Consider the following statements regarding the agrarian labor stratification inside the middle Gangetic plain during the second urbanization:
1. The expansion of high yield Shali paddy transplantation led to the growth of a deeply marginalized class of landless workers called Dasas and Kammakaras.
2. Unlike the Vedic setup, these dependent laborers worked directly on large agricultural estates managed by wealthy private Gahapatis.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

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Accepted Answer

Both statements are correct. The economic boom of the Mahajanapadas era had a steep social cost. Wet rice transplantation was highly labor intensive, demanding continuous work in mud fields. Wealthy Gahapatis concentrated large arable plots, utilizing Dasas (enslaved individuals) and Kammakaras (hired wage earners) who held zero land assets, creating a strict class based agrarian hierarchy documented in Pali texts.

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