Wasteland policy formulation through planning period

Plan period


Major issue


Policy thrust

First Plan1951 - 56


Area under cultivation to be increased. Community development (CD) networks to take care of the village commons. Vast uncultivated lands locked under large sizes of holdings.


Land reforms to bring in the fallow under cultivation and increase land use efficiency. Tenant to be given the rights to cultivate land. Abolition of intermediaries.

Second Plan 1956 - 61


Concern about vast rainfed agriculture, low land productivity and thrust on irrigated agriculture.


Soil conservation as an important programme. First phase of land reform implementation. Irrigation development for the rainfed areas. Training and extension work for the technology through CD.

Third Plan 1961 - 66


Food security concern dominated. Cultivable waste land to be brought under cultivation. Bringing the lagging regions under mainstream growth.


Area development as an approach. Intensive area development programme adopted for selected districts. An integrated land policy approach was inherent. Soil surveys were taken up.

Fourth Plan 1969 - 74


Emphasis on food security continued as minimum dietary requirements to be met. Incentives were created for diversion of land towards food crops and enhancing the capacity of such land. Domination of large holding sizes and low allocation and technical efficiency.


Increased emphasis on irrigation and soil conservation in dryland regions and technological change introduced. Higher cropping intensity the main concern. Second phase of land reforms with land ceiling acts and consolidation of holding. Institutional changes brought in.

Fifth Plan 1974 - 79


Problems of degradation land management in irrigated command areas surfaced. Drought-prone areas attracted attention.


Drought-prone area development. Desert area development programmes, and soil conservation started and further enhanced. New impetus to dry farming.

Sixth Plan 1980 - 85


Underutilization of land resources. Drought-prone areas continued to attract attention. Attention lagging areas on the background of green revolution required cultivation.


Land and water management programme under drought-prone area programme in selected areas.

Seventh Plan 1985 - 90


Soil erosion and land degradation surfaced as major issues. Land going out of cultivation. Deforestation and degradation of forest lands.


Soil and water conservation and averting land degradation. Specific attention to degraded lands. Wastelands Development programmes. Long-term view of land management.

Eighth Plan 1992 - 97


Dryland and rainfed areas requiring attention. Degradation of land in irrigated command areas. Peoples' participation surfaced as major issue in land management at village level.


Emphasis on watershed approach. Soil conservation merged with watershed programmes. Agroclimatic regional planning approach incorporated.

Ninth Plan 1997 - 2010


Land degradation increased significantly. Integrating Watershed Development Programme across various components. Rethinking on land reforms. Gap between potentials and actual crop yields need to be bridged. Need for a long-term policy document.


Bringing the underutilized land under cultivation. Management of wastelands. Maintenance of village commons. Decentralized land management system. Panchayat Raj institutions to manage the village lands. Rethinking on land legislation.

Rachit