RAS question
The concept of 'Rolling Plan' was introduced during the government of:
Correct answer: (C) Morarji Desai (Janata Party).
The Rolling Plan was introduced in 1978-80 under the Janata Party government led by Prime Minister Morarji Desai.
Explanation
The Rolling Plan belongs to the short Janata Party phase after the Fifth Five Year Plan. It was introduced in 1978-80 under Prime Minister Morarji Desai and replaced the Fifth Five Year Plan. The World Bank report on India’s economy records that the new Draft Plan was released in March 1978 for 1978/79 to 1982/83, and also notes that the Fifth Plan had been terminated one year early. That timing matches the Janata Party government, not the later return to the regular Five Year Plan sequence. The Sixth Plan from 1980-85 resumed the Five Year Plan system under Indira Gandhi.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Rajiv Gandhi became Prime Minister after the Rolling Plan period and is not associated with its introduction.
- (B) Indira Gandhi is linked here with the resumption of the Sixth Five Year Plan in 1980-85, not with introducing the Rolling Plan.
- (D) Jawaharlal Nehru’s planning period followed the regular Five Year Plan framework, long before the 1978-80 Rolling Plan.
Concept
This tests the chronology of India’s planning process, especially breaks in the Five Year Plan sequence. RAS often asks it because plan periods, prime ministers and policy shifts are a compact way to test Indian economy history.