The perceptions of Anganwadi workers and mothers of the importance of nutritional care of children during the first 3 years of life : a study of Jharkhand, India

Magister Public Health - MPHIndia has the highest prevalence of child malnutrition in the world and is ranked among the worst performing Commonwealth countries in terms of child undernutrition. This poor performance is despite the implementation of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) since 1975, which seeks to combat malnutrition through community-based Anganwadi workers. Anganwadi workers play a pivotal role in the implementation of the ICDS Programme and thus their understanding of the key concepts relating to the services provided at the centres is crucial. This study is carried out in the Indian state of Jharkhand, where almost half of the population is undernourished. The study seeks to gain insights on the understanding and perceptions of Anganwadi workers and the mothers with whom they interact, regarding the long term impact of being malnourished in the first 3 years of life. The study used a qualitative approach, with data collection methods including focus group discussions as well as individual in-depth interviews. The study findings suggest that the majority of Anganwadi workers know about the services provided. However, they were unable to state the reasons underlying why these services are important. Mothers on the other hand could only mention three out of six services and many mentioned that the services were scheduled on certain days. In addition, mothers were concerned about the services provided and mentioned that there was poor information sharing even though at times they expressed an interest in the programme. The knowledge of Anganwadi workers about the importance of nutrition in the first three years of life was limited. The same was observed among the mothers in this study. Anganwadi workers identified deficiencies in their training as a reason for their limited understanding about issues pertaining to nutrition within the programme. In conclusion, this study suggests a general lack of knowledge about programme components amongst the Anganwadi workers and mothers. The ICDS programme has failed to develop an understanding about the service components, its importance and consequences for malnutrition. Furthermore, there are limited services offered at the centre, presenting missed opportunities. This has resulted in mothers being deprived of important information which may be crucial in improving child survival and cognitive development. There is thus an urgent need to evaluate ICDS training provided to Anganwadi workers as well as constant retraining to reinforce critical messages. This will ensure that there is congruence between training and practice in the largest nutrition programme in the world

Report of Dictyla cheriani (Hemiptera: Tingidae) on Indian cherry (Cordia myxa) in Rajasthan, India: Incidence and morphometric analysis

The infestation of Dictyla cheriani (Drake) (Hemiptera: Tingidae) on Indian cherry (Cordia myxa L.), was noticed in 2010 at the Experimental Farm of Central Institute for Arid Horticulture and other fields of Bikaner district, Rajasthan, India. The maximum incidence was observed in October (51.67% on bold and 76.67% on small seeded plants) and minimum was in January (11.67% on bold and 21.67% on small seeded plants). The number of this lace bug ranged between (0.5 to 8.8 on bold and 4.5 to 25.97 on small seeded plants) nymphs and adults per leaves. This species is characterised by body oblong, pale testaceous with brownish or fuscous markings, with collar and hood yellowish brown, body beneath reddish dark with thoracic sterna darker. Antenna is yellowish brown; 1/3 part of 4 segment blackish. Antenna is rather slender, segmental measurements: I, 0.12 mm; II, 0.09 mm; III, 0.80 mm; IV, 0.22 mm. The mean body lengths of the male and female adult vary and were recorded as 2.17 mm and 2.34 mm, respectively

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Not AvailableThe cucurbit plants belong to family Cucurbitaceae comprises of about 117 genera and 825 species in warmer parts, in which mateera, muskmelon, ridge gourd, bottle gourd, snapmelon, kachri, round melon, sponge gourd, etc. are found in arid regional of Rajasthan. The main pests of cucurbit crops are fruity fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae, leaf eating caterpillar, Diaphania indica; leaf miner, Liriomyza trifolii; white flies, Bemisia tabaci; Hadda beetle, Epilachna viginctioctopunctata; aphids, Aphis gossypii; ash weevil, Myllocerus subfasciatus; flower beetles Mylabris macilenta; Anthicus crinitus and Anthrenus subclaviger and beet worm, Spodoptera exigua. The cucurbitaceous vegetables are loss the yield ranged from 30-100% due to pest attack and its depending upon cucurbit species and the season in different parts of arid region.Not Availabl

Oxidative Desulfurization of Simulated Diesel Fuel by Synthesized Tin Oxide Nano-Catalysts Support on Reduced Graphene Oxide

   The modified Hummers method was applied to prepare graphene oxide (GO) from the graphite powder. Tin oxide nanoparticles with different loading (10-20 wt.%) supported on reduced graphene oxide were synthesized to evaluate the oxidative desulfurization efficiency. The catalyst was synthesized by the incipient wetness impregnation (IWI) technique. Different analysis methods like FT-IR, XRD, FESEM, AFM, and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) were utilized to characterize graphene oxide and catalysts. The XRD analysis showed that the average crystal size of graphene oxide was 6.05 nm. In addition, the FESEM results showed high metal oxide dispersions on the rGO. The EDX analysis shows the weight ratio of Sn is close to its theoretical weight. The reduction of metal oxide and (GO) has occurred in one step at temperatures of 400 °C for 2 hours. The performance of the catalysts for dibenzothiophene (DBT) removal using H2O2 as an oxidizing agent was determined under a range of different operating conditions. The results showed that the maximum desulfurization was 71.68% in the best conditions (DBT concentration = 385 ppm, time = 90 min, temperature = 60 oC, catalyst dosage = 0.04g, and amount of oxidant = 0.375 ml)

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Not AvailableThe cucurbitaceous family has comprised with diverse economically important cucurbits. It primarily comprised of 118 genera and 825 species which being consumed as food worldwide since the domestication of the plants. In India, cucurbits are being grown throughout regions of the country including hot semi-arid and arid zones. With the advent of genomic breakthrough, a large number of genomic and biotechnological interventions have been developed in cucurbitaceous crops. The plenty of molecular markers are available in cucurbits and these markers were deployed to assess the genetic diversity and mapping of the QTLS/genes of interest. The success in development of genomic tools may happens by genome sequencing of mostly important cucurbitaceous crops such as watermelon, cucumber, muskmelon, bottle gourd, pumpkins. Transgenic and non-transgenic plants were developed in various cucurbitaceous crops by employing of Agrobacterium-mediated transformation and CRISPR/CAS9 approach, respectively. Thus cucurbitaceous crops have been considerably exploited at molecular level and biotechnological interventions were developed for crop improvement. However, a comprehensive report in cucurbitaceous crops regarding genomic and biotechnological developments is not available in public domain. Therefore, in the present review, we have collected the information related to genomics and biotechnology in cucurbits and emphasized on some successful interventions.Not Availabl

Biochemical characterization data from Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy analyses of Rhizophora mangle L. bark-extract

This article presents biochemical characterization data, of organic functional groups and 3-D optimized structures of identified organic chemicals, from the Fourier transform infra- red (FT-IR) spectroscopy analyses of Rhizophora mangle L. bark-extract. Spectral plot from FT-IR spectroscopy instrumentation application to the Rhizophora mangle L. bark-extract, which includes numerical data of adsorbed frequencies for indicating fingerprints/vibration modes of organic functional groups, is supplied in the paper. The obtained spectrum was also rendered to the computer-based Euclidean Search ®of the Fluka Library ®reference database, for obtaining hit-list of organic chemical compounds constituted in the bark- extract. Adsorbed functional groups from the FT-IR spectroscopy, including N –H, C –N, –C ≡N, O –P( = O)(H –O) and S-containing ligands, are corroborated by the chemical com- pounds identified by the computer-based hit-list. These data of biochemical constituent characterizations are useful for gaining insights into the prospects of using bark-extract from Rhizophora mangle L. natural-plant for corrosion-protection of metallic materials in aggressive service-environments

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Haldhar, S.M. 2012. Report of Homoeocerus variabilis (Hemiptera: Coreidae) on khejri (Prosopis cineraria) in Rajasthan, India: incidence and morphometric analysis. Florida Entomologist, 95: 848-853. Haldhar, S.M., and Singh, R.S. 2014. Report of Dictyla cheriani Drake (Hemiptera: Tingidae) on Indian Cherry (Cordia myxa L.) in Rajasthan, India: incidence and morphometric analysis. Indian Journal of Agriculture Sciences, 84: 128–130. Haldhar, S.M., Bhargava, R., Singh, R.S., Krishna, H. and Sharma, S.K. 2015. First Report of Colotis amata (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) on Salvadora persica (Capparales: Salvadoraceae) in Rajasthan, India: Incidence and Morphometric Analysis. Florida Entomologist, 98(2):442-445. Haldhar, S.M., Karuppaiah, V., Sharma, S.K. and Singh, R. S. 2010. Population dynamics of lemon butterfly (Papilio demoleus) in bael (Aegle marmelos) as influenced by abiotic factors in arid region of Rajasthan. Indian Journal of Arid Horticulture, 5 (1-2): 50-52. Haldhar, S.M., Behere, G.T., Bhargava, R., Singh, R.S., Krishna, H., Jat, G.L. and Singh, D. 2016. Observations on the pioneer white butterfly, Belenois aurota (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) in ker (Capparis decidua) plant in arid region of India. Indian Journal of Arid Horticulture, 11:108-112. Jahnavi, M., Ramakrishna Rao, A. and Sarada, G. 2018. Biology and morphology of citrus butterfly Papilio demoleus Linnaeus (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) on acid lime. Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies, 6(1): 1556-1561. Lakra, R.A. 2004. Insect pests of fruits of arid and semi arid regions of India. In pest management in horticultural crops (ed. Verma, L. R., Verma, A.K. and Gaudam, D. C.). Vedams Books Pvt. Ltd., Delhi. Pp 544. Madansuri, A.N., Pawar, V.M. and Suryawanshi, D.S. 1979. Width of head capsule of P. demoleus L. Research Bulletin Marathawada Agricultural University, 3(10):130. Narayanamma, V.L., Savithri, P. and Rao R. 2001. Influence of citrus butterfly Papilio demoleus L. Damage on growth parameters of the sweet orange host plant. Indian Journal of Plant Protection, 29:140-141. Pathak, K.N. and Rizvi, P.Q. 2002. Age specific life table of Papilio demoleus on different hosts. Annals of Plant Protection Sciences. 10: 375-376. Radke, S.G. and Kandalkar, H.G. 1989. Observations on the lemon butterfly, Papilio demoleus Linnaeous (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) PKV Research Journal, 13(2):176-177. Ramakrishna Rao, A. 2015. Studies on biology and morphometrics of citrus butterfly Papilio demoleus (Linnaeus) (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) on sathgudi wweet orange Citrus sinensis Swingle. International Journal of Current Research in Life Sciences, 4 (3): 168-171. Resham, B., Fanindra, P.N. and Butani, D.K. 1986. Insect pests of citrus in Nepal and their control. Pestology, 10(4): 24-27. Samadia, D.K. and Haldhar, S.M. 2017. Breeding strategies and scope of improvement in arid zone fruit crop-plants under abiotic stressed agro-climate: an analysis. Journal of Agriculture and Ecology, 4: 1-13. Sharifi, S. and Zarea, N. 1989. Biology of the citrus Butterfly, P. demoleus (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 63(5):1211-1213. Singh, Y.P. and Gangwar, S.K. 1989. Biology of the lemon butterfly (Papilio demoleus Linn.) on Khasi mandarin and its development on citrus cultivars. Journal of Andaman Science Association, 5(2):151-153. Smith, C.R., Wright, R.I. 2008. Classification, nomenclature and identification of lime swallowtail butterflies: a post-cladistic analysis (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae). Systematics and Biodiversity, 6(2):175-203.Biology and morphomatrics studies of lemon butterfly, Papilio demoleus L. were carried out on bael. Adult female laid eggs singly on the under surface of tender leaves and also on tender twigs. The pooled mean duration of the different stages of lemon butterfly viz., the incubation period of 2.80 days, larval period of 9.23 days, pre-pupal period of 0.99 days, pupal period of 8.11 days, female adult longevity period of 6.95 days and male longevity period of 3.85 days respectively. The average length, width and wing expanse of male butterfly were found to be 27.961 mm, 5.997 mm and 88.518 mm while female butterfly was found to be 29.015 mm, 6.327 mm and 91.072 mm, respectively. The morphometric variations of different life stages of the citrus butterfly have been recorded.Not Availabl