A book, but only a textbook
Alamgir Khan takes a new look at the dismal science
14 October 2011, 18:00 PM
Arthashastra Parichoy
Anu Muhammad
Samhati ProkashanArthashastra Parichoy (Introduction to Economics) is a book in Bangla on the basic ideas of economics written by Anu Muhammad, professor of economics at Jahangirnagar University and one of the leading economists as well as a political thinker and activist in the country. It has been published by Samhati Prokashan. It is important to have Bengali language books on various branches of academic knowledge. Economics is a complex subject with many mathematical expressions, theories and hard-to-crack terms. But it can be imparted to almost anyone in fairly easily understandable terms and language. This is lacking in our literature. Therefore Anu Muhammad's initiative in writing an introductory book on economics in Bangla should be an appreciable step in that direction.
This is written as a textbook, but it is not limited to not just students of economics, but for others as well. It has covered some of the basic concepts of micro- and macro-economics, such as consumer behaviour and theory of demand, consumer equilibrium, income-consumption curve, degree of demand and elasticity, production, production cost, market and perfect competition, imperfect competition, pricing of factors and distribution, international trade, balance of payment and terms of trade, public sector and private sector expenditure, etc. All this discussion is full of mathematical equations, graphs and heavy terms. It is fit only for students of economics, but even for them it may not be much helpful because the discussion of the economic terms and theories is all too brief and comes without adequate explanation. It is good as a handbook of economics for them. With all the graphs and equations, it is also good for exam papers. That it is written by a teacher of economics is clear through its style of writing. However, there is little in it to attract and help readers beyond the academic boundary.
The Anu Muhammad known to people beyond economics students of Jahangirnagar University is hardly to be found in this book. Only one thing in which he has made himself distinct from other writers of economics textbooks is his assertion that no economy, no economics and economic theories are constant. The economy and economics dominant in the present world are a few hundred years old and fated to be replaced by some new economy and corresponding economics. His distinct contribution in producing this textbook type book about mainstream economics is that it warns readers from beginning to end that what they are fed with in classrooms may not be the only truth, and even some may not be the truth at all. Some crucial economic truths may be lying beyond textbooks. His assertion in the first chapter of the book is that the economic study is affected by the existing economic system. And all economic systems are transient.
Anu Muhammad's Arthashastra Parichoy is good only for those who are already familiar with the basic concepts of economics, which is dominant and known as mainstream nowadays. There should be many more books on economics in Bangla that will make it our subject instead of simply a western one.
Alamgir Khan is Coordinator, Ethics Club Bangladesh
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