Beginning from the financial year 2017–18, NITI Aayog plans to replace the traditional Five Year Plans with which long term vision document for India’s development?

Introduction / Context:
This question checks awareness about the major change in India's national planning framework after the end of the Twelfth Five Year Plan. The Planning Commission was replaced by NITI Aayog, and instead of continuing the earlier pattern of Five Year Plans, the Government decided to move towards a longer horizon of planning. From the financial year 2017–18 onwards, NITI Aayog proposed a new structure that includes a long term vision document, a medium term strategy and a short term action agenda. The correct option therefore relates to the duration of this long term vision document that replaces the earlier Five Year Plans as the main long range guide to development policy.

Given Data / Assumptions:

A new planning framework starts from the financial year 2017–18.
NITI Aayog replaces the old Five Year Plan system of the Planning Commission.
The new framework is based on a long term vision document and not on Five Year Plans.
The options give different possible lengths of this vision document in years.
We assume the standard description used by NITI Aayog in official statements and reports.

Concept / Approach:
The required concept is knowledge of Indian economic planning in the post Planning Commission era. NITI Aayog suggested a three tier framework consisting of a 15 year Vision Document, a 7 year Strategy document and a 3 year Action Agenda. The long term vision is meant to provide continuity of goals beyond frequent electoral cycles. To answer the question, we simply need to recall the number of years associated with the vision document that substitutes for the Five Year Plan as the guiding document for long term development objectives.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that the Planning Commission used to prepare Five Year Plans up to the Twelfth Plan (2012–2017). Step 2: Note that from 2017–18, the Government decided to discontinue new Five Year Plans and rely on NITI Aayog for a new planning architecture. Step 3: NITI Aayog proposed a three level framework consisting of a 15 year Vision Document, a 7 year Strategy and a 3 year Action Agenda. Step 4: The question asks specifically which long term vision document is meant to replace the old Five Year Plans. Step 5: Therefore, among the options 5, 10, 15 and 20 years, the correct duration for the vision document is 15 years.

Verification / Alternative check:
One way to verify is to recall common exam facts that are frequently repeated in news and government documents. Many economic survey type summaries and NITI Aayog press releases clearly mention a 15 year Vision, 7 year Strategy and 3 year Action Agenda framework. You might also remember the phrase “15 year Vision Document” as a popular objective question in multiple competitive examinations. Since no other duration, such as 10 or 20 years, is associated with the Vision Document in standard references, 15 years is confirmed as the correct answer.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A (5 year Vision Document) is incorrect because the Five Year horizon belongs to the old Planning Commission model and there is no new 5 year vision document in the NITI Aayog structure.
Option B (10 year Vision Document) is incorrect since NITI Aayog never proposed a 10 year vision document. The medium term document is a 7 year strategy, not 10 years.
Option D (20 year Vision Document) is incorrect because such a very long horizon is not the one adopted officially. The long term horizon accepted by the Government is 15 years, not 20 years.

Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is to confuse the different time horizons and mix up the Vision, Strategy and Action Agenda. Some learners wrongly think that the vision must be 20 years because that sounds like a very long period. Others may mark 5 years out of habit because they associate planning in India with Five Year Plans. It is important to clearly separate the three numbers that NITI Aayog uses and remember that 15 years is the new long term planning horizon that takes the place of the earlier Five Year Plan system as the main vision document.

Final Answer:
The long term document that replaces the traditional Five Year Plans from the financial year 2017–18 is a 15 year Vision Document prepared by NITI Aayog.