Previous Year Question
Who among the following was known as the “Father of Indian Economic Planning”?
Correct Answer: C
Detailed Solution
Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya is regarded as one of the earliest pioneers of economic planning in India and is commonly described in competitive examinations as the “Father of Indian Economic Planning”. Long before formal Five-Year Plans began in independent India, he advocated planned industrialisation, higher productivity and systematic measures to raise national income. An official publication of the Government of Karnataka notes that Visvesvaraya anticipated economic planning in India well before the Five-Year Plans.
His important work “Planned Economy for India” was published in 1934. The Gandhi Smriti Library catalogue of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) records M. Visvesvaraya as its author, 1934 as the year of publication, and India — Economic Conditions as its subject. The work advocated an organised and planned approach to India's economic development.
An important factual qualification: “Father of Indian Economic Planning” is not a statutory or formally conferred government title; it is a popular examination description reflecting his pioneering contribution to planning thought. Formal planning in independent India came later, whereas Visvesvaraya's Planned Economy for India had appeared in 1934.