T he C olonial P eriod There are historical reasons why each region of India came to be dominated by just one or two major groups. But it is important to realise that this agrarian structure has changed enormously over time, from the pre-colonial to the There is a direct correspondence between agricultural productivity and the agrarian structure. In areas of assured irrigation, those with plentiful rainfall or artificial irrigation works (such as rice-growing regions in river deltas, for instance the Kaveri basin in Tamil Nadu) more labour was needed for intensive cultivation. Here the most unequal agrarian structures developed.
The agrarian structure of these regions was characterised by a large proportion of landless labourers, who were often ‘bonded’ workers belonging to the lowest castes. (Kumar ).