Kaushik Basu
Encyclopedia
Kaushik Basu is an India
n economist
who is currently the Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India
and is also the C. Marks Professor of International Studies and Professor of Economics and, till recently, he was Chairman of the Department of Economics and Director, Center for Analytic Economics at Cornell University
.
, Kolkata. In 1969 he moved to Delhi to do his undergraduate studies in Economics (Honors), with Mathematics as subsidiary, from St. Stephen's College
. He then went on to the London School of Economics
, to do his M.Sc in Economics. After completing his M.Sc in 1974, he stayed on at the London School for his PhD, from 1974 to 1976. He did his PhD on choice theory under the chairmanship of Amartya Sen.
(where he was Distinguished Visitor in 1993); he has been Visiting Professor at MIT, Harvard and Princeton; and Visiting Scientist at the Indian Statistical Institute
. He is currently Chief Economic Adviser in the Ministry of Finance of the Government of India. He is on leave from Cornell University where he is Professor of Economics and the C. Marks Professor of International Studies. A Fellow of the Econometric Society
and recipient of the Mahalanobis Memorial Medal, Basu has published scientific papers in development economics
, game theory
, industrial organization, political economy and the economics of child labor, and crafted the traveler's dilemma
More recently, he has worked on aggregating infinite streams of returns, and the axiomatic structures, pertaining to inter-generational anonymity and different forms of the Pareto principle, that such aggregations can satisfy.
In 1992 he founded the Centre for Development Economics (CDE) at the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi, and was the Centre's first Executive Director till 1996.
He is a columnist for BBC News Online
, Hindustan Times
, Business Standard and is the author of several books on economics and a play, Crossings at Benaras Junction, which was published in The Little Magazine (vol. 6, 2005). He is the editor of the Oxford Companion to Economics in India, published by Oxford University Press
(February, 2007), which is a compendium on the Indian economy. His new book, Beyond the Invisible Hand: Groundwork for a New Economics, was published in 2011 by Princeton University Press and Penguin, India, and is to be published shortly in translation in Italian, Chinese and Spanish.
He is Editor of Social Choice and Welfare, Associate Editor of Japanese Economic Review and is on the Board of Editors of the World Bank Economic Review.
He is also the creator of the two-player board game Dui-doku.
, one of the country's highest civil honors.
In 2011, he was awarded an honarary PhD by Lucknow University, Lucknow.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
who is currently the Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
and is also the C. Marks Professor of International Studies and Professor of Economics and, till recently, he was Chairman of the Department of Economics and Director, Center for Analytic Economics at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
.
Early life
Kaushik Basu was born in Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta and schooled at St. Xavier's Collegiate SchoolSt. Xavier's Collegiate School
St. Xavier's Collegiate School was established in 1860 in Kolkata, India by missionaries of the Society of Jesus. The school is named after St. Francis Xavier...
, Kolkata. In 1969 he moved to Delhi to do his undergraduate studies in Economics (Honors), with Mathematics as subsidiary, from St. Stephen's College
St. Stephen's College, Delhi
St. Stephen's College is a constituent college of the University of Delhi located in Delhi, India. The college admits both undergraduates and post-graduates, and awards degrees under the purview of the University. Famous for its rich history and many traditions, St...
. He then went on to the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, to do his M.Sc in Economics. After completing his M.Sc in 1974, he stayed on at the London School for his PhD, from 1974 to 1976. He did his PhD on choice theory under the chairmanship of Amartya Sen.
Career
On completing his PhD from London, Basu lectured briefly at Reading University, and returned to India in 1977, to be Reader in Economics and, later, Professor of Economics at the Delhi School of Economics. Over the years Basu has held visiting positions at the Institute for Advanced Study (Princeton), CORE (Louvain-la-Neuve) and the London School of EconomicsLondon School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
(where he was Distinguished Visitor in 1993); he has been Visiting Professor at MIT, Harvard and Princeton; and Visiting Scientist at the Indian Statistical Institute
Indian Statistical Institute
Indian Statistical Institute is a public research institute and university in Kolkata's northern outskirt of Baranagar, India founded by Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis in 1931...
. He is currently Chief Economic Adviser in the Ministry of Finance of the Government of India. He is on leave from Cornell University where he is Professor of Economics and the C. Marks Professor of International Studies. A Fellow of the Econometric Society
Econometric Society
The Econometric Society is an international society for the advancement of economic theory in its relation with statistics and mathematics. It was founded on December 29, 1930 at the Stalton Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio....
and recipient of the Mahalanobis Memorial Medal, Basu has published scientific papers in development economics
Development economics
Development Economics is a branch of economics which deals with economic aspects of the development process in low-income countries. Its focus is not only on methods of promoting economic growth and structural change but also on improving the potential for the mass of the population, for example,...
, game theory
Game theory
Game theory is a mathematical method for analyzing calculated circumstances, such as in games, where a person’s success is based upon the choices of others...
, industrial organization, political economy and the economics of child labor, and crafted the traveler's dilemma
Traveler's dilemma
In game theory, the traveler's dilemma is a type of non-zero-sum game in which two players attempt to maximize their own payoff, without any concern for the other player's payoff....
More recently, he has worked on aggregating infinite streams of returns, and the axiomatic structures, pertaining to inter-generational anonymity and different forms of the Pareto principle, that such aggregations can satisfy.
In 1992 he founded the Centre for Development Economics (CDE) at the Delhi School of Economics, Delhi, and was the Centre's first Executive Director till 1996.
He is a columnist for BBC News Online
BBC News Online
BBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
, Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded in 1924 with roots in the Indian independence movement of the period ....
, Business Standard and is the author of several books on economics and a play, Crossings at Benaras Junction, which was published in The Little Magazine (vol. 6, 2005). He is the editor of the Oxford Companion to Economics in India, published by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
(February, 2007), which is a compendium on the Indian economy. His new book, Beyond the Invisible Hand: Groundwork for a New Economics, was published in 2011 by Princeton University Press and Penguin, India, and is to be published shortly in translation in Italian, Chinese and Spanish.
He is Editor of Social Choice and Welfare, Associate Editor of Japanese Economic Review and is on the Board of Editors of the World Bank Economic Review.
He is also the creator of the two-player board game Dui-doku.
Awards
In 2008, the Government of India awarded him the Padma BhushanPadma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
, one of the country's highest civil honors.
In 2011, he was awarded an honarary PhD by Lucknow University, Lucknow.
Books
- Revealed Preference of Government, Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
, 1980. - The Less Developed Economy: A Critique of Contemporary Theory, Basil Blackwell, 1984.
- Agrarian Structure and Economic Development, Harwood Academic Publishers, 1990. This book is part of the series Fundamentals of Pure and Applied Economics edited by J. Lesourne and H. Sonnenschein. 1991 1992
- (editor, with Pulin Nayak) Development Policy and Economic Theory, Oxford University Press, 1992.
- (editor, with Mukul Majumdar and Tapan Mitra) Capital, Investment and Development, Basil Blackwell, 1993.
- (editor) Agrarian Questions, Oxford University Press, 1994.
- (editor, with Prasanta Pattanaik and Kotaro Suzumura) Development, Welfare and Ethics, Clarendon Press, 1995. 1994.
- (editor, with Sanjay Subrahmanyam) Unravelling the Nation: Sectarian Conflict and India's Secular Identity, Penguin paperback, New Delhi, 1996.
- Analytical Development Economics, The MIT Press, 1997, ISBN 0-262-02423-3. 2000.
- (editor) Readings in Political Economy, Blackwell Publishing, 2003.
- (editor, with Henrik Horn, Lisa Roman and Judith Shapiro) International Labor Standards, Blackwell Publishing, 2003.
- (editor) India's Emerging Economy: Performance and Prospects in the 1990s and Beyond, The MIT Press, 2004, ISBN 0-262-02556-6. 2005.
- (editor) Oxford Companion to Economics in India, Oxford University Press, forthcoming.
- An Economist's Miscellany, Oxford University PressOxford University PressOxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
, 2011
External reference
- Kaushik Basu - Biography
- http://people.cornell.edu/pages/kb40/ Kaushik Basu's personal page: (now defunct link)
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3466745.stm Kaushik Basu's articles at BBC world
- http://www.littlemag.com/venusenvy/kaushikbasu.html - Globalization and Babool Gum