Employment Development Strategy in India
The Mahalanobis strategy of planning was es-
sentially to achieve the objective of self-sustained
long-term growth via investment in the heavy sector.
For "rapid industrialisation and diversification of the
economy", the Mahalanobis strategy considered the
development of "basic industries and industries
which make machines to make machines needed for
further development as the crucial element. This strat-
egy naturally came in conflict with the employment
objective of our plans. For, a fast and self-sustained
economic growth could be ushered in only through
emphasis on capital-intensive production, namely, "by
building of economic and social overheads, explora-
tion and development of minerals and promotion of
basic industries like steel, machine building, coal and
heavy electricals". To solve the conflict between rapid
growth on the one side and immediate increase in
employment opportunities on the other, Mahalanobis
strategy adopted a "policy of encouraging labour-in-
tensive techniques in consumer goods industries even
as the capital-intensive sector of heavy industry was
being expanded rapidly."
What is the wage-goods strategy of development and employment?
The Wage-Goods Strategy of Development and Employment! The industrialisation-led strategy of development explained above neglects the constraint of wage goods availability on employment generation.