Chapter 3: Politics of Planned Development

1 Mark Questions

Question 1: Who is the ex-officio chairperson of the Planning Commission of India? (All India 2013)

Answer: Prime Minister of India.

Question 2: What was the ‘Bombay Plan’? (All India 2013)

Answer: A section of big industrialists drafted a joint proposal in 1944 for setting up a planned economy in India, called the Bombay Plan. They wanted the state to take major initiatives in industrial and economic investments.

Question 3: What was significant about P.C. Mahalanobis? (All India 2013)

Who was P.C. Mahalanobis? (Delhi 2009)

Answer: P.C. Mahalanobis was the founder of the Indian Statistical Institute (1931) and the chief architect of the Second Five Year Plan. He supported rapid industrialization and an active role for the public sector.

Question 4: Who was popularly known as ‘the milkman of India’? (All India 2013)

Answer: Verghese Kurien.

Question 5: What was the main objective of the Second Five Year Plan? (All India 2012)

Answer: The main objective was rapid industrialization and structural transformation.

Question 6: When was India’s New Economic Policy launched? Who was its chief architect? (All India 2009)

Answer: India's New Economic Policy was launched in 1991. Its chief architect was Dr. Manmohan Singh.

2 Mark Questions

Question 1: Differentiate between the capitalist and socialist models of development. (HOTS; All India 2014)

Answer:

The capitalist model allows free-market conditions to drive innovation and wealth creation.
The socialist model incorporates elements of central planning to ensure economic equality and welfare.

Question 2: Differentiate between the main objectives of the First and Second Five Year Plans. (Delhi 2014)

Answer:

First Five Year Plan: Focused on agriculture and balanced economic growth.
Second Five Year Plan: Focused on industrialization and rapid economic transformation.

Question 3: What is meant by decentralized planning? (All India 2014, 2012)

Answer: Decentralized planning is a strategy where local-level institutions like Panchayats and districts are involved in development activities through voluntary citizen participation.

Question 4: Mention any two merits of the Green Revolution. (All India 2013)

Answer:

Achieved self-sufficiency in food production.
Improved the economic and social status of farmers in Punjab, Haryana, and Western Uttar Pradesh.

Question 5: Which are the two models of development? Which model was adopted by India? (Delhi 2013)

Answer:

Liberal capitalist model: Followed in Europe and the U.S.
Socialist model: Followed in the USSR.

India adopted a mixed economy, combining both models.

Question 6: Write the meaning and importance of economic planning in the Indian context. (All India 2009)

Answer: Economic planning is a strategy to achieve economic development through state intervention. It enhances development opportunities, improves living standards, and ensures balanced growth.