In the first decade after independence, there was a consensus on which one of the following regarding the ideas of development to be pursued in free India?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Government to develop a design or plan for development.
Despite their differences, there was a consensus on one point: development could not be left to private actors, and the government had to develop a design or plan for development.
Option (1) Liberalization of the economy as the preferred path. — Incorrect. Liberalisation means opening the economy to the market and private business. The consensus of the first decade was the opposite: development could not be left to private actors.
Option (2) Adoption of a neo-liberal regime of tariffs was the priority. — Incorrect. A neo-liberal regime leaves trade and the economy to the market. The priorities debated then were industrialisation, or agriculture and the alleviation of rural poverty, both through planning by the government.
Option (4) Development could be left to private actors and industrial leaders without state interference — Incorrect. This is the reverse of the consensus: development could not be left to private actors; the government had to plan it.
NCERT (2025-26): “Ideas of development … It was clear, moreover, that the task of poverty alleviation and social and economic redistribution was being seen primarily as the responsibility of the government. There were debates among them. For some, industrialisation seemed to be the preferred path. For others, the development of agriculture and in particular alleviation of rural poverty was the priority. Ideas of development … Despite the various differences, there was a consensus on one point: that development could not be left to private actors, that there was the need for the government to develop a design or plan for development.” |