Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

COURSE MANUAL
Subject

Fall 2022
(AY 2022-23)

Name/s of Faculty
Prof. (Dr.) Avishek Konar(Course Coordinator)
Prof.(Dr.) Aashita Dawer
Prof.(Dr.) Abhishek Sur
Prof.(Dr.) Aditi Singhal
Prof.(Dr.) Anjana Thampi
Prof.(Dr.) Chisom Ubabukoh
Prof.(Dr.) Manika Bora
Prof.(Dr.) Sarni Jain
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

CONTENTS

PART I
General Information……………………………………………………………………Page 3

PART II

a. Course Description……………………………………………………………………Page 4

b. Course Aims……………………………………………………………………………..Page 4

c. Intended Leaning Outcomes …………………………………………………….Page 5

d. Grading of Student Achievement……………………………………………...Page 6

PART III
a. Keyword Syllabus…………………………………………………………………Page 8
b. Course Policies…………………………………………………………………….Page 9

PART IV

a. Weekly Course Outline ………………………………………………………….....Page 10

b. Readings…………………………………………………………………………………Page 11
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

PART I

General Information

General Information on, Economics I, offered by Jindal Global Law School

of the AY 2022-23

This course is intended to be an introduction to economics to students without any background in

the subject. There are three main objectives the course sets out for itself. Firstly, the course strives
to introduce the fundamental building blocks of microeconomic theory—market demand and
supply, consumer behavior/choice, production and cost, different market structures (perfect
competition, monopoly etc.), externality and so on and so forth. In addition to this, it is the intention
of this course to spell out, as clearly as possible, the underlying assumptions that allow the
arguments of standard economic theory to go through and subject these assumptions to critical
scrutiny. These include, and are not limited to, the ideas of rationality (utility maximizing behavior
for consumers, profit maximizing or cost minimizing for producers), efficiency (discussions for
criteria for allocative efficiency including Pareto, Kaldor-Hicks) etc. More fundamentally, besides
seeking to critically assess the claim to value neutrality of the discipline because of the usage of
mathematics and deductive logic as a tool of analysis, the course will subject the foundational
assumptions of the neoclassical model to critical scrutiny. Lastly, the course seeks to demonstrate,
using case studies and examples, the applications of economic theory in real life (such as
government intervention in cases of minimum wages, price support etc.).

Course
Title: Economics I
Course
Code:
Course
Duration: One Semester
No. of Credit
Units: 4
Leve
l: BBA-LLB/BA-LLB/BCom-LLB
Medium of
Instruction: English
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

PART II

a. Course Description
This course is intended to be an introduction to economics to students without any
background in the subject. There are three main objectives the course sets out for itself.
Firstly, the course strives to introduce the fundamental building blocks of microeconomic
theory—market demand and supply, consumer behavior/choice, production and cost,
different market structures (perfect competition, monopoly etc.), externality and so on and
so forth. In addition to this, it is the intention of this course to spell out, as clearly as
possible, the underlying assumptions that allow the arguments of standard economic theory
to go through and subject these assumptions to critical scrutiny. These include, and are not
limited to, the ideas of rationality (utility maximizing behavior for consumers, profit
maximizing or cost minimizing for producers), efficiency (discussions for criteria for
allocative efficiency including Pareto, Kaldor-Hicks) etc. More fundamentally, besides
seeking to critically assess the claim to value neutrality of the discipline because of the
usage of mathematics and deductive logic as a tool of analysis, the course will subject the
foundational assumptions of the neoclassical model to critical scrutiny. Lastly, the course
seeks to demonstrate, using case studies and examples, the applications of economic theory
in real life (such as government intervention in cases of minimum wages, price support
etc.).

b. Course Aims

• Introduce the fundamental ideas of microeconomics--demand and supply, consumer

preferences, budget constraint, consumer choice, production and cost, perfectly
competitive markets, monopoly, externality etc.
• Articulate as clearly as possible the assumptions and presuppositions behind every
theoretical claims made.
• Demonstrate the usage of economic theory learned in real life applications, say in standard
government interventions such as rent control.
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

c. Intended Learning Outcomes

Course Intended Weightage Teaching and Assessment

Learning Outcomes Learning Tasks/ Activities
Activities
By the end of the course, students
should be able to:
By the end of the course
students should be able to:

➢ Express the 30% Lecture, class participation,

basic class presentations and Midterm exam
principles of involvement. One time end semester
economics. ● Students will get written exam
introduced to the Discussion and
basic principles of presentations in class.
economics. Through
class participation,
students will get
familiar to and
understand the subject
matter. Solving
problem sets,
discussions and
presentations at
tutorials will bring in
thorough grounding
of the subject matter.

➢ Understand 50% Lecture, class participation End Semester Written Exam

the and involvement, distribution Short assignment and
microeconomi of topic wise problem sets, presentation in class.
c principles tutorials
and its Students will get introduced
application to to the concept of market
the real world imperfections. Through class
phenomenon participation, students will
including law. get familiar to and understand
the subject matter. Solving
problem sets, discussions and
presentations at tutorials will
bring in thorough grounding
of the subject matter.
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

➢ Analytically 20% Lecture, class participation Short assignment and

understand the and involvement, tutorials presentation in class.
contemporary ● Students in group will
economic give presentation on
issues and selected topic
employ
economic ● Students appear for
tools learnt in viva-voce
this course.

d. Grading of Student Achievement1,2

To pass this course, students must obtain a minimum of 40% in the

cumulative aspects of coursework, e.g. moot, and final examination. End of
semester exam will carry 50 marks out of which students have to obtain a
minimum of 15 marks to fulfil the requirement of passing the course.

The details of the grades as well as the criteria for awarding such grades are provided
below.

Letter Percentage Grade Definitions

Grade Of marks
O 80% and above Outstanding Outstanding
work with strong
evidence of
knowledge of the
subject matter,
excellent
organizational
capacity, ability

1 Under extraordinary circumstances, the JGU Academic Council or the JGU Deans’ Council can suspend
Clause D or make it optional. If Clause D is suspended, the policy which will be framed by the School based
on the decision of the said bodies will supersede Clause D. However, whether a situation is extraordinary
or not will be decided by the said bodies only.
2 Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the Office of Academic Affairs may suggest changes/amendments or

suspend certain policies relating to the number of assessments and other examination related policies.
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

to synthesize and
critically analyse
and originality in
thinking and
presentation.
A+ 75 to 79.75% Excellent Sound knowledge
of the subject
matter, thorough
understanding of
issues; ability to
synthesize
critically and
analyse
A 70 to 74.75% Good Good
understanding of
the subject
matter, ability to
identify issues
and provide
balanced
solutions to
problems and
good critical and
analytical skills.
A- 65 to 69.75% Adequate Adequate
knowledge of the
subject matter to
go to the next
level of study and
reasonable
critical and
analytical skills.
B+ 60 to 64.75% Marginal Limited
knowledge of the
subject matter,
irrelevant use of
materials and
poor critical and
analytical skills.
B 55 to 59.75% Poor Poor
comprehension
of the subject
matter; poor
critical and
analytical skills
and marginal use
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

of the relevant
materials.
B- 50 to 54.75% Pass “Pass” in a pass-
fail course. “P”
indicative of at
least the basic
understanding of
the subject
matter.

NEW COURSE LETTER GRADES AND THEIR INTERPRETATION

Letter Percentage Grade
Interpretation
Grade of Marks Points
Pass 1: Pass with Basic understanding of
P1 45 - 49 2
the subject matter.
Pass 2: Pass with Rudimentary
P2 40 - 44 1
understanding of the subject matter.
Fail: Poor comprehension of the subject
matter; poor critical and analytical skills
F Below 40 0
and marginal use of the relevant materials.
Will require repeating the course.
‘P’ represents the option of choosing
between Pass/Fail grading system over the
CGPA grading system in the COVID 19
P Pass semester in Spring 2020. The option is
provided when students attain a minimum
of 40 percentage marks under the current
grading structure in a given subject.
Extenuating circumstances preventing the
student from completing coursework
assessment, or taking the examination; or
where the Assessment Panel at its
I Incomplete discretion assigns this grade. If
an "I" grade is assigned, the Assessment
Panel will suggest a schedule for the
completion of work, or a supplementary
examination.

PART III

a. Keyword Syllabus

Economics, Microeconomics, Consumer Behavior, Production and Cost, Markets, Perfect

Competition, Monopoly, Monopsony, Oligopoly, Externalities, Rationality.
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

b. Course/Class Policies

Class Participation

Students are expected to participate constructively in the classroom. Discussions in

classroom are vital, and students are encouraged to bring forth relevant aspects of a
contemporary event/news/experience into these discussions. Also, taking notes during
lectures is essential, as reading material needs contextualizing through these class
lectures and discussions. Most importantly, a spirit of curiosity and mutual respect is
expected in all class related discussions.

Cell Phones, Laptops and Similar Gadgets

Please temper the usage according to requirements of the classroom. These gadgetry
devices are meant to enhance your participation in the classroom, and not lessen it.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

Learning and knowledge production of any kind is a collaborative process. Collaboration

demands an ethical responsibility to acknowledge who we have learnt from, what we have
learned, and how reading and learning from others have helped us shape our own ideas.
Even our own ideas demand an acknowledgement of the sources and processes through
which those ideas have emerged. Thus, all ideas must be supported by citations. All ideas
borrowed from articles, books, journals, magazines, case laws, statutes, photographs,
films, paintings, etc., in print or online, must be credited with the original source. If the
source or inspiration of your idea is a friend, a casual chat, something that you overheard,
or heard being discussed at a conference or in class, even they must be duly credited. If
you paraphrase or directly quote from a web source in the examination, presentation or
essays, the source must be acknowledged. The university has a framework to deal with
cases of plagiarism. All form of plagiarism will be taken seriously by the University and
prescribed sanctions will be imposed on those who commit plagiarism.

Disability Support and Accommodation Requirements

JGU endeavours to make all its courses accessible to students. In accordance with the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (2016), the JGU Disability Support Committee
(DSC) has identified conditions that could hinder a student’s overall well-being. These
include physical and mobility related difficulties, visual and hearing impairment, mental
health conditions and intellectual/learning difficulties e.g., dyslexia, dyscalculia. Students
with any known disability needing academic and other support are required to register
with the Disability Support Committee (DSC) by following the procedure specified at
https://jgu.edu.in/disability-support-committee/
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

Students who need support may register any time during the semester up until a month
before the end semester examination begins. Those students who wish to continue
receiving support from the previous semester, must re-register within the first month of
a semester. Last minute registrations and support might not be possible as sufficient time
is required to make the arrangements for support.

The DSC maintains strict confidentiality about the identity of the student and the nature
of their disability and the same is requested from faculty members and staff as well. The
DSC takes a strong stance against in-class and out-of-class references made about a
student’s disability without their consent and disrespectful comments referring to a
student’s disability.

All general queries are to be addressed to disabilitysupportcommittee@jgu.edu.in

Safe Space Pledge

This course may discuss a range of issues and events that might result in distress for some
students. Discussions in the course might also provoke strong emotional responses. To
make sure that all students collectively benefit from the course, and do not feel disturbed
due to either the content of the course or the conduct of the discussions. Therefore, it is
incumbent upon all within the classroom to pledge to maintain respect towards our peers.
This does not mean that you need to feel restrained about what you feel and what you
want to say. Conversely, this is about creating a safe space where everyone can speak and
learn without inhibitions and fear. This responsibility lies not only with students, but also
with the instructor.

P.S. The course instructor, as part of introducing the course manual, will discuss the scope
of the Safe Space Pledge with the class.

PART IV

a. Weekly Course Outline

Teaching Week Lecture Title

1 Economy, Society and Capitalism
2-3 Markets and Efficiency
4-5 Historicizing Market & Beyond Efficiency
6-7 Consumer Behavior
8 Beyond Rationality: Critical Appraisal of Efficiency
9 Production and Cost
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

9 Perfect Competition
10 Imperfect Market Structure: Monopoly
11-12 Externalities, Goods and Property
13 Beyond Markets: Myth and Reality of Free Markets
14 Revisions

b. Details on Week-Wise Lecture Outline and Readings:

Teaching
Lecture Title Readings
Week

Economy, Society and Capitalism

The mainstream neo-classical economics assumes that
market is a self-regulating entity, abstracted from the
Ch 2 Heilbroner
1 society. It is important to unravel the social context of
markets and understand its social history. It is here, the
idea of capitalism is introduced.

Markets and Efficiency:

The perfectly competitive market model is introduced. This
includes discussions on demand, supply, competitive
2-3 Ch4, 6, Goodwin
equilibrium, allocative efficiency, government intervention
and deadweight loss.

Historicizing Market & Beyond Efficiency

Evolution of the institution of Market overtime. The value
neutrality of the idea of market efficiency is questioned. Chp 4 Block and
4-5 Students are familiarized with other values based on which Somers
market outcomes can be evaluated. These include equality, & Lecture notes/slides
equity, justice etc.

Rational Choice: Consumer and Producer Behavior

The demand and supply sides of the perfectly competitive
6-7 Ch8 and 9, Goodwin
market are deconstructed. Demanders and Suppliers are
introduced as rational-optimising agents.
Beyond Rationality: Critical Appraisal of Rationality
8 What does rationality entail? Are buyers and sellers always Chp 8&9 Goodwin
rational? Do they also behave ‘irrationally’?
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

Production and Cost

9 Arriving at supply curve from technology, relationship Ch16, Goodwin
between production functions and cost curves.
Perfect Competition
9 Assumptions and workings of the ideal market form. Ch16, Goodwin
Implications of perfect competition.
Imperfect Market Structure
After unraveling two fundamental assumptions of the
perfectly competitive model, the course returns to different
10 Ch 17 and 18, Goodwin
forms of market structures. We investigate how
imperfection alone, in neoclassical economics, can show
profits in the long run.
Ch 13, Goodwin
Coase, R. H. (2013).
The problem of social
Externalities: The Problem of Social Cost
cost. The journal of Law
Perfectly competitive market assumes all costs and benefits
11-12 and Economics, 56(4),
are private. What happens when costs and benefits become
837-877.
social?
Private and Common
Property Rights -
Ostrom
Wright, E. O. (2005).
Free Market: Myth, Reality and Policy Discourse Foundations of a neo-
Marxist class analysis.
Free market theory entails freedom of conditions of Approaches to class
13 production, trade, selling and buying. What happens when analysis, 4-30.
there is protectionism? What happens to liberty and class Ghosh, Jayati. Capital.
structure? The Elgar Companion
to Marxist Economics

14 Revision

The major readings outside of lectures and handouts would be from the following:

Goodwin, Neva, Jonathan Harris, Julie Nelson, Brian Roach and Mariano Torras.
“Microeconomics in Context.”
Mankiw, Gregory (2016), Principles of Microeconomics. Cengage learning.
Fred Block, Margaret R. Somers – “The Power of Market Fundamentalism_ Karl Polanyi's
Critique”
Heilbroner, R. L. (1967). “The worldly philosophers: the lives, times, and ideas of the great
economic thinkers.”

Further Readings
Polanyi, K. (1944). The great transformation. New York: Farrar & Rinehart, Inc.
Format approved by the Academic Review Board, JGLS

Friedland, R. O., & Robertson, A. F. (Eds.). (1990). Beyond the marketplace: rethinking economy
and society. Transaction Publishers
Basu, K. (2010). Beyond the invisible hand: Groundwork for a new economics. Princeton
University Press.
Chibber, Vivek(2018), The ABCs of Capitalism. Catalyst.
Hausman, Daniel, and Michael McPherson. "Economic Analysis, Moral Philosophy and Public
Policy."