Soviet model of development
Also called: Socialist model of development · Topic: Politics of Planned Development · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 3 "Politics of Planned Development"
Meaning
The Soviet model is the development path of the USSR. It is also called the socialist model. Under it, the state owns the main industries and runs the economy through centralised five-year plans, which began there in 1928. These plans gave the USSR rapid growth in the 1930s-40s despite heavy odds. The model impressed the Communists, the Socialists and Jawaharlal Nehru in India. The choice between this model and the capitalist one was part of the Cold War.
Example
India borrowed the idea of the five-year plan from the USSR. The Second Five Year Plan (1956-61) put heavy industry mostly in the public sector, and the Bhilai steel plant was built with Soviet help. But India stayed a mixed economy with private firms. It did not copy the Soviet model fully.
Don't confuse with
- Liberal-capitalist model of development: it relies on private enterprise and markets, not state ownership and central plans.