Search

Background: Medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol can be provided up to 63 days' gestation in India. This accounts for 67.5 percent of all abortions in the country. We conducted an assessment to determine the availability of medical abortion medicines, specifically the combi-pack, in India. Methods: We applied the World Health Organization landscape assessment protocol at the national level. The assessment protocol included a five-step adaptation of an existing availability framework, including online data collection, desk review, country-level key informant interviews, and an analysis to identify barriers and opportunities to improve medical abortion availability. The assessment was conducted between August and March 2021. Results: Medicines for medical abortion are included in the national essential drug list and available with prescription in India. The assessment identified 42 combi-pack products developed by 35 manufacturers. The quality of medical abortion medicines is regulated by national authorities; but as health is devolved to states, there are significant inter-state variations. This is seen across financing, procurement, manufacturing, and monitoring mechanisms for quality assurance of medical abortion medicines prior to distribution. There is a need to strengthen supply chain systems, ensure consistent availability of trained providers and build community awareness on use of medical abortion medicines for early abortions, at the time of the assessment. Conclusion: Opportunities to improve availability and quality of medical abortion medicines exist. For example, uniform implementation of regulatory standards, greater emphasis on quality-assurance during manufacturing, and standardizing of procurement and supply chain systems across states. Regular in-service training of providers on medical abortion is required. Finally, innovations in evidence dissemination and community engagement about the recently amended abortion law are needed. Plain language summary: Medical abortion is popular in India and benefits from a liberal legal context. It is important to understand the availability of quality abortion medicines in the country. Using the World Health Organization country assessment protocol and availability framework for medical abortion medicines we examined the availability of these medicines from supply to demand. We used this information to identify opportunities for increasing availability of quality-assured medical abortion medicines. We found that the context for medical abortion varies across states. Strengthening procurement and supply chain management, with a greater emphasis on quality-assurance and regulation of manufacturing should be instituted at the state-level. Training is also needed to increase provider knowledge of the latest national guidelines and laws to ensure respectful and person-centered services. Finally, the public should be informed about medical abortion as a safe and effective choice, especially for early abortions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Medical abortion with mifepristone and misoprostol can be provided up to 63 days' gestation in India. This accounts for 67.5 percent of all abortions in the country. We conducted an assessment to determine the availability of medical abortion medicines, specifically the combi-pack, in India. Methods: We applied the World Health Organization landscape assessment protocol at the national level. The assessment protocol included a five-step adaptation of an existing availability framework, including online data collection, desk review, country-level key informant interviews, and an analysis to identify barriers and opportunities to improve medical abortion availability. The assessment was conducted between August and March 2021. Results: Medicines for medical abortion are included in the national essential drug list and available with prescription in India. The assessment identified 42 combi-pack products developed by 35 manufacturers. The quality of medical abortion medicines is regulated by national authorities; but as health is devolved to states, there are significant inter-state variations. This is seen across financing, procurement, manufacturing, and monitoring mechanisms for quality assurance of medical abortion medicines prior to distribution. There is a need to strengthen supply chain systems, ensure consistent availability of trained providers and build community awareness on use of medical abortion medicines for early abortions, at the time of the assessment. Conclusion: Opportunities to improve availability and quality of medical abortion medicines exist. For example, uniform implementation of regulatory standards, greater emphasis on quality-assurance during manufacturing, and standardizing of procurement and supply chain systems across states. Regular in-service training of providers on medical abortion is required. Finally, innovations in evidence dissemination and community engagement about the recently amended abortion law are needed. Plain language summary: Medical abortion is popular in India and benefits from a liberal legal context. It is important to understand the availability of quality abortion medicines in the country. Using the World Health Organization country assessment protocol and availability framework for medical abortion medicines we examined the availability of these medicines from supply to demand. We used this information to identify opportunities for increasing availability of quality-assured medical abortion medicines. We found that the context for medical abortion varies across states. Strengthening procurement and supply chain management, with a greater emphasis on quality-assurance and regulation of manufacturing should be instituted at the state-level. Training is also needed to increase provider knowledge of the latest national guidelines and laws to ensure respectful and person-centered services. Finally, the public should be informed about medical abortion as a safe and effective choice, especially for early abortions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was conducted at Dry Land Agriculture Research Station (DARS), Rangreth, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India aimed to comprehensively assess 40 genotypes, alongside 5 checks, for Distinctness, Uniformity and Stability (DUS) characterization. Employing an Augmented Block Design in the field in kharif season of April-August, 2022 and a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) in the laboratory from September-March 2023, the genotypes underwent evaluation for 21 DUS traits and 43 morphological, maturity, yield and quality traits. The evaluation followed descriptors specific to rajmash genotypes, utilizing frequency distribution based on "state" and "code" for each trait. The results indicated that majority of genotypes exhibited early flowering (<50 days), with 91% displaying an absence of anthocyanin coloration. Erect plant types were prevalent (51.11%), with 51% and 60% being viny and determinate, respectively. Most genotypes featured medium-sized, light green, ovate leaves (46.66%, 53%, and 22%, respectively). White-colored flowers (48.88%) with striped petal surfaces (57.77%) and medium curvature (40.00%) were predominant. Seed-related traits, such as cordate pod shapes (51%) and concave pod sutures (50%), along with acute pod distal shapes (69%), were observed. Pale green pods (57.77%) and 76% of genotypes exhibiting pod stringiness were noted. Seed shapes were mainly kidney-shaped (60%), and absent pigmentation in pod shells (73%) was observed. Large-sized seeds (40%) with dark red testa color (44%) were common, and seed testa variegation was "absent" in 75.55% of genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Seed quality of fenugreek is determined by its primary metabolites and an alkaloid diosgenin. Apart from these fenugreek seeds contains total oil, saponins, carbohydrates, protein and major nutrients. Seeds are bitter in taste due to presence of an alkaloid “trigonelline”. In India, major cultivated area of fenugreek is still dependent on conserved moisture and moisture stress conditions reduces its productivity. Methods: A field experiment was carried out in randomized block design (RBD) with three replications during Rabi 2016-2017. Performance of ten fenugreek genotypes was evaluated on the basis of seed quality parameters under normal and water stress condition. Seed samples from both normal and water stressed plant were used for quality analysis in laboratory. Analysis of different quality parameters was done by using standard methods and protocol. Result: Water stress was found to increase seed total oil, saponins and diosgenine content in all the genotypes. Genotypes RMt-1, RMt-305 and RMt-143 were able to accumulate significantly higher total oil and diosgenine content in normal as well as water stress conditions. Water stress condition induced more saponins synthesis in genotype RMt-361 and RMt-351 while crude protein and total carbohydrate declined in all the genotypes. The minimum decrease in crude protein and carbohydrate due to water stress was recorded in genotype RMt-351 and genotypes Hisar Sonali respectively. Moisture was found to decrease in all the genotypes under influence of water stress conditions, minimum (13.75%) being observed in genotype RMt-305. Maximum seed yield was recorded in genotype RMt-361 both under normal as well as water stress conditions. Genotype RMt-1 had least reduction in yield under water stress condition (3.54%). Results suggested that a significant genotypic variation in seed quality parameters of fenugreek genotypes induced through stress may be utilize to introduce novelty of different purpose for developing new cultivars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Council for Harmonisation has released a draft version E6(R3) of the Good Clinical Practice Guideline for public consultation. The objective of the revamped guideline is to make the new provisions applicable across diverse clinical trial types and settings and to remain relevant as technological and methodological advances occur. E6(R3) includes profound changes in the structure and content of E6(R2) version, which will impact all the trial conduct processes from planning to reporting. This guideline's focus on principles, digital technology, ethics, and quality will increase the responsibilities of the ethics committees, the investigator, and the sponsor. This brief review discusses the impact of the guideline on trial conduct and the challenges of implementation in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The quality of maternity care in Tamil Nadu has significantly improved in the past few years and various public health initiatives have helped to reduce crucial indicators like Maternal Mortality Ratio and Infant Mortality Rate. The improvement in quality of interface between the mothers and service providers in term of language, behaviour and attitude for ensuring 'Respectful Maternity Care' would support further enhancement of maternal and new born outcomes. Delivery of appropriate and respectful care to each pregnant woman would not only go a long way in reducing mortality and morbidity for the woman and new-born but also help in improved cognitive development of the baby. Objective: To assess the quality of delivery care practices provided during normal delivery among women accessing public health facilities in Tamil Nadu. Methods: A descriptive evaluation study was conducted from May to December 2018 in 16 facilities across 14 districts in Tamil Nadu. The health facilities were stratified according to the level of services, Government Medical College hospitals (MC), District headquarter hospitals (DHQ), Sub-district hospitals (SDH), and PHCs, 4 facilities in each category were selected. Data was collected by direct observation using a facility observation check list in an Android-based tablet application. Informed consent was obtained from all participants. Results: A total of 1006 pregnant women out of 2242 women who had normal delivery were assessed and included in the study. More than 50% of deliveries were conducted by nurses and midwives and the perinatal and maternal outcomes were found to be good. The parameters for the respectful maternity care were recorded. Routine care monitoring parameters helped to reduce mortality rate and improved delivery care. Conclusion: The state though has achieved substantial success in promoting institutional delivery practices, still needs certain crucial improvements in the quality of respectful maternal care during the delivery. Significance: The overall pooled prevalence of disrespectful maternity care in India was 71.31% (95% CI 39.84–102.78) where every individual study prevalence ranged from 20.9 to 100%. Institutional delivery is 100 percent in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu (NFHS V) and hence it is important to assess the quality of maternity care provided in public healthcare facilities in the state. The improvement in the quality of the interface between the women and service providers in terms of language, behavior, and attitude for ensuring 'Respectful Maternity Care' would thus contribute to positive outcomes for women and their newborns, and also to ensure the cognitive development of children later in life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because of urbanization, demand for housing is increasing day by day in India. Traditional clay brick leads to resource scarcity and environmental pollution. To overwhelmed this problem, manufacturing of bricks was done using the waste of thermal power plants like Fly Ash along with Sand and Cement (FAS-C Brick) as key ingredients. Fly ash is an Industrial by-product of thermal power plant. An experimental study of mix-design was carried out to increase the quality of the FAS-C brick. This paper attempt to formulate the mix design of fly ash based brick by process planning. Laboratory tests were conducted to determine the compressive strength and water absorption of the bricks. The main objective of the research study was to design the Fly Ash, Sand, Cement (FAS-C) brick and find the compressive strength using different mix design methods as a part of quality improvement process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Low birthweight (LBW), defined as birthweight < 2500gms, is the largest contributor to the malnutrition disability-adjusted-live-years in India. We report on the inadequacy of birthweight data, which is a significant barrier in the understanding of LBW epidemiology, to address malnutrition in India. Methods: Data from the recent round of the National Family Survey (NFHS-5) were utilised. Birthweight of livebirths in the last 5 years was documented in grams either from the health card or based on mother's recall. We computed the coverage of birthweight measurement availability and the extent of heaping (values of 2500, 3000 and 3500gms) by the place of delivery and by the survival of newborn during the neonatal period. Heaping of > 55% was considered as poor-quality birthweight data. LBW prevalence per 100 livebirths was estimated and extrapolated for under-reporting of birthweight. Findings are reported for India and its 30 states. Results: Birthweight measurement coverage irrespective of the place of delivery was (89·8%; 95% CI 89·7–90) for India, and varied by 2 times among the states with the highest coverage in Tamil Nadu (99·3%) and the lowest in Nagaland (49·7%). Home deliveries had the least coverage of birthweight measurement (49.6%; 95% CI 49.0–50.1) as compared with public health facility (96.3%; 95% CI 96.2–96.3) and private health facility (96%; 95% CI 95.8–96.1) deliveries. This coverage was 66·5% (95% CI 65·2–67·7) among neonatal deaths as compared with 90.4 (95% CI 90.3–90.6) for livebirths who survived the neonatal period for India. The proportion of health card as the data source increased for livebirths born in year 2015 to year 2020 but then dropped for livebirths born in year 2021 (p < 0.001). The proportion of heaping was 52·0% (95% CI 51·7–52·2) in the recorded birthweight for India, and heaping > 55% was seen in 10 states irrespective of the type data source; and 3 states in addition had heaping > 55% in mother's recall. LBW prevalence was estimated at 17·4% (95% CI 17·3–17·6) for India, and ranged from 4.5% in Nagaland and Mizoram to 22.5% in Punjab for livebirths for whom birthweight was available. We estimated LBW at 77.8% for whom birthweight was not available, and the adjusted LBW prevalence for all livebirths was estimated at 23.5% (95% CI 23.3–23.8) for India. Conclusions: Without measuring birthweight for every newborn irrespective of the survival and place of delivery, India may not able to address reduction in low birthweight and neonatal mortality effectively to meet global or national targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a need for platelet products to have the best quality. Apheresis platelet concentrates (PCs) obtained from single-donors PCs (SD-PCs) are considered best but have issues such as feasibility and cost. Buffy-coat pooled PCs (BCP-PCs) are considered an alternative to SD-PCs. This study compares BCP-PCs and SD-PCs for in vitro quality parameters and their changes during storage. Materials and Methods: Fifteen units of BCP-PCs and 15 units of SD-PCs were prepared. In this study, a pool of five buffy coats was prepared. Fifteen units of BCP-PCs were analyzed on day 1 and day 5 of storage, while 15 SD-PCs were analyzed on day 1 while ten units on day 5. The parameters analyzed were volume, hematological parameters, pH, swirling, and sterility. Results: The mean platelets count of SD-PCs was found to be significantly higher as compared to BCP-PCs. White blood cells (WBCs) contamination was significantly lower in BCP-PCs as compared to SD-PCs. The mean pH and mean platelet volume of SD-PCs were significantly lower than BCP-PCs. During storage, the mean platelets count of BCP-PCs was decreased significantly while that of SD-PCs nonsignificantly. The mean WBCs count and pH decreased in both BCP-PCs and SD-PCs significantly. All units in both types of PCs were sterile. Conclusion: Platelet yield was significantly better in SD-PCs, while mean WBCs contamination was significantly lower in BCP-PCs. BCP-PCs may be preferred in place of SD-PCs in case of nonavailability of apheresis, difficulty in finding a willing donor, or when the cost is of consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

INTRODUCTION: In blood banking and transfusion medicine, it is of paramount importance to improve transfusion safety and provide a higher quality of product to maximize the therapeutic outcomes and minimize the risk of developing transfusion-associated complications for patients receiving a blood transfusion. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the department of transfusion medicine in a tertiary care hospital of South India from February 2019 to December 2020. The primary objective of the study was to assess the quality of platelet concentrates (PC) prepared by platelet-rich plasma (PRP), buffy-coat (BC), and apheresis method. A total of 760 PCs were subjected to quality assessment, among which 124 were PRP-PC, 176 were BC-PC, and 460 were single donor platelet (SDP). RESULTS: The total percentage of platelets meeting all the six quality control parameters in PRP, BC and SDP was 78.23%, 81.81%, and 89.96%, respectively. Apheresis PCs showed a significantly higher platelet concentration per |JL on comparison with whole-blood-derived platelets. BC-PCs were found to be better than PRP-PC with regard to lower white blood cell (WBC) contamination (P < 0.05) and red blood cell (RBC) contamination (P < 0.01). No statistically significant difference was found with regard to platelet yield, volume, swirling, and pH. CONCLUSION: Ex vivo quality of PCs prepared by BC-PC, PRP-PC, and apheresis-PC fulfilled the desired quality control parameters. BC-PC was better than PRP-PC in terms of lesser WBC and RBC contamination and comparable in terms of volume, platelet yield, swirling, and pH. Apheresis PCs showed a higher platelet concentration per microliter on comparison with whole-blood-derived platelets; hence in a blood center where facilities for collection of apheresis product are available, SDPs should be the choice of platelet transfusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Indian economy was a traditional economy with majority of people having a preference towards home cooked food which consist of nutritional value. This was a major challenge to global fast food to setup their business in India. In the present scenario, traditional food is replaced by fast foods. Due to the changes in lifestyle pattern demand for fast food is increasing day by day. Today fast food industry is one of the leading industries in India. This present study is focused on determine youth's consumption pattern towards fast foods particularly with respect to the frequency of visits and choice of fast food outlets. It is found that most of the customers are willing to spend more if food quality & Improvement in the menu. Major concern is on Employee friendliness, where the food courts can further extend seating space and can bring more marketing strategies to attract more customers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Most maternal deaths are preventable because there are proven medical procedures to prevent, diagnose, and treat problems. Basic maternal services help reduce and manage pregnancy complications and reduce preventable deaths. Aim and Objective: To assess the quality and extent of maternal and infant health services provided. Material and Methods: The present cross-sectional study was conducted by the Department of Community Medicine, GSVM Medical College Kanpur, using a multistage random sample including women with children less than one year of age and infants (less than one year of age) born to these women in rural blocks of Kanpur Nagar district to assess maternal and infant care services from February 2021 to September 2022. Results: Weight and height were measured in 86.58% of participants, abdominal examination was performed in 81.52% of participants, and blood pressure was checked in 86.84% of participants. Hb test was done in 91.65% participants, urine test for proteinuria was done in 28.35% participants, majority of the study participants received counseling on danger signs (79.49%), dietary counseling (86.58%), newborn care (94.43%), family planning (87.84%). Similar results to NFHS-5 in rural Uttar Pradesh were found in previous published research. Conclusion: The percentage of 4 ANC visits was found to be low in the present study along with low consumption of iron and folic acid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan (L.) Millsp.) is grown globally for its protein rich seed. Low availability of soil nutrients adversely affects the seed yield of pigeonpea crop in alfisols (acidic soils). The present investigation was conducted to assess the effect of integrated nutrient management practices on productivity, profitability and quality of pigeonpea cultivation in the Eastern Ghat High Land Zone of Odisha, India. Field experiment was conducted for three consecutive kharif (rainy) seasons of 2015, 2016 and 2017 with seven treatments [absolute control, 100% recommended dose of NPK fertilizer (i.e., N:P2O5:K2O @ 25:50:50 kg ha−1), 100% NPK + lime @ 0.2 lime requirement or LR, 75% N + 100% PK + Rhizobium @ 20 g kg−1 as seed inoculation + PSB @ 5 kg ha−1 as soil application, 75% N + 100% PK + Rhizobium + PSB + lime, 50% N + 100% PK + Rhizobium + PSB, and 50% N + 100% PK + Rhizobium + PSB + lime], replicated thrice, taking pigeonpea cv. VL-Arhar-1 as test crop under a randomized block design. It was observed that productivity, quality and nutrient uptake of pigeonpea were higher in 75% N + 100% PK + Rhizobium + PSB + lime treated plots over other nutrient management treatments and absolute control treatment. Similarly, maximum gross return (Indian Rupees or INR 72,183 ha−1), net return (INR 49,118 ha−1) and benefit:cost ratio or B:C ratio (3.13) were recorded from combined application of 75% N + 100% PK, Rhizobium, PSB and lime treated plots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Number of trials in India shows an increasing trend. As these trials will shape clinical practice, their quality is of utmost importance. Among many tools to assess the quality of randomized control trials (RCTs), risk of bias (RoB) is most robust. Aims: To understand the quality of trials being carried out in India in terms of RoB. Settings and Design: We aimed to assess the RoB in a set of RCTs published in Indian pharmacology of randomized trials from journals pertaining to pharmacology. Subjects and Methods: We used published journal articles as source of information for randomized clinical trials and evaluated them using Cochrane RoB tool 2.0. Statistical Analysis Used: Descriptive statistics were used. Results: 158 trials published in seven journals were evaluated in six different domains. Overall evaluation for 97% (153) trials was "high risk," while 3% (5) were in "some concerns" category, with no trials categorized as "low risk. 74% articles showed a high risk of bias in the domain of 'selection of reported results. Nearly half articles scored "low risk" in domains of "missing data" and "deviations in assignment to intervention." The study results showed a slowly increasing trend of average RoB over the last 10 years. Conclusions: The study shows concerning rise in RoB in various domains RCTs published in Pharmacology journals in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The newly adopted performance-based evaluation and funding model is one of the recent quality initiatives taken by the University Grants Commission in India, which aims to improve quality in management and administration of federally funded universities in India. The article critically analyses the 2020 released ranking based on this model and raises some critical observations about the methodology and results of the ranking, discussing the key features of the ranking framework. The findings suggest that universities ranked higher in the National Institutional Ranking Framework and National Assessment and Accreditation Council ratings have performed not at par with their ranks in this target-based methodology. Only one university of 40 could find a place in the 'outstanding' category and one university was categorised as 'poor'. The article goes on to discuss the current state and future directions of central universities in India aspiring to join the 'world-class' league. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proper protocol of efficient irrigation and nutrient management for ginger is a necessity for boosting the productivity and quality of the crop in high-intensity cultivated lands. For this, a field experiment for 3 consecutive years was conducted in an Inceptisol of India to optimize irrigation schedule and nutrient management for augmenting rhizome yield and crop water productivity (CWP) of ginger. The trial was laid out in a split plot design with 12 treatment combinations consisting of 4 levels of irrigation schedules viz., rainfed (I1) and a ratio of 0.6 (I2), 0.9 (I3) and 1.2 (I4) of irrigation water to cumulative pan evaporation (IW/CPE) and 3 levels of nutrient management: 100% recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF) through inorganic (N1), 75% RDF (inorganic) + 25% RDF through vermicompost (VC) (N2) and 50% RDF (inorganic) + 50% RDF through VC (N3). Mean maximum growth and yield components, quality parameters, green rhizome yield (12.63 Mg·ha-1) and highest nutrient uptake were obtained with I4N2, which was statistically on par with I3N2. The treatment combination I1N2 exhibited maximum CWP. Well-managed irrigation and nutrient scheduling is key to improving ginger production and its marketability for better financial returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Legumes are one of the major sources of dietary proteins for the people of India and is an inevitable component of vegetarians' diet. Among them cowpea pods and seeds are rich source of protein and accrue delicacy in cuisines. Adequate amounts of fertilizers applied through most effective and economic means can raise productivity and profitability of cowpea cultivation. Hence the present study was formulated with an objective to study the effect of water-soluble macro and micro nutrient fertilizers on nodulation, quality and nutrient uptake of vegetable cowpea. Methods: Field experiment was conducted at Coconut Research Station, Balaramapuram during the period from 12 November 2020 to 31 January 2021. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with 13 treatments in 3 replications. The treatments comprised of recommended dose of fertilizers (RDF) as control and RDF + foliar application of NPK 19:19:19 (0.5%) or potassium nitrate (0.5%) alone or in combination with ZnSO4 (0.05%) and solubor (0.025%). Result: Foliar nutrition of micro and macro nutrients had significant effect on nodulation, quality and nutrient uptake. Foliar nutrition of 19:19:19 resulted in the production of higher number of nodules than KNO3. Among the treatments, RDF (20:30: 10 kg NPK ha-1) + foliar application of 19:19:19 (0.5%) + solubor (0.025%) at 45 DAS resulted in higher number of nodules and nodule fresh weight per plant, however higher number of effective nodules was recorded in RDF + foliar nutrition of 19:19:19 (0.5%) alone at 45 DAS. The highest uptake of N, P and K by the crop was also recorded in RDF + foliar application of 19:19:19 (0.5%) + solubor (0.025%) at 45 DAS. Zinc uptake was the highest in RDF + foliar application of KNO3 (0.5%) 45 and 60 DAS and B uptake was the highest in RDF + foliar application of KNO3 (0.5%) + solubor (0.025%) at 45 DAS. The highest crude protein content was recorded in RDF + foliar nutrition of 19:19:19 (0.5%) + ZnSO4 (0.05%) and solubor (0.025%) at 45 DAS fb 19:19:19 (0.5%) at 60 DAS. The treatment, RDF + foliar application of 19:19:19 (0.5%) + solubor (0.025%) at 45 DAS resulted in the highest number of pods and green pod yield per plant in bush type vegetable cowpea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiments were undertaken at 'C' Block Farm of Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Kalyani, Nadia, West Bengal, India during 2017-18 and 2018-19 to study the genetic variability, heritability and genetic gain of 23 onion genotypes. Twenty open-pollinated varieties, two hybrid varieties were taken under consideration with one variety taken as standard check. Characters like number of leaves at 30 DAT and 90 DAT, neck thickness, number of scales per bulb, bolters, average weight of 10 bulbs, vitamin C content, dry matter, TSS, phenol content, severity of purple blotch disease, total yield and marketable yield expressed high heritability along with high genetic gain. These traits were least influenced by environmental effect, so, additive genetic effect might be the influential factor for expression of such traits. Traits with such high heritability values gives clear indication that the variability observed was mainly under genetic control and offers ample scope and opportunities to conduct selection based on phenotypic performances for improvement in future onion breeding programme. For traits with moderate heritability viz., double bolters, pyruvic acid, total sugar, storage loss, selection would be less effective in these traits but can still be taken up. Characters plant height at 90 DAT and unmarketable yield, which expressed low heritability are governed by non-additive genes and therefore, hybridization between diverse parents will be the best strategy for their improvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In 'To Err is Human' released by the Institute of Medicine Committee on Quality of Health Care, it was emphasized that it is important to establish a safety culture in the hospitals and ensure that patients are not inadvertently harmed by errors.Objective: Hence, we developed and validated a questionnaire for assessing the perception of patient safety practices across secondary and tertiary care facilities in India.Method: The scale was developed based on the literature review and expert opinion. It consisted of 10 questions, and the responses to these items were based on a five-point Likert scale ranging from 'strongly agree' to 'strongly disagree'. All analysis was performed using STATA version 14.2 software. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was run using principal component analysis with oblique promax rotation and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) using structural equation modelling with maximum likelihood estimation.Results: The entire dataset was split into testing set to run EFA (with 692 participants) and validation set to run CFA (with 645 participants). In EFA, two factors were retained as they had eigenvalue more than one (4.76, 1.09) and the scree plot also showed that the slope flattens off after two factors. Factor loadings were generated using oblique promax rotation. Factor 1 consisted of seven items (Item 1, Item 2, Item 3, Item 4, Item 5, Item 6 and Item 7-questions related to patient-doctor communication, hospital environment and procedures) accounting for 47.6% of variance, and Factor 2 had three items (Item 8, Item 9 and Item 10-infection prevention and control practices in hospital) explaining 10.9% of the variance. Thus, together, the two factors explained 58.5% of the variance. CFA revealed good confirmatory fit indices of 0.85, standardized root mean square residual of 0.07 and acceptable Tucker-Lewis Index of 0.80. The reliability coefficient was 0.88 indicating very good internal consistency.Conclusion: This study develops and validates a scale that can be used universally for assessing the patients' perception on hospital safety practices across secondary and tertiary care facilities in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving efficiencies of water and nutrients is considered as a most vital factor for augmenting mulberry productivity. In this study, low-cost drip fertigation (LCDF) systems were evaluated on leaf yield, quality, water use efficiency (WUE), and nutrient use efficiency (NUE) utilizing 12 year-old S1635 mulberry plantation. Treatments were drip tape and drum-kit drip fertigation in different quanta of Recommended Dose (at 50%, 75% & 100%; RD: 67 kg N, 36 kg P2O5, and 22 kg K2O ha−1 crop−1). A plot with surface irrigation at 100% RD was maintained as control. Fertigation of 100% RD produced the best results in terms of growth, leaf yield, and quality, but is statistically at par with 75% RD fertigation under LCDF. Fertigation of 75% RD through LCDF increased the leaf yield by 26% and leaf quality by 56% (TSP: Total soluble protein) and 28% (TSS: Total soluble sugar) as compared to control. LCDF reduced water requirement by 24% resulting in increased WUE (61%) and NUE (63%). Fertigation at 75% RD could be the optimal quantum for sustainable mulberry leaf production in Eastern India; might equally be the climate-smart-sericulture option for economically poor and marginal stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maize, referred as Queen of cereals is the third most important cereal crop after rice and wheat in India. Maize serves as both human food as well as animal feed and for. Productivity of maize can be increased by proper nutrient management practices. Maize is a zinc responsive crop and found deficient in soils. Zinc as an essential micronutrient that has significant role in basic plant metabolic processes and enhances the growth, yield and quality of maize by stimulating chlorophyll production, photosynthetic activity, nutrient uptake and protein biosynthesis. The zinc application to maize crop either by seed treatment, soil application or by foliar spray by using inorganics have shown significant impact on growth, yield, nutrient uptake, quality and economics from investigations of eminent researchers with increasing trend in productivity. Application of zinc at 20-25 kg ha-1 to maize gave maximum grain yield (7500 kg ha-1) and benefit cost ratio (2.4) in maize. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Double fortified salt (DFS) has proven efficacy in addressing iron deficiency and anaemia, thus improving maternal and child nutrition outcomes. However, DFS delivery in large‐scale settings is less understood, with limited documentation of its fidelity of implementation (FOI). We assessed the FOI of the DFS intervention in Uttar Pradesh, India, to improve the design and implementation of such programmes that aim to reduce the anaemia burden, especially in women of reproductive age (WRA). We conducted in‐depth interviews with DFS programme staff (n = 25) and end‐user WRAs (23), guided by a programme impact pathway. We transcribed and thematically analysed the interviews and used an adapted analytic framework to document FOI across four domains—objects of intervention, implementation staff, implementation context and target of implementation. DFS utilisation remained low due to a combination of factors including poor product quality, distribution challenges, ineffective promotion and low awareness amongst end‐user WRAs. Motivation levels were higher amongst district‐level staff compared to frontline staff, who lacked supervisory support and effective incentives to promote DFS. Three typologies of DFS users emerged—'believers', 'thrifters' and 'naysayers'—who indicated differing reasons for DFS purchase and its use or nonuse. The implementation of the DFS programme varied significantly from its theorised programme impact pathway. The adapted analytic framework helped document FOI and assess the programme's readiness for impact assessments and subsequent scale‐up. The programme needs product quality improvements, incentivised distribution and stronger promotion to effectively deliver and improve the realisation of its potential as an anaemia prevention strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The investigations were carried out during 2016-17 and 2017-18 under three different coloured shade nets (white, green and red) along with the controlled environment (open condition) at Horticultural Research Station, Mondouri, Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, West Bengal, India to study the production behavior of Asparagus plumosus, India. The experiments were arranged in Complete Randomized Design (CRD) with four replications and maintained in pots. Similar management practices were followed for all the treatments throughout the growing period. The pooled data of two years revealed that plants grown under the green shade net showed significant improvement in all the vegetative parameters i.e. plant height (109.6 cm), plant spread (70.67 cm), leaf length (33.35 cm), leaf breadth (22.00 cm) and petiole girth (0.80 cm), whereas lowest data observed in the plants maintained without any shade net. The leaf production was also better in the plants raised under green shade net than other treatments. The highest number of leaves per plant and leaf longevity was found in green shade net treatment. The leaf production interval was remarkably lowest in the plants grown under green shade net. The leaf quality was better under green shade net in terms of colour intensity, vase life and chlorophyll content. The green shade net gave overall better performance regarding both physiological and quality parameters and can be suitable for commercial cultivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is an important protein-rich winter vegetable of our country but extensively grown in south Chhotanagpur plateau of Jharkhand during both kharif and rabi seasons. However, indiscriminate uses of agrochemicals lead to production of poor quality pods of the crop due to residual toxicity. Hence, the current study was aimed to evaluate of the crop varieties based on their yield and quality traits expression under organic growing condition. Methods: The present investigation was carried out by adopting five bush type varieties of French bean (V1: Arka Komal, V2: Swarna Priya, V3: HAFB-2, V4: HAFB-4 and V5: Falcon). They were grown independently under two growing conditions viz. organic farming (Oi) where FYM, vermicompost and Shasyagavya were used as organic inputs and absolute control (O0) where no organic input was applied. These varieties were grown with their four replications in each of the experimental situate following RCBD experimental design. Different yield and its attributes and proximate quality traits were studied under both growing conditions for their evaluation. Result: Findings revealed that most of the studied traits were influenced by organic growing condition with significant differences among varieties to pod length, pods per plant, pod weight, green pod yield, ascorbic acid, TSS and protein content. Consequently, the maximum green pod yield (17.55 t ha-1) was estimated in HAFB-4 under organic growing condition as against 7.57 t ha-1 under the absolute control condition. Different proximate quality traits were also expressed independently under different varietal situates but responded better under organic growing condition than its respective absolute control counterpart. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on the provision of center-based preschool education for children ranging in age from 3 to 6 years in India. It estimates access rates to various services and highlights issues related to equitable access to preschool services and the quality of preschool education. While India has made great strides in improving access to preschool education, numerous challenges have to be addressed to enhance its quality. The National Educational Policy 2020 and the country's commitment to meet UN Sustainable Development Goal Target 4.2 by 2030 and ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality pre-primary education provide opportunities to ensure equitable access to quality preschool education. Central to meeting national targets is the enforcement of the National Quality Standards for Early Childhood Care and Education. Further, increased budget allocations to preschool education, prioritizing professional preparation of the early childhood work force and harnessing technology to monitor government programs have considerable potential to enhance the early childhood system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A research study was conducted with nine dwarf Roselle germplasm of H. sabdariffa var. sabdariffa at College of Horticulture, Sri Konda Laxman Telangana State Horticultural University, Hyderabad, Telangana State, India during first week, October, 2019 to 2nd week, January, 2020. The analysis of variance for yield and its contributing characters was found to be significant for all the characters. Based on mean performance, the Roselle accession SAS-14139-1 was the best performance for yield, number of fruits per plant and plant height. Seven accessions produced green calices with red tinging, which are having good demand in the market. Good amount of genetic variability was associated with the germplasm for majority of the characters. Significant differences (p<0.05) were observed for yield characters of the accessions. This is an indication that there is a store of genetic variability that can be exploited for the improvement of Roselle in India. There was also pronounced variation in yield and other morphological parameters, suggesting the possibility of evolving higher yield variants of Roselle through proper selection. High heritability was registered with plant height, number of branches per plant and fruit yield per plant. The present study identified agronomically better germplasm for yield exploitation coupled with high heritability characters for future varietal development and use as parents in further breeding programmes in Roselle, a future reliable vegetable crop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Field experiment was conducted in the Department of Vegetable Crops, Horticultural College and Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India to evaluate the cherry tomato F1 hybrids along with their parents and checks for yield and quality characters under shade net condition. Among the hybrids, the hybrid LE 1223 x Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 recorded the highest fruit yield/plant (2325.35 g) followed by VGT 89 x LE 13 (2323.47 g), Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 87 (1598.54 g) and Pant Cherry Tomato 1 x VGT 89 (1568.34 g). Pant Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 1223 recorded the highest fruit firmness (1.61 kg/sq. cm) followed by Pant Cherry Tomato 1 x IIHR 2754 (1.33 kg/sq. cm). The cross Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 1223 recorded the highest pericarp thickness (2.54 mm) followed by Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 87 (2.51 mm). Among the hybrids, Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 87 and Pusa Cherry Tomato 1 x LE 1223 recorded the highest shelf life (32.00 days) followed by VGT 89 x LE 1223 (31.50 days). LE 1223 x LE 87 registered the highest total soluble solids of 8.75 °Brix, followed by LE 87 x IIHR 2753 (8.72 °Brix) and Pant Cherry Tomato 1 x IIHR 2753 (8.70 °Brix). IIHR 2753 x VGT 89 registered the highest lycopene content (8.72 mg/100 g) followed by LE 1223 x LE 87 (8.65 mg/100 g) and LE 1223 x LE 13 (8.61 mg/100 g). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Brinjal or eggplant (Solanum Melongena L.), a member of solanacea family, is one of the most common vegetable crops grown in India. Brinjal is staple vegetable in almost all tropical countries in the world and liked by both poor and rich. Its nutritive value varies among varieties. It contains vitamin A and B. Since there is a common belief that it is not good vegetable more while brinjal may have the medicinal property like white brinjal which is used for Diabetics patients. The basic concept underlying the principles is the maintenance and improvement of soil fertility for sustaining crop productivity on a long-term basis, which can be achieved through the combined use of various sources of nutrients and by managing them scientifically along with optimum growth, yield and quality of crop. Considering the above facts, the present study was therefore under taken to investigate the intergraded management on yield and yield contributing characters of brinjal and on soil properties. Methods: An experiment was conducted at Horticulture Experimental field Department of Horticulture, Naini Agriculture Institute, SHUATS, Allahabad during Rabi season of 2016-17. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with 8 treatments and each replicated thrice. Thirty days old healthy and uniform seedlings were transplanted on 24thSep. 2016. Result: Overall vegetative parameters were influenced due to application of Nutrient through combination of organic manure and inorganic fertilizers were proved beneficially for increasing growth of brinjal crop. The fruit and yield parameters like Average fruit weight, Length of fruit, Diameter of Fruit, Fruit per plot, Fruit per plant and Fruit per hectare was influenced significantly by the combination of organic and inorganic fertilizers in different treatments which were recorded after harvesting of fruits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An experiment was conducted at the Indian Institute of Spices Research, Regional Station, Madikeri, Karnataka, to study physiology, yield and quality responses of six small cardamoms [Elettaria car- damomum (L.) Maton] genotypes (Appangala-1, PV-1, ICRI-2, FGB-34, PV-2 and Green Gold) selected from three ecotypes (Malabar, Mysore and Vazhukka) during 2018-2019. The experiment was designed in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. Results showed Green Gold registered a more dry capsule yield (673.8 kg ha-1) followed by Appangala-1 (576.4 kg ha-1). Physiological attributes like photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, epicuticular wax and total chlorophyll content were higher for Green Gold closely followed by Appangala-1. Canopy temperature was lower considerably in both genotypes. Both Appangala-1 and Green Gold reported a higher concentration of 1,8-cineole accordingly 43.9 % and 40.8 %. Therefore, these types impart higher camphorous odor compared to other genotypes. Other genotypes PV-1 and ICRI-2 succinctly had a higher quantity of α-terpinyl acetate (41.6 % and 40.3 % respectively) that conveys their sweet pleasant aroma. The volatile oil of PV-2 and FGB-34 possessed a higher proportion of α-terpinyl acetate (37.9 % and 37.9 % in order) and linalool (11.1 % and 7.1 %, correspondingly) which render the sweet aroma and acceptable flavor quality to these genotypes. Other compounds like sabinene, myrcene, terpinen-4-ol, α-terpineol and geraniol showed little variation among the genotypes studied. The results of the study highlight Green Gold as a physiologically superior and high yielding genotype and PV-2 as a better quality genotype for its supremacy of pleasant sweet aroma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A high yielding new forage oat entry, JHO-2015-1, a derivative of the cross between UPO 90 x IGO2-70 was released as Bundel Jai-2015-1 during the year 2018 as an alternate variety for irrigated, timely sown conditions in tropical and subtropical regions during winter season in the hilly areas of India. Variety is ready for fodder harvesting with 50 per cent of flowering in 110-120 days with additional desirable features like high green forage yield, dry matter yield, physiological efficiency and better adaptability. The variety has high crude protein content, crude protein yield and high nutritional quality for in vitro dry matter digestibility and low in ADF and NDF content. A semi erect stature variety having efficient tillering capacity, with highly acceptable plant morpho-characters, good for single cut system and with medium size of grains. An efficient material with positive response to nitrogenous fertilizer treatments for green fodder, dry matter, crude protein yield (q/h) and content (%) and the number of tillers present in per meter row length and moderately resistant to leaf blight and powdery mildew. In the overall performance, the mean green forage yield of 292.65 q/ha was recorded for entry, JHO-15-1 in five years of trials with 14-15 per cent increase over check varieties. Besides the mean dry matter yield recorded for entry was 96.6 q/ha in five years of trials with 24-26 per cent increase over check varieties. At Srinagar district of Kashmir the entry has recorded the highest green forage yield of 479.0 q/ ha and 122.3 q/ha of dry matter yield among the trials conducted, this demonstrate the genetic potential. The per day productivity of entry JHO-15-1 for green forage yield and dry matter yield and seed yield is also higher than the other released and tested varieties like Kent,OS-6 and SKO-90. Crude protein yield of entry was 3.9 q/ha, IVDMD was 54.8% and CP content was 10.0%. The entry JHO-15-1 was recommended for cultivation in hilly areas of Jammu, Himachal Pradesh and Srinagar areas of India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rice is most important food crop of India and grown in different regions with differential consumer preferences for grain siz e, shape, aroma and cooking qualities. Therefore, crop improvement in rice not only focused on yield but also to enhance quality. Hence the present investigation was carried out with an objective of assessing the character association among twenty-two morphological and quality characters of thirty basmati rice (Oryza sativa L) genotypes. Correlation analysis revealed that Seed yield was significantly and positively associated with days to maturity (0.330**), number of tillers per plant (0.434**), number of grains per panicle (0.358**), grain weight per panicle (0.410**), and flag leaf length (0.258*). The days to maturity exhibi ted a significant positive correlation with plant height, panicle length, grain weight per plant, kernel length before cooking, ker nel length after cooking and L: B ratio. Tiller per plant reflected the positive and significant association with a number of gra ins per panicle, grain weight per panicle and grain weight per plant. Flag leaf length showed a significant positive correlation with a number of grains per panicle and grain weight per plant, while Grains per panicle was positively and significantly associated with grain weight per panicle, grain weight per plant and kernel breadth before cooking. Grain weight per panicle exhibited a significant positive association with grain yield per plant (0.410**), kernel breadth before cooking (0.381**), 100 grain wei ght (0.240*) and 100 kernel weight (0.210*). These characters could be utilized to form a selection index for improvement of the basmati rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maize (Zea mays L.) is one of the most versatile crops and can be grown in diverse environmental conditions and has diversified uses as human food and animal feed. Maize grains cannot be considered only as a source of energy, as they provide significant amounts of protein as well. It is also recognized that maize grains have low micronutrient concentrations, particularly Zinc. Zn2+ is an essential nutrient that has particular physiological functions in all living systems, such as the maintenance of structural and function of protein synthesis, gene expression, enzymes structure, energy production, krebs cycle, carbohydrate metabolism, photosynthesis, auxin metabolism, pollen formation, and resistance to infection by certain pathogen, also has a positive impact on crop yield. Therefore, crops qualitative and quantitative yield is strongly dependent on Zinc in the soil. Zinc deficiency is a problem, in almost all the crops and calcareous soils, intensively cropped soils, paddy soils and poorly drained soils, sodic soils and saline soils, peat soils, soils with high available phosphorus and silicon, sandy soils, highly weathered acid, and coarse textured soils. Phosphorus and copper have an antagonistic impact on Zinc. Zinc deficiency can affect plant by stunting its growth, decreasing crop maturity period, spikelet sterility, and inferior quality of harvest products. Maize is known as an indicator plant for the evaluation of Zn deficiency of a soil. The magnitude of zinc deficiency varies widely among soil types with reduction in crop yield and quality to the tune of 25–35% and in turn questions the nutritional security of human beings in developing countries like India, where cereals are the staple food. Despite high yield potential of maize, it gives low yields and low micronutrient content because of improper fertilizer management practices. Increasing productivity per unit area through proper management is one of the important strategies to increase the production of maize as well as micronutrient enrichment in grains. Understanding the distribution of zinc (Zn) in soils is important for effective and efficient management of the fertilizer resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black seeds ( Nigella sativa) owe an important place due to its more demand as a food as well as medicine. A lack of information does exist regarding the quality and safety for market-available food-grade samples of black seed (BS). The aim of this study is to investigate the quality and standardize the BS samples according to world health organization (WHO) guidelines of instrumental analysis and pharmacological activities. Instrumental analysis was performed with the help of ASE (accelerated solvent extraction), IR (infrared spectroscopy), UHPLC (ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography) and NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy) whereas ash values and chemical tests were applied for physicochemical analysis. DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl), ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and cytotoxicity assay were performed as well. A high extract yield (g) with recovery of 4.4 ± 7.7 (22%) for Pakistani, 3.3 ± 4.7 (16.5%) for Indian and 3.02 ± 10.2 (15.1%) for Saudi Arabian sample. Chemical tests showed the presence of phenolic compounds and flavonoids. Saudi Arabian samples showed less amount for ash values (total-, water soluble- and acid insoluble ash). The samples were standardized further with the help of NMR and IR. A significant amount of micro- and macronutrients was observed in Saudi Arabian sample. With regard to the major active substance Thymoquinone (THQ; ng/mL), the order of concentration was observed as; Saudi Arabian sample (33141.1) > Pakistani (7677.2) > Indian sample (3998.6). A more potency for Saudi Arabian sample was observed during antioxidant and cytotoxicity assays. The method was successful to effectively discriminate the samples from different geographical origin, in terms of quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India is facing various challenges in fruit cultivation viz., climate change, increasing pressure on natural resources, decreasing land tenure with the ever-increasing population. Besides this, the demand for quality fruit is also on the rise as people are now more aware of a nutritious and healthy diet. The quality with higher production is difficult with the traditional system of cultivation and requires a more scientific approach in cultivation. Greenhouse cultivation technology can enhance quality and quantity both. This technology is required to convert some portion of the present 6.5 million ha of the fruit-growing area to increase national productivity and product quality. The purpose of greenhouse cultivation is to grow crops by altering the micro-environment surrounding the crop so that the plant performs maximum to its genetic potential. It also increases the yield, improves the quality and stability of production and makes commodities available when there is no outdoor production. China is the world leader in greenhouse fruit production with the largest area under this technology. In India, greenhouse fruit cultivation is in its infancy as the only strawberry is commercially being grown under greenhouses. However, in fluctuating environmental conditions and losses in fruit crops due to various biotic and abiotic stresses, protecting the fruit crops for the off-season, quality and higher production will be a necessity in future. Keeping in view the low productivity of fruit crops in India and future needs of round the year quality production, an overview of work and cultivation scenario on this aspect is discussed in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of organic manures in the agricultural plays a vital role in improving the quality of turmeric as well as improving the soil health. Turmeric is having a close relation with human health; hence demand of organically grown turmeric is increasing tremendously. A field trial was conducted to study the effect of different organic manures (generally recommended fertilizer dose, farmyard manure, vermicompost, press mud compost, poultry manure, sugarcane trash, wheat straw, turmeric trash and jeevamrut) on the yield and curcumin content of turmeric Cv. Phule Swarupa on Inceptisol at Agricultural Research Station, Dist-Sangli, Maharashtra, India. The trial was conducted on the fixed site of soil for the continuous of five years (2009-2013). The maximum dry yield (62.42 q ha-1) of the turmeric was recorded by application of the general recommended dose of fertilizer (GRDF) i. e. 25 MT FYM + 200:100:100 kg N:P2O5:K2O ha-1 which was at par with the vermicompost (11.36 T ha-1). The highest number of leaves per tiller and number of tillers per plant, plant height and curcumin content was recorded in the GRDF, which was at par with vermicompost. The highest benefit: cost ratio (1.59) was also noticed in GRDF, which was at par with the application of vermicompost (1.54) on a nitrogen basis. The soil available nutrient status was taken into consideration during experimentation. The application of vermicompost (11.36 T ha-1) along with Phosphate Solubilizing Bacteria and Azospirillium @ 5 kg ha-1, respectively at the time of planting was found superior for higher dry yield (55.45 q ha-1), net monetary returns (Rs. 137035) and maintenance of soil fertility for organic cultivation of turmeric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: L‐asparaginase is an essential medicine in the treatment of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and the quality of generic formulations is an area of concern. We compared nine generic formulations of L‐asparaginase available in India with the innovator. Methods: The quality of formulations was assessed by measuring 72‐hour trough asparaginase activity in children with ALL during induction following administration of 10,000 IU/m2 of L‐asparaginase. In‐vitro analysis of the label claim was assessed by measuring activity of three generic formulations. Liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry (LC/MS) was used to determine the amount of host contaminant proteins (HCPs) in the formulations. Results: Between March 2015 to June 2018, 240 samples from 195 patients were analyzed. The number of samples analyzed ranged from 7–66 per generic brand (median: 18) and seven of the innovator. The proportion of generic formulations that failed to achieve a predefined clinical threshold activity of 50 IU/L ranged from 16.7% (2/12) to 84.9% (28/33) in the highest activity to lowest activity generic respectively. On other hand, all innovator samples had activity greater than 50 IU/L. In‐vitro asparaginase activity in the three generic formulations tested ranged from 71.4–74.6% of the label claim (10,000 IU) compared to 93.5% for the innovator. LC/MS analysis of generic 5 identified 25 HCPs with a relative peptide count of 27.1% of the total peptides. Conclusions: Generic formulations had lower asparaginase activity which raises serious clinical concerns regarding their quality. Until stringent regulatory enforcement improves the quality of these generics, dose adaptive strategies coupled with therapeutic drug monitoring need to be considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water is essential for all living organisms. The addition of Chemicals will become a prime source for contamination of groundwaters near Agricultural activity areas. Keeping in view the hectic agricultural activity in West Godavari District of AP, India, it is proposed to assess the chemical toxicity of waters to suggest the remedial measures to protect the quality of waters to safeguard the health of the public residing in the nearby habitations of Agricultural activity areas. 16 Groundwater samples were collected and characterized for physicochemical parameters viz., pH, EC, TDS, TA, TH, DO, CO32-, HCO3-, Cl-, SO42-, PO43-, NO3-, Ca2+, Mg2+, Na+, K+ to evaluate the quality of waters to assess their potentials for application. The waters were characterized for metal ions viz., Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Pb, As and Hg. Some waters are observed with Arsenic concentration while the concentrations of other metals are within the permissible limit. Further, the groundwaters were characterized to assess the microbial contamination and the waters were found to contain pathogenic bacterial species which can cause water-borne diseases. A health survey was carried out and the results revealed the sufferings of the people from health problems which are correlated with the presence of pathogenic bacterial species. The research results revealed that waters are with chemical and microbial contamination and proper treatment is to be done for controlling the toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development in the country's health status has not kept pace with its economic development. Although India along with most countries of the world was a signatory to the Alma Ata Declaration of 1978, its performance particularly on health equity and quality issues, so far, has been far from satisfactory. There are vast variations in health-care status by states, by ethnic groups, gender, and urban-rural difference. Till recently, government policies and people's perceptions also seemed to be on the wrong track. Our priorities seemed to be all wrong - we seemed to prefer setting up of high-cost tertiary health institutions at the expense of the primary health centers. The recently launched Swachh Bharat and Ayushman Bharat schemes offer hope of addressing these asymmetries. This paper briefly dwells on these issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eggplant is a preferred vegetable for its nutritional quality and taste. India is the second largest eggplant producer in the world, but the productivity is far below the global average. The present experiment was conducted at the Bidhan Chandra Krishi Viswavidyalaya, West Bengal, India (23°N, 89°E, characteristically Aeric Haplaquept) for consecutive three years to assess the role of selected biofertilizer (Azospirillum, phosphate solubilizing bacteria or PSB) and micronutrient-fertilizer (iron sulfate, zinc sulfate and borax) application in augmenting yield and quality of eggplant (cv. F1-hybrid VNR-60). The experiment was laid out in a thrice replicated factorial randomized block design. Along with regular chemical fertilizers, application of bacterial fertilizers, alone as well as in combination with micronutrients, significantly improved the yield (13.10–15.35 t ha−1) over the control (9.83–12.39 t ha−1). Eggplant yield and quality models developed through artificial neutral network showed that fruit phosphorus (P) concentration was most important factor toward yield prediction followed by zinc (Zn) and soil available iron (Fe) concentration, respectively. Fruit nitrogen (N) concentration showed the highest sensitivity followed by soil available boron (B) and fruit potassium (K) concentration toward protein content. Application of B emerged to be most beneficial along with Azospirillum and PSB in attaining best yield, soil nutrient availabilities and plant nutritional recoveries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Early diagnosis and management of COPD require good quality spirometry testing, which is currently not available at primary care level in India. This study reports the quality of spirometry testing at the community level among elderly persons in a rural area. Materials and Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 449 elderly persons in a rural area of Ballabgarh block of Haryana state by a trained investigator. A portable spirometer (MIR Spirolab®) was used. House-to-house visits were undertaken. A self-developed pretested semistructured interview schedule was administrated and spirometry was done according to the American Thoracic Society/European Respiratory Society (ATS/ERS) guidelines. Results: Acceptable quality of spirometry tests was found among 87.3% (95% CI: 84.2%–90.4%) participants. Poor quality of spirometry was associated with low Body Mass Index (BMI) (aOR = 0.49, 95% CI = 0.26–0.93) and age ≥ 70 years (aOR = 0.45, 95% CI = 0.21–0.94) in multivariable analysis. Conclusion: Acceptable quality of spirometry can be performed in community settings by using a portable spirometer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-world data (RWD) are data relating to patients' health status and/or the delivery of health care routinely collected from a variety of sources. Real-world evidence (RWE) is the clinical evidence regarding the usage and potential benefits or risks of a medical product derived from analysis of RWD. RWE can provide information on diverse areas, for example, natural history and course of disease, effectiveness studies, outcome research, and safety surveillance. India has unique opportunity of conducting RWE studies in several interesting areas, for example, natural history of communicable and noncommunicable diseases and rare disease and Health Economics and Outcomes Research in public versus private hospitals. However, utility of RWE is challenged by diversity of information, large data sets of uncertain quality, and methodological rigor. For India, there are additional challenges in conducting RWE studies – Indian clinical practice pattern and physicians' interest in RWE studies. It is recommended that RWE studies in India should focus on health management issues of relevance to the country India and should be well planned to generate high-quality data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The government has taken an initiative to improve the MBBS admission process in the country to eradicate the academic dishonesty and encourage the deserving candidates for MBBS enrolment. The Supreme Court has paved the way to hold the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), a common entrance test for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses, from the 2016-17 academic year onwards. This paper aims to focus on the contention raised by various stakeholders associated with it and examines the pass percentage of plus two State Board examinations in 2015, 2016 and 2017 and admission details for 2016 and 2017. Design/methodology/approach: The researchers adopted exploratory research. The researchers studied the medical admission process at national and global levels. They collected data of MBBS admission, NEET, State Board and CBSE plus two results and information from newspapers, website and magazine articles. Many experts published articles in newspapers. No study analysed data and made an exhaustive exploratory study. This motivates the researcher to do the same. Simple percentage, percentage change, correlation analysis and the sign test are used to determine whether the State Board or CBSE students get benefitted out of NEET to become medical professionals. Findings: There is no significant relationship between MBBS enrolment of students (both State Board and CBSE students) before and after the NEET was introduced. From correlation analysis, it is inferred that the pass percentage of students who studied under State Board and MBBS enrolment were lesser in 2017 than 2016. It is also inferred that many districts students' enrolment in MBBS course have increased from 2016 to 2017. The researchers concluded that because of NEET, CBSE students got more enrolment in MBBS course in 2017 compared with State Board students in 2016. Research limitations/implications: The researchers found that the students with State Board examinations enrolled in lesser number for MBBS course than CBSE students in Tamil Nadu. There is a scope for improvement in designing and implementing NEET with the deliberations among different stakeholders involved with the medical education system, which will help in reducing the rampant corruption and, most importantly, pave the way for a selection based on merit in medical education. Possibly, this will also work as a safeguard to the sanctity of the medical profession in India and at the global level. Originality/value: The researcher collected data from newspapers, websites and journals. Many experts discuss about, for and against NEET. No one analysed the data. This is a unique article that has more statistical analysis and meaningful interpretations from analysis. This paper will be useful to the government at national and global levels to frame medical admission procedure and policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: With improvements in overall and progression-free survival in gliomas, current focus in neurosurgical oncology has largely shifted to the issue of quality of life (QOL) after treatment. There are not too many prospective studies evaluating QOL in these patients. We prospectively analyzed the health related quality of life (HRQOL) using the short form (SF) 36 questionnaire among patients harbouring a supratentorial glioma who underwent surgery at a tertiary care center in India.Methods: HRQOL was evaluated prospectively in 103 patients, between May 2016 and November 2017, at Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow. Score improvements were evaluated in terms of the smallest difference that a patient perceived to be clinically beneficial. The responsiveness of scores was assessed as minimum clinically important difference (MCID), effect size (ES) and relative efficiency. Cronbach's alpha co-efficient was used to assess the reliability of the result obtained.Results: The mean pre-operative score was the highest in the mental health domain (50.21±21.45) and significantly lower in patients with raised intracranial pressure (ICP), pre-operative deficits, a poor Karnofsky performance scale (KPS) score, in large tumors (>4cm) located in an eloquent location and in deep-seated tumors. A significant improvement was noted across all domains except the physical role (P-value 0.20). Overall, the general health domain was most responsive to change with the largest t-value (6.56) and 55.7% patients achieved their target MCID in general health (GH) domain. Among all the factors studied, only a low baseline SF-36 score was significantly associated with a change in QOL after surgery.Conclusion: Most parameters of HRQOL improved following surgery. Only small-to-moderate improvements occured in the early follow-up period. Large improving trends were noted on a long-term basis, irrespective of the histo-pathological grade. Similar improvements were also noted in patients who subsequently underwent re-surgery despite the development of post-operative complications or new deficits. Also, a low baseline QOL score heralded a poor survival. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To investigate the nature and context of mistreatment during labour and childbirth at public and private sector maternity facilities in Uttar Pradesh, India. Methods: This study analyses mixed-methods data obtained through systematic clinical observations and open-ended comments recorded by the observers to describe care provision for 275 mothers and their newborns at 26 hospitals in three districts of Uttar Pradesh from 26 May to 8 July 2015. We conducted a bivariate descriptive analysis of the quantitative data and used a thematic approach to analyse qualitative data. Findings: All women in the study encountered at least one indicator of mistreatment. There was a high prevalence of not offering birthing position choice (92%) and routine manual exploration of the uterus (80%) in facilities in both sectors. Private sector facilities performed worse than the public sector for not allowing birth companions (p = 0.02) and for perineal shaving (p = < 0.001), whereas the public sector performed worse for not ensuring adequate privacy (p = < 0.001), not informing women prior to a vaginal examination (p = 0.01) and for physical violence (p = 0.04). Prepared comments by observers provide further contextual insights into the quantitative data, and additional themes of mistreatment, such as deficiencies in infection prevention, lack of analgesia for episiotomy, informal payments and poor hygiene standards at maternity facilities were identified. Conclusions: Mistreatment of women frequently occurs in both private and public sector facilities. This paper contributes to the literature on mistreatment of women during labour and childbirth at maternity facilities in India by articulating new constructs of overtreatment and under-treatment. There are five key implications of this study. First, a systematic and context-specific effort to measure mistreatment in public and private sector facilities in high burden states in India is required. Second, a training initiative to orient all maternity care personnel to the principles of respectful maternity care would be useful. Third, innovative mechanisms to improve accountability towards respectful maternity care are required. Fourth, participatory community and health system interventions to support respectful maternity care would be useful. Lastly, we note that there needs to be a long-term, sustained investment in health systems so that supportive and enabling work-environments are available to front- line health workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to discuss students' assessment of quality related issues in engineering education in India. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses primary survey data of 1,178 undergraduate engineering students in Delhi, India, in 2009-2010. Students' experience and views of four important aspects such as teaching methods used in the classroom, evaluation pattern, skills acquired by students during the course and the involvement of students in different activities other than classroom teaching are discussed using descriptive statistics and correlation to examine the quality issues. Findings: The study finds that the lecture method is still dominant in the teaching and learning of engineering institutions compared to technical demonstration and laboratory work. Around half of the engineering students reported that they had never gone through any field work or industrial visits during their entire program of study. Involvement of students in the activities other than classroom teaching (e.g. working on research projects, attending engineering internships, studying a foreign language and opting for interdisciplinary courses) is more prevalent in government institutions compared to private institutions. The findings suggest that engineering institutions (particularly private colleges) should change their focus from traditional methods of teaching and evaluation of students to interactive methods of learning to improve the quality of technical education in India. Originality/value: The literature reveals that the quality assessment of engineering and technical education in India is largely based on the information collected from stakeholders other than students. Therefore, this study contributes a new dimension to the existing literature by considering students' assessment of the quality of engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the full and complete enjoyment of life, it is necessary to keep a check on its quality. Work life accounts for an average of one-third of adult life. An analysis, thus, on the quality of work life is essential to ensure happiness and contentment at the workplace. A good work life encourages job satisfaction among the employees, which results in several benefits for the employer company, namely a boost in productivity and job loyalty, amid others. The present paper takes a look at the significance of assessing the quality of work life among employees, and its correlation with job satisfaction between them. The paper analyses this relationship in the field of Library and Information Science professionals in India, and determines factors that enable or accentuate the connection between them, namely job assignment, financial rewards and benefits, healthy working conditions and work allocation. It supports the relationship between quality of work life and job satisfaction level through findings from a survey conducted between the professionals belonging to the field of Library and Information sciences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Universities are primarily the nodal centres for Academic Research in India. However, the need for and awareness of quality research are not understood clearly among the academia leading to a wide disparity in research activity and output across the country, both in quality as well as quantity. It is widely felt that the academicians from Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) of National and International repute, do not justify the role of Researchers and many of them do not confirm to the International Academic standards of research. The understanding and contribution to quality research in their specific area of study seem to be an imminent challenge faced by the academicians in the HEIs in India. The study aims to gauge the levels of awareness of quality research among the academicians in HEIs and to assess various factors leading to low quality research in these institutions. The Study includes a sample survey on 140 respondents using an online questionnaire to assess the levels of understanding among them with regard to quality research in HEIs and also to analyze the various causative factors contributing to poor research in HEIs. The present study reveals that lack of funding for quality research, target based research activities, multiple roles played by the academia and paucity of incentivization for research work to be the major deterrents for poor quality research in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

System of Rice Intensification (SRI) has spread as an innovation of rice cultivation that can produce higher crop yields and conserve seed and water resources. The SRI innovation is also gaining popularity in north-western (NW) Himalayas on one hand and hybrid rice technology on the other in the region. Moreover, rice productivity in NW Himalayas is quite low owing to the use of low-yielding germplasm and poor crop management. Thus, SRI principles coupled with hybrid rice technology seems to be a boon to boost rice productivity in the irrigated ecosystem of wet-temperate NW Himalayas well known for rice cultivation. Therefore, comparative performance of promising rice hybrids under SRI was assessed at three locations in wet-temperate NW Himalayas (India) using nine promising rice hybrids including state-recommended rice hybrid “Arize-6129” as check cultivar. It was revealed that various hybrids differed significantly w.r.t. days to 50% flowering, days to 75% maturity, plant height, tillers hill−1, panicles hill−1, panicles m−2, and panicle length. Highest number of panicles m−2 (370) was observed in Arize-6129 followed by US-312, Bioseed-786, and NK-3325, respectively. Significantly longer panicles were observed in Dhanya-2366 followed by Arize-6129, US-312, Bioseed-786, NK-3325, and US-10, respectively. Arize-6129 resulted in significantly higher grain (75 q ha−1) and straw yield (125 q ha−1) followed by US-312, Dhanya-2366, NK-3325, PAC-801, US-10, Bioseed-786, Uday-111, and Uday-131, respectively. The production- and monetary-efficiency as well as gross and net returns and B:C ratio also followed the similar trend as that of crop productivity with significantly higher production- (67 kg ha−1 day−1) and monetary-efficiency (INR 608.4 ha−1 day−1), and net returns (INR 68138 ha−1) and B:C ratio (3.66) in check cultivar “Arize-6129” over other rice hybrids. Higher grain productivity (49.5-75.0 q ha−1), net returns (INR 39238-68138 ha−1), and B:C ratio (2.53-3.66) in current study conclusively inferred that SRI coupled with hybrid rice technology can harness higher productivity and profitability. Protein content (8.30-8.45%) exhibited higher values under Bioseed-786 followed by NK-3325, UDAY-111, and Arize-6129; however, NPK uptake (grains, straw, total) was significantly highest in Arize-6129 followed by US-312, Dhanya-2366, and NK-3325, respectively. Total water productivity (6.4-9.75 kg ha−1 mm−1), irrigation water productivity (16.5-25 kg ha−1 mm−1), and economic water productivity (64.0-97.5 INR ha−1 mm−1) collectively followed the trend of Arize-6129 > US-312 > Dhanya-2366 > NK-3325 > US-10 > PAC-801 > Bioseed-786 > Uday-111 > Uday-131 in current study. Overall, Arize-6129, US-312, and Dhanya-2366 were proved as potential rice hybrids in terms of their higher crop and water productivity and economic profitability among above nine rice hybrids for their large-scale cultivation under SRI in wet-temperate NW Himalayas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The publication output from Indian institutions has been steadily increasing during the last few years. This may be attributed to the higher investment in research and also linking the number of publications with career advancement. There is a need to analyse the publication output of Indian institutions in terms of quality of publications. In this study, output in the top 10 percentile, as computed by SciVal (a product of Elsevier), has been used as an indicator of the quality of research output, since it reflects the percentage of an institution's publication in the top 10 percentile of the most cited articles. Out of the 15 subject areas listed in SciVal, 7 contribute to more than 65% of publications from Indian institutions. Accordingly, Indian institutions with output in the top 10 percentile greater than the national average in these 7 major subject areas have been identified to compare their research output in terms of quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]