Plain Land Research Articles

Identifying the zero-dose and under-immunized children in Bangladesh: Approaches and experiences.

This paper presents and elaborates on empirical methods and approaches used to identify Zero-Dose (ZD) and Under-immunized (UI) children as well as the communities that these children reside in within Bangladesh. This paper also describes demand- and supply side-barriers that lead to children being ZD and UI in the country. Time period for the study was December 2022-May 2023. The study methodology encompassed secondary data analysis using data from national surveys, primary data collection and analysis via a lot quality assurance sampling (LQAS) survey and also, qualitative data collection and analysis. Study population included caregivers of children aged 4.5 months (4 months 15 days) to 23 months for the LQAS survey. The qualitative component included policymakers, program managers and service providers working in immunization as well as mothers in the selected study areas who had a living child aged less than 2 years as the study population. Our data analysis confirms existence of ZD and UI children in areas which were categorized into haor (wetlands), hilly, char (sandy/silty land surrounded by water), coastal, plain land and urban slums. Determinant analysis showed that the mother's level of education, antenatal visits made, and access to media were significantly associated with children being ZD or UI. Reproductive autonomy emerged as a key factor that had prominent impact on a child being ZD. The qualitative analysis indicated the importance of population migration, health workforce shortages and lack of access to transportation as prominent barriers to immunization. Notably, the methods and approaches used in this study are both effective and easily replicable to identify ZD and UI children. The drivers of ZD and UI along with the barriers to immunization provide potential areas for intervention by policy-makers and can apprise about interventions to be tested in future implementation research.

Gap-filling of land surface temperature in arid regions by combining Landsat 8 and 9 imageries

Abstract Land surface temperature (LST) is an important factor in land monitoring studies, but due to the presence of clouds, dust and sensor issues, there are missing values. The aims of this research are to determine the optimal parameters for the reconstruction of Landsat-LST images, required in many applications, by the harmonic analysis of time series algorithm (HANTS) and to investigate the possibility of improving LST reconstruction accuracy using Landsat 8 and 9 images simultaneously. For these aims, 91 Landsat 8 and 9 images with 100 m spatial resolution in 2022 and 2023 are employed, covering Yazd-Ardakan plain in Iran. Three methods are used for evaluation. In method one, a part of LST image is considered as a gap and is compared with the initial value after reconstruction. In method two, on a cloudy day and a cloudless day, surface temperature values are measured using thermometers at fifty points in plain lands, and the difference between gap-filled satellite measurements and ground measurements is calculated. In method three, all the reconstructed LST images are compared with the original images. In method one, the root mean square error (RMSE) of reconstructed LST reduces by 1.3°C when using the combined Landsat 8 and 9 images. In method two, RMSEs of reconstructed LST images are 6.1°C when using Landsat 8 and 5.4°C when using the combined Landsat 8 and 9. Method three shows that 41% of the study region has RMSE of less than 2°C when using only Landsat 8, while this value becomes 72% when combining Landsat 8 and 9. In general, the combined use of Landsat 8 and 9 LST images improves the accuracy of reconstruction using HANTS. The findings of this research are crucial for regional applications and remote monitoring of surface temperature in areas with limited weather stations.

Surface morphology and chemical composition analysis of titanium dental implants using SEM and EDX.

The chemical content and surface morphology of titanium implants have a greater impact on the osseointegration characteristic of dental implants. Therefore this study was done to examine the surface morphology and chemical composition of commercially available titanium dental implants. (BioLine Dental Implants Series-single piece (A) and spiral implants (B)). The chemical composition was determined by the Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX) method and the surface morphology was performed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) method. The results for chemical composition of titanium implants using EDX method revealed that titanium (Ti) constitutes the major surface components on the plain and top land area of the single piece compressive implants which is 89.71 weight% and 71.55 weight % respectively. Iron (Fe)-66.60 weight % is considered as major element along with chromium (Cr)-18.34 weight %on the plain area of spiral implants and O (19.90 weight %) and Al (12.43 weight %) on the top land area of spiral implants. The surface morphology and impact of the manufacturing process on the implant surface using SEM method revealed that the similar surface irregularities with diameter ranging from 10 µm to 20 µm on the side view of the top land area and diameter of 10 µm on the side view of plain area for both the samples. Sample A showed some amorphous structures with grainy marks on the apical view whereas Sample B showed heavy grinding and shear marks on the apical view at diameter ranging from 10 µm to 20µm.

Evaluation of Aydın Koçarlı Plain Land Consolidation Project in Terms of Some Engineering Services

This study, which presents a general evaluation of the land consolidation project carried out in 14 settlements in the Koçarlı district of Aydın province, the 'Aydın Koçarlı Plain 1st Part Land Consolidation Project', completed by the Aydın Provincial Directorate of Agriculture in 2016, was examined. For this purpose, the consolidation rate, parcel reduction index, deduction rate, and changes in parcel size and parcel number values of the consolidation project carried out in Orhaniye, Madrandere, Çakırbeyli, Boydere, Cincin, Çakmar, Halilbeyli, Koçarlı, Büyükdere, Şahinciler, Sobuca, Dedeköy, Tekeli, and Güdüşlü neighborhoods were investigated. In the project area, the average deduction rate was 7%, the consolidation rate was 31%, and the parcel reduction index was 1.46. As an overall evaluation of agricultural enterprises, the average parcel size increased from 1.76 ha to 2.57 ha, while the number of parcels decreased from 0.93 to 0.64. Land consolidation projects have a high potential to increase agricultural productivity and promote sustainable farming practices. Therefore, the results obtained from the study can contribute to the planning and implementation of similar projects.

Karakter Kuantitatif dan Hubungan Kekerabatan Genotipe Padi (Oryza sativa L.) Beras Merah dan Beras Hitam yang Ditanam secara Gogo

This study aims to determine the appearance of quantitative characters and kinship relationships of the genotype of red rice and black rice grown in gogo. The research was conducted in February – May 2024 on a medium plain land with an altitude of 370 meters above sea level, in Tampak Siring Village, Central Lombok, NTB. The materials used were 21 rice genotypes consisting of 11 red rice strains, 4 black rice strains, 2 red rice elders, 2 black rice elders and 2 comparison varieties (Inpago Unram I and IR64). The analysis used is the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) of the Group Random Design (GRD) model with a real level of 5%, if there are real different characters, then the Duncan Multiple Range Test (DMRT) will be continued at a real level of 5%. Cluster analysis was carried out based on the average value of quantitative characters using the euclidean distance method using the R-Studio program. The results of the study showed that between strains all characters had different appearances except for the number of non-productive saplings. G-2 strain; G-6; and G-18 had the same results as Inpago Unram I. Kinship analysis conducted based on the average value of quantitative characters obtained four clusters, namely cluster I G-21, G-9, G-20, G-11, G-17; cluster II G-19, G-2, G-18, G-6, G-7; cluster III G-1, G-5, G-8, G10, G-3, G-4, G-16; and cluster IV G-12, G-15, G-13, G-14.

Tobacco Farmers’ Perceptions of Unsafe Tobacco Cultivation and Its Effect on Health and Environment: A Case of Chittagong Hill Tracts, Bangladesh

As the environment is severely harmed by tobacco (like growing, processing, production, and disposal), the study was set forth to determine the tobacco cultivation status and perceptions of the tobacco farmers toward the environmental and health hazards of tobacco farmers due to tobacco cultivation. We conducted the study in Lama Upazila, Bandarban Hill District, Bangladesh. The survey method was applied to collect the necessary data, utilizing a pre-structured interview schedule, from 242 tobacco farmers who were selected randomly. The study’s results portrayed that the average tobacco cultivation farming experience of the farmers was about 10 years, and the farmers occupied about 0.97 acres of land for cultivating tobacco, while 81% of the tobacco farmers utilized the plain lands for cultivating tobacco, although the study area was a hilly one. A huge amount of fuel wood (average 5390 kg) was required for the curing of tobacco leaves. The farmers produced about 2 MT of tobacco per year and earned about BDT 89,066 (USD 810) from this production. Given that 77% of the tobacco farmers in the research area felt that tobacco production increased the risks to the environment and tobacco farmers health, their opinions ranged from somewhat to highly favorable, which meant they were concerned about the environment and health hazards. The research’s findings provide useful background knowledge on the detrimental effects of Bangladesh’s tobacco farming.

Explaining Rural Conservatism: Political Consequences of Technological Change in the Great Plains

Rural areas are conservative electoral strongholds in the United States and other advanced capitalist economies. But this was not always the case. What explains the rise of rural conservatism? This paper argues that technological change transformed not only agriculture but rural political preferences during the twentieth century. It studies a natural experiment: the post-World War II introduction of new irrigation technologies, which enabled farmers to irrigate otherwise arid land in the Great Plains using groundwater. Difference-in-differences analyses exploiting the shock’s differential impact on counties overlying the Ogallala Aquifer—a pattern validated with remote-sensing data—show that technological change contributed significantly to the region’s long-term conservative electoral transformation. Additional analyses, including comparison of individual policy preferences inside/outside the Ogallala Aquifer boundary, suggest that this was due to the rise of capital-intensive agriculture and the growing power of agribusiness. The findings demonstrate how new technologies made new politics in rural America.

Safe water crisis and struggle of climate-vulnerable indigenous communities in southwestern coastal Bangladesh

Abstract This study was designed to unearth the beliefs, practices, and management of safe drinking water of Munda and Rajbangshi indigenous communities. To apprehend the safe drinking water-related behaviour and practice, the qualitative approach was followed where 20 in-depth interviews were carried out among the Munda and Rajbangshi communities in Shyamnagar and Kaliganj Upazila (sub-district) of Satkhira district, Bangladesh. Findings indicate that the intrusion of saline water due to climate-induced changes led to a scarcity of potable water for both communities in the last few decades. Despite the existence of centuries-old traditional practices of water purification, the indigenous communities, particularly women, were compelled to collect safe drinking water from, in general, distant sources as the other sources of water were contaminated with saline water. Despite their collective efforts, managing safe water sometimes, particularly in the rainy season, becomes impossible for these marginalized people as it costs a considerable amount of household income. To ensure their access to safe drinking water and to explore the underlying factors, whether social, economic, cultural or environmental, initiatives from both government and non-government organizations are required for a sustainable life for these unheard plain land indigenous communities in Bangladesh.

Traditional ecological knowledge and natural resource management: Some examples from Bangladesh

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) refers to the knowledge, innovations, and practices of indigenous and local communities around the world. As it includes proven technologies for particular situations, its adoption cuts research costs and time. This paper attempts to find out the scoping of some TEKs on different practices ranging from plain land agriculture, hill farming, agro-biodiversity management, open water fish conservation, disaster management, and other aspects in different situations in Bangladesh. It is an outcome of the authors’ field experiences in the study of local flora, plant uses, and natural resource management practices in the community and a review of related literature. Access to modern facilities, urbanization, and land use changes are now causing many threats to TEK. Documentation and codification of this knowledge and its uses for sustainable development are needed for the betterment of local farmers as well as the preservation of cultural heritage. The knowledge is always changing to cope with socio-cultural needs. So, a fusion of TEK and modern scientific knowledge can help solve the problems encountered in the sustainable management of natural resources. It also needs to be incorporated into school curricula and mainstreamed in the local-level natural resource management planning process. The best practices can also be adopted in natural resource management.

Pyrogeography of the Western Great Plains: A 40-Year History of Fire in Semi-Arid Rangelands

This study describes spatial and temporal patterns in fire across the US Western Great Plains over the last 40 years. Although pyrogeographic studies have explored the nexus of fire patterns in relation to the bio-physical environment and socio-ecological trends, most of this research has focused on forested ecosystems and regions long known for conflict between wildfires and human development, especially at the wildland–urban interface. But evidence suggests large wildfire activity is increasing in the US Great Plains, and the Western Great Plains—a Land Resource Region comprised of four ecoregions, Northwestern Plains, High Plains, Nebraska Sandhills, and Southwestern Tablelands—not only contains some of the largest areas of rangeland in the US but also the highest concentration of public land in the Great Plains. As such, the Western Great Plains provides an opportunity to explore fire activity in primarily rural landscapes with a combination of public and private ownership, all dominated by rangeland vegetation. We combined several publicly-available datasets containing fire records between 1992 and 2020 to create two databases, one with georeferenced point data on 60,575 wildfire events in the region, and another with georeferenced perimeter data for 2665 fires. Ignition by humans was the dominant cause of fires. No ecoregion showed a statistically significant trend towards either increasing or decreasing the annual burned area. The Northwestern Plains had the most burned area and the greatest number of incidents—consistently around or above 1000 incidents per year since 1992—with the majority in July. The High Plains showed the greatest increase in annual fire incidence, never reaching more than 200–300 per year 1992–2009, and averaging above 1000 incidents per year since 2010. Few long-term trends in human population, weather, or fuel metrics appear strongly associated with fire patterns in any ecoregion, although the years 2006, 2012, and 2017 stood out for their levels of fire activity, and these years often frequently logged extreme values in wildland fuel metrics. These relationships merit much closer examination in the Western Great Plains, because like other rangeland-dominated landscapes, the fine fuels that comprise these wildland fuelbeds are much more responsive to fine-scale changes in moisture conditions. Rural Western Great Plains landscapes are a mosaic of public and private land ownership, and an increasing impact of wildfires on public grazing lands—which are often situated within other jurisdictions or ownership—will likely have an impact on rural livelihoods.

Field infestation of the invasive fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) on maize in Southern Ethiopia

The biggest obstacle to Ethiopia's maize production is the fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda. Since its recent introduction, the pest has assumed a key pest status displacing most other stalk borer insects known to attack maize in the country. This study was carried out to assess the infestation of FAW on maize, identify associated natural enemies, and determined the geographic distribution of the pest in southern Ethiopia. Infestation by FAW was encountered in most surveyed areas. The earwig, Doru luteipes (Scudder) was frequently found preying on larvae of FAW while the larvae of Chrysoperla rufilabris (Burmeister) were observed feeding on FAW egg masses. Megaselia scalaris (Loew) and Palexorista zonata (Curran), two parasitoids of FAW, were recovered from FAW larvae. The entomopathogenic fungus, Beauveria bassiana, was isolated from the cadaver of FAW larvae. Modeling the distribution of FAW revealed that there are many suitable places in southern Ethiopia, with low-lying plain lands having the greatest potential for pest invasion. With AUC values above 0.9, the MaxEnt models demonstrated great prediction accuracy. Precipitation in the driest month (27.3%) and precipitation in the coldest quarter (25.4%), accounted for more than half of the variance in the pest's potential distribution. The findings of this study have contributed to a greater understanding of field infestation of FAW and associated natural enemies. The species distribution model result constituted a crucial point in providing the rationale for devising management strategy by taking into account a specified area susceptible to enhance invasion risk by FAW.

Effect of irrigation on farm efficiency in tribal villages of Eastern India

Irrigation is an important adaptation strategy to cope with climate change which reduces vulnerability to water stress and improves crop productivity to feed millions. There is evidence of crop yield stagnation in many developing countries, and irrigation efficiency is claimed to increase crop productivity. Therefore, this paper uses data envelopment analysis to evaluate the farmer’s productivity through technical efficiency (TE), i.e., the relationship between resource inputs and outputs of 513 paddy farmers in Eastern India. The results show that the farms are, on average operating at 14% TE, leaving a considerable scope to improve up to 86% to reach the optimal level. A significant difference is observed between irrigated and rain-fed paddy farmers, such that10% of the irrigated farms achieved efficiency scores over 40% and only 2% of rain-fed farms achieved the same. The tobit and beta fit regression models are estimated to find out the factors that influence the TE. Both surface water and groundwater sources of irrigation are used as predictors, along with other socio-demographic factors. Access to surface water irrigation is identified to be a significant determinant of farm efficiency, however, surface water irrigation, such as canal irrigation, is accessible only to farmers living on plain land. Farmers living on highlands need to explore other sources of irrigation practices, such as drip and sprinkler, that can increase TE and farm productivity. Therefore, this paper calls for government intervention to provide extensive training and facilities for these micro-irrigation practices.

A Research on Narrow-Scope Success Analysis of Tahtalıdedeler and Kuyumcular Neighborhoods in the Türkoğlu Plain Land Consolidation and In-Field Development Services Project

Bu çalışmada, Kahramanmaraş İli Türkoğlu İlçesi Tahtalıdeder ve Kuyumcular Mahallelerindeki arazi toplulaştırma projelerinde toplulaştırma öncesi ve toplulaştırma sonrası durumları karşılaştırılarak başarı durumlarını analiz etmek amaçlanmıştır. 
 Bu amaçla yerleşim birimlerinin arazi toplulaştırması öncesi ve sonrası parsel şekilleri projeye ait litop programından elde edilen veriler ile ortaya konmuş, yine proje tapu tesciline esas netcad programında hazırlanan proje sayısalları ve litop programı kullanılarak toplulaştırma öncesi ve sonrası parsel sayıları ortaya konmuş toplulaştırma oranları, ortalama parsel ve işletme büyüklükleri de hesaplanarak başarı analizi yapılmıştır. 
 Araştırma konusu 2 yerleşim biriminde arazi toplulaştırma projesi parselasyon planlarının yanı sıra yol, yol geçidi, vb. tarla içi geliştirme hizmetlerine ilişkin sanat yapıları inşa edildiği ve uygulama projesi kapsamında olan 2 yerleşim birimin aynı zamanda Kılavuzlu 2. Kısım Sulama projesi muhtevasında bulunduğu tespit edilmiştir.Proje kapsamında parselasyon çalışmalarının yanında tarla içi geliştirme hizmetleri uygulanan ve sulama projesi muhtevasında bulunan yerleşim birimlerinde toplulaştırma oranlarının istenilen düzeyde olmasa da pozitif olduğu, ( Tahtalıdedeler %25.41, Kuyumcular % 4.53 ) parsel şekillerinde eskisine kıyasla iyileşme olduğu göze çarpmaktadır.

Genetic Parameters of Rice Strains (Oryza sativa L.) Functional for Development and Increasing Production in Medium Plain Dry Lands

Functional rice is a food that contains more than one forming component that is useful for health. Nowadays public interest in functional food is increasing, so functional rice production needs to be increased. Therefore, this research was conducted with the hope of obtaining information on superior agronomic characters to increase the yield power of functional rice strains. The method used was experimental using a randomized group design (RAK). Data analysis consists of Analysis of Variance, genetic diversity coefficient, phenotype diversity coefficient, genotype correlation, phenotype correlation, and heritability in a broad sense. The results showed that the heritability value of high area meaning is found in the character of flowering, harvest age, plant height, panicle length of the amount of grain contained, and the amount of empty grain. The high value of the KKG and KKF is indicated by the character of the number of non-productive saplings, while the lowest value is indicated by the character of the age of harvest. All quantitative characters observed showed positive genotypic correlation results to grain weight per clump. While in phenotypic correlation only the character of plant height, panicle length, the amount of grain containing, the amount of hollow grain and the weight of 100 grains are positive. Based on the analysis that has been carried out the character of plant height, panicle length, the amount of grain containing the amount of hollow grain and the weight of 100 grains need to be taken into account as selection criteria to obtain high-yielding functional rice.

Seismic Behaviors of RC Buildings in Slopping Ground

This thesis is the study of seismic behavior of RC building in hilly areas i.e. sloping grounds. The study of dynamic response of structure on hilly areas has been done. Almost 13 configuration of structure has been considered for analysis. Six of them are step-back and which consider ground slope. Six are set-back configuration which is like in plain land. Remaining one is plan buildings. Three models are normal step back, setback and plan buildings and remaining are combination of shear wall, steel bracings. Various literature reviews of studies on the seismic behavior of RC building on hilly areas i.e. sloping ground has been studied and presented in this thesis. All considered configuration of building is modeled using ETABS v20.0.0 and IS 1893:2016 and analyzed by using equivalent static analysis and response spectrum methods. Then considered buildings have been compared in terms of base shear, Fundamental time period, top storey displacement, drift and story stiffness. The seismic behavior of building on hilly areas (sloping ground) is found differ from building plain ground. Most of studies lead to conclusion that building on hilly areas (sloping ground) has higher displacement and base shear compared to building on plain land. Also conclude shorter column attracts more forces and cause damage when earthquake occurs. Step back configuration could prove more vulnerable to seismic activities. We also concluded that building with shear wall improves seismic behavior of building by increasing strength and stiffness and also reduce in deflection. Keywords: Hilly areas, step-back configuration, step-back, set- back configuration,

Genetic variability, heritability, and correlation of hybrids maize agronomy characters adaptive to dry land, medium plains

The selection of hybrid maize plants that adapt to dry land in the medium plains is very important considering the very widely available such land in Indonesia, so the existence of adaptive varieties is needed. Information on agronomic characters of adaptive hybrid maize is the basic information for character selection to make the breeding program more effective. The study aims to determine the genetic variability, heritability, and correlation of hybrid maize agronomic characters tested in dry land of medium plains. The genetic material used 22 maize hybrids, arranged in randomized block design with 3 replications. The experiment was carried out in Polewali Mandar Regency, West Sulawesi from June to September 2021. The results showed the characters that were strongly influenced by the environment were ear position height, stem diameter, male and female flowering time, and shelling percentage. The characters of stem diameter, male and female flowering time, and shelling percentage can be used for selection characters in the advanced generations. The characters that had significantly positively correlated with yield characters were plant height, leaf width, ear diameter, harvested ear weight, and weight of 1000 kernels, while the character that had negatively correlated with yield was kernel moisture content.

Urban Renewal of Walled City: A Case of Amravati

Abstract: Walled cities are made all across India with similar concept but with different techniques depending on climatic condition and location. Some cities stand on the banks of or near a river or occupy some kindred site. Heights of city walls are more on plain lands. These city walls are generally decorated in elevation series of holes of pointed arced parapet, sloping walls etc. The reason for construction of walled cities includes; protection of public from attacks, for storage purpose, to accommodate king and protector of kingdom and to protect and store the wealth won from other countries. These walled cities are important it represent history. Today walled cities are facing lots of problems. They are in the state of decline. Today walled cities are deteriorating environmentally as well as economically. The routine traffic Jams make movement to and within Walled city difficult while collapsing civic amenities have contributed to out-migration of resident population. Earlier walled cities were heart of the city but now they are only inner core of the city. Now walled cities are surviving only because of its traditional markets. And this is only reason people visit the walled city. If these markets will shift outside the walled city, then it will become void. Similar problem is facing by Amravati walled city. Its 150-year-old sarafa market is Shifting outside the walled city. Because of lack of space for expansion, no parking facilities, width of the roads are very small, people are not willing to come inside the walled city.

Growth and development of bamboo in the coastal inundated area of Bangladesh

Bamboo has been introduced to coastal raised land under the Sonneratia apetala plantation and grew barren land in inundated areas in the western coastal belt of Bangladesh. This study aimed to quantify the bamboo growth in inundated areas at minimound, plain land, and barren land and under the S. apetala plantation and characterize the impact of inundation, soil pH, and soil salinity. The experimental plantation was carried out by B. vulgaris and B. balcooa on a mini-mound on barren coastal raised land in 2018. Other experiments of B. vulgaris were carried out on mini-mound and plain land under the S. apetala plantation in 2019 and 2020. Seedlings were raised by branch cutting. Mini mounds were prepared with soil. The soil sample was collected at different depths in off-peak and peak periods to determine soil pH, electrical conductivity (dsm-1), and nitrogen%. The growth of B. vulgaris in survival (p-value 0.0004) and new culms initiation% (p-value 0.0068) were significantly higher than B. balcooa in the barren land. Soil electrical conductivity showed significantly higher in all soil depths at barren land than under S. apetala forest in off-peak (p-value 0.0000, 0.0000, 0.0016) and peak periods (p-value 0.0002, 0.0028, 0.0000). The higher soil salinity affects the growth of two bamboo species. The higher soil pH affected the growth of B. balcooa on barren land. The growth performance of B. vulgaris showed significantly better survival% (p-value 0.030), height (p-value 0.0010), girth (p-value 0.011), total culms per clump (p-value 0.0086), and new culms initiation% (p-value 0.022) on the mini mound than plain land under S. apetala forest in 2019 and 2020 except height growth. The present study observed an inundation impact on the growth of B. vulgaris in the plain land plantation. B. vulgaris performed better on mini-mound under the S. apetala forest in inundated coastal areas. J. Asiat. Soc. Bangladesh, Sci. 49(1): 55-69, June 2023

Effectiveness of the Comprehensive Community-Based Intervention on Maternal and Child Health in Bangladesh

The current study looked at the influence of a community intervention on maternal and child health in five Bangladeshi districts. To determine the impact on the intervention, data was acquired through a baseline and end-of-project review. A quasi-experimental design was used in this investigation, which included a baseline and end line survey with the same variables. The research was carried out in two geo demographic groups of districts including plain land districts with easy access to services, such as Tangail and Khulna, and hard to reach locations, such as Netrakona, Cox's Bazar, and Bandarban. Program impact on uptake of maternal and child health services, as defined by the health services/behaviors for the index pregnancy, was analyzed using difference-in-difference analysis. All programs that provided information and counseling to women and their families, often in conjunction with other program measures, increased the number of women who received ANC from a medically certified person during their pregnancy significantly. The community-based programs also resulted in a significant increase in the use of neonatal and child health services. The findings of this study serve as a foundation for maternal and newborn health policies as well as intervention evaluation in both easily accessible and difficult-to-access places.

Digital mapping of selected soil properties using machine learning and geostatistical techniques in Mashhad plain, northeastern Iran

Understanding the spatial variation of soil properties is essential for monitoring land capabilities as well as the sustainable management of soil resources. The aim of this study was to predict digital soil properties mapping using 23 environmental variables, i.e., terrain attributes and remote sensing (RS) indices, across 1500 km2 of Mashhad plain lands. To achieve this purpose, a total of 180 soil samples (0–10 cm) were taken. The random forest (RF) model combined with ordinary kriging (OK), as well as regression kriging (RK), were applied to relate environmental variables and the studied soil properties. The results revealed that RF-OK was the best model with R2 and RMSE for silt (0.89% and 0.10%), followed by calcium carbonate equivalent (0.88% and 3.30%), clay (0.87% and 2.26%), soil organic carbon (0.86% and 0.24%), sand (0.84% and 4.21%), and pH (0.82% and 5.42%). The RS covariates, including band 5 (B5), modified soil-adjusted vegetation index (MSAVI), difference vegetation index (DVI), band 2 (B2), carbonate rock index (CRI2), gypsum index (GI), and enhanced vegetation index (EVI), and terrain attributes, including topographic wetness index (TWI) and elevation (EL), and topographic position index (TPI), were the most important variables in modeling different soil properties. RF-OK showed the prediction and uncertainty maps related to high precision and low standard deviation in most study areas, which indicate low overfitting and overtraining in modeling processes. In general, the RF-OK model, with low cost and high accuracy, can be applicable to use for predicting different soil properties, as well as spatial information acquired from an effort to maps to managing agriculture in areas at different conditions. Finally, this method can be applied to other regions of similar properties and for similar purposes.