Which one of the following committees recommended the abolition of reservation of items for the small scale sector in industry?

The Abid Hussain Committee recommended abolition of the reservation of items for the small-scale sector. The Government constituted the Abid Hussain Committee in December 1995 to examine issues concerning the small sector; its report (submitted in 1997) explicitly recommended ending product reservations maintained for small-scale industries. This recommendation came against the historical backdrop of reservation policy that began in 1967 (initially 47 items) and expanded substantially (to over 800 items by the late 1980s), a protection intended to foster employment and shield small firms but later criticized as distorting competition and limiting competitiveness after liberalization [1].

Sources

1. [1] Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 6: Indian Economy [1947 – 2014] > 3. Reservation for small scale industries > p. 213