The Nobel Prize in Economics 2020 (The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2020) was announced on October 12, 2020, to be awarded jointly to Paul R. Milgrom and Robert B. Wilson for “improvements to auction theory and inventions of new auction formats.”
The Society for Promotion of Science of Science & Technology in India (SPSTI) and the Chandigarh Chapter of National Academy of Sciences India (NASI) jointly conducted an online awareness lecture on the above topic on Saturday, November 21, 2020, at 03:45 PM. The details are as under:-
Speaker:
Prof. Krishnemdu Ghosh Dastidar
Professor of Economics
Centre for Economic Studies & Planning
School of Social Sciences (II)
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi

The economics prize was not one of the five original prizes established in 1895. It was instead set up by Sweden’s central bank and was first awarded in 1969. The award was the last of the Nobel Prizes announced this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic crisis it has sparked. The Society for Promotion of Science of Science & Technology in India (SPSTI) and the Chandigarh Chapter of National Academy of Sciences India (NASI) is jointly conducting lectures on the Nobel Prizes 2020, announced in the first two weeks of October. The online awareness lecture on the Economics Nobel, fourth in the series, was held on Saturday, November 21, 2020, at 03:45 PM. The Lecture was delivered by Prof. Krishnendu Ghosh Dastidar, Professor of Economics, Centre for Economic Studies & Planning School of Social Sciences (II), Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. The session started with an opening address by Prof Arun K. Grover, Former Vice Chancellor, Panjab University, Chandigarh. Prof. Upinder K. Sahni, Economics Department, Panjab University, introduced the speaker to all. The lecture was attended by audience on the Zoom window as well as on Facebook channel of SPSTI. The speaker started with expressing trepidation to deliver a talk to an audience from such diverse streams. He explained the meaning, types and optimal auction in an effective manner. He told about various related theories, risks involved, geographical conditions and their impacts. He made clear to the audience about various theories using Mathematical models. He motivated to use theory in a very practical way to improve various economic processes. The speaker also apprised about the innovative research into the inner workings of auctions and created new formats for auctioning goods and services that are tough to sell traditionally. Questions from audience were coordinated by Prof. Upinder Sawhney. The queries and comments from audience were related to the present scenario: political, technical and economic. Prof. Arun Kumar, another renowned Economist from JNU and a mentor of the speaker, in his concluding remarks, elucidated some of the material covered by Prof. Dastidar and the questions raised during the discussions following the lecture. Shri Dharam Vir, IAS (Retd.) & President SPSTI, paid a vote of thanks to the Speaker and audience as well.