Madam Deputy Chairman, from the speeches which the hon. Minister for Planning made in this House and in the other House and from a perusal of the note which has been circulated to us regarding the progress that has been made in the Tenth Five Year Plan and the various statements of the Government and the Planning Commission, I have a feeling that the Government of India is trying to assuage the feeling of dissatisfaction in the country through promises of bright future, promises of better efforts and general promise that everything is going to turn out all right and that there need not be any fear or anxiety in the country. Madam, while saying this, I realise that the country has made certain progress in the development of our economy during the last decade. Industrial production has increased, agricultural production has increased, the productive capacity has been built up and we have also got employment opportunities being created. Above all, we have gained valuable experience in the development of our economy, especially in planning, and these are all to the credit side of the Plan. Unfortunately, Madam, the price that we have paid for this progress is rather heavy. The imbalances that we have created are likely to go out of control unless definite steps are taken to see that the imbalances are corrected at the earliest opportunity. The problem of the distribution of income that is generated as a result of the development efforts in the country is a perennial question and comes up again and again in one form or the other before this House and though I realise that no definite opinion is possible unless we have got some authoritative data and analysis on the subject, there is clear indication of the fact that if not economic wealth, at least economic power, is being concentrated in fewer and fewer hands. As long as economic power is concentrated in such few hands it will not be possible for us to develop in the manner in which we like, whatever may be our regulatory and control apparatus, whatever may be our policy, whatever may be the objectives that we place before the country. Similarly, the imbalance between the rural and the urban sector is also increasing. I do not know whether in the rural areas some income has been pumped in as a result of our planned development. It is possible that the well-to-do peasants, the richer peasants, might have benefited as a result of our economic development but as far as the rural area as a whole is concerned, the disparity and imbalance is definitely growing and that is also a matter of concern. The very fact that urbanisation takes place at such a rapid rate in our country is visible proof that the imbalance has been growing with the result that neither the urban areas nor the rural areas are today in a position to live the life that they were living before our planned developmental efforts started. Now, there is over-congestion in the urban areas; the civic amenities are all on the point of breaking down and they continuously break down with the slightest accident here or there. The slums are increasing at a rapid rate and unemployment is increasing. Whatever may be the figures regarding crimes etc. that may be published by the Government, there is a definite impression in the country that the crime situation is also deteriorating. That is because of the congestion in the urban areas. Because of the difficulties due to lack of resources, they are unable to deal with the problems that arise as a result of this over-congestion and the problem of law and order becomes more acute as a result of this urbanisation. Thirdly, the question of unemployment has also taken a rather serious turn and when the Government spokesman addresses homilies to others regarding the agitation against high prices and higher taxes, they completely forget that year by year one earner has to support more and more people and we have got the authority of no less a person than the Planning Minister himself to say that the real income of the earner, at least in the lower income groups, has not risen and, in spite of that, that earner has to support a larger and larger number of dependants. There is so much dissatisfaction in the country that people are clamouring against rising prices and rising taxes. The Planning Minister has given us a frank picture regarding what has happened in the first year of the Tenth Plan period and we are grateful to him for this frank picture. The figures that he has cited have given us a clear idea of what is happening to our economy at the present moment. But he has tried to strike a note of optimism. He has tried to explain the reasons that are responsible for this state of affairs and he has also indicated that the Planning Commission is conscious of all these drawbacks. Submit