for repair of houses 97,615
Loans for repair of wells 5,800
Loans for rural artisans and village servants 5,66,540
Food loans 79,55,966
Grants for repair of houses 3,25,334
Grants for repair of wells 1,73.328
16. The
tentative and incomplete scheme of allocation of areas announced on the 15th
September, 1947, was followed by a more complete scheme on the 31st December,
1947, which became the basis for dispersal from relief camps. After a measure
of co-operation had been established with the East Punjab States, a further
scheme of allocation of areas for temporary allotment was issued on the 27th
May, 1948 which, in turn, became the-immediate fore-runner of the final scheme
of allocation of areas. All these schemes are set out in Appendix II
17. The
decision to discontinue temporary allotment of land to those who were not
landholders taken in the beginning of kharif, 1948 has already been mentioned.
It was followed by a scheme of special leases for these who had abandoned areas
exceeding 100 acres. The larger holders were, thus given larger allotments and
uniform allotments ceased to be the rule. The allotments sanctioned according
to this scheme were:—
Area abandoned Special
lease
(acres of irrigated or
equivalent area) (acres)
150 –
200 25
200 –
300 35
100 –
150 20
150 –
200 25
200 –
300 35
300 –
400 45
400 –
500 50
500 –
1000 75
100 –
2000 150
2000 –
3000 250
3000 –
4000 350
4000 or
more 400
18. Creation
of the necessary administrative organisation for handling the rehabilitation of
large numbers is completely vital to the success of rehabilitation policies.
After some initial failure, steps were taken to provide every district in East
Punjab (apart from Kangra and Simla) with an Additional Deputy Commissioner
(described at first as Deputy Commissioner, Rehabilitation) and a Revenue
Assistant. Rehabilitation. The district revenue machinery was strengthened
through the addition of 41 Tahsildars, 82 Naib Tahsildars, 186 Girdawar
Kanungos and 1300 Patwaris and the new staff was integrated with the existing staff,
so that the area under each official was reduced. Because of the extreme
importance given to the work relating to permanent settlement and the pressure
at which it was done, to some extent work relating to the immediate rehabilitation
of the population, as distinguished from work relating to permanent
settlement, tended to suffer. Again and again, during the period 1947-49 the
lesson that an administration capable of dealing honestly and justly with the
needs of the common man is the first step to effective rehabilitation has been
strikingly illustrated.
19. The
resettlement of land in East Punjab and Pepsu was envisaged as an operation
likely to confer in due course rights of a permanent character. Until issues
relating to evacuee property are resolved between India and Pakistan, ownership
in each country of property abandoned by evacuees continues to rest with them.
This led to the use of the expression quasi-permanent as the keyword for the
scheme of resettlement introduced in East Punjab and Pepsu. As will be
appreciated, never before had there been land resettlement operations of the
magnitude of those, which were now planned in East Punjab and Pepsu.
Quasi-permanent allotment of land entails the following eleven processes :—
(1) determination of rights to be conferred
pending transfer of ownership .
(2) devising
methods for the valuation of different classes of
land and
rights on a uniform basis ;
(3) collection
of statistical information ;
(4) Compilation of the accounts of land and rights abandoned by each displaced person ;
(5) framing
a scheme of graded distribution of land ;
(6) preparing
a scheme of allocation of areas ;
(7) assigning
each individual landholder to a particular village ;
(8) allotment
of fields to each individual;
(9) delivery
of possession to individual allottees ;
(10) providing a procedure for review and revision of allotments ;
and
(11)
completion
of revenue records.
The various chapters of this Manual are concerned with an exposition of
the principles and methods devised for carrying out each of the tasks listed
above. The first and the third items will be explained in some detail in this
chapter. Chapter II sets out the procedural aspects of work relating to land
claims. Chapter III summarises the principles and rules governing the valuation
and assessment of individual claims with a view to allotment of land, and
covers the second, fourth and fifth items in the list. The sixth and seventh
items are explained in chapter IV. Certain developments of the general scheme
of allotment and in particular, suburban allotments, allotments in garden
colonies and allotments in villages earmarked for defence personnel are
discussed in Chapter V. The directions laid down for the determination of
fields for each individual are set out in Chapter VI and the instructions and
procedure for the review and revision of allotment in Chapter VII. The last
chapter contains the instructions and procedure to be followed for the
completion of land records following the quasi-permanent allotment. Except in
so far as is necessary by way of introduction, the details under each head are
explained in the relevant chapter.
20. From
the legal aspect, quasi-permanent allotment is an arrangement made by the
Custodian of evacuee property for the management for the time being of property
in his charge. Only such rights can, therefore, be conferred on persons to whom
evacuee land is allotted or leased as vest in the Custodian himself.
Arrangements relating to quasi-permanent allotment fall thus within the
framework of the legislation which may be made for the management of evacuee
property. Untill me 10th October, 1949, each Province and State had its own
evacuee property legislation. The East Punjab had its Evacuees' (Administration
of Property) Act, 1947 which was amended in several particulars during 1948,
and was replaced by a provincial ordinance on the 9th July, 1949, framed on the
pattern proposed by the Central Government. In October, 1949, however, the
Central Government issued the Administration of Evacuee Property
Ordinance-1949 which applies to all Provinces and States in the Indian Union.