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Thermal comfort studies in India are very much at an emerging stage. According to Indian codes, in the summer, the comfortable temperature range for residential buildings is 23–26 °C. The recommended Indian residential comfort range does not consider the impact of India's enormous cultural and geographical heterogeneity. Additionally, there seems to be very little effort to conduct a thermal comfort field survey in India's rural regions. In recent years, houses in rural India have been converted from kutcha (mud houses) to pucca (concrete houses). This work is aimed at proposing an adaptive thermal comfort model for the premonsoon season in the rural area of Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India. The model was achieved using a field study survey conducted in 80 rural area houses in the months of June and July. Regression analysis, the Griffiths method, and the Fanger method have been adopted to analyze thermal comfort. Based on the regression analysis, the comfort band (voting −1 to +1) is established in the range of 28.39 °C to 32.31 °C, with 30.30 °C as the neutral temperature. The study has been carried out to assess the influence of gender, age, controls, and fan usage on thermal comfort perception in rural households. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The work done in this paper provides the solutions for power access to rural and remote areas in developing nations. • The proposed affordable solution offers many advantages over the traditional central inverters. It provides more output power as compared to traditional central inverters under shading and dusting conditions. The results are validated through experimental investigation with regard to Indian weather conditions. • The proposed solution presents an optimal sizing strategy for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) for the low power rural household application. In literature, this kind of solution is yet not reported which makes this work novel. • This work presents the customized design of solar microinverter based PV System for different power provisioning levels for rural EWS houses. The proposed solution has an added advantage of addition of load in future without change in existing infrastructure. Reliable power supply is the key requirement for developing nations. Most of these nations are trying to modernize the rural lives by electrification in remote areas. Access to electricity is a bare requirement in future ages. This paper discusses the challenges faced by the utility companies in ensuring sustained electricity access to the new consumers followed by the various solutions. The techno – economic aspects of the proposed solution is validated by the experimental study. Based on the results, an optimal low-cost design is proposed in order for everyone to fulfil the minimum power needs. The paper presents an optimal size strategy for Economically Weaker Section (EWS) for the low power rural household application. The solar microinverter based PV System has been designed based on the daily load needs for one of the proposed layout plans of the (Gramin) Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna adopted by Government of India. The proposed designs are also applicable for other developing nations. The proposed micro-inverter has been tested under different operating conditions and experimental validation proves its superiority over other inverter types, particularly for a low power application, as is the case for a typical low-income rural household. Economic considerations such as payback period has also been evaluated in this study. In addition, the proposed microinverter technology has also been tested in terms of power quality parameters under various operating conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Almost 3 billion of the world's poorest people still rely on solid fuels, with a concomitant increase in indoor Particulate Matter (PM 2.5) concentration resulting in deaths from respiratory diseases. Increased prevalence of respiratory diseases among never smoking young individuals and fairly among women compared to men point towards a causal relationship between chronic smoke inhalation resulting from the burning of biomass fuels. Aim: To assess the quantitative exposure levels of PM 2.5 in a rural setting in South India and determine the association between PM 2.5, type of house, ventilation available and fuel used. Materials and Methods: This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted for 3 months from September 2020 to November 2020 in the rural field practice area of Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The houses were classified into three types Kutcha (roof, walls, and floor made of poor-quality materials), semi pucca (two components made of good quality material and one component is of poor quality), and pucca (roof, walls, and floor made of good quality material) houses according to Census of India 1991. The air quality inside 127 houses was assessed by measuring PM2.5 levels for 24 hours in both kitchen and living rooms. The association between house characteristics, ventilation, type of fuel, and indoor air quality was Studied using student t-test and one-way Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA). Results: Among 323 included residents, 168 were males and 155 females with the mean age 36.99±13.24 years. The difference in average house area and living area between the three types of houses were statistically significant (p-value<0.001). The mean concentrations of PM2.5 were 290.07 µg/m3 and mean differences in PM2.5 levels in living room and kitchen of semi pucca (t=7.32, p-value<0.001) and pucca houses (t=5.47, p-value<0.001) were significant. The association between cross ventilation in kitchen (OR 3.24, p-value=0.042), artificial ventilation (OR 3.23, p=0.026), type of fuel (firewood OR 2.85, p-value=0.042) and PM2.5 levels is significant at 95% CI limits. Conclusion: Indoor air pollution is a silent killer responsible for several respiratory problems. Simple cost-effective measures could reduce indoor PM2.5 levels and thereby indoor air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: India achieved elimination of leprosy nationally in 2005, but since then the number of patients with grade 2 disability at diagnosis increased steadily indicating delay in diagnosis. Therefore, there was a need for public health interventions which can increase case finding in their earlier stage. The objective of this study is to compare the effectiveness of three such community-based interventions; 1) Enhancement of community awareness on leprosy; 2) Education and motivation of "Index" leprosy cases; and 3) Involvement of Non-Formal Health Practitioners (NFHPs) to promote early detection of new cases of leprosy. Methodology/principal findings: Three community-based interventions were implemented between April 2016 and March 2018, embedded within the National Leprosy Eradication Program (NLEP) of India. Interventions were 1) increasing awareness through involvement of Gram Panchayat (local government) in the community regarding early signs of leprosy (Awareness), 2) providing health education and motivating newly diagnosed leprosy patients to bring suspects from their contacts (Index) and 3) training local non-formal health practitioners (NFHP). Each intervention was implemented in a group of ten blocks (sub-division of district) with an additional ten blocks as control (with no intervention). The main outcomes were number of new cases detected and number of grade 2 disability among them. They were obtained from the routine NLEP information system and compared between these interventions. On an average, there was an addition of 1.98 new cases in Awareness blocks, 1.13 in NFHP blocks and 1.16 cases in Index intervention blocks per month per block after adjusting for changes in control blocks during the same period. In terms of ratio, there was a 61%, 40% and 41% increase in case notification in awareness, Index and NFHP intervention, respectively. Overall, the percentage of grade 2 disability across intervention blocks declined. Conclusion: The Awareness intervention appears to be more effective in detection of new cases, compared to Index case motivation and sensitization of NFHPs. However, it is important to stress that while selecting strategies to increase early diagnosis it is important to determine, which is the most appropriate for each context or area and must be decided depending on the local context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacterial antibiotic resistance is an important global health threat and the interfaces of antibiotic resistance between humans, animals and the environment are complex. We aimed to determine the associations and overtime trends of antibiotic resistance between humans, animals and water sources from the same area and time and estimate attribution of the other sources to cases of human antibiotic resistance. A total of 125 children (aged 1–3 years old) had stool samples analysed for antibiotic-resistant bacteria at seven time points over two years, with simultaneous collection of samples of animal stools and water sources in a rural Indian community. Newey–West regression models were used to calculate temporal associations, the source with the most statistically significant relationships was household drinking water. This is supported by use of SourceR attribution modelling, that estimated the mean attribution of cases of antibiotic resistance in the children from animals, household drinking water and wastewater, at each time point and location, to be 12.6% (95% CI 4.4–20.9%), 12.1% (CI 3.4–20.7%) and 10.3% (CI 3.2–17.3%) respectively. This underlines the importance of the 'one health' concept and requires further research. Also, most of the significant trends over time were negative, suggesting a possible generalised improvement locally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Hybrid renewable energy systems (HRES) are proving a promising solution for rural electrification in India, where grid power availability is limited. This paper aims to identify the optimal design and pre‐feasibility techno‐economic analysis of the hybrid grid‐independent renewable system for rural electrification. The proposed hybrid system integrates the various renewable energy system configurations to provide continuous power for the electric load demands of Kanakadri palle village, Andhra Pradesh, India. HOMER software is utilized to design the proposed hybrid system, perform optimization, techno‐economic analysis, and simulation. Here, six different hybrid system configurations were taken into account to perform a comparative economic analysis. The results obtained shows that one of the hybrid systems, PV/DG/converter/battery system (120 kW‐PV modules, 54 kW‐DG, 200 number of batteries with 260 Ah ratings, and 50 kW‐power converters), is the least economical optimal system based on least net present cost and Levelized cost of energy (COE), highest renewable fraction, and zero unmet electric loads percentage (NPC: $341 280, COE: $0.217, highest renewable fraction: 96.6% and unmet electric loads: 0%). For the site considered, this optimal hybrid system can provide a reliable power supply to the total energy requirements of 332.97 kWh/d and achieve 75.68% carbon emission reduction compared to a diesel generator. Moreover, the comparison of different system configurations was carried out based on economic analysis. This analysis shows that proposed hybrid system can be an appropriate model to provide reliable power at a low generation cost for the village considered in this study and can be recommended for future electrification projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Input-driven agriculture has led to an epidemic of impoverishment, farmer suicides, and environmental degradation in India, but has also shown consistent staying power in Indian politics. We examine the case of organic farming policy adoption to explore this paradox. Specifically, our objective was to evaluate how the state-wide Zero Budget Natural Farming (ZBNF) program (now formally known as Community Managed Natural Farming) in Andhra Pradesh, India came to be. Evidence was drawn from government documents, field notes from a ZBNF workshop and farmer interactions, and in-depth interviews with stakeholders. Results suggest that advocacy of civil society networks, champions within the bureaucracy, emphasis on rural livelihoods, and the 20-year history of consensus building around agroecology all played a key role in the adoption of the ZBNF program in this state. Given the possibility of scaling up ZBNF at the national level, our analysis of the enabling environment is especially timely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Family planning is a key means to achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals. Around the world, governments and partners have prioritized investments to increase access to and uptake of family planning methods. In Uttar Pradesh, India, the government and its partners have made significant efforts to increase awareness, supply, and access to modern contraceptives. Despite progress, uptake remains stubbornly low. This calls for systematic research into understanding the 'why'—why people are or aren't using modern methods, what drives their decisions, and who influences them. Methods: We use a mixed-methods approach, analyzing three existing quantitative data sets to identify trends and geographic variation, gaps and contextual factors associated with family planning uptake and collecting new qualitative data through in-depth immersion interviews, journey mapping, and decision games to understand systemic and individual-level barriers to family planning use, household decision making patterns and community level barriers. Results: We find that reasons for adoption of family planning are complex–while access and awareness are critical, they are not sufficient for increasing uptake of modern methods. Although awareness is necessary for uptake, we found a steep drop-off (59%) between high awareness of modern contraceptive methods and its intention to use, and an additional but smaller drop-off from intention to actual use (9%). While perceived access, age, education and other demographic variables partially predict modern contraceptive intention to use, the qualitative data shows that other behavioral drivers including household decision making dynamics, shame to obtain modern contraceptives, and high-risk perception around side-effects also contribute to low intention to use modern contraceptives. The data also reveals that strong norms and financial considerations by couples are the driving force behind the decision to use and when to use family planning methods. Conclusion: The finding stresses the need to shift focus towards building intention, in addition to ensuring access of trained staff, and commodities drugs and equipment, and building capacities of health care providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers how solar energy discourse in the 1970s othered rural bodies in India. In the 1970s, proponents of solar energy seized the opportunity provided by the oil crisis to argue for their technology as a clean, cheap, abundant, and universal alternate. The community characterized solar energy as a technical problem, yet in house design, they relied on subjective parameters like thermal comfort. Investigating the designs of solar cooling and heating systems for houses in semi-arid rural Punjab in the 1970s, this article argues that first world parameters like "comfort" and "house" were taken as universal standards when in fact they were historically constituted ideas. This elision of history had the effect of othering the rural bodies for which they were designed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main aim of this paper is to examine the effect of urbanization on housing conditions and access to basic amenities in rural urban fringe of Faizabad city. Food, clothing and shelter are the basic needs for the survival of human beings. Although food and clothing have their own importance, however, the need of better housing conditions cannot be ignored. The inadequacy of housing conditions affects the quality of life and social well-being. Ruralurban fringe generally has unique characteristics. The mixture zone is characterized by both traditional and new houses with all facilities. This study is mainly based on secondary sources of data collected from the village directory and housing listing tables from the census of India. The paper reveals that the overall better housing conditions and housing amenities exist only in primary fringe. Thus, this paper suggests some remedial measures for improving the overall housing conditions in rural-urban fringe of Faizabad city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In India, most urban centres are expanding very rapidly both spatially and demographically. This expansion refuels the process of urbanization and spreads urban characteristics to peripheral regions. As a result, the rapid growth and expansion of urban areas to its surrounding rural hinterlands fosters unplanned and haphazard development and makes the area even more complex. Over time, the distinction between rural and urban gradually disappears, so that a new type of structure would emerge in city outskirts which is characterized by mixed forms of land-use, socioeconomic activities and termed as rural-urban fringe. The paper delineates rural-urban fringe of Uluberia municipality based on selected indicators of demographic structure and economic services. Urbanity Index and Composite Urbanity Index have been used for the delineation of rural-urban fringe. Four fringe zones of Uluberia municipality have been identified and termed by applying the Mean±Standard Deviation technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The goat is a multi-purpose animal producing meat, milk, hide, fiber and manure, and hence plays a significant role in providing supplementary income and livelihood to the huge number of asset-poor ranchers and landless workers of rural India. Aims: The present study is aimed to investigate the in vitro effects of prostaglandins E2 (PGE2) and F2α (PGF2α) on ovarian granulosa cells of a goat. Methods: The healthy, slightly atretic and atretic antral follicles of goats with diameter ranging from 3-8 mm were cultured with PGE2 and PGF2α (1.0 μg/ml) along with control for 24 h. Histomorphological analysis was done in order to study the prostaglandins induced changes in granulosa cells of all the three categories of follicles. The acridine orange (AO) and methylene blue (MB) staining were used to study the apoptotic index in all the three categories of follicles and the collected data were analyzed by ANOVA with Duncan post Hoc test. Results: Prostaglandins E2 revealed positive while PGF2α showed a negative effect on the rescue of apoptosis in granulosa cells. The PGE2 treated follicles revealed a reduction in the attributes of apoptosis in granulosa cells while PGF2α showed an increased in the apoptotic characteristics. Conclusion: The present study depicted that granulosa cell viability in vitro is dependent on the continuous supply of survival and growth factors and prostaglandin of E series synthesis is a crucial step in the suppression of granulosa cell apoptosis while that of F series induces apoptosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing school enrolment has been a focus of investment, even in remote rural areas whose populations are surplus to the requirements of the global economy. Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in primary schools and their neighbouring communities in rural areas of Lesotho, India and Laos, we explore how young people, their parents and teachers experience schooling in places where the prospects of incorporation into professional employment (or any well rewarded economic activity) are slim. We show how schooling uses aspiration, holding out a promise of a 'better future' remote from the lives of rural children. However, children's attachment to such promises is tenuous, boosted yet troubled by the small minority who defy the odds and succeed. We question why education systems continue to promote occupational aspirations that are unattainable by most, and why donors and governments invest so heavily in increasing human capital that cannot be absorbed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Qualitative scholars are increasingly arguing in favor of bridging the gap between emic and etic knowledge as well as to become critically reflexive while conducting research, especially in the underserved contexts. Conducting qualitative research in marginalized spaces of the global South often poses unique challenges. In this case, my research took place in rural eastern India where some of the challenges faced were my ethnocentrism and preconceived baggage, trust building challenges, and situated communicative and structural barriers. My field research experiences taught me the importance of unlearning, co-learning, and relearning to meaningfully engage with the underserved populations and their realities. Unlearning involves critically examining our previously acquired knowledge/assumptions toward exploring purviews and avenues for new learning. Co-learning is a process of collaborative learning with and in grassroots communities toward cocreating culturally meaningful knowledge and opening up avenues for social equality. Intertwined with unlearning and co-learning, the relearning efforts are focused on gaining and embodying new knowledge or ways of seeing. Grounded in the examples from my field research experiences, this article discusses the roles and significance of unlearning, co-learning, and relearning in conducting qualitative research in the underserved context of the global South. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Private vehicle ownership has been growing in double digits over the last decade. This paper examines the factors determining vehicle ownership for urban and rural households in India. Separate nation-wide disaggregate vehicle ownership models for urban and rural areas in India are developed using readily available consumer expenditure survey dataset. A consumption based proxy variable is assumed to represent economic standard of households. Comparison between vehicle ownership behavior of urban and rural households show that rural households are more inclined to own private vehicle than urban households with same economic standards. Amongst households with regular salaried members, rural households' preference to own two wheelers is greater than that of urban households. While the presence of elderly member or children is considered, urban households showed more preference to own four-wheeler than rural households. As a first nation-wise study to understand the differences in vehicle ownership behavior in urban and rural areas of India, this study provides a lot of useful insights which could be valuable to various stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines how the market and social logics which are supposedly counter to each other, converge into one rather than being two distinctive sets of actions, in the actions of a renewable energy social enterprise in an emerging economy context. To provide a foundation, the research draws upon literature on renewable energy, social entrepreneurship, market orientation, and social value creation. A qualitative in-depth case study research design with inductive theory-building approach for grounded theory development was conducted with two socially and environmentally inclusive renewable energy social enterprises in rural India. This resulted in a novel framework on a converging process comprising of: (a) Involved Searching, (b) Dialogic Localizing, and (c) Engaged Implementing. First, there is 'involved searching', where insights are generated through involved interactions for searching problematized contextual realities. Then, there is 'dialogic localizing', where insights are shared and acted upon through dialogically inclusive and localized solving. Finally, there is 'engaged implementing', where solutions are implemented through honest convincing and engaging mutuality. The findings make a novel contribution towards: (a) Going beyond the duality perspective and revealing social entrepreneurship as a phenomenon where the social and the market converge as an articulated whole, (b) Advancing hybrid organizing as a converging action with trappings of social value creation and market orientation, and (c) Revealing the potential of renewable energy social enterprises in blending the social and the market while working towards a sustainable environment. • Explores the social–market enactment in what a renewable energy social enterprise does. • Reveals the enactment as a convergence of the social and the market as a whole. • Generates a grounded framework on the actions constituting this convergence. • Offers an approach for research and practice to go beyond a social vs. market debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As developing countries ramp up efforts to secure adequate rural electrification, mini-grids are growing in popularity. However, a key barrier for their widespread deployment remains the inherent uncertainty around revenue and project sustainability. To address these concerns, preliminary energy-use surveys that assess the suitability of a site for mini-grid installation should be utilized. Energy-use surveys account for village demography, current and projected demand and willingness to pay, amongst other parameters. This study presents a preliminary quantitative and qualitative methodology for evaluating the suitability of a rural village for the installation of a mini-grid. The framework may be used by energy service companies and project managers prior to selecting a site for a mini-grid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Survey conducted to understand factors favouring/limiting earthen construction in India. • Low societal image of earth as building material is a key barrier towards its acceptance. • Image of earth is strongly linked to poverty and intensive maintenance requirement. • Compressed earthen technique (CSEB) has potential to improve image and acceptance for housing. • Successful demonstration in diverse location needed to promote earthen construction. There is an enormous demand for rural housing in India that needs to be catered for within a short span of time. Building with earth (mud) is proposed as an economical and environmental friendly alternative due to the rising costs of conventional building materials. However, the construction of earthen houses has significantly declined in India and thus it is necessary to evaluate if they can make a valuable contribution to contemporary housing shortage. Therefore, an informal survey was conducted in India to understand factors favouring or limiting the construction and daily use of earthen houses. The outcome of the survey suggests that 'Image' is the key barrier against a wide acceptance of traditional earthen houses which are linked to poverty. While modern earthen construction is desired, it is expensive for low-income households. The role of earth in addressing the contemporary housing shortage is analysed and suggestions are given for the implementation of modern earthen technologies for low-cost affordable rural housing. Initiatives by middle-high income households, entrepreneurs and government can trigger a widespread interest in earthen construction. Successful demonstration of durable earthen structures at diverse locations and contexts can act as catalysts for change of the image of earth and make it a desirable material for low-cost housing in rural India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volunteer tourism ('voluntourism') packages development and poverty as culturally exotic and ethical experiences for tourists from industrialized countries. Among the various sectors promoting voluntourism, university sector short term study abroad tours network voluntourism agencies, local actors (e.g., NGOs), universities, and government funding to offer students 'life changing' community sustainable development experiences. Alongside the purported benefits for all stakeholders, recent criticism points to the commodification of development and poverty through such tours and multiple pernicious effects of such travel, especially the failure to deliver community impact. Given the significant financial, political, and other interests involved, monitoring and evaluating such initiatives against transparent independent sustainability principles has proved complicated. Case studies employing ethical covert research, fieldwork, and secondary data analysis offer one approach. This case study of a purported sustainable housing project in rural Maharashtra, involving a bilateral university-government-local NGO voluntourism ecosystem lead by an Australian Green NGO (AGC) analyses the multiple gaps between participatory community sustainable development and voluntourism. This case study employs content analysis of project reports, visual data from a field visit, recent village documentary analysis, anonymized email communication, and secondary analysis of contextual data to evaluate the claims of participatory sustainable development and project outcomes of a bilateral NGO voluntourism housing project. The study findings signal lack of financial transparency, incompetent assessment of material needs, limited local participation and control, and failure to deliver on objectives. The conclusion recommends that socially responsible short-term international exchanges should be carefully monitored and exchanges should prefer knowledge exchange. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]