Economics for Policymaking

A public policy, by and large, cater to the economic interest of the public or state. The objective of the paper ‘Economics for Policymaking’ is to equip students with the fundamental conceptual foundation of various economic theories without getting into the mathematics rigours of it and by providing concrete examples of their application in real-time. The course will enhance students’ knowledge of the implications of fiscal and monetary policies in the economy. On completion of the course, students will acquire the ability to critically examine the economic policy and look beyond the first stage of the impact of policy outcomes and appreciate the cross-sectoral implications. 

The subject will expose students to the realms of free market and welfare states. It will explore the government’s role in a state, the implications of government intervention in a market economy and cases of market failures warranting the government’s intervention. Broadly, it will explain the role of the government in the economy and apply basic macro and micro theoretical questions in answering important policy questions.

Course Objective:

  1. Deliver basic understanding on fundamental concepts of Economics and the application of theoretical concepts in policy issues

  2. Comprehend how market system and state system work and their suitability in specific situations and boundaries of each 

  3. Enable students to analyse market movements, cross-sectoral linkages and implications for public policy formulation 

  4. Prepare students to be leaders in economic policymaking by weighing alternate policy options, understanding the disconnect between theoretical and empirical aspects 


Fundamentals of Public Policymaking: Paradigm and Practice

This paper will offer an understanding of the rudimentary aspects of Public Policy and its making. The subject will give students a space to redefine their idea of policymaking and provide a comprehensive knowledge in various disciplines that are relevant to the context. An in-depth reading into the subject coupled with field engagements and practical understanding drive students to challenge the existing lectures/theories of Public Policy. 

This course on ‘Fundamentals of Public Policymaking: Paradigm and Practice’ will take the students to different schools of thoughts in Public Policy, relevance of this discipline, evolution and phases along with values and ethics. Students will also develop an understanding of the institutional environment and grammar of public action. For the aspiring change makers, this paper is pertinent in identifying their domain area of intervention as a policymaker. 

Course Objectives:

This course aims to 

1. Build conceptual understanding about the key concepts and theories involved in Public Policy 

2. Make students practice social inquiry and 360-degree analysis on policies— existing and emerging 

3. Impart theoretical and practical knowledge about Public Policy and policymaking




Research Methodology - I

Understanding Governance — Constitutional Context, Institutions and Practice

Development of a state is greatly attributed to its governance. The Constitution acts as a
fundamental guide to which the policy has to be aligned. It is inevitable for a Public Policy
student to have a comprehensive understanding of the Indian Constitution to intervene in the
problems that demand solution in the continuous process of policymaking. This paper will
also explore the key actors, institutions, regimes, processes and norms of governance.
Through case studies and discussions, it will examine how the aspects of Fundamental Rights
and reforms are circumscribed in this process. It will critically analyse the role of regulatory
bodies and the emerging regulators in the market. The modules also give thrust to deliver
competing perspectives of Public, Private and Non-profit managements and analyse the
sources, security, risk and consequences of policymaking.

The course aims to

  1. Build an understanding of the key concepts and theories involved in governance.
  2. Make students practice social inquiry and 360-degree analysis on policies — existing and emerging, their constitutional context.
  3. Impart theoretical and practical knowledge of Public Policy and Policymaking.
  4. Create a pool of policymakers who reflect and respond to the relevance of the subject
    matter.
Pre-requisites:
  1. Graduation in any discipline.
  2. An elementary reading on Public Policy, Constitution of India and Indian Economics.
  3. Openness towards new schools of thoughts and interest to keep you updated.
Readings:
There shall be no textbooks for this course. However, a set of readings has been identified
under each module of the course. Students will be required to access these reading materials
from the library repository and make their own reading compendium.

Introduction to Indic Knowledge Systems

As human beings march in their journey towards progress, through newer developments, they need to be guided by a core set of ideals and principle of living. In today’s context, these paradigms of living are stemming from recent ideas originating from the western world. While we have been making progress there is also a wide-spread understanding that for every new solution and idea that we discover, we introduce more and more challenges and problems arising out of them. This potentially raises the need to look for alternative paradigms for the emerging world order.  Indic Knowledge Systems (IKS) can potentially offer ideas for developing new paradigms for the world order. A knowledge of IKS is the first step in this process. Chinmaya University addresses this requirement through a two-part foundational course. 

IKS constitute a vast majority of literature spanning across multiple perspectives. This includes ideas on fundamental premises related to one’s living as laid out in the Vedas, components of knowledge that help us develop a correct understanding of the Vedic literature, Purāṇas, Darśaṇas, Smṛtis, Upa Vedas and many more. This is typically referred to as Caturdaśa-vidyāsthānam. This course outline covers one part of this knowledge tradition and the rest is covered in the second course.

The course design seeks to address the following issues:

  • Students will have an understanding of IKS capable of organizing, interpreting and stating main ideas from the discipline.

  • Students will be able to appraise the role and importance of Veda, Vedāṅgas, Upa Vedas and Purāṇas.

  • The students would have surveyed the multi-dimensional nature of IKS and analyse their importance in contemporary society.

  • The students would be motivated to take up a detailed study of some of these topics and explore their application potential

Pre-requisites:

  • There are no pre-requisites for this course as it is introductory in nature. Some rudimentary understanding of Sanskrit and familiarity with Devanagari script will be useful.

Readings:

  • There is no textbook for this course. However, a set of readings have been identified under each module of the course. Students will be required to access these reading materials from the library repository and assemble a set of readings for their personal use.