India - Household Consumer Expenditure: NSS 55th Round, Schedule 1, July 1999 - June 2000

Code 1 or 2 will be recorded against this item depend­ing on whether the household owns any land or not as on the date of survey.

A piece of land is considered 'owned by the household' if perma­nent heritable possession with or without the right to transfer the title is vested in a member or members of the household. Land held in owner-like possession under long-term lease or as­signment is also considered as land owned. Thus, in determining the ownership of a plot of land, two basic concepts are involved, namely,

(a) Land owned by the household i.e., land on which the household has the right of permanent heritable possession with or without the right to transfer the title e.g., Pattadars, Bhumi­dars, Jenmons, Bhumiswamis, Rayat, Sithibans etc. A plot of land may be leased out to others by the owner without losing the right of permanent heritable possession.
(b) Land held under special conditions such as the holder does not possess the title of ownership but the right for long-term possession of the land (for example, land possessed under perpetual lease, hereditary tenure and long-term lease for 30 years or more) will be considered as being held under owner-like possession. In the states where land reform legislation has provided for full proprietorship to erstwhile tenants, they are to be considered as having owner-like possession, even if they have not paid the full compensation.

Sometimes a plot may be possessed by a tribal in accor­dance with traditional tribal rights from local chieftains or village/district council. Again a plot may be occupied by a tenant for which the right of ownership vests in the community. In both the cases the tribal or other individual (tenant) will be taken as owner; for in all such cases, the holder has owner-like possession of the land in question.