Role of Government in India's Development PDF

# Role of Government in the Development of the Country ## LEAD IN The pictures here show some services that are available to people in India. Can you say who provides them with these services? ## Learning outcomes By the end of this chapter you will be able to: - List some functions of the gove...

# Role of Government in the Development of the Country ## LEAD IN The pictures here show some services that are available to people in India. Can you say who provides them with these services? ## Learning outcomes By the end of this chapter you will be able to: - List some functions of the government aimed at the development of the nation. - Explain the importance given to planned economic development in India. - Examine the role of the government in developing agriculture, industry, transport and communication and the rural and social sectors. - Identify the challenges in India's road to progress and list some initiatives that can help India become a developed nation. ## The Government The government has a vital role to play in the development of a nation. The government, as we have learnt, performs multiple functions. The most important of these include maintaining law and order, controlling the use of natural resources providing civic amenities to people, building infrastructure, working towards reducing poverty and the welfare of the poor, and sustaining economic growth. ## Five-Year Plans To ensure balanced distribution of resources, and to ensure that all groups of people are benefited by the process of development, the government of India started the Five-Year Plans. In each of the Plans, the government decided how to allocate resources to different sectors of the national economy. The largest portion of the resources of the government (that is, 20 to 40%) was allocated for the development of agriculture. Other focus areas of the Five-Year Plans included the development of basic infrastructure like transport, communication, electricity, irrigation, the growth of industries, and the reduction of poverty through schemes aimed at generating employment. ## The NITI Aayog In 2014-15, the Planning Commission was replaced by the NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India). It is headed by the prime minister. Let us learn about the role played by the government in the development of India, since independence. # Agriculture Agriculture is the backbone of the Indian economy. It accounted for around 18.3% of India's Gross Value Added (GVA) in 2022-23 and employed about two-thirds of the population. It continues to be India's largest economic sector. After independence, one of the main of the government was to ensure that India was self-sufficient in food. The government, launched several measures to develop agriculture. We have already learnt of many of them in the chapter on agriculture. Those measures- led to the Green Revolution, and made India self-sufficient in food production. Since then the government has launched several programmes to help develop agriculture and help farmers in India. Some of the recent initiatives launched by the government include the following: - **National Agriculture Market (eNAM)** is an electronic trading portal which aims to create a common on-line market platform to facilitate pan-India trade in agriculture commodities. This allows farmers to get the best price for their produce and assures them of timely disposal of their produce and timely on-line payment. Farmers can download the e-NAM mobile app on their smartphones and access it anywhere, anytime. - **National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)** aims to enhance agricultural productivity, especially in rain-fed areas, by focusing on integrated farming, efficient use of water and soil-health management. It encourages farmers to gradually shift to environmentally friendly technologies. - **Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY)** aims to extend the coverage of irrigation and improve water-use efficiency in a focused manner. - **Gramin Bhandaran Yojna** aims to create scientific storage capacity in rural areas to meet the requirements of farmers for storing farm produce, processed farm produce and agricultural inputs. This initiative aims to prevent distress sale immediately after harvest by also providing the facility of pledge financing and marketing credit. - **Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)** is a government-sponsored crop insurance scheme that provides insurance coverage and financial support to the farmers in the event of the failure of their crop as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases. ## Industry Indian leaders were well aware that any modern nation needed to have a well developed industrial sector (especially basic industries like iron and steel, and power) if it wanted to be truly independent. The government set up several public sector undertakings, and some joint sector undertakings, like the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), Steel Authority of India (SAIL), and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India (ONGC). These corporations were responsible for putting up thermal power stations, steel plants, oil rigs and so on. - In the 1960s and 1970s, India had a shortage of foreign exchange. As a result, the government severely restricted the import of goods and encouraged Indian entrepreneurs to manufacture the goods indigenously. This gave Indian goods a sheltered market. Indian industrialists were encouraged to import technical know-how and enter into foreign collaboration to manufacture equipment locally. These policies of the government helped several Indian industries to grow and thrive, which they would have found impossible to do in an atmosphere of free trade. - In 1991, the government announced a new industrial policy and several economic reforms. The new policy opened up areas like power, telecommunication and aviation, which were traditionally government controlled areas, to the private sector. Economic reforms also brought foreign competition, and led to an expansion in the production of fast-moving consumer goods. From having barely any industries at the time of independence, India has a strong and thriving industrial sector today. It contributed around 26% of the country's GVA in 2020-21 (Gross Value Added is the measure of the value of goods and services produced in an economy). It employed around 25% of the total workforce (2021). ## Transport For any region to develop, it needs to be well-linked by an effective transport network. Since Independence, India has made rapid strides in the transportation system. The Indian transport system is an amalgam of both the ultra-modern and traditional, that is, we have both supersonic jets and the slow moving bullock carts. The government has done a lot to develop the road network across India. It set up the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) with the aim of linking every corner of India. An important road network, called the 'Golden Quadrilateral', which connects the four metros of Delhi-Mumbai-Kolkata-Chennai, has been built. This project has provided a major boost to freight and passenger transport across the country. It has also encouraged industrial growth in the smaller towns through which it passes. The government has also ensured that rural roads are developed. At present, around 71.4% of the larger villages are connected by all-weather roads. The government manages the railways in India and allocates a significant amount of money towards upgrading trains and improving railway infrastructure in the country. India's rail network has grown since independence to become one of the largest in the world. It plays a vital role in the development of the nation by moving raw materials, finished goods and people from one part of the country to another. India has a vast coastline. The expansion and modernisation of ports has been amongst the top priority areas of the government in recent years. There are 13 major ports and more than 200 minor and intermediate ports in India. To handle the rapidly growing air passenger and freight traffic, many airports, especially the ones in metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, have undergone massive expansion. Several new airports have also been built. Since 1991, several private airlines have been allowed to operate in country. ## Telecommunications Of all the sectors, this sector has probably witnessed the most rapid technological advancement over the past few years. The government's Digital India Campaign has transformed India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. Huge amounts of resources were invested in developing the telecommunication infrastructure, including high-speed Internet connectivity. This has enabled the delivery of e-governance services, digital education, healthcare, and financial inclusion. ## Rural Development Several schemes were started to bring about the development of rural areas. They included the National Food for Work Programme, the Community Development Programmes, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and so on). As their names suggest, many of these schemes aimed at providing employment for the rural poor. Through these schemes, and other government initiatives, a number of development programmes such as: - **Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) of 2005** is a law that aims to provide at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every rural household. ## Social Sector The social sector refers to all those non-profit motivated activities which attempt to improve the quality of life of the people by providing better access to education, health, drinking water and basic sanitation. The government plays an important role in providing the basic amenities to people. ### Water Scarcity of potable water is one of the gravest problems facing the world today. The government has implemented several projects to bring clean drinking water to the people. They include: - **Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)**, a centrally sponsored scheme, implemented in partnership with the states for supplying potable tap water to every rural household of the country. - **Jal Shakti Abhiyan** aimed at water conservation and water resource management in the water-stressed districts of the country; some of the measures carried out under this programme include rainwater harvesting, renovation of water bodies/ tanks, reuse and recharge of borewells, watershed development and intensive afforestation. Several multipurpose projects have been started to provide water for irrigation, control floods, generate hydroelectricity and supply water to cities, towns and villages. Hand pumps have been installed in areas where it has not been possible to provide piped water to houses. ### Education The government of India has played an important role in the spread of education in post-independence India. The founders of India were clear that education was too important an issue to be left entirely in private hands. Each state government was given the responsibility to develop education within the state. The state governments started schools where nominal fees were charged. Various schemes were started to encourage parents to send their children to school (especially the girls). The schemes for education include: - **the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)** to improve the quality of learning. - **Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Scheme** to establish Navodaya Vidyalaya in 20 districts having a large concentration of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. - **the Mid-day Meal Scheme** to provide nutritious lunch to children attending government schools. - **the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao scheme** focusing on the education of girl children ### Health Maintaining public health is one of the most vital roles of the government. The **National Health Mission**, a programme of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India, works with the state governments to strengthen their healthcare systems and provide all citizens access to equitable, affordable and quality healthcare services. Some of the important programmes/ schemes under the National Health Mission include: - **Universal Immunisation Programme**. - **National Programme for Family Planning**. - **Pulse Polio Programme** (through which the government has succeeded in its aim of eradicating polio). The **Ayushman Bharat Programme** of the Government of India provides for holistic and integrated healthcare. It focusses on essential primary and community health services such as maternal, neonatal (newborn) and child health services including immunization and nutrition. It also aims to provide free and cashless secondary and tertiary hospitalisation care to around 500 million poor and deprived people. ## The Path Ahead The government's efforts to put India on the path to progress has borne results to a certain extent. However, a number of challenges continue to lie on India's path to progress. Some of them are: - unequal economic growth and lack of sustainable development - rural indebtedness and poverty - rapid urbanisation (movement of people from villages to cities), leading to the overburdening of cities and the growth of slums