Rural Areas Of Nepal Research Articles

Film review: Sita, A Girl from Jambu

Children, Youth and Environments Vol. 17 No. 4 (2007) ISSN: 1546-2250 Film review: Sita, A Girl from Jambu Illène Pevec University of Colorado Citation: Pevec, Illène. (2007). "Film review: Sita, A Girl from Jambu." Children, Youth and Environments 17 (4). Retrieved [date] from http://www.colorado.edu/journals/cye/ Producer, co-writer, director, editor: Kathleen Man Released: 2006 In Nepal, 7,000 to 10,000 children, mostly girls, are kidnapped or lured into the sex trade and sold into brothels in India each year. Nepalese girls from small villages live lives of hard work gathering fodder for livestock, carrying water, tending crops, children and households. Men, pimps for the brothels of India, lure the girls with promises of fame and easy work as actresses or models. Sita, A Girl from Jambu, filmed entirely on-location in Nepal, introduces us to one such girl and her tragic and all too-common tale. Kathleen Man, the producer, director, editor and co-writer with the children in the cast, worked with the Free A Child Bitali Project in Nepal (www.freeachild.org) to develop and film this documentary. The cast comes from a girls’ street theater company, part of the Bitali Project, which exists to heighten awareness of this danger to girls as young as ten in rural areas of Nepal. Facilitators work with the girls to help them write scripts and songs, to perform dramas at market places—literally in the streets—to alert girls and their families to the constant danger of the sex trade. The girls call their street play Bitari Sita (Poor Sita). The film moves deftly from street theater to film story and back again to show the contrast of young girls having fun together working on a creative project performed in their community market places, to the treachery and fear that awaits thousands of girls trapped in the international trafficking of children for sex. The girls in the street theater program, young teens from the community with no training 443 in drama before their participation in this project, wrote not only the script but also the songs they sing. The original soundtrack won an award at the Moondance Festival. This award-winning video highlights a problem infamous in the Nepal/India border region. But Free A Child has also worked in Denver, Colorado since 2006 because homeless teens in the U.S. are also at risk of being solicited into the sex trade. These frightening problems affecting children also exist in countries considered to be “developed.” Man’s film brings the child-sex trade problem into vivid color for international audiences, and gives those showing it the opportunity to tie it to local information, lest people think only far-away places harbor such crimes. Development organizations, schools, youth groups, and teachers, can use this vivid and touching portrayal of children trapped in a cycle of poverty, ignorance and constant danger to heighten awareness and stimulate discussion. Sita, A Girl from Jambu has won Jury Award for Best Documentary at the University Film/Video Conference at Chapman University, CA; an Award of Commendation by the jury of the Society for Visual Anthropology/American Anthropological Association Film and Video Festival (SVA/AAA); Best Documentary and Best Score at the Moondance International Film Festival in Hollywood; and Best Documentary at the Bare Bones International Independent Film Festival in Muskogee, OK. From Salmon Film’s websitehttp://www.salmonpictures.net/links.html, downloaded July 10, 2007: Currently, Kathleen is co-directing and editing a feature-length documentary entitled Beauty Mark, a film that examines American society’s obsession with unattainable beauty and perfection. Kathleen was an Iowa Fellow at the University of Iowa, where she received an M.F.A. in Film and Video Production and an M.A. in Communication Studies. At YaleUniversity, she received a B.A. with honors and distinction in Film Studies and the Howard Lamar Prize in Film Studies. Kathleen has been a professor of film production in the Film Studies Program at the University of Colorado at Boulder 444 since 2001, where she teaches fiction and documentary filmmaking, directing, cinematography, editing and screenwriting. In Fall 2007, Kathleen will join the faculty of the...

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus and impaired fasting glucose/glycaemia (IFG) in suburban and rural Nepal—the communities-based cross-sectional study during the democratic movements in 1990

A rising prevalence of Type 2 diabetes and impaired fasting glucose/glycaemia (IFG) was recently reported in the urban areas of Nepal by Singh and Bhattarai [D.L. Singh, M.D. Bhattarai, High prevalence of diabetes and impaired fasting glycaemia in urban Nepal, Diabet. Med. 20 (2003) 170–171] in the first population-based study based on the revised diagnostic criteria of ADA-1997 and WHO-1998. In comparison with our community-based survey done in 1990 in suburban and rural areas of Nepal, the current data show a surprisingly rapid increase in the prevalence of diabetes in the Nepalese population. In our 1990 study, diabetes and IFG, respectively, were present in 1.4 and 2.5% of people ≥20 years old in suburban village (Bhadrakali) compared with 0.3 and 0.7% in a rural village (Kotyang). In a short communication, Singh and Bhattarai found the rates to be 14.6 and 9.1% in urban areas, and 2.5 and 1.3% in rural areas. This phenomena appears to have been influenced more by rapid urbanization and changes in lifestyles after the ongoing democratic movements that have taken place since 1990 in Nepal. Moreover, our new analysis of the data provide baseline features for the planning of health care policy and establishment of medical priorities in modern day Nepal.

Bancroftian filariasis in Nepal: a survey for circulating antigenemia of Wuchereria bancrofti and urinary IgG4 antibody in two rural areas of Nepal

Serum and urine samples were randomly collected from residents in two rural areas at different altitudes in Nepal, and were examined for Wuchereria bancrofti antigens and antibodies (IgG4) to filarial antigens, respectively. In Judigaun, located at 900 m in altitude, 25.2% of 238 serum samples were positive for antigen, and 50.8% of 244 urine samples were positive for antibody. The level of IgG4 antibodies was higher among antigen positive individuals than among the antigen negatives. In Kotyang, located at 1100–1300 m, the prevalence of antigenemia was 15.4% of 117 serum samples.

DESIGN OF A SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM FOR PREGNANCY AND ITS OUTCOMES IN RURAL NEPAL

IntroductionCommunity trials in low-income countries require monitoring and evaluation systems.The requirements of a community surveillance system include coherent design, training,field supervision and reporting, as well as the need for a robust and flexible database.Materials and methodsThis paper describes a surveillance system for identification of pregnancy and itsoutcomes in a rural area of Nepal. Mother Infant Research Activities (MIRA), incollaboration with the Institute of Child Health, London, are presently conducting astudy on the impact of a community-based participatory intervention to improveessential newborn care (ENC) in rural Nepal. The study is a cluster randomisedcontrolled trial involving 12 pairs of Village Development Committees (VDCs) inMakwanpur District. The surveillance system covers approximately 28 000 householdsand 28 000 married women of reproductive age. It was designed to identify pregnancy,its outcome for mother and infant, and activities such as antenatal care and problem-related health care seeking behaviour.DiscussionThe paper describes the processes of mapping and enumeration, pregnancyidentification, conduct of interviews, quality control and data management.Key Words: data quality, database, rural Nepal.

Revisiting rural energy analysis

Rural energy planning is characterised by matching, as far as possible, the available local energy supply with various energy end-uses. For this matching, decision-makers have to consider several issues, such as cost, technology, sustainability and equity. These objectives are conflicting and, therefore, it is difficult to find an optimised solution. Therefore, such problems should be analysed by an alternative method, such as multiobjective programming, by which more than one objective can be analysed simultaneously. This paper reviews rural energy planning and illustrates the use of a multiobjective method in rural energy analysis. The method is applied to study energy problem of a rural area in Nepal. The preliminary results, which can be taken as a guideline in the formulation of energy policy, are also presented.

95/03838 Economics of shaft power applications in rural areas of Nepal

Regulated intercellular signaling is essential for the maintenance of bone mass. In recent work we described how osteoblasts and osteoclasts express functional receptors for the excitatory amino acid, glutamate, indicating that a signaling pathway analogous to synaptic neurotransmission exists in bone. Here, we show that osteoblasts also express the essential molecular framework for regulated glutamate exocytosis to occur as is present in presynaptic neurons. A combination of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and northern and western blotting is used to show expression of the target membrane-SNARE (soluble NSF attachment protein receptor), proteins SNAP-25 and syntaxin 4 and the vesicular-SNARE protein VAMP (synaptobrevin), the minimum molecular requirements for core exocytotic complex formation. Immunofluorescent localizations reveal peripheral SNAP-25 expression on osteoblastic cells, particularly at intercellular contact sites, colocalizing with immunoreactive glutamate and the synaptic vesicle-specific protein, synapsin I. We also identify multiple accessory proteins associated with vesicle trafficking, including munc18, rSec8, DOC2, syntaxin 6, and synaptophysin, which have varied roles in regulated glutamate exocytosis. mRNA for the putative Ca2+-dependent regulators of vesicle recycling activity, synaptotagmin I (specialized for fast Ca2+-dependent exocytosis as seen in synaptic neurotransmission), and the GTP-binding protein Rab3A are also identified by northern blot analysis. Finally, we demonstrate that osteoblastic cells actively release glutamate in a differentiation-dependent manner. These data provide compelling evidence that osteoblasts are able to direct glutamate release by regulated vesicular exocytosis, mimicking presynaptic glutamatergic neurons, showing that a process with striking similarity to synaptic neurotransmission occurs in bone.

Economics of shaft power applications in rural areas of nepal

The authors examine the economic and financial viability of low capacity (5–20 hp) shaft power application technologies utilizing various energy sources in three villages of Nepal, each from a different physiographic zone. In general, the economic and financial supply price of shaft power is sensitive to changes in variables such as capital cost, annual operating hours, diesel price, labour cost and discount rate. However, the degree of sensitivity of each variable to the supply price of shaft power delivered from different technologies varies significantly, thereby changing the relative attractiveness of technologies based on the assumed conditions. Site specific analysis of each technology is therefore imperative for rural energy planning.

Promoting small towns for rural development: A view from Nepal

Two small villages in Nepal are the subjects of case studies that illustrate the role of small towns in provision of services, employment, and market operations. Some general findings are that small towns act as service centers for distribution of basic essential goods such as food grains, salt, kerosene, and fabric for hill and mountain areas. The role of small towns as market centers and in the provision of employment is limited. In resource-poor areas small towns are less diversified. Towns with agricultural surpluses are more developed. Small hill towns satisfy consumption rather than production needs. The growth of rural areas and towns in rural areas in Nepal is dependent on arable land and levels of production in hill areas. Limited land and low levels of production have an adverse impact. Movement of people, goods, and services is limited by difficult terrain and lack of access to good roads. Variability in access to off-farm jobs and services available in small towns varies with ethnicity and place of residence. The best development strategy for small towns in Nepal is market-oriented territorial development, which retains surpluses in the local area and integrates markets in the larger economy. The strategy would decentralize planning into small territorial units that include both small towns and groups of villages, provide institutional support for the rural poor, expand off-farm employment, and include investment in region-serving functions. Subsistence agriculture needs to include diversification of high value cash crops based on local comparative advantage suitable for hill climate and terrain. Small farmers must produce both cash and subsistence crops. Government should provide market space and paved areas, weighing facilities, and overnight storage facilities. Products would be processed at the village level. Subdistricts must be established according to spatial and social linkages between villages and the service center and coordinated at the district level. Group marketing, transport to large urban centers, and agricultural technical services are needed.

Socioeconomic, demographic and environmental determinants of infant mortality in Nepal

The Nepal Fertility and Family Planning Survey of 1986 demonstrated that demographic variables, previous birth interval and survival of preceding child, still predominated as determinants of infant mortality, particularly in rural areas of Nepal. However, in urban Nepal, where the level of socioeconomic development is higher, an environmental variable, along with previous birth interval and survival of preceding child emerges as important in determining infant mortality. Separate policy measures for child survival prospects in rural and urban Nepal are suggested.

Energy and subsistence Nepalese agriculture

Methods used to estimate total energy input requirements and outputs of the subsistence agriculture in the rural areas of Nepal are described and the availability and usage pattern of animate energy along with associated biomass energy output and its subsequent use in Nepalese subsistence agriculture examined. Massive hidden unemployment in subsistence agriculture, coupled with the competing use of animal dung as manure and fuel as well as the competing use of agricultural residue as fuel and fodder, need serious attention in order to avoid an impending rural crisis.

The distribution of refractive errors among children attending Lumbini Eye Institute, Nepal

Uncorrected refractive error is an important cause of childhood blindness and visual impairment. To describe the patterns of refractive errors among children attending the outpatient clinic at the Department of Pediatric Ophthalmology, Lumbini Eye Institute, Bhairahawa, Nepal. Records of 133 children with refractive errors aged 5 - 15 years from both the urban and rural areas of Nepal and the adjacent territory of India attending the hospital between September and November 2010 were examined for patterns of refractive errors. The SPSS statistical software was used to perform data analysis. The commonest type of refractive error among the children was astigmatism (47 %) followed by myopia (34 %) and hyperopia (15 %). The refractive error was more prevalent among children of both the genders of age group 11-15 years as compared to their younger counterparts (RR = 1.22, 95 % CI = 0.66 - 2.25). The refractive error was more common (70 %) in the rural than the urban children (26 %). The rural females had a higher (38 %) prevalence of myopia than urban females (18 %). Among the children with refractive errors, only 57 % were using spectacles at the initial presentation. Astigmatism is the commonest type of refractive error among the children of age 5 - 15 years followed by hypermetropia and myopia. Refractive error remains uncorrected in a significant number of children.

Serodiagnosis of Dengue by Particle Agglutination Assay

Background: Dengue is an emerging public health problem in Tarai Region of Nepal. The most affected are among the poorest populations living in remote, rural areas and urban slums who have even no access for medical treatment. This study was carried out with the objective of the determining the serodiagnosis of dengue in symptomatic individuals and comparing it to IgM ELISA. Methods: One hundred eighty three samples were collected from the suspected cases having clinical symptoms of dengue in the Tarai region of Nepal during September to October 2007. Particle Agglutination (PA) assays was performed and it was compared with IgM capture ELISA. Results: Out of the total of 183 serum samples that 55(30%) samples were positive by PA assay. When compared with IgM-capture ELISA, a 50 of 55 were positive (sensitivity of 98% and specificity of 96%; a positive prediction value of 90% and negative prediction value of 99%). Conclusions: The finding of this study showed that dengue is firmly established in low endemic Tarai region of Nepal. The sensitivity and specificity of PA assay is acceptably high and will be useful in rural areas of Nepal. Key words: Dengue, Tarai region, Particle agglutination test, IgM capture ELISA DOI: 10.3126/jnhrc.v7i1.2276 Journal of Nepal Health Research Council Vol. 7, No. 1, 2009 April 29-32

Concept of environmental justice in Nepal: Environmentalism of poor for sustainable livelihood

Environmental justice has emerged as a new concept to address environmental problems of grassroots level from the perspectives of affected and less privileged communities or individuals of a society. This paper relates environmental justice as environmentalism of poor to their livelihood security through the access to resources, decision making power and clean and healthy environment. There are several discriminatory and unjust practices in both urban and rural areas of Nepal. Those vary from disproportionate sharing of ecological benefits and hazards in society to the unequal access to resources, healthy environment, decision-making, information and other civil rights. These injustices are mainly rooted in existing social structure with differential distribution of economic and political power. Some approaches are also discussed to correct environmental injustices, which include essential legal, political and social provisions for improved participation, access to information and access to justice.
 
 Himalayan Journal of Sciences 1(1): 47-50, 2003