UPSC Mains 2026 GS1 Q13: model answer
The model of planned economy was adopted in India to address the regional imbalances left behind by colonial rule. Comment.
What the question wants
Assess how far regional balance was the aim of planning (vs growth, self-reliance, industrialisation), with policies and outcomes.
How to structure it
Intro: colonial legacy of uneven development. Body: planning's tools for regional balance; other objectives that dominated; outcomes. Conclusion: partial truth.
- 1Planning's tools for regional balance
- 2Other objectives that dominated
- 3Outcomes
Model answer
Colonial rule left development concentrated in port cities (Bombay, Calcutta, Madras) and a few irrigated tracts, with the interior starved of industry and infrastructure.
| Tool | Intent | Side effect |
|---|---|---|
| Steel plants in backward areas | New industrial nodes | Enclaves with weak local links |
| Freight equalisation (1952) | Uniform input prices | Mineral states lost their edge |
| Gadgil formula (1969) | Transfers by need | Small share for backwardness |
How planning addressed regional imbalance
- Industrial Policy Resolution, 1956 named balanced regional development as an objective.
- Public sector steel plants in backward areas: Bhilai, Rourkela, Durgapur, later Bokaro.
- Freight equalisation (1952) priced coal and steel the same across India.
- Gadgil formula (1969) for central assistance gave weight to backwardness.
- Backward area programmes, special category states, and licensing that nudged industry to new regions.
But it was not the main aim
- The Mahalanobis model of the Second Plan prioritised heavy industry and self-reliance.
- Poverty removal and food self-sufficiency (Green Revolution) were equally central.
Outcomes
- New industrial nodes did emerge.
- Yet the Green Revolution favoured Punjab, Haryana and western UP; freight equalisation hurt mineral states like Bihar and Odisha, which lost their natural advantage.
- Per-capita income gaps between richer and poorer states widened after 1991.
Comment: regional balance was one aim of planning, not its sole driver. The tools were partly self-defeating. NITI Aayog's Aspirational Districts Programme and finance commission devolution are today's attempts at the same goal.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
Mahalanobis model IPR 1956 freight equalisation Gadgil formula Aspirational Districts
Where most answers lose marks
- Agreeing fully without evidence
- No outcomes discussed
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Question text as printed in the official UPSC question paper: https://www.upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/QP-CSM-26-010926-GENERAL%20STUDIES%20PAPER%20-%20I.pdf The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.