Agrarian relations in kuttanadu - then and now, with reference to the kerala agrarian relations bill, 1957

Before 1957, Kuttanadu - Kerala's Rice Bowl - was controlled by wealthy upper-caste landlords (janmis) who forced lower-caste workers (adiyans) into bonded labor with no rights. This study examines how farming and social relationships changed after the Kerala Agrarian Relations Bill of 1957, focusing on the shift from landlord control to organized worker unions. Using historical records and interviews with farming experts and local farmers, the research shows that the 1957 law successfully ended the feudal system by giving tenant farmers land security and empowering agricultural workers through labor unions. However, these positive changes created unexpected problems: farmland became divided into tiny plots, worker shortages emerged, and powerful unions began controlling farming decisions. While land reforms brought social justice by ending caste-based oppression, they also created new constraints where aggressive trade unions now make agricultural decisions instead of market forces, reducing farming efficiency and profitability in today's Kuttanadu.