Revival of Rampani fishing for mackerel in Maharashtra

For the past few years, purse seiners from Goa were reported to be operating in coastal waters of southern Maharashtra and therefore Rampani fishery was defunct. From 2010 onwards, strict implementation of Monsoon Fishing Ban from June to August was observed in Maharashtra. The revival of the Rampani fishery was attributed by the fishermen to this ban. However, the extension of mackerel even to the northern districts of Maharashtra and further towards Gujarat coast could also be due to the high cyclic abundance of the species, as observed in the past

Light fishing - conflicts and concerns in Maharashtra

Technological intervention in the Indian fishing industry are intended to increase marine fish production of the country. Crude light fishing methods practiced in Mandapam was reported for catching silverbellies (Sekharan 1955, Indian J. Fish., 1955; Anon., 1957, Indian J. Fish). Fishing experiments with light attraction for pelagic fishes using purseseines was conducted by Fishery Survey of India (Ninan and Sudarsan, 1988, Occasional papers of Fishery Survey of India No. 5) who reported that no aggregation was noticed in the areas where water turbidity was high and strong current (above 2 Knots) was present. Mohamed (2016) reviewed light fishing practices in India and suggested restrictions in power of lights used, area of operation, mesh size for exploitation etc (Marine Fisheries Policy Brief No. 4, 2016, ICAR- CMFRI)

Impact of targeted interventions on heterosexual transmission of HIV in India

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Targeted interventions (TIs) have been a major strategy for HIV prevention in India. We evaluated the impact of TIs on HIV prevalence in high HIV prevalence southern states (Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A quasi-experimental approach was used to retrospectively compare changes in HIV prevalence according to the intensity of targeted intervention implementation. Condom gap (number of condoms required minus condoms supplied by TIs) was used as an indicator of TI intensity. Annual average number of commercial sex acts per female sex worker (FSW) reported in Behavioral Surveillance Survey was multiplied by the estimated number of FSWs in each district to calculate annual requirement of condoms in the district. Data of condoms supplied by TIs from 1995 to 2008 was obtained from program records. Districts in each state were ranked into quartiles based on the TI intensity. Primary data of HIV Sentinel Surveillance was analyzed to calculate HIV prevalence reductions in each successive year taking 2001 as reference year according to the quartiles of TI intensity districts using generalized linear model with logit link and binomial distribution after adjusting for age, education, and place of residence (urban or rural).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In the high HIV prevalence southern states, the number of TI projects for FSWs increased from 5 to 310 between 1995 and 2008. In high TI intensity quartile districts (n = 30), 186 condoms per FSW/year were distributed through TIs as compared to 45 condoms/FSW/year in the low TI intensity districts (n = 29). Behavioral surveillance indicated significant rise in condom use from 2001 to 2009. Among FSWs consistent condom use with last paying clients increased from 58.6% to 83.7% (p < 0.001), and among men of reproductive age, the condom use during sex with non-regular partner increased from 51.7% to 68.6% (p < 0.001). A significant decline in HIV and syphilis prevalence has occurred in high prevalence southern states among FSWs and young antenatal women. Among young (15-24 years) antenatal clinic attendees significant decline was observed in HIV prevalence from 2001 to 2008 (OR = 0.42, 95% CI 0.28-0.62) in high TI intensity districts whereas in low TI intensity districts the change was not significant (OR = 1.01, 95% CI 0.67-1.5).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Targeted interventions are associated with HIV prevalence decline.</p

Growth dynamics of breath figures on phase change materials: a numerical study

We present a numerical investigation of the effect of droplet motion on the growth dynamics of breath figures during condensation on phase change material. Breath figures are a micro-scale pattern of droplets that form when droplets condense on a cold surface. The numerical model considers the growth of droplets due to condensation, droplet coalescence, random droplet movement, and surface wettability. We study the dynamics of breath figures in terms of the time of evolution of the mean radius of droplets $$\langle R \rangle$$, surface coverage $$\varepsilon ^2$$, and the droplet size distribution $$n_{\mathrm{s}}$$. We demonstrate that the droplets’ movement significantly changes the distribution of droplets condensing on a phase change material by increasing coalescence. We observed four growth regimes on phase change materials due to the movement of droplets. First, in the initial regime, $$\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha _1}$$, intermediate regime $$\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha _2}$$, coalescence-dominated regime $$\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha _3}$$, and late regime $$\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha _4}$$. The growth exponents are $$\alpha _1 \approx 1/2$$, $$\alpha _2 \approx 1$$, and $$\alpha _4 = 1/3$$. While the growth exponent $$\alpha _3$$ depends on the contact angle of the surface $$\theta$$. Furthermore, we show the scaling of the droplet size distributions at different times

Numerical simulations of growth dynamics of breath figures on phase change materials: The effect of accelerated coalescence due to droplet motion

We present the growth dynamics of breath figures on phase change materials using numerical simulations. We propose a numerical model which accounts for both growth due to condensation and random motion of droplets on the substrate. We call this model as growth and random motion (GRM) model. Our analysis shows that for dynamics of droplet growth without droplet motion, simulation results are in good agreement with well-established theories of growth laws and self-similarity in surface coverage. We report the emergence of a growth law in the coalescence-dominated regime for the droplets growing simultaneously by condensation and droplet motion. The overall growth of breath figures (BF) exhibits four growth regions, namely, initial $\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha_1 }$ , intermediate or crossover $\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha_2 }$ , coalescence-dominated regime $\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha_3 }$ , and no coalescence regime in late time $\langle R \rangle \sim t^{\alpha_4 }$ , where $\langle R \rangle$ and t are the average droplet radius and time, respectively. The power law exponents are $\alpha_1 \approx 1/2$ , $\alpha_2 \approx 1.0$ , $\alpha_3 \approx 3.0$ , and $\alpha_4 \approx 1/3$ . Moreover, the surface coverage reaches a maximum value $\varepsilon^2 \approx 0.35$ where the third growth regime $t^{\alpha_3 }$ starts. We also demonstrate that during the growth dynamics of BF, the random motion amplitude δ and its probability p(R) linked to the power exponent γ of droplet radius R have a specific limiting range within which its effect is more predominant

Not Available

Not AvailableFor the past few years, purse seiners from Goa were reported to be operating in coastal waters of southern Maharashtra and therefore Rampani fishery was defunct. From 2010 onwards, strict implementation of Monsoon Fishing Ban from June to August was observed in Maharashtra. The revival of the Rampani fishery was attributed by the fishermen to this ban. However, the extension of mackerel even to the northern districts of Maharashtra and further towards Gujarat coast could also be due to the high cyclic abundance of the species, as observed in the past.Not Availabl

Not Available

Not AvailableTechnological intervention in the Indian fishing industry are intended to increase marine fish production of the country. Crude light fishing methods practiced in Mandapam was reported for catching silverbellies (Sekharan 1955, Indian J. Fish., 1955; Anon., 1957, Indian J. Fish). Fishing experiments with light attraction for pelagic fishes using purseseines was conducted by Fishery Survey of India (Ninan and Sudarsan, 1988, Occasional papers of Fishery Survey of India No. 5) who reported that no aggregation was noticed in the areas where water turbidity was high and strong current (above 2 Knots) was present. Mohamed (2016) reviewed light fishing practices in India and suggested restrictions in power of lights used, area of operation, mesh size for exploitation etc (Marine Fisheries Policy Brief No. 4, 2016, ICAR- CMFRI).Not Availabl