Nearby Villages Research Articles

Kult świętych jako motywacja wyboru imienia w parafii Daleszyce w XVII–XIX wieku (na przykładzie imion kalendarzowych)

The aim of the article is to present the share of calendar names in the name system of the parish of Daleszyce (Świętokrzyskie Province) in the years 1602–1617, 1702–1717, 1802–1817 and to compare the degree of popularity of names introduced among boys and girls. The article also attempts to create the most objective tool possible to answer the question to what extent the motivation for naming was determined by the cult of saints. The research material was excerpted from Latin record books (births and baptisms). I analyzed the names of boys and girls from the town of Daleszyce and a dozen nearby villages belonging to the parish. The conducted research allowed to conclude that brought names constitute as much as 74% of all baptismal names subjected to the study (they are definitely dominant among boys – 82% compared to 61%). Giving baptized children names according to the names in the calendar was the basic motive for choosing a godfather name for the child in all analyzed ages.

An invasive plant Sonchus asper (L.) Hill: A review of its ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacological properties

India is well known for medicinal plants because of rich plant biodiversity. Kumaun Himalayan region of Uttarakhand state occupies a great place in having good number of medicinal plants. The uses of plants in the indigenous cultures of developing countries are numerous and diverse. In a developing country, 65% population is dependent upon traditional medicinal system. The plant based traditional medicinal system play an important role in curing the health from various diseases all over the world. The present review reveals the updated information regarding the ethnopharmacology, phytochemistry, and pharmacological properties of an invasive plant Sonchus asper (L.) Hill. For this study, an extensive and intensive field survey by visiting the nearby villages of Nainital district was carried out along with detailed literature survey. Multitudinous ethnic properties and pharmacological study may help in development of new drug for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases from this plant. The documentation of isolated compounds may afford new drug entity for pharmacy sector with lesser cost and more efficacy.

Constraints Faced by Farmers in Adoption of Soil Testing Based Fertilizer Application

To improve soil testing advisory service, KVK- Valsad (Gujarat) conducted a study during 2020–21. Randomly two villages selected from each block of Valsad district of Gujarat. Thus, ten respondents from each village comprising of total number of respondents to be 120 were selected at random sample for the study. Valsad district is tribal dominated area so about 93.33 per cent respondents were belonged to scheduled tribe. Average data of study revealed that maximum 49.7% respondents having partial knowledge, 42.7% respondents had complete knowledge and only 9% respondents had no knowledge about soil testing however, average 57.80% respondents had adopted the soil testing based recommendations. Further, data also showed that 75.83% respondents explained the problem of unavailability of sufficient quantity of organic manures whereas 60.0 per cent respondents faced the problem of unavailability of soil testing facility in nearby village due to interior hilly tribal areas as major constraints in adoption of soil test based fertilizer recommendation.

Green Pesticides for Pest Control – A Comprehensive Experience of Farmers in Bhandara Dirstrict (M.S), India

Eco-chemicals isolated from plant parts such as leaves, barks, fruits, seeds etc contribute in production of Green pesticides. Generally, most of the plants have the capacity to produce numerous secondary metabolites which are unpalatable to insect pests. Till today several farmers in Indian villages unknowingly used to collect and prepare crude extract of leaves, seeds and flowers of many plants for pest control. They were in fact not aware of the scientific reason behind it. Farmers belonging to nearby villages of Bhandara are also regularly using some plant extracts as pesticides in vegetable and cereal crops. In view of this, in the present investigation 15 biopesticide potential plants were identified, isolated and mode of preparation of biopesticide were gathered by interaction with local farmers. The mode of preparation of biopesticide and their action on specific pests were discussed in the present investigation.

MAKAM GEDIBRAH: TINJAUAN NILAI-NILAI SEJARAH DALAM PERSPEKTIF FOLKLOR

This study used descriptive qualitative research methods to obtain a descriptive study of folklore and symbolic meaning. While the research strategy used in this study is ethnographic research to obtain a description of the historical values at the Gedibrah Tomb and data collection is carried out by in-depth interviews and participant observation. Gedibrah grave is located in Tambakagung Village, Klirong District, Kebumen Regency, Central Java province. It is located in the middle of rice fields. The grave is known by local residents for its historical value so that the Gedibrah grave is one of the historical icons in Tambakagung Village, Klirong District and the community in several nearby villages. In this study, the folklore that is raised is the historical values that exist in the Gedibrah grave, Tambakagung Village, Klirong District. The nuances of culture are still be highlighted around the grave. The choice of this topic because it is quite popular and well known in the surrounding local community. The need for this research is to understand and interpret the historical value in the Gedibrah grave. To capture this value, it is also necessary to understand the culture at the time the story was made. Based on the results of the research, and the folklore which as a part of folklore has long lived in the community in certain areas, including in Tambakagung Village, Klirong District, Kebumen Regency, it has been spread orally from one generation to the next generation hereditary. Keywords: Grave, Gedibrah grave, Tambakagung Village.

Omiški kraj u obrani od širenja epidemije kuge u godinama 1762-1765.

The Republic of Venice, whose prosperity depended primarily on unimpeded trade by land and sea, had long had a system of defence against infectious disease epidemics, particularly the plague as the biggest threat to the aforementioned trade. These measures were naturally applied in that part of Dalmatia under its authority. There, the city of Split was most imperilled by plague outbreaks as it was the main transit hub for goods arriving by land from the territory of the Ottoman Empire or by sea from Venice. Although to a lesser extent, the plague also threatened the areas of Omiš and Makarska, market towns that were more accessible to the populace from the hinterland, including the Imotski area and the south-western section of Herzegovina on the other side of the state border. A detailed overview of what had been undertaken from 1762 to 1765 to prevent outbreaks of the plague in the area under the authority of the Omiš provveditore was made possible by the extensive data contained in the records of the old Omiš archives, which were deposited in the provincial archives of the time in Zadar. These records simultaneously testify to the very arduous conditions for life and work by the domicile population in that period, as well as the efforts by the authorities to prevent death by starvation. This paper contains a series of data on everything undertaken at the orders of the Venetian central and provincial governments in the area under the jurisdiction of the Omiš provveditore to prevent the possible emergence and spread of the plague from 1762 to 1765 and the difficulties that ensued in the enforcement of these measures. Considerable attention is above all accorded to the surveillance of unpermitted travel by individuals and groups across the boundaries with neighbouring districts, i.e., Poljica and Imotski, and similarly to nearby islands. The border with the Ottoman Empire, whence the plague came into Dalmatia, was subject to the strictest supervision. Inside the Omiš area, particular care was dedicated to health inspections of travellers and goods at Dvare Fortress. A caravan route passed next to its walls and tower, whence coastal villages could be reached from the near or more remote interior and leading to the control stations before the entrances to the towns of Omiš and Makarska. A public health board with its seat in Omiš (Collegio di sanità d’Almissa) was responsible for the enforcement of all stipulated measures and specific decisionmaking related thereto. It selected its own delegate to the supervisory post next to Dvare Fortress, who collaborated with the Dvare superintendent responsible for the nearby village and the fortress commander. It should be noted that at least one member of the aforementioned board had to have a good working knowledge of the Croatian language and the Bosančica script, and such knowledge was also required of the Dvare delegates, who worked in shifts. Provisions stipulating the isolation of individual houses in cases of suspicion of the plague were strictly enforced. Groups of rural sentries (panduri) from villages in the Omiš area were posted in a specific order to guard the boundaries between individual neighbouring districts and the state border. Besides sentry duty, a major hardship for them after being relieved was the obligation to remain in isolation for several weeks in Viseć Fortress, whence they often escaped. The systematic overview of these circumstances contained in this paper may serve as an example for contemporaneous events in other territories of the Dalmatian Zagora region, for which the provveditore archives from that time were either not preserved or do not contain as many records on the topic, and also in cases of plague outbreaks before and thereafter, particularly from the beginning of the 1730s and 1780s.

An Assessment of Drilling and Blasting Techniques at Granite Quarry of AFDIN Construction Company Limited, Katsina State, Nigeria

This research work assessed the Drilling and Blasting Techniques at the Granite Quarry of AFDIN Construction Company Limited, Katsina State, Nigeria. The objectives were to identify drilling and blasting equipment, find out the drilling pattern and parameters, assess blasting method and its compliance with safety practices in and around the blast site and review the impact of the blasting operations on the surrounding environment. As an introduction, the concept of drilling and blasting activities and how they affect immediate environment were explained. The study assessed quarry activities using field visit and interviews. Equipment identified at the quarry were Wagon drill, Jack hammer, Compressors, Rock breaker, Excavators and tippers, etc. Also, Atlas Copco YT27 Jack Hammer was the main tool for hole drilling with either Square or Rectangular drilling pattern being adopted and Drilling dimensions of 4x5ft or 4x4ft (spacing and burden) were frequently used at the Quarry. Hole depths used were 6ft, 8ft, 10ft, and 12ft and drilling bit of 1-inch or 2-inch. Furthermore, the study identified that, 2,088.95 kg of explosives (10% High Explosive and 90% Low Explosive) was used to charge 2000 drilled holes with an average hole depth of 3.65metres and diameter of 32mm. A total of 7,394 tonnes of granite rock was blasted. Result from immediate blasting at the quarry indicated presence of dust and fumes within the quarry environment and nearby villages, inhalation of which could lead to serious occupational hazards. Conclusively, the explosion sound from blasting and fly-rock fragments have some serious environmental and health effects to both workers and neighbouring communities in terms of noise pollution and vibration to structures. Wetting the environment and crushing process was recommended to minimise dust generation to barest minimum to protect workers from occupational diseases such as silicosis and Pneumoconiosis, also wearing of personal protective equipment, electric blasting method, corporate social responsibilities to the communities were recommended.

Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Prevalence in Aerosol and Spiders' Webs in Karst Caves: Low Risk for Speleotherapy.

A total of 152 aerosol and spider web samples were collected: 96 spider’s webs in karst areas in 4 European countries (Czech Republic, France, Italy, and Slovakia), specifically from the surface environment (n = 44), photic zones of caves (n = 26), and inside (aphotic zones) of caves (n = 26), 56 Particulate Matter (PM) samples from the Sloupsko-Sosuvsky Cave System (speleotherapy facility; n = 21) and from aerosol collected from the nearby city of Brno (n = 35) in the Czech Republic. Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) were isolated from 13 (13.5%) spider’s webs: 5 isolates of saprophytic NTM (Mycobacterium gordonae, M. kumamotonense, M. terrae, and M. terrae complex) and 6 isolates of potentially pathogenic NTM (M. avium ssp. hominissuis, M. fortuitum, M. intracellulare, M. peregrinum and M. triplex). NTM were not isolated from PM collected from cave with the speleotherapy facility although mycobacterial DNA was detected in 8 (14.3%) samples. Temperature (8.2 °C, range 8.0–8.4 °C) and relative humidity (94.7%, range 93.6–96.6%) of air in this cave were relatively constant. The average PM2.5 and PM10 mass concentration was 5.49 µg m−3 and 11.1 µg m−3. Analysed anions (i.e., F−, Cl−, NO2−, SO42−, PO43− and NO3−) originating largely from the burning of wood and coal for residential heating in nearby villages in the surrounding area. The air in the caves with speleotherapy facilities should be monitored with respect to NTM, PM and anions to ensure a safe environment.

The Comparison of Erosion Rates in Grassland, Teak Forest, Crops Land, and Gliricidia Forest Plantation in Wanagama Edu Forest

<p class='Els-Abstract-text'>Wanagama forest is an integral part of a nearby village. This forest is left unprotected, so local people can easily enter the forest area to take non-timber forest products, including cropland and grass. The increasing demand for grass for feeding the cattle in Wanagama resulted in a larger area of grassland. Therefore, it is highly important to review and measure the erosion rate of the grassland compared to other land uses. This research aims to measure the erosion rates of four land uses and determine the correlation between rainfall and erosion at those four land uses: grassland, teak forest, crops land, and Gliricidia forest plantation. In measuring the erosion rates, this research uses four plots of 22 x 4 meters established at those four land uses. Each plot has two drums at the outlet. We took the erosion samples at every single rainfall event. To investigate the rainfall, there were two ombrometers installed in the field. The results show that the grassland has the lowest erosion rate (0.45 tons/ha) compared to a teak forest (0.5 tons/ha), crops land (0.84 tons/ha), and Gliricidia plantation forest (1.66 tons/ha). The rainfall has a positive coefficient correlation to erosion; the lowest was in grassland (r = 0.723), followed by teak forest (r = 0.828), Gliricidia (r = 0.830), and Crops land (0.873). The higher the rainfall depth will result in the higher erosion rate at the four land uses.

Effusion rate estimation based on solidified lava flows: Implications for volcanic hazard assessment in the Negros de Aras monogenetic volcanic field, northern Chile

Effusion rate is the instantaneous lava flow output by a vent. It is one of the most important factors that govern the emplacement and dynamics of lava flows and can be determined by direct measurements or estimated through modeling. The Negros de Aras monogenetic volcanic field, located in the Central Volcanic Zone of the Andes, is the largest volcanic field in northern Chile. It is situated north of the active Socompa volcano and south of the Salar de Atacama basin, consisting of scoria cones and lava flows. Here, we estimate the effusion rates of three overlapping and representative solidified lava flows from this volcanic field applying an iterative procedure using the Q-LavHA GIS plugin, where the effusion rate is treated as an unknown parameter and the solution is reached by comparing the simulated results with the real extension of the flows. The pre-eruptive surface was reconstructed using the 12 m resolution TanDEM-X digital elevation model. Other required input parameters for the modeling (e.g., channel ratio, viscosity, temperature) were estimated through geomorphometric, petrographic, and geochemical analysis. The estimated effusion rates vary between 14 and 113 m3/s, comparable with rates measured elsewhere. The method was validated by applying it to two directly measured (Nyamuragira 2006; Mount Etna 2001) and one calculated effusion rate (Lentiscal 2450 BP, Canary Islands). The estimated effusion rates gave an average underestimation of 10%. Considering this percentage of adjustment, the effusion rates for the three studied lava flows from the Negros de Aras monogenetic volcanic field vary from 15 m3/s to 124 m3/s. Our results provide valuable information for mitigating volcanic risk in the event of future lava flow eruptions, which could affect nearby villages and mining operations.

Financial inclusion in the digital banking age: Lessons from rural India

AbstractIn the digital age, financial inclusion continues to be connected to social inclusion. While most personal financial transactions are shifting from cash currency to digital transactions, we must ensure that marginalized members of society are not unbanked and excluded from financial opportunities. Many countries are declaring their intention to transform to cashless societies. India is one such country. As a case study, we investigated rural Indian villages that declared themselves as cashless to assess the financial reality of villagers. We conducted a survey of households (N=3,159) within villages across seven Indian states. In each state, we studied a village that was officially declared cashless and a nearby comparison village. Our findings suggest that the comparison villages did as well as the cashless villages, as financial inclusion via digital banking was minimal to nonexistent. Alongside significant state variations, we found that financial literacy and online access were the best predictors of performing any digital banking activity. This study concludes with a warning against rushing toward digital banking and the formation of cashless societies, as marginalized populations may be excluded.

External Interventions and Community Innovativeness to Cope with Changes in Ecosystem Services of the Okpara Dam in Northen Benin

The Okpara dam in Northern Benin offers multiple ecosystem services (ESS) to the riparian communities living around. It is an important drinking water source for the populations of the largest nearby metropolis Parakou. Many development activities have been undertaken to increase its capacity to supply drinking water by the Benin national water Company (SONEB: Société National des Eaux du Bénin). These activities combined with climate change are drastically affecting the sustainability of ESS supply. This paper aims to analyse the determinants of changes in the provision of ESS and to assess the local innovations developed by local communities to adapt to these changes. Data collection consisted in interviewing 111 individuals in the nearby villages of the Okpara dam. It included farmers, fishermen, religious dignitaries, SONEB officials, and traditional leaders. The results show that the modernization work undertaken by SONEB has increased the capacity of the dam to supply drinking water to the Parakou’s population. On the other hand, they have deprived the local communities of many ESS such as cultural and religious spaces, entertainment and agricultural production areas. In addition to these development works, climate change and other anthropic actions are also cited as factors explaining the depletion of certain ESS around the dam. To limit the damage and safeguard agricultural production, local population have developed agricultural areas downstream of the dam with the creation of autonomous water points for market gardening. Fish farming areas have also been created for small-scale fishing. These innovations have helped not only to improve the availability of drinking water but also increase the income of farmers and fishermen and improve the social cohesion among the communities.

Adoption of sustainable silvopastoral practices in Argentina's Gran Chaco: A multilevel approach

The Gran Chaco is currently a global hotspot of deforestation and environmental degradation. Halting global warming and curbing biodiversity losses are urgent priorities and recent research suggests that sustainable smallholder production systems could contribute to maintain and restore key ecosystem services. This article examines the adoption of two silvopastoral practices in Argentina's Gran Chaco. We conducted a survey of 552 smallholders in three municipalities in the province of Salta. With the resulting data, we used multilevel models to assess adoption of the two practices. Our multilevel models indicate several factors that are associated with adoption, including: gender of the household head, year of establishment, literacy of the household head, membership in a producer organization, and socio-economic status. Our results suggest that paraje – groups of neighbouring households or joint settlements – are a good predictor of adoption, whereas nearby villages are only marginally associated with adoption. We conclude by highlighting the importance of accounting for local structures and groups of households in rural studies.

Study the Haematological parameters and Oxidative stress before and after disbudding in Calves

The aim of the present investigation was to examine the haematological profile and oxidative stress before and after disbudding in calves. The study was carried out at Livestock Farm Complex, College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, ANDUAT, Kumarganj, Ayodhya and nearby villages. Twenty four cattle calves were utilized to study haematological parameters that are Haemoglobin (Hb (gm/dl), Neutrophil (%), Basophil (%), PCV (%), Lymphocyte (%), Monocyte (%), TLC (103/ µl), Eosinophil (%), N/L ratio) and oxidative stress before and after disbudding in to four groups viz. control (T0), lignocaine (TL), tremadol (TT) and lignocaine+tremadol (TL-T). After medication calves were disbudded by hot iron method. The blood samples were collected for haematological parameters &amp; for estimation of LPO (lipid peroxides) as per method described by [1] just before (0h) and after disbudding on 6h, 24h and 72h. The results showed that, at 24h, T0 group showed significantly lowest Hb (10.66±0.49%) which was statistically similar to TT and TL-T groups. At 0h, 6h and 72h means of PCV% were significantly different among treatment groups. The lowest lymphocytes (64.00±1.00) was observed in TT group at 6h. The T0 group showed significantly lowest basophil (0.00±0.00) which was statistically similar to TT and TL-T groups but significantly different from TL group at 6h. At the same interval, T0 group showed significantly lowest monocytes (4.66±0.61) which was significantly different with TL, TT and TL-T groups. At 6h, T0 group showed significantly lowest N/ L ratio (0.15±0.01) which was statistically similar to TT and TL-T groups but significantly different from TL group. At 0h, 6h and 24h LPO was significantly different among groups. At 0h, T0 group showed significantly highest (106.59±0.63) which was significantly different from TL, TT and TL-T groups. It may be concluded that no significant difference was observed in eosinophil%, TLC, neutrophil% and monocyte% counts between control and treatment groups. However, Hb%, basophil%, PCV% and lymphocyte% were significantly different between control and treatment groups. N/L ratio was significant only at 6h. Most of the cases TL-T group showed comparatively better performance. At 0h, 6h and 24h LPO was significantly different among groups. At 0h, T0 group showed significantly highest (106.59±0.63) which was significantly different from TL, TT and TL-T groups.

Livelihood Status of Neem Seed Pickers and Constraints in Seed Collection and Procurement in Tamil Nadu

Aims: Neem Seeds have considerable economic significance due to a variety of commercial usages. Realising the significance of neem, the present study aimed to understand the rural households’ participation in neem seed collection and issues in collection and sales.&#x0D; Study Design: Simple random sampling method was followed. &#x0D; Place and Duration of the Study: The present study was conducted in Tamil Nadu state covering seven districts namely Coimbatore, Dindigul, Dharmapuri, Madurai, Sivagangai, Thoothukudi and Vellore. A total of 450 households who involved in neem seed collection was selected and studied. The data collected was pertaining to the year 2019-20.&#x0D; Methodology: Simple mean, percentage analysis, standard deviation and Garrett Ranking techniques were employed.&#x0D; Results: Ninety seven percent of the neem seed collectors are above 30 years. Majority of the neem seed collectors are illiterate mostly belong to the category of more than 50 years and 30 to 50 years. Agriculture based households members generally involved in neem seed collection. Majority of the neem seed collectors (61 per cent) collect neem seeds in local village itself. Around 26 per cent of the respondents visit nearby villages to collect neem seeds. To collect neem seeds, the rural households travel 4.65 km daily, with a minimum of 2.0 km and maximum of 7.0 km in a day. The constraints in seed collection are time consuming, travel long to collect seeds, less remunerative, less productive etc. The major constraints in selling include poor price offered by the traders, lack of awareness on price in other markets, lack of awareness about quality.&#x0D; Conclusion: Programmes like price support, market intervention in the form of price dissemination, market and transport infrastructure will help the rural people to fetch better price for their collected neem seeds.

ECONOMICS OF FISH PRODUCTION IN CHILIKA LAKE OF ODISHA

Objective-The objectives of the study are to examine the trend and pattern of cost, income and profit from Fish economy in Chilika Lake, to investigate the seasonality and pattern of revenue from tourism in Chilika Lake, to analyze the income and living standards of businessmen and their perception and to assess the developmental activities by Government of Odisha and Chilika Development Authority (CDA) to promote wetland services of Chilika. Methodology-The study is based on environmental impact on Chilika. Approximately 160 species of birds mostly of intercontinental migrant species and Irrawaddy dolphin, the lake is having immense tourism potential. Findings-Chilika as a wetland has a complex and fragile ecosystem unlike other water bodies. Chilika Lake has about 132 fishing villages and it is surrounded by around 273 villages. The population of the fishing villages is more than 0.15 million. Though the country earns foreign revenue by exporting spices fish, prawn, crab its cultivation on crop land is exerting negative impact on the nearby villages and therefore aims at conducting a survey on the socio economic conditions of people involved in fishing activity and the environmental impact of fish cultivation. KEYWORDS: Chilika, Crab, Ecosystem, Fishing, Local businessmen, prawn, Tourism, Wetland

Differences of selenium and other trace elements abundances between the Kaschin-Beck disease area and nearby non-Kaschin-Beck disease area, Shaanxi Province, China

In order to find out the environmental geochemical characteristics of KBD affected area, KBD and non-KBD villages in KBD Counties, Weibei KBD area, Shaanxi Province, China were studied. Contents of Se and other elements in soil, wheat, maize and drinking water were analyzed. The results show that soil of Weibei KBD area is deficient in trace elements comparing with BSC and non-KBD area. Wheat of Weibei KBD area is deficient both in major elements and trace elements comparing with REC. Wheat of KBD village is especially deficient in Cr, Co, Se, Mo and Mg. Contents of Sr, Li and Mo in wheat of KBD village are significantly lower than nearby non-KBD village, but the average Se content is slightly higher. The deficiency of trace elements, especially Se, Sr, Li and Mo in staple food and trace elements in soil, is the main characteristic for the environment of KBD area.

Ultra-portable, smartphone-based spectrometer for heavy metal concentration measurement in drinking water samples

Heavy metals are very toxic and hazardous for human health. Onsite screening of heavy metal contaminated samples along with location-based automation data collection is a tedious job. Traditionally high-end equipment’s such as gas chromatography mass spectrometer (GC–MS) and atomic absorption spectrometers have been used to measure the concentration of different heavy metals in water samples but most of them are costly, bulky, and time consuming, and requires expert human intervention. This manuscript reports an ultra-portable, rapid, cost-effective, and easy-to-use solution for onsite heavy metal concentration measurement in drinking water samples. Presented solution combines off-the-shelf available chemical kits for heavy metal detection and developed spectrometer-based readout for concentration prediction, quality judgment, and automatic data collection. Two chemical kits for copper and iron detection have been imported form Merck and have been used for overall training and testing. The developed spectrometer has capability to work with smartphone-based android app and also can work in standalone mode. The developed spectrometer uses white light-emitting diode as a source and commercially imported spectral sensor (AS7262) for visible radiation reception. A low-power sub-GHZ-based wireless embedded platform has been developed and interfaced with source and detector. A power management module also has been designed to monitor the battery status and also to generate low battery indication. Overall modules has been packaged in custom designed enclosure to avoid external light interference. The developed system has been trained using standard buffer samples with known heavy metal concentrations and further tested for water samples collected from institute colony and nearby villages. The obtained results have been validated with commercially imported system from HANNA instruments, and it has been observed that developed system has shown excellent accuracy to predict heavy metal concentration (tested for Fe and Cu) in water samples.

Community Engagement as a Tool for Improving Efficiency of Primary Eye Care Delivery: Case Studies from Two Different Models

Background: Delivery of healthcare services needs to be rooted in frameworks supporting community engagement. Our organization delivers primary eyecare through two different models. These case studies quantitatively analyse the impact of community collaboration on the effectiveness of these models-camps and vision centres.Methods: Camp data from two rural blocks of north India comparing first year of operations in 2016 with that of 2017; April-September 2017 data from two underperforming vision centreswas compared to data from same period in 2018.Natural interventions in camps included visits of local leaders to surgical centre, health talks spreading awareness regarding eyecare plusour organization, and local partners helping counsel patients, while for vision centres,staff was trained to conduct regular health talks and meetings in nearby villages. For camps, before and after data on attendance, proportion of people over 50, proportion of people getting operated among those advised and acquisition cost were analysed,for vision centres referral from these centres wereanalysed.Results: Parameters for both models showed improvement inthe second year. Conclusion: Sustained presence in the community and collaboration with local stakeholders increases effectiveness of service delivery at primary level.

Determining groundwater quality using indices and multivariate statistical techniques: a study of Tosham block, Haryana, India.

Water is the most important component for human survival and often the most misused one. The present study deals with the assessment of groundwater quality of Tosham block, Bhiwani District, Haryana, India, and its nearby villages. A total of 23 samples were collected from different groundwater sources and were analysed for 16 different physico-chemical parameters. Correlation coefficients were calculated to identify highly correlated and interrelated water quality parameters. It provides an excellent tool for the prediction of parameter values within the reasonable rank of exactness. A strong correlation was observed between total hardness, magnesium and total dissolved solids, especially between total dissolved solids and electrical conductivity. The obtained results were compared with Indian Standard Drinking water specifications IS: 10500-2012. Concentration of total hardness, iron and chloride was found above the permissible limit in all the samples. Multivariate statistical techniques, namely cluster analysis and principal component analysis, were used to find the relationship between studied parameters. Water quality index (WQI) was also calculated. The WQI of groundwater samples ranged from 125 to 556. The water quality index revealed that out of 23 samples, 13 were found to have poor water quality and 6 samples were of very poor water quality. High value of WQI was found mainly from total dissolved solids, electrical conductivity, total hardness, Mg, Cl and Fe. Groundwater analysis of the studied water samples indicated that there is a need to treat the water before its use for drinking and other domestic activities. Necessary precautions should be taken to prevent the groundwater from being contaminated.