Public Economics

By Dr. Shreeda Chungkham | Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Dhanamanjuri University, Imphal

Learners enrolled: 85

Public economics is viewed as the economic study of the public sector thereby making it a study of government policy through the lens of economic efficiency and equity. As a subject it encompasses a host of topics including market failures, externalities, structure and scope of government; taxation, subsidies and revenues; fiscal policies and behaviour of economic agents; publicly provided goods; national government expenditures and related policies; national budget, deficit and debt; state and local government; intergovernmental relations etc. It considers the role governments play in keeping markets stable and analyses the extent that government interference helps or hinders free-market activities. By focusing on analytical and scientific analysis, Public Economics provides us with a level-headed picture of the effects of these government interventions. Public economics builds on the theory of welfare economics and is ultimately used as a tool to improve social welfare.

The main objectives of this course are to enable learners analyse fiscal functions, the theories on growth of public expenditures; to describe the concept of public goods and externalities and the free riding problem and market inefficiency associated with them and their remedies; to discuss the principles of taxation, taxable capacity and its measurement, to analyse deadweight loss of taxation and optimal taxation, to describe India’s tax structure, the issues and challenges and tax reforms it has undertaken; to discuss the techniques and principles of budgeting, deficits and their management, the Centre-State financial relations, finance commission and FRBM Act.

Summary

Course Status :	Upcoming
Course Type :	Core
Language for course content :	English
Duration :	15 weeks
Category :	Economics
Credit Points :	5
Level :	Undergraduate
Start Date :	07 Jul 2025
End Date :	31 Oct 2025
Enrollment Ends :	31 Aug 2025
Exam Date :
NCrF Level	5.0
Industry Details :	Teaching, Development Industry, Economy

Page Visits

Course layout

	WEEK 1
1	Public Economics: An Introduction
2.1	Justification for the public sector
2.2	Pareto Efficiency
2.3	Welfare Theorem
3	Fiscal Functions
4	Theories of Public Expenditure

	WEEK 2
5	Peacock Wiseman and Ratchet Effect
6	Demand and Supply of Public Expenditure
7	Excessive government
8	Market failures
8.2	Redistribution of Merit Goods

	WEEK 3
9	Public Goods
10	General Model for Public Goods
10.2	Lindahl Equilibrium Model
11	Pure and impure public goods
12	Free Riding and Voluntary Provision of Pure Public Good

	WEEK 4
13	Publicly Provided Private Goods
14	The Theory of Clubs
15	Externalities: Definition and market inefficiency
16	River Pollution and Traffic Jam

	WEEK 5
17	Pecuniary Externality
17.2	Private Response of externalities
18	Tragedy of Commons and Band Wagon Effect
19	Pigouvian taxation
20	Emissions fees and Cap-and-Trade

	WEEK 6
21	Difference between emission fees and cap-and-trade program
22	Coase Theorem
23	Principle of taxation
23.2	Desirable Characteristics of a Tax System

	WEEK 7
24	Meaning and measures of taxable capacity
25	Nature of tax burden
26.1	Measuring Tax Incidence
26.2	Concept of Tax Incidence

	WEEK 8
27	Tax incidence in a competitive market
28	Incidence of Government Benefit: ad Valorem vs Specific
29	Elasticity and tax incidence- Shooting completed

	WEEK 9
30	Partial equilibrium view of product taxes
31	Quantifying tax distortion
32	Taxation on Saving and Labour

	WEEK 10
33	Optimal taxation
34.1	India’s Tax Structure
34.2	Government in the Economy
35	Direct and Indirect Tax: Composition, Issues and Challenges

	WEEK 11
36	Direct Tax Reforms
37	Value Added Tax or VAT
38	Goods and Service Tax

	WEEK 12
39	Techniques and Principle of budgeting
40	Preparation of Budget: Revenue, Capital and Public Acc
41	Deficit: Types, Causes and Effects

	WEEK 13
42	Public Debt
43	Centre- State Financial Relations
44	Finance Commission and Devolution of Sharable Taxes and Grants

	WEEK 14
45	State Finances and FRBM Act
46	Local Bodies and Financial Responsibility- completed
47	Special Category States

	WEEK 15
48	Public Policy and development of Northeast India
49	Health Emergency and Fiscal Policy
50	Pandemic and Public Policies in India (Part -2)

Books and references

Bhatia, H.L (2008). Public Finance (26th Edition). Vikas, Publishing House.
Buchanan, J.M. (1970), The Public Finance, Richard D. Irwin.
Cullis, J. and Jones, P. (1998). Public Finance and Public Choice (1st Edition). Oxford University Press.
Herber, B.P. (1967). Modern Public Finance, Richard D. Irwin.
Leach, J. (2004). A Course in Public Economics. Cambridge University Press.
Lindahl, Erik. (1958/1919). “Just Taxation—A Positive Solution.” In Classics in the Theory of Public Finance . R. A. Musgrave and A. T. Peacock (eds.). New York: St. Martin’s Press.
Musgrave, Richard A. (1959). The Theory of Public Finance. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Musgrave, R.A. and Musgrave P.B. (1989). Public Finance in Theory and Practice (5th Edition). Mc-Graw Hill.
Rosen, H.S. and Gayer, T. (2009). Public Finance (9th Edition). Mc Graw Hill.
Stiglitz, J.E. (2009). Economics of Public Sector (3rd Edition). W. W. Norton and Co.
Taylor, P.E. (1957). The Economics of Public Finance. Macmillan.
Tullock, G. (1970). Private Wants, Public Means: An Economic Analysis of the Desirable Scope of Government, New York Basic Book.

Instructor bio

Dr. Shreeda Chungkham

Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Dhanamanjuri University, Imphal

Dr. Shreeda Chungkham is currently serving as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics, Dhanamanjuri University, Imphal, Manipur, India. He has teaching experience of about 5 years. He has received his Ph. D from Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India on the topic ‘Ethnic Diversity and Economic Performance in North East India since 1972’. His research interest lies in development economics, development challenges of North East India, bilateral relations between India and South Korea and behavioural economics. To his credit, he has research work published in various journals and regularly presented papers in national and international conferences and seminars.

He is an executive member of Manipur Research Forum, Assistant coordinator of IQAC and member of various academic and administrative committees of the college.

Course certificate

- Internal Assessment- Weekly assessments released in the course shall be considered for Internal Marks and will carry 30 percent for the Overall Result. Out of all weekly assignments, the best/top five scores will be considered for the final Internal Assessment marks.

- End-term Assessment - The final exam shall be conducted by NTA, and will carry 70 percent for the overall Result.

- All students who obtain 40% marks in the internal assessment and 40% marks in the end-term proctored exam separately will be eligible for the SWAYAM Credit Certificate.

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