The Planning Commission a Descriptive Account

Abstract

This descriptive account outlines the origin, evolution, and organisational structure of the Planning Commission of India up to March 1964, focusing strictly on factual presentation rather than evaluation. It traces the intellectual and institutional foundations of economic planning in India from the 1930s, highlighting key contributions such as early planning proposals, the National Planning Committee, and influential development memoranda. The narrative explains how growing awareness of the need for coordinated economic development, especially during and after World War II, led to the establishment of advisory and reconstruction bodies, culminating in the creation of the Planning Commission in 1950 through a Government resolution. The Commission was designed as an advisory body to assess national resources, formulate development plans, determine priorities, and recommend mechanisms for implementation while remaining closely connected to government policy-making. The text also situates the Commission within broader political and economic debates, including concerns about its authority, structure, and functioning, as well as its role in a democratic and federal system. Overall, the monograph provides a systematic and historical account of the Commission’s organisation, functions, and significance as the principal instrument for India’s planned economic development.