Message From President's Desk

Prof. Ghanshyam N Singh

President
Indian Economic Association

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Dear IEA Members,
It is my pride privilege to send herewith Greetings and Good Wishes to the members of the Indian Economics Association (IEA) spread all over the country and even abroad. The IEA has long and chequered one hundred and three years old history, as it was founded in 1917 by Professor C.J. Hamilton as its Convener with a view to bring together the teachers, professionals and all others practicing and interested in Social Sciences with its main focus on Economics. Its first Conference was held at Calcutta and since then every year it organizes its Conferences in various parts of the country.

Being a very old professional association, it has earned a place of pride in the hearts of the economic professionals practitioners as a result of which all the prominent and famed economists have adored the chair of its President and their addresses at its yearly conference provided important input to academician and policy makers of the nation. To give a glance of its eminence, few names may be quoted to ,just have a look as to how the IEA remained a center of academic excellence all along the passage of time. These few eminent persons are; Sri M. Visesvaraya(1924), Sir M.L. Darling (1928), Dr.R.K. Mukherjee (1933), Prof. C.N.Vakil (1934), Dr. Gyanchand (1938), Prof. D.R.Gadgil (1940), Prof.P.S.Loknathan (1947), Prof.V.K.R.V.Rao (1949) Prof.B.R.Shenoy (1957), Prof. A.K.Dasgupta (1960), Prof.D.T.Lakadawala (1964), Dr.I.G.Patel (1966), Prof.J.K.Mehta (1968), Prof.M.L.Dantawala (1970), Prof. P.R.Brahmananda ( 1977), Dr. Manmohan Singh (1985), Prof. Amartya Sen (1989), Dr. V.R.Panchamukhi (1994), Dr. C. Rangrajan (2017) etc. All these luminaries in the field of economics and social sciences made a mark in shaping and making economic policy of the nation of their time. The above noted list of scholars, associated with IEA give, a brief reflection, of its importance, that it has acquired, in course of time a place of prominence in academic and policy making process.

The IEA is a vibrant forum, where young professionals from all over the country and even abroad, meet annually at its Annual Conferences, normally in the month of December and interact amongst themselves and learn the art of teaching and research and improve their expertise in chosen area of their interest. During its Annual Conferences, the professionals and practitioners of different area of knowledge in economics assembles and present their views on their earlier submitted and selected papers and discuss in their interaction as a result of which IEA has become a center of knowledge and provide basic inputs of young researchers and also to policy makers.

In its long history it has, almost, observed democratic norms in building its operational structure and succeeded very well. And some time , as it might have been experienced elsewhere also, the IEA also faced some upheaval situation, in recent past, where intervention from some self-seekers disturbed and detracted it from its normal system of democratic functioning. In that way, it disturbed the cherished goal of it Founding Father to make IEA, a forum of free discussion, deliberation to provide basic input to its policy makers, Yes, earlier also some disturbing trend erupted which was corrected through its inner democratic mechanism and I have witnessed such situation at its Anantpur Conference (1991) and thereafter it was corrected by a meet at Delhi by the advice and guidance of Senior members of IEA fraternity, like Dr. Manmohan Singh, P.R.Brahmananda , Ruddar Datt and others. I am happy to say that I was also a part of its corrective-mechanism and feel proud to say so. In later year, I was given an arduous task to Edit one of three Volumes of the Presidential Speeches of Eminent Economists delivered during its Annual Conferences which I did successfully as its Editor and that has, now, become a part of its History.

those unfortunate lapses and once again, even during this unprecedented catastrophic situation of pandemic Coronavirus (Covid 19), the present team has conducted its video Conferencing meets regularly with its members spread all over the country and its Election of Office Bearers and all its related issues well broadly publicized in very transparent way .We hope ,the present team of its office Bearers having Pan India presence will surely fulfill its cherished goal. I feel really proud of being its part as its President elected through a very transparent democratic system conducted by its Election Officer of high integrity. Wish you all the Best for a golden period of IEA.

JAI HIND JAI JAWAN JAI KISAN

(Ghanshyam N. Singh)
President
The Indian Economic Association