Mr. M. R. Masani's speech in the course of the discussion on the Demands for Grants of the Ministry of Transport in the Lok Sabha on 23rd March 1964

Summary

In this 23 March 1964 Lok Sabha speech, M. R. Masani argues that India’s transport policy is failing to support economic development because planning has repeatedly underestimated the role of roads and overprotected the railways. He warns that the Third Five Year Plan will produce a severe transport bottleneck: mechanised transport demand is projected to reach 375 million tons by 1966–67, while the railways expect to carry only 245 million tons. Roads, however, are described as underdeveloped, underfunded, heavily taxed, and unable to absorb the shortfall.

Masani supports a substantial shift of public investment and policy attention toward road transport, vehicle manufacture, and modern transport infrastructure. He criticises the Transport Ministry for failing to secure the funds promised under the 20-year road-development plan, allowing vehicle production to fall far below target, and permitting restrictive licensing and taxation regimes that favour railway interests. Drawing comparisons with Britain, France, Germany, Japan, and other countries, he presents the movement from railways toward roads, waterways, and airways as a necessary feature of technological and economic progress. He concludes by urging the Transport Ministry to show greater independence from the Railway Board and to defend modern transport methods more assertively.

Key points

• Masani says the Transport Ministry’s complacent assessment of roads and road transport ignores an approaching national bottleneck.
• The speech projects 375 million tons of mechanised transport demand at the end of the Third Plan, against estimated railway capacity of 245 million tons.
• India’s road mileage and road quality are presented as inadequate compared with the United Kingdom, France, Japan, and Ceylon.
• Masani criticises the allocation of less than Rs. 420 crores to roads against a 20-year plan requiring Rs. 590 crores during the current Plan.
• Vehicle production is shown to be substantially below the Third Plan target, partly because foreign exchange was not allocated to the industry.
• Inter-State Transport Commission permits are described as insufficient, while state-level taxation and licensing restrictions impede road transport.
• The speech argues that railway influence has distorted transport policy and that investment should follow economic returns rather than institutional habit.
• Masani calls for roads, waterways, and airways to assume a larger role as railways become stretched and technologically outdated.