Cost Effectiveness of Rainwater Harvesting for Groundwater Recharge in Micro-Watersheds of Kolar District of India: The Case Study of Thotli Micro-Watershed

This study has estimated the supply augmentation of groundwater recharge due to creation of water harvesting structures and has assessed the cost-effectiveness of rainwater harvesting for groundwater recharge on watershed basis in one of the sub-watersheds of the Kolar district, Peninsular India — a typically hard-rock area. The study is based on the primary data for the year 2008-09 collected from a sample of 90 farmers having irrigation bore-wells in the selected watershed named Thotli. The study has indicated that the annual draft of irrigation water exceeds the annual recharge, causing a negative balance. On an average, the returns per rupee investment have been found to be ` 1.80 on farm pond, ` 1.78 on recharge pit and ` 1.39 on field bund. The cost incurred to impound a metre cube of water has been found as ` 3.01 in the case of field bund, where estimated recharge benefit is 5.6 m3, ` 1.67 /m3 in the case of recharge pit (with an estimated recharge benefit of 720 m3), and ` 1.33 /m3 in the case of farm pond (recharge benefit of 1350 m3). The discounted cost-benefit analysis of the investment on water harvesting structures has indicated that the investment on water harvesting structures is cost-effective and financially-viable.Rainwater harvesting, Economic feasibility, Groundwater recharge, Watershed, Agricultural and Food Policy, Q15, Q25,

Impacts and Implications of MGNREGA on Labour Supply and Income Generation for Agriculture in Central Dry Zone of Karnataka

This study has evaluated the impact of MGNREGA on income generation and labour supply in agriculture in one of the districts in central dry zone of Karnataka. Results have shown that the number of days worked in a year with the implementation of MGNREGA programme has significantly increased to 201 days, reflecting 16 per cent increase. Regression analysis has revealed that gender, education and family size of the workers are the significant factors influencing the worker’s employment under the Program. The increase in income is to the tune of 9.04 per cent due to additional employment generated from MGNERGA. In the total income, the contribution of agriculture is the highest (63%), followed by non-agricultural income (29%) and MGNREGA income (8%). Implementation of MGNERGA works has led to labour scarcity to the tune of 53 per cent and 30 per cent for agriculture operations like weeding and sowing, respectively. There has been a decline in area for labour-intensive crops like tomato and ragi to the extent of 30 per cent due to MGNERGA implementation.MGNREGA, Labour supply, Labour scarcity, Income generation, Employment, Agricultural and Food Policy, J21, J22, J31,

Genotoxic and antibacterial nature of biofabricated zinc oxide nanoparticles from Sida rhombifolia linn

Phyto-assisted synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) has gained importance because of their stable and eco-friendly nature with significant biological properties compared to chemically synthesized NPs. In the present study biofabrication of ZnO-NPs were carried out using aqueous leaf extract of Sida rhombifolia Linn. The biofabricated ZnO-NPs showed an absorption peak at 307 nm and bandgap energy of 3.51 eV with an average size of similar to 30 nm. The XRD analysis revealed stiff narrow peaks confirming the particles were of no impurities, which were in agreement with EDS analysis. The biofabricated ZnO-NPs exhibited significant antibacterial activity with a MIC of 0.25 mg mL(-1) against E. coli, while it was 0.5 mg mL(-1) against B. subtilis and S. typhi. The live and dead cell analysis of the nanoparticles confirmed that the antibacterial activity was due to damage in the cell walls of the test pathogens. Further, the nanoparticles also offered significant antioxidant and genotoxic properties with an IC50 of 974.5 mu g mL(-1) and 548.4 mu g mL(-1), respectively

Yield estimation of coconut in Tumkur district of Karnataka

Coconut in India is cultivated mainly in the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh which account for more than 90 per cent of area and production of coconut in the country. With about 10 million people dependent on coconut farming and its allied activities, it contributes to more than 83,000 million rupees to the country’s GDP and about 6 per cent to the edible oil pool. However, there are no precise estimates of its production and productivity. The official statistics on area and production of coconut is being published with two years lag by the Department of Economic and Statistics and hence an assessment of surplus/ deficit production and its repercussion in the coconut market economy could not be made many times. Absence of such statistics at the right time for timely dissemination to stakeholders is considered as an impediment for the development and growth of the industry. Coconut Development Board initiated statistical survey for estimation of production of coconut across major coconut growing states in India by undertaking field surveys and yield estimates based on established phenotypic characters of the buttons/ nuts. The estimation was carried out in Tumkur district of Karnataka also which has the highest area under coconut. A total of 406 farms were surveyed in four taluks of the district covering 4060 bearing palms for productivity estimation. The average number of nuts per palm across all age groups for the district as a whole was 98 nuts. The average productivity for Karnataka which was much below to all India average before 2010-11 saw sudden surge post 2011-12. Questions arise as to what are the underlying factors for such sudden spikes. Across many, data capture, estimation and reporting are critical which go on to determine the decision making process on development and growth of the sector. Decisions are formulated on fixation of prices, trade, planning and execution of welfare schemes and policy making. Hence, scientific estimation initiated by Coconut Development Board on production and productivity augurs well for the sector

Crowd Anomaly Detection Using Motion Based Spatio-Temporal Feature Analysis

Recently, the demand for surveillance system is increasing in real time application to enhance the security system. These surveillance systems are mainly used in crowded places such as shopping malls, sports stadium etc. In order to support enhance the security system, crowd behavior analysis has been proven a significant technique which is used for crowd monitoring, visual surveillance etc. For crowd behavior analysis, motion analysis is a crucial task which can be achieved with the help of trajectories and tracking of objects. Various approaches have been proposed for crowd behavior analysis which has limitation for densely crowded scenarios, a new object entering the scene etc. In this work, we propose a new approach for abnormal crowd behavior detection. Proposed approach is a motion based spatio-temporal feature analysis technique which is capable of obtaining trajectories of each detected object.  We also present a technique to carry out the evaluation of individual object and group of objects by considering relational descriptors based on their environmental context. Finally, a classification is carried out for detection of abnormal or normal crowd behavior by following patch based process. In the results, we have reported that proposed model is able to achieve better performance when compared to existing techniques in terms of classification accuracy, true positive rate, and false positive rate

Quantitative estimation of drugs for erectile dysfunction and benign prostatic hyperplasia by high performance liquid chromatography: a review

This review article explores the critical application of High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) in analyzing medications for Erectile Dysfunction (ED) and Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). HPLC is essential for the precise measurement of these drugs, whether assessed individually or within combination therapies. The review thoroughly examines various HPLC methodologies, encompassing both single-drug and simultaneous analysis techniques. It addresses the optimization of HPLC conditions and validation practices necessary for achieving reliable results. Key challenges in HPLC analysis are highlighted, including sensitivity issues and the need for specific adjustments in analytical procedures. The article discusses the influence of factors such as column types, mobile phases, and detection methods on HPLC performance. It offers detailed insights into optimizing parameters to enhance resolution and accuracy, providing practical guidance for researchers working with ED and BPH drugs. Moreover, the review outlines best practices for validating HPLC methods according to regulatory standards, which are crucial for maintaining the quality and reproducibility of analytical results. It also identifies potential areas for improvement, including enhancing method sensitivity and reducing analysis time. By emphasizing the importance of HPLC in maintaining high analytical standards for ED and BPH drug analysis, this review serves as a valuable resource for researchers, clinicians, and pharmaceutical companies, ultimately aiming to enhance drug management and improve patient outcomes through better analytical practices and innovative approaches

The comparisons of the efficacy of two fixed dose combinations, i.e. Salmeterol and Fluticasone vs. Formoterol and Tiotropium bromide in moderate to severe COPD patients

Background: Bronchodilators are essential for symptomatic management of all stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). For patients whose COPD is not sufficiently controlled by monotherapy, combining a ß2-agonist with either inhaled steroid or anticholinergic drug is a convenient way of delivering treatment. Currently, there is no documentation to say that one drug is superior to other or the contrary, but a combination of two drugs is more effective than giving single drug alone in patients suffering from COPD.Methods: The study was prospective, open labelled, randomized, comparative interventional clinical study conducted by the Departments of Pharmacology and Medicine, Basaveshwara Medical College and Hospital, Chitradurga in 60 moderates to severe COPD patients.Results: Both the treatments i.e. Salmeterol/Fluticasone and Tiotropium/Formoterol were equally effective as far as the improvement of the lung functions and Borg dyspnoea score are concerned. The difference in improvement with the combination of Salmeterol/Fluticasone was not statistically significant (p>0.05) compared to the combination of Tiotropium/Formoterol. However, Salmeterol/Fluticasone was found to be better than Tiotropium/Formoterol in improving the lung function of moderate to severe COPD patients.Conclusions: Salmeterol/Fluticasone is efficacious and better than Tiotropium /Formoterol combination for maintenance therapy in moderate to severe COPD patients

Direct measurements of the effects of salt and surfactant on interaction forces between colloidal particles at water-oil interfaces

The forces between colloidal particles at a decane-water interface, in the presence of low concentrations of a monovalent salt (NaCl) and of the surfactant sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) in the aqueous subphase, have been studied using laser tweezers. In the absence of electrolyte and surfactant, particle interactions exhibit a long-range repulsion, yet the variation of the interaction for different particle pairs is found to be considerable. Averaging over several particle pairs was hence found to be necessary to obtain reliable assessment of the effects of salt and surfactant. It has previously been suggested that the repulsion is consistent with electrostatic interactions between a small number of dissociated charges in the oil phase, leading to a decay with distance to the power -4 and an absence of any effect of electrolyte concentration. However, the present work demonstrates that increasing the electrolyte concentration does yield, on average, a reduction of the magnitude of the interaction force with electrolyte concentration. This implies that charges on the water side also contribute significantly to the electrostatic interactions. An increase in the concentration of SDS leads to a similar decrease of the interaction force. Moreover the repulsion at fixed SDS concentrations decreases over longer times. Finally, measurements of three-body interactions provide insight into the anisotropic nature of the interactions. The unique time-dependent and anisotropic interactions between particles at the oil-water interface allow tailoring of the aggregation kinetics and structure of the suspension structure.Comment: Submitted to Langmui

Tuning cracks by exploiting the shape of particles and external magnetic field

Drying of a colloidal dispersion usually leads to the formation of particulate film with random cracks. The cracks in particulate film can have periodic arrangement with tuneable spacing and are known to be useful for practical applications such as for fabrication of lithographic templates and nano-channels. Various methodology has been adopted to generate the parallel and ordered cracks, the common one is via applying an external field such as magnetic field or electric field. We report here the controlled manipulation of crack orientation for colloidal films consisting of magnetically active particle (hematite ellipsoids), using an external magnetic field. Drying sessile drop experiments are performed in the presence and absence of magnetic field and a coffee ring like particle deposits are observed. The dried region consists of circular cracks in the absence of field while linear cracks (along the chord of the ring) in the presence of field. Moreover, we found that the crack orientations can be systematically altered by tuning magnetic field strength. We conjecture that the competition between the hydrodynamic torque and magnetic torque experienced by the particles during the drying of colloidal dispersion decides the final orientation of the particles and the cracks. The alteration of crack direction by controlling the orientation of ellipsoids in the particulate films by application of magnetic field is presented in detail. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract

An edge texture features based methodology for bulk paddy variety recognition

The paper presents a method for recognition of paddy varieties from their bulk grain sample edge images based on Haralick texture features extracted from grey level co-occurrence matrices. The edge images were obtained using Canny and maximum gradient edge detection methods. The average paddy variety recognition performances of the two categories of edge images were evaluated and compared. A feature set of thirteen texture features was considered and the feature set was reduced based on contribution of each feature to the paddy variety recognition accuracy. The average paddy variety recognition accuracy of 87.80% was obtained for the reduced eight texture features extracted from maximum gradient edge images. The work is useful in developing a machine vision system for agriculture produce market and developing multimedia applications in agriculture sciences