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The Tibetan plateau and high mountain ranges of Nepal are one of the challenging geographical regions inhabited by modern humans. While much of the ethnographic and population-based genetic studies were carried out to investigate the Tibetan and Sherpa highlanders, little is known about the demographic processes that enabled the colonization of the hilly areas of Nepal. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the past demographic events that shaped the extant Nepalese genetic diversity using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variations from ethnic Nepalese groups. We have analyzed mtDNA sequences from 999 Nepalese samples and compared the data with 38,622 published mtDNA sequences from the rest of the world. Our analysis revealed that the genomic landscapes of prehistoric Himalayan settlers of Nepal were similar to the low altitude extant Nepalese (LAN), especially to that of Newar and Magar population group; but differ from contemporary high-altitude Sherpas. LAN might have derived their East Eurasian ancestry mainly from low altitude Tibeto-Burmans, who might have migrated from East Asia and assimilated across the Eastern Himalayas extended from Eastern Nepal to North-East of India, Bhutan, the Tibet and Northern Myanmar. We also identified a clear genetic sub-structure across different ethnic groups of Nepal based on mtDNA haplogroups and ectodysplasin-A receptor (EDAR) gene. Our comprehensive high-resolution mtDNA-based genetic study of Tibeto-Burman communities reconstructs the maternal origins of prehistoric Himalayan populations and sheds light on migration events that have brought most of the East Eurasian ancestry to the present-day Nepalese population.

Present study aims at planning of agricultural groundwater development in Bist interbasin (India) that is experiencing excessive water table decline due to intense agricultural groundwater pumping. The interbasin covering an area of 8040 Km2 comprises an alluvial unconfined aquifer that is hydraulically connected to two major perennial rivers viz., Satluj and Beas. A finite difference based distributed flow model of the study area was calibrated for transmissivity geostatistically on the basis of discrete point data at 15 points, and head fields available at 6 discrete times. The deficit of transmissivity data was overcome by invoking the Pilot point approach wherein transmissivity at additional artificial points are estimated by the least squares approach. The calibrated model was oriented towards the agricultural objective by correlating its sink term with crop areas. The model was used to simulate the long-term stabilized head and the depth fields corresponding to prevailing cropping pattern. The simulation indicates large and unsustainable water table decline. The impact of various moderated cropping patterns on the water table decline was subsequently simulated. It was concluded that replacement of some fraction of area under water intensive rice crop by maize crop area may stabilize the water table depths to acceptable limit.

Pilot point methodology (PPM) permits estimation of transmissivity at unsampled pilot points by solving the hydraulic head based inverse problem. Especially relevant to areas with sparse transmissivity data, the methodology supplements the limited field data. Presented herein is an approach for estimating parameters of PPM honoring the objectives of refinement of the transmissivity (T) interpolation and the model calibration. The parameters are the locations and number of pilot transmissivity points. The location parameter is estimated by defining a qualifying matrix Q comprising weighted sum of the hydraulic head-sensitivity and the kriging variance fields. Whereas the former component of Q promotes the model calibration, the latter one leads to improved T interpolation by locating pilot points in un-sampled tracts. Further, a three-stage methodology is proposed for an objective determination of the number of pilot points. It is based upon sequential upgradation of the Variogram as the pilot points are added to the data base, ensuring its convergence with the head-based optimal Variogram. The model has been illustrated by applying it to Satluj-Beas interbasin wherein the pumping test data is not only sparse, but also unevenly distributed.

Presented herein is a data parsimonious model for identification of regional and local groundwater pollution sources at a reference time employing corresponding fields of head, concentration and its time derivative. The regional source flux, assumed to be uniformly distributed, is viewed as the causative factor for the widely prevalent background concentration. The localized concentration-excesses are attributed to flux from local sources distributed around the respective centroids. The groundwater pollution is parameterized by flux from regional and local sources, and distribution parameters of the latter. These parameters are estimated by minimizing the sum of squares of differences between the observed and simulated concentration fields. The concentration field is simulated by a numerical solution of the transient solute transport equation. The equation is solved assuming the temporal derivative term to be known a priori and merging it with the sink term. This strategy circumvents the requirement of dynamic concentration data. The head field is generated using discrete point head data employing a specially devised interpolator that controls the numerical-differentiation errors and simultaneously ensures micro-level mass balance. This measure eliminates the requirement of flow modeling without compromising the sanctity of head field. The model after due verification has been illustrated employing available and simulated data from an area lying between two rivers Yamuna and Krishni in India.

Education theories stress not only societal context of education, but also educational philosophy, anthropology and psychology of learning. A formal curriculum theory, viz. Taba–Tyler rationale, has been proposed to incorporate philosophical, sociological, anthropological and psychological contexts of engineering education in the curriculum. The newly developed undergraduate curriculum at the Indian Institute of Technology Ropar is based on such education theories and has been presented as a case study. It has been demonstrated that the resulting curriculum can lead to unique courses that collectively bring out unique features such as core competency, strong connection to society, hands-on learning, creativity and innovation.

A scavenger well system is designed to skim/pump fresh water from a fresh–saline aquifer. It consists of a production and a scavenging well in close vicinity tapping the shallow fresh water and the deeper saline water zones respectively. These wells pump fresh and saline waters from the same site simultaneously without mixing, through two separate discharge systems. The rise of interface (upconing) due to pumping of fresh water well is countered by the pumping of saline water well. This leads to a reduction in the upconing of the interface. A general numerical model has been developed for simulation of saltwater transport induced by pumpage from a scavenger well system. The model has been validated against an analytical solution and a set of published field data. The numerical model is invoked to develop two Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models of the relevant state variables viz. production well salinity and drawdown at well face. These ANN models are used for optimizing the scavenging discharge with respect to the position of the two screens and subject to the constraint on production well salinity and the drawdown to ensure functionality of the production well screen.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) estimates Precipitable Water Vapor (PWV) from Zenith Wet Delay (ZWD) using a key parameter called water vapor weighted mean temperature ( T m ) of the atmosphere. However, T m must be tuned to the specific area and location. Therefore, for estimation of PWV using GPS within the region covered between New Delhi and Srinagar, site specific as well as a regional T m model has been developed as a function of surface temperature using six years radiosonde data. The result shows that the root mean square error (rmse) of the developed site-specific T m model is about 3.5 °K at New Delhi and Patiala. However, the rmse of the developed site-specific T m model at Srinagar is in the range of 4–5.5 °K. It has been found that the site specific T m model is slightly (0.1–0.5 °K) better than the developed regional T m model at New Delhi and Patiala, however, the error is more at Srinagar. It finds that the site-specific model is better than the regional and the global model in predicting PWV and provides sub mm accuracy within this region. However, the developed regional model provides the same level of accuracy in estimating PWV and more suitable for this region compared to other regional and global model. The GPS PWV has shown an accuracy of about 6.5 mm using site specific and regional T m model and found comparatively better than other regional and global T m model.

The present study involves development of a microscopic numerical model for simulating radial and vertical moisture flow towards plant root, root-water uptake and finally flow through the plant to the atmosphere. The model essentially comprises a numerical solution of the Richard’s equation in axis-symmetric polar co-ordinate system by finite difference method. The simulation of the subsequent water movement (from root to canopy and from canopy to atmosphere) is accomplished indirectly through a boundary condition at the root-soil interface. This boundary condition is derived by invoking the meteorological conditions prevailing over the plant leaf surface, and a plant conductivity parameter (plant transmissivity) is defined herein. The model provides distribution of soil moisture content, and the root-water uptake at discrete times. The plant transmissivity has been estimated for wheat crop. KeywordsRoot-Water Uptake; Microscopic Model; Richard’s Equation; Transpiration

One of the most recent applications of global positioning system (GPS) is the estimation of precipitable water vapor (PWV). It requires proper modeling to extract PWV from zenith wet delay (ZWD). The existing global models take no account of latitudinal and seasonal variation of meteorological parameters in the atmosphere. In fact, they ignore the atmospheric conditions at a specific location. Therefore, site-specific PWV models have been developed for five stations spread over the Indian subcontinent, using 3-year (2006–2008) radiosonde data from each of these stations. Furthermore, a similar regional PWV model is also developed for the Indian region. The purpose of the developed site-specific as well as regional model was to convert ZWDs into PWV without using surface meteorological parameters. It has been found that the developed regional and site-specific PWV models show about mm-level accuracy in estimating PWV using derived ZWD from radiosonde as input. The developed site-specific, regional models were also used to extract PWV from GPS-derived ZWD at Bangalore and New Delhi. The accuracy of the developed site-specific and regional model is of the same level. The PWV accuracy obtained with the developed regional model is about 6.28, 6.6 mm in comparison to radiosonde PWV at Bangalore and New Delhi, respectively.

The genus Michelia, belonging to family Magnoliaceae, consists of about 80 plant species mainly distributed in South Asian countries. The plants of this genus have been traditionally used in curing various diseases like fever, colic, leprosy, eye disorders, inflammation, antidote for scorpion, etc. Ninety-four compounds isolated from nine species of the genus Michelia like sesquiterpenes, steroids, flavonoids, aporphines, phenols, esters, benzenoid and alkaloids have antibacterial, anticancer and antiplasmodial activities. This review presents first time detailed information on chemical and biological properties of constituents isolated from the genus Michelia.

Atmospheric variables (being predictors) play a crucial role in statistical downscaling (SD) studies, which subsequently are used to assess the hydrological impacts of climate change on water resources development and management. The spatial extent of these variables has an utmost importance in development of the SD model and for projecting the precipitation series. In this paper, an attempt is made to identify the spatial extent of atmospheric variables in terms of National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) grid points that result in development of an efficient SD model for precipitation. A case study of the Yamuna-Hindon interbasin is considered to illustrate the applicability of the methodology proposed for capturing the effect of spatial domain of atmospheric variables on development of the SD model. The precipitation in the area is likely to be influenced by surrounding climate, topography, atmospheric circulation, thermodynamic processes, etc. Various cases of spatial extent, which ...

One of the precise widely used global Zenith Hydrostatic Delay (ZHD) model is based on the gravity value at the centroid of the atmospheric column at the station of observation and gravity value at the centroid is constant in this model for a specific location throughout the year. However, as the content and extent of atmosphere varies temporally, its centroid and consequently gravity value at the centroid also varies. Apart from this, the actual atmospheric condition of different region is not alike. Therefore, there is a need to develop a regional mean gravity model and development of such model has been discussed in this paper. To obtain the mean gravity model, first a regional model of centroid height of atmospheric column was developed as a function of the surface pressure and temperature. It was developed by multiple regressions between estimated centroid of the atmosphere and surface pressure, surface temperature using radiosonde data of five radiosonde stations spread over the Indian subcontinent. Three years radiosonde data from 2006 to 2008 was used for each station. The root mean square error in estimating centroid of the atmospheric column is about ±326 m, which is negligible considering the variability of the atmosphere and its content. The centroid height model has been used to formulate the mean gravity model, considering uniform lapse rate in gravity with height. It is found that proposed mean gravity model provides temporal variation of mean gravity values at the centroid and thus matches with the reality. The interesting advantage of the developed model is that the model shows diurnal variation of mean gravity. The accuracy of ZHD has shown of the order of about 0.3 mm using the developed regional mean gravity model. However, already developed ZHD model has shown a slight inferior result compared to the developed model. These models have shown accuracy of about 0.8 mm and 0.6 mm.

A linked kernel-optimization model for the planning of optimal groundwater development for irrigation is presented. The planning ensures optimization of zonal crop patterns subject to the constraints on the maximum water table depth and the stream-aquifer interflow at the dynamic equilibrium. The model is computationally inexpensive as compared to the traditional linked simulation-optimization models. Its use is demonstrated by applying it to a canal command area in India. Five kernel models are developed relating the maximum water table depth and four critical stream-aquifer interflow rates to the crop areas. The necessary data base is generated by using a physically based precalibrated simulation model of groundwater flow. The kernel models are linked to a genetic algorithm-based optimizer for arriving at the optimal cropping pattern and the associated pumping pattern. The near-optimal solution so obtained is further fine-tuned through an inexpensive application of the linked simulation-optimiza...

Estimation of precipitable water vapor (PWV) in the atmosphere using ground based GPS (Global Positioning System) data requires an appropriate model for computation of zenith hydrostatic delay (ZHD). Presented herein is a site-specific ZHD model (SSM) for a station at New Delhi, India. The model has been developed by regressing one-year atmospheric vertical profile data collected through radiosonde. The model based on surface atmospheric pressure at the station, has been validated invoking data of three more years. The ZHD values estimated through the model disagree at the 0.3 mm level with ZHD values obtained from raytracing of radiosonde data. Further, Saastamoinen ZHD model provides an error about 0.23 mm rms while about 0.19 mm by the developed model (SSM). Thus, developed SSM can be used for precise estimation of PWV.

A computationally inexpensive linked ANN-optimization model for planning of groundwater development for agricultural usage is presented and illustrated on a canal command area in India. The planning ensures optimization of zonal crop areas subject to the constraints on maximum groundwater table depth and stream–aquifer interflow under dynamic equilibrium. The data required for developing the ANN models of the envisaged state variables comprise an array of zonal crop areas and the corresponding state variables. These data are generated invoking a pre-calibrated simulation model of groundwater flow. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. RESUME Un calcul peu couteux et faisant appel a des reseaux artificiels de neurones pour optimiser la planification du developpement des eaux souterraines a usage agricole est presentee et illustree dans l'aire d'influence d'un canal d'irrigation en Inde. La planification permet l'optimisation des zones de cultures sous contrainte de profondeur maximale de nappe et de flux entre la nappe et l'aquifere en equilibre dynamique. Les donnees requises pour le developpement des modeles ANN sont consignees dans un tableau associant les zones affectees a telle culture et les variables d'etat correspondantes. Ces donnees sont generees en invoquant un modele de simulation pre-calibre de l'ecoulement souterrain. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Objective To evaluate the pharmacognostical study of leaf of Toona ciliate M. Roem. Methods The qualitative and quantitative microscopy, phytochemical screening, physicochemical evaluation and fluorescence analysis of the plant were done according to the standard procedure recommended in the WHO guidelines. Results Macroscopic study shows that leaves are compound type, 30-50 cm length, shape: lanceolate, apex: acute and having the entire margin. Stomata present in the leaf are anomocytic type of stomata. Microscopic evaluation of the leaves powder shows the presence of trichomes (multicelluar), lignified vascular bundles and stomata. The transverse section of the leaf shows the presence of epidermis layer followed by cuticle layer, lignified vascular bundles, trichomes, collenchyma, and palisade cells. Conclusion Various pharmacognostical parameters evaluated in his study help in the identification and standardization of the Toona ciliata M. Roem.

The present study comprises Monte-Carlo simulation assisted analysis of foundations resting on reinforced earth beds using the concept of beams on an elastic foundation, treating the modulus of subgrade reaction (MSR) as a stationary stochastic field characterised by mean, variance, autocorrelation function (ACF) and the autocorrelation distance (ACD). Realisations of the MSR, generated by solving a stochastic differential equation, are fed to a deterministic distributed parameter model to generate realisations of two dependent stochastic fields, namely deflection and bending moment in the foundation beam, and two random variables, namely the location of occurrence of maximum deflection and the bending moment. Subsequently these realisations are analysed to evolve probability distribution functions, variance and ACF of the dependent stochastic fields and the random variables. It is revealed that the ACF of these fields is independent of the ACF of the MSR. Further, variance of deflection is found to incre...

The present study comprises an application of a deterministic two-dimensional horizontal contaminant transport model to a contaminant transport problem treating transmissivity as a stochastic field. The problem concerns with disposal of ash slurry emanating from a thermal power plant on the upstream of a dyke. The head of the slurry causes entry, and subsequent lateral movement of the slurry into the groundwater system. The stochasticity is accounted for by Monte Carlo simulation that essentially involves generating several realizations of the transmissivity field, and computing corresponding realizations of the selected random state variable viz. contaminated areas at advancing times. The realizations are processed to arrive at the corresponding probability distribution functions. Finally, factor of safety in respect of the permissible limit on the contaminated area is correlated to the acceptable level of risk.

Unconfined aquifer parameters, viz. transmissivity, storage coefficient, specific yield and delay index from a pumping test are estimated using the genetic algorithm optimization (GA) technique. The parameter estimation problem is formulated as a least-squares optimization, in which the parameters are optimized by minimizing the deviations between the field-observed and the model-predicted time–drawdown data. Boulton's convolution integral for the determination of drawdown is coupled with the GA optimization technique. The bias induced by three different objective functions: (a) the sum of squares of absolute deviations between the observed and computed drawdown; (b) the sum of squares of normalized deviations with respect to the observed drawdown; and (c) the sum of squares of normalized deviations with respect to the computed drawdown, is statistically analysed. It is observed that, when the time–drawdown data contain no errors, the objective functions do not induce any bias in the parameter es...

One of the main soil parameters in analysis and design of foundations is modulus of subgrade reaction (MSR) which is a stochastic process. However, design engineers prefer a deterministic approach invoking mean of MSR and rather empirical factors of safety to account for the uncertainty. The present study includes the stochasticity in the deterministic designs by linking the factors of safety (in respect of maximum deflection and bending moment) to the allowable risk of failure through a Monte Carlo simulation on a lumped parameter deterministic model. A parametric study reveals that for a given risk level, the factors of safety are strongly dependent upon the coefficient of variation of MSR, and only mildly upon other geometric parameters of foundation system. This facilitates development of closed form equations for the upper bounds on factors of safety exclusively in terms of allowable risk of failure and the coefficient of variation of MSR.

Kriging is a powerful tool for interpolation and network design. A necessary prerequisite for a kriging application is the variogram that describes the variation of the semivariance with distance. Variograms are routinely derived from the measurements of the concerned variable. Presented herein is a model of the variogram of groundwater hydraulic heads that permits the estimation of the semivariance corresponding to any distance in terms of the transmissivity (T) and standard deviation ( σW ) of the flux. The model thus evolves the variogram from the aquifer attributes rather than from the measured heads. Treating the flux as a normally distributed random variable, with zero mean and an assigned standard deviation, synthetic discrete steady-state stationary head fields are generated by the Monte Carlo simulation. The fields so generated are employed to evolve experimental variograms, and hence to estimate the parameters of the Gaussian model for various values of T and σW . Closed form functional relation...

The paper presents an approach for rationalizing the factors of safety in the analysis and design of foundations, wherein a single lumped value is assigned to an uncertain soil parameter on the basis of multiple field testing. A soil-foundation system, comprising a geosynthetic layer (idealized as a beam) placed over a random poor soil and overlain by a compacted sand layer and the foundation beam, has been modeled in a lumped parameter mode. The model parameters comprise among other, the relative stiffness of the random poor soil that has been treated as a lognormally distributed random variable. Monte Carlo simulation has been performed on the model at various levels of the coefficient of variation ( COV ) of the uncertain/random parameter to arrive at the probability distribution functions (PDF) of the state variables viz., the normalized mid-span deflection and bending moment in the foundation beam. These PDFs have been subsequently invoked to correlate the factors of safety to the CO...

Presented herein is a procedure for arriving at an optimal design of a homogeneous earth dam laid on an impervious foundation and provided with a drain. The procedure, heavily dependent on variably saturated flow modeling, involves optimizing a multiobjective function comprising a weighted summation of four objective functions, viz., the dam section area, seepage discharge, wetted area of the dam section and the drain area. The design variables considered in the optimization are the upstream and downstream slopes and the drain dimensions. The optimization is carried out subject to the constraints ensuring safe upstream and downstream slopes and sufficient distance between the free surface and the downstream face. Two of the objective functions (viz., the seepage discharge and the wetted area) and the constraints are implicit functions of the design variables. Their values are obtained by employing a numerical model of two-dimensional (vertical plane) variably saturated flow in a homogeneous earth dam. Optimization, conducted by the sequential unconstrained minimization technique procedure is preceded by several runs of the model for various combinations of the design variables. The discrete values of the implicit functions so generated are invoked during optimization to compute the implicit objective functions and constraints. The results are presented in the form of nondimensional design tables/curves. The design procedure is illustrated with the help of few examples.

The proposed numerical model for estimation of advective and dispersive saltwater transport below a partially penetrating pumping well, incorporates a solution of the coupled flow and transport equations. The advective transport is computed by a varied form of the method of characteristics wherein each moving point is assigned a volume rather than the concentration. Subsequently, the dispersive component is accounted for by solving the transport equation by finite-difference technique treating the precomputed advective transport as a source/sink term. The model permits estimation of the time and space variant salt concentration in soil water and the time variant salt concentration in pumped water. The model has been validated against two analytical solutions and a set of published field data.

Analytical solutions exist for the seepage discharge from polygonal and nonpolygonal canal sections underlain by a drainage layer at a hydraulically infinite depth. These solutions lead to underestimation of the seepage discharge if a drainage layer occurs at a shallow depth. This paper presents solutions for seepage discharge from circular and exponential sections overlying a shallow drainage layer. The discharge has been calculated by a finite-difference-based numerical solution of the differential governing the seepage flow. The phreatic boundaries of the flow domain were described in terms of two parameters that were estimated by a minimization process. Such seepage computations were performed for a large number of independent dimensionless variables of the section geometry. Subjecting the computed seepage to regression analyses, explicit equations for seepage discharge loss have been obtained. Using these seepage loss equations, the design variables for minimum seepage loss have been obtained. The use of the design equations has been illustrated by design examples.

A new miscible seawater transport model, based on a variant form of the traditional method of characteristics (MOC), is presented. The distinctive features of this model are moving packets with preassigned volumes instead of concentration, numerical tracking of moving packets using fourth-order Runge-Kutta method, and direct computation of total transport due to advection and hydrodynamic dispersion. In addition to quantification of seawater circulation, the model output illustrates (1) the path followed by seawater inside the aquifer; (2) the buildup of seawater storage; and (3) the position and advance/retreat of a disperse interface. The model has been assessed using two benchmark test problems and subsequently applied to the Biscayne aquifer in Florida. All model runs were characterized by low mass balance errors (

A numerical model is developed for the simulation of vertical unsteady-state, two-phase reactive solute-transport through the unsaturated zone. Advective transport is simulated using the method of characteristics, whereas diffusive-dispersive transport and interphase lateral diffusion are accounted for by an implicit finite-difference scheme. The soil moisture and flux distribution required for solving the solute-transport equation is obtained by solving Richards' equation. The model is verified by comparing model-simulated solute-transport with the results of an existing analytical solution. A good agreement is obtained for different sets of parameters. Also for very small dispersivity values no numerical dispersion is present. The proposed model is also used to simulate reported experimental data of a field experiment and shows adequate agreement.

Ethnopharmacological relevance: Michelia champaca L. (family: Magnoliaceae), commonly known as Champa [Hindi], is traditionally used for fertility regulation by the women of Chhattisgarh state in India. No scientific evidence regarding the antifertility effect of this plant is available till date. Aim of the study: To study the anti-fertility effect of hydroalcoholic leaf extract of Michelia champaca Linn. in female rats. Materials and methods: The antifertility activity of the extract (HAEMC) administered at dose levels (100 and 200 mg/kg body weight, p.o.) was evaluated in two experimental animal models i.e. antiimplantation activity in female wistar rats and esterogenic/antiestrogenic activity in ovariectomized female rats. In anti-implantation activity, the extract (200 and 400 mg/kg body weight, p.o.) was administered to female rats from 1 to 7 days of pregnancy and on 10th day, laprotomy was performed to count the no. of implants. For estrogenic/anti-estrogenic activity, ovariectomized female rats were administered with the extract at both the doses alone as well as along with 17α-ethinyl estradiol (1 μ/rat/ day) for 7 consecutive days. On the 8th day, all animals were sacrificed and blood serum was further processed for the estimation of biochemical parameters such as estrogen level, alkaline phosphates, cholesterol, tryglycerides, total protein etc. Results: The extract (HAEMC) showed significant (po0.01) 49.95% and 71.03% antiimplantation activities at 100 and 200 mg/kg doses respectively. The extract also exhibited significant (po0.01) estrogenic activity as evidenced by increase in body weight, uterine weight, increased thickness and height of endometrium, vaginal cornification and significant (po0.01) increase in estrogen, cholesterol, alkaline phosphate and triglycerides levels at higher dose when administered alone as well as along with ethinyl estradiol. Phytochemical screening showed the presence of steroids, flavonoids and alkaloids in the extract. Conclusions: Hydroalchoholic extract of Michelia champaca leaves possesses significant antifertility effect which might be due to the inhibition of implantation and estrogenic effect which in turn might be due to the presence of some phytoconstituents in the plant.

Two‐dimensional transient flow to ditches or drains in a heterogeneous, anisotropic porous medium is modeled for appropriate initial and boundary conditions using the finite differences method for the entire saturated‐unsaturated domain; numerically solving the governing ground water flow equation for the saturated zone below the water table; and using the Richards equation for the unsaturated zone. The water‐table rise computed by the composite flow model matches closely with observed water‐table rise in a tile‐drained experimental field. The composite flow model is superior to the saturated flow model (when based only on saturated flows), first, by accounting for the time of transfer of infiltration at the ground surface as recharge to the water table. Second, the general assumption of equal flux at the soil surface and at the water table is not required. The development of through flows has been studied in the presence of a clay layer in the unsaturated zone. Dependence of through flows on the thicknes...

With escalating aspirations of Indian consumers, nowadays credit growth is taking place at an unparalleled pace and all together the much slower pace of deposit mobilization is inadequate to keep the growth momentum going. In such state of affairs, banks and non-banking finance companies strapped for funds need to identify alternate sustainable funding sources to supplement existing. Securitization is an ultimate option for originators allowing them to sustain growth, leverage existing capital and manage risks. Investors benefit by accessing a constant supply of highly rated instruments tailored to their requirements and offering better yields. This paper is concerned with the securitization of standard assets under RBI Guidelines issued in Feb. 2006 & developing business for banking industry.

Limited Liability Partnership Act was introduced in India after recommendations of various committees in 2008. The form, while beneficial to professional firms, is actually not very helpful to small businesses. This is a blend of the provisions of Companies Act & Partnership Act. LLP in India seems to be more similar to Limited company but with advantages of partnership act. This research paper aims to point out the significance of Limited liability Partnership in India with respect to its benefits & nature.

Presented herein is an algorithm for ANN‐assisted planning of the optimal cropping pattern and the associated groundwater development in a canal command area, followed by an illustration. The planning in the illustration ensures the maximization of the cropped area subject to the constraint of limiting the maximum water table depth to an acceptable limit. A multilayer feed forward ANN model, relating the maximum water table depth to the crop areas, is trained using back‐propagation learning algorithm. The data invoked for the training comprise an array of the cropping patterns, and the corresponding maximum water table depths. These data are generated through a pre‐calibrated numerical model of groundwater flow. Subsequently, the trained ANN model is linked to a GA based optimizer for arriving at the optimal cropping pattern and the associated pumping pattern.

A numerical model of two‐dimensional transient saturated flow to ditches is presented. The model is based on a finite differences solution of the differential equation governing two‐dimensional transient flow in a heterogeneous and anisotropic porous medium. Thus, the model can account for the partial penetration of ditches, flow above the initial drain level, vertical anisotropy, vertical flows, and associated head losses. The model solutions are found to compare well with one‐dimensional Donnan and Kraijenhoff solutions when the relative resistance to vertical flow is negligible (i.e., Kz/Kx≫1). These analytical solutions are, however, found to underestimate the water‐table rise when Kz/Kx

The current practice of estimating return flow (also known as ground water recharge) from irrigation and rainfall is mostly based on soil moisture accounting (SMA) models and involves many restrictive assumptions. Prominent among them is the existence of a threshold moisture content termed ‘field capacity’, which must be quantified as a flow parameter to be compatible with its hydraulic implication in the SMA models. This paper presents (i) a method for quantifying field capacity as a flow parameter, and (ii) assessment of a proposed SMA model for estimation of return flow, in comparison with an earlier distributed model based on a finite difference solution of the Richards' equation, for studying the possibility of replacement of the more elaborate distributed model by the easy to adopt SMA model. The method for quantifying field capacity as a flow parameter is more suitable for coarse soils. The assumptions implicit in the SMA model result in estimated daily rates of return flow which are not acceptable although seasonal totals are reasonably acceptable.