Step 1: Understanding the Question:
The question asks to characterize the nature of the modern production system.
Step 2: Key Concept:
- Direct Production: A system where goods are produced for direct self-consumption. It involves a very simple, subsistence-level economy with no or minimal division of labour and exchange (e.g., a farmer growing food only for his family).
- Indirect Production (or Roundabout Production): A complex system characterized by specialization, division of labour, and the use of capital goods (machinery, tools). Goods are produced not for self-consumption but for sale in the market (exchange).
Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
The present-day production system in virtually all economies is highly complex.
- It is not direct, as producers create goods and services for the market, not just for their own use.
- It is characterized by a high degree of specialization and division of labour.
- It is 'indirect' or 'roundabout' because it involves producing capital goods (like machines) first, which are then used to produce consumer goods. This process is longer but vastly more productive than direct production.
- Primary and Secondary are sectors of the economy (agriculture, manufacturing), not descriptions of the system itself. The system of indirect production applies to all sectors.
Step 4: Final Answer
The present production system is an indirect production system, as it is based on specialization, division of labour, and production for exchange in the market.