Historicizing 'Law' as a Language of Progress, and Its Anomalies: The Case of Penal Law Reforms in Colonial India.

This paper dispels the myth of liberal Enlightenment in relation to penal law reforms in colonial India by advancing two sets of argument. First, the liberal project of codification on the basis of universalist notion of utilitarianism never broke with cultural hierarchy inbuilt in the very act of colonisation. In this paper, I specifically look into the emerging phenomenon of evolutionary science in the nineteenth century – social Darwinism – to explain the dominant normative, as opposed to realist, justification of such racial hierarchy in colonial discourses since the nineteenth century. Second, using Dipesh Chakrabarty’s theoretical framework, I provincialise the penal law reform project in colonial India through the examination of literature in the field, and substantiate how the notion of utilitarian universality remained vague and unpromising in face of instrumental needs on ground – both in the colony and in the metropolis. Taken together, these propositions dispel the myth of the liberal project of penal law reforms in colonial India based on this universalist position and underscore the fallacies of the transition narrative of modernity itself

Bumper crops, producer incentives and persistent poverty

Food aid has played a useful role in Government of Bangladesh efforts to increase food security in the last three decades, adding to foodgrain availability, supplying wheat for targeted distribution to poor households, and helping to finance development projects and programs. However, sustained increases in domestic production of both rice and wheat have increased the likelihood of disincentive effects arising from continued large inflows of food aid. The analysis shows that if good rice harvests continue so that real rice prices remain at their levels of 2000, and if international wheat prices return to their average 1995-99 levels, then public wheat distribution may need to be cut to levels below the current amount of food aid received (650 thousand tons in 2000/2001) to avoid reducing domestic prices below import parity. However, resources will continue to be required for programs that increase access to food by the poor, contribute to increased utilization of food and result in improved nutritional outcomes, even if the need for food aid to increase availability of foodgrains diminishes.Food relief Bangladesh. ,Food security. ,Development projects. ,Rice Prices Bangladesh. ,Wheat Prices. ,

Daya Tarik Jenis Atraktan Dan Warna Perangkap Yang Berbeda Terhadap Lalat Buah (Diptera:tephritidae) Pada Tanaman Mangga (Mangifera Indica) Di Desa Soulove

Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengevaluasi daya tarik perangkap atraktan dan warna yang berbeda untuk lalat buah (Diptera: Tephritidae) pada tanaman mangga. Penelitian ini dilakukan di desa Soulove, Kecamatan Sigi Biromaru Kabupaten Sigi, dengan menggunakan rancangan acak kelompok (RAK) dengan pola faktorial. Penelitian ini menggunakan rancangan faktorial yang terdiri dari dua faktor yaitu (Faktor 1) jenis atraktan (ekstrak daun Melaleuca bracteata, E1, Vitex trifolia E2, dan air E0). Faktor 2 perangkap warna (transparan W1, dan kuning W2) dengan 3 ulangan untuk setiap perlakuan. Hasil penelitian menunjukan empat spesies lalat buah yaitu Bactrocera dorsalis, B.albistrigatus, B. cucurbitae, dan B.umbrosus. Setiap jenis atraktan memiliki daya tarik terhadap lalat buah di semua pengamatan secara signifikan. Ekstrak tanaman yang paling efektif mengendalikan lalat buah adalah M.bracteata dan V. trifolia dan dapat memerangkap rata-rata 69 lalat buah /perangkap/5 hari. Perangkap kuning (W2) dan perangkap transparan (W1) berbeda signifikan hanya pada 45 HST. Perangkap warna yang memiliki daya tarik efektif mengendalikan lalat buah adalah perangkap berwarna kuning, karena dapat menangkap banyak lalat buah, yaitu 24 lalat buah /perangkap/5 hari

The Liquid-Liquid Extraction of Toxic Metals (Cd, Hg and Pb) by Calixarenes

Toxic metals (Cd, Hg and Pb) are mostly present in the environment due to natural phenomenon and human activities as well. Exposure of these non-essential elements in the environment causes severe effects. They are known to cause problems in humans as well as in aquatic life. In this work, we demonstrate various studies regarding liquid-liquid extraction of selected ions with different functionalized calixarenes. This review article briefly discusses several molecular designs of calixarenes for divalent ion (Cd2+, Hg2+ and Pb2+) recognition; as well as the relationship between structure and selectivity of the macrocycles is elaborated. The article does not, however, attempt to cover all of the different approaches to these toxic metal ions extraction

Determinants of institutional delivery among young married women in Nepal: Evidence from the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, 2011

OBJECTIVES: To identify the determinants of institutional delivery among young married women in Nepal. DESIGN: Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) data sets 2011 were analysed. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed using a subset of 1662 ever-married young women (aged 15-24 years). OUTCOME MEASURE: Place of delivery. RESULTS: The rate of institutional delivery among young married women was 46%, which is higher than the national average (35%) among all women of reproductive age. Young women who had more than four antenatal care (ANC) visits were three times more likely to deliver in a health institution compared with women who had no antenatal care visit (OR: 3.05; 95% CI: 2.40 to 3.87). The probability of delivering in an institution was 69% higher among young urban women than among young women who lived in rural areas. Young women who had secondary or above secondary level education were 1.63 times more likely to choose institutional delivery than young women who had no formal education (OR: 1.626; 95% CI: 1.171 to 2.258). Lower use of a health institution for delivery was also observed among poor young women. Results showed that wealthy young women were 2.12 times more likely to deliver their child in an institution compared with poor young women (OR: 2.107; 95% CI: 1.53 to 2.898). Other factors such as the age of the young woman, religion, ethnicity, and ecological zone were also associated with institutional delivery. CONCLUSIONS: Maternal health programs should be designed to encourage young women to receive adequate ANC (at least four visits). Moreover, health programs should target poor, less educated, rural, young women who live in mountain regions, are of Janajati ethnicity and have at least one child as such women are less likely to choose institutional delivery in Nepal

What Influences Adolescent Girls' Decision-Making Regarding Contraceptive Methods Use and Childbearing? A Qualitative Exploratory Study in Rangpur District, Bangladesh

BACKGROUND: Bangladesh has the highest rate of adolescent pregnancy in South Asia. Child marriage is one of the leading causes of pregnancies among adolescent girls. Although the country's contraceptive prevalence rate is quite satisfactory, only 52% of married adolescent girls use contraceptive methods. This qualitative study is aimed at exploring the factors that influence adolescent girls' decision-making process in relation to contraceptive methods use and childbearing. METHODS AND RESULTS: We collected qualitative data from study participants living in Rangpur district, Bangladesh. We conducted 35 in-depth interviews with married adolescent girls, 4 key informant interviews, and one focus group discussion with community health workers. Adolescent girls showed very low decision-making autonomy towards contraceptive methods use and childbearing. Decisions were mainly made by either their husbands or mothers-in-law. When husbands were unemployed and financially dependent on their parents, then the mothers-in-law played most important role for contraceptive use and childbearing decisions. Lack of reproductive health knowledge, lack of negotiation and communication ability with husbands and family members, and mistrust towards contraceptive methods also appeared as influential factors against using contraception resulting in early childbearing among married adolescent girls. CONCLUSIONS: Husbands and mothers-in-law of newly married adolescent girls need to be actively involved in health interventions so that they make more informed decisions regarding contraceptive use to delay pregnancies until 20 years of age. Misunderstanding and distrust regarding contraceptives can be diminished by engaging the wider societal actors in health intervention including neighbours, and other family members

Prospects of Service Apartment in Chittagong: An Exploratory Study

Rapid urbanization has become an acute problem for the country. The rate of urbanization is estimated to be 5-6% annually for Bangladesh(REHAB,2004)About 25% of the people of Bangladesh is now living in urban areas and 34%will be living by 2015(REHAB 2004). 50% by 20259 Singha D., 2004). There is acute shortage of housing supply in all urban areas. Moreover, in a study Consumer Association of Bangladesh (CAB) shows that house rentals in Dhaka have more than doubled (249.62 percent) in last 17 years. In Chittagong the scenario is same. Tenants who are from middle, upper middle and lower middle class are worse victims of the rising trend of house rentals.  The study has investigated the nature of service apartment to fulfill the housing need of the growing number of customers and the boost up the downtrend of housing business. The  researchers have interviewed about 500 respondents from income group ranging from 20thousand and above. Several locations have been identified for service apartments and a good number of findings will help the prospective researchers and developers as well. Keyword: Housing, real estate, service apartment, housing market

Process modelling for the production of hydrogen-rich gas from gasification of coal using oxygen, CO2 and steam reactants

This process modelling studied the effect of different reactants on syngas composition and gasifier heat duty (heat energy required to carry out the operation) and the downstream treatment of CO rich syngas to maximise hydrogen yield. The process modelling was validated against experimental data obtained from a large bench-scale entrained flow gasifier. Results show that considering the H2/CO ratio, the steam-O2 reactant favours the most compared to those of the pure oxygen and oxygen-CO2 reactants. Under comparable operating conditions, the highest H2/CO ratio of 0.74 was determined using steam-O2 reactant compared to that of 0.31 and 0.33 using steam-CO2 and pure oxygen reactant. The catalytic water-gas shift reaction (WGSR) favours the yield of H2 with complete CO conversion at a temperature of 400 °C using the steam/coal ratio of 1.2. Supplying steam in the gasifier requires more heat energy to be supplied to drive endothermic gasification reaction and maintain the gasifier temperature. Under complete carbon conversion, steam-CO2 and steam-oxygen reactants require 5–65 kW more energy than pure oxygen. © 2021 Hydrogen Energy Publications LL