Kathmandu Valley Research Articles

Role of Roopamandana in Making of Nepalese Images

Kathmandu valley has plenty of sculptural art. Images since an early period have been made following vidhana or pratima lakshan. ‘An image prepared without following vidhana is unfit for worship, says sastras and Puranas’ (Khanal, B.S.2075.p.15). Vidhana is a guideline for making images. There are several texts and Puranas describing vidhana. Roopmandana was written by Sutradhar Mandana during the 12th century describing pratima lakshana of several dieties. Images of Nepal from 3rd century BC till the end of 17th/18th century CE have their specific identification with gradual inclining changes in their features from early period un wards to Licchavi, early medieval and medieval period. However, the theme has always been same. In this context, how far the pratima lakshana described in Roopamandana has influenced Nepalese images? In what ways and how are they implemented in Nepalese images? The answer to these questions have been tried to be traced on the basis of through detail review of Roopamandana. Likewise, survey of images through purposive sampling, collection of epigraphic records and photographs are used in this study as a primary source. Findings of the facts are analyzed in a descriptive manner. Through various references, it has been revealed in this research that Roopamanda was the best-selected text of vidhana for making Nepalese images and a religious code for continuation or disposal of images in case of breaking. It has been found to be completely implemented in most of the images related to Vaishnava during medieval period, few of them have been found to be made through partial implementation and the rest by merging the vidhanas mentioned in several texts.

Institutional perception of e-recruitment adoption in Nepal: Evidence from structural equation modeling

Awareness of the significance of adapting e-recruitment and applying various management strategies has increased in private corporate organizations. This study aims to investigate the institutional perception of e-recruitment adoption in Kathmandu valley, Nepal by employing the notion of Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Self-Disclosure Theory (SDT). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) and AMOS softwares are used to analyze data gathered from 286 Nepalese private organizations in Kathmandu valley between February 13 and March 10, 2022. The results indicate that private organizations in the Kathmandu valley are wary of completely embracing e-recruitment due to trust and privacy issues. This paper can be seen as an important message to Nepalese Human Resources sector, policymakers, the government and customers. Moreover, it has important theoretical implications explained from the standpoint of TAM and SDT theories. Practically, this is one of the latest attempts to assess and report on the breadth of e-recruitment adoption in Nepal’s private sector.

Assessment of Knowledge on impacts of cell phone use among Secondary level students in a selected School of Kathmandu valley, Nepal

Background & Objective: All age groups use cell phones as a common form of communication, although adolescents use them especially frequently. Students' daily lives with mobile devices are getting more and more dependent on them, which has led to reliance. Its usage has climbed 67% globally and 44.89% in Nepal. The scale of potential health concerns among mobile phone users has increased due to the rising use of these devices. The objective was to assess how cell phone use affects secondary school students among secondary level school students in a selected school of Kathmandu Valley, Nepal.
 Material and Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted among 100 samples by using Probability Stratified Random Sampling Technique. The pre tested self-administered questionnaire with structured and semi structured questions was used to collect information through online survey by Fluroscent School App from Grade 9 and Grade 10 respondents. The collected data was analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) 16 version using descriptive and inferential statistics.
 Results: Majority of the respondents (38%) were of age 15 years. The respondents of Grade 9 and Grade 10 were equal. The overall mean knowledge score was 26.870 ± 4.978 regarding the use of mobile. The minimum score obtained is 15 and the maximum score obtained is 37 out of 40 possible correct answers .It showed that 60% of the respondents had average level of knowledge, 32% had adequate level of knowledge and 8% had poor level of knowledge. There was no significant association between knowledge regarding mobile phone use with other selected socio-demographic variables. 
 Conclusion: The study concluded that there was average level of knowledge regarding impact of cell phone use. Thus, school based cell phone health awareness and education programs are necessity to improve the overall health of students.

Understanding vitality of public space: A review with an example of capital city Kathmandu in Nepal

By definition, public spaces are areas or locations that are open and accessible to all people, and in cities they are open space that is specifically concerned with public health, social cohesion, and the quality of urban life. This paper reports a review of literatures on urban public spaces attempting to gauge the research gaps on public spaces through a scoping-review analysis of relevant studies. The review of relevant literatures published from 1990 to 2023 led to an inference that there is a huge gap in defining the publicness (non-excludable and non-rival) of the public spaces in Nepal. Furthermore, knowledge about public spaces is found to be scattered. However, all Nepal-based research identified that open spaces in Kathmandu valley were severely encroached upon. Rapid urbanization, along with a lack of resilient urban planning and governance, appears to have a significant influence on urban public spaces and social cohesion, as well as diseconomies in emerging economies. Social inequalities, health disparities, environmental injustice, economic instability and stifled cultural expression are all intricately bound to urban public spaces, particularly green public space, which still remains a research priority for new evidence-based urban policymakers and urban planners in developing countries. Future research should therefore focus on a multilevel approach preferably using network model to cover and comprehend the societal-benefits of public space, extending large-scale quantitative assessments with field evaluations of each public space, community surveys, and other qualitative research in Nepal. Component-wise research gaps are also evidently explored in the course of separate domains.

Tree species richness and phytomass carbon stock along the urban-rural gradient in trees outside forests of Kathmandu valley, Nepal

ABSTRACT Trees outside forests (TOF) are woody plants found on land which is less than 0.5 ha. These are important for biodiversity conservation and carbon storage. This study was conducted in Kathmandu Valley, central Nepal to determine tree species diversity and phytomass carbon stock patterns along the urban to rural spatial gradient of TOF. A detailed inventory was conducted across a total of 209 randomly selected points generated by MS Excel using circular plots of 20 m radius each. A total of 6,210 trees from 150 species belonging to 111 genera and 57 families were recorded under three strata (urban, suburban and rural). Out of 150 species, 53.33% were native and 46.67% were exotic. The average tree density was found to be higher in the suburban stratum (248.44 ha−1) compared to the urban (232.58 ha−1) and the rural (224.88 ha−1) strata. Species richness was found to be higher in the rural stratum (14.09 ha−1) compared to the urban (9.85 ha−1) and the suburban (9.70 ha−1) strata. But average species richness was found to be highest in the urban stratum (55.95 ha−1) followed by the suburban (46.31 ha−1) and the rural (45.74 ha−1) strata, respectively. Similarly, the average phytomass carbon stock recorded was highest in the urban stratum (39.41 t ha−1) compared to the rural (29.19 t ha−1) and the suburban (26.06 t ha−1) strata. The average phytomass carbon stock varied significantly between the native and the exotic species only in the urban stratum but not in the suburban and the rural strata. This study provides baseline data useful for green urban planning and development as well as carbon sink management.

Engaged Learning Practices of Students in Chemistry Learning

This study aims to investigate engaged learning practices among undergraduate students in the field of chemistry. The study employed quantitative research design with a total of 88 students from two university campuses in the Kathmandu valley. The research employed a 30-item questionnaire with Likert type, developed based on relevant literature on student engagement, to collect data. The results indicated that the students displayed high levels of behavioural engagement such as staying focused on their chemistry studies, following their teachers' instructions, and completing their assignments and projects on time. Moreover, they were also found to be actively engaged in cognitive practices such as setting learning goals, exhibiting curiosity and interest in chemistry, and putting effort into understanding the concepts. Additionally, the students demonstrated high levels of emotional engagement by exhibiting a desire to understand chemistry, enjoying learning new information, and feeling positive and enthusiastic about the subject. The results of this research hold practical significance for decision makers, science instructors, and future investigators in related areas. The findings have added to the knowledge of the engagement of university level students in their chemistry education. These findings can be used by science instructors and decision makers to create more engaging and effective chemistry learning environments. By providing students with opportunities to engage in active and meaningful learning, instructors can help to ensure that students are successful in their chemistry courses.

The urban political ecology of ‘haphazard urbanisation’ and disaster risk creation in the Kathmandu valley, Nepal

This paper examines the impact of rapid urbanisation on the production of unequal disaster risk in Khokana, peri-urban town in the Kathmandu Valley (KV), Nepal. It brings together scholarships in disaster risk creation and urban political ecology (UPE), asking: (1) what are the roots of Khokana's specific urbanisation trajectory; (2) how is this trajectory altering geographies of hazard risks in Khokana; and (3) how is this risk unevenly distributed between social groups. The data reveal overlapping forms of risk and precarity affecting residents' (long-standing and migrants) everyday lives, in ways that disproportionately impact already-disadvantaged and marginalised groups. These unequal risk geographies are related to the specific forms and processes of urban growth occurring in Khokana, fuelled by three powerful, interconnected pressures: neoliberal capitalist expansion, internal migration, and a strong developmental state. We characterise the resulting form of urbanisation as ‘haphazard’: a patchwork of planned and unplanned developments, with inadequate attention to hazard risk, livelihood stability and essential services. The paper advances understanding of the place- and historically-specific ways that hazard risk intersects with social, political and economic forces to produce disaster risk in rapidly-urbanising centres. We extend calls for more situated UPE analysis and call for greater, more granular attention to forms of haphazard urbanisation and their uneven risk-producing qualities. We conclude an urgent need to reimagine urban development as a political and economic project, and for future urban planning to pay deliberate and deliberative attention to risk factors, both in KV and in other rapidly urbanising areas of the global South.

Isolation and identification of Bacillus species from soil and assessment of antimicrobial properties

The emergence of multi drug resistant pathogens such as Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has become a threat to public health. Thus, the development of new antibiotics has become a global concern. Many scientists are attracted towards discovery of new antimicrobial agents from microbial sources. The aim of this study is to isolate potential Bacillus species from soil for the production of antimicrobial substance. During the study, 20 soil samples were collected from various areas of Kathmandu valley. A total of 70 Bacillus isolates were identified by morphological and biochemical characteristics. Altogether 39 isolates were able to produce antibacterial extract when it was grown in Trypticase soya broth (TSB) at 37°C for 48 h. The antimicrobial activity was tested against test organisms like Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Salmonella, Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida by Agar well diffusion method. All of the extracts showed zone of inhibition against E. coli except 6 extracts (E39, E43, E36, E25, E45 and E46). The highest zone of inhibition was shown by extract B68 with 11 mm. Only one extract (E62) was able to inhibit the growth of Pseudomonas. The extract from Bacillus isolate (E35) showed highest zone of inhibition against S. aureus (6mm). The protein nature of the extracts was determined by Biuret and Ninhydrin tests. The extracts were relatively stable to heat treatment and unstable to surfactants like 70% methanol, 2-propanol and ethylacetate. The study revealed that soil is a good source for the potential antimicrobial producer bacteria.

An investigation of the salary received during COVID- 19 by low-paid employees working in private schools in Nepal

Covid-19, which started in Uhan in China at the end of 2019, spread all over the world at the beginning of 2020. Which Nepal could not remain untouched. In March 2020, the government began to lock down on the spread of corona in Nepal. In addition to teachers, various staff is also employed in each private school. Among the employees, low-salary paid employees like drivers/attendants, Peon, Aaya, swipers, and Security Guard. These types of employees were found to be providing various services on the school premises even during the non-operation of the school during the lockdown period.
 To examine the salary of low-paid employees of a private school in Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur districts) before and during the COVID-19 period. Examine the significant difference between the mean salary received before the pandemic and during the pandemic period are the two main objectives of this research.
 The population during this research was private schools running in Kathmandu valley including Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur districts. Altogether there were 1500 private schools in Kathmandu valley. Out of them, five secondary schools from each district were purposively selected for the research. In this research quantitative research design was adopted.
 In the sampling design, the nonprobability sampling technique (purposive technique) was applied to select the required number of schools from each district. The selected school’s low-salary paid school staff like a security guard, Driver and conductor, Aaya, peon, and swiper were categorized, and from each category, 15 respondents were selected as a sampling unit from each selected district. The total number of respondents was 60.
 After analyzing the data before the pandemic, the salary of a security guard, Driver/conductor, peon/Aaya, and sweeper were 20333.33, 9466.66, and 7933.34, and during the pandemic were 5333. 33, 5533. 334033. 33, 3500,.respectively. Variations of salary provided to them by different schools were very high. There is a significant difference in the mean salary received by different low-salary paid staff before and during the pandemic period.

Financial Inclusion through FinTech Innovation: Predicting User Acceptance of Digital Wallet

Conceptualizing the theme that a person is more likely to be left out of the financial system, the poorer and more disadvantaged they are, because the financial service sector functions in a way that benefits the socially powerful. This study is carried out to understand the factors influencing adoption of digital wallet and to examine the impact of digital wallet adoption on financial inclusion. Two established models of technology adoption; Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), are used to conduct the study. The customers of Kathmandu valley were surveyed in terms of their attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. The results showed that Perceived Usefulness, Price Value and Trust had a significant impact on the adoption of digital wallet. However, Perceived Ease of Use and Social Influence do not significantly impact the adoption. The study concludes that digital wallets have the potential to promote greater financial inclusion among disadvantaged and low-income individuals by addressing barriers to financial inclusion. The results provide insights for policymakers and FinTech companies in designing and implementing effective digital wallet so as to promote greater financial inclusion.

Clinicopathological Profile of Dengue Infection in a Tertiary Care Centre in Nepal.

Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral disease with a wide spectrum of presentations ranging from subclinical disease to severe dengue. Dengue is endemic to the Terai of Nepal. Interestingly, an increasing incidence has been reported from hilly areas like Kathmandu valley. This study explored the clinicopathological profile of dengue infection. A total of 84 serologically confirmed dengue cases from September to November 2019 at KIST Medical College were recruited in a cross-sectional study after obtaining ethical approval. Dengue was categorized as dengue without warning signs, dengue with warning signs, and severe dengue. Clinicopathological information was recorded in the proforma by reviewing patients' records. A descriptive statistical tool and chi-square test were carried out. Out of 84 patients, 76% (64) were dengue without warning signs, 21.4% (18) were dengue with warning signs and 2.4% (2) were severe dengue. About 97.6% (82) presented with fever. During the course of illness, anemia was identified in 38.1% (32), thrombocytopenia in 65.5% (55), hemoconcentration in 6% (5), and leucopenia in 82.1% (69). Similarly, elevated aspartate transaminase and alanine transaminase (ALT) was observed in 67.7% (42) and 53.2% (33) respectively. The severity of dengue on presentation to hospital was significantly associated with thrombocytopenia, leucopenia, and elevated ALT. Similarly, the severity during course of illness in hospital was significantly associated with hemoconcentration, thrombocytopenia, leucopenia, and elevated ALT. Most common presentation of dengue infection was fever. The most common laboratory abnormalities were leucopenia, thrombocytopenia, hemoconcentration, anemia, and elevated liver enzymes. Awareness of these clinical and laboratory parameters is important for the prompt diagnosis, severity estimation, and overall management of dengue infection.

Effect of Group Psycho-Educational Interventions on Child birth fear and Child birth Self-efficacy among Primiparous women.

Child birth related fear and low self-efficacy for child birth found common among primiparous women. Antenatal group psycho-educational interventions have been used as important strategies to address child birth fear and self-efficacy. Thus, this study aimed to find out the status of child birth fear among antenatal women and effect of group psycho-educational interventions among primiparous women. One group pretest-posttest design was adopted. Total 307 primigravida women attending antenatal outpatient department of two hospitals within Kathmandu valley were selected through purposive sampling technique. Data was collected from March to July 2020. Child birth fear was assessed by using validated tool i.e.Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire (W-DEQ) and Child birth self-efficacy was assessed by using childbirth self- efficacy tool. Primigravida women with moderate level of child-birth fear, were intervened for group psycho-education based on PRIME Model by nurses who were research team members. Paired t-test was used to compare differences in mean scores on child birth fear and child birth self-efficacy before and after intervention. Moderate level of child birth fear was found among 24.8% of participants. Low child-birth self-efficacy was found among 42.0% participants. The overall mean score before providing group psycho-educational interventions to experimental group on child-birth fear was 54.0±2.09 and on child birth self-efficacy was 78.0±28.64 with p<0.001 and after providing group psycho-educational interventions child-birth fear was reduced to 47.8±2.44 and child birth self-efficacy was 105.2±19.6 with p<0.001. Group psycho-educational interventions based on PRIME approach led by nurses have significant effects in reducing child-birth fear and increasing child-birth self-efficacy. Therefore, provision of group psycho-educational interventions along with routine antenatal service need to be considered in clinical settings in Nepalese context.

Land Use and Cover Change Detection in Shankharapur Municipality, Kathmandu Using Spectral Indices

The surging increase of the urban population has been accompanied by a sharp increase in urban built-up areas. The growth of population contributing to rapid expansion of built-up area in recent decades has caused a substantial Land Use Land Cover (LULC) change across Nepal and in particular Kathmandu Valley (KV). In this study, a Normalized Difference Vegetative Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI) was applied to three Landsat imagery collected over time (2002, 2013, and 2022) and one Sentinel-2 imagery that provided recent and historical LULC conditions for, Shankharapur municipality that lies in the eastern part of Kathmandu. The three-land use land cover categories were identified and mapped from the value of NDBI and NDBI. We found that over a period of 20 years (from 2002 to 2022), the Shankharapur municipality has lost 14.64% and 25.97% of its forests and sparse vegetation, and increase in the settlement/open land by 5.48% and 226.73% as indicated by NDVI and NDBI for Landsat imagery respectively. The increase in settlement/open land can be summed to the augmented activities like constructing new building and increase forest and land defragmentation including construction of road and land planning to fulfill the demand of influx of people after the earthquake of 2015. The results of NDVI and NDBI from Sentinel-2 imagery also support the increase in settlement/open land and decrease in forest and sparse vegetation. Also, agriculture cover increased by 4.25 sq.km between 2002 to 2013 and increased by 4.85 sq.km. from 2013 to 2022 as indicated by NDVI derived from Landsat imagery. However, the significant amounts of losses of forest and sparse vegetation during 20 years have been absorbed by the expanding urbanized areas and agriculture land as more land is subjected to the built-up and land planning along with the wood-logging as a result of aftermath of the earthquake, 2015, where population has increased by 19.4 % in the span of 10 years from 2011 to 2021 and is never retreating in terms of changing land cover. Therefore, such trends if unchecked can result in loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services associated with deteriorating conditions for human well-being.

Impact of Recreational Activities on Employee Productivity of Nepalese Commercial Banks

This study aims to analyse the impact of recreational activities on employees’ productivity of Nepalese commercial banks as well as to examine the relationship between “physical fitness activities and employees’ productivity”, “mental health activities and employees’ productivity”, and “Entertainment activities and employees’ productivity.” To carry out this research, 201 samples were gathered who were the employees working in Nepalese commercial banks inside the Kathmandu valley. Quota sampling technique was applied to acquire the data from different categories of commercial banks. Primary sources of data have been used for the study along with cross sectional research design. Structured questionnaire was also designed and used for the study. It concluded that there is a moderate positive relationship between each independent variable, i.e., physical fitness activities, mental health activities and entertainment activities and dependent variable, i.e., employees’ productivity. However, in terms of analysing the impact of independent variables on the dependent variable, it showed that two independent variables, i.e., physical fitness activities and entertainment activities have a significant positive impact on employee productivity. When employees are productive, the organisation is also productive. As there is a positive impact of recreational activities on employees’ productivity, all the commercial banks need to focus on recreational activities. Commercial banks who are adopting recreational activities, their future is bright.

Roles of Existing Policies on The Conservation and Management of Cultural Heritage in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

In 1956, the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act (AMPA) was first introduced, ushering in a more contemporary approach to cultural preservation in Nepal. The focus of this legislation is primarily on the material (physical) aspects of cultural heritage. The Guthi Corporation, formed by the Government of Nepal under the Guthi Corporation statute of 1976, focuses on the intangible legacy of the Kathmandu valley in a manner similar to that described above. The Department of Archaeology (DOA), a federal government body backed by the AMPA and in charge of safeguarding the country's cultural heritage. International organizations like the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) criticized the difficulties in managing the Kathmandu valley's world heritage sites, which led to their inclusion on the endangered list in 2003, which has since been removed. The purpose of this research paper is to examine the effects that different government organizations' (stakeholders') policies have throughout time on the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Kathmandu valley. In order to maintain cultural assets using historical as well as case study methodologies, the research of this article recommends a review of current policies on dispersed policies and organizational responsibilities. Study reveals that now the time to development of unified policies and organisation to minimise the overlapping roles for good management and conservation in the Kathmandu valley, which will primarily be based on local cultural context as well as UNESCO criteria.

Study on Management Status and Disease aspects of Pheasant (Phasianus colhicus) of Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Even though Nepal has several wild pheasant species, captive pheasant rearing for human consumption is a relatively new farming practice in Nepal. Pheasant farming is a growing practice among Nepalese farmers. However, farmers lack understanding and background in pheasant management techniques and associated diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the distribution, location, management status, and disease characteristics of commercial pheasant farming in the Kathmandu valley. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in Kathmandu valley and the Central Veterinary Laboratory (CVL), from July to September 2021. The case records from 2017 to 2021 were analyzed at CVL and the farms were mapped based on their locations. The top ten pheasant diseases reported in CVL were identified and the disease outbreak farms were followed to get additional information on management aspects. A total of 42 pheasant farms were visited to collect data, and dead birds from these pheasant farms were submitted to CVL for postmortem and bacterial culture. MS-EXCEL and the online software “Open Epi” were used for statistical analysis. Sixty percent of the surveyed farms exclusively raised pheasants, while 40 percent practiced mixed farming. The source of hatching eggs was from abroad (12%), local breeding center (70%) and inter-district farms (18%). Ninety percent of the farms practiced some extent of biosecurity such as clothes changes and visitors log maintained. The temporal analysis identified that pheasant mortality was highest in July, followed by June and August. Of the total cases reported in retrospective study urolithiasis was responsible for 20.27 percent of deaths, Newcastle disease and Mycotoxicosis each were responsible for 13.51 percent of deaths of birds. Though urolithiasis is one of the leading causes of death there was no significant statistical associations (p&gt;0.05) with ages and the flock size. The study collected the baseline data on management practices and disease distributions among the commercial pheasant farming in Kathmandu valley. We suggest, further studies on morbidity, mortality, seasonal stress, and economic aspects of commercial pheasant farming. Prior knowledge and expertise on management and health aspects related to farming is needed for sustainable pheasant farming in Nepal.

A Retrospective Study of Parvovirus Infection in Dogs in Kathmandu

Canine parvo virus infection (CPVI) is highly infectious disease of dogs causing acute gastrointestinal illness in dog with high morbidity. In Kathmandu valley, knowledge on the epidemiology of diseases of dogs is limited. To determine the prevalence of disease in owned dogs in the Kathmandu valley and its associated risk factors, a retrospective study of data from clinical records of the Mount Everest kennel club (old Baneshwor height) during a one-year period was conducted. Using an Excel line graph and pie chart, the prevalence of canine parvovirus infection was examined according to season, age, and vaccination status. A total of 504 cases were seen in the 735 clinical records reviewed, of which 145 cases—or 11.01 % of all cases—had CPVI-like symptoms. The prevalence of CPVI in dogs sold by Mount Everest Kennel club in the valley was estimated to be 11.01% where high cases were observed during the dry season (peaks at April and December) though it could also reach peak during the rainy season (July-August). High number (55.6%; 45/81) of outbreaks were noted among the age group below 3 months followed by age group 4 to 7 months (33.3%; 27/81) and least number of outbreaks were noted in the age group older than 7 months (11.1%;9/81). High number (55.6%; 45/81) of outbreaks were noted among the age group below 3 months followed by age group 4 to 7 months (33.3%; 27/81) and least number of outbreaks were noted in the age group older than 7 months (11.1%;9/81). Disease incidence was highest in German shepherd (21%; 17/81), Japanese spitz (18.51%; 15/81), Labrador (18.51%; 15/81) and mixed/cross (42%; 34/81). Few Vaccinated dogs (7.4%; 6/81) were also found to be tested positive with CPVI. Our finding showed that temperature, breed susceptibility and vaccination status can be the possible risk factors associated with CPVI infection among dog population in Kathmandu valley suggesting pet owners to regularly follow the vaccination schedule, vaccinate their dogs in a timely manner, and routinely check on the health of their canines. Additionally, owners should be aware of the risks and should keep their dogs away from stray dogs.

Study of Canine Babesiosis in Pet and Stray Dogs of Kathmandu Valley

Canine babesiosis is caused by protozoan parasites which is usually transmitted via various species of ticks. The parasites ultimately parasitize the erythrocytes of host body, resulting in fever, anemia, and hemoglobinuria. From June 2021 to September 2021, a cross-sectional study using the purposive sampling method was conducted. A total of 140 samples were collected from dogs and were examined for the presence of Babesia spp. using thin blood smear test stained in Giemsa. Regression analysis was done to compare categorical and outcome variables. The overall prevalence of babesiosis was found to be 14.3%. The result showed significantly higher prevalence of babesiosis in tick infected dogs (p&lt;0.05). Sex, age, type and breed wise prevalence were found to be statistically insignificant (p&gt;0.05). In hematological parameters, RBC, Hb, PCV, and platelets declined significantly in positive cases (p&lt;0.05). In TLC, the changes in the Babesia positive cases were statistically insignificant (p&gt;0.05), whereas in DLC of the infected cases, changes only in neutrophils and lymphocytes were statistically significant (p&lt;0.05). The mean temperature in positive cases was found to be 103.44±0.69. This research intends to add some information on the status of babesiosis inside Kathmandu valley with majorly concluding ticks as major cause of diseases. Tick control is therefore critical in order to reduce the prevalence.

Application of Geo-informatics for Soil Erosion Mapping

Soil erosion is a most severe environmental problem in hilly area. The study is carried out on Upper Bagmati River basin, North of Kathmandu valley having an area of 61 Sq.km. (approx). Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) model, with Geographic Information System (GIS) has been used to quantify the soil loss. Erosion modelling requires huge amount of information and data, usually coming from different sources and available in different formats and scales and for management of these data, GIS was used, which helped considerably in organizing the spatial data representing the effects of each factor affecting soil erosion. Five essential parameters of USLE Rainfall erosivity factor (R), Soil erodibility Factor (K), Slope length and steepness (LS) factor, Cropping management factor (C) and Support practice factor (P) have been used to estimate soil loss amount in the study area. All of these layers have been prepared in Arc GIS using various data sources and data preparation methods. DEM was prepared from the contour data with the interval of 20m which was used to generate LS factor. The monthly rainfall data (2010) of 17 rain gauge stations within the catchment area have been used to predict the R factor. K, C and P factors in basin area are adopted from the literature. The spatial distribution map of soil loss of the basin has been generated and classified into six categories depending on the calculated soil erosion amount. The annual predicted soil loss ranges between 0 and 292.878 t/ha/y. Low soil loss (mean 9.7 t/ha/y) have been recorded under forested areas. The high rate (mean 40.4 t/ha/y) of soil erosion was found in the cultivation area.

Effects of Merger and Acquisition on Employee Satisfaction in Nepalese Banking Sectors

Background: Mergers and acquisitions (M&amp;A) are seen as effective strategies for business growth in the corporate sector. However, there are very little study on ‘merger and acquisition’ available in the context of Nepal. Objectives: This study examines the effects of mergers and acquisitions on employees’ satisfaction in Nepalese Banking sectors. Method: The study, which adopts the Job Characteristics Theory as its theoretical foundation, was conducted among employees from Nepalese banking sector that had undergone M&amp;A. The study seeks cause and effects relationship amongst banking employees in Kathmandu valley due to merger and acquisition and adopts explanatory research design. Data were collected from 310 respondents and Structural Equation Modeling was used to analyze the data. Results: The findings demonstrate that merger and acquisition have an influence on employees’ satisfaction, with just one out of every four employees reporting high levels of satisfaction following M&amp;A. The results exhibit that organizational climate, recognition and nature of work remain signifi cant to employees’ satisfaction and their motivation. Likewise, pay/remuneration is also statistically significant to employees’ motivation. Again, employees’ motivation also seems significant to employees’ satisfaction. Conclusion: Therefore, this study offers practical insights to human resource managers in strengthening human resources of the organization as perceived by employees after an M&amp;A by considering the crucial role of employees in organizational performance.