Challenges Faced by Farmers in Crop Management Practices under Environmental and Soil Degradation

Crop farming is the key source of revenue (12%) as well as livelihood (45%) generation in Pakistan. Although it is the mainstay of national rural economy, there are certain factors impede its actual potential. Environment and soil degradation are the most significant among these factors. Therefore, it is dire need to mitigate their adverse impact on crop management to combat the food insecurity. The present study was conducted in mix cropping zone of Punjab. Through multistage sampling technique 120 farmers were selected and data were collected through interview schedule and focus group discussion. Psychoanalysis of data revealed that among environmental factors the rain variation has the most adverse effect on crop management followed by flood, temperature variation and hailstorm respectively. Qualitative data illustrated that from last few year’s variation in time & frequency of rainfall become fashion of the day due to usage of huge amount of ammunition in successive operations against terrorism and deforestation. The data showed that soil is degraded mainly by loss of fertility followed by water logging, erosion and salinity. The focus group discussions concluded that due to bulging of population, the cropping intensity increases which deplete the needed nutrients in the soil. Although farmers apply the fertilizers, application without soil testing is all in vain in-spite of increasing the cost of production. Therefore, it is recommended that strengthen the weather forecasting department and use all kinds of media to update the farmers about upcoming weather conditions

Influence of parental behaviour, peer pressure and moderating role of religiosity and cultural values on juvenile delinquent behaviour: case of Punjab, Pakistan

Juvenile delinquent behaviour becoming an emerging social problem for developed and developing countries, also impacting every segment of the society especially social institutions. The main objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between parental behaviour, peer pressure, and juvenile delinquent behaviour with moderating effect of religious commitment and cultural values among higher secondary school children in Punjab, Pakistan. This study is cross-sectional in nature and followed the survey method for the collection of data from 770 school children. The SPSS and SMART PLS 3.0 are used for the basic screening of the raw data and testing of hypothetical statements. The results of this study reveal that parental behaviour has a significant negative relationship with juvenile delinquent behaviour, while peer pressure has a significant positive association with juvenile delinquent behaviour. Religiosity and cultural values also have significant negative association with juvenile delinquent behaviour. The findings also reveal that religiosity moderates the relationship between peer pressure and juvenile delinquent behaviour, in contrast, religiosity does not moderate the relationship between parental behaviour and juvenile delinquent behaviour. However, cultural values do not moderate the relationship between parental behaviour, peer pressure, and juvenile delinquent behaviour. The findings of the present research are important for practitioners and policymakers to further understandings and coping strategies for the deterrence of juvenile delinquent behaviour. Finally, theoretical, methodological, and practical contribution of this study, as well as limitation and recommendation for future research are also adequately discussed in this study

Trends in management of neck of femur fracture

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To identify trends related to surgical procedure for the management of neck of femur fracture to see how the choice is changing over time in relation to different age groups. METHODS: The retrospective audit was conducted at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised data of all patients who presented with neck of femur fracture from 1995 to 2014. Patients with open fractures and those having external fixators were excluded. Data was retrieved from the hospital database, and analysed using SPSS 17. RESULTS: Records of 1039 patients were reviewed. The proportion of patients in the 70+ years age group significantly increased from 45% to 52% over the two decades (p=0.033). Proportion of patients undergoing total hip replacement increased by more than 3 times from 2.6% to 8% (p50 years (p CONCLUSIONS: There is apparently a rising trend in number of patients presenting with neck of femur fracture. Total hip replacement has a rising trend and partial hip arthroplasties have a decreasing trend when it comes to treatment of neck of femur fractures

Management of simultaneous bilateral femur fractures in a tertiary care hospital: a retrospective review

Abstract: Introduction: Bilateral long bone fractures are rare and usually are associated with increased risk of complications. These fractures are usually associated with poly traumatic injuries or high impact trauma resulting in shock. Commonest etiology is road traffic accident. Closed diaphyseal fractures are best managed by intramedullary nailing; management becomes difficult if there are open fractures and late arrival. In this study we intend to present our experience of managing these patients. Materials and Methods: Medical records of all adult patients (age more than 16 years of age) admitted at Aga Khan University and Hospital with bilateral femur fractures +/- other systemic injuries 2006-2014 were reviewed retrospectively. Adult patients with complete medical records were included and patients with missing data were excluded from the study. SPSS version 19 was used for data entering and Statistical analysis. Results: We retrieved 11 cases of bilateral femur fractures. Mean age of patients was 34.5 +/- 20.9, with male predominance constituting 72.7%. Common mode of injury was fall from height and road traffic accident (RTA) 45.5% each, with the exception of one gunshot. Mean Injury Severity Score was 26.9+/-7.79. Mean Revised Trauma Score was 7.39 +/-0.62; mean Trauma Injury and Severity Score was 92.4 +/- 6.6%. 2 patients had surgical site infections and 1 had non-union. We encountered no mortality. Increase ISS is associated with increased risk of morbidity and length of hospital stay (p= 0.02

Surgical management of metastatic lesions of proximal femur and the hip

Metastatic bony lesions involving proximal femur and hip joint pose a challenge to orthopedic surgeons. Lesions in this important weight-bearing zone of the femur weaken its ability to sustain load causing pain and impending pathologic fracture. These Patients warrant multidisciplinary approach including orthopedic surgeons, oncologist and medical specialties. Management of these lesions has evolved over the last 60 years from benign neglect to internal fixation and recently to prosthetic reconstruction for optimum function. Decision for surgical approach requires consideration for location of the lesion, presence of a fracture, tumor type, cortical destruction, patient\u27s life expectancy, patient preferences and the expected outcome. We aim to present a narrative review of the options and results of surgical management of these lesions in the light of literature

Benign tumours and tumour like lesions of bone

Over the last century, there has been a remarkable development in the study of benign bone tumours. This is primarily due to the improved knowledge of the nature of these lesions and improved imaging technology. They present as a diverse group of clinical and pathological entities, which vary in their clinical behaviour and aggressiveness and, hence, multidisciplinary approach is necessary in their management. Combined opinion from an orthopaedic surgeon, radiologist and a pathologist is therefore required. Incidence of these tumours is debatable because they are often asymptomatic. Many protocols have been reported in studies with respect to the management of these tumours based on the experience of different centres and different surgeons with no set guidelines. English-language studies, including case reports, case series and systemic reviews, from PubMed, ERIC, MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane Reviews databases from 2002 to 2016 were included in the current. Articles reporting all levels of evidence - Level I to V - were included

Planting Geometry and Herbicides for Weed Control in Rice: Implications and Challenges

Weeds are one of the major biological threats to higher rice productivity worldwide. Various cultural, biological, physical and chemical practices affect the composition and intensity of weeds in rice fields. Generally, weeds can be controlled through herbicides; nevertheless, chemical weed control is not a sustainable option on a long term. Various agronomic practices such as the use of tolerant cultivars, adjusting sowing time, tillage permutations and plant geometry may reduce the weed pressure in rice. Integrated approaches for weed management, emphasizing on the combination of management practices and scientific knowledge, may reduce the economic costs and improve weed control owing to the complexity of the weed community. The present chapter reveals the role of planting geometry and herbicides as weed management strategies in rice, and discusses the issue of herbicide resistance associated with chemical weed control. Moreover, the research and knowledge gaps in rice weed management through planting geometry and herbicides were also highlighted

Future Time Perspective and Frustration Intolerance in Medical students

Background: The future perception of students is affected by a series of events happening throughout their course of studies. The objective of this study is to measure the Future time perspective (FTP) and Future intolerance (FI) among medical students during the COVID-19 lockdown.Materials and Methods: It was a descriptive cross-sectional study done from January 15, 2020 to July 20, 2020 among MBBS students of Rawalpindi Medical University. The questionnaire consisted of 1) Socio-demographic details, 2) Future Time Perspective scale, and 3) Frustration Discomfort scale. An online survey was done using Google Forms. An ANOVA was run to check for differences in FTP and FI between the classes. Bivariate analysis for continuous variables was applied. The data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) v.23.0 (IBM, Armonk, US). Results: Mean age of participants was 21.8 (SD=1.66) with majority females 331(58.4%). The mean FTP score and mean FI scores were 50.8(SD=19.43) and 91.46(SD=17.65) respectively. Final-year students had the highest mean score (Mean=57.94(SD=7.72)) for FI. On the other hand, mean scores for FDS were highest in first-year students (Mean=102.89 (SD=13.52)) while lowest in fourth-year students (Mean=81.73(SD=17.49)) with P=.005. There was a significant difference in the dimensions of Emotional Intolerance and achievement among females and males. Bivariate analysis showed a significant negative correlation was found between FTP and the dimension of discomfort intolerance (r = -0.158, p < 0.001), while a significant positive correlation was found between FTP and the dimension of achievement (r = 0.225, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Our study concludes that final-year students have a much higher tolerance level for adversities. Furthermore, they also have a much more positive perspective and a clearer vision regarding their future

DETRIMENTAL EFFECTS OF PESTICIDES ON HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT

Pesticides are toxic chemicals used for controlling of insects and pests which caused harms to plants or animals. Pesticides also effect the environment as well as human health. They play a vital role in securing of food but they require a number of risks and problems. Therefore, present study is designed to know the pesticide usage and its harmful effects on environment and health of cotton growers. There are 19 rural union councils out of which 4 were selected through simple random sampling. From each selected union council, 2 villages were selected at random and from each selected village, 20 cotton growers were selected randomly thus making a sample size of 160 respondents. A well planned pre-tested and validated interview schedule was prepared for the collection of data from the selected respondents. The collected data were examined by using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for illustration conclusions and making recommendations. A vast majority (90%) of the respondents selected the pesticides on better results, (83.1%) on behalf of multinational company and majority (76.3%) selected pesticides of national company and a significant of majority (70%) of respondents used the gloves whereas a huge majority (85.6%) of respondents weared the mask during pesticide application. It was found that a huge majority (81.9%) of respondents had headache effect, 67.1% had fatigue, and majority (68.8%) had dizziness while 68.1% had skin disorders. Govt. should promote the first aid training program for safety measurement regarding pesticide usage and enhance the protection techniques for environment and health of organisms regarding pesticides effect

Exploring the Relationships Between Yield and Yield-Related Traits for Rice Varieties Released in China From 1978 to 2017

Despite evidence from previous case studies showing that agronomic traits partially determine the resulting yield of different rice (Oryza sativa L.) varieties, it remains unclear whether this is true at the ecotype level. Here, an extensive dataset of the traits of 7686 rice varieties, released in China from 1978 to 2017, was used to study the relationship between yield and other agronomic traits. We assessed the association between yield and other agronomic traits for four different rice ecotypes, i.e., indica inbred, indica hybrid, japonica inbred, and japonica hybrid. We found that associations between agronomic traits and yield were ecotype-dependent. For both the indica inbred and indica hybrid ecotypes, we found that greater values of certain traits, including the filled grain number per panicle, 1000-grain-weight, plant height, panicle length, grains per panicle, seed setting rate, long growth period, low panicle number per unit area, and low seed length/width ratio, have accounted for high grain yield. In the japonica inbred and japonica hybrid ecotypes, we found that only high panicle number per unit area and long growth period led to high grain yield. Indirectly, growth period consistently had a positive effect on yield in all ecotypes, and plant height had a positive effect on yield for the indicas and japonica inbred only. Plant height had a negative effect for the japonica hybrid. Altogether, our findings potentially have valuable implications for improving the breeds of rice ecotypes