Studies on the chemical quality of cured fish products from the west coast of India

Fish curing is one of the oldest industries of the coastal areas of India. It has been estimated that about 50 to 70% of the marine fish catches of India are at present being processed into cured products {Government of India Publication, 1951 a and b). Though fish curing is of this magnitude, it is one of the least developed industries of India, although efforts are being made in some of the maritime States such as Madras, Travancore-Cochin and Bombay, to improve curing by providing better facilities to the fishermen engaged in the industry. The methods practised are generally primitive and the attention paid to cleanliness and sanitation leaves much to be desired. Only 17-3% of the total fish landing is being cured through the Government fish curing yards {Government of India Marketing Report, 1951), the rest being processed in private yards which are not under the supervision of Government agencies

Determination of total volatile nitrogen in cured fish products

Estimation of total volatile nitrogenous bases has been generally made use of in routine analysis for the chemical assessment of the degree of spoilage in fish samples. The measurement of this index of spoilage furnishes a reasonably accurate and rapid method for the determination of the keeping quality of cured fish products. In fact it haa been pointed out by Velankar (1952) that total volatile nitrogen gives a better index of spoilage than the trimethylamine content. Tarr and Ney (1949) also observed that the test for the amount of trimethylamine present is not likely to prove a very sensitive measurement of the bacterial spoilage of varieties of Pacific coast fishes. It is suggested that trimethylamine is a product during the early stages of spoilage (Collins, 1938; Hess, 1941) and that it may be lost indiscriminately during storage

On the large-scale colonisation of the spat of mussel, Mytilus viridis, in Cochin region

Large-scale colonisation of the spat of the green mussel, Mytilus viridis, a species heretofore considered as not existing in sizable quantities in the Cochin region, was noticed on the anti-erosicm granitestone embankments of Andakaran Azhi beach between Shertalai and Cochin. The spat, which appear to settle during the postfflonsoon period, grow in profusion in the midlittoral and infralittoral regions. The density of the population varies from surface to surface even on a single boulder. A marked concentration is noticed in the sheltered, dark niches beneath the stores, while the flat upper surfaces that are constantly exposed to severe wave actions appear to be least suitable for mussel growth. It was estimated that on an average, 220-248 spat|100 Cm' were in areas submerged most of the time, while 112-170, in less favourable surroundings. The population which is densest at Andakaran Azhi diminishes gradually northwards. But on the whole, the potentiality of this resource is large enough to provide ample seed for extensive culture operations along this region

Lidar Observations of aerosol layers just below the tropopause level during IFP-INDOEX

A lidar system has been used at Gadanki (13.5º, 79.2ºE) to study the characteristics of aerosol layer (cloud) occurring just below the tropical tropopause. The preliminary results of the lidar observations indicate that the cloud occurs ~ 2 km below the tropopause. The top and bottom edges of the cloud have propensity for ice crystal presence with liquid droplets/ vapours in-between. The clouds show temporal fluctuations (in their backscattering ratio) with temporal scales of the order of 30–90 min

Studies on the curing and preservation of "choodai" I. Some Aspects of Dry Salting

The methods adopted in India for the curing of " Choodai " (Sardinella spp.) in places where this fish constitutes a major portion of the fishery can be broadly classified into the following, viz., sun-drying, dry-salting, wet-salting and pit-curing. A specialised method known as the ' Colombo method of curing' is practised on a commercial scale in some places on the West Coast (Nicholson, 1930). The choice of the method adopted by the fishermen seems to be based more on convenience rather than on convention. When there is heavy fishing the fishermen invariably resort to sun drying and often spread the fish on the sandy beach itself for drying. The product thus obtained will not be wholesome and may contain, besides sand, other materials from the mud. The fish is sometimes washed in sea-water before being spread for drying, but this practice also is not strictly followed anywhere. In the dry salting and wet salting processes also many such unhygienic practices are often met with. Immediately after catch, the fish is mixed with salt without washing and removal of the slimy matter (the quantity of salt being a matter of approximation in places where Government fish-curing yards are not available) and left in some containers until a good market is found for the fish. No strict time limit is followed for the salting process and as such the products can either be under-salted or oversalted. As regards pit-curing it can be considered to be the most unhygienic method practiced in the curing of "Choodai". The fish without washing is mixed with salt, generally in excess, and put in pits lined on the inside with palmyrah leaves, covered with palmyrah leaf mats with earth above and tramped upon to give pressure (Nicholson, 1930). The product obtained is often in a disintegrated form with a viciating smell and mixed with a very high percentage of sand

Search for Short-Term Periodicities in the Sun's Surface Rotation: A Revisit

The power spectral analyses of the Sun's surface equatorial rotation rate determined from the Mt. Wilson daily Doppler velocity measurements during the period 3 December 1985 to 5 March 2007 suggests the existence of 7.6 year, 2.8 year, 1.47 year, 245 day, 182 day and 158 day periodicities in the surface equatorial rotation rate during the period before 1996. However, there is no variation of any kind in the more accurately measured data during the period after 1995. That is, the aforementioned periodicities in the data during the period before the year 1996 may be artifacts of the uncertainties of those data due to the frequent changes in the instrumentation of the Mt. Wilson spectrograph. On the other hand, the temporal behavior of most of the activity phenomena during cycles 22 (1986-1996) and 23 (after 1997) is considerably different. Therefore, the presence of the aforementioned short-term periodicities during the last cycle and absence of them in the current cycle may, in principle, be real temporal behavior of the solar rotation during these cycles.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in Solar Physic