Economics · Ch 10 — Economic Planning in India
Objectives of Indian Economic Planning
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Objectives of Indian Economic Planning
Objectives of Indian Economic Planning
Indian planning has, across its many plan periods, pursued five broad and recurring objectives. Their relative emphasis has shifted from one Five-Year Plan to another, but all five have remained visible throughout the planning era.
- Growth. Raising the rate of growth of national income and per-capita income is the most basic objective of any development plan — a growing economy is what makes every other objective (more jobs, less poverty, better infrastructure) achievable in the first place. Growth is generally pursued through higher rates of saving and investment, and by raising the productivity of both agriculture and industry.
- Self-Reliance (Atmanirbharta). Reducing dependence on other countries — particularly for foodgrains, capital goods, and foreign aid — has been a consistent planning goal, pursued through building domestic agricultural capacity (culminating in the Green Revolution) and a domestic capital-goods and heavy-industry base (the Second Plan's central thrust).
- Modernisation. Adopting new technology, diversifying the production structure, and moving the economy's composition away from traditional, low-productivity methods — in agriculture (better seeds, irrigation, mechanisation) as much as in industry — has been pursued as a distinct objective throughout the plan era, since growth achieved with outdated methods is far less durable.
- Equity / Social Justice. Growth by itself does not guarantee that its benefits reach the poorest sections of society. Reducing inequalities of income and wealth, and reducing the incidence of poverty, has been an explicit planning objective — most visibly foregrounded in the Fifth Five-Year Plan's Garibi Hatao ("Remove Poverty") thrust of the mid-1970s, but present in some form across nearly every plan.
- Employment Generation. Given India's fast-growing labour force, creating enough productive jobs — not merely growing output — has been a standing objective, pursued through both direct employment schemes and a general emphasis on labour-intensive sectors.
Note
Objectives of Indian Planning — at a glance
| Objective | What it means | How it was mainly pursued |
|---|---|---|
| Growth | Raise national income and per-capita income | Higher saving/investment; higher agricultural and industrial productivity |
| Self-reliance | Reduce dependence on foreign food, capital goods, and aid | Domestic agricultural build-up (Green Revolution); domestic heavy industry |
| Modernisation | Adopt new technology; diversify the production structure | Technology upgrades in agriculture and industry |
| Equity / social justice | Reduce inequality and poverty, not just raise output | Poverty-alleviation and redistributive programmes (e.g. Garibi Hatao) |
Definition 1Atmanirbharta (Self-Reliance)
The planning objective of reducing a country's dependence on other countries for essential goods (food, capital goods) and financial assistance, by building up …
Definition 2Garibi Hatao
The poverty-alleviation thrust that gave its name to the Fifth Five-Year Plan (1974–79), marking a more explicit planning emphasis on eq …