Page:Indian Journal of Economics Volume 2.djvu/45

 ART OF ECONOAfIC DEVELOPMENT expense of the shareholders who are getting small dividenOs, or else throngh  comparatively expensive or inefficient service being given to persons residing in the non-competitive area who in some cases are made to provide the bulk of any profit which the companies make. In India there has been no excessive coinpeti- tion for the supply of public utility installations; but with the growth of population and of extensive industrial areas, such as those of the Hooghly, of the Jhsris . .coalfiel.d, or of Bombay., .the opportunities are greatly mcreamng. In the provsmn of railway facilities there are many cases in which competitive lines already exist; and sex'ral examples could be quoted of cases an extension of, say, a metre' gauge railway where parallel highly with an existing broad profitable to the former gauge line although would be the broad gauge line is able to handle the whole of the traffic at present offering. These considerations show that Government is right in reserving to itself the control of all public works and public utility services. Whether the State should itself on and work such services is an administrative question with which we are not concerned at this point. It is here important to observe only that the llanning and control of the promotion of all such works and services should be actually in the hands of  central authority which must be some department of Government. The princi- ple on which such control should be exercised is to avoid unnecessary waste of capital in installing the requi- site plant, bearing in mind that great waste may occur, not only through competition but by lack of foresfghc in pro/iding for the expansion of the future dema, ml. The central authority will also regulate the rates to be charged by the monopolist for the services rendered, the object being to provide the service for the public at the lowest rate possible, compatible with yielding a