01232pab a2200169 454500 180718b2010 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d Baruah, Joydeep Towards a programmable index of backwardness 2010 p.27-31. 6 Feb Launched by the Prime Minister in February 2006, the Backward Region Grant Fund programme primarily intends to "redress the regional imbalance" in the country. The programme guidelines categorically mandate that each identified BRGF district should prepare a "diagnostic study" of its backwardness specifying the relatively backward pockets within the district based on which the district plan would be prepared. This article tries to look at the approach of the programme along with a few operational issues in some detail. An attempt has been made to develop a conceptual framework for addressing the two foundational issues - identification of regions and measurement of level of development therein through a programmable index along with a possible prioritisation scheme that would help district-level planning. - Reproduced. Backward areas Economic and Political Weekly N 85692 85692 85692 0 0 0 0 IIPA IIPA 2018-07-19 Volume no: 45, Issue no: 6 AR86152 2018-07-19 2018-07-19 AR