Effects of Public Investment in Infrastructure on Growth and Poverty in India

Counter factual policy simulations of sustained increase in public investment in infrastructure, financed through borrowing from commercial banks, shows substantial increase in private investment and thereby output in this sector. Further, due to increase in absorption, real private investment and thereby output in all the other three sectors also seems to increase, which sets-in motion several other macro economic changes. A 20% sustained increase in public investment in infrastructure, which is 0.5% of GDP and 2.7% of total govt. revenue in 2000-03, can accelerate the real macro economic growth by 1.8% in the medium to long-run (6-10 years after the policy change). This will be accompanied by a 1.4% fall in wholesale price index and 0.2% decline in the rate of inflation. Sectoral prices, except that of agriculture, also decline to varying extent, the steepest decline being for infrastructure price. Further, this increase in income will lead to 0.7% reduction in poverty in rural India. This shows the potential for achieving the much-debated 10% aggregate real GDP growth in the Indian economy.Public Inversment, Infrastructure, Growth, poverty, India

Effects of public investment in infrastructure on growth and poverty in India

Counter factual policy simulations of sustained increase in public investment in infrastructure, financed through borrowing from commercial banks, shows substantial increase in private investment and thereby output in this sector. Further, due to increase in absorption, real private investment and thereby output in all the other three sectors also seems to increase, which sets-in motion several other macro economic changes. A 20 sustained increase in public investment in infrastructure, which is 0.5 of GDP and 2.7 of total govt. revenue in 2000-03, can accelerate the real macro economic growth by 1.8 in the medium to long-run (6-10 years after the policy change). This will be accompanied by a 1.4 fall in wholesale price index and 0.2 decline in the rate of inflation. Sectoral prices, except that of agriculture, also decline to varying extent, the steepest decline being for infrastructure price. Further, this increase in income will lead to 0.7 reduction in poverty in rural India. This shows the potential for achieving the much-debated 10 aggregate real GDP growth in the Indian economy.

Imitation in Large Games

In games with a large number of players where players may have overlapping objectives, the analysis of stable outcomes typically depends on player types. A special case is when a large part of the player population consists of imitation types: that of players who imitate choice of other (optimizing) types. Game theorists typically study the evolution of such games in dynamical systems with imitation rules. In the setting of games of infinite duration on finite graphs with preference orderings on outcomes for player types, we explore the possibility of imitation as a viable strategy. In our setup, the optimising players play bounded memory strategies and the imitators play according to specifications given by automata. We present algorithmic results on the eventual survival of types

Urine nevirapine as a predictor of antiretroviral adherence

Background & objectives: Incomplete adherence is a major contributor to failure of antiretroviral therapy. Although the available methods to monitor adherence to therapy have proved to be predictive of outcomes, the results are variable. We assessed the feasibility of detecting nevirapine (NVP) in spot urine samples to monitor patient adherence to antiretroviral treatment and to study the urinary excretion of NVP in healthy volunteers after oral administration of a single dose of NVP (200 mg). Methods: Spot urine samples were collected from 50 HIV-infected patients (36 on treatment regimen containing NVP and 14 on drugs other than NVP) and tested for NVP by HPLC in a blinded manner. Sixteen healthy volunteers (9 males and 7 females) were administered a single oral dose of 200 mg NVP and spot urine samples were collected on day ‘0’ before drug administration, and thereafter every 24 h up to 9 days and tested for NVP. Results: All the urine samples collected from patients undergoing treatment with NVP-containing regimens at different time points after drug administration tested positive for NVP. Thirteen out of 14 samples from patients not on NVP yielded a negative result. The drug was detected in the urine of healthy volunteers up to 9 days. The urinary excretion of NVP was prolonged in females than in males. Interpretation & conclusion: In view of its long half-life, NVP gets excreted in urine for a long period of time. Hence, testing spot urine samples for NVP may not be a useful measure to monitor patient adherence to treatment

Single Dose Pharmacokinetics of Efavirenzin Healthy Indian Subjects

Background & Objective: Access to antiretroviral therapy in India is improving. Efavirenz (EFV) is a commonly used non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor used to treat HIV infection. No information is available on the pharmacokinetics of EFV in Indian subjects. The aim of this study was to obtain information on single dose pharmacokinetics of efavirenz (EFV) in healthy Indian subjects. Methods: Sixteen adult healthy volunteers (8 males and 8 females) were administered a single oral tablet of 600 mg EFV after an overnight fast. Blood samples were collected at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 24 and 48 hours post dosing. Plasma EFV concentrations were estimated by HPLC, and certain pharmacokinetic variables were calculated. Results: Plasma EFV concentrations were higher in females than males at all the time points, the differences being significant at 1 (p<0.001) and 2 (p=0.05) hours. Females had significantly higher peak concentration (Cmax) of EFV than males (p=0.05) (3.11 & 1.90 μg/ml). The inter-individual variability in Cmax and AUC0-48 were 42 and 45% respectively. Conclusions: This study provides basic information on the pharmacokinetics of EFV in Indian subjects. Females had higher peak levels of EFV than males. Inter-subject variability was high. Further studies are necessary to describe the pharmacokinetic profile of EFV under steady state conditions in Indian patients on antiretroviral treatment

Tomographic approach to resolving the distribution of LISA Galactic binaries

The space based gravitational wave detector LISA is expected to observe a large population of Galactic white dwarf binaries whose collective signal is likely to dominate instrumental noise at observational frequencies in the range 10^{-4} to 10^{-3} Hz. The motion of LISA modulates the signal of each binary in both frequency and amplitude, the exact modulation depending on the source direction and frequency. Starting with the observed response of one LISA interferometer and assuming only doppler modulation due to the orbital motion of LISA, we show how the distribution of the entire binary population in frequency and sky position can be reconstructed using a tomographic approach. The method is linear and the reconstruction of a delta function distribution, corresponding to an isolated binary, yields a point spread function (psf). An arbitrary distribution and its reconstruction are related via smoothing with this psf. Exploratory results are reported demonstrating the recovery of binary sources, in the presence of white Gaussian noise.Comment: 13 Pages and 9 figures high resolution figures can be obtains from http://www.phys.utb.edu/~rajesh/lisa_tomography.pd

Multiple recurrences of tuberculosis in an HIV infected individual.

Correspondenc

3D visualization and mapping of choroid thickness based on optical coherence tomography: A step-by-step geometric approach

Although bodily organs are inherently 3D, medical diagnosis often relies on their 2D representation. For instance, sectional images of the eye (especially, of its posterior part) based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) provide internal views, from which the ophthalmologist makes medical decisions about 3D eye structures. In the course, the physician is forced to mentally synthesize the underlying 3D context, which could be both time consuming and stressful. In this backdrop, can such 2D sections be arranged and presented in the natural 3D form for faster and stress-free diagnosis? In this paper, we consider ailments affecting choroid thickness, and address the aforementioned question at two levels-in terms of 3D visualization and 3D mapping. In particular, we exploit the spherical geometry of the eye, align OCT sections on a nominal sphere, and extract the choroid by peeling off inner and outer layers. At each step, we render our intermediate results on a 3D lightfield display, which provides a natural visual representation. Finally, the thickness variation of the extracted choroid is spatially mapped, and observed on a lightfield display as well as using 3D visualization softwares on a regular 2D terminal. Consequently, we identified choroid depletion around optic disc based on the test OCT images. We believe that the proposed technique would provide ophthalmologists with a tool for making faster diagnostic decisions with less stress

Gas adsorption, magnetism, and single-crystal to single-crystal transformation studies of a three-dimensional Mn(II) porous coordination polymer

A porous coordination polymer {[Mn2(DBIBA)3]×(NO3)·3DMF·4H2O}n (1) [DBIBAH = 3,5-di(1H-benzo[d]imidazol-1-yl)benzoic acid] has been synthesized solvothermally and structurally characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. This compound shows significant selective CO2 uptake at low temperature. 1 exhibits antiferromagnetic properties below 17 K, confirmed by magnetic susceptibility measurements. Four new coordination polymers: {[Mn2(DBIBA)3]·ClO4·3DMF·3H2O}n (2), {[Mn2(DBIBA)3]×Cl×DMF×H2O}n (3), {[Mn2(DBIBA)3]×NO3×CH3OH×7H2O}n (4) and {[Mn2(DBIBA)3]×NO3×2CH3COCH3×H2O}n (5), have been synthesized from 1 via anion/solvent exchange protocols at room temperature

Assessment of knowledge, attitude, practice towards vector borne diseases in urban area of Bagalkote, Karnataka, India

Background: Vector-borne diseases are a widespread and serious issue that affects populations all over the world and represent a global health challenge. These diseases, like malaria, dengue and chikungunya pose immense challenges due to their rapid transmission and leading to major public health crises during outbreaks. Effective management strategies, including vector control, public health interventions are crucial to curb their impact. The burden of VBDs extends beyond public health, impacting society and economies. These diseases can strain healthcare systems, reduce workforce productivity, and impose significant financial costs. Annually, alarming 700,000 deaths are attributed to vector-borne diseases, underscoring the urgency of addressing this issue. Aim was to assess and evaluate knowledge, attitude and practice towards vector borne diseases in urban area of Bagalkote. Methods: This is an educational interventional study. This study will be conducted among the urban area of Bagalkote. The study was carried out for 6 months. Results: In this study among 165 participant’s knowledge of vector borne diseases was quite good. Majority of study subjects were aware about VBD causes death if untreated. Regarding the most frequent mosquito biting period maximum participants 99.39% responded with evening/night time. Almost 95.75% resonance had knowledge, that mosquito bite is the cause of dengue, malaria, chikungunya. The study revealed that majority participants considered dengue, malaria, chikungunya is serious health problem and their attitude vector control measures were positive in almost all study subjects. Conclusions: The results are very positive and we suggest that people should continue to strengthen their knowledge, attitude and practice towards vector borne diseases. Participants showed adequate awareness towards vector borne diseases