Distress debt and suicides among agrarian households : findings from three village studies in Kerala

This paper examines the factors and process underlying agrarian distress in Kerala by undertaking the case studies of three villages situated in Wayanad and Idukki districts namely, Cherumad, Kappikkunnu and Upputhara. The impact of distress on household livelihoods and indebtedness and how they cope up with the situation are examined with entire village and intra village analysis of data. The process of agrarian distress which resulted in suicides were analysed through a few in-depth studies. Decline in crops yield, coupled with sharp fall in their prices, created severe distress in all sections of agricultural population. Many household cope with these distresses by reducing household expenditure, diversifying their household incomes and searching for jobs in other places. Meanwhile, government interventions in terms of PDS, health care provision, education and supply of drinking water gave some relief to the affected persons. However, these measures could not completely prevent the occurrence of suicides among the members of agrarian households. The paper shows that the villages in which household income are more diversified and social networks much stronger, the distress conditions did not result in suicides. Mitigation of agrarian distress requires not only for debt relief but also implementation of long term strategies containing policies to promote price stability, ecological sustainability of agriculture, strengthening of formal rural credit and support networks, and income and employment generation programmes. Key words: Distress debt, Suicides, Agrarian Households, Livelihood risk, Coping Strategies, Livelihood, Livelihood Assets, Institutions, Kerala JEL Classification: Q, Q0

Lease farming in Kerala : findings from micro level studies

Land Reforms Act in Kerala rendered tenancy invalid and prohibited the creation of future tenancies in the State, but tenancy very much exists. It is a consequence of the simultaneous increase in two categories of people, “those who have land but unable to cultivate’ and ‘those who have the labour and skills, but no lands or not enough lands of their own to cultivate’. Macro state-level data on tenancy from sources such as the NSS appear to be gross under-estimations, going by the data provided by micro-level studies in the state. This paper examines some micro-level studies on tenancy in Kerala, more specifically, its prevalence across locations and crops, characteristics of lessors and lessees, the terms of lease, and the income derived from lease cultivation and in the light of the analysis, argues for institutionalised arrangements for the expansion of lease cultivation, rather than sterner measures to check it. Among other factors, large-scale entry of self-help groups into the lease market to take up lease cultivation, often bringing hitherto fallowed lands into production, has prompted such a positioning. Key Words: Lease farming, Commercial Cultivation, Sustainable Agriculture JEL Classification: Q10, Q1

Livelihood risks and coping strategies : a case study in the agrarian village of Cherumad, Kerala

This paper examines the various dimensions of livelihood risk as informed by a in-depth case study of an agrarian village namely, Cherumad in Kerala. The livelihood risk in Cherumad since the last quarter of the 1990’s has been unique and unprecedented in their nature and intensity. The effect of price risk and productivity risk of crops became an income risk to the farming community. For agricultural labour too it was an income risk with double effects of wage risk and employment risk. These risk have resulted in a general fall in the living standards of people. The livelihood dynamics in Cherumad shows that improvement in livelihood assets improves livelihood outcomes and vice versa. Institutions (both formal and informal) affect access to assets and livelihood outcomes. Across socio-economic groups, livelihood outcome are determined by the portfolio of livelihood assets, especially land. The households have developed a number of coping strategies in response to distress. These strategies are meant to smooth consumption and income and rebuilding household livelihood. In this context, the overall emphasis of state intervention should be in strengthening their livelihood assets. Key words: Livelihood risk, Coping Strategies, Livelihood, Livelihood Assets, Institutions, Kerala JEL Classification: Q, Q 00

Agrarian distress and livelihood strategies : a study in Pulpalli Panchayat, Wayanad District, Kerala

This paper examines the household livelihood strategies under agrarian distress in Pulpalli Panchayat of Kerala. It also looks at the relationship between household assets and livelihood strategies. The negotiations of institutions by the marginalized and depressed sections of the society were analysed in detail. Major causes of agrarian distress in the study area are the ecological degradation and fall in crops income. Land continues to be the most important asset determining livelihood outcomes. The livelihood strategies have been investigated in relation to land, education, housing pattern, investments & credit facilities, and participation in organizational activities. The livelihood strategies adopted by farmers in the wake of agrarian crisis includes diversification of agriculture, share cropping, organic farming, self-help group activities, cattle rearing, migration and exchange of labour. Livelihood strategies varied across socio-economic groups as farmers owning better landholdings diversified cropping patterns while poor households participated in the activities of SHGs. Casual agricultural labourers and marginal farmers moved to other places in search of jobs. Mitigation of agrarian distress requires public provision of education, health and other social safety measures. Key words: Livelihood risk, Coping Strategies, Livelihood, Livelihood Assets, Institutions, Wayanad, Kerala JEL Classification: Q, Q 0

Second Trimester Spontaneous Uterine Rupture in a Woman with Uterine Anomaly: A Case Report

Pregnancy with uterine anomalies is rare in clinical practice, and only a few cases are reported in the literature. In developing countries like India, majority of the pregnant women are not booked for early antenatal care due to fi nancial constraints. Most of the uterine anomalies go unnoticed because they are often symptomless. 9 CASE REPORT A 31-year-old woman, gravida 2, abortion 1, presented at 20 weeks of gestation with acute pain abdomen. Her fi rs

Antimicrobial Studies on Epidermal Mucus of Fish Anabas Testudineus

The present investigation was conducted to find out the antimicrobial, hemolytic activity and protein content of fish epidermal mucus and their chemical constituents from Anabas testudineus. The in vitro hemolytic activity were analyzed and the antimicrobial activity against human pathogens (Bacteria) were determined by agar well diffusion methods. Epidermal mucus sample protein was analyzed by (Thin layer chromatography and SDS-PAGE). Totally thirteen human pathogens were tested against the fish mucus. Out of thirteen pathogens five pathogens have proved to be sensitive to the mucus. The average value of maximum zone of inhibition was observed against K. pneumonia (15.17±0.09mm) > P. vulgaris (13.2±0.17mm) > E. lentum (12.43±0.18mm) > MRSA (11.37±0.32mm) > S. aureus (10.5±0.11mm). The percentage of haemolysis for lyophilized sample shows more hemolytic activity. The amount of protein present in the mucus for Lyophilized sample: 3.61 g/dL, for Rotavac sample: 1.08 g/dL. The present inspection were revealed that positive progresses in the fish mucus extracts hostile to human pathogen (Bacteria) and the hemolytic activity, also the simple population of proteins (SDS PAGE) and the (TLC) reveals the presence of amino acids and peptides. Further efforts are required for the isolation of the active antimicrobial compounds in order to establish their possible applications

Nanoalloying and phase transformations during thermal treatment of physical mixtures of Pd and Cu nanoparticles

Nanoscale alloying and phase transformations in physical mixtures of Pd and Cu ultrafine nanoparticles are investigated in real time with in situ synchrotron-based x-ray diffraction complemented by ex situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The combination of metal-support interaction and reactive/non-reactive environment was found to determine the thermal evolution and ultimate structure of this binary system. At 300 degrees C, the nanoparticles supported on silica and carbon black intermix to form a chemically ordered CsCl-type (B2) alloy phase. The B2 phase transforms into a disordered fcc alloy at higher temperature (\u3e 450 degrees C). The alloy nanoparticles supported on silica and carbon black are homogeneous in volume, but evidence was found of Pd surface enrichment. In sharp contrast, when supported on alumina, the two metals segregated at 300 degrees C to produce almost pure fcc Cu and Pd phases. Upon further annealing of the mixture on alumina above 600 degrees C, the two metals interdiffused, forming two distinct disordered alloys of compositions 30% and 90% Pd. The annealing atmosphere also plays a major role in the structural evolution of these bimetallic nanoparticles. The nanoparticles annealed in forming gas are larger than the nanoparticles annealing in helium due to reduction of the surface oxides that promotes coalescence and sintering

Sterol Composition of the Indian Green Lipped Mussel Perna virdis

Sterol composition of green lipped mussel Perna virdis was analysed using GCMS. Cholesterol was found to be the dominant sterol (54.162% of the total sterol content). Other sterols such as Cholesta-5,22-dien-3-ol (3β), ergosta-5,22-dien-3-ol (3 β,22E, 24S),  26,26-dimethyl-5,24 (28)-Ergostadien-3β-ol, 26-nor-5cholesten- 3β-ol, stigmasterol and γ sitosterol were also detected. Presence of phytosterols like stigmasterol and γ sitosterol underlines high nutritional potential and food value of this bivalve mollusk

Development and validation of a structured questionnaire to assess the Knowledge, Attitude and Practice (KAP) regarding the effect of yoga on periodontal health among Indian adults. [version 2; peer review: 2 approved]

Background Periodontal disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of structures surrounding the teeth. Its etiology is multifactorial. The primary etiological factor is the microbial component; the other factors are systemic, behavioral, environmental, and psychological. Conventional management includes routine periodontal therapy involving prophylactic and surgical management. In developing countries like India, complementary medicine and alternative medicines like yoga are gaining popularity for improving systemic health. Hence this pilot study was designed to assess the psychometric properties of a structured questionnaire that can assess knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) regarding the impact of yoga on oral and periodontal health in Indian population. Methods The KAP questionnaire was developed (Stage One) using a deductive approach, and a psychometric evaluation of the questionnaire was performed to evaluate it’s reliability and validity (Stage Two). Initial content validation and test re-test reliability were assessed using kappa statistics with binary responses. An intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to assess the questions in the practice and attitude category with categorical variables. Further assessment of psychometric properties of the questionnaire was done using item response theory. The developed questionnaire had four principal sections: demography of participants; knowledge regarding yoga and oral health; attitude towards yoga and oral health; and practice towards implementing yoga for oral health. Results The ICC for all the assessed questions was greater than 0.60 suggesting satisfactory stability. Internal consistency measured using Cronbach’s alpha for knowledge, attitude, and practice items were reported to be 0.632, 0.923, and 0.591 respectively and that of the KAP total was 0.632. Conclusions The findings of this study showed that the questionnaire had an acceptable psychometric property for measuring KAP regarding yoga and it’s role in oral and periodontal health among Indian adults. The analysis of participant responses revealed that they had a medium level of knowledge regarding yoga and periodontal disease