An examination of the nature of agrarian society and the role of the rural power structure has, of late, become an important feature in any analysis of political change in India. The spread of the Green Revolution and the growing importance of the agrarian sector has served to turn attention to the process of political mobilisation in the countryside. The growth of agrarian capitalism and the resulting mobilisation of new social groups has underpinned fundamental changes in many parts of the country while also paving the way for the emergence of the rich peasants.