Q.How does the government maintain regional balance in the country?

At Independence the public sector was expected to lead the economy — building infrastructure and investing in key areas that needed heavy capital and long gestation, where private business was unwilling to go. The early Five Year Plans gave it great importance. Its contribution can be seen along several dimensions:

• Development of infrastructure — only the government could mobilise huge capital and build transport, energy and heavy industry, the prerequisite for industrialisation.
• Regional balance — enterprises (such as four steel plants) were deliberately located in backward areas to remove regional disparities and create jobs.
• Economies of scale — large units in power, gas, petroleum and telephones needed a big base that only government resources could provide. …