The last three decades have really been very important in the history of West Bengal, India, for a number of reasons. These long years, marked by the uninterrupted rule of the Left Front, have been particularly remarkable for the changes they brought about in the rural society of West Bengal. Never before could the state achieve such a remarkable growth in agricultural production as it did during this period. In fact, agricultural production almost stagnated in West Bengal for nearly a century, that is, from 1880 to 1980 (Bandyopadhyay, 2007). Never before were the programmes of land reforms, including ‘Operation Barga’, initiated and implemented on such a scale and with such a firm political will. Never before were PRIs made to function uninterrupted with the purported aim to ‘decentralize’ rural administration and enhance rural development. Never before did the countryside witness so much activity of the organized political parties and the ensuing political division in the rural society. Never before perhaps, in such a short span of time, had West Bengal's village society undergone so much change in all spheres of life – economic, political and cultural – ideological.

The Economy

West Bengal has been regarded as one of the fastest growing states in India with its annual growth rate of State Domestic Product (SDP) being 7 per cent in the period between 1993–94 and 2000–01. The per capita SDP was just above the national average, while the per capita consumption expenditure in 2000 was Rs 572 per month, which was lower than the national average of Rs 591 per month (Government of West Bengal [GoWB], 2004c: 8).