There are two paragraphs by way of con-The target for cloth production and the textile
FROM 50 YEARS AGO
clusion right at the end of this 640 page reportpolicy generally was not finalised in the reportin the second of which a caveat is entered that was published and presented to theby Shri K C Neogy that the magnitude of theParliament. They were announced a monthPlan is such that it will be difficult to imple-after the publication of the Plan. The targetment it in five years and that deficit financingfor food production was discarded immedion such an excessive scale may prove dan-ately after its publication and has been leftVols VIII, Nos 24, 25 and 26, June 23, 1956 gerous. Shri Neogy, it is added, had alsoto the Food Ministers of the State Govern
drawn attention to the need for balanced ments who are to meet at the end of the monthLife Force Overwhelms development of transport and production. “Alland consider the situation de novo. (Off the Record) the Members of the Planning CommissionDemocratic planning is not all backwards
agreed” reads the concluding sentence, “thatand forwards; in the field of industry move-
It is a nice Plan, it covers everything,these considerations are important and shouldments may be lateral, in agriculture, gyrationsagriculture, industry, employment, adminis-be constantly kept in view in carrying out theare not ruled out. But don’t think it is planningtration, education, health and housing. APlan and that these aspects have also been by fiat, China way, though China too may benumber of chapters have been devoted to eachconsidered fully in appropriate sections ofthinking of raising her food production targetof these. The chapters are easy reading. Theythe Plan” (emphasis ours).at an identical rate. may sometimes tax the reader’s patience butThe sting is, therefore, in the tail and thisAs it has turned out, the end of the Plan never his intelligence.one concluding paragraph disposes of the 640has become its beginning. What will follow
The Plan begins with an examination of thepages of the report. This is the Final Plan.is at the moment anybody’s guess. Yet, strangeachievements of the First Plan, explains itsIt follows the Draft Outline which in its turn to think that the caveat which Shri K C Neogyapproach to and gives an outline of the Secondfollowed the Draft of the Draft Plan-frame has entered was for pruning and not expand-Plan and then goes on to examine the finance,which was submitted to the National Devel-ing the Plan any further. This, however, isforeign exchange, and employment aspects.opment Council in March last year. There canreassuring. The country wants to move for-Then comes the administrative tasks. Finallybe no finality in planning. The Planningward rather than listen to the voice of caution, there are chapters on labour, backwardCommission follows this dictum of adven-goaded on by – shall we say? – élan vital,classes and social welfare services, the last turous living and it left the targets for foodfor there is nothing in the targets or thebeing devoted to rehabilitation of displaced and cloth, the main props on which the Indianeconometrics of it to explain or account forpersons. economy rests, to be decided by a free fight. the logistics of the present move.
Economic and Political Weekly June 17, 2006
