Though somewhat similar, Russia was at a higher level of industrial development in the 1920's than China at the eve of the GLF, as is reflected in Madison's numbers of GDP/capita.

More importantly, the GLF was different in aims than Stalin's industrialisation. The GLF was in large part a reaction of Mao and his supporters against the Soviet economic model. After the advent of Khrushchev market reforms were introduced in the Soviet economy, hence why many communists (Mao included) claimed the Soviet Union had become 'revisionist'. In order to avoid this path, a different path had to be forged.

The USSR forced collectivisation (with many deaths and a not very impressive agricultural performance as consequences) and, in Marxist terms, appropriated surplus value from agricultural labour in order to feed a rapid increase in the urban/industrial proletariat to kick-start their incredibly rapid industrialisation (unparalleled until the Chinese broke their record in the post-Maoist period).

Mao had his base among the peasantry and felt strongly the peasantry should not be exploited to the benefit of the urban proletariat, especially since this seemed to have led to the turn to 'revisionism' in the USSR. Increasing inequality between the countryside and the urban areas (favoured by the part of the Chinese communist party in favour of a USSR-style economic development focussed on developing more heavy industry and a large urban proletariat) was in fact one of the points he felt very strongly about and would play a significant role during the events of the Cultural Revolution. Mao wished to have an equal development of agriculture and industry and thus proposed the development of small/medium industry in the countryside itself in order to raise agricultural productivity, as opposed to a singular focus on the development of heavy industry in urban areas to the detriment of the peasantry.

Not a particularly bad idea on the face of it, but obviously it went wrong. In Chinese Economic Development, Chris Bramall argues the diversion of labour from agriculture to industry led to a collapse of productivity due to labour shortages. This was intensified by widespread overreporting of output by local cadres, intensified food requirements due to the mobilisation of the population for hard labour, and harsh weather conditions. The late response of the CCP is of course also to blame. They seemed to have been busy with other matters (political intrigue and rapidly deteriorating relations with the USSR) and, in the aftermath of the hundred flowers campaign which quickly turned into an anti-Rightist campaign in which many people were imprisoned, nobody wished to speak out against the Leadership and risk punishment.