Indian Citizens Research Articles

A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON THE PERFORMANCE OF NIFTY 50 AND EQUITY FUNDS UNDER TIER-II OF NATIONAL PENSION SCHEME

The National Pension Scheme (NPS) is a defined contribution and a corporate pension fund that provides financial assistance to all Indian citizens. There are two types of accounts in the National Pension Scheme: Tier I and Tier II. Tier I is a mandatory deposit pension fund account and Tier II is a voluntary pension account. Tier I and Tier II is are consisted of different assets namely, equity, government security and alternative asset. The equity schemes are directly linked with the market. The return of all the fund managers in equity schemes are not same as the portfolio of all the fund managers are not same. Secondary data has been collected from respective websites of Pension Fund Managers and has been used to calculate mean, SD, Variance, and Correlation to predict the performance of equity funds. ANOVA and T-test have been for assessing the comparative analysis of the different fund managers under equity scheme in tier II. As per the study, LIC PF and ICICI PF are the best performer during the study period. The performance of SBI PF is poor among other equity funds under Tier-II of NPS during the study period. In term of risk, LIC PF is the higher risky equity fund and UIT PF is the lowest risky equity fund under Tier-II of NPS. It can be said that investors need to be high-risk taker to invest in that LIC PF. Through the risk analysis during said period of time, it is found that the ability to observe risk differs in equity funds under Tier-II of NPS. The main reason for this being a voluntary account of Tier -II. As there is no lock-in period in this account, the investors mostly use for a short-term purpose. In the recent decision of the government, Tier-II offers a lock-in period for 3 years with tax benefit. This decision may be affected the investment pattern of the investors. KEY WORDS: - National Pension Scheme, Performance, Equity Scheme, Nifty 50

Representation of American Indian and Alaska Native Individuals in Academic Medical Training

Identifying gaps in inclusivity of Indigenous individuals is key to diversifying academic medical programs, increasing American Indian and Alaska Native representation, and improving disparate morbidity and mortality outcomes in American Indian and Alaska Native populations. To examine representation of American Indian and Alaska Native individuals at different stages in the 2018-2019 academic medical training continuum and trends (2011-2020) of American Indian and Alaska Native representation in residency specialties. A cross-sectional, population-based analysis was conducted using self-reported race and ethnicity data on trainees from the Association of American Medical Colleges (2018), the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (2011-2018), and the US Census (2018). Data were analyzed between February 18, 2020, and March 4, 2021. Enrolled trainees at specific stages of medical training. The primary outcome was the odds of representation of American Indian and Alaska Native individuals at successive academic medical stages in 2018-2019 compared with White individuals. Secondary outcomes comprised specialty-specific proportions of American Indian and Alaska Native residents from 2011 to 2020 and medical specialty-specific proportions of American Indian and Alaska Native physicians in 2018. Fisher exact tests were performed to calculate the odds of American Indian and Alaska Native representation at successive stages of medical training. Simple linear regressions were performed to assess trends across residency specialties. The study data contained a total of 238 974 607 White and American Indian and Alaska Native US citizens, 24 795 US medical school applicants, 11 242 US medical school acceptees, 10 822 US medical school matriculants, 10 917 US medical school graduates, 59 635 residents, 518 874 active physicians, and 113 168 US medical school faculty. American Indian and Alaska Native individuals had a 63% lower odds of applying to medical school (odds ratio [OR], 0.37; 95% CI, 0.31-0.45) and 48% lower odds of holding a full-time faculty position (OR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.44-0.62) compared with their White counterparts, yet had 54% higher odds of working in a residency specialty deemed as a priority by the Indian Health Service (OR, 1.54; 95% CI, 1.09-2.16). Of the 33 physician specialties analyzed, family medicine (0.55%) and pain medicine (0.46%) had more than an average proportion (0.41%) of American Indian and Alaska Native physicians compared with their representation across all specialties. This cross-sectional study noted 2 distinct stages in medical training with significantly lower representation of American Indian and Alaska Native compared with White individuals. An actionable framework to guide academic medical institutions on their Indigenous diversification and inclusivity efforts is proposed.

Viewpoint on relief of COVID-19 burden in India by administration of system to break the chain of SARS-CoV-2 at the grass-roots level

During 2020, the first wave of COVID-19 pandemic hit badly the Indian subcontinent very surprisingly. Indian Government and every citizen of India have attempted many more strategies on damage control of pandemic in terms of human lives, population, health, and socio-economic impacts. Second wave have battered us significantly tanks to our hubris and callousness. In anticipation of the potential third wave, the system has developed a massive but at grassroots level pragmatic and strategic roadmap for sensitizing the policy maker and coordinators. The existing infrastructure and manpower utilization could be the best, eco-friendly and the most effective way to break the chain of SARS-CoV-2. The infrastructure includes government schools and manpower work as an administrative system which includes elected MLAs, medical doctors, village head (Sarpanch), village council’s elected members and local people. Managing this system at grass root level could be the best and effective way to break the chain of SARS-CoV-2 in all states of India.

What are the Impact of Season and Temperature Variations in India on the Number of Adolescent/Adult Mortality Due to Heart Disease / Hypertension – A Cross-Sectional Research Study?

One of the researcher of this study who is also a medical doctor with experience of 18 years have suspected that there are season and temperature variations in India on the number of adolescent/adult mortality due to Heart disease / Hypertension. During regular duties at various Government hospitals, the researcher felt some trends in the title-mentioned research question. Hence the researcher decided to investigate the query mentioned in the title with proper evidence and accredited data. The key purpose is to alert the policy-makers, caregivers, medical doctors, patients, decision-makers, researchers, and citizens of India, etc through evidence-based study to take proper care during the seasonal and temperature variations which may harm persons with Heart disease / Hypertension. There are several research studies done on the impact of season and temperature on hypertension and related mortality which established that a relationship exists between them. Despite being the secondmost populous country of the world with wide variations of seasons/temperature, the researcher has not found any adequate broad country-based study conducted in India for evaluating the impact of temperature / seasonal variation on the number of adolescent/adult mortality due to Heart disease / Hypertension in the general population. CVDs (Heart Diseases) are the most important cause of death accounting for 17.9 million people's mortality globally in 2019, representing 32% of all global mortalities; of which 85% were caused by heart attack and stroke. Hypertension is a serious medical condition of elevated blood pressure that increases the risks of heart diseases; 1.28 billion adults globally have HTN and two-thirds (66%) of these are living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like India. This is a novel cross-sectional research study with the key objective to analyze the impact of season and temperature variations on the mortality trends of adolescents/adults due to Heart disease / Hypertension with the utilization of time-bound accredited data. The title mentioned research question is not well understood to date and this research study tries to find an answer through one factor only i.e. mortality data. This research study was a Country / HMIS (MoHFW) accredited data-based retrospective cross-sectional study conducted across all HMIS registered public/private/rural and urban health facilities of 36 states and UTs (union territories). The study population for this novel research study consisted of any adolescent (10 to 19) / adult (19 and above) of both sexes. The three years of study when combined shows that the Heart disease / Hypertension mortalities were highest in January with 89417 mortalities ([95% CONF. INTERVAL] 84795.48 - 94038.52 ; STD. ERR.-1074.109; MEAN-29805.67; STD. DEV.-620.1374; MIN29346; MAX-30511 followed by September-85633 (95% CONF. INTERVAL- 57391.89 - 113874.1)and December-83682 (95%CONF. INTERVAL -73045.63 - 94318.37) while lowest mortalities were found in April – 66116 (95% CONF. INTERVAL- 49641.4 - 82590.6 ). The mean seasonal mortality for Heart disease / Hypertension mortalities was highest in the Winter Season JanFeb (mean temperature 20.91 C) having mean mortality of 28322.33 followed by post-monsoon (mean temperature 23.59 C) with mean mortality of 27458.33, monsoon (mean temperature 28.44 C) with mean mortality 26197.83 and pre-monsoon (mean temperature 27.91 C) having lowest mean mortality 23302.22.

Paired exchange Living Donor Liver Transplantation: A Nine-Year Experience from North India

Introduction: Liver paired exchange donation (LPD) or swap transplantation is an evolving strategy to overcome ABO incompatibility and other barriers like small for size syndrome that confront patients with end-stage Liver disease undergoing Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT). At the same time, for the transplant team to carry out 4 major operations simultaneously is a Herculean effort. Herein, we analyze our experience with LPD program over the past 9 years. Methods: This prospective study includes a total of 2340 LDLTs performed from May 2012 to April 2021. We started the Paired exchange LDLT program in May 2012. LPDs constituted approximately 1.45% (34 of 2340) of the total LDLT procedures. The reasons for LPD were ABO incompatibility in all (n=34) patients. The first and second recipient of each swap pair were divided into R1 and R2 groups for comparative analysis. Results: All patients included in paired exchange LDLT program were Indian citizens and donors were “near” relatives. After donor reassignment through 2-by-2 paired exchange with directed donors, the ABO matching status changed to A to A (n=17) and B to B (n=17) and this made all matches ABO-identical. Donor survival was 100%. The recipient’s (n=34, age 45.5 [11 -59] years; 31 men), UNOS status were 2b (n=5) and C (n=29) and they all underwent elective LDLT surgery with 4 OTs running simultaneously on the same day. The baseline clinical, peri-operative parameters, post-operative complications, median ICU/hospital stay, early deaths were comparable (P>0.1) between the R1 and R2 groups (Table 1). The overall recipient survival was 85.3 % (n=29) over the median follow up period of 20 (0-108) months. Conclusion: Our experience suggests that with careful attention to ethical and logistical issues, LPD program can expand the living donor liver pool and can facilitate a greater number of LDLTs. Keywords: Donor Exchange, Swap Liver Transplantation, Living Donor Liver Transplantation; ABO incompatibilityTable 1Comparative data between R1 and R2 groups of swap liver transplant recipients (n = 34).Parameters (Mean±SD)R1 (n=17)R2 (n=17)P valueAge (years)44.0 (±10.1)47.0 (±5.3)0.296MELD score21.8 (±11.1)19.4 (±6.3)0.445CTP score9.5 (±2.3)10.3 (±2.1)0.294Graft weight (grams)711 (±141.2)796 (±119.8)0.067GRWR1.01 (±0.34)1.18 (±0.26)0.136Warm ischemia time (minutes)32.7 (±7.8)36.1 (±7.1)0.257Cold ischemia time (minutes)109.7 (±61.2)112.6 (±40.9)0.870ICU stay (days)12.4 (±4.6)14.4 (±10.5)0.654Hospital stays (days)16.7 (±4.6)21.6 (±4.7)0.197Complications n (%)Bleeding01 (5.9%)1.00Bile leak02 (11.8%)0.485Acute rejection1 (5.9 %)1 (5.9 %)1.00Hepatic artery thrombosis01(5.9%)1.00Hepatic vein thrombosis2 (11.8%)1(5.9%)0.542Sepsis2 (11.8%)5 (29.4%)0.398Early mortality (Within 1 month)1 (5.8%)3(17.6%)0.6011 year survival16 (100 %)13 (92.8%)0.335Median follow up in months (IQR)27 (8-39)27 (8-43)1.00CTP, Child-Turcot-Pugh; GRWR, graft to recipient weight ratio; ICU, intensive care unit; IQR, inter quartile range; MELD, model for end stage liver disease. Open table in a new tab CTP, Child-Turcot-Pugh; GRWR, graft to recipient weight ratio; ICU, intensive care unit; IQR, inter quartile range; MELD, model for end stage liver disease.

N.R.C. C.A.A. and the Changing Concept of Identity in Indian Perspective

Migrations of tribe, people, race from one place to another for socio-economic-political reasons are as old as evolution of human race. According to archeologists, the first hominid species originated from Africa had been migrated to all over the globe. However in modern era, migrants from one country to another withoutproper documents and legal process are characterized as “Illegal immigrants.” In 1947 A.D. the Indian Sub-continent had been broken in-to two separate Nation State of India and Pakistan as part of decolonization process from almost two century old British colonial regime. Very huge quantities of people had to migrate from both these two lands. The Indian Constitution had made provisions to provide Indian citizenship to the migrants through legal process. To determine who genuine Indian citizens were, the N.R.C. was first prepared in 1951. It was decided that migrants from Pakistan will be given Indian citizenship till the first January, 1966. However during the 1970s, Liberation war had been fought between Pakistan army and Bengali speaking resident of East Pakistan supported by Indian Govt. In this period, large amount of migrants from East Pakistan had been entered in different Indian provinces for economic-political stability. According to the book “Bangladesh Ke swatantra Sangram Mein Bharat Ka Yugdaan” authored by salaam Azad, the migrant no was 9899 305. After establishment of Bangladesh in 1971, Mujib Treaty was signed between India and the new Country. Indian Govt agreed to provide citizenship to all Bangladeshi migrant residing in Assam till 24.3.1971. The Assam accord signed by the Indian Govt. and Assam’s ethnic associations cemented the agreement. However during the last three decades illegal migration from Bangladesh to Assam had been increased rapidly. Out of 33 districts of Assam, 9 have been over crowded with these Bangladeshi illegal immigrants. This changed demography of these districts and native ethnic –religious groups became minorities in their forefathers’ land. In 2012 a clash occurred between Bodo and Bangladeshi Muslims in the Bodoland territories in which more than 70 people had died. In this background, Assam Samhita Maha Sangh applied to Supreme Court for determining illegal migrants. In response, Indian Supreme Court ordered to update the N.R.C list in 2014.The process began in 2015. Out of 3.29 Corer applicants, 2.89 Cores have made to included themselves into the updated list. In 2016, the Indian govt. introduced Citizenship Ammendment Bill in house Of the People with the aim of providing Indian citizenship to Hindu, Sikh,Parsi, Christian, Jain and Buddhist illegal immigrants from Afganistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. However this acts this facing criticism and protest from both opposition Indian political parties besides common masses. Several opposing party spoke person labeled this act and process as communal and anti-Muslim in nature. Besides, political parties, common people created mass protests against amendment of Indian citizenship through offline and online platform. In Sheen Bag, Delhi Muslim womenfolk actively protested. They set up community kitchen, political discourse arena, public library etc. This model was followed by other regional centers of protest through all over India. It is my aim in this essay to analyze changing concept of Indian people’s legal and political identity on the background of N.R.C, C.A.A. I will use both primary and secondary sources

XBLQPS: An Extended Bengali Language Query Processing System for e-Healthcare Domain

The digital India program encourages Indian citizens to become conversant with e-services which are primarily English language-based services. However, the vast majority of the Indian population is comfortable with vernacular languages like Bengali, Assamese, Hindi, etc. The rural villagers are not able to interact with the Relational Database Management system in their native language. Therefore, create a system that produces SQL queries from natural language queries in Bengali, containing ambiguous words. This paper proposes a Bengali Query Processor named Extended Bengali language Query Processing System (XBLQPS) to handle queries containing ambiguous words posted to a Healthcare Information database in the electronic domain. The Healthcare Information database contains doctor, hospital and department details in the Bengali language. The proposed system provides support for the Bengali-speaking Indian rural population to efficiently fetch required information from the database. The proposed system extracts the Bengali root word by removing the inflectional part and categorizing them to a specific part of speech (POS) using modified Bengali WordNet. The proposed system uses manually annotated parts of speech detection of a word based on Bengali WordNet. Patterns of noun phrases are generated to detect the correct noun phrase as well as entity and attribute(s). Entity and attributes are used to prepare the semantic table which is utilized to create the Structured Query Language (SQL). The simplified LESK method is utilized to resolve ambiguous Bengali phrases in this query processing system. The accuracy, precision, recall and F1 score of the system is measured as 70%, 74%, 73%, and 73% respectively.

An unsolved case in a culturally diverse community in Italy

The number of foreign citizens resident in Italy is approximately 5 million, making them the 8.7% of the resident population of the country. However, over the past 20 years, foreign citizens accounted for 24% of the total number of defendants involved in homicides, especially associated with robbery, disputes and assaults, generally connected to prostitution. Investigations of cases in the context of culturally diverse or minority communities can be particularly complex. This is due to the education, the cultural background and the cohesiveness of the community, alongside a negative view of law enforcement. These factors determine a relatively low resolution rate of these violent crimes in these communities.The investigation of the suspicious death of an Indian citizen living in Italy is presented in this paper. The body was discovered in a cattle shed, and despite the initial assumption of an accidental death, the cranial lesions were not consistent with the view that the death was caused by a kick by a cow. The results of a multidisciplinary analysis, including imaging, pathology, toxicology and veterinary forensics, were directed towards a homicide, with the manner of death ultimately filed as undetermined. During the course of the investigation, the collaboration between law enforcement and the community was thwart with difficulty, and as a consequence this case is currently unsolved. In order for law enforcement to continue to play a constructive and supportive role, it is imperative that every country invest in civil education of local population and of any ethnic groups, minorities and culturally diverse people.

COVID-19 mental health challenges: A scoping review.

The COVID-19 pandemic has disordered the lives of millions in an unprecedented way. A state of mental health crisis has emerged across the globe. The lifestyle and well-being of the individual and social integrity have been adversely affected. One-third of US citizens and one in five Indian citizens suffer from depression due to this pandemic. This scoping review aimed to estimate the mental health challenges and their possible solutions in the recent two years (2020-2021). Our search strategy used search engines such as Medline, Google Scholar and PubMed. The search strategy used the MeSH keywords "Mental Health AND Covid-19". The findings emerged in the following key points: anxiety and depression, social isolation and quarantine, and vulnerable or high-risk groups. Out of 216 articles screened, 20 were found eligible to meet the inclusion criteria. Most of the studies focused on psychological anxiety, stress and mental disorder during the pandemic. Psychosocial assessment and monitoring in the context of COVID-19 should include inquiries about stressors related to COVID-19, like exposure to infected sources, infected family members, loss of loved ones, physical distance; secondary adverse events like economic loss, psychosocial effects like depression, anxiety, psychosomatic preoccupations, insomnia, increased substance use, domestic violence; and indicators of vulnerability like pre-existing physical or psychological conditions.

ASSESSING MENTAL HEALTH OF GENERAL PUBLIC IN INDIA DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Background: Coronavirus infection is considered as a pandemic. It has created mess around the globe. It has produced loads of psychological problems to all persons. Everyone has to go through different mental health troubles. Children have to go through a major change in way of learning; working professional’s fear of losing their jobs; elderly people have their own problems etc. Objectives: The study aimed to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health of peoples in India. Method: An online survey was administered from November 2020 to January 2021 (92 days) to 1130 Indian citizens. Results: The research findings show that, pandemic significantly affect more on mental health of females across all age groups than males. Effect of pandemic on mental health of females within 76 to 90 years and for males in 61 to 75 years age group is more severe. Conclusions: This study would help the doctors to smoothly deliver mental healthcare system across India. Also, help to maintain the psychological well-being of the Indian population in these unprecedented and desperate times. Sex, age, occupation, income, and level of depression are the most significant factors on mental health of Indian citizens.

Atal Pension Yojana: Effect of Inflation And Time Value of Money

Economic Growth and Development of a nation is highly influenced by the financial well-being as well as improved standard of living of its citizens. To ensure a stable income for Indian Citizens after retirement, the Government of India has introduced Atal Pension Yojana in 2015-16 Budget. APY provides a defined guaranteed pension depending on the contributions made by the subscriber towards the scheme.APY could emerge as the mostpopular social security scheme under the NPS System. The present paperanalyzesthe amount of money an investor would receive from AtalPension Yojana after adjusting for the time value of money.The study also examines its benefits, contributions and the current trend among the public towards the scheme.The study uses secondary data. Our findings indicate that, as inflation will erode the value of pension amount over time, the pension under Atal Pension Yojana may be too small to cover the cost of living. The Government must index the subscriber contribution to inflation in order to prevent the pension fund of low-income consumers from depleting over time. If the design flaws of APY are addressed, even the most vulnerable will get benefited.

Architecture, Waste, and the Circular Economy

Waste is a modern global crisis. The world is drowning in an unprecedented amount of waste due to an increasing linear economy model that drive societies to consume more every day. It was reported that the average American citizen consume nearly 32 times more that the average Indian citizen. Companies, businesses, and corporates are continuously racing to deplete the planet’s natural resources in an astonishing rate. The design and construction sector alone is responsible for 30-40% of total solid waste worldwide, yet as architects, designers, and planners the waste problem is almost absent from the current discourse, both in practice and academia. Beyond sustainability, and if ideas such as the Dutch “CircularCity” become more appealing to architects, designers, and clients, the architectural education must adopt a transformational shift in the design thinking process to prepare a more responsible future architect. A shift from goal-oriented design to means-oriented design requires a shift in the design education, and the studio pedagogy. A transformation is needed in education, practice, research, and the related professions to address the current and emerging economic challenges more so post crises and pandemics, and through the built environment lens. It is time to define the role of architecture and design in the circular economy paradigm shift.

Bolovi u trbuhu kod bolesnice s rekurentnom malarijom – prikaz slučaja

Currently the majority of malaria cases in Europe are imported by international travellers and immigrants. Typical clinical signs of malaria are recurrent fever, hepatosplenomegaly and haemolytic anaemia. Abdominal pain is not a specific clinical sign of malaria. We present a clinical case of three-day malaria in a 17-year-old Indian citizen who was admitted to the Ternopil Regional Children’s Hospital with fever and severe abdominal pain. The peculiarity of this case was the presence of fever and severe abdominal pain at the onset of the disease, which led to admission of the patient to surgical department and delayed correct diagnosis. Careful, thoro- ugh case history is one of the key points on the way to the accurate diagnosis. There is a need to increase the physicians’ awareness of malaria in patients with abdominal pain who have come from malaria endemic countries.

An analysis on the ever increasing demand of crude oil and energy in the country and its impact on the Indian economy

Abstract: We require ample amount of crude oil and natural gas for a number of activities starting from industrial to mining , from the production of plastic and running of vehicles and cooking gas . India because of its minimum production and maximum dependency on import, Indian citizens have to pay more price of 1 litre of petrol or diesel in India , with 85% imports , the economy of India is at risk. The government has allowed more drilling and exploration to increase the production and reduce the imports, it has allocated billions for LNG , Natural gas production with FDI is allowed 100% . The government has announced new project for oil and natural gas production . India needs to reduce its import along with that with adopting of non renewable energy our dependences of crude oil will also reduce , with rising demand , India will be the largest consumer of crude oil by 2040 , so along with production we need to adopt sustainable living and reduce our depends on crude oil for reduce the impact of climate change , all measure have been taken to eliminate the use of crude oil for a number of products , so soon India will be able to minimize its production rate and import . Keywords: Crude oil, natural gas, LNG, petrol, diesel, fossil fuels, non renewable energy, consumer, production

USE OF ICTs FOR INCLUSIVE EDUCATION: POSSIBILITIES AND CHALLENGES

Right to Education is the primary right of every citizen of India, whether a child resides in a high profile society or in a far away not so developed secluded village, according to the Article 45 of Indian Constitution the basic elementary education must be provided to all the children up to the age of fourteen years. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) can be utilized for the education sector. Education includes online, distance and part time education. There are unlimited applications of ICT in the real world. In his paper emphasis is on the education field. ICT can be used for providing education to the people who are not able to come to school due to various constraints. ICT can play great role in formal and non formal forms of education. Inclusive Education proposes all students are provided with equitable access to education within the context of a mainstream educational system and not in a segregated setting. There is now significant international and national legislation and policy in support of this model but for many countries achieving this ideal is proving to be a difficult reality. Accessible ICTs have a major role to play in enabling educational authorities, educators, students and parents to move towards a more inclusive educational system. However its role as a communication aid, pedagogical tool and means of access to previously inaccessible learning materials is still, in many countries, only just beginning to be explored. KEY WORDS: ICT, Inclusive Education, Benefits, Challenges, Policy Development

Role of CSR for Sports Infrastructure Development

Indian athletes have won numerous medals for the country at international sporting events such as the Olympic, Commonwealth, and Asian Games, and they continue to make tremendous growth in the field of sports. CSR has piqued the interest of many businesses, and as a result, several research studies are being conducted in both academia and industry. CSR has the potential to give a powerful impetus for the fastest possible growth of sports in society. Without a doubt, the only way to make development is for every Indian citizen to work together to make India a superpower in the sphere of games and sports. Apart from the government, businesses, and individuals should all make efforts in terms of "Complimentary Self-Responsibility" to set down the actual development on the ground rather than in papers or reports. The paper represents one of the possible solutions for sports infrastructure development, which is based on supporting a sensible improvement of the city's metropolitan sports infrastructure and increased grant sport support, which allows for greater adaptability of offered services as well as a higher type of viability in terms of future budget expense cost flexibility.

Position of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna in Uttarakhand

The problem with India's development destination is that although a specific section of the population now has access to banking services, another section still remains disadvantaged. Even basic financial services are still not available to the low income group. In spite of the fact that the banking business is expanding both vertically and horizontally, hence this scheme was started so that everyone can get the benefit. Branch penetration in rural areas is still not commensurate with the growing demand for financial services. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is a Government of India financial inclusion program aimed at increasing affordable access for Indian citizens (minors) to financial services such as bank accounts, credit, remittances, insurance and pension. The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, unveiled the scheme in his first Independence Day speech on 15 August 2014, launched this financial inclusion initiative on 28 August 2014.

Examining Psychological Characteristics and Attitudes towards Vaccination During the Pandemic: Implications for Public Health Development

Vaccine hesitancy has been declared a threat to global health, and with the rampant spread of the deadly pandemic, the need for swift and widespread vaccine uptake is the need of the hour. Several factors affect the reasons behind the acceptance or rejection of vaccines. This study intends to examine the significant association between the factors of personality and factors of vaccine hesitancy. The online survey was conducted with a sample of 100 Indian citizens from the city of Mumbai who were 18-59 years of age. The study sample included adults aged 18-59 from Mumbai region, India. The Big 5 inventory was used as a personality measure and the 5C Scale was used to measure the factors of vaccine hesitancy. Results showed that openness had a weak negative relationship with Constraints and a weak positive relationship with Calculation. Data also showed that conscientiousness had a weak association with Complacency and a weak positive relationship with Calculation. Extraversion had a moderate negative relationship with Complacency. There was a significant relationship between neuroticism and complacency. Regression analyses showed that openness as a significant predictor of Calculation and extraversion as a significant predictor of Complacency. Regression analyses also showed that agreeableness as a significant predictor of Constraints Confidence, Collective responsibility and neuroticism as a significant predictor of complacency. The factors of personality and the factors vaccine hesitancy does show significant relations with each other. This information can be useful when developing campaigns for vaccine uptake and awareness. Implications and future scope for research is discussed.

Behavioral intention of traveling in the period of COVID-19: an application of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and perceived risk

PurposeThis paper aims to examine travelers’ behavioral intention of traveling in the period of coronavirus by using the theory of planned behavior. The framework incorporates attitude, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and a very crucial construct, i.e. perceived risk, as per the current critical scenario of COVID-19.Design/methodology/approachData was collected using a survey instrument on the internet by posting the questionnaire link over social network web pages of online traveling websites. The data was analyzed using structural equations modeling with AMOS 22.0 and SPSS software and the proposed hypotheses were statistically tested. The sample under consideration constitutes 417 responses.FindingsEmpirical findings suggest that attitude, perceived behavioral control and perceived risk are significant for predicting behavioral intention while subjective norms do not. Then, these variables explained about 35% of the variance in the behavioral intention of traveling in the period of coronavirus.Research limitations/implicationsThis study can benefit travelers, the tourism and hospitality industry, governments, the aviation industry and other relevant organizations as this paper offers the latest updates and essential information regarding traveler’s intention of traveling in the period of coronavirus. The study mainly focuses on India, so the generalizations of results to other countries are unwanted.Originality/valueThe primary value of this paper is that it tested the theory of planned behavior by incorporating perceived risk in the context of COVID-19. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, in the Indian context, there is no study, which has tested the TPB by adding perceived risk in explaining the Indian citizens’ behavioral intention of traveling in the period of Coronavirus.

Harnessing the Potential of Artificial Intelligence to Foster Citizens’ Satisfaction: An empirical study on India

Governments are increasingly employing artificial intelligence (AI) enabled services though this is still a relatively new concept that is in nascent stages of implementation. Despite growing emphasis by governments on employing AI-enabled services, many citizens are skeptical of their benefits; this makes an analysis of AI-enabled services an important area of research, especially from the perspective of citizens. This paper employs IT assimilation theory and public value theory to develop a theoretical model that examines whether the introduction of AI-enabled services would generate public value for citizens in India. The model employs the Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) technique to examine how risk factors impact the uptake of AI-enabled services in India. Based on 315 interviews conducted in India, the study highlights that the breadth and depth assimilation of AI-enabled services positively impacts and enhances the satisfaction of citizens, which in turn generates public value.