Balasore District Research Articles

Participatory Democracy of Women in Rural India: A Field-based Experience of Palli Sabha from Odisha

Participatory democracy has gained special attention in India in recent years as it leads to transparent governance by means of decentralization and participation of citizens. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 provided a new space for democratic participation at the village level called Gram Sabha. In Odisha, it is called Palli Sabha (PS). The 73rd Amendment aims at providing better governance and promotes democratic participation of the downtrodden people, especially women and people belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST). This study examines women’s participation in PS and their general perceptions about it in rural Odisha. In-depth interviews were conducted with 60 women respondents in six villages under the panchayat of Remuna Block in Balasore District of Odisha for that purpose. The findings of the study revealed that participation of women in PS is not satisfactory. Women have great apathy for participation and many of them are unaware of the usefulness of PS meetings and the flow of funds from government. Patriarchal society and low level of education lead to low interest among women members in panchayats.

TEACHER EFFECTIVENESS AND EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE OF GOVERNMENT SECONDARY SCHOOL TEACHERS

The revitalization and strengthening of the education system depends on teachers. They play crucial role for the developments of educational standards in the country. This demands teachers to be more effective in the classroom and be optimistic with high Emotional intelligence to influence the students. In the present study, the investigator analyzed the level of Teacher Effectiveness, and Emotional Intelligence of government secondary school teachers, and to find out the relationship among both the variables. The data were collected from 60 Secondary School Teachers of Balasore district using Teacher Effectiveness Scale by Pramod Kumar and D.N. Mutha (1974),Modified version of Emotional Intelligence Scale by Krishnappa V.K. (2008) and self made personal data sheet. The collected data were analyzed by using Mean, SD, t- test and Pearson’s Product Moment Correlation and the findings revealed that (i) Government Secondary School Teachers of different academic stream do not differ both in Teacher Effectiveness and Emotional Intelligence. (ii) There is no significance of difference between Male and Female government Secondary School Teachers both in Teacher Effectiveness and Emotional Intelligence. (iii) There is no relationship between Teacher Effectiveness and Emotional Intelligence.

Haitian variant Vibrio cholerae O1 Ogawa caused cholera outbreaks in Odisha

PurposeDiarrheal disorders particularly cholera cause a significant threat resulting in high morbidity and mortality in the coastal and tribal areas of Odisha. Two sequential diarrheal outbreaks reported in 2016 from Balasore and Rayagada districts of Odisha were investigated to find out the causative organisms, antibiogram profile and molecular analysis of the isolated pathogens. MethodBacteriological analysis and antibiogram profiles of the pathogens were carried out as per the standard procedure followed. The double mismatch amplification mutation (DMAMA) PCR for ctxB gene, sequencing and pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) were carried out on Vibrio cholerae O1 strains. ResultsThe rectal swabs and water samples from these districts were positive for V. cholerae O1 Ogawa biotype El Tor. The V. cholerae O1 strains isolated from Balasore district were multidrug resistant to many antibiotics which differed from the isolates of Rayagada district. The DMAMA PCR assay on all clinical and water isolates from these areas and some strains from other districts exhibited ctxB7 allele of V. cholerae O1 which correlates with the sequencing results having different pulsotypes. The Haitian variant of V. cholerae O1 strains which were compared with the V. cholerae O1 strains of 1999 and 2000 exhibited different pulsotypes. ConclusionThe present study reports cholera outbreaks due to multidrug resistant ctxB7 allele of V. cholerae O1 from both coastal (Balasore) and tribal (Rayagada) areas of Odisha.

ATTITUDE OF SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS TOWARDS LIFE SKILL EDUCATION IN BALASORE DISTRICT

Today’s children live in a very complex environment. They are exposed to various problems in their adolescence period like smoking, alcoholism, drug abuse, sexual abuse, poverty and early pregnancy etc. To face all these challenges, life skill education plays an important role. So life skill education finds a special place in today’s school curriculum. Therefore there is a need to study the attitude of secondary school students towards Life skill education. Hence, the study was taken with two objectives:(1) To study the attitude of secondary students towards life skill education.(2) To compare the attitudinal score towards life skill education between boys and girls. In order to study the above objective the researcher took 100 sample that is 50 boys and 50 girls from Balasore district through random sampling. The descriptive survey method was used by the investigator to carry out research work. He used a 5 point attitude scale by following the Likert attitude scale for the data collection. For the statistical analysis of data the researcher used mean, standard deviation, inferential statistics and ‘t’ test. Results revealed that there is a positive attitude of secondary school students towards life skill education. And another interpretation through ‘t’ test revealed that there is significant difference between the attitude of boys and girls towards life skill education. Thus, the above result clearly revealed that the life skill education has large impact on secondary school students and the girls attitude was better than the boys towards life skill education.

A Study to Assess the Knowledge on Food Practices among Postnatal Mothers

Introduction: Women need to receive special health and social support during postnatal time to preventproblems. Inadequate care might result in complications for the mother and her child. Nutrition plays animportant role in the course of the postpartum period. It is well documented that dietary modification duringthis period has a profound effect on the nutritional status of both the mother and the newborn. According torecent studies, Sueel Raj and Mishra (2008) examined the food consumption pattern and associated habitsof the Bhil tribe of Dhar district of Madhya Pradesh. They found that no special foods are being consumedduring pregnancy. Sahoo and Panda (2005) while studying in the Balasore District of Odisha found thatsome sort of food restrictions during pregnancy. The general concept was that the restricted food itemswould cause cold and cough to the mother or would lead to abortion. Aim: To assess the knowledge on foodpractice among postnatal mothers. Materials and Methods: A descriptive survey research design was donefrom March 2019 - July 2019 in 30 postnatal mothers. Data was collected with structured questionnaire onknowledge on food practices among postnatal mothers. Questions are How much kcal required for PNCmother. Green vegetables helps in, Dairy product helps in, Protein helps in..etc. Descriptive statistics wererepresented in Frequency and percentage. Statistical tests used were One way ANOVA test and independentT –test and Chi square test. The level of significance was considered to be statistically significant whenthe p-value was ?0.05. Result: Distribution of postnatal mothers according to their age in years shows themajority (76%) of them belongs to the age of 20-30 years, Distribution of postnatal mothers according totypes of diet that majority of (73%) have vegetarian, 20%non vegetarian, 6% have taking mix diet. Themajority 16 (53%) women were having average level of knowledge , 14(46%) women were having goodlevel of knowledge .The minimum score was 4 and maximum score was 11, , the mean score was 7.80 andstandard deviation is 2.18 respectively Conclusion: This reveals that age group of 20-30years have moreknowledge, 16 (53%) women were having average level of knowledge , 14(46%) women were having goodlevel of knowledge

Rice and 1866 Famine of Orissa: A case Study on Balasore District

Nineteenth century Orissa history is marked as a period of natural calamity and severe drought. The shortage of rainfall and the decline of food production created a horrific situation for the people of Orissa. From the ancient period,the people of Orissa were famous for their reach of rice cultivation,and till now,it is the primary food crop for most of the people of Orissa. During the 19th century,apart from being an important food crop, it was used as an essential item for trade and commercial activities. During the colonial period, society was feudal, and most of the benefits from trade were taken by the colonial Government, Zamindars, and merchants. Peasants came at the last of the list. This was one of the most prominent reasons behind the famine of 1866. Due to the high price of rice throughout the famine, lower-class people could not afford the high pricerice, and they didn’t have sufficient storage of food for any kind of emergency,;as a consequence, lower-class people became the primary victims of the famine. Here rice will be used as an essential source to study the famine in Balasore district of Orissa which was one of the city which was greatly affected by the famine of 1866 along with Cuttack and Puri. Here in this article, we are subjected to study on the famine of 1866 in Balasore district, its rice production, its society and how it reacted to the famine, and how it overcomes the famine of 1866 in Orissa.

Sickle Cell Hemoglobin E Disorder – A Case Study in Balasore District of Odisha, India

Sickle Cell Hemoglobin E Disorder – A Case Study in Balasore District of Odisha, India

Floristic inventory of leafy vegetables with special reference to their ethnomedicinal uses in Balasore district of Odisha, India

Floristic inventory of leafy vegetables with special reference to their ethnomedicinal uses in Balasore district of Odisha, India

Growth and variability of agriculture in Odisha: A case study of Balasore district in Soro block

Growth and variability of agriculture in Odisha: A case study of Balasore district in Soro block

Exploration for strategic placer mineral deposits in a fluctuating shoreline: Depositional environment and mineralogical characterization of the NE Odisha coast placers, India

Systematic exploration for beach placer minerals has been undertaken in the Chandipur area of the Balasore district on the NE Odisha coast of India. Beach and dune sands are ubiquitous along the 1–1.5 km-wide NNE-trending coast. Forty-three representative samples were collected from selected boreholes sampled by auger and dormer drilling at depths ranging from 6.0 m to 12.0 m. Detailed experimental studies show that the total heavy minerals (THM) grade of the study area varies from 0.4 to 11.2% with an average grade of 3.8% for the individual samples; the upper 5.50 m sand column with a grade of 5.2% is most significant. The heavy mineral assemblages, in decreasing volumetric percentages, are comprised of 55% ilmenite, 25% sillimanite, 11% pyriboles/others (pyroxene, amphibole, mica, coated grains etc.), 5.9% rutile, 1.5% leucoxene, 1.2% garnet, 0.5% zircon, and 0.4% magnetite. Texturally, elevated heavy mineral concentrations are drawn from +200 ASTM (+75 µm) and 120 ASTM (+125 µm) mesh size fraction; the 40 ASTM (425 µm) size fraction contains lowest THM. The overall concentration of heavy minerals shows variable distribution patterns from shore to littoral (inland), and the maximum concentration of THM is observed within the 1.5 m sandy surface horizon. The present study also addresses the down-core variation of heavy mineral assemblages and role of hydrodynamic conditions in the deposition of these wide-ranging placer minerals. The range of graphic mean sizes (Mz) varies from 2.19 to 2.60 (Φ), which corroborates the deposition of sediments in low energy condition in a fluctuating shoreline along the Chandipur coast. Linear discriminant function analysis is predominantly indicative of diversity in the depositional features under aeolian conditions in a shallow marine environment. CM and Tractive current plots indicate that the sediments are mainly formed by graded suspension and without any rolling conditions in the beach subenvironment in a tractive current field. Both the perennial (Panchpara River) and the ephemeral drainage systems (Dubdubi River) played a dominant role in transporting and supplying sediment flux consisting of radioactive mineral (monazite) assemblages in the study area. The present detailed exploration study reveals a new find of placer deposits with radioactive and non-radioactive mineral assemblages formed from diverse sources.

Factors driving farmers’ knowledge on climate change in a climatically vulnerable state of India

Climate and its inevitable symptoms of change are now becoming a part of people’s life. They have realised the related potential threats and magnitude of skewed pace of development for generations to come as an outcome of climate-induced natural disasters. The prior knowledge and conditioning about the climate change is much pressing need in the third world nations (like India) where it is circumscribed only to the elite-urban mass. The present study has assessed the awareness and knowledge level of farmers on climate change and delineated the factors driving their knowledge in a coastal (Balasore) and non-coastal (Khurda) districts of Odisha, a climatically vulnerable state in India. Most of the farmers were aware about issues of climate change; however, their knowledge level on various phenomena was found less than average with overall climate knowledge index of 46.60 and 45.33 per cent in Balasore and Khurda districts, respectively. Attributes like education, number of earning family members, income from farm activity, wealth ranking, assets holding, mass media exposure and use of personal localite sources of information together explained 66.60 per cent variations in knowledge level of farmers on climate change in Balasore district. Similarly, in Khurda district, multiple regression analyses (backward method) revealed that age, education and income from non-farm activity determined 69.90 per cent variations in knowledge level of farmers on climate change phenomena.

A study of learning disability among students reference to Balasore district, Odisha

The cardinal object of the present study was to investigate the learning disability among 10th students. The present study consisted sample of 60 students subjects (30 male students and 30 female students studying in 10th class), selected through random sampling technique from Balasore District (Odisha). Data was collected with the help of learning disability scale developed by Farzan, Asharaf and Najma Najma (university of Panjab) in 2014. For data analysis and hypothesis testing Mean, SD, and t test was applied. Results revealed that there is significant difference between learning disability of Boys and Girls students. That means boys showing more learning disability than girls. And there is no significant difference between learning disability of rural and urban students.

Soil fertility status of some villages in Sader block of Balasore district under North Eastern coastal plain agro climatic zone of Odisha, India

A soil fertility status inventory work was carried out in some villages of Sader Block belonging to Balasore district located in the North Eastern coastal plain Agro Climatic Zone of Odisha, India. Results showed that Soil pH ranged between 5 and 8.1. Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) content ranged between 0.43 to 13.1 g kg-1. Available nitrogen content varied in between 57.5 to 285 kg ha-1. Available phosphorus content varied from 0.7 to 31.5 kg ha-1. Available potassium content varied widely from 40 to 558 kg ha-1. DTPA extractable micronutrient (Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu) varied from 36.8 to 150, 10.8 to 38.9, 0.2 to 0.8 and 1.3 to 2.05 mg kg-1 respectively. Hot water soluble boron content ranged from 0.08 to 1.94 mg kg-1. Most of lower range were found in upland soils while the higher values for all the parameters were found in low land soils.

A Comparative Study of Life Skill Education Awareness of Adolescent Students Between Kalinga Institute of Social Science (KISS) Students and the Students of Balasore District of Odisha

A Comparative Study of Life Skill Education Awareness of Adolescent Students Between Kalinga Institute of Social Science (KISS) Students and the Students of Balasore District of Odisha

Clinical and Metabolic Complications in patients with thalassemia undergoing transfusion therapy.

Background:The transfusions in patients with thalassemia are a double-edged sword as the patients develop complications due to inadequate transfusions and due to multiple transfusions. These complications vary from metabolic complications such as diabetes mellitus and clinical complications such as growth retardation, transfusion-transmitted infections (TTI), and iron overload. We selected Balasore district in Odisha which is a satellite center of AIIMS Bhubaneshwar and has a huge population of hemoglobinopathy patients especially thalassemia and this district in Odisha lags in terms of healthcare and health awareness.Materials and Method:In all, 123 patients with thalassemia major were included in this study for the evaluation of metabolic and clinical complications. Anthropometric measurements such as height and weight with age and gender were used for evaluation of growth parameters as per World Health Organization (WHO) reference data. Children were termed wasted and stunted if the values were below 2 standard deviation of the reference WHO median. Blood samples were collected for TTI status and fasting blood sugar levels.Result:A total of 118 (95.9%) were detected to have under nutrition, 73 (59.3%) of the patients were HCV-positive, and 54 (48.6%) had high fasting blood sugar levels. Based on the HCV status, they were classified as HCV-positive and HCV-negative to compare the anthropometric and growth status in these patients. About 98.6% of the HCV-positive cases were undernutrition and 83.6% were stunted.Conclusion:There is an increasing trend of associated metabolic derangements in patients with thalassemia. The district-level health services have an urgent need for improvement in chelation regimes and screening technologies.

Contrasting resilience of agriculture to climate change in coastal and noncoastal districts of Odisha

The issue of climate change impact on agriculture and its mitigation through developing resiliency is of prime importance to enhance farmers' income and livelihood security. A study was conducted in Odisha to find out contrast in resilience of agriculture to climate change in coastal and non-coastal district. Agricultural scenario was studied through a composite agricultural scenario index (ASI) during 2001 to 2014.The coastal district Balasore showed a relatively better resilience in the years of climatic disasters maintaining the ASI value at a higher level as compared to non-coastal district Khurda due to better agricultural and irrigation water resources scenario in Balasore district. However, Balasore is more vulnerable than Khurda in all the seasons; vulnerability of Balasore and Khurda districts is found highest in monsoon and pre-monsoon period, respectively. About 90 percent of sampled farm households possess irrigated land in Balasore district and rainfed land in Khurda district. A remarkable dent in crop productivity is seen during calamity years, which are more severe in Khurda district during heat waves and cyclone than Balasore district, which faces a decline during cyclone and flood.

Ophichthus chilkensis Chaudhuri, 1916 (Anguilliformes: Ophichthidae)-resurrection as a valid species from India, with re-description.

Ophichthus chilkensis Chaudhuri, 1916 has long been treated as a synonym of Pisodonophis cancrivorus (Richardson, 1848). O. chilkensis is hereby re-described on the basis of holotype from Chilika Lake, Odisha as well as ten fresh specimens from Talsari, Balasore district, Odisha and Digha, West Bengal. The present study confirms it belonging to the genus Ophichthus and resurrected as a valid species from the east coast of India. It is compared with its closest congener species, particularly with Ophichthus microcephalus Day, 1878, known from India.

Animal diversity in the mangrove forest at Bichitrapur of Balasore district, Odisha, India- A case study

The present work forms the preliminary study of ecosystem of Bichitrapur in Balasore district, though it covers a small area. A total 56 species of estuarine animals are found in the locality. They are normally mangrove associate animals, found in and over mangrove plants as borers or non-borers. These animals are either harmful to mangrove plants or opportunists by depending on mangroves for shelter or feeding. The dominating group in this mangrove is found to be the Molluscs, comprising 8 species of borers of mangrove-wood and 19 species as opportunistic epi-fauna. Crustaceans are the second diverse group in this ecosystem, represented by 13 species of crabs, 6 species of boring Isopods and a single species of Amphipod. The other epifaunal components comprise a few species of Cnidaria, Polychaetea, Echinoderm and some fishes, which are found on 7 species of mangrove plants in this ecosystem. But they seem to be non-specific to any mangrove plant species. An in-depth study of these faunal components in ecological viewpoints may provide pathway towards conservation and management of the mangrove ecosystems.

Menace of Hepatitis C virus among multitransfused thalassemia patients in Balasore district of Odisha state in India.

Context:Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a potential cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is most commonly transmitted through injecting drug use; the reuse or inadequate sterilization of medical equipment and the transfusion of unscreened blood products. Management of thalassemia requires long-term blood transfusion. Though it improves the overall survival, it carries a definite risk of infection which is expected to be higher in resource limited settings.Aims:To find the percentage of transfusion-transmitted infections (TTIs) in multitransfused patients of thalassemia in Eastern India.Settings and Design:The study was conducted to assess blood safety in rural population in India by measuring the percentage of TTIs including HCV in multitransfused thalassemia patients.Methods and Materials:One hundred and twenty three patients with major beta-thalassemia were enrolled in this study. The blood samples were tested using ELISA technique for all TTIs. HIV fourth generation kits, HbsAg, HCV third generation kits, malaria and syphilis, parbovirus IgM and parbovirus IgG kits, HEV Antigen and IgM antibody were used.Statistical Analysis Used:Proportions and means were calculated for categorical and continuous variables, respectively. Chi-square test was applied and P value of <0.05 was taken as significant.Results:The mean age of patients was 9.5 years ± 5.2 years. Among various TTIs, Hepatitis C and HIV was prevalent among 59.3% and 4.1% of the study participants, respectively.Conclusions:The causes of high prevalence of HCV may be due to donors being usually asymptomatic in early stages, despite being screened for HCV possibly due to missing early window period infections. The screening methodology of TTIs particularly HCV at the district and village level and consequent increased prevalence of HCV in multitransfused rustic population of India shows the extent of blood safety.

A Study on Irrigation and Agricultural Productivity in Odisha

Irrigation is a critical component in the agricultural production as rainfall is inadequate, uncertain and uneven in an agrarian state like Odisha. The intensity of irrigation is an important determinant of the cropping pattern and agricultural productivity. The present paper studies the impact of irrigation on agricultural productivity in Odisha. The 30 districts of the state are grouped on the basis of their irrigation intensity and agricultural productivity. For the purpose Kendall’s Ranking Coefficient method and Skewed distribution are used. It is found that the district of Puri tops the list with an irrigation intensity of 80.79 followed by Bhadrak district with 71.91. The Balasore district is at the third position (66.85) while the district of Bolangir has lowest intensity value i.e 20.64. Similarly, considering the agricultural productivity, it is observed that Kendrapada district is at the top with coefficient value of 25.14 followed by Boudh and Sambalpur with coefficient of (19.42) each. The relationship between irrigation intensity and agricultural productivity establishes that irrigation plays a vital role in enhancing the productivity. Sincere involvement of government, policy makers, planners, farmers and NGOs can achieve the goal of self sufficiency in agricultural production through promotion of irrigation.