(A) (i) “Although the subsidies play a crucial role in giving incentive to farmers to adopt modern agricultural technologies, they simultaneously…

(A)(i) Subsidies play a vital role in encouraging farmers to adopt modern agricultural technologies as small and marginal farmers may not be able to afford expensive agricultural inputs without subsidies. However, subsidies also impose a heavy fiscal burden on the government. Large expenditure on subsidies diverts the resources available for other developmental activities like infrastructure, education and health.

The given statement is defended. Both strategic and minority sale are the methods of disinvestment used by the government to reduce its ownership and encourage private participation. It leads to improved efficiency and better performance of public sector enterprises. Strategic sale involves transferring a significant share of government ownership along with management control to a private entity. Although minority sale refers to selling a limited portion of shares while the government retains control.

OR(B)(i) Industrial sector performed poorly in the reform period because of decreasing demand for industrial products due to various reasons such as cheaper imports, etc. Cheaper imports have, thus, replaced the demand for domestic goods. Moreover, the infrastructure facilities including power supply, remained inadequate due to lack of investment.

India has emerged as a preferred outsourcing destination because of: