In which five year plan of independent India the focus was on the development…

India's Five-Year Plans set a distinct 'thrust area' for each period — the plan document itself named one leading objective (agriculture, industry, self-reliance, poverty removal, or liberalisation) that shaped where investment was directed.

The Second Five-Year Plan (1956-61) was drafted on the Mahalanobis strategy, which made rapid industrialisation — especially building basic and heavy industries such as steel, machinery, and power — the central objective. This is why it is remembered as India's 'industrialisation plan'.

Comparing it against the other plans confirms the choice:

• Third Plan (1961-66): shifted priority to defence and self-reliance after the 1962 and 1965 conflicts, not industrial build-out.

• Fifth Plan (1974-79): centred on poverty alleviation and employment under the 'Garibi Hatao' agenda.

• Sixth Plan (1980-85): is associated with the start of economic liberalisation and anti-poverty/infrastructure programmes, not a dedicated industrial thrust.