Consider the following statements about the Second Five-Year Plan:

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It was drafted under the leadership of K. N. Raj.
It proposed that industries like electricity, railways, steel, machineries and communication could be developed in the public sector.
The drafters found balancing industry and agriculture very difficult.
The drafters found balancing industry and agriculture really easy.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only

1 and 2

2 and 3

3 and 4

Answer is Right!

Answer is Wrong!

This question was previously asked in

UPSC CDS-1 – 2017

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Statements 2 and 3 are correct. The Second Five-Year Plan (1956-1961) focused heavily on rapid industrialization, particularly the development of heavy and basic industries like steel, railways, electricity, machinery, and communication, primarily in the public sector, as stated in Statement 2. Statement 3 is also correct; the ambitious industrial targets and the relatively lower priority given to agriculture initially created difficulties in balancing the two sectors, leading to challenges like food shortages later in the plan period. Statement 1 is incorrect; the Second Plan was based on the Mahalanobis model and drafted under the guidance of P. C. Mahalanobis, not K. N. Raj (who was involved in the First Plan). Statement 4 is incorrect as balancing industry and agriculture proved difficult, not easy.

– The Second Five-Year Plan emphasized heavy industry and the public sector.
– It faced challenges in balancing industrial development with agricultural needs.
– The plan was based on the Mahalanobis model.

The Second Plan aimed at achieving a rapid increase in national income and bringing about a structural transformation of the economy through industrialization. Its focus on large-scale industries was a departure from the First Plan’s emphasis on agriculture and irrigation.

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