ABSTRACT
Ever since the new structural adjustment policy was adumbrated in July 1991 by the government, the public sector has lost its original moorings in India. In the earlier decades, it was aimed at gaining the ‘commanding heights’ of the economy and, in so doing, it was expected to fulfil some basic social and, economic objectives, such as:
• to help rapid economic growth and industrialization; • to create the necessary infrastructure for economic development; • to earn adequate returns on investment for generating resources for development; • to create employment opportunities; • to promote balanced regional development; • to assist in the growth of small and ancillary industries; • to operationalize import substitution; • to promote exports and save and earn foreign exchange for the economy; and • to take on the responsibilities of social development, including education and
medicare.
