Parts Of South India Research Articles

DISTRIBUTION OF SANDAL (SANTALUM ALBUM L.), CURRENT GROWTH RATES, PREDICTED YIELD OF HEARTWOOD AND OIL CONTENT AND FUTURE POTENTIAL IN SEMI ARID AND ARID REGIONS OF RAJASTHAN, INDIA

ABSTRACT The wood of Sandal (Santalum album) is one of the most valuable forest products, but this dollar- earning tree is disappearing from its natural range in parts of south India. The present study indicates that sandal may occur naturally in Rajasthan where it. is mainly distributed in the semi- arid areas of the south and east—in natural forests; agricultural lands, old havelis, etc.; a few small plantations have been successfully established in this arid region. The oil content in these trees of Rajasthan varies between 0.9 and 3%. The successful establishment of these plantations and the development of the heartwood and oil in these trees indicate the potentiality of this species in the area. Rajasthan and Gujarat have vast areas of waste land that could be utilized for planting this species, but this may entail initial irrigation and strict protective measures.

Analysis of Indian cholesterol gallstones by particle-induced X-ray emission and thermogravimetry???derivative thermogravimetry

It has been reported that the role of some minor elements plays a significant role in the formation of gallstones. The relationship between minor and trace element concentrations was established in the present investigation and the trace element profile of the current investigation was compared with the literature values of south Indian gallstone samples in order to determine their possible role in stone formation and growth. The rate of weight loss and classification of cholesterol type of gallstones were also investigated by thermal analysis. The trace element profile of the cholesterol gallstones was determined by proton-induced X-ray emission spectroscopic technique and the thermal properties of the cholesterol stones were studied by thermogravimetry-derivative thermogravimetry analysis. It was observed that 14 minor/trace elements, namely S, Cl, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Br and Pb, were present in the cholesterol stone samples. The average concentration of Fe in south Indian (Chennai region) gallstone samples (503.4 ppm) is about 2.5 times more than that of the east Indian gallstone samples (205.0 ppm), whereas the concentration of Fe is still higher in other parts of south India (848.2 ppm) as analysed by Ashok et al. The higher concentration of Cu (in some parts of south India except the Chennai region) and Fe in south Indian cholesterol stone samples may be due to the intake of tamarind (Garcinia camborginia) as their regular food. The thermogravimetry and derivative thermogravimetry curves provided information on the thermal decompositions of cholesterol stones.

Taxonomic studies of the species of Turbinaria (Fucales, Phaeophyta) from South India

AbstractThe taxonomic studies of seven taxa of Turbinaria , collected from different parts of South India are presented. The taxa include three species [T. conoides (J. Agardh) Kützing, T. decurrens Bory, and T. ornata (Turner) J.Agardh] and four forms [T. conoides f. laticuspidata W.R.Taylor, T. ornata f. evesiculosa (Barton) W.R.Taylor, T. ornata f. hainanensis W.R.Taylor and T. ornata f. krishnamurthii f. nova Sophiammal & Panikkar]. Out of these seven taxa, T. ornata (Turner) J.Agardh f. hainanensis W.R.Taylor is a new report to India and T. ornata (Turner) J.Agardh f. krishnamurthii is a new addition to Indian marine flora. All the collected taxa were screened for their morphological characters and the identification was based on the general shape, branching pattern, shape, size and arrangement of the laterals (‘leaves’), size of the vesicles and the occurrence and orientation of the spines. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

High plasma concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls and phthalate esters in women with endometriosis: a prospective case control study

The objective of this study was to detect the probable association between polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and phthalate esters (PEs), and the occurrence of endometriosis in a prospective case control study. We found that PCBs and PEs may be instrumental in the etiology of endometriosis.

Transient Response of ENSO-Monsoon Teleconnection in MRI-CGCM2.2 Climate Change Simulations

This study investigates the impact of anthropogenic climate change on the Indian summer monsoon, and the ENSO-monsoon teleconnection, using the transient climate change simulations of the MRI coupled model (MRI-CGCM2.2). In the present simulations atmospheric greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations and aerosols are varied to represent observed changes during 1850–2000, and from 2001–2100, at the rate prescribed by the SRES-A2 and B2 scenarios to study the response of the monsoon climate during 2071–2100. All India annual temperature shows warming by 2.35 � C (1.64 � C), while all-India monsoon rainfall (JJAS) indicates an increase by 9% (6%) in SRES-A2 (B2) scenario relative to the present climate (1971–2000). Increase in the monsoon precipitation is evident over parts of south India, parts of the Bay of Bengal and northwest India. The simulations feature stronger warming over South Asia relative to the Indian Ocean, leading to enhanced land-sea temperature contrast. Enhanced moisture in a warmer scenario, coupled with enhanced monsoon circulation, leads to enhanced moisture transport over the Indian region from both the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea leading to increased monsoon precipitation. Decomposition of the moisture transport into divergent and non-divergent components shows that the enhanced monsoon rainfall is mainly due to intensification in the non-divergent component of the moisture transport. While strong and continued increase in monsoon rainfall suggests

TRACE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF SOUTH INDIAN GALLSTONES BY PIXE

Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) was used to analyse the elemental concentration of gallstones collected from different parts of south India. Cholesterol gallstones are predominant in north India, whereas pigment gallstones are predominant in south India. The black pigment gallstones are common in hemolytic anemia or in presence of infected bile. PIXE has revealed the elemental profile in each sample. The experimental subjects of the different groups displayed significant variation in their levels of certain trace elements such as copper, zinc, and iron. The concentration of copper was found to be predominant in pigment gallstones investigated in the present study.

Energy options for cooking in India

Energy for cooking remains a major concern of consumers and policy makers in India. Yet there have been few systematic studies of available options. Given the diversity of diet and cooking practices, a regional approach is necessary. In this paper options in a part of south India are examined. Twelve fuel-device combinations were subjected to thermal efficiency and controlled cooking tests to determine their viability. A correlation of −0.926 was obtained between percentage heat utilization and specific fuel consumption in these experiments. The health, environmental and economic aspects of potential options are discussed. Similar studies in other regions of India are necessary to inform policy decisions.

Madras pattern of motor neuron disease in South India.

This paper presents the clinical features in 12 patients with the Madras pattern of motor neuron disease (MMND) seen over a period of 10 years. Ten of the patients were from other parts of South India, outside Madras. Young age at onset, sporadic occurrence, sensorineural deafness, bulbar palsy, diffuse atrophy with weakness of limbs and progressive but benign course were the striking features. Electromyography revealed chronic partial denervation. MMND formed 3.7% of all forms of motor neuron disease. Although isolated cases have been seen elsewhere in India, this is the first report of a large number of patients of MMND seen outside Madras (Tamil Nadu). Recognition of this clinical syndrome is of importance for prognostication and as well for search of possible aetiological factors.

The epidemiology of Perthes' disease in south India.

The incidence of Perthes' disease in parts of south India was estimated by means of a hospital survey, an incidence study and a prevalence survey. Based on the incidence study it was noted that the minimum incidence of Perthes' disease in Udupi Taluk on the western coastal plain of south India was 4.4 per 100,000 children aged 5 to 14 years, while the prevalence survey suggested that the incidence may be as high as 14.8 per 100,000 children. The studies showed that there is a marked geographical variation in the incidence of Perthes' disease in south India, the disease being much more common in the western coastal region than elsewhere. The age of onset of the disease was significantly higher than that reported from England and the disease appeared to be rural rather than urban.

Artisans in Vijayanagar Society

a picture of a social order in ferment. Far from accepting the theoretical notion of ’my station and its duties,’’ the Sudra artisanal castes, who described themselves as Sat-Sudras, sought to propel themselves into the higher echelons of society which commanded ritual superiority. When these artisanal and mercantile groups tried to crowd into the limited space offered by ritual and social privileges, the resultant pulls and pressures were reflected in contemporary medieval society. This situation of social flux continued into the seventeenth century by when Vijayanagar had ceased to be an imperial power and the last king of Vijayanagar, Sriranga III (1642-49), held no greater title than that of the king of Vellore. It will be the attempt of this paper to study the dynamics of social mobility, conflict and change in Vijayanagar society by analysing the functions and role-perception of the leading artisan castes. We will take up in particular the ’group of f~ve’-blacksmiths, goldsmiths, workers in brass, carpenters and masonsr-and also those involved in the handloom industry, the weavers, bleachers and dyers. Some of tB1e other artisanal groups like the cobblers, tanners and potters have also been studied with a view to social comparisons. Reference to the settling of various artisans in the villages comes from many inscriptions from all parts of South India. They were generally given hereditary rights over a small piece of land which was fully or partially exempted from taxs Significantly, South Indian inscriptions also refer to

Impact of Herbicides on Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata and their Compatability for Integrated Control of Chromolaena odorata

Chromolaena odorata (L.) King and Robinson, a plant of Neotropical origin is Considered as a serious weed of plantation crops,forests and grazing lands of South Asian and African countries, including India (Holms et al ., 1977). Field releases of the exotic host-specific biological control agent Pareuchaetes pseudoinsulata Rego Barros (Lepidoptera : Arctiidae) in different parts of South India, resulted in only localised defoliation (Jayanth and Ganga Visalakshy, 1993), necessitating manual and chemical methods even in areas where the insects were released. A study on the effect of herbicides on the insect was made under laboratory conditions, to see if both can be integrated.

Influence of Calcium on the Physical properties of Soil

Forty soil samples were collected from various parts of South India and were subjected to the determination of important physical properties of soil and various forms of calcium. Exchangeable calcium exhibited high degree of correlation to the clay content. Total calcium and exchangeable calcium showed close correlation with volume expansion on wetting. Moisture constants like water holding capacity and sticky point were correlated with various forms of calcium. Black soils which contained high calcium were found to bo extremely impermeable compared to red soils. Aggregate stability was observed to be markedly high in black soils, which were richer in calcium and clay.

Giant-Cell Tumors of Bone in South India

Giant-cell tumors of bone are rare or uncommon. Dodge reported that giant-cell tumor is rare in Ugandan Africans, but Hadley and associates and Rockwell and Small noted that giant-cell tumor of bone is comparatively common in South India. In this paper we give an account of the general prevalence of giant-cell tumors of bone in our part of South India.

Comparative studies on the black sand concentrates of South India

Samples of the littoral and alluvial placer deposits of the black sand concentrates which contain radioactive resistate minerals were collected from various parts of South India and their characters with respect to colour, density and radioactivity were presented.

Ootacamund in the Nilgiris: Some Notes

THE TOWN OF OOTACAMUND in the Nilgiri Hills in South India was a foundation of the English early in the 19th century. The hills are in fact a mountainous plateau, some 40 miles long by 15 miles broad, at the junction of the ranges of the Eastern and Western Ghats, and higher than either of the ranges at that point. The Nilgiri summits go over 8,000 feet, high above the plains to the north and east. The plateau is excessively rugged, composed of many small ranges and many peaks, with many steep, narrow valleys between them. The eastern and northeastern part of the plateau is in general some 1,000 to 1,500 feet lower than the remainder. Ootacamund is roughly in the middle of the plateau, just to the west of the short Doddabetta-Snowdon range which is part of the line of demarcation between the higher and lower levels and which in Doddabetta contains the highest of the Nilgiri peaks (some 8,640 feet). From shortly after its foundation Ootacamund was the most important of the health-restoring and playground hill stations founded by the English in South India for the use of the governing classes of the Madras Presidency, Mysore State, and even more distant parts of South India. Since Independence also, it has retained some of its usefulness for some governmental activities and as a playground. Its early history has been recorded in a number of books, especially H. B. Grigg (and others), A Manual of the Nilagiri District in the Madras Presidency (Madras, Government Press, 1880) and Sir Frederick Price, Ootacamund, a History (Madras, Government Press, 1908).1 Both of these are based in part on early government files, government gazettes, and Madras journals, and probably there is little more to be gleaned from such sources. However, even yet, not everything that might be gained from aboriginal oral sources has been put on record. The present notes on several small points come from such sources and in one way or another supplement the large accounts. They are based on linguistic and ethnological fieldwork done on the Todas, one of the aboriginal communities, in the years 1935-1938. What is presented here was recorded only incidentally to the chief interests, and it is evident that at some points inquiry was not pushed far enough. It is evident, too, that inquiry among the Badagas, another of the communities of the area, would add something-in fact, would solve completely the second point examined.

The exact site and extent of duodenal ulceration. Radiological and operative findings in hospital patients in South India.

1. In 43 cases of duodenal ulcer accurate surgical findings and measurements have been correlated with radiological findings. 2. In 527 cases of duodenal ulcer, the radiological evidence of the site and extent of duodenal ulceration have been analysed. 3. In about 35 per cent of cases no ulcer crater could be demonstrated. The size of an ulcer crater measured radiographically bears little relation to the size when measured at operation. A polyp-like filling defect rather than a crater is seen in some cases. In the presence of chronic duodenal ulcer, gastric ulcers may not be seen radiologically. 4. Definite evidence of contraction and scarring of the whole first part of the duodenum can be detected in about 15 per cent of duodenal ulcer cases. In a further 16 per cent of cases gross deformity of the bulb alone is often evidence of double duodenal ulcer. 5. There is a high incidence of distal duodenal ulcers in hospital cases in this part of South India when compared to Western figures.

Shamanism in South India

F ROM THE VIEWPOINT of the anthropologist all too little of the voluminous writings on Hinduism describes what is often called popular Hinduism as opposed to the epic and philosophic Sanskritic tradition. An intensive survey of the ethnological literature pertaining to Mysore State revealed surprisingly little information about village religion.2 Of the sources that were helpful several discuss village-guarding spirits who protect, or under some circumstances harm, the inhabitants of a locale.3 But the sources that deal with popular religion scarcely even hint at the elaborate shamanistic complex centering around disease that is found in various parts of South India, including the Malnad or hilly region in Shimoga District of Mysore State, where the particular type of shamanism described in this paper exists. The fact that shamanism has been written about so little is surprising considering the reputation the Malnad has as a place filled with spirits. Referring to shamanism, there appears in the 1931 Census of India the following comment: On the smallest provocation they [the inhabitants of the Malnad] resort to the quack who utters manthras and make sacrifices to the chowdi or to other jungle deity.4' There are several possible reasons for this lack of knowledge about shamanism. One is that Western authors writing on the Malnad have generally not had a special interest in folk religion. Many of the best accounts of non-Sanskritic religion in South India come from the writings of missionaries, such a Ziegenbalg, Caldwell, Whitehead, and Dubois, but the Malnad region has been an area into which few missionaries have gone, and about which none have left accounts of native life. I believe that a much stronger reason for the lack of written literature on shamanism is the reticence of informants to volunteer knowledge of the

Religion and Society among the Coorgs of South India

This is the late M.N. Srinivas' classic work on the religion and religious practices among the Coorgs in South India based on intensive field work. The author investigates the relationship between religion and society with particular reference to the people living in an isolated part of South India.

Regional Peculiarities in Apple Production

In the course of a recent survey of the apple growing industry in different parts of India, the author was struck with the amazing diversity of practices with reference to almost every aspect of apple production. Although characteristically a temperate zone deciduous fruit, the apple as grown in the different provinces and states of India has become adapted to such a great extent as even to be ranked as a commercial fruit to be grown amidst the tropical mango or citrus, as in certain parts of South India. The very wide diversity of conditions under which the apple is being produced is, therefore, a study of immense interest and has accordingly engaged the attention of the author. The present contribution is made with the hope that the varied features that are associated with apple culture in different regions of India may serve to bring out the immense possibilities for effecting improvements with due regard to the experiences of the particular locality and of those regions where entirely dissimilar conditions prevail.