Decentralised industrial sectors are important features of the economies of most of the developing countries. This paper provides a contextual definition to the key words "decentralised" and "sector", explains the rationale for setting up decentralised sectors, and illustrates the employment and developmental significance of such sectors in the Indian context. It further attempts to help formulate the objectives and strategies for such sectors. The problems in striking an optimal balance among developmental, commercial and regulatory goals are highlighted. The features of the multiple organizational set up for managing such sectors and the unifying role played by centralized financial assistance are pointed out. The conceptual framework also attempts to illustrate an operating scheme by which the various functions like marketing, finance, organization, etc can be split into purely commercial, purely developmental and development oriented commercial sub-functions. The paper ends with the recognition for a committed leadership which alone can provide the right set of value and ideology for effectively safeguarding the developmental needs from being subsumed under the quest for commercial success.