About the session

This webinar brings together two linked talks that introduce participants to Political Economy as a field of study and use India’s trade history as a lens to understand how political and economic forces interact over time.

The first part of the session, led by Srishti, will serve as an introduction to Political Economy. It will address foundational questions such as: What is Political Economy? What are its central concerns? And what does research in Political Economy look like today? The talk will outline key themes, approaches, and debates that shape contemporary political economy research.

The second part of the session, led by Arpan, will focus on India’s trade story across different historical periods. The talk will trace trade policy under British colonialism and the debates around trade in the pre-independence period, followed by an examination of trade under the Indian planning system from the 1950s to the 1980s. It will then move to trade dynamics after the structural reforms of 1991 and discuss how India’s trade policy and outcomes have evolved up to the present.

Together, the session will provide participants with both conceptual grounding and historical context to better understand how political, economic, and institutional factors shape trade and development trajectories.

Webinar highlights

• An introduction to Political Economy as a field of study
• Key questions, concerns, and research approaches in Political Economy
• Trade policy under British colonialism and pre-independence debates
• Trade under India’s planning system (1950s – 1980s)
• Trade dynamics after the 1991 structural reforms
• Ways in which political and economic contexts shape trade outcomes over time

Who should attend?

This session is open to final-year undergraduate students and recent graduates interested in economics, political economy, public policy, development studies, and related fields. It will be especially useful for those looking to build conceptual clarity around Political Economy or seeking historical context to understand India’s contemporary trade debates.

For any questions, please write to admissions@​apu.​edu.​in.