Which of the following are associated with 'Planning' in India?The Finance CommissionThe National De

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UPSC Prelims is a competitive examination conducted in India. This question is from the 2014 UPSC Prelims Indian Polity & Governance paper.

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Question

Which of the following are associated with 'Planning' in India?The Finance CommissionThe National Development CouncilThe Union Ministry of Rural DevelopmentThe Union Ministry of Urban DevelopmentThe ParliamentSelect the correct answer using the code given below.

Accepted Answer

Correct Answer: C — 2 and 5 only (National Development Council and Parliament)Step-by-step Solution:In the context of India's planning system (pre-NITI Aayog), only the NDC and Parliament had direct formal roles in approving and enacting the Five-Year Plans:Finance Commission (1): The Finance Commission is a constitutional body (Article 280) that recommends the distribution of central taxes and grants between the Centre and States. It does NOT play a role in planning. The Planning Commission and Finance Commission had overlapping but distinct roles — Finance Commission dealt with revenue sharing, while Planning Commission dealt with developmental plan transfers. ✗National Development Council (2): The NDC IS directly associated with planning. The NDC was a non-statutory, extra-constitutional body comprising: Prime Minister (Chairman), Cabinet Ministers, Chief Ministers of all States, Lt. Governors of UTs, and members of the Planning Commission. The NDC formally considered and approved the Five-Year Plans prepared by the Planning Commission. Its approval was necessary before a plan was considered final. ✓Ministry of Rural Development (3) and Ministry of Urban Development (4): While these ministries implemented specific plan schemes in their sectors, they are NOT directly associated with the 'planning' process itself — they are implementors, not planners. The Planning Commission/NITI Aayog was the planning body, not individual ministries. ✗Parliament (5): Parliament IS associated with planning. The Planning Commission did NOT have statutory backing — the Five-Year Plans were not passed as legislation. However, the Annual Budget (passed by Parliament) implemented the financial provisions of the plan; Parliament discussed and debated the plans; Parliamentary committees examined plan expenditure. The plan targets were ultimately realised through Parliamentary appropriations. ✓Key Concept: Planning structure in India (pre-2015): Planning Commission (headed by PM) → prepared plans → NDC approved plans → Parliamentary appropriations funded them → States implemented through State Plans (conditional on Central grants). NITI Aayog (replaced Planning Commission 2015): No allocation authority (unlike PC); focus on policy research, monitoring, coordination; NDC equivalent is now the Governing Council of NITI Aayog (headed by PM, includes CMs). Finance Commission role: Constitutional body recommending Centre-State revenue sharing — separate from plan transfers.

Which of the following are associated with 'Planning' in India?The Finance CommissionThe National Development CouncilThe Union Ministry of Rural DevelopmentThe Union Ministry of Urban DevelopmentThe ParliamentSelect the correct answer using the code given below.

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Which of the following are associated with 'Planning' in India?The Finance CommissionThe National Development CouncilThe Union Ministry of Rural DevelopmentThe Union Ministry of Urban DevelopmentThe ParliamentSelect the correct answer using the code given below.

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