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Purpose: Effective human resource management (HRM) practices are essential factors that provide organizations with a competitive edge and contribute to their overall performance. This study examines the impact of HRM practices, including recruitment and selection (RS), training and development (TD), compensation policies (CPs), and performance appraisal (PA), on the organizational performance (OP) of the Nepalese development banks (DBs). Design/methodology/approach: The study followed a causal-comparative research approach. It employed a structured questionnaire to gather the necessary data from 257 working representatives of the ten selected Nepalese DBs. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to examine the association between the variables and validate the study hypotheses. Findings: The HRM practices exhibit a significant and positive association with OP (β = 0.910; p < 0.05), indicating their influence on achieving organisational success. Such findings offer a pragmatic perspective for achieving HRM excellence and organisational effectiveness in the Nepalese DBs. Research constraints/implications: Analysis of cross-sectional data from development banks cannot be extrapolated to other sectors. This study emphasises the importance of compensation, performance measurement, hiring and selection, development, and training in improving OP, confirming and expanding prior findings. These insights may benefit policymakers, HR managers, and executives in enhancing HR operations by improving employee performance and business productivity. Originality/value: This study's unique contribution is its examination of HRM dynamics and their direct impact on OP, notably in the Nepalese DBs. The DBs may optimise their HR, enhancing OP and a long-lasting competitive advantage.

The study investigates the optical and electrical properties of undoped and aluminum (Al)-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) films, focusing on their performance as gas sensors and their potential applications. Optical analysis, conducted using UV-visible spectrophotometry, reveals that 1% Al-doped ZnO films exhibit the highest transmittance of 91%, indicating superior optical clarity and suitability for applications like solar cell electrodes. In contrast, 3% Al-doped ZnO films show significantly lower transmittance due to increased light scattering and photon absorption. The bandgap of ZnO films decreases with higher Al doping concentrations, from 3.3 eV for undoped ZnO to 3.15 eV for 3% Al-doped ZnO, suggesting enhanced electrical conductivity due to reduced bandgap. The extinction coefficient data demonstrate that 2% Al-doped ZnO has the highest extinction coefficient, reflecting improved light absorption and scattering properties. Electrical characterization through I-V curves indicates that 1% Al-doped ZnO films have higher current (121 µA) compared to undoped (431 µA) and higher doping concentrations, attributed to enhanced carrier concentration and mobility. Sensitivity tests show that 2.5% Al-doped ZnO films exhibit the highest sensitivity to methanol vapor, with a significant reduction in resistance compared to 0.5% Al-doped ZnO films. Resistance measurements with varying methanol volumes reveal a rapid decrease upon gas introduction, stabilizing and then increasing as the gas is removed. Sensitivity analysis indicates that 100 µL methanol provides the highest sensitivity (97%) at 60°C, while 2% Al-doped ZnO films show consistent sensitivity at 60 °C and 100 °C, but not at 80 °C.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the factors affecting virtual work arrangements (VWAs) and their impact on organizational performance (OP) within Nepalese organizations. Design/methodology/approach: The study utilized a quantitative research methodology, employing a sample size of 408 individuals engaged in a virtual work environment. It conducted empirical research to examine the impact of communication satisfaction (CS), job satisfaction (JS), support in computer anxiety (CA), and personal empowerment (PE) on OP. Findings: The study's findings revealed that CA had the highest significance level (β = 0.466, p < 0.05) in predicting enhanced OP. Likewise, it was seen that PE had a positive impact (β = 0.385, p < 0.05) on OP, indicating that organizational outcomes often improve when individuals experience a sense of empowerment. Additionally, it was worth noting that there was a statistically insignificant but positive association between CA and OP (β = 0.086, p > 0.05), suggesting that CA does not support enhanced OP. In contrast, JS has a negative and insignificant relationship with OP (β = - 0.097, p > 0.05) at VWAs in Nepal. Research Implications/Value: Such findings contribute to a greater comprehension of the factors influencing OP in Nepalese VWAs. In order to have a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between VWAs and OP, future research must examine additional elements and conduct more in-depth investigations.

The paper explores the model of regulation of health professionals in Ontario, Canada; a self-regulation model built around a detailed statutory scheme. The core of the paper consists of a discussion of Ontario’s Regulated Health Professions Act and of the key components of 26 specific health profession acts that have been enacted under its umbrella. The paper explores the role of the regulatory colleges, the role of the Ministry of Health in determining scope of practice and other components of medical practice, and the disciplinary and appeal procedures. Some other specific issues are also briefly touched upon, such as the integration into the profession of internationally trained physicians, and the government’s role in ensuring access to specialists across the province. A final section looks at the challenges and the limitations of the Ontario model, through a number of health professions-related controversies that reveal gaps in self-regulation, including: failure to set and enforce proper educational and practice standards in specific areas; failure to conduct timely investigations into potential misconduct by professionals; and failure to question professionals in a position of power. The paper also discusses briefly the implications of recognizing through legal regulation some alternative and complementary medical practices, and the challenge of regulating indigenous health care practitioners. It concludes that the primary limitations of the regulatory model arise on account of professional self-interest and power-relations impacting procedural issues, and the complexity of the regulatory model that may potentially undermine quality control.

The Editors and Publisher have retracted this article because the text had already been published in Njarui et al 2016. The content conveyed by this article is therefore not original and redundant. The corresponding author, Donald Njarui, recognizes this involuntary duplication publication and agrees to the retraction of this article. The online version contains the full text of the retracted article as electronic supplementary material. Supplementary material http://www.tropicalgrasslands.info/public/417_Njauri_et_al.pdf References (Note of the editors: All hyperlinks were verified 28 June 2019.) Njarui DMG; Gatheru M; Ghimire SR. 2016. Agro-morphological characterisation of Brachiaria grass accessions. In: Njarui DMG; Gichangi EM; Ghimire SR; Muinga RW, eds. Climate smart Brachiaria grasses for improving livestock production in East Africa - Kenya Experience. Proceedings of a workshop, Naivasha, Kenya, 14–15 September 2016. p. 27–36. hdl.handle.net/10568/80421

A study was conducted to investigate the changes in microbial biomass carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) following cultivation of Brachiaria grasses in semi-arid region of Kenya. The Brachiaria grass cultivars included Brachiaria decumbens cv. Basilisk, B. brizantha cvs Marandu, MG4, Piatã and Xaraes, B. humidicola cv. Llanero and B. hybrid cv. Mulato II which were compared with two locally cultivated forage grasses (Chloris gayana cv. KAT R3 and Pennisetum purpureum cv. Kakamega 1) and a bare plot (negative check). The grass treatments were evaluated with fertilizers application (40 kg P applied at sowing and 50 kg N ha-1 in each wet season) and with no fertilizer applications. Microbial biomass C, N and P were determined on field moist rhizosphere soil (18-23% by weight) from a depth of 10 cm. Microbial biomass was influenced (p < 0.01) by grass cultivars and N and P fertilizers. Generally, microbial biomass N was higher in plots with grasses than in the bare plots. A significant enrichment of organic matter was noted in the microbial biomass when Brachiaria grasses are grown with N and P fertilizers. Among Brachiaria cultivars, the highest microbial biomass C was recorded in plots with cv. Mulato II and the lowest from the plots with cv. MG4. Brachiaria grasses with fertilizers application accumulated the highest microbial C and N compared to grasses without fertilizers, but no interaction was observed between fertilizer and grass cultivars. The cv. Marandu had the highest microbial biomass N (21.2 mg N kg-1) in fertilizer treatments whereas cv. Mulato II hybrid had the highest microbial N (14.6 mg N kg-1) in no fertilizer treatments.

Soil aggregation is a key short term indicators of soil quality attributed to changes in land management. A study was conducted to investigate changes in the size distribution and stability of soil aggregates in a structurally unstable sandy loam soil following cultivation of Brachiaria grass in semi-arid region of Kenya. Brachiaria grass cultivars included Brachiaria decumbens cv. Basilisk, B. brizantha cvs Marandu, MG4, Piata and Xaraes, B. humidicola cv. Llanero and B. hybrid cv. Mulato II which were compared with two locally cultivated forage grasses (Chloris gayana cv. KAT R3 and Pennisetum purpureum cv. Kakamega 1) and a bare plot (negative check). The grass treatments were evaluated with fertilisers application (40 kg P applied at sowing and 50 kg N ha−1 in each wet season) and with no fertiliser applications. Aggregate size fractions were isolated using the wet sieving method. Aggregation based on the proportion of small macro-aggregates (250–2000 μm) increased in soils cultivated with all grass types compared to the control and was greatest in soils under B. hybrid cv. Mulato II. Aggregate stability in terms of mean weight diameter (MWD) differed among the grasses and was highest in soils under cv. Mulato II and cv. Marandu with MWD of 4.49 and 4.31 mm, respectively. Changes in small macro-aggregates fraction was positively correlated with particulate organic matter (POM) (r=0.9104, P= 0.001), microbial biomass carbon (MBC) (r=0.5474, P= 0.01), soil organic carbon (SOC) (r=0.3654, P= 0.05) and root biomass (r=0.4977, P= 0.01). This indicated that the binding agents were important in the aggregation of soils cultivated with Brachiaria grasses.

More than 100,000 Bhutanese refugees have been found homes in third countries. The other side to the story of this successful resettlement programme, however, is the failure to tackle the impact it has had on the remaining camp populations.

The health service system is the part of the political system. Likewise, political systems should be an integral part of the health system. Contrary to this, local political tussle, national level power conflicts, long-term civil war, and crises in the bureaucracy have led to the continuous ignorance of people’s health issues in Rolpa. War is always detrimental for people's health, health service system and social well-being of the population. The chronic condition of exclusion prevalent in large section of the society is the “favorable” fertile ground to capitalize the expectations toward inclusive and healthy condition in Rolpa. The process of capitalizing such historical exclusion in the name of “revolution” gives rise to new sects of political actors. However, rising expectations and aspirations toward “equitable society” have been resulting in severe frustrations because no significant changes have been done to address the general living conditions of people. The continuous rise and fall of expectations after all lead to infinitive journey of producing ill health that could be extremely detrimental to people's expectation, even to live a normal life as a human.

Nepal is emerging from conflict and discussing the timetable for elections. Maoist rebels have laid down their arms and joined a coalition government. But will the elections have any credibility if large numbers of displaced people are unable to vote? Can Nepal learn from experience elsewhere?