Effect of Tree Litter Application on Lowland Rice Yield in Bangladesh

The effect of tree litters on rice yield (cv. BR11) was evaluated in the study. Four kinds of tree litter, i.e., ipil-ipil or lamtoro (Leucaena leucocephala (Lamk) De Witt), sissoo (Dalbergia sissoo), akashmoni (Acacia auriculiformis) and mander (Erythrina orientalis) were incorporated into the soil 15 days before transplanting at rate of 5 ton/ha supplemented with inorganic fertilizers (83 kg N, 48 kg P205­, 42 kg K20, 10 kg S and 3.6 kg Zn/ha). In the control plots only recommended inorganic fertilizer were applied. Results showed that tree litter application had a significantly positive effect on the yield parameters such as plant height, panicle length, tillers per hill, filled grain and index of 1000-grain weight. Grain yield of plots treated with ipil-ipil, sissoo, akashmoni and mander was 5.61, 4.49, 4.95 and 5.36 ton/ha, and the yield increased over control plots 39.6, 11.7, 23.1 and 33.3%, respectively. It is worthy to note that addition of tree litter to inorganic fertilizer produced significantly higher yield than inorganic fertilizers solely. Among the tree litter, ipil-ipil and mander had the greatest increase in rice yield, while akashmoni was intermediate and sissoo was the least

Emission Dispatch Problem with Cubic Function Considering Transmission Loss using Particle Swarm Optimization

In this research, authors have exploited particle swarm optimization (PSO) technique for solving the emission dispatch problem. Authors have used cubic function, instead of quadratic function, to solve emission dispatch problem to make the system more robust against nonlinearities of actual power generator. PSO with cubic function reveals better results by optimizing less emission of hazardous gases, transmission losses and showing robustness against nonlinearities than simplified direct search method (SDSM)

Enhancing Physical Layer Secrecy Performance for RIS-assisted RF-FSO Mixed Wireless System

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Quantifying recreational value and the functional relationship between travel cost and visiting national park

Abstract Estimation of recreational benefits is an important tool for both biodiversity conservation and ecotourism development in national parks and sanctuaries. The design of this work is to estimate the recreational value and to establish functional relationship between travel cost and visitation of Lawachara National Park (LNP) in Bangladesh. This study employed zonal approach of the travel cost method. The work is grounded on a sample of 422 visitors of the LNP. Results showed that the total value of environmental assets of the LNP is 55,694,173 Taka/Year. Moreover, our suggestion based on visitors' willingness to pay is that the park entrance fee of 25 Tk per person should be introduced that could generate revenue approximate 2.3 million Taka/ year, beneficial for the park management and conservation of biodiversity

Willingness to pay for COVID-19 mitigation measures in public transport and paratransit in low-income countries

In order to combat the spread of COVID-19, various measures were taken in most countries to make public transit and paratransit safer. These additional measures, which include restrictions on number of passengers, provision of hand sanitisers and face coverings, and more frequent cleaning, add to the costs of operations or reduce profitability. The resulting financial pressure on the transport operators raises an important question on who pays for these additional measures. In most countries, this has been covered by one-time government bailouts to operators or strategies to increase fare, the latter of which directly affects the users. However, even without these interventions, there could be a demand and as such willingness to pay (WTP) for some of these intervention measures from the consumers concerned about safety. Knowing such WTP will not only help operators set their fare, but also help the governments decide the appropriate bailout needed. This paper addresses the issue by estimating the user's willingness to pay for selected COVID-19 mitigation measures in public transport and paratransit (motorcycle taxis) using survey data collected from two cities in low-income countries as case studies – Kampala, Uganda and Dhaka, Bangladesh. For public transport, these measures are - (1) social distancing (passenger loading at half capacity), and (2) mandatory hand sanitisation and increased cleaning of surfaces, while for paratransit, they are - (1) provision of a transparent shield between the rider and the passenger, and (2) provision of cleaned helmets at the start of each trip. The study analyses stated preference data using the utility maximisation framework and finds that the implementation or provision of COVID-19 mitigation measures improves the attractiveness of the associated public transport or paratransit alternatives, and transport users make trade-offs between safety and cost when making travel decisions. We find positive willingness to pay for all four mitigation measures, suggesting potential existence of a market for these measures. We also find that the typical mode choice factors such as costs, travel time and convenience became less important during the pandemic and the safety measures became more important considerations