Research Note: Impact of Fish Farming on Land Relations: Evidence from a Village Study in West Bengal

Abstract

Prawn farming in the states of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu had led to eviction of tenants and loss of agricultural land and fishing areas for poor people. There is no study that has analysed land relations in prawn farming in West Bengal. This paper analyses land relations in prawn farming in West Bengal on the basis of data collected from a household survey in a village in the Sunderban estuarine region. The analysis of the structure of ownership holdings showed that there was inequality in the distribution of land in Tentultala. The Gini coefficient of distribution of ownership holdings was 0.66. Fish farming had led to concentration of land among the big farmers of fish in Tentultala. These households had almost 70 per cent of total operated area in Tentultala. The Gini coefficient of distribution of operational holdings was 0.93. The development of a land lease market had enhanced livelihood security of small land owners and bargadars. Thus, unlike many other areas in India, prawn farming had led to improvement in livelihood security for a section of poor people that had ownership and cultivating rights over land.