The planning process in the industrial sector in India has assumed a relatively less important position in the nineties as compared to that in the earlier period. Which one of the following is true in this regard?

1. The question asks why the planning process in the industrial sector in India became less important in the nineties (1990s) compared to earlier periods. 2. The 1990s, particularly from 1991 onwards, marked the beginning of economic liberalisation in India. 3. (A) Liberalisation involved delicensing industries, reducing the role of the public sector, and opening up the economy to private and multinational sectors. Consequently, industrial investments and development became increasingly market-driven and determined by private entities rather than detailed central planning. This statement accurately reflects the shift. 4. (B) While markets gained importance, central planning wasn't rendered entirely redundant; its nature and focus shifted rather than disappearing completely, especially in strategic areas and infrastructure. 5. (C) While the focus of planning did shift towards social sectors (human resource development, population control, welfare) and infrastructure, this was a consequence of the changing economic philosophy rather than the primary reason for the reduced role of industrial planning itself. The reduced role stemmed from liberalization. 6. (D) National priorities did not necessarily shift *away* from industrial development towards rural development exclusively; rather, the *mechanism* for achieving industrial development changed from planning-led to market-led. 7. Therefore, the advent of liberalisation placing industrial development largely in the hands of the private and multinational sectors is the core reason.