---
title: "Second Plan — Definition & Meaning | Model Diplomat"
description: "The Second Plan was India's 1956-61 initiative for industrialisation, focusing on heavy industries in the public sector, crucial for civil services aspirants."
url: "https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/second-plan"
---

[New](https://modeldiplomat.com/)

#

Model Diplomat Research Team · Last reviewed June 22, 2026

TL;DR

- The Second Five-Year Plan (1956–61) was India's industrialisation-focused plan built on the Mahalanobis model emphasising heavy and capital-goods industries in the public sector.
- Which model underpinned the Second Five-Year Plan?
- Which steel plants were established under the Second Plan and with whose help?
- Why did the Second Plan cause a balance-of-payments crisis?
- How is the Second Plan linked to the 1956 Industrial Policy Resolution?

[Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services/glossary)Updated June 22, 2026

Go beyond the definition

## Research Second Plan like a delegate

Model Diplomat's AI drafts position papers, speeches, and country research with real sources — built for MUN and politics students.

## Timeline

1. 1 April 1956

   The Second Five-Year Plan, operative from to 31 March 1961, marked the decisive turn of independent India towards rapid, state-led industrialisation.

2. 31 March 1961

   The Second Five-Year Plan, operative from 1 April 1956 to , marked the decisive turn of independent India towards rapid, state-led industrialisation.

## Research it like a delegate

Research on modeldiplomat.com

## Ask a follow-up about Second Plan

Open a cited briefing in Model Diplomat search — timelines, positions, and sources you can use in committee or exam answers.

[Start research on Second Plan](https://modeldiplomat.com/search?q=Explain%20Second%20Plan%20%E2%80%94%20key%20dates%2C%20actors%2C%20positions%2C%20and%20sources)

Example

In 1959, under the Second Five-Year Plan, India commissioned the Soviet-aided Bhilai Steel Plant in Madhya Pradesh, a flagship of Nehru's public-sector industrialisation strategy.

Keep learning

## Go deeper than the definition

Lessons

[Planning To Niti Aayog](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/lessons/upsc-indian-economy-planning-to-niti-aayog)[Nehruvian Era Planning Foreign Policy](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/lessons/upsc-post-independence-nehruvian-era-planning-foreign-policy)

Courses

[Upsc Indian Economy](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/courses/upsc-indian-economy)[Upsc Post Independence](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/courses/upsc-post-independence)

[Explore all Civil Service & Diplomatic Exams lessons](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/civil-services)[Test yourself with a quiz](https://modeldiplomat.com/learn/glossary/quiz/civil-services)

## Take Second Plan beyond the glossary

Ask the AI research engine built for diplomacy — get briefings, position papers, and speeches with sources you can cite in committee.