Inequality in Housing and Basic Amenities in India

The paper analyses inequality in housing conditions for India for two time period 2008-09 and 2012. Housing conditions are important determinants of health status. Access to descent housing and basic amenities is essential to improve health status of people. Given this backdrop, we examine the distribution of housing and basic amenities, namely, drinking water, toilets and electricity, across regions and over time. We also study the determinants of access to these basic amenities. The results show unequal distribution of housing conditions with rich households having higher access to better housing. Under the Millennium Development Goals, the Indian government has worked towards improving access to safe drinking water and sanitation. However, the results of multivariate analysis show that the economic and social background of household determine the access to basic services even in the year 2012

Inequality in Housing and Basic Amenities in India

The paper analyses inequality in housing conditions for India for two time period 2008-09 and 2012. Housing conditions are important determinants of health status. Access to descent housing and basic amenities is essential to improve health status of people. Given this backdrop, we examine the distribution of housing and basic amenities, namely, drinking water, toilets and electricity, across regions and over time. We also study the determinants of access to these basic amenities. The results show unequal distribution of housing conditions with rich households having higher access to better housing. Under the Millennium Development Goals, the Indian government has worked towards improving access to safe drinking water and sanitation. However, the results of multivariate analysis show that the economic and social background of household determine the access to basic services even in the year 2012

Clinical relevance of double-arm blood pressure measurement and prevalence of clinically important inter-arm blood pressure differences in Indian primary care

Hypertension guidelines recommend measuring blood pressure (BP) in both arms at least once. However, this is seldom done due to uncertainties regarding measurement procedure and the implications of finding a clinically important inter-arm BP difference (IAD). This study aimed to provide insight into the prevalence of clinically important IADs in a large Indian primary care cohort. A number of 134 678 (37% female) unselected Indian primary care participants, mean age 45.2 (SD 11.9) years, had BP measured in both arms using a standardized, triplicate, automated simultaneous measurement method (Microlife WatchBP Office Afib). On average, there were clinically minor differences in right and left arm BP values: systolic BP 134.4 vs 134.2 mmHg (p < .01) and diastolic BP 82.7 vs 82.6 mmHg (p < .01), respectively. Prevalence of significant mean systolic IAD between 10 and 15 mmHg was 7,813 (5.8%). Systolic IAD ≥ 15 mmHg 2,980 (2.2%) and diastolic IAD ≥ 10 mmHg 7,151 (5.3%). In total, there were 7,595 (5.6%) and 8,548 (6.3%) participants with BP above the 140/90 mmHg threshold in only the left or right arm, respectively. Prevalence of participants with elevated BP on one arm only was highest in patients with a systolic IAD ≥ 15 mmHg; 19.1% and 13.7%, for left and right arm, respectively. This study shows that a substantial prevalence of IAD exists in Indian primary care patients. BP is above the diagnostic threshold for hypertension in one arm only for 6% of participants. These findings emphasize the importance of undertaking bilateral BP measurement in routine clinical practice

Progress in nitrogen deposition monitoring and modelling

The chapter reviews progress in monitoring and modelling of atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition at regional and global scales. The Working Group expressed confidence in the inorganic N wet deposition estimates in U.S., eastern Canada, Europe and parts of East Asia. But, long-term wet or dry N deposition information in large parts of Asia, South America, parts of Africa, Australia/Oceania, and oceans and coastal areas is lacking. Presently, robust estimates are only available for inorganic N as existing monitoring generally does not measure the complete suite of N species, impeding the closing of the atmospheric N budget. The most important species not routinely measured are nitrogen dioxide (NO2), ammonia (NH3), organic N and nitric acid (HNO3). Uncertainty is much higher in dry deposition than in wet deposition estimates. Inferential modelling (combining air concentrations with exchange rates) and direct flux measurements are good tools to estimate dry deposition; however, they are not widely applied. There is a lack of appropriate parameterizations for different land uses and compounds for input into inferential models. There is also a lack of direct dry deposition flux measurements to test inferential models and atmospheric model estimates

Coupled Air Quality and Boundary-Layer Meteorology in Western U.S. Basins during Winter: Design and Rationale for a Comprehensive Study.

Wintertime episodes of high aerosol concentrations occur frequently in urban and agricultural basins and valleys worldwide. These episodes often arise following development of persistent cold-air pools (PCAPs) that limit mixing and modify chemistry. While field campaigns targeting either basin meteorology or wintertime pollution chemistry have been conducted, coupling between interconnected chemical and meteorological processes remains an insufficiently studied research area. Gaps in understanding the coupled chemical-meteorological interactions that drive high pollution events make identification of the most effective air-basin specific emission control strategies challenging. To address this, a September 2019 workshop occurred with the goal of planning a future research campaign to investigate air quality in Western U.S. basins. Approximately 120 people participated, representing 50 institutions and 5 countries. Workshop participants outlined the rationale and design for a comprehensive wintertime study that would couple atmospheric chemistry and boundary-layer and complex-terrain meteorology within western U.S. basins. Participants concluded the study should focus on two regions with contrasting aerosol chemistry: three populated valleys within Utah (Salt Lake, Utah, and Cache Valleys) and the San Joaquin Valley in California. This paper describes the scientific rationale for a campaign that will acquire chemical and meteorological datasets using airborne platforms with extensive range, coupled to surface-based measurements focusing on sampling within the near-surface boundary layer, and transport and mixing processes within this layer, with high vertical resolution at a number of representative sites. No prior wintertime basin-focused campaign has provided the breadth of observations necessary to characterize the meteorological-chemical linkages outlined here, nor to validate complex processes within coupled atmosphere-chemistry models