Irrigation Management in Pakistan and India: Comparing Notes on Institutions and Policies

irrigation management / productivity / privatization / irrigated farming / equity / water distribution / groundwater management / economic aspects / tube wells / price policy / electricity supplies / pumps / India / Pakistan /

Bioassay studies of metal(II) complexes of 2,2'-(ethane-1,2-diyldiimino)diacetic acid

Ni(II), Cu(II) and Zn(II) coordination compounds with modified diammine 2,2'-(ethane-1,2-diyldiimino)diacetic acid (EDDA) were prepared and characterized. Coordination complexes of the EDDA were characterized by physical measurements including elemental analysis, IR, UV-Visible, magnetic susceptibilities and conductance measurements. The complexes were screened against four pathogenic bacteria like Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Staphylococcus aureus and their concentrations for maximum inhibition zones were obtained. KEY WORDS: EDDA, Coordination complexes, Antibacterial studies Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2011, 25(2), 239-245

Stolen childhoods: the dilemma of child marriage in rural Sindh

Despite legislation to combat the practice at both national and provincial levels, child marriage is still common in Pakistan, particularly in rural areas. Nadir Ali Shah and Abdur Rehman Cheema draw on fieldwork conducted in rural Sindh to highlight the ongoing problem, and write that if child marriage is to be eliminated in line with the Sustainable Development Goals social guidance and other forms of support will be needed alongside proper implementation of the law

Monte Carlo Simulation and Scenario Analysis Based Limestone Quarry Production Planning

The key factor behind raw mix design in the cement factory is the appropriate production planning, resulting in high-quality raw material. Quarry managers usually come up with uncertainty-related raw materials due to variations in chemical composition. These uncertainties required efficient planning in terms of useful insight into this problem. This research provides a detailed explanation of scenario analysis of raw materials used in cement manufacturing using Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) and indices. Scenario analysis is used to predict the possibility of best, worst and most likely cases of raw material’s quality. Whereas, Monte Carlo simulation is used to evaluate the inherent uncertainty associated with chemical composition values in order to analyze the impact of truly unpredictable scenarios. The predictive results help in decisions related to production planning, raw mix design optimization and increasing the probability of designing the best plan

Formulation and Evaluation of Tramadol HCl Matrix Tablets Using Carbopol 974P and 934 as Rate-Controlling Agents

Purpose: To formulate and prepare controlled release (CR) matrix tablets of tramadol HCl using Carbopol 974P and 934 polymers as rate-controlling agents.Methods: The tablets were prepared by direct compression method using various drug to polymer (D:P) ratios. Co-excipients, including carboxymethylcellulose, starch and/or hydroxypropyl methylcellulosewere also used to modulate the formulations. Various physical tests and in vitro dissolution studies were carried out on the formulations. The dissolution data were subjected to various release modelsResults: As the concentration of the polymer (rate-controlling agent) increased, dissolution rate decreased, For the formulation containing Carbopol 974P at D:P ratio of 10:7, drug release decreased to 83 % compared with the release rate of 99 % for the formulation with D:P ratio of 10:3. Kinetic analysis indicates that drug release mechanism was anomalous non-Fickian diffusion.Conclusion: Both Carbopol 974P and 934 can be used as rate-controlling agents in the formulation of tramadol HCl CR tablets. Appropriate selection of drug/polymer ratio can be applied effectively to modulate the dissolution rate of the drug.Keywords: Tramadol, Carbopol, Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, Controlled releas

Dynamic hip screw fixation for inter-trochanteric fractures: determinants of outcomes

bstract OBJECTIVE: To evaluate factors associated with revision of dynamic hip screw implant in patients undergoing the procedure for the fixation of intertrochanteric fractures. METHODS: The retrospective study was conducted at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, and comprised records of patients who had undergone dynamic hip screw fixation surgery between 2008 and 2012. Medical records and data for all patients were obtained from the medical records office. For all patients, the record files were systematically reviewed using a structured, pre-defined data extraction sheet. SPSS 20 was used statistical analysis. RESULTS: Out of 317 patients who had undergone the procedure, 8(2.5%) were excluded due to missing records. The study sample as such stood at 309(97.5%). Of them, 6(1.9%) required revision of the dynamic hip screw placed initially. High tip apex distance was found to be associated with the revision (p\u3c0.0001).Demographic parameters and co-morbid conditions were not associated with a need for revision surgery (p\u3e0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Patients requiring dynamic hip screw implant revision had higher tip apex distance than the rest. A lower value is advisable during placement of the screw to reduce the need for subsequent revision

Credit supply constraints and financial policies of listed companies during the 2007–2009 financial crisis

This study examines the effects of lending constraints on the financial policies of UK publicly listed companies during the 2007–2009 financial crisis. Using a sample of 2039 publicly listed firms, the results of our analysis indicate that financial policies of firms are sensitive to variations in the supply of external finance and credit, suggesting that liquidity-constraint firms with low cash reserves suffered more at the time of the credit crunch. While managing through the potential negative effects of the financial crisis, majority of the sample companies increased the use of internal finance and deferred the payments of dividends which helped them apply effective financial policies during the crisis period. The findings of this study also document that during the crisis period, financial policies of firms were exposed to variations in the supply of finance and credit, which, by implication, posed a threat to their operations, sustainability and growth. Our findings produce awareness about the negative effects of the non-availability of external finance and credit supply to listed companies, and signify the role of different financing channels and credit system in the operations and growth of listed companies. These findings have implications for financial regulation and policy making in the UK

An Analysis of Job Related Factors and Personality Traits on Teachers’ Ill-Health, Performance and Job Satisfaction

Teacher’s ill-health & job strains particularly in higher education sector is usually more deceptive as compared to other professions because of its vague nature of roles and is dissimilar to other professions and has substantial connections with numbers of scholars in class, their numerical assessments, workload issues, miserable organizational practices, job insecurity and inadequate recognition. Moreover, the antecedents and consequences of job related strains varies from person to person because of our different personality types and as we are all unique in our perceptions and behaviors. This exploratory research aimed to investigate & explore the factors at the work environment which have a significant impact on faculty well-being, and the possibilities of improvement of the work environment for academic world with particular reference to a public sector university. The results revealed inverse relationship between job strains and performance. The significant job related factors causing stress for male and female faculty members were different. Furthermore female faculty members and faculty members with Type A personality reported higher levels of ill-health. Type A personality also reported higher performance when compared with Type B & Type A

An Analysis of Students Academic Performance: A Case Study of Sarhad University, Peshawar, Pakistan

The researcher has tried to investigate the factors affecting academic performance of graduate students in this article. In the study academic performance (student’s grades/marks) is taken as a dependent variable and the gender, age, Attendance, schooling, Household Income, residential area, medium of schooling; daily study hours and accommodation as independent variables. 100 students were selected though simple random sampling for data collection and the data was collected through structured questionnaire from the different departments of Sarhad University of Peshawar. For analysis, linear regression analysis, correlation analysis, and descriptive analysis are used. It was extracted from the findings that attendance, Household income and daily study hours significantly contribute to the academic performance of graduate students.Â

ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP IN THE UNIVERSITY CONTEXT: REALITY OR MYTH? EVIDENCE FROM PAKISTAN

The purpose of thi s paper is t o ex amine the phenomena ofentrepreneurial leadership in the context of Pakistani universities inan attempt to justify its role, value and applicability. In general,entrepreneurial leaders are vital to successful transformation oftraditional universities into entrepreneurial ones. A comparative casestudy approach was adopted whereby 30 semi-structured interviewswere conducted in six public and private universities. This studyreveals that entrepreneurial leadership (EL) works at the operationallevel of university hierarchy instead of a top down approach. A‘university push model’ is found more effective than a ‘governmentpull model’ whereby we propose a conceptual model indicatinge nt re pre ne uri al ori e nt at i on as pre re qui si te f or c re at i ngentrepreneurial culture for the development of EL. Challenges areaddressed to the implementation of EL in different sectors. Theresearch contributes to our knowledge of entrepreneurial leadership,especially in the Pakistani context, where little real effort has beenmade so fa