• Dr. Boyana Venkata Ramana
• S. Seetharamamurthy
• Chiranjeevi Gurana

After independence, the Government of India announced its Industrial Policy on 6th April 1948, which aimed at establishing a mixed economy through the combined efforts of the public and private sectors for the overall development of the country. The Constitution of India came into effect on 26th January 1950 and established a unique quasi-federal system, combining federal features with a strong unitary character. It divides powers between the Central and State Governments, while legislative subjects are distributed among the Union List, State List and Concurrent List. The Supreme Court acts as an impartial umpire in resolving disputes between the Centre and the States. At the same time, features such as a single Constitution, single citizenship, appointment of Governors by the Centre and emergency provisions reflect the unitary elements of the Indian system. Planned economic development in India started with the establishment of the Planning Commission and the introduction of Five-Year Plans in 1951. While five-year plans were formulated at the central level, State Plans were prepared by State Governments with the Planning Commission’s support and guidance. Programmes such as the Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) and Jawahar Rozgar Yojana (JRY) further emphasized the importance of micro-level planning for balanced and inclusive development. In 2015, the Planning Commission was replaced by NITI Aayog, marking a revolutionary shift towards cooperative and competitive federalism, decentralisation and participatory planning. NITI Aayog advocate cooperative federalism by involving States as active partners in policy preparation and development planning. The evolution from centralised to decentralised and participatory planning reflects the changing nature of federalism in India. India's SDG score increased from 66 in 2020–21 to 71 in 2023–24, further highlighting the importance of State-specific planning. In this context, the present paper examines the federal features of the Indian Constitution, the evolution of economic planning, the significance of micro-level planning, the role of NITI Aayog in cooperative and competitive federalism, and the major challenges and future directions of federal planning in India.

Federalism, Five-Year Plans, Planning Commission, Micro-Level Planning, NITI Aayog, Cooperative Federalism

"FEDERALISM AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING IN INDIA", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.13, Issue 10, page no.a46-a52, October-2026, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2610006.pdf

"FEDERALISM AND DEVELOPMENT PLANNING IN INDIA", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.13, Issue 10, page no. ppa46-a52, October-2026, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2610006.pdf