India Rank Research Articles

Assessing Key Constraints in Cashew Production: Insights from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, India

India ranks among the world’s top cashew producers, with Kerala and Tamil Nadu serving as key contributors to the country's cashew production. Among the Plantation sector, specifically cashew cultivation plays a pivotal role in boosting farm economy in India. This particular study explores field constraints experienced by cashew growers in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, which significantly impacts cashew cultivation. The key objective is to compare field challenges experienced by cashew growers among major producers in southern regions of India. The methodology involves a purposive multi-stage sampling approach to select regions, with an equal proportion of 80 respondents from each state selected through simple random sampling. Totally, 160 cashew growers were investigated for data collection through pre-tested structured interview schedule. The data sets were analysed using SPSS software, with frequency and percentage analysis employed to rank the identified constraints. The significant findings were pest and disease infestations, labour scarcity, unstable market price, lack of technical know-how and inadequate processing facilities. Notably, 100 per cent of growers reported that, Cashew Stem and Root Borer (CSRB) infestation as a most critical issue in both states. This paper highlights, region-specific and timely technical interventions, commodity-specific assured markets, proper pricing system and infrastructure development. The study's interpretation highlights the need to address high-priority and specialized constraints through targeted policy reforms and technical support systems, aiming to enhance the productivity and sustainability of cashew farming in India. These findings also provide valuable insights that can be applied to other cashew-producing regions and contribute to shaping national agricultural policies.

Role of yoga in prevention of obesity (Sthaulyata) a lifestyle disease

: Srotas are the internal transport system of the body which provides assistance for the activites of significant biofactors like tridosh, seven dhatu , the oja etc. Acharya Charak described 13 srotas and Acharya Shushrut described 11 pair of Srotas. Medovahasrotas is mentioned of meda to the destination tissue i.e., the channel which supply nutrition to medodhatu is known as medovaha srotas. Each srotas have their own places of origin known as moolasthana. and are the moolasthana of medovaha srotas mentioned in ayurvedic literatures. Medovaha srotas is vitiated by different Ahar, Vihar like etc these factor cause medo dushti resulting in medovridhi/sthaulyata. WHO defined obesity as a common chronic disorder of excessive body fat. India rank among top 10 obese nations. Obesity is caused from lack of physical activity with increased intake of food. The sedentary habits, lack of exercise and various variety among daily diet. eg., fast food, frozen food, increase amount of soft drinks canned food results in obesity. Yoga is essential a spiritual discipline based on an extremely subtle science which focuses on bringing harmony between body and mind. It plays important role in management of obesity and for effective prevention of progression complication.: The world is looking towards drugless therapies like Yoga and Naturopathy. Both are rapidly growing as the best alternative treatments. Sushruta has also mentioned the drugless therapy and quotes that the diseases may be cured by following proper diet and lifestyle without any medicine. But in the absence of proper diet and lifestyle, even after giving hundreds of medicines, the disease cant be cured. An attempt to evaluate utility of Yoga in the management of overweight and obesity has been made through this study.: The present study is a conceptual study done in P.G. department of Kriya Sharir, State Ayurvedic college and Hospital, lucknow : Life style modification involves altering long term habits, typically for eating or physical activity and maintaining the new behaviour. Yoga and life style modification can be used to treat a range of disease include obesity. Some Yoga and Asanas which are very helpful in reduce weight in obese persons are Trikonasana, Pawanmuktasana, Sarvangasana, Dhanurasana etc.

Assessment of the Indian Public Healthcare Delivery System and Its Comparison with Public Healthcare Delivery of Global Nations Based on Their Gross Domestic Products Potential as Criteria: A Comparative Study

Aim: The aim of this study is to analyze the Indian public healthcare delivery system and compare it with other countries based on their gross domestic product (GDP) classification. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted to assess the Indian healthcare delivery system and the GDP among global nations based on their GDP potential as criteria. The data from 24 high-, middle-, and low-income countries were gathered from the World Bank from year 2018 to 2021. The parameters included GDP, GDP per capita, total number of population, and healthcare delivery system. The data were collected from various electronic sources of the World Health Organization, the International Monetary Fund, and the US Census Bureau’s international data, National Health Profile 2021. The collected data were compiled and tabulated. The descriptive analysis was done using Microsoft Excel version 2016 and SPSS version 20. Results: India ranks in the high-income group based on the GDP, whereas when ranked based on GDP per capita, it drops down to the lower-middle-income group. This lag may be because of a larger population and lack of priority in public health delivery. In terms of overall expenditure, India spends US$63 million in total health expenditure, of which only US$20 million is spent by the government sector. On the other hand, the United States holds the highest rank with US$10,921 million of total health expenditure, of which US$5,552 million spent by the government sector and US$5,368 million by the private sector. Conclusion: The Indian healthcare delivery system is suffering from a shortage of public health workforce and infrastructure. In the last decade, India has seen remarkable economic development, particularly in terms of the GDP growth rate. Unfortunately, this progress does not accompany with the Indian healthcare delivery system. Still there is a shortage in public health workforce and infrastructure. India should prioritize the expenditure in healthcare delivery.

Rationalization of post-harvesting unit operation of mahua flowers (Madhuca longifolia, Madhuca indiaca): Systematic interventions and benefits for tribals

<p>The most common method used for collection of mahua flowers by burning the undergrowth under mahua trees which often caused forest fire and loss or flora and fauna of nature. The comparative analysis of traditional flower collection vis-a-vis net collection was analyzed during the research. The most significant benefits were on prices, time reduction and quality of products. These benefits will encourage the adoption of this technique by forest dwelling communities for mahua collection. The net collected flowers sold at 110 to 120 ₹ compared with 25–30 ₹ with traditional collection (<em>p</em> < 5 ₹). The time and manpower reduced by 80% (<em>p</em> < 1%) in net collection. Total 87.95 K MT mahua exported from India with value of 70.01 million USD in FY 2022. India rank 7th in global export of Mahua in 2022. Nearly 75% of entire tribal household in the country are involved in the collection of mahua flower which will contributes up to 30% of their annual cash income. To handle mahua around 11 lakh peoples are directly involved and 20 to 25 lakh peoples indirectly involved. To produce liquid >90% mahua utilized in India. During this research post-harvest unit operations also standardized. New food product like syrup, cookies, jam, spread, jelly, gummies, energy drink, beverages, hard-boiled candies development were done, and stabilities were conducted with utilization of 10% to 60% mahua.</p>

Durability of alkali-activated fly ash-slag concrete- state of art

India ranks among the foremost global producers and consumers of cement, and the cement industry contributes significantly to carbon emissions. Alkali-activated materials have gained significant attention as a sustainable alternative to Portland cement, offering the potential to mitigate carbon dioxide emissions and promote effective recycling of waste materials. Fly ash (FA) and Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) are preferred raw materials for Alkali-activated concrete (AAC) owing to their effective repurposing of waste, widespread accessibility, advantageous chemical composition, and performance attributes. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of the current state-of-the-art on the durability aspects of fly ash/slag-based AAC. The paper explores the unique characteristics of FA/GGBS-based AAC, emphasizing their potential to enhance the durability of concrete structures. Insights into the material behaviour under various environmental exposures, including aggressive chemical environments and freeze–thaw cycles, are presented. Furthermore, the article addresses both the obstacles and prospects associated with implementing fly ash/slag-based AAC as a potential construction material suitable for large-scale infrastructure projects. This overview is designed to direct future research efforts and provide practitioners with insights into the potential of FA/GGBS-based AAC for ensuring the prolonged durability of concrete structures.

Do the various sources of energy consumption affect the environmental degradation in India?

India possesses ample opportunities for economic growth, resulting in a surge in electricity demand. As per the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), India's rank on environmental health and ecosystem viability stands at a lowly 168th out of 180 countries. Historically, India relied on fossil fuels for electricity generation, leading to substantial environmental degradation that have harmed the environment. In recent times, India has diversified its electricity generation sources, incorporating not only fossil fuels but also nuclear power and renewable resources. However, despite these changes, India still struggles with high CO2 emissions which indicates the level of environmental degradation. Hence, this study aims to investigate the sources of energy consumption in India: fossil fuels, renewable energy, and nuclear energy. By utilising the ARDL and NARDL methodologies, this study enriches the empirical studies by examining energy consumption trends in India from 1985 to 2021. The findings of this study shed light on whether the adoption of renewable energy and nuclear energy significantly aids in reducing carbon emissions in India, thereby facilitating the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), Therefore, it is of the utmost necessity for India to emphasize the formation of clean energy in their energy policy to achieve the SDG7 by the year 2030. This study found a positive correlation between GDP per capita and CO2 emissions, highlighting the urgent need to reduce India's dependency on fossil fuels. The ARDL analysis further confirms that fossil fuel-generated energy contributes to CO2 emissions, whereas nuclear-generated energy reduces them.

Price Spread of Soybean in Amravati District of Maharashtra, India

India rank fourth in respect of production of soybean in the world. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh are the two major soybean producing states in India.In India Marketing of Soybean crop is in developing stage. The development of marketing is as important as that of increasing production. Farmers always desire to get reasonable price for their farm product. Therefore, for profitable transaction a careful planning of marketing of Soybean is must with this view it is essential to study the marketing of Soybean in Amravati district of Maharashtra. In Maharashtra, soybean is mainly grown in the districts of Amravati, Akola, Washim and Nagpur. This study was conducted for estimation of marketing cost, marketing margin and price spread through different marketing channels of soybean in Amravatidistrict. The study was based on primary data and secondary data for the year 2022-23, collected from the APMC market of Amravati district of Maharashtra, the total 120 producers, 10 village traders, 10 wholesaler were selected for the study. Three major marketing channels were identified for the soybean i.e. channel-I: Producer- village trader-wholesaler- oil processor (consumer), Channel-II: Producer→ Wholesale →oil Processor (consumer), Channel-III: → Producer→ oil Processor (consumer). The channel -I was found most important channel of distribution. Producer‘s share in consumer’s rupees was highest in channel III as compared to channel II and channel I. The comparison between costs incurred by different market intermediaries in the marketing channel shows that Channel-III incurred lowest cost and it was also observed that the producers share in consumer price was 98.81 percent. Farmers always desire to get reasonable price for their farm product. Consequently for profitable transactions a careful planning of marketing of Soybean is must. For this purpose present study has been done.

An Effective Health Care System through Health Technology Assessment and Evidence Based Payment System in India

The purpose of this research is to discuss the significance of health care insurance compensation for obtaining comprehensive medical treatment in India. Through a systematic review survey focusing on the keywords like out-of-pocket, Health Technology Assessment and Health care system was conducted by using the searches from Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed and ProQuest Database, it is observed that India ranks among the greatest out-of-pocket (OOP) healthcare expenditures in the globe. This seems to be notwithstanding the deployment of several public health plans and the provision of a significant variety of both private and public health coverage schemes. Decrease in the treatment quality across many healthcare institutions of government is a key cause causing the typical Indian individual to constantly rely on medical services provided by private firms, heading up OOP expenses. Among the most significant problems in implementing universal health care (UHC) in India is a poor acceptance of insurance products and awareness between many Indians. The burden of large OOP expenditures on people might be lessened by increasing medical insurance acceptance, which may be accomplished by enhancing India's medical claims system.

How well does Indian fisheries policy engage with fisheries biology? Exploring the science-policy interface of coastal capture fisheries along the west coast of India.

India ranks among the highest producers of marine capture fisheries globally. Post-independence, India’s marine capture fisheries has transformed from an artisanal to a highly mechanised-motorised enterprise. The last two decades have witnessed a gathering overfishing crisis in Indian marine fisheries. The continued sustainability of existing stocks ideally requires an enabling evidence-based policy that integrates biological knowledge from conventional as well as traditional knowledge systems. We conducted a detailed textual analysis of the last 75 years of Indian fisheries policy, focussing on the west coast, to determine how meaningfully it has been informed by available fish biology. We show that both central and regional policy documents have made occasional attempts to invoke biological and ecological understanding in policy formulation. However, its application has been ad-hoc. For instance, mesh size restrictions vary dramatically between neighbouring states. Also, an annual fishing ban overlaps with the breeding periods of less than 40% of commercially fished species. More worryingly, fisheries policy maintains an unchanging narrative of increasing production despite acknowledging coastal overcapacity. Production potential estimates are regularly upwardly revised to justify further intensification, and the response to overcapacity is to promote spatial fixes while continuing to incentivise coastal fisheries. We conclude that to address overfishing, Indian fisheries policy needs to reimagine fish as elements of interacting biology, with complex life histories, and with functional roles in communities and ecosystems. A scientifically informed fisheries policy is a necessary although not sufficient step towards sustainability, which additionally requires a bridging of knowledge gaps and effective on-ground implementation. Data availability statementNo new empirical data was generated in this study. All policy documents referred to in this study have been listed in supplementary material (Appendix 1).

An Economic Contribution of Women Micro Entrepreneur's Capability and Performance of Government Initiatives in Andhra Pradesh

The paper highlights the capability of women entrepreneurs and performance of Government initiates to development of Andhra Pradesh State. The women empowerment through micro entrepreneurship has been taken up to add value to become favourable for women to become entrepreneur. Women can play an important role in Micro businesses and hence if given attractive tax stimulus, women ownership of MSMEs can increase from 14% to 30% in 1 year. As per World Bank's Global index Data for measuring global financial inclusion, released in June 2022, women are 8 - 10% more unbanked than men. Hence Along with Jan Dhan accounts, micro investment and micro savings schemes, with the right financial education and Literacy efforts will play an important role in improving financial inclusion. Empowerment is one of the key factors that determine the success of upliftment in the status and position of women in the society. Presently in India, the women are enjoying the socio-economic status through starting their own business. It also can be said that significance, self-confidence, self-determination, self-esteem and self-efficacy are the main contributors in psychological empowerment. As per Global Gender Gap Report, World Economic Forum, July 2022, it will take another 132 years to fully bridge the Gender gap globally. India Ranks 135th out of 146 countries to close only 62.9% of its Gender gap. In this situation, it only calls for better tax benefits and lower tax slabs to working women linked to flexi working options, to promote higher inclusion of women in workforce for faster economic growth. Only 6% startups today are solely women led, hence tax incentives and holidays to promote women led startups and businesses will go a long way in encouraging women to come forward to start their own businesses. Three of the country’s 11 industrial corridors are being built in Andhra Pradesh. Their proactive engagement and unwavering commitment have facilitated the successful execution of various programs and policies that support women-owned businesses. Sri N Chandrababu Naidu’s former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh as vision for promoting women’s entrepreneurship is rooted in gender equality and inclusive growth. The initiatives implemented have provided vital support, including financial assistance, skill development, and networking opportunities, to women-owned businesses.

Comparative Study of Fungicides, Bio-Agents and Organic Amendments for Management of Black Scurf of Potato

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is an important staple food crop of the world. India rank 2nd after China producing 52588.98 thousand metric tons potato per year. In India, among all the states Uttar Pradesh stands first with the production of 15812.62 thousand metric tones followed by West Bengal with the production of 12782.00 thousand metric tons in the year 2018-19. Potato is infected by a number of soil and tuber borne diseases and pest. Among all, black scurf (Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn.) is a destructive disease of potato. The most common phase of this disease is formation of sclerotial masses on the tuber resulting in black scurf which considerably reduces market value of edible tubers. In present investigation different bio-agents and chemicals were tested for management of the disease were used under field conditions. Among the bio-agents, Trichoderma harzianum, Chaetomium globosum, Bacillus subtilis, with vermicompost. Fungicides, Boric acid @ 3%, Carbendazim 50% WP @ 1%, Mencozeb @ (0.2%) and Pencycuron @ (0.2%) concentration. In field experiment the result revealed that the minimum disease incidence was recorded (12.00%) in Mancozeb @ 0.25% foliar spray compared to untreated check 60.00% and minimum disease severity (18.96%) and maximum yield 275.00 q/ha was recorded in Boric acid @ 3% tuber treatment compared to untreated control.

Appraisal of elementary knowledge and awareness of oral cancer among dental and medical undergraduates.

Currently, oral cancer in India ranks among the top three types of cancer affecting mainly the elderly population. However, recent years have witnessed a marked increase in the younger people less than 45 years of age being affected by oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). Thus, its early detection and treatment are of utmost importance and this responsibility lies with the healthcare providers. Therefore, we planned this study to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of oral cancer among undergraduate dental and medical students. The objective was to suggest strategies to improve awareness on oral cancer. A pretested questionnaire comprising nineteen questions were distributed among 193 undergraduate dental and 218 undergraduate medical students of our university. Fundamental questions were included in the clinical examination, risk factors and need for information lectures on oral cancer. Chi-square and ANOVA tests were used to analyse the data. The response rate of the study was good with 91.7% (177/193) of the dental and 88% (191/218) of the medical undergraduates participating in the survey. Though dental students had sufficient knowledge regarding the prevention and detection of oral cancer, however, medical students were less aware of the investigative methods of oral cancer. Though the mean knowledge of the dental students was good, they were not confident of diagnosing the early clinical symptoms of oral cancer. Practices on detection of oral cancer have to be reinforced among medical students so that they can contribute to its prevention.

Bibliometric Analysis of the MCDM Methods in the Last Decade: WASPAS, MABAC, EDAS, CODAS, COCOSO, and MARCOS

In recent years, multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques have expanded the corpus of existing techniques and demonstrated their effectiveness with applications in various fields. In this study, bibliometric analysis was conducted to evaluate the research trend on new ranking-based MCDM methods in the last decade, namely WASPAS, MABAC, EDAS, CODAS, COCOSO, and MARCOS. The various keyword combinations are searched on the Web of Science and the Scopus databases. Bibliometric analysis is carried out in R with the Biblioshiny app for the bibliometrix package. In total, 1,215 related publications are analyzed. The sources, authors, countries, and publications are examined in terms of production and total citation, and the most frequent keywords with trend topics are obtained. The summaries of the findings are as follows: The number of publications has increased over the years for all the methods. The most cited studies belong to the authors of the methods and fuzzy implementations related to the methods. For the author's impact and productivity, Zavadskas and Pamučar stand out. Turkey and India rank in the top five in terms of the number of publications produced on all methods. China is the most cited country for the three methods. According to keyword analysis, different research topics such as sustainability, renewable energy, optimization, supplier selection, hydrogen production and transport are investigated through these methods and other techniques are utilized such as SWARA, AHP, TOPSIS, Best-Worst, DEMATEL, MAIRCA, and CRITIC.

Exploring the challenges in the management of childhood pneumonia-qualitative findings from health care providers from two high prevalence states in India.

India ranks among the top five countries in the world in child deaths due to pneumonia. Apart from poor public awareness, inadequate health infrastructure and treatment services have compromised effective management. This qualitative study guided by components of the Andersen-Newman's health care utilization framework explored contextual and community challenges faced by health care providers (HCPs) in the delivery of care services for children with pneumonia in select districts of Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Madhya Pradesh (MP). Semi structured interviews (SSIs) and focus groups discussions (FGDs) were carried out with a purposive sample of HCPs selected from three districts in each state. The HCPs included doctors and community health workers (CHWs). All SSIs and FGDs were audio- recorded, with consent, transcribed verbatim, entered into NVivo and analysed using thematic analysis. A total of 15 SSIs were conducted with doctors and eight FGDs were carried out with CHWs. Two themes that best explained the data were:, 1. Health systems: barriers faced in delivery of care services and 2. Evaluated Need: perceptions on community awareness and practices. According to the HCPs inadequacies in government health infrastructure both manpower and equipment, and skill deficits of paramedical staff and CHWs contributed to poor quality of care services for management of childhood pneumonia. This combined with inadequate understanding of pneumonia in the community, dependence on unqualified care providers and distrust of government hospitals acted as barriers to seeking appropriate medical care. Additionally, poor compliance with exclusive breast feeding practices, nutrition and hygiene had contributed to the high prevalence of the disease in these states. Strengthening public health facilities, instilling trust and confidence in people about the availability and the quality of these services and enhancing health literacy around childhood pneumonia would be critical towards protecting children from this disease.

75 Years of India's Economic Development: Evaluation, Challenges, and Way forward

After 75 years of India's Independence, India is now one of the fastest-growing economies; hot FDI destinations of the World; India is the sixth-largest economy globally, with a GDP of $2.66 trillion. India is the world's largest producer of milk, pulses, and jute and ranks as the second-largest producer of rice, wheat, sugarcane, groundnut, vegetables, fruit, and cotton. It is also one of the leading producers of spices, fish, poultry, livestock, and plantation crops. (FAO 2018), It also produced 25 percent of the world's pulses, as of last decade, until 2019. (1BEF, 2021) Whereas India still has many areas of concern. Despite having food security, India has 97.7 million living below the poverty line, which is around 6 percent of the population in 2021, as per the World Poverty Clock.; India's rank is 66 out of 109 countries in United Nations Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2021: India ranked 101st out of 116 countries in the Global Hunger Index 2021. India ranked 131 out of 189 countries on the U.N. Human Development Index 2020; India ranked 139 out of 149 countries in U.N. World Happiness Index 2021. In this research article, the data of major socio-economic factors are analyzed to track the journey of India's growth in the past 75 years and has analyzed it using simple statistical tools like percentage and growth rate. The data about 75 years of India's Independence, GDP, Per capita Income Growth, Capital formation, Savings, Foreign Trade, Agriculture, Indebtedness, Industry, MSME, Infrastructure, Poverty, Inequality are analyzed, and meaningful analyses were drawn. The Challenges to the Indian economy, the way forward, and the lessons India can learn from China and South Korea are also discussed. India can surge ahead to its potential and celebrate the 100th year of India's Independence as a World Economic Superpower if India invests 6 percent of its GDP in imparting quality skill education, 4 percent of its GDP on providing quality health; increase the domestic capital formation to 40 percent, create world-class.

Empowerment of Women in India: An Overview of Political Participation

Political participation of women in India is a complex phenomenon being influenced by various factors. Empowerment of women means developing them as more aware individuals, who are politically active, economically productive and independent and are able to make intelligent discussion in matters that affect them. Women turnout during India’s 2014 parliamentary general elections was 65.63%, compared to 67.09% turnout for men. India rank 20th from the bottom in terms of representation of women in parliament. Women have held the posts of president and prime minister in India, as well as chief ministers of various states. Indian voters have elected women to numerous state legislative assemblies and national parliament for many decades. Present article intends to describe and evaluate with the political participation of women in India and discusses about various initiatives taken by the Government of India for empowering women by analyzing position of India in Gender Inequality Index. Keywords: Empowerment, Gender Inequality Participation, Reservation, and Women.

Effect of Smartphone Addiction on Craniovertebral Angle and Muscle Fatigue of Cervical Erector Spinae and Upper Trapezius

<p>India ranks 3<sup>rd</sup> in number in the smartphone use. Above 50% of worldwide population uses smartphone. The aim of the study is to find the effect of smartphone addiction on craniovertebral angle and muscle fatigue of Cervical Erector Spinae (CES) and Upper Trapezius (UT). Eighty-six healthy students took an interest in the examination. Subjects were chosen for the study with the assistance of SAS-LV form. Lateral postural assessment was done to measure CVA with the assistance of photography method. Electromyography (EMG) was utilized to compute muscle fatigue of cervical erector spinae and upper trapezius. The co-relation coefficient between addiction and CVA is r = -0.2196, that means as SAS-LV score rises, the CVA decreases. Co-relation between addiction score and mean frequencies of UT and CES by r = 0.03679 and r = -0.04472 respectively, this states that as addiction score increases UT shows fatigue however not CES. Co-relation between CVA and muscle fatigue of CES and UT by r = 0.01816 and r = -0.04472 respectively, that means as CVA increases UT shows fatigue but not CES. There is co-relation between smartphone addiction, CVA and UT and CES fatigue but it is not statistically significant (p>0.05). From the statistics, it is concluded that unnecessary utilization of smartphone decreases the CVA and muscle fatigue starts to set in, in the UT however not in CES. As the CVA decreases upper trapezius shows fatigue however not cervical erector spinae.</p>

Rice Fortification and Distribution: A Need of the Hour in Andhra Pradesh, India

Malnutrition among mothers and children in India is extremely high. Every second woman in the nation is anaemic, and every third child is diminutive, according to the Food Ministry. On the Global Hunger Index (GHI), India ranks 94th out of 107 countries, placing it in the ‘serious hunger' category. In the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, micronutrient deficits are frequent among mothers and children. According to the NFHS-5 survey, In Andhra Pradesh, 59 % percent of non-pregnant women in the age group of 15-49 years are anaemic. 63.2 percent of children in the age group of 6 to 59 months are anaemic. 53.7 percent of pregnant women under the age of 35 are anaemic. Food fortification is consideration to be one of the most valuable ways to put a stop to malnutrition. Food fortification is a low-cost method that has been shown to provide health, economic, and social benefits. Rice is the most effective vehicle for reaching the poorest people and one of only two staples that can contain a spectrum of minerals and vitamins when properly enriched. Rice fortification activities are most successful when collaborations are developed between the civic and private sectors, as well as other parties who can help with sponsorship, management, capacity building, implementation, and regulatory oversight.

Millets as Nutre Cereals

Among the growing population (136.64 crs as per2019) many people experience scarcity of food and all. In the 2020 Global Hunger Index, India ranks 94th out of the 107 countries with sufficient data to calculate 2020 GHI scores. With a score of 27.2, India has a level of hunger that is serious (www.un.org/). The United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) predicts that the on-going COVID-19 pandemic will increase this number as developing countries are double-hit by disease and hunger (www.fao.org/2019-ncov/q-and-a/) Disruptions in global supply chains, economic consequences (i.e., loss of jobs and incomes), the ban on the export of agricultural commodities, and price increases are the major reasons for this crisis. Although much attention is being given to the development of vaccines, therapeutic molecules, and preventive measures to combat COVID-19, the invisible threat to the lives and livelihoods of marginal populations through hunger and malnutrition remains largely unaddressed. The focus of the 2019 Global hunger index on ‘The Challenge of Hunger and Climate Change’ underlines the impacts of changing climates on agriculture that include crop failures owing to problems such as seasonal fluctuations, increased insect and pest attacks, and broad-spectrum infection by potential pathogens (www.globalhungerindex.org/).Supplying food grains is an immediate measure to aid the affected population, whereas devising long-term plans to prevent such challenges is the need of the hour. That said, the possibility of a second and third wave of COVID-19 in the near future should not be ignored. In such a case, the UN World Food Programme predicts (UN-WFP; https://insight.wfp.org/) that death due to lack of food would outnumber deaths caused by disease infection. The importance of crop diversity and of mainstreaming underutilized crops that could serve as functional foods has been pointed out before; however, identifying the best candidates of underutilized crops and deploying crop improvement strategies to release better varieties is still in a nascent stage. Mayes et al. Other plant species, including tubers, legumes, and leafy vegetables, also fall within the criteria of underutilized species; however, emphasis is given to small millets because they are capable of reducing the overdependence on major cereals. Three major cereals, namely rice, wheat, and maize, cater for up to 60% of the global food requirements, and this is one of the plausible causes of food and nutritional inadequacies in the hunger hotspots where these crops are largely imported for consumption. Millets, although cultivated marginally in those regions, have the potential to address these inadequacies if their area of cultivation is increased and crop improvement strategies are devised and deployed.

Child Labour In India: A Stigma On The Face Of Society

When there is no confidence in the future of a child in a nation, then surely that nation also has no future. As in Indian society children have always been the subjects of discussion due to less vocal or country’s past or socio–cultural background. Speculation among children is the outlay in the future of a nation, which forms ideas. Childhood is important because their personality is formed in the process of socialization. The origin of child labour lies in a multidimensional complex process of self–sustaining socio–economic retardation. “Child labour” is defined as the employment of children in any physical work. Whether or not work done by children is defined as child labour depends on the child’s age, hours and type of work, and working conditions. But many millions of children work in abusive and unequal conditions that are clearly dangerous to them. India is no exception. According to the report, India ranks among the top countries where the percentage of labour force making up “child labour” is very high. Like others, India too, from its inception as an independent nation, has enacted laws to reform and eliminate all forms of child labour, but the ground reality is still very depressing in nature. Child labour in India is addressed by the Child Labour Act 1986 and the National Child Labour Project. Today there are more than 11.24 million children in India who are spending their childhood in learning, carpet–weaving, beedi–rolling, family labour, agriculture and countless other occupations instead of going to school. Finally, as planning and strategies identify, the research paper identifies policies and attempts have been made to actually address and determine the problem as needed.