Department of Economics

The Department of Economics is a group of highly inspired, like-minded individuals who dedicate themselves on a daily basis to the marvels of economics. Infused with intellectual competence and a yearning for knowledge, the department comprises the faculty members deeply revered for their many years of wisdom, and the students who form an integral part of this very community.

An amalgamation of varying topics, from ‘demand and supply’ to ‘costs and benefits’, the Bachelor's degree course in Economics is both intellectually demanding and professionally relevant. Strong emphasis is laid on the critical understanding of economic theories, and their application to a wide range of real-world problems. The mathematical and statistical methodologies presented in the course are vital in developing a greater degree of comfort while dealing with quantitative theory of economics and to confront the overwhelming empirical data that one might recurringly encounter.

One of the most notable endeavours of the programme is to acquaint young scholars with the rich history associated with the Indian Economy, to empower them to acknowledge and appreciate its evolution. This allows one to draw comparisons, evaluate decisions and models and moreover, nurture the process of critical thinking; all of which are the characteristics indispensable to a policy-maker.

The objective of the Department is to deliver quality education in Economics through exemplary pedagogy. This is achieved by esteemed faculty members, eminent in their own fields of expertise. This is accomplished through their relentless efforts to build firm foundations and students also reciprocate by realising their full potential and attaining great heights. Many of them have found success in diverse fields, be it data science or the banking sector, doing business or higher studies. Some of them have gone on to join government in various capacities while others have chosen to pursue unconventional lines.

Activity Report-Department of Economics 2020 and 2021

Departmental Activities

The annual fest of the department - Quest, was held on 21 February 2020, where a plethora of exciting events were organized by the department for students to unleash their creativity.

The fest brought together students from various colleges who took part in events like Allocatwist – a case study competition, in bidding competition- The Classica Replica , a group dance competition- Groove , Cambrioler – a fun treasure hunt event filled with tricks and games and a war and strategy themed event- Pratishodh. Apart from these on-ground competitions a virtual current affairs quiz was also organized. The winners from all the events were rewarded with exciting cash prizes and coupons.

Lecture and panel discussions have also been held by the department. A guest lecture, by Prof. Surajit Mazumdar from the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning (CESP), Jawaharlal Nehru University, was held, on the topic ‘Economic Slowdown: Does the Budget 2020 address it?’. Later, on 21st February 2020 Yet another informative discussion was held where the panel included some of the notable persons, including Prof. Apoorvanand from Delhi University, Prof. Geetha Nambissan from Zakir Hussain Centre for Educational Studies, JNU, Prof. Saumen Chattopadhyay from Zakir Hussain Centre for Educational Studies, JNU and Prof. Satyaki Roy from ISID on the topic ‘Perils of Neoliberalism’- Privatisation of Education.

Documentary Screening

by Rosh Ashcroft was held, where it was shown how Noam Chomsky, Joseph Stiglitz and 21 other leading thinkers discuss how the world works, and talk about solutions to the failed systems that relegate billions to poverty and insecurity.

Freshers

The Department organises freshers welcome party every year. The theme for Freshers’ 2019 was Red Carpet. Students were welcomed to perform anything of their choice so as to bond with their fellow batchmates and seniors. They were also provided with titles like Ms. Fresher and Mr. Fresher, Ms. Talented and Mr. Talented etc. Freshers' was a great opportunity for the students to get to know each other better.

Newsletter:

The theme for the newsletter Ecossential'20 was Protest. The newsletter was inaugurated by Prof. Surajit Mazumdar from the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning (CESP), Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Sports Day

Sports are an extremely vital part of one’s life. The Economics Department of DCAC organises an Intra-department Sports Day which includes many games like badminton, basketball, cricket, tennis etc. It encourages indulgences of young leaders in sport activities in the form of tournaments and friendly matches, engaging the spirit of competition and friendship, both at the same time.

Picnic

There is never the need of finding a reason for an outing! Picnics are the most old- fashioned yet a classic way to spend time with your friends and peers in the shortest span possible! The Economics Department of DCAC organises an outing where students participate in many activities and games. Refreshments and snacks are arranged by the council too. All the students participate enthusiastically and enjoy themselves thoroughly! Picnics help us cherish our childhood memories that are close to us, whilst making many more new memories with different people.

Farewell

Goodbyes are the hardest parts of a journey. Farewell, a time to cherish, a time to be thankful, a time filled with emotions and a time most loved and remembered! The Economics Department of DCAC organises the farewell party for its students where all students and teachers spend memorable time enjoying fun filled activities.

Webinar- Beyond the Corona Conundrum

The Department of Economics, DCAC organises different academic event round the year. The department organised a lecture series titled "Beyond the Corona Conundrum'' on 15th and 16th June, 2020. The objective of the lecture series was to provide students and faculty important insights into what the post-Coronavirus economy of India could be like, and what changes one may expect. To this end, under the guidance of the former TIC of the Economics Department of DCAC hosted lectures from a range of eminent experts from different sectors.

1) Prof Pami Dua, then Monetary Policy Committee Member, RBI- Prof Dua provided an in-depth overview of how monetary policy is decided upon and transmitted in India, with a brief historical background as well. The issue of monetary policy remains of prime importance in the low interest rate world we live in, and Prof. Dua offered us an insider view of what considerations and mechanisms are involved.

2) Dr. Amita Prasad- Dr. Amita Prasad, IAS, provided us a look into a less known but rapidly developing mode of transport in India- waterways. She explained us the economics of it, its potential role in trade, and how IWAI balances development with the environment.

3) Mr. Gaurav Karnik- the real estate and construction sector has traditionally been a large source of jobs and destination of investment in India. However, the sector has been facing headwinds due to both economic and regulatory reasons. Mr. Karnik dissected for us the important changes happening in the sector, and pockets of rapid growth (such as the leasing of office space and big private equity interests) within the sector, providing us an exciting overview of what is to come.

4) Prof Asmita Kabra- what constitutes development, how are benefits shared, and who are its stakeholders are perennial issues which elicit interest. Prof Kabra provided us a deeper understanding of such debates and exposed alternative conceptions of development and the philosophy of development. This was inspired by the gruelling migrant reverse- migration soon after the lockdown was announced, which forced us all to revisit many assumptions of developmental economics.

5) Mr. Rishabh Gulati- the field of international relations and strategic studies is fast generating curiosity amongst people of all fields owing to the chaotic world we inhabit. Mr. Gulati offers us a bird's eye view of developments and conflicts in space, and how it affects us all.

The lectures series saw massive participation, with more than 200 registrations. The principal of the college also was kind enough to grace the event, as were the faculty members of the Economics Department.

Speaker Session- Masters in Economics: Challenges and Prospects

A speaker session on the topic - Masters in Economics: Challenges and Prospects was conducted by Ecolibrium: The Economics Department of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce. The resource person was Mr. Amit Kumar Goel who is a professor at Ashoka University (visiting faculty) and also has his own educational platform, namely Econschool. The session was very enlightening for students who were looking for post graduate courses in Economics. Different colleges and universities that offer programs in masters in economics were discussed. Mr. Amit guided the students regarding the preparation for entrances for many of such institutes including DSE, ISI, IGIDR, JNU etc. He told us the books and websites to refer for the said preparation. Sir also talked about the further prospects for fields related to Economics like finance and data analysis. It was an interactive session where students asked various questions and sir answered them. The session was open to all students of DCAC.

The speaker session was very enriching and provided the interested students a very useful insight into the preparation for masters in economics.

Workshop- From Data to Insights

From data to Insights: A hands-on training program was conducted by Ecolibrium: The Economics Department of DCAC from 14th October to 17th October 2020. The workshop was focused on data visualization using Excel and Latex (an open source effective documentation software).

Theoretical knowledge is necessary but not sufficient, in this day and age. The purpose of the workshop was to equip the students with data visualization skills since, "Data is the new oil". The course was divided into four modules each of which taught by the esteemed faculty members:

Dr. Arun Kumar

Dr. Shalini Saksena

Dr. Navneet Manchanda

Dr. Bir Singh.

Students were exposed to various free institutional data repositories like RBI, MoSPI, WDI etc. They were taught how to extract and clean the data in Excel. Students got their hands on real time visualization of cross sectional data and temporal visualizations with spreadsheets. After each module students were given individual assignments to track their progress. In the last module, students were introduced to Latex, an effective tool for documentation, where they had to compile all the learnings of the previous modules and prepare a report on, "A Comparative Study of South Asian Economies: Focused on differences in Healthcare outcomes of India and Bangladesh". They had to evaluate India's performance across various development and economic indicators vis-a-vis her neighbours using data from World Development Indicators. It was an extremely enriching and exciting session for all the students.

Interactive Session: Insights IAS

Insights IAS: An interactive session with IAS officers, was conducted by the Department of Economics in collaboration with IQAC on 21st October 2020, 11 am onwards. The Google meet session was attended by the students and faculty members of the Economics department. The event was graced by our alumni, Mr. Shubham Gupta (Assistant Collector, Nashik, Maharashtra) and Mr. Suraj Shaji (Assistant Collector, Idukki, Kerala) who cleared UPSC in 2019. They shed light on their journey from DCAC to Civil services and shared their views on what is the best way to prepare for UPSC.

Queries related to preparation strategies, pattern of UPSC, choosing the right optional paper, coping up with stress, best resources for the exam, importance of coaching centres, role of civil servants and challenges faced by IAS officers were addressed. The speakers stressed on the importance of a backup plan, considering the uncertainty and intense competition among the UPSC aspirants. The questions were posted on the chat box and the moderators ensured that the questions were answered by the speakers and hence facilitated an interactive session.

Poster Making Competition The Poster Making Competition was organized by the Department of Economics and was open to all students of all colleges.

The given topics were: Impact of COVID-19 on mental health, NY Climate Clock, and Digital Divide in India. Over 10 students participated in the competition and the results were declared two weeks after submissions were accepted. The winning posters are going to be published in the department's newsletter.

The purpose of the competition was to create awareness about the current problems in the world and to present them in a way that was clear and concise and showed the gravity of the situation accurately. The participants used their creativity to create posters that were both informative and eye-catching. Article Writing Competition

Article writing competition was organized by the Department of Economics and was open to all students of all colleges. The competition was conducted between: 12th-30th October The given topics were: First Economic Contraction in Last 4 Decades, Online Classes and its digital divide, Farms Bill Act 2020 and Where is Indian Journalism Headed. Around 20 Students Participated from different colleges. Winners received E-certificates for their excellent performance.

The articles of all the 3 winners will be published in our annual newsletter and all the participants received an E-participation certificate. The purpose of the competition was to create awareness about the current scenario in the world and to present them in a way that was clear and concise and showed the gravity of the situation accurately. The participants used their creativity to write articles that were informative and riveting.

Webinar on 'Vikas ka Swadeshi Model: Swadhinata Sangram se Aaj Tak' The department in association with IQAC organized a webinar as a part of Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav being conducted by the government of India. The webinar was held on 22 July, 2021. The speaker, Professor ADN Bajpai, who is a nationalist thinker and the Vice Chancellor of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Chattisgarh, spoke extensively about what Swadeshi Model means and how it can help in the development of our country. The questions were posted on the chat box and the moderators ensured that the questions were answered by the speaker and hence facilitated an interactive session.

Essay Writing Competition The Department, in association with IQAC, conducted an Essay Writing Competition as a part of Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav. The deadline was 10 September, 2021. Students had to write on the following topics: Changing definition of Independence in 75 year, Building India through Entrepreneurial Action: Start-Ups as Pillars of Growth, and Women in India: Flag bearers of change. Cash prizes were offered- the first prize was Rs. 2500, the second prize was Rs. 1500, and the third prize was Rs. 1000. Moreover, top 15 participants received e-certificates. We received 21 entries.

Webinar on Untangling Kerala’s COVID-19 Conundrum The Department organised a webinar on the topic ‘Untangling Kerala’s COVID-19 Conundrum’ on 14 September, 2021. The speaker was Dr. Navneet Manchanda, who is a Health Economist at the World Bank. The session tackled important issues surrounding COVID-19 situation in India. Dr. Manchanda talked about how the nation can make Kerala an example and work accordingly as Kerala inspite of being a very vulnerable state has been able to contain COVID-19 effectively. She discussed why Kerala was able to successfully contain the virus in the first two waves and why the situation is deteriorating currently. The questions were posted on the chat box and the moderators ensured that the questions were answered by the speaker and hence facilitated an interactive session. The session was brief yet very informative.