Third Five Year Plan (1961-1966)

INTRODUCTION

This report sets out the objectives, policies and programmes of development for the Third Five
Year Plan.

Two Five Year Plans have helped strengthen the foundations of economic and social life and
stimulated industrial and economic growth and scientific and technological advance.

The Third Five Year Plan seeks to give a more precise content to the social objectives of the
Constitution and represents a large advance towards their realisation. It takes account of the
successes and the failures in the first two Plans and sets the tasks to be fulfilled in the
perspective of development over the next fifteen years and more.

Work on the preparation of the Third Plan commenced towards the end of 1958 and was carried
out in three main stages. The first, leading to the publication of the Draft Outline early in July,
1960, comprised detailed studies by working groups set up at the Centre and in the States.
Parliament gave its general approval to the Draft Outline in August, 1960.

The Draft Outline was discussed throughout the country and served as the basis for the
preparation of the plans of States. These were considered with the Chief Ministers of States
between September and November, 1960. In January, 1961, the National Development Council
made its recommendations concerning the overall size and the structure of the Third Plan; the
Council also set up a Committee on Savings to suggest ways of securing the maximum
mobilisation of resources for the Third Plan. Finally, on May 31 and June 1, 1961, the National
Development Council considered the Draft Report on the Third Plan and generally approved it.

The objectives and priorities of the Third Plan were considered carefully by five Parliamentary
Committees in November, 1960, and every effort has been made in this Report to avail of the
suggestions and comments offered by these Committees. Several aspects of the Plan were
placed from time to time before the Committee of Members of Parliament from different political
parties presided over by the Prime Minister. The Consultative Committee of Members of
Parliament associated with the Planning Commission also reviewed the Plan at various stages.

Throughout the preparation of the Plan, leading public men and scholars, professional
associations, organisations representing industry and labour, and independent experts
generously gave of their time and experience. The Planning Commission had the benefit of
advice and suggestions from its Panel of Economists, Panel of Scientists, and Panels on Land
Reform, Agriculture, Education, Health and Housing. It was also helped by studies initiated by the
Programme Evaluation Organisation, the Research Programmes Committee, the Committee on
Plan Projects, the Central Statistical Organisation, the Indian Statistical Institute and other leading
organisations engaged in research. Efforts to prepare plans at the district, block and village level,
specially for the development of agriculture, cooperation, education and rural industries, were an
integral part of the process of drawing up the plans of States as well as the National Plan. These
local plans are a vital element in the success of Panchayati Raj, which places in the hands of the
people of each area the initiative and responsibility for their own development and the means and
resources for rapid advance.

The preparation of the Third Plan has been, thus, a vast national undertaking in which valuable
contributions have come from many sources, and at every stage there has been the closest
collaboration with the State Governments and the Central Ministries.
The Third Plan represents the first phase in a scheme of long-term development extending over
the next fifteen years or so, the preparation of which will now be taken in hand. In the course of
this period, India's economy must not only expand rapidly but must, at the same time, become
self-reliant and self-generating. This' long-term approach is intended to provide a general design
of development for the country's natural resources, agricultural and industrial advance, changes
in the social structure and an integrated scheme of regional and national development.

The Plan sets large objectives and targets for the five-year period. They are large only in
comparison with the past, not in relation to needs or to the nation's capacity to achieve. They
constitute a minimum which must be assured, but their true purpose is to open the way to a still
more intensive endeavour and a deeper sense of urgency.

The size of the task and the many-sided challenge should not be underestimated. The greatest
stress in the Plan has to be on implementation, on speed and thoroughness in seeking practical
results, and on creating conditions for the maximum production and employment and the
development of human resources. Discipline and national unity are the very basis of social and
economic progress and the achievement of socialism. At each step, the Third Plan will demand
dedicated leadership at all levels, the highest standards of devotion and efficiency from the public
services, widespread understanding and participation by the people, and willingness on their part
to take their full share of responsibility and to bear larger burdens for the future.

Chapter 32:
HEALTH AND FAMILY PLANNING

The broad objective of the health and family planning programmes in the Third Plan is to expand
health services, to bring about progressive improvement in the health of the people by ensuring a
certain minimum of physical well-being and to create conditions favourable to greater efficiency
and productivity. Increased emphasis will be laid on preventive public health services. As in the
Second Plan, specific programmes have been formulated for the Third Plan for improvement of
environmental sanitation, specially rural and urban water supply. control of communicable
diseases, organisation of institutional facilities for providing health services and for the training of
medical and health personnel, and provision of services such as maternal and child welfare,
health education and nutrition. The Third Plan also accords very high priority to family planning.

2. As against outlays of Rs. 140 and Rs. 225 crores in the First and Second Plans respectively,
programmes in the Third Plan involve a total outlay of about Rs. 342 crores, about Rs. 297 crores
being in the States and the rest at the Centre. These amounts are distributed undei-difl'erent
heads as follows :

Table 1 : Distribution of outlay

(Rs. crores.)

Programme First Plan Second Plan Thild Plan

health
water supply and sanitatioo Crural and 49-0 76 105-3
urban)
primary hcalib units, hospitals and 25 36.0 61 -7
dispensaries
control of communicitble diseases 23-1 64-0 70-5
education, tr«unitig and research 21 36.0 56.3
indigenous systems of medicin, 04 4-0 9-8
homoeopathy and nature cure
other schemes , 20-2 6-0 11-2
family planning 0-7 3-0 27-0
total 140-0 225 .0@ 341 .8

HEALTH

Progress And Programmes

3. During the past ten years, substantial progress has been made in various health programmes,
and in several directions there have been notable advances. Measures adopted for ihe control of
malaria have resulted in marked decline in the incidence of the disease. In 1958, in place of
control, the programme of complete eradication of malaria was adopted. In controlling other
communicable diseases like filaria, tuberculosis, leprosy and venereal diseases also appreciable
progress has been made. The number of hospitals and dispensaries has increased from 8600 in
1950-51 to 12,600 in 1960-61 and of beds from 113,000 to 185,600. A basic type of health
organisation providing an integrated preventive and curative service hw been established in 2800
development blocks with a population of about 200 million. At the end of the Second Plan, there
were 78 institutions teaching indigenous systems of medicine, their annual intake being 1375.
Facilities according to the indigenous systems arc at present available in 98 hospitals and 5372
dispensaries with a total bed strength of 2462. About 664 schemes of urban water supply and
drainage entailing a total cost of Rs. 112 crores have been completed or are in progress. In
addition to schemes of rural water supply implemented under the programmes for community
development, locsil development works and welfare of backward classes, about 228 schemes
with an estimated cost of Rs. 20 crores have been taken up under the Hcahh programme.

4. Statistics concerning birth and death rates arc subject to serious limitations, and for the period
subsequent to 1951 only rough estimates can be made. Nevertheless, the following Table
indicates in broad terms steady improvernent in Ihc health of the population:

Table 2 : Birth rates, death rates and expectation of life—1941-61

period birth rate death rate infant mortality rate- expectation of at birth
mate female male female
1941-51 19-9 27-4 190-0 175-0 32-45 31 66
1951-56 41 -7 25 9 16- 4 146-7 37 -76 37 -49
1956-61 40'7 21 -6 142 -1 127 9 41 -68 42- 00

5. Although there has been considerable development in the field of health and in the related
services, at the end of the Second Plan, certain dencicndcs were specially marked. Thus. in
relation to needs the institutional facilities were quite inadequate, specially in the rural areas.
Doctors were not evenly distributed

HEALTH: FIRST AND SECOND PLAN ACHIEVEMENTS AND THIRD PLAN TARGETS
between urban and rural areas and, as against concentration in many urban areas, in the rural
areas generally there were shortages, and the existing institutions did not have their full
complement of personnel. Progress in the control of communicable diseases was hampered in
several parts of the country on account of shortages of trained personnel and to some extent also
of supplies of the equipment. Despite a measure of progress in rural water supply, there were
large rural tracts which lacked safe drinking water. In many urban areas problems of drainage
have been accentuated on account of the rapid growth of population.

6. The broad aim in the Third Plan will he to remove the shortages and deficiencies mentioned
above. A major objective is that, to a-' large an extent as possible, supplies of good drinking water
should be available in most villages in the country by the end of the Third Plan. Institutional
facilities will be expanded so that medical and health services reach progressively larger numbers
of persons, specially in the rural areas. The programme for the eradication of malaria will be
completed and efforts will be made to eradicate siLall pox and to control filaria, cholera,
tuberculosis, leprosy and other communicable diseases. Drainage programmes will be
undertaken on a larger scale in the urban areas.

The specific physical targets proposed for the Third Plan along with statistics of progress in the
First and the Second Plans are given in summary form in the Table below :

Table 3: Achievements and targets

Catagories/units 1950-51 1955-56 1960- 1965-66

61
hospitals and dispensaries
institutions 8600 10000 12600 14600
beds 113000 125000 185600 240100
primary health 725 2800 5000
units medical
education
medical 30 42 57 75
colleges
annual 2500 3500 5800 8000
admissions
dental education
dental colleges 4 7 10 14
annual 150 231 281 400
admissions
training 56000 65000 70000 81000
programmes
doctors®
nurses® 15000 18500 27000 45000
auxiliary nurse-mid-
wives and 8000 12780 19900 48500
midwives
health visitors® 521 800 1500 3500
.
nurse- 1800 6400 11500 40000
dais/dais®
sanitary 3500 4000 6000 19200
inspectors®
pharmacists . N.A N.A N.A 48000
control of
communicable
diseases
malaria
units '. 133 390 390*
population 107 438 497
covered
(millions)
filaria—
units 11 48 48
population covered (millions) 15-1 24-6 NA.
tuberculosis— B.C.G. teams 15 119 167 167
T.B. clinics 110 160 220 420
T.B. demonstration and training 3 10 15
centres
beds 10371 22000 26500 30000
leprosy— subsidiary centres 33 135 235
venereal diseases -V.D. clinics 83 189
maternity and child health centies 1651 1856 4500 10000

@ Number indicates the number in practice or in service.

N.A.—Not available.