New Economic Policy launched

Introduced by V. I. Lenin toward the end of the Tenth Party Congress, the New Economic Policy (NEP) aims to quell rising opposition to the Bolshevik dictatorship by eliminating the more repressive features of “War Communism.”

Under NEP the practice of requisitioning grain from the peasantry is replaced by a tax-in-kind, later a monetary tax of 10% following the stabilization of the currency. Peasants are once again allowed to engage in petty trading; hire laborers; and undertake other market-based activities. Meanwhile, the state retains control over what Lenin calls the “commanding height” of industry: foreign trade; large-scale industries and enterprises; transport; communications; banking, etc.