The Sixth Plan (1980-85) intended to work within the overall developmental strategy particularly with regard to the objectives of structural diversification, modernisation and self-reliance. The other elements of policy included.
i. To meet foreign exchange requirements, export of engineering goods and industrial products, as also project exports would be stepped up.
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ii. A judicious blend of permitting import of contemporary technology and promoting the development of indigenous know-how-through domestic research and development.
iii. New strategies for development of backward regions would be devised. The thrust would be to implement a new model of development which would prevent concentration of industry in existing metropolitan areas.
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The sixth five year plan (1980-85) marked a watershed in the development process. In the course of Sixth Plan Period, significant and far reaching policy initiatives followed. They embraced the whole range of policies relating to imports, industrial licensing, MRTP and FERA restrictions, import and transfer of technology, computer and electronics development, admission of private sector to the manufacture of telecommunication equipment, pricing and distribution of industrial products and so on.
Proceeding on the basis of the pre-June 1985 series, the growth rates registered by the three segments, viz. mining and quarrying, electricity and manufacturing were as follows.
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Two features stand out from the above table. First, growth rates fluctuated considerably from year to year, and secondly, mining and quarrying and electricity had significantly higher growth rates than manufacturing. While mining and quarrying registered a higher growth rate than in the Fifth Plan, the electricity and manufacturing sectors had lower growth rates than in the fifth Plan.
The infrastructure industries like coal, steel, cement, petroleum and power continued to grow at about the same pace as in the Fifth Plan.
The consumer non-durables group continued to be depressed. In spite of the great expansion in the output of cars, two wheelers and bicycles, the durable consumer goods industries also suffered in growth in the Sixth Plan. Other industries in the group also had a setback.
Fertilisers, organic chemicals, tractors, air conditioning and refrigerators, heavy electrical equipment, man-made fibres and motor cycles and bicycles maintained the momentum generated during the Fifth Plan. Among those which emerged as high growth industries in the Sixth Plan were cement, aluminium, heavy vehicles, motor cars, tyres and tubes and paper and paper board.
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Petroleum refining, cotton spinning, cables and wires, railways locomotives continued to have a low growth in both the plans. In addition, iron and steel and machine tools also had lower growth rates in the Sixth Plan.
Among the industries which had a negative growth were jute textiles, hand tools and small tools, cotton weaving, telecommunications and drug and pharmaceuticals.
The over-all outlay envisaged in the Sixth Plan on Industry and minerals including village industry were 22.8 percent of the total outlay of Sixth Plan. Reviewing the achievement, the Seventh Plan document observes as against the target of 7%. The growth rate achieved however was 5.5 percent which is somewhat lower than the trend growth rate of 6 percent witnessed in the earlier three decades”.