ARTICLE ON TWENTY POINT PROGRAMME

BY VARNIT VASHISTHA

Twenty Point Programme was launched in the year 1975 by Prime

Minister Indira Gandhi. It first got revised in 1982 and then again in
1986. There has been a need for restructuring the programme
because of the introduction of new policies and programmes by the
Government of India. It has been 30 years since this programme was
introduced but it is still relevant today because the eradication of
poverty and basic amenities of common man have not been
absolutely attained.

The Twenty Point Programme was restructured in the year 2006 and
was approved by the cabinet on 5th of October and operated with
effect from 1.04.2007 while in keeping mind the challenges of 21st
century. India is a developing country and with the ongoing
liberalisation, globalisation and economic reforms going on in the
country it is very important for a government to not ignore backward
section of its citizens.

This programme has been restructured with accordance to National

Minimum Common Programme (NCMP), the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs) of the United Nations and the SAARC
social charter.

The basic objective of Twenty Point Programme is to eradicate the

poverty and to improve the quality of life of the poor and the
underprivileged population of the country. It was promulgated by
the Government of India as to comply with the rules enshrined under
the Directive Principles of our State Policy (DPSP). The programme
covers various socio economic factors like poverty, employment,
education, housing, health, agriculture, and land reforms, irrigation,
drinking water, protection and empowerment of weaker sections,
consumer protection, environment etc.

The Twenty Points of the programme and its 66 items have been
conservatively designed and selected to achieve the above objects.

The point programme of the 1986consisted of the following

objectives:

1. Attack on rural poverty

2. Strategy for rained agriculture
3. Better use of irrigation agriculture
4. Bigger harvest
5. Enforcement of land reforms
6. Special programs for rural labour
7. Clean drinking water
8. Health for all
9. Two children norm
10. Expansion of education
11. Justice for SC/ST
12. Equality for women
13. New opportunities for women
14. Housing for the people
15. Improvement for slums
16. New strategy for forestry
17. Protection of environment
18. Concern for the consumer
19. Energy for the villages
20. A responsive administration
For the effective enforcement of point of 5 of TWENTY POINT
PROGRAMME which is Enforcement of Land Reforms, the
Government of India “distributed waste land to the landless”.

Under the TPP, the land was allotted to the landless backward
people to cultivate and earning their living. This allotment was done
under section 73 of the Delhi Land Reforms Act which states that:

The GaonSabha shall have the right to admit any person as

Bhumidhar to any land, other than land falling in any of the classes
mentioned in sub- clause (iii) of clause (a) of section 6, where - 

(a)   The land is vacant land ,

(b)   The land is vested in the Gaon Sabha under section 72 or under
any other provision of this Act.

(c)   The land has come into the possession of Gaon Sabha under
section 72 or under any other provision of  this Act,

(d)   The land is let in accordance with sub- section (4) of section 74.

Section 74 Admission to Land mentioned in sub clause (iii) of clause

(a) of section 6 or to waste land for reclamation. –

1. The GaonSabha shall have the right to admit any person as

Asami to any land falling in any of the classes mentioned in sub-
clause (iii) of clause (a) of section 6 where –
a) The land is vacant land,
b) The land is vested in the GaonSabha, or
c) The land has come into the possession of the GaonSabha
under section 72 or under any other provisions of the act.
2. In order to encourage the reclamation of the waste land, the
Gaon Sabha shall also have the right to admit any person as
 ASAMI and give the land on lease if it is cultivable or
uncultivable waste area of the village, not included in holdings.
3. The Asami shall have the right to hold the land for a period of
five years at a rate of rent which should not be more than 50
percent of the prevailing rate of rent in the village, payable for
the land.
4. At the end of five years the Gaon Sabha shall report to Revenue
Assistant the extent to which reclamation has been made. The
Revenue Assistant shall, after necessary enquiry and after
hearing the Asami, either order the termination of the lease or
ejectment if there has been no reclamation or extension of two
years in the lease. If, however, the land has been reclaimed
during the extended period the Revenue Assistant shall direct
the Gaon Sabha to admit the Asami as Bhumidhar under
section 73.

Asami is defined as a person who:

Every person belonging to any of the following classes shall be an
Asami and shall have all the rights and be subject to all the liabilities
conferred or imposed upon an Asami by or under this Act, namely -

(a) Every person who, in the agricultural year immediately before the

commencement of this Act, occupied or held land—

(i) As a non- occupancy tenant of proprietor’s grove;

(ii) As a sub-tenant of tenant ‘s grove;

(iii) As a non-occupancy tenant of pasture land, or of land covered by

water and used for the purpose of growing singhara and other
produce or land in the bed of a river and used for casual or
occasional cultivation;
(b) Every person who, in accordance with the provisions of [(Note:
Substituted by Act 38 of 1965) section 36, or section 64A], becomes a
lessee of land comprised in the tenure of a Bhumidhar referred to in
that section;

(c) Every person who is admitted as a lessee of land referred to in

sub-clause (iii) of clause (a) by the Gaon Sabha or a person
authorised to do so under the provisions of this Act;

(d) Every person who is a tenant of Sir or a sub-tenant of an

occupancy tenant under section 5 of the Punjab Tenancy Act, 1887,
or of a Pattadar Dawami or Istamrari, with right of transfer by sale,
who belongs to any of the categories of persons referred to in sub
section (2) of section 10, and every person who is a sub-tenant of
tenants referred to in clauses (a) , (b) and (c) of sub-section (1) of
section 12 to whom the provision of sub-section (2) of section 10
applies; and

(e) Every person who acquires the rights of an Asami under any other
provisions of this Act.

JUDGEMENT ON WHETHER THE LAND ALLOTED UNDER TPP CAN BE

FURTHER TRANSFERRED OR NOT:

Murlidhar Dayandeo Kesekar vs Vishwanath Pandu Barde & Anr.

Para 25 “It is seen that prior permission for alienation of the land was
a condition precedent. Before permission is given, the competent
authority is enjoined, by operation of Article 46 of the Constitution,
to enquire whether such alienation is void under law or violates
provisions of the Constitution and whether permission could be
legitimately given. In that behalf, the competent authority is
enjoined to look to the nature of the property, subject-matter of the
proposed conveyance and pre-existing rights flowing there under
and whether such alienations or encumbrances violate provisions of
the Constitution or the law. If the answer is in the positive, then
without any further enquiry the permission straightaway would be
rejected. Even in case the permission is granted, it would be decided
on the anvil of the relevant provisions of the Constitution and the
law. In this case, the authorities, though had not adverted to the
aspect of the matter, broadly refused permission on the ground that
the assigned land cannot be permitted to be sold or converted to
non-agricultural use. The action refusing permission, therefore, is in
consonance with the Constitutional scheme in Part IV of the Directive
Principles. The agreement is, therefore, void under s.23 of the
Contract Act as opposed to public policy vide judgment in DTC v. DTC
Mazdoor Congress, 1990 (suppl.) 1 SCR, 192, by one of us
Ramaswamy, J. with whom Sawant and Ray, JJ. agreed by separate
but concurring judgment and the permission was rightly refused to
be given for alienation. The possession is unlawful. Section 53-A of
Transfer of Property Act is not attracted. The appellant's possession
continues to be unlawful and he is not entitled to any improvement
made on the lands. The Collector is directed to resume the lands
immediately and assign the same to the legal representatives of first
respondent, if found eligible or to any other eligible tribal.”

AFTER THE 2006 RESTRUCTURING THERE WERE SOME

CHANGES IN TWENTY POINT PROGRAMME:
1. Poverty eradication
2. power to people
3. Support to farmers
4. Labour welfare
5. Food security
6. Clean drinking water
7. Housing for all
8. Health for all
9. Education for all
10. Welfare of SC/ ST/ OBC and minorities
11. Women welfare
12. Child welfare
13. Youth Development
14. Improvement of slums
15. Environment protection and afforestation
16. Social security
17. Rural Roads
18. Energising of rural areas
19. Development of Backward areas

MONITORING COMMITTEE FOR TPP

(MONTHLY/QUARTERLY) PROGRESS REPORT:
Twenty Point Programme (TPP) – 2006 originally consisted of
20 Points and 66 items. Out of 66 items, 20 items were
monitored on monthly basis. However, recently due to
modification in some schemes, presently, 65 items are
monitored under TPP-2006. Out of 65 items, 19 items (earlier
20) measured on 37 parameters are being monitored on
quarterly basis during the period 2014-15, of which 22
parameters are monitored against the targets fixed at the
beginning of financial year by the Central Nodal Ministries and
State Governments (information in respect of 15 items is being
collected from various States/ UTs and for remaining 4 items
from the concerned Central Nodal Ministries).The Ministry
prepares a quarterly Progress Report (QPR) on TPP-2006
covering information on 22 parameters . The QPR provides
information on the Annual Physical Targets, Cumulative targets
and achievements for the period under report. In order to
curtail the delay in receipt of information from the States and
the Central Nodal Ministries, a Web Based MIS has been
evolved by the Ministry. This system allows the states/central
Nodal Ministries to directly input the information on the
monitoring of TPP into the MIS. Most of the States and Central
Nodal Ministries are using MIS. The information in respect of
particular month is to be input by a particular date (which
presently stands at 20th of succeeding month) after which the
collected information is frozen. The QPR finalized is sent to the
State/UT Governments and Nodal Ministries concerned for
taking appropriate measures in the areas of concern where the
schemes are observed to be not doing well.