A Strategy for Consumer Protection in Pakistan

Government is relying increasingly on the market mechanism for economic management. The underlying perfect competition model assures maximum welfare of consumer, but assumptions of the model do not hold in real world. Consumer is central to economic activity but at the same time is vulnerable to exploitation by producers, misleading information, ignorance of his rights and non-availability of redress mechanism. Markets may be competitive but the consumers may suffer on account of imperfect information, search and transport costs needed to make satisfactory choices. This creates the need for government intervention for protecting the consumer welfare and rights. This paper explains why a consumer protection policy is needed in a situation of ‘competitive’ markets and looks into consumer protection strategies followed in some other countries. The area of consumer protection in Pakistan has remained neglected so far and no meaningful effort has been made in this direction. Realising this gap, the paper chalks out a consumer protection strategy for Pakistan; which goes beyond mere formulation of legislation and also includes consistent efforts towards awareness creation, provision of information/advice, setting of quality standards and redress. In the long run the efforts should continue in the from of research, formation/strengthening of consumer pressure groups and regional cooperation.

Relation between sediment flux variation and land use patterns along the Swedish Baltic Sea coast

The Baltic Sea is one of the most studied seas in the world and has been in the spotlight due to its wide range of environmental problems. Human impact and climate influence on the Baltic Sea is of major concerns. This study aims to reconstruct the environment of the south east coast of the Baltic Sea and also analyze the human impact and climate influence in changing the landscape and its impact on sedimentation pattern of the marine coastal sediments over time through high resolution particle size analysis using the Sedigraph method. Two stations were selected from the southeastern coast of the Baltic Sea: Gåsfjärden, Västervik and Yttre Redden, Karlskrona. Five cores were collected from Gåsfjärden, one 5.58 m core and four shorter Gemini cores (~0.5m) and similarly five cores were collected from Karlskrona, one 5.20 m and 4 shorter Gemini cores (~0.4m). The age model for both of the cores are based on AMS 14C dates. The Gåsfjärden core shows the last 6000 years and Karlskrona extends to the last 7000 years. The Gåsfjärden core has laminations in the whole core, which imply continuous low oxygen conditions in the area. The up-core decrease in the finer fraction is observed more or less throughout the Gåsfjärden core data which is attributed to deforestation, expansion of agriculture, erosion, and also the hydrographic conditions of the Baltic Sea. In the Karlskrona core there are large variations observed in the lower part of the core with little variability at the upper part. The large variability at the lower part is possibly linked to Littorina transgression and the small variability at upper part could be due to agricultural activities and climate changes. Natural drainage of the wetlands and ditching of fields are observed in the Gemini cores of both of the stations

Atomic-Scale Insights into Light Emitting Diode

In solid-state lightning, GaN-based vertical LED technology has attracted tremendous attention because its luminous efficacy has surpassed the traditional lightning technologies, even the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for the invention of efficient blue LEDs, which enabled eco-friendly and energy-saving white lighting sources. Despite today’s GaN-based blue VLEDs can produce IQE of 90% and EQE of 70-80%, still there exist a major challenge of efficiency droop. Nonetheless, state-of-the-art material characterization and failure analysis tools are inevitable to address that issue. In this context, although LEDs have been characterized by different microscopy techniques, they are still limited to either its semiconductor or active layer, which mainly contributes towards the IQE. This is also one of the reason that today’s LEDs IQE exceeded above 80% but EQE of 70-80% remains. Therefore, to scrutinize the efficiency droop issue, this work focused on developing a novel strategy to investigate key layers of the LED structure, which play the critical role in enhancing the EQE = IQE x LEE factors. Based on that strategy, wafer bonding, reflection, GaN-Ag interface, MQWs and top-textured layers have been systematically investigated under the powerful advanced microscopy techniques of SEM-based TKD/EDX/EBSD, AC-STEM, AFM, Raman spectroscopy, XRD, and PL. Further, based on these correlative microscopy results, optimization suggestions are given for performance enhancement in the LEDs. The objective of this doctoral research is to perform atomic-scale characterization on the VLED layers/interfaces to scrutinize their surface topography, grain morphology, chemical composition, interfacial diffusion, atomic structure and carrier localization mechanism in quest of efficiency droop and reliability issues. The outcome of this research advances in understanding LED device physics, which will facilitate standardization in its design for better smart optoelectronics products

A Strategy for Consumer Protection in Pakistan

Government is relying increasingly on the market mechanism for economic management. The underlying perfect competition model assures maximum welfare of consumer, but assumptions of the model do not hold in real world. Consumer is central to economic activity but at the same time is vulnerable to exploitation by producers, misleading information, ignorance of his rights and non-availability of redress mechanism. Markets may be competitive but the consumers may suffer on account of imperfect information, search and transport costs needed to make satisfactory choices. This creates the need for government intervention for protecting the consumer welfare and rights. This paper explains why a consumer protection policy is needed in a situation of ‘competitive’ markets and looks into consumer protection strategies followed in some other countries. The area of consumer protection in Pakistan has remained neglected so far and no meaningful effort has been made in this direction. Realising this gap, the paper chalks out a consumer protection strategy for Pakistan; which goes beyond mere formulation of legislation and also includes consistent efforts towards awareness creation, provision of information/advice, setting of quality standards and redress. In the long run the efforts should continue in the from of research, formation/strengthening of consumer pressure groups and regional cooperation

Influence of single and multiple dry bands on critical flashover voltage of silicone rubber outdoor insulators: simulation and experimental study

Dry band formation on the surface of outdoor insulators is one of the main reasons leading to flashover and power outages. In this paper, a dynamic arc model is proposed for single and multiple dry bands configuration to predict the critical flashover voltage for silicone rubber outdoor insulators. An arc is modelled as a time dependent impedance consisting of a Resistor Inductor Capacitor (RLC) circuit. The effect of dry band location and existence of multiple dry bands on critical flashover voltage is investigated. To validate the proposed model, experiments were conducted in a climate chamber under controlled environmental conditions on rectangular silicone rubber sheets polluted using improved solid layer method based on IEC 60,507. Tests were conducted at different dry band configurations and pollution severity levels. A good correlation was found between experimental results and simulation results. This model can provide a good foundation for the development of mathematical models for station post insulators having multiple dry and clean bands and can be used in the design and selection of outdoor insulators for polluted conditions

Glycemic control with four way model approach in rural area patients

Background: It is very important to keep the Glucose levels under control continuously and without any holidays. Type 2 diabetes is increasingly common in the industrialized world. Tight glycemic control attempts to rigidly glucose control levels (A1c: 6.5% -7.0% or lower). Maintaining tight glycemic control is lifesaving. Proper counselling, proper nutrition and if regular exercise is done it can result is good glycemic control.Methods: In the present study a total of 350 diabetic patients were selected out of which only 208 participants were eligible for study. Inclusion criteria in the study were 1) Age: men and women between age group 30 years to 70 years and 2) Type 2 Diabetes mellitus with HbA1c between 8 to 10%. Exclusion criteria in the study were 1) Type 1diabetes mellitus, Pre-existing renal, hepatic or cardiac disease, Hba1c >10%. A quadriad was established between patients, personal health worker, dietician and doctor.Results: Participants had regularly followed up and were divided randomly into cases (n = 112) and controls (n = 96). Patient were followed up as per study design it was observed that at the end of 3 months period mean FBS (case group 168.2±26.4 control group 200.8±38.3 p value <0.001) , Mean PPBS (case group 204.8±53.0 control group 271.0±45.5 p value <0.001) and Mean Hba1c (case group 8.7±0.5 control group 8.9±0.6 p value .003) in cases was significantly lower than control group.at the end 6 months it was observed that the mean cholesterol, mean triglyceride, mean LDL and mean VLDL was significantly lower in the cases compared to controls.Conclusions: A systematic approach and close monitoring that increased the adherence to medication, diet, and counselling would help in better glycemic control and prevent long term complication

Attenuation of hypotension using phenylephrine during induction of anaesthesia with propofol

Objective: To observe if phenylephrine mixed with propofol can attenuate hypotensive effects of propofol during induction of anaesthesia. Methods: A total number of 135 adult ASA-I and ASA-II patients were divided into three groups. (Group A, B and C). All patients were induced with propofol 2.5 mg per kg. In Group A (control group) patients received propofol mixed with 2cc of 0.9% normal saline. Group B (study group) patients received propofol mixed with 2cc of a solution containing phenylephrine 25µg/cc (total 50µg); Group C (study group) patients received propofol mixed with 2cc of a solution containing phenylephrine 50µg/cc (total 100µg). Haemodynamic variables like systolic, diastolic, mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate were noted. Hypotension was defined as 20% decrease in baseline systolic blood pressure recorded before induction of anaesthesia. Results: Phenylephrine in a dose of 100 micrograms attenuated the drop in systolic blood pressure. However phenylephrine in a dose 50 micrograms did not effectively prevent anticipated drop in SBP. Conclusion: Phenylephrine in doses of 100 micrograms effectively attenuates anticipated hypotension upon induction of general anaesthesia with propofo

Exploring Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Third Year Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study Investigating Treatment-Seeking Attitudes

Objective: This study analyzes the levels and rates of generalized anxiety among third-year medical students and what prevents them from seeking treatment. Our study was conducted among the students of third-year MBBS studying at Karachi Medical and Dental College. The questionnaire, which consisted of 17 questions, was sent out online among all the 254 students studying in their third year in the college. The response rate was 35%. The responses were collected, evaluated, and analyzed using IBM SPSS 22 software. Results: Our study showed that 36% of students were facing mild, 25.1% of students were facing moderate and 36% of the students were facing a severe form of generalized anxiety. When it comes to what prevents them from seeking treatment for their condition, 10(5.2%) have no access to a psychiatrist, 16(8.3%) feel shy sharing their problem with the doctor and 4(2.1%) feel like there is no solution to their condition. 14(7.3%) cannot afford treatment, and 12(6.3%) do not want people, relatives, or parents to know that they seek treatment for anxiety. 38(19.8) feel like they can deal with it on their own, 23(12%) feel like it will get better on its own whereas 16(8.3%) are very busy because of medical college and do not have time to seek treatment. 12(6.3%) do not have the energy, 29(15.1%) feel like it is just a phase and they will get through it and 18(9.4%) feel like they do not need treatment for their condition. Conclusion: Awareness about mental health among medical students is a topic that must be focused on to a greater degree, to protect the future generations of doctors and help each of them individually to overcome their mental health problems