Which among the following statements with regard to Five Year Plans in India is/are correct? 1. The First and Ninth five year plans accorded high priority to agriculture 2. The Third Plan was based on the Harrod-Domar Model 3. Seventh Plan focused on food, work and productivity 4. The Ninth five year plan emphasized on massive investments in public sector
- (a)1 only
- (b)1 and 3
- (c)3 and 4
- (d)1, 2 and 4
Correct — B, 1 and 3. Statement 1 is right: the First Plan (1951-56) put agriculture and irrigation first (to overcome the post-Partition food crisis), and the Ninth Plan (1997-2002), under its theme 'Growth with Social Justice and Equity', again prioritised agriculture and rural development. Statement 3 is right: the Seventh Plan (1985-90) is remembered for its objectives of 'Food, Work and Productivity'. Statement 2 is wrong — the FIRST Plan, not the Third, was built on the Harrod-Domar model — and statement 4 is wrong, because the massive public-sector-investment thrust describes the Second Plan, not the Ninth.
- (a)1 only — This omits statement 3, but the Seventh Plan's objectives of 'Food, Work and Productivity' are correct, so statement 3 is also right.
- (c)3 and 4 — Statement 4 is false: the drive for massive public-sector investment was the Second Plan's heavy-industry strategy; the Ninth Plan, in the post-1991 liberalised setting, leaned on private investment.
- (d)1, 2 and 4 — This includes two false statements — the Harrod-Domar model underpinned the First Plan (not the Third), and the public-sector-investment thrust was the Second Plan (not the Ninth).
India's Five Year Plans each carried a signature economic model, theme or priority sector. The First Plan (1951-56) used the Harrod-Domar model and prioritised agriculture; the Second Plan (1956-61) followed the Mahalanobis model, stressing heavy/basic industries and public-sector dominance; the Seventh Plan (1985-90) is known for 'Food, Work and Productivity'; the Ninth Plan (1997-2002) ran under 'Growth with Social Justice and Equity'.
The item swaps two signatures onto the wrong plans — attaching Harrod-Domar to the Third Plan (it belongs to the First) and the public-sector-investment thrust to the Ninth (it belongs to the Second). Anchoring each plan to its own model/slogan resolves it to statements 1 and 3. Note (present day): planning by Five Year Plans ended with the Twelfth Plan (2012-17); NITI Aayog now works through action agendas.
- First Plan (1951-56): based on the Harrod-Domar model; priority to agriculture, irrigation and power.
- Second Plan (1956-61): Mahalanobis model; heavy/basic industries and public-sector expansion.
- Seventh Plan (1985-90): objectives of 'Food, Work and Productivity'.
- Ninth Plan (1997-2002): theme 'Growth with Social Justice and Equity'; priority to agriculture and rural development.
Statements 1 and 3 match the record; the Harrod-Domar and public-sector claims are pinned to the wrong plans.
- Harrod-Domar (First Plan) vs Mahalanobis (Second Plan) — do not swap them.
- Matching a plan to the wrong slogan/priority (e.g., the public-sector push is the Second Plan, not the Ninth).
Match a Five Year Plan to its model, theme/slogan or priority sector.
Consider the following statements regarding Indian Planning: 1. The Second Five-Year Plan emphasised on the establishment of heavy industries. 2. The Third Five-Year Plan introduced the concept of import substitution as a strategy for industrialisation. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 only
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer(a) 1 only
Also keyed on which Plan carried which strategy — the Second Plan's heavy-industry emphasis (Mahalanobis), the same plan-to-theme reasoning as this NDA item.
Which one of the following Five-Year Plans recognised human development as the core of all developmental efforts?
- (a) The Third Five-Year Plan
- (b) The Fifth Five-Year Plan
- (c) The Sixth Five-Year Plan
- (d) The Eighth Five-Year Plan
Answer(d) The Eighth Five-Year Plan
Matches a Five Year Plan to its guiding theme (Eighth Plan = human development) — the same 'which plan stood for what' pattern.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Second Five Year Plan (1956-61) was based on which model?
- (a)Harrod-Domar model
- (b)Mahalanobis model
- (c)Gadgil formula
- (d)Wolf Ladejinsky model
Answer(b) Mahalanobis model — it stressed heavy and basic industries.
- practice — not a real PYQ
'Food, Work and Productivity' were the objectives of which Five Year Plan?
- (a)Fifth Plan
- (b)Sixth Plan
- (c)Seventh Plan
- (d)Eighth Plan
Answer(c) Seventh Plan (1985-90).