Planning & Sustainable Development – NDA Geography Notes

Introduction

India has followed a planned approach to economic development since Independence. Five-Year Plans guided investment, industrial growth, agriculture, and social development for decades. Planning was done by the Planning Commission, which was replaced by NITI Aayog in 2015.

NDA tests this chapter through questions on planning institutions, sustainable development goals, and key geographic issues like pollution, urbanisation, and regional disparities.

Understand the Topic

Planning in India

Planning Commission was established in 1950 under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister.

NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) replaced the Planning Commission in January 2015. [NDA tested via CDS]

NITI Aayog provides directional and policy inputs, promotes cooperative federalism, and acts as a think tank. Unlike the Planning Commission, it does NOT allocate funds to states.

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Five-Year Plans

India had twelve Five-Year Plans (1951–2017). After NITI Aayog replaced the Planning Commission, the Five-Year Plan system was discontinued.

First Five-Year Plan (1951–1956): Focus on agriculture and irrigation.

Second Five-Year Plan (1956–1961): Focus on heavy industries (Nehru-Mahalanobis model).

Green Revolution: Occurred during the 1960s–1970s — brought high-yielding variety seeds, chemical fertilisers, and modern irrigation to agriculture. Transformed India from food-deficit to food-surplus. Punjab, Haryana, and western UP benefited most.

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Sustainable Development

Sustainable development = development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. (Brundtland Commission, 1987)

SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals):

• 17 goals adopted by UN in 2015
• Time period: 2015–2030
• Include: No poverty, zero hunger, clean water, climate action, life on land

India’s geographic problems:

• Pollution — air, water, and soil pollution
• Urbanisation — rapid unplanned growth of cities
• Regional disparities — uneven development between states
• Poverty and hunger — large sections of rural population

Miscellaneous Geography Facts (Tested in NDA/CDS)

Antarctica:

• Dakshin Gangotri = India’s FIRST scientific station in Antarctica (NOT second) — Statement “Dakshin Gangotri is India’s second station after Maitri” is WRONG. Dakshin Gangotri was first; Maitri was second. [NDA tested via CDS]
• NCAOR (National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research) = Goa — TRUE. [NDA tested via CDS]

Pattadakal group of monuments = Karnataka (UNESCO World Heritage Site; Chalukyan architecture). [NDA tested via CDS]

Famous Place Matching:

• Aurangabad = Ellora temples
• Guwahati = Nilanchal Hills
• Puducherry = Auroville
• Varanasi = Sarnath [NDA tested via CDS]

Southeast Asia is culturally closer to India but ethnically closer to China. [NDA tested via CDS]

Arikamedu = archaeological site on Coromandel coast; gives information about India’s maritime trade links. [NDA tested via CDS]