The IIPM programme was conceptualized in 1973 keeping inmind the unfortunate fact that education in India till then had still remainedprimarily oriented towards the needs of the private sector and had overlookedthe specific requirements of the public sector. We had even failed to dojustice to the private sector in as much as we had not succeeded in impressingupon the students the basic framework within which the private sector had tooperate in our country. The scope and role of the private sector in ourcountry, in the context of national economic planning, was quite distinct fromthat of the private sector in the free market economies originally developedthrough colonial exploitation.
Problems of development of the private and the public sectors were, therefore,needed to be studied and analyzed carefully in the background of nationaleconomic planning. Otherwise, we would not be able to translate the laudablegoals of plans into physical realities, however sophisticated the planningmodels may be.
The Indian Institute of Planning and Management had thus set before it the twintasks: to reorient education and research towards the needs of both the sectorsand to establish the link between the national economic planning and thedevelopment of private enterprises in our country.
IIPM further believes that sustainable growth can only be achieved in theIndian economy when growth strategies cater to the bottom 80% of the populationand not just the top 20%. The time has come for India to lead the way in theworld and the Indian managers need to develop a strong vision for theircompanies and help them compete in the world markets while accelerating marketgrowth to make India economically the strongest country in the world. This isthe breed of future leaders and managers that IIPM wants to create, those whoare aware of the challenges and do not remain intellectually handicapped.