<p>Recent years have witnessed major paradigm shifts in many faces of economics; its philosophical foundations, empirical methodologies and policy issues.&nbsp;</p> <p><br /> The papers put together in this volume give us in one place rigorous and refreshing insight into the unresolved problems in search for appropriate models&nbsp;<span style="line-height: 1.6em;">of economic behaviour, methodologies for policy analysis and a number of issues which have become vital for sustainability of the current pace of&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">economic development.</span><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">While the Indian Economy provides the backdrop to the discussion of poverty alleviation for shared prosperity, costs of environmental degradation,&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">regulation of public utilities, promotion of financial efficiency, articulation of monetary management under a new paradigm of economic policy and&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">macroeconomic policies in the emerging market economy, they do indeed have a universal relevance today.</span></p> <p>That the various contributions deal with these issues of today even though many of these were put forth some years back is indeed remarkable.<span style="line-height: 1.6em;">Given the scholastic credentials of the distinguished authors and their long experience of dealing with economic policy, teachers, researchers, and&nbsp;</span><span style="line-height: 1.6em;">students of economics could not have asked for more.</span></p>

<p><strong>V. Pandit, Ph.D.</strong>, University of Pennsylvania. Professor (Honorary), Sri Sathya Sai University, Prasanthi Nilayam, A.P. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 2001-02. Chosen for the University Grants Commission Swami Pranavananda Saraswati National Award, 2004. Served as Professor, Delhi School of Economics, Visiting Professor, University of Pennsylvania.Simon Fellow and Hallsworth Fellow, University of Manchester; Director, Centre for Development Economics, Delhi School of Economics; Editor, Indian Economic Review; Chairman, Advisory Committee for Economic Modelling for Low Income Countries, United Nations, New York; UNDP Advisor, Ministry of Planning, Sri Lanka, Colombo.</p> <p><br /> &nbsp;<br /> <strong>K.R. Shanmugam</strong>, Ph.D., University of Madras. Professor, Madras School of Economics, Chennai. Elected Treasurer, The Indian Econometric Society, 2001-02 to 2005-06. Specialisation: Applied Econometrics, Actuarial Economics and Public Finance.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>Y.K. Alagh, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania. Chancellor, Nagaland University and Vice Chairman, Sardar Patel Institute of Economic and Social Research. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1991-92 and Gujarat Economic Association. served as Minister for Power, Government of India; Member, Planning Commission; Vice-Chancellor, Jawaharlal Nehru University; Director, Sardar Patel Institute of Economic and Social Research. Advisor/consultant to many international organisations like the FAO, ILO and UNDP. Taught at IIM Calcutta, Rajasthan University and Swarthamore College.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>R.B. Barman, Ph.D., Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. Executive Director, Reserve Bank of India; Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 2006-07. Served as Vice Chairman, Irving Fisher Committee on Central Bank Statistics. Member of a number of national and international committees dealing with policies and information system and statistics including that on Savings and Investments constituted by the Government of India. Member governing bodies of several institutions.</p> <p><br /> R. Bharadwaj, Ph.D., University of Bombay. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1990-91. Served as Professor of Econometrics, and Director, Department of Economics, University of Bombay. Founder President, Input-Output Research Association of India.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>S. Chakravarty, Ph.D., Netherlands School of Economics. Elected Fellow Econometric Society (International) 1969. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1983-1988. Winner Mahalanobis Memorial Medal (National Award). Served as Sir Shankarlal Professor of Mathematical Economics, and Director Delhi School of Economics; Member, Planning Commission; Chairman Committee to Examine Working of Monetary System in India, Reserve Bank of India; Chairman, Prime Minister’s Council of Economic Advisors. Visiting Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins University, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Oxford University.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>N.S. Iyengar, Ph.D., Indian Statistical Institute. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1988-1990. Winner Mahalanobis Memorial Medal (National Award). Served Professor, Indian Statistical Institute, Osmania University. Visiting Research Fellow, Harvard University.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>K.L. Krishna, Ph.D., University of Chicago. Chairman, Board of Governors, Centre for Economic and Social Studies, Hyderabad. Has had a distinguished record as a teacher par excellence as professor, Delhi School of Economics. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1996-97 and Andhra Pradesh Economics Society. Served as Director, Delhi School of Economics and Centre for Development Economics, Delhi School of Economics. Founder Editor, Journal of Quantitative Economics. Visiting Faculty, Monash University, Australia. Research Fellow, Brokings Institution, Washington.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>K. Krishnamurty, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania. Professor (Honorary), Administrative Staff College of India. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 2000-01 and, Andhra Pradesh Economics Society. Served as Professor and Director, Institute of Economic Growth; Senior Economist, World Bank and International Monetary Fund; Member, Governing Body, National Council of Applied Economic Research. Long association with the World Project LINK. Served on many Advisory committees of the Government of India.</p> <p>Bagicha Singh Minhas, Ph.D., Stanford University. Elected Fellow, Econometric Society (International), 1970. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1992-93. Served as Member Planning Commission. Professor, Indian Statistical Institute; Chairman, National Sample Survey Organisation.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>D.M. Nachane, Ph.D, University of Bombay. Senior Professor and Director, Indira Gandhi Institute for Development Research and Managing Editor, Journal of Quantitative Economics. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 2002-03. Chosen for the University Grants Commission, Swami Pranavananda Saraswati, National Award, 2004. Served as Professor of Mathematical Economics, and Director Department of Economics University of Bombay; Managing Editor, Indian Economic Journal. Hallsworth Fellow, University of Manchester; Monnet Fellow, European Union Institute, Florence Italy; Visiting Professor, University of British Columbia, Canada.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>A.L. Nagar, Ph.D., Netherlands School of Economics. Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Quantitative Economics. Senior Consultant, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy. Elected Fellow, Econometric Society (International) 1970, Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1976-1981. Chosen for Jawaharlal Nehru Award for Social Sciences, 1992; J.P. Nayak National Fellowship, Indian Council for Social Science Research, 1998. Served as Professor of Econometrics and Director, Delhi School of Economics. Held Visiting Professorships, University of Pennsylvania and University of Western Ontario, Canada.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>V.R. Panchamukhi, Ph.D., Delhi School of Economics. Editor-in-Chief, Indian Economic Journal and Chairman, The Indian Econometric Society Trust, Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1997-2000 and Indian Economic Association. Served as Chairman, Indian Council of Social Science Research, Government of India, New Delhi; Founder Director-General, Research and Information System for Nonaligned and Other Developing Countries, Government of India; Professor, Institute of Economic Growth; Director, Trade Authority of India. Taught at University of Bombay and Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi. Served on several national and international bodies as advisor/consultant.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>K. Parikh, D.Sc., Massachusetts, Institute of Technology. Member, Planning Commission. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1995-96 and Gujarat Economic Association. Served as Professor, Indian Statistical Institute; Founder Director, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research; Fellow, National Academy of Sciences, India and World Economic Forum, Davos. Recipient of Vikram Sarabhai and Visweswaraya awards.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>C. Rangarajan, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania. Chairman, Prime Minister’s Council of Economic Advisors. Chairman, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy and Madras School of Economics. Awarded Padma Vibhushan (second highest civilian award) by President of India, 2002. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1994-95 and Indian Economic Association. Served as Deputy Governor and later Governor, Reserve Bank of India; Member, Planning Commission; Governor, Andhra Pradesh; Chairman, Twelfth Finance Commission. Served as Member/Chairman of several committees dealing with economic policies. Taught at the IIM Ahmedabad.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>C. Radhakrishna Rao, Ph.D., D.Sc. (Honoris Causa) Cambridge University. Eberly Professor Emeritus, Penn. State University. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1971-1976; Elected Fellow Royal Society, 1964, Fellow Econometric Society (International) 1965. Awarded United States National Medal of Science highest award for lifetime achievements in Scientific Research) 2002; Awarded Padma Vibhushan, (the second highest national award) by the President of India. Member of eight National Academies in India, the United Kingdom, the United States and Italy. Served as Director, Indian Statistical Institute.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>U. Sankar, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison, Professor (Honorary) Madras School of Economics. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 1993-94. Served on a number of prestigious professional positions including National Coordinator, Capacity Building Programme in Environmental Economics in India for World Bank; Head, Department of Economics, Madras University; Director, Madras School of Economics. Held faculty positions at University of Chicago, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Australian National University.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>A. Sarma, Ph.D., Sardar Patel Institute for Economic and Social Research. Professor of Economics, Institute for Human Development, and Member, Thirteenth Finance Commission, Government of India. Elected President, The Indian Econometric Society, 2005-06. Served as Director, Steel Authority of India; Economic Advisor, Eighth and Tenth Finance Commissions. Held post doctoral fellowship at MIT and taught at Sardar Patel Institute of Economic and Social Research. Professor, Indian Statistical Institute; Vice-Chancellor, Rajiv Gandhi University, Itanagar</p>