The Department of Economics was set up in the year 1931. In the initial years, the Department was led by the British educationists. Later on eminent economists such as Prof. A. K. Dasgupta, Prof. Sadasiv Mishra, Prof. D. C. Misra and Prof. K. M. Patnaik adorned the chair of Head of the Department, and under their leadership the Department achieved the glory of being one of the best departments in the state as well as in the country.
The Department offers B.A./B.Sc (Hons), M.A., M.Phil, Ph.D and D.Lit programmes in Economics. In addition, it runs a regular MA in Rural Development programme since 2010. The Department was included under UGC-Special Assistance Programme (DRS-1, 2013-18).