Development in the Nehru era

The policies of the first decade-and-a half of planned development are better characterised as Nehruvian Humanism

- NITIN DESAI

The development policy implemented in the Nehru era (1950-64) has been the subject of criticism not just in politics, but also in the performance assessments presented by some economists. A sharp contrast is often drawn between the growth performance of about 4 per cent in the Nehru era and the 6 per cent experienced since the 1980s. But do note that the 4 per cent growth experienced in the Nehru era was a major structural change in an economy whose growth in the previous 100 years had been under 1 per cent.

The comparable data available in the World Bank Database for the final years of the Nehru era (1961-64) show India with a gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate of 5 per cent, compared to the average of 4.3 per cent in low- and middle-income countries and the 5.2 per cent global average.

The real shortfall in development came after the Nehru era, when the severe food crisis in 1965 and 1966 disrupted development. Development effort was further disrupted by political turbulence arising from the split in the Congress, the political impact of the imposition of an emergency, and the victory and collapse of the Janata government. One must also note the deleterious development impact of the war with China in 1962 and the wars with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971. But there was a shift to a higher average of 6 per cent growth after 1980-81.