Ecology of the cladocerans of the plankton community in the Cochin backwater

Occurrence and seasonal changes in the distribution of two cladocerans in the eochin Backwater, Evadne tergestina Claus and Penilia avirostris Dana have been considered. Fluctuations in temperature of tbe estuary are of the order of SoC., while tbe cbanges in salinity are considerable. Seasonal variation in distribution of tbe two species bas been correlated with temperature and salin ity in T-S-P diagram for a period of fifteen months. Their numerical abundance month-wise bas also been investigated. A comparative study of the distribution of cJadocerans of the insbore waters of India wilh that of the Cochin Backwater has also been carried out

Tuna fisheries of India

Tunas constitute 3.7% of the total commercial pelagic Jin fish production of the country (Av. 1992-96: 1,14.1067 t). The dominant species which support tuna fishery in the small scale sector in India are Euthynnus afflnls. Auxis thazard, A. rochel, Thunnus tonggol, Katsuwonus pelamis, Thunnus albacares and Sarda orlentalls. Of the total tuna catch (Av. 1992-96: 41,978 t). 77.6% has been landed from, the west coast, 16.8% from the east coast 5% from the Lakshadweep and 0.5% from the Andaman & Nicobar islands. The status of production of different tuna species in India and their environmental preference are summarised. Biological features such as food and feeding habits, age and growth, size at first maturity, spawning and fecundity are briefly discussed. Trends in the production of tunas along the mainland coast of India and Lakshadweep, population parameters and the results of stock assessment are presented briefly. Suggestions for future research and options for tuna fishery development in India are also discussed. The present communication is a review of the works done during the past fifty years and discusses the present status and future strategy of tuna fisheries research and development in India

तटीय संपदाओं में स्कोम्ब्रोइड मछलियों का महत्व और विदोहन

कृपया पूरा लेखा पढ

Pelagic fisheries resources of India- An overview

The annual pelagic fish production increased from 0.30 million t during 1950 to 1.2 million t during 1996 along the Indian coast. The four fold increase in production was due to mechanisation, motorisation of the country crafts, introduction of larger mechanised boats etc. Kerala ranked first among the maritime states of India, contributing 31% of the total pelagic fish followed by Gujarat (13.7%)and Tamil Nadu (13.0%). Out of the 250 species that contribute to the pelagic fisheries, only about 60 species belonging to 7 groups form fisheries of substantial magnitude. The groups which exceed one lakh t in production per year were mackerel, oil sardine, anchovies, carangids and Bombay duck. The fluctuations in the landings of oil sardine and Indian mackerel and the gear-wise production of pelagics are discussed in the paper. Suitable management measures and suggestions for future research priorities for sustaining the pelagic fisheries have suggested in this overview

भारत की वेलापवर्ति मात्स्यिकी संपदाओं का विदोहन, परिरक्षण और प्रबंधन

कृपया पूरा लेखा पढ

Empowering the frailty: dissecting the role of microcredit

The present paper seeks to dissect the significance of micro-credit in empowering women. It starts with a brief discussion on the role of micro-credit in poverty alleviation in general, widely acclaimed in contrast to the top-down policies. The concept of empowerment is defined from different perspectives of power, feminism and personal autonomy in family framework before taking up the agency of micro-credit for analysis. Here we identify three contrasting ‘paradigms’ with different underlying aims and understandings and different policy prescriptions and priorities in relation to both micro-finance itself and to gender policy such as the feminist empowerment paradigm, the poverty alleviation paradigm and the financial self-sustainability paradigm. Though some evaluations paint a positive picture of the impact of credit programs on women's lives in that access to savings and credit can initiate or strengthen a series of interlinked and mutually reinforcing ‘virtuous spirals’ of empowerment, we take care not to ignore the practical difficulties involved. Also considered in this respect is the role of outside agencies in the empowerment process.women empowerment, micro-credit, power, poverty alleviation, family, autonomy

‘One hen’ or ‘a basket of bangles’: women development and micro-credit in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu in India has a glorious tradition of recognizing the importance of empowering women over several centuries. The State fares reasonably well (above the all-India level) in terms of indicators such as female literacy, girls enrollment, female life expectancy, and women’s access to basic amenities. The maternal mortality rates and total fertility rates are also lower than the national average. In terms of political participation, women are faring reasonably well. While the absolute condition of women in Tamil Nadu is better than that in most States, the position of women vis-à-vis men with respect to literacy, education, work force participation, wages, asset-ownership and political participation has not improved. It is recognized that the main obstacles to empowerment has been the low level of educational attainments as well as poverty among women. Taking into account this fact, the Government of Tamil Nadu has framed various policies, designed specific interventions and implemented many programmes to eradicate poverty and to provide education to the vulnerable sections of the society. These different Government-sponsored schemes are implemented through women’s self-help groups. The present paper discusses the experience of Tamil Nadu in women development and micro-credit.Women empowerment, micro-credit, Tamil Nadu, Mahalir Thittam

Evolution of Social Security in the Lap of Public Action: Recounting the Experience of Kerala

This paper is part of a large study on the Social Protection in Rural India and China. In this paper, we attempt at a critical appraisal of the historical development and experience of social security initiatives in Kerala, India. We situate the development experience of Kerala in a conceptual framework of participatory development, which we interpret in a broad context of organization and mobilization of people at specific junctures of historical progress of a society. Thus participatory development, in our view is participation in the progressive process of realization of human rights and thus in development; that is, public action, with an effective public demand and a wiling public supply, conditioned by the legitimate function of the state. It is also attempted to categorize the on-going social security schemes according to the definitional framework of our study, that is, in terms of the definitional division of social security into basic and contingent social security.Social security; Kerala; development; contingency

Raising the ‘Beatrice’s Goat’: The Indian Experience in Microcredit

Empowerment of the poor entails three basic inter-linked dimensions – generation of employment (and income), reduction of poverty, and erasing inequality. The perspective has now undergone a basic change from the collective care mechanism of a paternalistic state intervention meted out from the top to bottom to a people-centered and participation-oriented bottom up approach. With this new perspective, new practices have emerged through integrated community participation of the poor. Thus the basis of the concept of micro finance is self-mobilization and self-organization of the poor at the community level driven by an ardent desire backed by an unfaltering trust in their own inherent capacity to improve their living conditions by themselves, given an enabling environment. An active realization of such self-mobilization is found in self help groups (SHGs), formed for distributing the microcredit benefits, inspired by the success of the Bangladesh Grameen experiment. This approach has already taken strong roots across the lengths and breadths of India as an effective and viable channel to take the poor to a new domain of economic empowerment and social upliftment. Microcredit, which synergies the thrift and credit habits of the poor in a participatory and informal setting, is now widely acknowledged as a strategic tool in all poverty alleviation programmes. This paper discusses the Indian experience in microcredit.Microcredit; Indian experience; empowerment; financial inclusion

Electrets and their application in contamination studies

Data are presented on the surface charge of many different types of electrets formed by several different techniques. Results are presented on the investigation of electrets as pollution control devices for their possible use in the control of a spacecraft environment