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Human beings came to the world along with ideas which got nurtured and transmitted from generation to generation. To upgrade the quality of life, he became educated through formal, informal and non-formal ways. The curriculum was structured formally at different levels of education, which is being upgraded and refined from time to time. Here in this paper an attempt has been made to relocate the paradigm shift in curriculum in a mission mode taking the suggestions as follows: Culture-specific pedagogy; Moral Education for revival; Curricular renovation, reformation and innovation in terms of reality and fact; Vocationalization in true sense; Emphasis on Practical aspect; Meeting the needs of the locality; Imparting Patriotism through curriculum; Preaching and practising Yoga Education; Indian Traditional Culture from the age-old spiritual scriptures; Committee consisting people having practical experience from the grass-root level; Placing importance upon joyful learning; Providing opportunity to prepare the ground for all-round development; Meeting aims of educations from a broader perspective; Adopting innovation of other countries; Fund for conducting Research; Application of Research findings; Finding the Vision and Mission; Making them free from the over burden of examination; Protecting environment through education; Emphasizing experiential learning; To inculcate global human values among the youth; To prepare for global citizenship.

Smallholders of dryland ecosystems continue to live below the poverty line while facing significant economic and social deprivation with decreasing landholding. Most dryland farmers perform conventional disintegrated farming practices due to a lack of knowledge and resource inefficiency. This study investigates the possibility of an Integrated Farming System (IFS) to address the current dryland farming issues and explore various factors affecting its adoption among the farming community. This study aims to apply and compare supervised learning techniques to assess the primary drivers affecting the adoption of the IFS in rural southern India. The study shows that organic fertilizer production, farmers' age, and involvement in the extension activity are the major factors affecting the adoption of IFS among dryland farmers. The study supports that small and marginal farmers have a high possibility of realizing the higher benefit from IFS. The study recommends that these components be given proper policy consideration in designing and implementing an effective farming system in dryland areas to improve farmers' income levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The moderate deep inspiratory breath hold (mDIBH) is a modality famed for cardiac sparing. Prospective studies based on this are few from the eastern part of the world and India. We intend to compare the dosimetry between mDIBH and free-breathing (FB) plans. Methods: Thirty-two locally advanced left breast cancer patients were taken up for the study. All patients received a dose of 50 Gy in 25 fractions to the chest wall/intact breast, followed by a 10-Gy boost to the lumpectomy cavity in the case of breast conservation surgery. All the patients were treated in mDIBH using active breath coordinator (ABC). The data from the two dose volume histograms were compared regarding plan quality and the doses received by the organs at risk. Paired t-test was used for data analysis. Results: The dose received by the heart in terms of V5, V10, and V30 (4.55% vs 8.39%) and mean dose (4.73 Gy vs 6.74 Gy) were statistically significant in the ABC group than that in the FB group (all p-values < 0.001). Also, the dose received by the LADA in terms of V30 (19.32% vs 24.87%) and mean dose (32.99 Gy vs 46.65 Gy) were significantly less in the ABC group. The mean treatment time for the ABC group was 20 min, while that for the free-breathing group was 10 min. Conclusions: Incorporating ABC-mDIBH for left-sided breast cancer radiotherapy significantly reduces the doses received by the heart, LADA, and left and right lung, with no compromise in plan quality but with an increase in treatment time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Chronic otitis media treatment has evolved, with microscopic surgeries as the gold standard and endoscopic surgeries as a newer addition. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study includes 209 patients who underwent type 1 tympanoplasty, utilizing both endoscopic and microscopic techniques, between January 2019 and December 2022 at a tertiary care institute in India. The study aims to compare hearing outcomes, graft uptake, hospital stay, postoperative pain, and cosmesis between the two groups. Results: Mean AB gap closure was 17.09 + 5.98 dB in the endoscopic group and 16.74 + 5.05 dB in the microscopic group (P = 0.687). The duration of surgery was 79.26 ± 17.37 min in the Endoscopic group and 91.92 ± 15.35 min in the Microscopic group. (P = < 0.00001). The Endoscopic group experienced less post-operative pain, shorter hospital stay (P = < 0.00001, P = 0.0008), and exhibited better cosmetic outcomes (P = 0.00001) compared to the microscopic group. Conclusion: Endoscopic tympanoplasty is a better alternative to microscopic tympanoplasty, delivering comparable hearing outcomes, shorter surgical duration, improved pain scores, and better cosmesis. Key Message: Chronic otitis media is a cause of significant morbidity and hearing loss, especially in developing countries like India. The treatment options have evolved, with microscopic surgeries being the standard and endoscopic surgeries as a newer addition. The study included 209 patients over 4 years and compared hearing outcomes, graft uptake, postoperative pain, cosmesis, and hospital stay duration between endoscopic and microscopic tympanoplasty. Results showed similar AB gap closure and successful graft uptake in both groups, indicating comparable hearing outcomes. Endoscopic tympanoplasty had a significantly shorter duration of surgery, lower postoperative pain scores, and better cosmesis compared to microscopic tympanoplasty. Endoscopic tympanoplasty offers a better alternative with similar hearing outcomes, improved patient comfort, shorter hospital stay, and better cosmetic outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is advocated to contribute to sustainable transportation by prompting a change in travel patterns. Therefore, using an ICT-enabled city region in India as the study context, the objectives of the study were to examine the influence of ICT on travel patterns in city regions and explore the strategies to enhance ICT usage for positively changed travel patterns. Findings suggest that definite linkages between ICT usage and travel patterns exist. An increase in ICT usage in daily activities of people will enable a significant reduction in trip generation, travel distance and travel time. Strategic interventions including enhancing networking and ICT connectivity, provisioning free Wi-Fi hot spots at important nodal points, and enabling the availability of real-time road transportation-related information can enhance ICT usage leading to a positively changed travel pattern. This is likely to improve traffic movement and reduce congestion contributing to sustainable urban road transportation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study uses geospatial modeling and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) to assess the Groundwater Potential Zones (GPZs) in Cachar District, India. Twelve influencing factors, namely Geomorphology, geology, soil type, Land Use Land Cover (LULC), rainfall, slope, drainage density, lineament density, elevation, aspect, Topographic Ruggedness Index (TRI), and Topographic Wetness Index (TWI), are considered, and thematic maps are prepared in Geographical Information System (GIS) platform. To measure the weightages of these factors, Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) and Best Worst Method (BWM) are the MCDA techniques used. The GPZs are generated using weights and reclassified into low, medium, and high zones. The major portion of the region is classified as the medium potential zone, with 64.25% and 63.96% of the total area using AHP and BWM, respectively. The validation with groundwater data for the two GPZ maps reveals that 10 out of 12 locations have been predicted accurately. BWM, with a lesser comparison matrix, performed as efficiently as AHP and has proven to be a better MCDA technique in spatial modeling GPZ for sustainable groundwater conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study depicts a Scientometric technique of Bifurcation Research output in India for around five years during 2016-2020. It is an active field of analysis in which the bulk of investigation is being done. Scopus is an advanced research platform, assisting in finding, probing and yielding information in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. The contemporary study discusses the "Bifurcation" as reflected in SCOPUS for 2016-2020. This study examines the highly prolific authors, document type etc. The study exhibited that 2017 shown maximum research papers 1700 (20.44%), the lowermost maturity rate was deciphered in 2018 (19.65%), the standard value of the period of collaboration is 0.18. The time series examines for single-authored, multi-authored, and collaborative papers are 137.8, 1564 and 1701.8 respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of hearing loss and identify the high-risk factors among neonates with hearing loss. Methods: Retrospective study done on 1054 infants in a tertiary care centre in Eastern India from 2020 to 2021 and approved by the Institutional Ethics Committee. A two-step protocol is used for screening. In the well-nursed group, OAE and BOA were performed. In the case of REFER results for automated ABR following OAE evaluation in well-nursed babies, a detailed audiological evaluation was scheduled to be carried out using diagnostic ABR within one month of age. In the high-risk group, hearing screening includes OAE, BOA, and AABR evaluations. AABR evaluation was performed as a part of the screening protocol irrespective of the results of OAE screening as PASS or REFER. Results: In our study among 1053 neonates screened, 375 were in the risk category, and 679 were without risk factors. The overall prevalence of hearing loss in neonates was 22.78 per 1000 screened neonates and 56 per 1000 among high-risk neonates. In the high-risk group, we were able to identify 4 cases of Auditory spectrum neuropathy disorder with the use of AABR during 1st step of screening. In multivariate regression analysis, the risk factors for hearing loss identified were NICU stay (OR = 3.6, 95% CI = 1.1-12.03) and Craniofacial anomalies (OR = 55.37, 95% CI = 16.48- 186.01). Conclusion: Early neonatal screening helps in the detection, intervention, and rehabilitation of hearing loss. The use of AABR in risk infant screening enhanced the chance of detection of auditory spectrum neuropathy disorder (ASND) cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bilateral breast carcinoma (BBC), though not rare, is quite an uncommon clinical situation and hence guidelines regarding its diagnosis and management are not clear enough. It can be synchronous or metachronous depending on the interval between the time of presentation in bilateral breasts. Materials and Methods: We retrospectively reviewed our experience with 18 cases of bilateral breast malignancies presented and treated between January 2014 and December 2019. We analyzed clinical, pathological, and immunohistochemical profiles with their management. All the patients were staged separately for both breasts and received treatment according to prescribed guidelines. Results: Among these 18 cases, 16 were synchronous and 2 were metachronous during the presentation. During the presentation of synchronous malignancies, eight patients had stage IV disease, whereas the other eight cases were nonmetastatic. Patients received combined modality treatment by surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy depending on the stage of presentation. At a median follow-up period of 12 months, 10 (55.56%) patients were disease free, 2 (11.11%) patients had disease recurrence, and 5 (27.78%) patients succumbed to the disease, whereas 1 patient has lost follow-up. Conclusion: Diagnosis and management of bilateral breast malignancies pose a clinical challenge to the oncologist and hence should be vigilantly looked upon. The treatment decision is individualized according to the stage and molecular type of the particular patient. Regular follow-up and judicious use of clinical breast examination and mammography can help in the early detection of second breast carcinoma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The incidence of tracheostomy has been significantly increased with the increase of patients admitted to the intensive care units. Looking into the literature, there have been various protocols proposed in the past for tracheostomy in COVID 19 patients. In the present case series, we have presented our experience of surgical tracheostomy in COVID 19 patients. It is a retrospective case series consisting of 12 COVID 19 patients who underwent tracheostomy from April 2020 to October 2020. We have discussed the tracheostomy in COVID 19 patients with references to their respective indication, location, the procedure, postoperative care and clinical outcomes. Of 12 patients, 6 were operated in the COVID ICU and 6 were operated in the COVID OT. The average duration of the intubation was 4 days (range 3–7 days). The average period of weaning was found to be 65 h (range 48 h 80 h). Of 4 patients associated with comorbidities, two had died 48 h after the surgery. The Primary indication of the tracheostomy can be made flexible based on the infrastructure of the hospital to accommodate increased patient load in a developing country like India. The location and surgical approach does not significantly affect the clinical outcomes of tracheostomy, and it can be safely performed in ICU/OT with adequate ventilation. Irrespective of the COVID status of the patients, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) can ensure adequate protection to the health care personals preventing the spread of infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: COVID-19 patients with cancer had poorer outcomes due to immunosuppression during cancer care, poor general condition, and other comorbidities. The study was conducted to present the real-world analysis of the effect of treatment interruptions on the outcomes of patients treated with radiation therapy during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in a tertiary care institute in India. Materials and methods: The study is a retrospective observational cohort study on cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy from March 2020 to January 2021. The study's primary outcome was to analyze the effect of treatment interruptions on the outcomes of patients treated with radiation therapy during the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Between March 2020 to January 2021, 218 eligible patients undergoing radiation therapy were found for the study. Among the 218 patients, 25 patients (11.47%) were found positive for COVID-19, while 193 patients (88.53%) were negative for COVID-19. Among COVID-19-positive patients, ten patients had < 3 weeks of treatment interruption, while 15 patients had > 3 weeks of treatment interruptions. After recovering from COVID-19, treatment was resumed and completed for 15 (60.00%) of the COVID-19-positive patients. In comparison, 13 patients (52.00%) were lost to follow-up. Three of the COVID-19-positive patients died. The disease was clinically controlled in 12 (48.00%) of the COVID-19-positive patients, and the patients reported locoregional disease progression in 10 (40.00%). Among the 193 COVID-19-negative patients, 32 patients (16.58%) had treatment interruption. Twelve patients (37.50%) had treatment interruptions for less than 1 week. There was a significant difference in the delay of radiation treatment delivery by 2 weeks (11 fractions) in COVID-19-positive patients compared to only two fractions delay in COVID-19-negative patients. Conclusion: COVID-19 impacted the treatment outcomes in both COVID-19-positive and COVID-19-negative cohorts of patients. There was a longer duration of treatment interruptions in the COVID-19-positive patients, leading to fewer patients completing the radiation treatment and thereby increased locoregional disease progression. There was a significant difference in the delay in treatment between the two groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the growing importance of age old cultural and mythological tourism with many other related distinctive niches, the purpose of this paper is to contextualize the impacts of Shakti Peetham on such tourism practices in South Asia. This mythological context of Shakti Peetham has several importance in age old cultural tourism to contemporaneous sustainable pilgrimages with issues associated with many niches such as dark tourism, animal sacrifice and typical Tantric rituals in Hinduism etc. This paper discusses about the concentration of those places in and to the Eastern India of South Asia and focusing on upcoming mythological tourism, dark and tantra tourism potentialities with a circuit development approach through Vehicle Routing System (VRS) for sustainable pilgrimage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: India population faces the burden of undernutrition and non-communicable diseases, and the prevalence of the burden of undernutrition and obesity is gradually increasing. The discourse regarding the dual burden of undernutrition and central obesity has not yet been extensively explored in both sexes at a community level as well as in individuals. The present study assessed the frequency of both mal-formation based on mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) as well as the waist-hip ratio (WHR) among adult Juang males and females of Keonjhar district in Odisha, India. Conclusion:The results of the present study indicated that the prevalence of undernutrition among adult Juangs is very high and simultaneously central obesitywas observed of increasing. The ongoing nutritional programs need to be evaluated and supported by appropriate intervention Most importantly, immediate nutritional intervention programs are needed for implementation among this ethnic group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Information Technology (IT) industry has significantly influenced the urban economy in many developing nations. Although the IT industry has created economic growth, it is argued that the establishment and growth of the IT industry depend on the availability of adequate urban infrastructures and human resources. Therefore, using data from Indian cities having significant IT industries, this study established the associations among various important urban infrastructures and human resources and the growth of the IT industry. A survey research method for data collection and statistical quantitative analyses and modelling were used for the study. The study revealed that houses, built-up spaces for offices and industry, urban roads and electrical power influence the growth of the IT industry consider- ably although in varying degrees. Houses and built-up space have a relatively higher influence than electrical power and roads. Human resources also influence fairly. The contributions of the study include the establishing of interlinkage among the urban infrastructures and human resources and the growth of the IT industry. Further, the consequent empirical models that emerged from the interlinkages will enable evaluation of the impact of infrastructure and human resources on the growth of the IT industry quantitatively, which could assist in developing policy options in the cities of developing countries such as India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accidents at road construction sites are pervasive in India. Therefore, using data obtained from construction sites on a national highway in India, the major factors that contribute to the occurrence of accidents were explored in this study and various strategic and operational interventions that could be implemented to improve safety in road construction were established. A survey was conducted among the relevant stakeholders to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. Inferential statistical methods, including ordinal regression modelling, were used to analyse quantitative data and narrative and interpretive methods were used to analyse qualitative data. Based on the results, it was found that several factors, related to four important aspects, contribute significantly to the occurrence of accidents, including site conditions, traffic conditions, behaviour and attitude of construction workers, and information and training. It was established that operational interventions, such as the installation of early warning systems, mandatory use of safety equipment and gear, and signage and control at road construction sites can reduce accidents significantly. In addition, strategic interventions, such as implementing a specific road construction safety policy, creating awareness among the stakeholders and including the cost of health and safety in the project cost are vital. However, it was found that operational interventions are more influential than strategic interventions in the context of safety on road construction sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Empirical evidence shows that design-related challenges influence delay in building projects in India. Based on case studies of building projects from the capital region of Odisha Province of India, the factors relating to consultants and design have been identified and policy interventions were compiled to reduce design linked delay. A survey method to collect data, statistical analysis and a Systems Dynamics modelling approach were used according to different scenarios to propose strategic interventions. The findings suggested that complexity of design and compilation of documents, and the combined complexity of both can cause substantial delay. The model results revealed that the combined effect of appointing competent consultants and communicating effectively could reduce delay significantly. The novelty of the study lies in using a systems approach to develop causal feedback relationships among variables, as opposed to considering one origin of the problem at a time. The study makes three contributions: (1) design-linked challenges and mechanisms of delay, based on causal feedback relationships in building construction, can be diagnosed to evolve appropriate remedial measures; (2) impacts of different interventions can be visualised quantitatively under different scenarios; and (3) an alternative methodology to examine the trend of the project period is offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conventional agricultural practices that rely heavily on blanket fertilizer recommendation, eventually leading to deteriorated partial factor productivity and N use efficiency. We investigated the effect of SPAD-based N-management on productivity and N use efficiency of rice and wheat in eastern India. Here, in the experiment three SPAD thresholds (34, 36 and 38 in rice and 38, 40 and 42 in wheat) using three N levels (15, 25 and 35 kg N ha−1) in split were incorporated as real-time N management (RTNM), one fixed-time N management (FTNM), farmers' fertilizer practice (FFP) and control (No fertilizer) were introduced in wet and dry seasons for rice and wheat, respectively, during the years 2010 to 2012. Topdressing with 25 kg N ha−1 at medium SPAD (S36 in rice and S40 in wheat) increased soil N availability, leaf N content and grain yield of rice (5215 kg ha−1) and wheat (4483 kg ha−1) over the grain yield recorded under a low rate of N topdressing at low SPAD. While saving 33.3% N in rice and 18.8% N in wheat, the agronomic N use efficiency (58.5% in both rice and wheat) and nitrogen recovery efficiency (32.2% in rice and 15.1% in wheat) can be increased when compared with conventional FTNM. The SPAD-based management strategy showed great promise in efficient management of N fertilizer, and we estimated the optimal SPAD threshold for rice and wheat as 37.5 and 41.8, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Indian semi‐arid tropics (SATs), low water and crop productivity in Vertisols and associated soils are mainly due to poor land management and erratic and low rainfall occurrence. This study was conducted from 2014 to 2016 at the ICRISAT in India to test the effect of broad bed furrows (BBF) as land water management against conventional flatbed planting for improving soil water content (SWC) and water and crop productivity of three cropping systems: sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench]–chickpea (Cicer arientinum L.) and maize (Zea mays)–groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) as sequential and pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.)] + pigeonpea [Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.] as intercropping, grown under different nutrients management involving macronutrients (N, P, and K) only and combined application of macro‐ and micronutrients. The results stated that the SWC in BBF was higher over flatbed by 9.35–10.44% in 0‐ to 0.3‐m, 4.56–9.30% in 0.3‐ to 0.6‐m and 3.85–5.26% in 0.6‐ to 1.05‐m soil depths during the cropping season. Moreover, depletion of the soil water through plant uptake was higher in BBF than in flatbed. Among the cropping systems, sorghum–chickpea was the best in bringing highest system equivalent yield and water productivity with the combined application of macro‐ and micronutrients. The BBF minimized water stress at critical crop growth stages leading to increase crop yield and water productivity in SATs. Thus, BBF along with the application of macro‐ and micronutrients could be an adaptation strategy to mitigate erratic rainfall due to climate change in SATs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable crop production in sub-tropical countries is severely affected by the unscientific application of fertilizers. The SPAD based N management of the rice–wheat sequence was investigated in eastern India. Topdressing of 25 kg N ha−1 was applied at SPAD 36 and 40 (S36 and S40) for rice (Oryza sativa L.) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), respectively, reduced the N requirement by an average of 26.5% (33.3% in rice and 18.8% in wheat) over the fixed-time N management (FTNM) without reducing the grain yield. The 25 kg N ha−1 increased nutrient removal in the system having high agronomic N use efficiency (21.4) and nitrogen recovery efficiency (0.60) with the lower N requirement (62.5 kg N ha−1) over the FTNM. The treatment with medium SPAD (S36 for rice and S40 for wheat) under 25 kg N ha−1 increased the agronomic N use efficiency by 58% in rice and 58.5% in wheat compared to that under FTNM and recorded the highest gross (2106.1$ ha−1 Year−1) and net (1202.5$ ha−1 Year−1) returns from the rice–wheat system. The SPAD-based N management increased the water content in N-treated plots compared to that in the control plots, and the utmost moisture custody was observed when using a moderate (25 kg ha−1) N topdressing at a moderate SPAD (S36 for rice and S40 for wheat) for a given soil suction. This study suggests that using SPAD meter in rice–wheat system can cover the productive N management and profitability and can be dependably used in precision agriculture to manage the spatial variation in farmers' field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semi-arid tropics is facing serious issues of malnutrition in population owing to poor quality of food grain production. Malnutrition is directly linked to lower grain protein and zinc yield due to inappropriate land and water, and nutrient management practices, which also resulted into reduced nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in cereals. The objectives of the study were to evaluate the effect of land and water and nutrient management on grain protein and zinc yield, and NUE of cereal-based cropping systems on vertisols soils in semi-arid tropics. The study was carried out at Hyderabad in India during 2014–15 and 2015–16 and involved three cropping systems (two rotation systems: sorghum-chickpea and maize-groundnut; and one intercropping: pearl millet + pigeonpea), two land and water management i.e. flatbed and broad bed furrows and four nutrient management-N1: Control (no fertilizer), N2: 100% recommended application of macronutrient (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) through chemical fertilizer, N3: N2 + 100% recommended application of secondary nutrient (sulphur) and micronutrient (zinc and boron) through chemical fertilizer, and N4 (integrated nutrient): 50% of N2 + 50% nitrogen in cereals or phosphorus in legumes through organic fertilizer as vermicompost. In sorghum-chickpea rotation system, the treatment interaction broad bed furrows with 100% recommended application of macronutrient, secondary nutrient and micronutrient recorded significantly higher grain zinc yield in both the years, while grain protein yield was significantly higher in second year. The grain protein and zinc yield in sorghum-chickpea rotation system, and agronomic nitrogen use efficiency in pearl millet+pigeonpea intercropping system was significantly higher in broad bed furrows than flatbed. The agronomic NUE of broad bed furrows was higher by 61% in 2014–15 and 65% in 2015–16 over flatbed. Among the nutrient management treatments, grain protein and zinc yield, and agronomic NUE were significantly higher in combined application of macronutrient, secondary nutrient, and micronutrients through chemical fertilizer i.e. N3 followed by N4, N2 and N1. The broad bed furrows and application of macronutrient, secondary nutrient and micronutrient could be an effective integrated land and water and nutrient management approach to improve grain quality and agronomic nitrogen use efficiency of cereal-based cropping systems in semi-arid tropics. This study contributed to develop integrated land and water and nutrient management as an innovative agronomic management practice for cereal-based cropping systems, which needs to scale-up through Government agricultural policies to overcome the issue of malnutrition in population living in semi-arid tropics. • Higher grain protein and zinc yield found in sorghum-chickpea rotation system. • Agronomic nitrogen use efficiency was higher in pearl millet+pigeonpea intercrop. • Application of macro-and micronutrient improved grain protein and zinc yield. • Agronomic nitrogen use efficiency in broad bed furrow was more by 63% over flatbed. • Integrated land water-nutrient improved grain quality and nitrogen use efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The incidence of breast cancer has surpassed cervical cancer in India and it has now become the most common cancer in women. Multiple randomised studies have reported low α/β value in the range of 3–4 for breast cancer, which predict a potential radiobiological advantage for hypofractionated radiotherapy resulting in such schedules becoming standard in many centers with reduction in overall treatment time. Volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) is a novel technique of delivering radiotherapy that reduces treatment delivery time, requires less monitor units (MU) and offers good conformity. The mean dose to normal tissue may be minimised using this technique although there will be inferior sparing if we consider the low-dose volume such as V5, the effect of which is not quantifiable yet. Aim: Reporting acute toxicity, cosmetic effects, and quality of life in patients of early breast cancer treated with adjuvant hypofractionated VMAT with SIB. Material and Methods: The records of 44 patients registered at the hospital between August 2014 and December 2015 were included in this analysis. Acute toxicities were analysed using CTCAE v4.03. Cosmetic outcomes were assessed using Harvard scale, while quality of life outcomes were assessed using EORTC scales and Health Related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaires (QLQ-C30 and QLQ-BR23). Results: No grade ≥2 skin toxicities were recorded. Breast pain was recorded as Grade 1 in 13·8% patients and Grade 1 fatigue in 18·2%. The maximum haematological abnormality grade recorded was Grade 1. Cosmesis was assessed at the baseline, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years. A total of 88·6% of the patients had an Excellent or good cosmesis at the baseline, which was similar even at 6 months, at 88·7%, improved further at 1 year to 90·9%. At 6 months post radiotherapy, high functional scale QOL scores were noted. Conclusion: The technique is associated with minimum acute toxicity, good to excellent cosmesis and acceptable quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The projected adverse impact of climate change on food grain production of tropical and subtropical latitudes necessitates the development of suitable agro-adaptations. We used open top chamber (OTC) experimental facility and simulation analysis to study the effect of elevated [CO2] with varying nutrients management on rice grain yield and to evaluate planting time adjustment as adaptation to climate change. The OTC experiments with ambient [CO2] level ([CO2] ~390 ppm) and elevated [CO2] (25% higher than the ambient) using cultivar 'Swarna sub1 (140–145 days)' were conducted during wet season of the years 2011 and 2012 at West Medinipur, India. Using CERES model, we simulated rice grain yield for future climate scenario (A1B) during the years 2020 (2010–2039) and 2080 (2071–2099) at four selected locations of the subtropical India. The elevated [CO2] in OTC increased panicle number, but decreased filled grain number per panicle, 1000-grain weight and grain yield. The increasing [CO2] had smaller adverse impact for integrated nutrients management as compared with chemical fertiliser. The model simulated grain yield reduction of 6.1−13.0% during 2020 and 14.4 −25.0% during 2080 with rising temperature 1.6 and 4.6°C, respectively, compared with the base period (1961–1990). Early planting during 25 June to 25 July received closure favourable temperature and rainfall during the crop growing period, hence had better adaptation to the climate change. Increasing dose of integrated nutrients and early planting is expected to minimise the adverse impact of climate change on rice production of the subtropical India. A field experiment was conducted to evaluate nutrients management and plating time as adaptations to climate change for wet season rice production under rainfed ecosystem of subtropical India. A well validated location specific management option for climate change adaptation in rice production system is lacking. Keeping this in mind, we conducted this experiment and we observed that, increasing dose of integrated nutrients and early planting is expected to minimise the adverse impact of climate change on rice production of the subtropical India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comparative study on the effect of elevated CO2 environment on soil nitrogen availability in different rice planting system is needed to develop nutrient management strategies in future climate scenarios. A field experiment was conducted inside open top chambers (OTC) to study the effect of elevated CO2 environment with varying nitrogen management on soil NH4+–N and NO3−–N status in two planting system of rice, direct-seeded rice (DSR) and puddled transplanted rice (PTR). The nitrogen management included chemical fertilizer (CF) at 100% (CF100) and 150% (CF150) of the recommended dose, integrated nitrogen management including organic fertilizer (OF) and CF as CF75+ OF75, and site-specific N management through CF using SPAD meter. The soil NH4+–N content was higher in PTR, but NO3−–N was higher in DSR. The soil NH4+–N and NO3−–N content decreased significantly under elevated CO2 environment as compared to ambient in both planting system, except the NO3−–N content at flowering in DSR. The decrease was around 8% for NH4+–N and 5% for NO3−–N content. Soil nitrogen content in DSR can be maintained by following integrated nutrient management (CF75 + OF75) and SPAD-based nitrogen management for sustainable yield. Grain yield, in general, increased with CO2 elevation in both planting system. Under ambient environment, CF150 increased the grain yield by 23% as compared to CF100 in DSR, but no change was noted in PTR. However, under elevated CO2 environment, CF150 increased the grain yield by 13% in PTR. Under elevated CO2 environment, the yield increase of the hybrid rice to additional N fertilizer application was noted in PTR but not in DSR. This study suggests that for sustainable rice production under increasing CO2 environment in future climate scenarios, higher dose of N fertilizer is recommended in PTR, but normal dose in DSR production system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • Elevated CO 2 (+50% higher than ambient) increased wheat grain yield by 17% in subtropical Eastern India. • Crop growth rate, leaf biomass and N fractions and agronomic efficiency tended to increase with CO 2 elevation. • Response of wheat grain yield to increased N fertilizer dose was higher under elevated CO 2 than ambient environment. • Inter-annual weather variabilities imparted significant effect on wheat growth and grain yield. Abstract Elevated CO 2 might have differential impact on the growth, development, and yield of wheat under varying nutrient management, especially in a warmer climate when the global atmospheric temperature is already increasing. Field experiments were conducted in subtropical Eastern India during the rabi seasons of 2014–2016 to study the performance of wheat under the elevated CO 2 environment with different nitrogen (N) management. Wheat was grown in open field and inside open top chambers (OTCs) with ambient (˜390 μmol mol−1) and elevated (˜585 μmol mol−1) level of CO 2 without any fertilizer addition (N0), and with application of N through chemical fertilizer (CF) at normal (100%) recommendation [N100(CF)] and 50% higher dose [N150(CF)] and through integration of organic and chemical fertilizer [N150(OF + CF)]. Results showed that CO 2 enrichment had a positive effect on various growth parameters and yield attributes of wheat. Elevated CO 2 tended to increase the crop growth rate and the fraction of leaf biomass and leaf N, especially for the N management using chemical fertilizer [N100(CF) and N150(CF)]. Elevated CO 2 [+˜200 μmol mol−1] caused 17% increase in wheat grain yield above ambient as averaged over the N fertilized treatments. Application of N at 50% higher dose than normal through CF did not increase the grain yield significantly under the open field and OTC with ambient [CO 2 ] environment, whereas the yield increment was significant under the elevated [CO 2 ] environment. Elevated CO 2 also resulted in higher agronomic N use efficiency and nitrogen harvest index with the increased N fertilizer dose. Thus, wheat production under the elevated CO 2 environment in Eastern India might be maintained or improved through the normal and increased dose of N fertilizer application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Change in rainfall pattern with longer dry period depletes soil water content (SWC) and incorrect sowing time adversely affects rainfed sorghum production in Semi-Arid Tropics (SATs). The present study was conducted to develop agricultural water management strategies for improving SWC and to evaluate sowing time as climate change agro-adaptations for sorghum production in SATs. The field experiments on two land-water management (flatbed, broad bed furrows (BBF)) and four nutrient management (application of macro-and micronutrients through combination of chemical and organic fertilizers) were conducted in 2014 and 2015 at International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, India. The average SWC in 'BBF' was higher over 'flatbed' by 0.90 cm and 1.06 cm in 0–30 cm soil depth, 0.67 cm and 1.02 cm in 30–60 cm depth, 0.51 cm and 0.84 cm in 60–90 cm depth and, 0.34 cm and 0.67 cm in 90–120 cm during 2014 and 2015, respectively. The SWC in BBF was higher over flatbed by 7.28% throughout 0–120 cm soil depth during longest dry period of 26 days in the year 2014. The simulation analyses using DSSAT Version 4.6 for Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 with RCP 4.5 stated that postponing the normal sowing time (30 June) to 10 July resulted in lower grain yield reduction i.e. 14.75% in 2030 and 19.37% in 2050 as compared to base period (1988–2007) yield with normal sowing in Parbhani location of India. The BBF combined with macro-and micronutrients application through chemical fertilizer and postponing sowing time was found the effective climate change agro-adaptation strategies for improving sorghum production in SATs. This study indicates the need for desired policy orientation by the government to promote integrated land-water-nutrient management as the effective agro-adaptations to climate change in SATs. • Broad bed furrows (BBF) recorded higher soil water content (SWC) than flatbed. • Average SWC in BBF was more over flatbed by 0.75 cm (7.28%) in 0–120 cm soil depth. • BBF increased rainwater use efficiency by 19.5% over flatbed in ICRISAT, India. • BBF found efficient land-water management technology during longest dry period. • Sowing postponement is an agro-adaptation strategy for sorghum production in SAT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) production with available cultivars under changing climatic condition is a major concern in subtropical India in the context of food security. This warrants a need for introduction of hybrid rice cultivars having higher genetic potential to achieve higher production per unit area. It is in this context, the present investigation is planned with a major objective of studying the behavior of hybrid rice cultivars under varying weather conditions. To determine the relationship between weather variables and hybrid rice grain yield, field experiments were conducted in 2013 and 2014 at Kharagpur, India. Weather variables considered were maximum temperature (Tmax), minimum temperature (Tmin), maximum relative humidity (RHmax), minimum relative humidity (RHmin), and solar radiation (SRAD). The crop model "crop environment resource synthesis (CERES)-rice" was calibrated and used to simulate hybrid rice yield for varying planting dates. The weather variables Tmax, Tmin, and RHmin during basic vegetative stage; Tmin and RHmax in early reproductive stage; and SRAD in late reproductive stage were found to influence the hybrid rice yield. The optimum values of Tmax were 32.7, 32.5, and 31.2°C; and Tmin were 25.2, 24.9, and 25.6°C during basic vegetative, early reproductive, and late reproductive stages, respectively for increasing the yield of hybrid rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand delays in the Indian construction context, an exploratory survey was conducted as a precursor to the development of simulation models. System Dynamics (SD) was used to visualise the pivotal feedback relations that cause delays to evolve mechanisms that reduce it. A community development construction project in India serves as the case for modelling. Findings of the study suggest that definite causal feedback relations exist among difficulties in financing the project, ineffective planning and scheduling, poor communication and coordination by the contractor, conflict between the contractor and other stakeholders and use of inappropriate construction methods and construction delays. However, the modelling efforts reveal that the use of these best practices can reduce delay significantly: provision of adequate project finances and cash flow, effective planning and scheduling, adoption of appropriate construction methods and contingencies for rework in the schedule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water-saving production technologies are essential for increasing agricultural production under limiting water resources in future periods. Potato, the underground crop needs efficient soil and water management for production sustainability. Field experiments were conducted during the dry season of 2018–19 and 2019–20 to study the effect of rice straw mulch with drip irrigation on soil temperature and moisture content and thereby its effect on the potato yield and water productivity in subtropical India. Potato was grown with two levels of soil management (straw mulch and non-mulch) and four levels of water management, i.e., conventional furrow irrigation and drip irrigation up to full field capacity (100%FC), 90%FC, and 80% FC. The results stated that the straw mulch increased the soil temperature by 0.22–0.90 °C compared to non-mulch plots and the maximum increase was when the air temperature was lowest during the growing period. The straw mulch also increased the soil moisture content (+3.6%) and lowered evapotranspiration (9–14%) compared to the non-mulch. Similar to mulching, the limited drip irrigation (90%FC) increased the soil temperature by ≥ 2 °C as compared to furrow irrigation. The straw mulching effectively increased the tuber yield (+15%) under limited drip irrigation with 90%FC, but not in conventional irrigation. Integration of mulching with limited drip irrigation saved 42–58% irrigation water compared to conventional furrow irrigation without mulch. Straw mulching in drip-irrigated treatments significantly increased the water productivity (30–39%) compared to non-mulch. This study provides a reference point for policymakers that drip irrigation with straw mulch can be a feasible adaptation strategy for increasing potato production in subtropical locations under resource-limited environment. • Mulching with drip irrigation improved the soil microclimate for potato productivity. • Straw mulching was better effective under drip irrigation than furrow irrigation. • Straw mulching with drip irrigation saved up to 58% water while improving potato yield. • Straw mulching with limited drip irrigation improved potato yield by 15%. • Drip irrigation increased marketable tuber grade potato production up to 30%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of self-assembled 'double saddle'-type trinuclear complexes of [Pd3L′3 L2] formulation have been synthesized by complexation of a series of cis-protected palladium(II) components with a slightly divergent 'E-shaped' non-chelating tridentate ligand, 1,1′-(pyridine-3,5-diyl)bis(3-(pyridin-3-yl)urea ( L). The cis-protecting agents L′ employed in the study are ethylenediamine (en), tetramethylethylenediamine (tmeda), 2,2′-bipyridine (bpy), and 1,10-phenanthroline (phen), for 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. The crystal structures of [Pd3(tmeda)3( L)2](NO3)6 ( 2), [Pd3(bpy)3( L)2](NO3)6 ( 3), and [Pd3(phen)3( L)2](NO3)6 ( 4) unequivocally support the new architecture. Two of the 'double saddle'-type complexes ( 3 and 4) are suitably crafted with π surfaces at the strategically located cis-protecting sites to facilitate intermolecular π-π interactions in the solid state. As a consequence, six units of the 3 (or 4) are assembled, by means of six-pairs of π-π stacking interactions, in a circular geometry to form an octadecanuclear molecular ring of [(Pd3L′3 L2)6] composition. The overall arrangement of the rings in the crystal packing is equated with the traditional Indian art form rangoli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of these, 56 were colonic surgeries and 55 patients had undergone surgery for rectal cancer. Neoadjuvant therapy was given for patients with mid and lower rectal locally advancer tumors, with 43 out of total 55 patients with rectal cancer receiving neoadjuvant therapy. [Extracted from the article]

Nutrient management plays an important role in yield and quality of tomatoes. A field experiment was conducted during the years 2008–09 and 2009–10 to analyze the effect of organic and conventional sources of fertilizer on yield and quality of tomatoes in an acid lateritic soil of India. The organic sources of fertilizer were vermicompost (VC), crop residue (CR), vermiwash (VW) and biofertilizer (BF). The conventional input was chemical fertilizer (CF) applied at recommended dose of 100:80:60 kg ha−1of N:P2O5:K2O for the tomato. The organic source VC was used to supply 100% N recommendation as single source or 50% N recommendation when combined with CF or organic sources. Maximum fruit yield was recorded when CF was applied at full dose, which was on a par with VC at full recommendation. A higher percentage of large-size fruits (>7 cm) was obtained in VC-based treatments compared with CF treatment. Vermicompost at full dose increased ascorbic acid, beta carotene, total soluble solids and color value compared with its half dose along with other organic sources (CR, BF). The potential exists to improve tomato fruit quality through a better nutrient management, whether it be conventional, organic or a combination of both. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Libraries of engineering institutions are prominent information organizations that play vital role in catering to the information needs of the respective institutions. Students of engineering subjects need to update their knowledge through latest information in their respective field of interest which enables them to support their academic needs. How the information needs and seeking behavior of the students' community is steered by the library professionals is indeed a big question. This paper intends to examine the overall information seeking behavior of students of school of computer engineering, KIIT University, India. The analysis reveals that students are absolutely satisfied with the loan of books (circulation) and internet service. However, respondents have a very poor opinion on reservation service and interlibrary loan. Moreover, the paper provides some constructive suggestions for the up-gradation systems and services of the university library. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is an alarming trend of injuries leading to poor outcome of victims in India. Objective: To study the profile of patients who died due to trauma and to identify factors involved in both pre-hospital and hospital care. Materials and Methods: A hospital-based study was performed at a trauma center in Puducherry from June 2009 to May 2010. Patients who had at least one sign of life on admission and later died were included. The demographic characteristics, injury mechanism, nature and site of injury, influence of alcohol, pre-hospital time and care, distance traveled, number of referrals, time spent in study hospital, cause of death, and missed injuries revealed at post mortem were noted. Results: Of the 204 fatal cases, most were between 25-65 years of age (77%); sustained injuries over weekends (36%) and between 4 pm and midnight (41%); had at least one halt in a medical facility before reaching definitive care (56%); and died within a week (63%). Adults (25-65 y) sustained most injuries (77%) on two wheelers. In those aged over 65 years, 79 percent were pedestrians. Road traffic injuries were responsible for 82 % of deaths; 16 percent were reportedly under the influence of alcohol at the time of injury. Mean delay from the time of accident to admission was 14.9 hours and median distance traveled was 30 kilometers. Head injury was the most common (66%) cause of death. Post mortem revealed skull fractures (37%), while missed injuries were noted in 8 percent, mostly involving the cervical spine and chest wall. Conclusion: The problem of trauma care needs to be addressed urgently in this part of southern India to reduce mortality and morbidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Groundwater is a prominent source of drinking and domestic water in the world. In this context a reliable water supply policy, specifically during the dry season necessitates accurately acceptable predictions of water table depth fluctuations. Owing to the difficulties of identifying non-linear model structure and estimating the associated parameters, Back Propagation Neural Network (BPNN) and Radial Basis function network (RBFN) model is taken into account for study. Back propagation neural network model with delta algorithm is calibrated using historical groundwater level records and related hydro-meteorological data to simulate water table fluctuations in the study area. Similarly RBFN network has been used to analyze the water table depth prediction for four different stations. In the present investigation comparative assessment of water table depth for four different stations as well as the sensitivity of above two different models have been identified. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the outlook for the acceptance of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs) as primary sources of information and types of research and communication. Discussion topics include a brief history of ETDs, the challenges associated with implementing ETDs collection projects in academic libraries, and ETDs initiatives in India's digital libraries. Brief information is given about related research in Korea and the United States. The usefulness of ETDs and the archival, legal, and policy issues related to ETDs projects are discussed.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to assess and evaluate quantitative and qualitative use of electronic resources in the academic ambience of business schools in Orissa (India) with a view to examining the level of electronic information services (EIS) offered to the faculty members of the state with an opinion pool of the faculty members of the respective business schools. Moreover, the study aims to highlight some of the problems and constraints faced by the target users with some constructive suggestions and recommendations for the improvement of the status of electronic information services in the business schools of the state in days to come. Design/methodology/approach - The paper investigates the use of e-resources by the faculty members of business schools of the state through a survey based on responses of the target users from structured questionnaires. The SPSS package is used for data analysis. Findings - Faculty members pay high preference to the use of e-articles while the least preference goes towards the use of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). Further it is found that a selected few online databases like Emerald Management Xtra (EMX), EBSCO, and PROQUEST are fairly in use while the use of other online databases is not up to expectations. In tandem, the majority of faculty members are in favor of commercial e-services. Practical implications - The paper restricts the study exclusively to e-resources as the type of material and faculty members of major business schools of Orissa (India) as the respondents in its scope of discussion. Originality/value - The study focuses on the use of e-resources by faculty members in business schools of Orissa with some constructive outcomes for effective generalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the length--weight relationships (LWRs) for Sillago vincenti McKay, 1980, Triacanthus nieuhofii Bleeker, 1852 and Terapon puta Cuvier, 1829 from the Chilika lagoon in India. Sampling was conducted in central sector of the Chilika from April to November of 2017. Specimens were caught in mono-filament gill nets of mesh size 28-36 mm and fixed set nets of mesh size 16-24 mm. From LWR estimation, the determined intercept (a value) and slope (b value) were found to be 0.007 and 3.039 for Sillago vincenti, 0.010 and 2.997 for Triacanthus nieuhofii and 0.008 and 3.156 for Terapon puta. The relationships between length and weight in all three species were highly correlated (p <0.05). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change assessment and prediction are essential for optimised water resources planning and management. This paper attempts to intercompare the different LULC change modelling techniques (two-hybrid and two traditional models) to predict the future LULC change. These include Multi-Layer Perceptron Markov Chain (MLP_MC), Logistic Regression-Markov Model (LR-MC), and two hybrid models, namely, Multi-Layer Perceptron Markov Chain Cellular Automata (MLP_MC_CA), Logistic Regression Markov Model Cellular Automata (LR_MC_CA) models. These models were tested on Nagavali River Basin (NRB), a river basin in Southern India, which has seen significant land-use changes over the past two decades. Over the past two decades, the study region experienced dominant changes on the order of 17.42% and 15.22% decrease in scrubland and forest, respectively. At the same time, the agricultural land cover is increased by 35.28%. For the LULC prediction, the model was initially trained using the relevant driver variables and LULC maps of 2010 and 2015. The calibrated model was validated using the 2020 LULC map. The statistical results in terms of Kappa values and chi-square results reveal that the hybrid model MLP-MC-CA has a better agreement (Kappa coefficient 0.902) compared to the other models. Further, it is also observed that the CA-based models have a better ability to capture spatial connections. After combining the MLP_MC model with the Cellular Automata, the former model was improved by 10.8% in terms of the overall Kappa coefficient. The best model for LULC prediction over the next decade (LULC map of 2030) showed that the forest area would decrease by 9.02%, and the agricultural land would increase by 8.74%. Further, the results from the study indicate that the hybrid machine learning models provide a promising alternative for land-use change prediction. • Intercomparison of different Machine Learning Methods for Land Use Land Cover Prediction. • Hybrid model based on MLP_MC_CA outperforms other non-hybrid and traditional methods. • LULC 2030 for NRB showed that the forest area would decrease by 9.02%, and the agricultural land would increase by 8.74%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accelerating climate change is causing considerable changes in extreme events, leading to immense socioeconomic loss of life and property. In this study, we investigate the characteristics of extreme climate events at a regional scale to -understand these events' propagation in the near future. We have considered sixteen extreme climate indices defined by the World Meteorological Organization's Expert Team on Climate Change Detection and Indices from a long-term dataset (1951–2018) of 53 locations in Gomati River Basin, North India. We computed the present and future spatial variation of theses indices using the Sen's slope estimator and Hurst exponent analysis. The periodicities and non-stationary features were estimated using the continuous wavelet transform. Bivariate copulas were fitted to estimate the joint probabilities and return periods for certain combinations of indices. The study results show different variation in the patterns of the extreme climate indices: D95P, R95TOT, RX5D, and RX showed negative trends for all stations over the basin. The number of dry days (DD) showed positive trends over the basin at 36 stations out of those 17 stations are statistically significant. A sustainable decreasing trend is observed for D95P at all stations, indicating a reduction in precipitation in the future. DD exhibits a sustainable decreasing trend at almost all the stations over the basin barring a few exceptions highlight that the basin is turning drier. The wavelet power spectrum for D95P showed significant power distributed across the 2–16-year bands, and the two-year period was dominant in the global power spectrum around 1970–1990. One interesting finding is that a dominant two-year period in D95P has changed to the four years after 1984 and remains in the past two decades. The joint return period's resulting values are more significant than values resulting from univariate analysis (R95TOT with 44% and RTWD of 1450 mm). The difference in values highlights that ignoring the mutual dependence can lead to an underestimation of extremes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to assess the impact of Preoperative Body Mass Index (BMI) on Overall Survival (OS) in gastric cancer patients who underwent curative resection in Eastern India. Graph B Conclusions: b In this study, gastric cancer patients who underwent curative gastrectomies, higher BMI (overweight and obese) had better 3-year OS than patients with normal or low BMI. [Extracted from the article]

The complete mitochondrial genome of Cirrhinus mrigala was determined using the polymerase chain reaction. The mitogenome (16,594 bp) has the typical vertebrate mitochondrial gene arrangement, including 13 protein-coding genes, 22 tRNA genes, two rRNA genes and one control region. The overall base composition on the heavy strand was as follows: A: 32.0%, G: 15.5%, C: 28.0%, T: 24.55% and the A+T content: 56.5%. The control region contains a dinucleotide repeat motif, (TA)14, a termination-associated sequence and three conserved sequence blocks. These mitogenome sequence data would play an important role in population genetics and the molecular taxonomy of cultivable cyprinids in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carcinoma of the cervix is the most common malignancy among women in India. Although metastatic disease is common, metastasis to breast is rare. A limited number of case reports are published in the world literature. Most of the previous reports of metastatic cervical carcinoma to breast are either autopsy series or widely disseminated disease where no treatment options were available. A rare case of cervical carcinoma presenting as metastasis in breast is reported here where palliative mastectomy improved the general condition of the patient. A female patient aged 58 years was diagnosed and treated for cervical carcinoma, FIGO stage 2B. Four months after the treatment which included both external beam and intracavitory radiotherapy, the patient presented with breast and lung metastasis. Palliative mastectomy was done which improved the general condition of the patient. Metastatic carcinoma of the cervix can present as a case of breast carcinoma. In an appropriate setting, this possibility should be kept in mind. Palliative mastectomy should be offered for patients of cervical carcinoma with metastasis to breast when needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) is a rare occurrence in India. Total skin electron irradiation (TSEI) is a well-accepted therapeutic modality for the treatment of CTCL throughout the world. The aim of this study was to retrospectively analyze the treatment outcome of TSEI in Indian patients with CTCL and to determine the different parameters affecting the disease-free survival in these patients. Methods Fourteen male patients between 27 and 82 years of age with CTCL (duration of disease, 4 months to 2 years) were treated with TSEI between 1985 and 1998. Seven patients had early stage disease, while the other seven had advanced disease. Two patients had lymph node involvement at the time of presentation. The TSEI was performed according to the Stanford technique delivering a total dose in the range 8–36 Gy. Results Of the 14 patients, 10 showed complete remission following TSEI. The total follow-up period was 4–110 months (median, 52 months). Five patients were disease free at the end of 5 years. Two patients died due to rapid progression of the disease, while the cutaneous lesions relapsed in three patients after 2–27 months and one patient developed visceral metastasis. Conclusions TSEI was an effective therapeutic modality for the treatment of CTCL in this group of patients, both as a curative and palliative measure, although the long-term prognosis is poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article "Geographic pathology revisited: Development of an atlas of cancer in India" by A. Nandakumar, P.C. Gupta, P. Gangadharan, R.N. Visweswara and D.M. Parkin published in a 2005 issue of the "International Journal of Cancer."

Introduction: According to NHFS-4 data, around 38% of under-five Indian children are malnourished and stunted. In addition to poor socio-economic status, faulty complementary feeding practice is a major contributor to this. The objective of this study is to know the prevailing complementary feeding practices in our area, the most common food type preferred for introduction during initiation of complementary feeds, knowledge of the mother and their family members regarding complementary feeding, the factors influencing in decision making and its financial burden on the family. Methods: This hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted in a private Medical College in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. 256 mothers of infants between six months to two years attending Paediatric OPD from December 2018 to June 2019 were selected by random sampling technique. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Results: Out of the total 256 subjects interviewed, 134 (76.13%) out of 176 families belonging to lower income group preferred commercially available processed food over home food as the initial weaning food as compared to 32 (40%) out of 80 of the high income group preferring the same. The lower income group spent 22.3% of the total family income on commercial preparations to feed their infants in the age group six to 12 months. Whereas high income group families spend an average of 14.3% of family income on baby food products in the same age group. Despite being in regular contact with the local physician, in 85% of the total visits to the doctor, the opportunity wasn't utilised to counsel the family member about complementary feeding practices. Conclusions: Commercial preparations are the primary preferred weaning food. The dietary diversity of complementary food is very poor, thus affecting growth and development. The false perception that commercial preparations are critical to child growth and development is overburdening the family finances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water-saving technologies such as drip irrigation and straw mulching are aligned with sustainable agriculture as they enhance soil health, preserve water resources, and improve crop production. Understanding their combined impact, especially in subtropical rice-potato cropping system, is crucial. This study delves into the economic feasibility and impact on soil fertility when adopting drip irrigation and straw mulching. Field experiments demonstrated that using rice straw as mulch significantly increased nutrient availability, with available nitrogen (N) increasing by 15% to 17%, available phosphorus (P) by 13% to 14%, and available potassium (K) by 31% to 33% compared to non-mulched conditions. Furthermore, compared to conventional irrigation, drip irrigation treatments resulted in significantly higher soil available N, with increases ranging from 6 to 8% during the potato tuber initiation stage. Economic analysis showed that despite initial investment costs, adopting drip irrigation with straw mulch resulted in higher net returns. Rice-potato system with drip irrigation and straw mulch had a higher benefit–cost ratio, although it had a slighter shift in payback period than conventional practice. The research highlights sustainable intensification in rice-potato systems, suggesting strategic techniques for productivity and resource conservation to farmers and stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patients with cancer are at a higher risk of infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-COV-2) than the general population. In India, it has become a significant health problem of utmost importance, and India's Government has issued health advisories. Lockdown brought many unforeseen problems for patients and hospitals, leading to confusion and chaos. The aim of this article is to identify various issues related to our hospital, follow-up, nutrition, treatment and psychosocial issues. Multiple changes were made in the hospital, departmental and treatment policy for cancer patients' convenience and safety. As India is in the peak of COVID-19, these types of modifications and modifications of treatment schedules will be the 'New Normal'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]