The task that Nehru faced in the early years of India’s independence was a daunting one. At that time India’s population (which was about 340 million people), accounted for one-seventh of the world’s population. The average income was one-fifteenth of the average American income of the time. The literacy rate was 12 per cent and the average life expectancy was 32 years!
India accounted for only 3 per cent of the world’s GDP and the incidence of poverty in India was about 80 per cent. For most of Nehru’s term as prime minister, India continued to face serious food shortages. This was despite an increase in agricultural production and the success of the First Five-Year Plan, which focused on agriculture.
One of the reasons for this was the increase in population. The other was the diversion of funds towards industry.
Although the Indian economy enjoyed a steady rate of growth, chronic unemployment and poverty continued to persist. However, Nehru’s popularity remained unaffected and his government succeeded in laying the foundations upon which are based many of today’s successes.
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