Environmental Risk Analysis: Problems and Perspectives in Different Countries

The authors discuss various industrial accidents, which have led to growing concerns about the potential hazards and risks involved in chemical process industries

National Policy for Rare Diseases, 2021 – A critical perspective

More than 8% of the global population is affected by a rare disease and >50% affected are children (30% of whom will die before 5 years). There are 6,000-8,000 classified rare diseases – 80% are genetically based – with less than 500 FDA approved treatments (or <5% have therapies) available to treat them. Lack of standard definition and community-based epidemiological data in India limits the estimation of prevalence and/or disease burden; though extrapolations at 6% to 8% show 72 to 96 million affected individuals. The Government of India approved the “National Policy for Rare Diseases, 2021” on 30th March 2021. It is a step in the right direction; at the time it necessitates optimal utilization of allocated resources and timely appraisal of the policy itself

BACKWARD MOTION PLANNING AND CONTROL OF MULTIPLE MOBILE ROBOTS MOVING IN TIGHTLY COUPLED FORMATIONS

This work addresses the development of a distributed switching control strategy to drive the group of mobile robots in both backward and forward motion in a tightly coupled geometric pattern, as a solution for the deadlock situation that arises while navigating the unknown environment. A generalized closed-loop tracking controller considering the leader referenced model is used for the robots to remain in the formation while navigating the environment. A tracking controller using the simple geometric approach and the Instantaneous Centre of Radius (ICR), to drive the robot in the backward motion during deadlock situation is developed and presented. State-Based Modelling is used to model the behaviors/motion states of the proposed approach in MATLAB/STATEFLOW environment. Simulation studies are carried out to test the performance and error dynamics of the proposed approach combining the formation, navigation, and backward motion of the robots in all geometric patterns of formation, and the results are discussed

Analysis of WRF Model Performance over Subtropical Region of Delhi, India

Model performance and sensitivity to model physics options are studied with the Weather Research and Forecasting model (version 3.1.1) over Delhi region in India for surface and upper air meteorological parameters in summer and winter seasons. A case study with the model has been performed with different configurations, and the best physics options suited for this region have been, determined. Comparison between estimated and observed data was carried out through standard statistical measures. Generally, the combination of Pleim-Xiu land surface model, Pleim surface layer scheme, and Asymmetric Convective Model has been found to produce better estimates of temperature and relative humidity for Delhi region. Wind speed and direction estimations were observed best for MM5 similarity surface layer along with Yonsei University boundary layer scheme. Nested domains with higher resolutions were not helpful in improving the simulation results as per the current availability of the data. Overall, the present case study shows that the model has performed reasonably well over the subtropical region of Delhi

Hemato-metabolički profil visokoproizvodnih mliječnih krava za vrijeme prijelaznog razdoblja

The objective of the present study was to assess the haematological [haemoglobin, packed cell volume (PCV), total erythrocyte count (TEC), erythrocytic indices, total leucocyte count (TLC) and differential leucocyte count (DLC)] changes and metabolic adjustment, viz. blood glucose, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), non-esterified fatty acid (NEFA) and cholesterol, in high-yielding Sahiwal and Karan Fries cows during the transition period. For this purpose, blood samples were collected from 8 pregnant Karan Fries crossbred cows and 8 pregnant Sahiwal cows on days -15, -7, 0 (the day of calving), +7 and +15 from calving, and used for estimation of haemoglobin, PCV, TLC, TEC, erythrocytic indices and DLC, and metabolic parameters, such as blood glucose, BUN, NEFA and cholesterol. It was found that haemoglobin concentrations, PCV and TEC increased significantly (P<0.01) up to the day of calving, and gradually decreased thereafter to reach pre-partum levels in the subsequent weeks post-calving. While the TLC, number of neutrophils and monocytes were found to increase (P<0.01), the number of lymphocytes decreased significantly (P<0.01) on the day of calving and then reached pre-partum levels after calving. No significant effect was observed on erythrocytic indices parameters. Blood glucose, BUN and NEFA levels showed an increasing trend (P<0.01) from 2 weeks pre-partum until the day of calving, and then decreased to the pre-partum level after calving. Unlike the other parameters, the plasma cholesterol level increased consistently from 2 weeks pre-partum to 2 weeks post-partum. In conclusion, the results of our study clearly show a definite pattern of the haematological and metabolic adjustment of high-producing dairy cows during the pre-partum to postpartum transition.Cilj ovoga istraživanja bio je procijeniti hematološke promjene i metaboličku prilagodbu visokoproizvodnih Sahiwal i Karan Fries krava u prijelaznom razdoblju. Hematološke promjene su uključile hemoglobin, volumen eritrocita (PCV), ukupan broj eritrocita (TEC), eritrocitne pokazatelje, ukupan broj leukocita (TLC) i diferencijalni broj leukocita (DLC), a metaboličke prilagodbe glukozu, urea-nitrat u krvi (BUN), neesterificirane masne kiseline (NEFA) i kolesterol. Prikupljeni su uzorci krvi od 8 gravidnih krava križanki Karan Fries i 8 gravidnih krava pasmine Sahiwal. Uzorci su prikupljeni na dane –15., –7., 0. (dan teljenja), +7. i +15. nakon teljenja. Koncentracija hemoglobina, PCV i TEC znakovito su porasli (P < 0,01) do dana teljenja, da bi se poslije teljenja postupno smanjivali sve dok nisu postignute prijeporođajne vrijednosti. Dok je TLC, broj neutrofila i monocita porastao (P < 0,01), broj limfocita znakovito se smanjio (P < 0,01) na dan teljenja te je poslije teljenja postigao prijeporođajne vrijednosti. Nije bilo znakovitih učinaka na eritrocitne pokazatelje. Razine glukoze u krvi, BUN i NEFA pokazali su porast (P < 0,01) od dva tjedna prije porođaja do dana teljenja, a zatim su se nakon teljenja smanjili na prijeporođajne vrijednosti. Za razliku od ostalih pokazatelja, razina kolesterola u plazmi dosljedno je rasla od drugog tjedna prije porođaja do dva tjedna poslije porođaja. Zaključno, rezultati našeg istraživanja nedvojbeno su pokazali određen obrazac hematološke i metaboličke prilagodbe visokoproizvodnih mliječnih krava u prijelaznom razdoblju od prije porođaja do poslije porođaja

Industrial heat island: a case study of Angul-Talcher region in India

Most of the urban heat island (UHI) studies are carried out in densely populated cities but core industrial areas are also potential sites of heat island effect despite having a comparatively lower population. In the present study, heat island assessment has been carried out for Angul-Talcher industrial area (ATIA) which is one of the oldest industrial areas of India and is still undergoing a transformation to accommodate more industries and mining operations. As the major contributors towards influencing local meteorology were expected to be industrial (and mining) activities, the heat island was studied as "industrial heat island" (IHI) rather than urban heat island. Industrial and mining sites were the most frequent nighttime canopy-layer heat island intensity (HIN) hotspots due to anthropogenic heat of associated industrial processes as well as built structures. During the daytime, croplands experienced the most frequent canopy-layer HIN hotspots which could be attributed to low moisture of the soils during the non-farming period of the field campaign. Hourly maximum atmospheric heat island intensities were observed in the range of 7-9 degrees C. Monthly maximum HINs ranged from 2.97 to 4.04 degrees C while 3-month mean HINs varied from 1.45 to 2.74 degrees C. Amongst different land use/land cover classes, the highest mean canopy-layer heat island intensity for the entire 3-month-long duration of field campaign during nighttime was assessed at the mining sites (3-month mean 2.74 degrees C) followed in decreasing order by the industrial sites (2.52 degrees C), rural and urban settlements (2.13 degrees C), and croplands (2.06 degrees C). Corresponding daytime canopy-layer heat island intensity was highest for the croplands (2.07 degrees C) followed in decreasing order by the mining sites (1.70 degrees C), rural and urban settlements (1.68 degrees C), and industry (1.45 degrees C)

Bioconversion of waste cooking oil for the production of poly-3-hydroxybutyrate using Bacillus cereus MPTDC

Used cooking oil is generated as a byproduct during frying process. It cannot be reused for cooking process due to health issues such as cancer and other digestive disorders. Alternative strategy is utilization of this waste cooking oil for production of poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) a biopolymer which can be used as a substitute for petroleum derived plastics [ABG1] or other value added products. In the present investigation, we used waste cooking oil as carbon source for PHB production by Bacillus cereus MPTDC. The optimum conditions of PHB production by Bacillus cereus MPTDC were waste cooking oil concentration of 2% (v/v), incubation time of 96 h, ammonium sulphate concentration of 7.5% and yeast extract concentration of 0.2%. Under optimized conditions the strain produced 3.777 g/L of PHB. The results indicate the potential of used cooking oil as carbon source for PHB production by Bacillus cereus MPTDC