In an economy like ours which is largely agrarian, banjar land or banjar bhumi is a term we have all come across. The usage of the term for administrative and legal purposes can be traced back to the Mughal empire. While most of us believe that ‘banjar’ is a term that is significant to agricultural land, the term can have various other meanings in legal terminology beyond the literal meaning of a barren and uncultivable piece of land. In this article, we try to acquaint you with the broader meaning and connotations of the phrase ‘banjar land’ in contemporary times.
Banjar land: Types and related terms
Banjar land can be categorised into two main types. These types are terms you might commonly come across when talking about banjar land. Here are the definitions of these terms:
Banjar jadid
Banjar jadid is the term assigned to a piece of land that is a new fallow. This is used to refer to a piece of land that was used for cultivation earlier but has not been cultivated for four to eight continuous harvest seasons. It is the comparatively recent type of fallow land.
Banjar kadim
Banjar kadim refers to the old variety of fallow land that has been used for cultivation at least once in the past but has been left fallow for eight or more years.
See also: Pros and cons of buying agricultural land
Legal classification of banjar land
As mentioned before, banjar land implies much more than a strip of barren land that cannot be used for agricultural purposes. Here are the types of banjar land classified according to their usage to give you an idea about all that falls under this umbrella term:
Culturable wasteland
Culturable wasteland refers to a piece of land that is fit for cultivation but has not been used for agricultural purposes in any harvest season for two to five years consecutively. Do note that it only includes land that still has the qualities to be cultivated upon.
Current fallow land
Current fallow land is a strip of land that is fit for cultivation but has been left unutilised for agricultural purposes for one year or less.
Barren agricultural wasteland
The closest it gets to the literal meaning of banjar, barren agricultural wasteland includes in its ambit all kinds of land where cultivation is not possible under any circumstances. Not only does this include agricultural land that has lost its fertility due to long use, but also geographical terrains unsuitable for agriculture such as deserts, ravines and dry hills.
See also: How to convert agricultural land to residential use?
FAQs
What is the literal meaning of the word ‘banjar’ in English?
The Hindi term ‘banjar bhumi’ refers to a piece of land that is unproductive and barren, and cannot be used for agricultural purposes.
What else does the term banjar land imply?
Along with completely barren pieces of land where cultivation is not possible under any circumstances, banjar land also includes agricultural lands that are cultivable but have been left fallow for one or more harvest seasons.
What does ‘fallow’ mean?
Fallow refers to the act of not using a piece of land for agriculture for a while so that it regains its suitability for agriculture.
What is banjar jadid?
Banjar jadid is the new fallow land that has not been used for four to eight harvest seasons.
What is banjar kadim?
Banjar kadim is the old fallow land that has not been used for cultivation for eight or more harvest seasons.
How to identify the different types of banjar land?
The types of banjar land is mainly identified on the basis of the number of years it has been left fallow for.
Is banjar land classification only significant for the agricultural sector?
Despite banjar land being classified on the basis of agricultural use, it holds significance for various branches of revenue collection and policy making.
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