“The change in the nature of the relationship between landlords and agricultural workers was described by the sociologist Jan Breman as a shift from patronage to exploitation.” Explain the given statement in the context of Footloose Labour.

Agriculture is the primary occupation of more than 50% of the population in India. With time agriculture became the sector to make a profit, i.e., it has been commercialized. It is true that sociologist Jan Breman described “The change in the nature of the relationship between landlords and agricultural workers as a shift from patronage to exploitation.” Crops are now grown to sell in the market and not for self-consumption. Many scholars believe that this change in relationship happened due to the shift to capitalist agriculture. Farmers have now become aware of the ‘free’ wage labour and in the developed regions they are becoming more inclined towards the market. When cultivation in India became commercialised, the flow of money into the villages increased causing an increase in the opportunities of employment and business.

All these changes happened in the 19th century when the large piece of land in Maharashtra given for the cotton cultivation and they were linked to the world market. The government of India than introduced new methods of cultivation and tried to modernise and make improvement in the rural economy, this made the pace of change more rapid. The government also spent in the development of infrastructures like in irrigation facilities, roads, electricity, and on the condition of agricultural inputs, including credit through banks and cooperatives. All these changes not only made improvement in the rural economy but also made changes in the agrarian structure and rural society also.

Sociologist Jan Breman used the term ‘Footloose labour’ for those people who migrate in search of work and better wages. These people come from the area which is drought-prone and less productive. The term doesn’t imply freedom but for the people who migrate to the regions of Punjab, Haryana, brick kilns in UP, construction sites in the state of New Delhi and Bangalore. It is because of the change in the nature of the relationship that seasonal demand for work increased. They migrate to the cities which is more prosperous and where there is a demand for work and better wages.

Breman further argues that landless workers migrate to other regions as they do not have any rights like not getting paid minimum wages. Moreover, wealthy farmers prefer to choose to migrate workers over local working class for harvesting and rigorous operations as they could be easily exploited and can be paid lower wages. This way, landless labourers move from their home in search of work and migrant workers come to regions to work in local farms during agricultural seasons. This created poor working and living condition for the workers who migrate due to lack of job security.

Thus, it clearly indicates that “The change in the nature of the relationship between landlords and agricultural workers as a shift from patronage to exploitation.”