Shivamogga District Research Articles

Constraints Faced by the Members of Women Milk Producers' Cooperative Societies in Shivamogga District of Karnataka, India

Women Milk Producers' Co-operative Societies (WMPCS) have emerged as an important source of rural employment and income in the country. The development of the WMPCS is very impressive in recent past. Shivamogga district is a good contributor to milk in Karnataka state. Keeping this in view, an ex-post facto research design was adopted to assess the constraints faced by the WMPCS members in dairy farming in the Shivamogga district of Karnataka. A total of 120 members were randomly selected from six WMPCS in two taluks of Shivamogga district and the data was collected with a semi-structured interview schedule. The collected data were subjected to suitable statistical tools and inferences were drawn. The study revealed that the majority of the women members had experienced the constraints in dairy farming like high cost of cattle feed and mineral mixture, low price of milk, high cost of crossbred cows, inadequate provision of loans in society or government for purchasing animals, lack of timely technical guidance, poor conception rate in dairy animals through artificial insemination, poor knowledge about feeding and health care, an increasing gap between farmers' prices and consumers' prices/increasing cost of handling charges by the union, Nonexistence of a price-fixing policy based on changing cost of production, decreasing animal sales and availability in the local livestock market, lack of training facilities or capacity-building activities and the non-availability of veterinary staff during needy hours as the constraints. Strategies should be developed for capacity building of women farmers related to scientific dairy managemental practices. Thrust should be given to development of policies and programmes for credit facilities.

First report of mealybug, Crisicoccus hirsutus (Newstead) on cocoa (Hemiptera, Peudococcidae) from India

During the survey, five species of mealybugs viz., Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni Tozzetti), Planococcus citri (Risso), Rastrococcus sp., Planococcus lilacinus Cockerell and Crisicoccus hirsutus Newstead) were found damaging cocoa crop. Among these, C. hirsutus, collected from cocoa plantation of Sagara taluk of Shivamogga District, Karnataka, is a new record from India.

Surface Runoff Estimation Using SCS-CN Method for Kurumballi Sub-watershed in Shivamogga District, Karnataka, India

SCS-curve number (CN) is one of the most well-liked and commonly applied methods for estimating surface runoff. The present study aims to calculate surface runoff using SCS-CN watershed-based calculation and geospatial technology in the Kurumballi sub-watershed Shivamogga District of Karnataka, India. The study area covers about an area of 47.67 sq. km. The union of land use/land cover classification with hydrological soil groups (HSG) yields the runoff estimation by the SCS-CN curve approach. This method calculates the runoff volume from the land surface flows into the river or streams. Moreover, the study area’s delineation of runoff potential zones was done using the thematic integration method. Different thematic layers were used, including lithology, geomorphology, soil, slope, land use and land cover, drainage, surface water bodies, groundwater contour, and isohyetal maps. Furthermore, associating it with the SCS-CN technique, the total surface runoff volume of the study area was estimated. The total surface runoff volume in the study area is 21065849.7 m3. To this study, thematic integration with the SCS-CN approach to estimate runoff for watersheds is valuable for improving water management and soil conservation.

Sonerila konkanensis Resmi & Nampy (Melastomataceae) – an addition to the flora of Karnataka, India

The present communication reports the Sonerila konkanensis Resmi & Nampy (Melastomataceae) plant species is an addition to Karnataka flora, collected from the forest of Shivamogga District, Karnataka, India. It is an endemic species, described from Goa, and hitherto known only from the type locality.

Understanding the Dynamics of MGNREGA Beneficiaries through Social Work Lens: A Study in Shivamogga District, Karnataka State, India

This comprehensive study delves into the intricate tapestry of MGNREGA beneficiaries' perspectives, unravelling a rich array of insights that illuminate their empowerment journey. The objectives of the study include understanding the socioeconomic dynamics of MGNREGA beneficiaries, examining its impact on livelihood security, exploring the role of social work in its implementation, and analyzing the empowerment dimensions of the program. Utilizing data from 80 respondents in Shivamogga District, the study employs the Shapiro-Wilk test for normality, ANOVA for group differences, and Tukey's post-hoc test for specific comparisons. Key findings highlight significant improvements in communication skills, decision-making power, leadership skills, and social empowerment among beneficiaries. Economic empowerment aspects, such as annual income and food consumption patterns, also showed positive outcomes. Psychological empowerment, encompassing attitudes towards the program, role perception, and desire for control, reflected a high level of empowerment. The research highlights the critical role of social work in enhancing and sustaining these positive impacts, offering recommendations for policy improvement and contributing to the advancement of rural development practices. This exploration extends beyond mere statistical analyses, offering a profound examination of the human dimensions that shape empowerment dynamics in rural India.

Diversity of Hymenopteran Parasitoids in different Crop Ecosystems

Surveys were carried out in different districts viz., Shivamogga, Davangere and Chitradurga of Karnataka to collect and document hymenopteran parasitoids parasitizing insect pests attacking different crop ecosystems. A total of 42 hymenopteran parasitoids species represented by 33 genera belonged 12 families were documented from a collection of 1379 specimens from different stages viz., egg, larva, pupa and adult stage of host insects from different host plants viz., rice, maize, cabbage, cotton, coconut, brinjal, cashew, crape jasmine, tobacco, field bean, soybean, arecanut, cocoa, okra and pongamia. Among them, maximum parasitoids species (20) were collected from larval stage of host insects with per cent species composition of 47.62. Among the families, Braconidae was found most dominant (comprised of 23.81%), followed by Eulophidae (16.67%), Encyrtidae and Scelionidae (each with 14.29%). Alpha and beta diversity were computed for the three zones. Species diversity in terms of richness, evenness and abundance of hymenopteran parasitoids were calculated and compared during study period using Shannon-Wiener index, Simpson diversity index, Margalef’s diversity index, Menhinick’s index and Evenness. Species diversity was high in Shivamogga district as evidenced by Shannon-Wiener index (2.49), Simpson diversity index (0.88), Margalef’s index (4.09) and Menhinick’s index (1.22) and Evenness (0.46), followed by Davanagere district with respect to Shannon-Wiener index (1.69) Simpson’s diversity index (0.75), Margalef’s index and Menhinick’s index (2.27 and 0.90), respectively, while evenness was 0.24 and Chitradurga district with respect to Shannon-Wiener index (1.34) Simpson’s diversity index (0.54), Margalef’s index and Menhinick’s index (2.12 and 0.59), respectively.

Impact Assessment of Water Users’ Co-operatives Initiative on Farms Returns in Bhadra Command Area of Shivamogga District, Karnataka, India

The present study was undertaken in Southern Transition Zone of Karnataka to estimate the impact of water users’ cooperatives (WUCs) initiative on returns realized by farmers in study area. Four villages of Bhadravathi taluk were selected, two having active WUCs i.e Kagekodamagge and Dananayakapura and remaining two having flaccid WUCs i.e Sriramanagara and Tiplapura. The required data was collected from 30 farmers from each WUCs. The net returns per ha for Arecanut (A), Arecanut+Coconut (A+C), Arecanut+Coconut+Banana (A+C+B), paddy and sugarcane was higher in farms under active water users’ co-operatives (Rs.6,45,094, Rs.7,07,192, Rs.8,08,093, Rs.8,166 and Rs.54,931) than flaccid water users’ co-operatives (Rs.4,26,072, Rs.4,50,459, Rs.5,28,057, Rs.7,284 and Rs.39,740). This can be mainly attributed to equitable distribution of water from head reach to tail reach along the canal in active water users’ cooperatives. For A, A+C and A+C+B cropping systems there was not much difference in net returns per ha between head reach (Rs. 4,76,100, Rs. 5,16,378 and Rs. 5,82,923 respectively) and tail reach (Rs. 4,31,215, Rs. 4,70,616 and Rs. 5,33,816 respectively) farmers of active water users’ co-operatives. Whereas in areas under flaccid water users’ co-operatives, the net returns per ha for head reach farmers was higher by Rs. 52,553, Rs. 64,142 and Rs. 1,45,721 over the tail reach farmers. The results from the study draw attention for the need of activating flaccid WUCs and establishing new WUCs in command areas to achieve higher net returns by all farmers along the canal.

Evaluation of in vitro antidiabetic, antioxidant, and antibacterial activities of phytochemicals from Memecylon malabaricum Cogn.

Introduction and Aim: Plant secondary metabolites have been found to have antidiabetic, antioxidant, and antimicrobial properties. Memecylon malabaricum Cogn., is one of endemic plant species belonging to the melastomataceae family which can be found in western ghats, sacred groves of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts of Karnataka, India. This study was to assess the antidiabetic, antioxidative and antimicrobial activities of alkaloids and saponins present in the plant M. malabaricum. Materials and Methods: Leaves of M.malabaricum were collected from forests of Western Ghats region, Shivamogga district in Karnataka, India. Alkaloids and saponins were isolated and quantified as previously described. Antidiabetic, antioxidant, and antimicrobial activities were evaluated for alkaloids and saponins of M. malabaricum leaves. Results and Discussion: Total alkaloid content and saponin content were found to be 147.407.00mg AE/g and 170.5347 mg QE/g and respectively. IC50 of LAF and LSF for alpha-amylase enzyme were found to be 62.117 and 151.058 mg/ml respectively, while for alpha-glucosidase the LAF and LSF exhibited 30.008 and 43.872 microgram/ml IC50 values respectively. At 100 microgram/ml concentration, the free radical scavenging activity of LSF reached around 74% for DPPH and 40% for nitric oxide. At 100 µg/ml concentration, the scavenging activity of LAF reached around 45% for DPPH and 26% for nitric oxide. The LSF has significantly inhibited both Gram-negative Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus bacteria compared to LAF. Conclusion: Compared to saponin fraction, alkaloid fraction has shown better antidiabetic activity against both alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase enzymes in vitro. Saponin fraction has exhibited better antioxidant activity than the alkaloid fraction. The saponin fraction exhibited better antibacterial activity compared to the alkaloid fraction. From the results, it could be concluded that alkaloid fraction and saponin fraction of the M. malabaricum leaves could be used to manage/treat the diabetic condition, as they possess antioxidant properties.

Kyasanur Forest Disease: An Epidemiological Investigation and Case-Control Study in Shivamogga, Karnataka, India-2022.

Kyasanur Forest Disease (KFD) is a viral zoonosis reported from Karnataka, India. We investigated cases in the Shivamogga district, Karnataka, to describe the epidemiology and identify risk factors in the affected block in 2022. A case was defined as a laboratory-confirmed KFD-positive resident of Shivamogga from 1 January-31 May 2022. We extracted the records of KFD cases from district surveillance. We conducted a 1:3 case-control study in the Thirthahalli block. We enrolled laboratory-confirmed KFD-positive Thirthahalli residents from January to May 2022 as cases, and residents without "fever with myalgia" as controls. We reported adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Shivamogga reported 35 cases, with a median age of 46 (4-75) years, of which 51% were men, and one death. Among 25 cases and 90 controls, knowledge of avoiding recent monkey death sites was low (cases = 0%, controls = 11%). Monkey death sites within 500m [aOR = 8.6 (1.8-41.9)] and household tick exposure [aOR = 3.7 (1.3-10.7)] were independent risk factors. This was a laboratory-confirmed cluster of KFD cases in Thirthahalli, with residence near a monkey death site and household tick exposure considered significant risk factors. We recommend evaluating monkey carcass disposal procedures and increasing awareness of tick protective measures.

Perceived Effectiveness of the Mobile Applications in Agriculture in Terms of Availability, Acceptance, Usage and Satisfaction

The rapid advancement of mobile technology has revolutionized various sectors, including agriculture. Mobile applications have emerged as promising tools to enhance agricultural practices by providing farmers with convenient access to vital information and services. This study aims to investigate the perceived effectiveness of mobile applications in agriculture, focusing on their availability, acceptance, usage, and satisfaction. An Ex-post facto research design was used for the present study. The study was conducted in two districts namely Chikkaballapur and Shivamogga districts of Karnataka state which were purposively selected. Chintamani taluq of Chikkaballapur district and Bhadravathi taluq of Shivamogga district are selected randomly. Two villages (Kaivara and Kurutahalli) from chintamani taluq, Hiriyurua and Nanjapura villages from Bhadravathi taluq were selected based on the simple random sampling method. From each village 30 farmers were selected randomly thus making it a total of 120 farmers from two districts. The four apps Farmrise, AgriApp, Krishi Mithra and Krishi Samyojaka were purposively selected based on its extensive use in the study area. The study showed that 67.50 per cent of the respondents had medium perceived effectiveness about the services of the mobile applications followed by low (19.16%) and high (13.34%) perceived effectiveness. The outcomes of this research contribute to a better understanding of the perceived effectiveness of mobile applications in agriculture and provides valuable insights into the availability, acceptance, usage, and satisfaction levels of these apps among farmers. Farmers are more likely to perceive mobile applications as effective when they are readily available and easily accessible in their daily farming activities. Alignment with specific needs and preferences is crucial for adoption. Promoting usage through training and support improves perceived app effectiveness. Farmer satisfaction, user feedback, and issue resolution enhance this perception. Emphasizing these aspects enables mobile applications to be more finely tuned to meet farmers' specific needs, leading to increased adoption, higher utilization, and ultimately, improved support for agricultural practices.

Kitchen Activities and Hands-on Experience during Lockdown COVID-19, Informal to Formal Education Core Subject Concepts an Empirical Study, Karnataka, India

Aim: Cooking and the kitchen have always been used to promote healthy eating habits in the home. However, there is little information about the learning while doing kitchen activities and the family member’s contribution in balancing family and COVID-2020-2021 phobia. The present study explores the unexplored concepts of kitchen action behind them with emotional bonding.
 Design: The study with a questionnaire to assess their experience being in the kitchen with the family members and to recall the relationship with the core textbook subjects.
 Place and Duration of the Study: The schools from 7 taluks of Shivamogga district Karnataka. However, the present study used the kitchen room as an informal learning area during the COVID-19 years (2019-2021).
 Methodology: We evaluated school students from 5-10 grades a total of 3800 students actively registered in the survey. The present study was an attempt to engage children (students) and family members to overcome the first phobia of school closure, what is next in the academic future. The later phobia was COVID symptoms; as a result, to connect people, family, and community with academic activities we examined how informal learning kitchen actions meet the goals of formal education (2019-2021).
 Results: The students involved in the study vary from Lower primary school (LPS – standard 1 to 4) 18.23%, Higher primary school (HPS – standard 5-8) 22.3%, and High school (HS – standard 8 to 10) 59.2%. The correlation was performed to know the relationship between sites with their interest in response to the kitchen activities and children (students) recalling /remembering based on the subject.
 Conclusions: The study revealed many interesting findings based on the family member's interaction within the kitchen. The present paper describes how homely activities evolved as continuous education without textbooks, pen, and pencil how hands-on experience remains forever, how they compared their actions being in the kitchen how it helped in remembering and recalling the core concepts of the textbook and how family played their mentor role, and how it benefitted them. COVID-19 and school closer opened new opportunities to learn and evaluate their subject concepts with experiments and Kitchen the super lab of Mother benefitted from experiential learning.

Harnessing Happiness in Education: Fostering Youth Leadership

Happiness in learning and fostering youth leadership go hand in hand, as both are essential components of personal and societal growth. By considering happiness in learning that fosters the leadership of youth, some happy teaching factors have identified. Keeping this scenario in the mind of the objective of the present study was conducted to how much the happy teaching factors contribute in students’ happy learning in Kendriya Vidyala, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyala, Government, Aided and Unaided secondary schools of Shivamogga district of Karnataka State. The sample of the study consisted of 400 students from 9th standard and research technique such as percentage analysis was adopted to find out the results of the study. The results of the present study showed that among 400 students about 57.5% (230) (High) about 40.4% (162) (Average), and about 2.1% (8) (Low), among 40 students of Kendriya Vidyalaya School about 52.5% (21) (High), about 40% (16) (Average) and about 7.5% (3) (Low), among 40 students of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya School about 57.5% (23) (High), about 37.5% (15) (Average) and about 5.0% (2) (Low), among 120 students of Government Secondary Schools about 59.2% (71) (High), about 39.1% (47) (Average) and about 1.7% (2) (Low), among 80 students of Aided Secondary Schools about 60% (40) (High), about 37.5% (30) (Average) and about 2.6% (2) (Low), among 120 students of Unaided Secondary Schools about 55.9% (67) (High), about 37.5% (45) (Average) and about 6.6% (8) have opined that happy teaching factors contribute their happy learning. This paper also makes a few suggestions to the government, policymakers, schools, and teachers that happy teaching factors contribute to fostering youth leadership for the holistic development of young individuals.

The study on the stressors among the bank employees with reference to the SBI Shivamogga District

There are certain common factors for the stress to occur among bank employees, because certainly it was believed that the banking operations are stressful. The stressful employees can happens to be creating the less of productivity, and this leads to have an understanding that the dealing with stress for the bankers is the most challenging task. This study is descriptive in nature and both primary and secondary data was collected for the study purpose. The growth of stress among the bank employees is very fast because they run with busy schedule and certainly it grows, at the same time the bank employees not realise that they are feeling stress and unintentionally that stress exposed on the bank employees and the ban customers, this need to be much considerable point, but they don’t know how to manage it and that is resulted to occupational stress among them and lower in the employee performance. There are certain factors which affect the bankers to have stressed; those are work pressure, family, technology, working environment and most importantly the demographic profile of the employees. Due to these factors the employee productivity can be changes; hence the purpose of the study is to understand the root causes and outcomes of the stress on the employee performance and development.

Outbreak of Army Worm, <i>Leucania albistigma</i> Moore on Maize with Notes on Taxonomy and Management

Army worms and cut worms are pests of crops and assume serious pest status occasionally causing significant damage to agricultural crops. Present study report the incidence and taxonomic identity of the pest which occurred in outbreak form causing severe defoliation on maize over 1000 ha in Shivamogga district of Karnataka. Infestation was also noticed on the adjoining fields of sorghum and rice at negligible level. Through morphological characters including genitalia and DNA barcoding, the taxonomic identity of Leucania albistigma Moore (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) as army worm in outbreak form is reported herewith for the first time from India. As its taxonomic information was scanty, redescription of all the stages has been provided. DNA barcoding and phylogenetic analysis revealed that species of the genera Leucania have a close relationship with those of Mythimna. Spatial distribution indices analysed indicated the uniform distribution in soil but aggregated distribution on maize. Select insecticides were evaluated in field targeting larvae with spray and with poison bait in randomised block design. Treatments with poison bait outperformed spray formulations, indicating that the larval behaviour could be exploited for management. Species of army worms are polyphagous and occur frequently in the Indian subcontinent, the taxonomic, ecological and management studies undertaken in the present study forms a basis for future monitoring of species identity and outbreaks on cereal crops.

Mating Behaviour and Egg Laying Pattern of the Areca Nut White Grub, Leucopholis lepidophora (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)

The mating behaviour and egg laying pattern of the areca nut white grub, Leucopholis lepidophora, were studied in the Shivamogga district’s Hosanagara taluk. Females were active between 18:40 and 19:20 hrs, when light intensity dropped to 83.62 lux. The most males approached the virgin female at 18:50 hrs (15.94 lux) and the session ended at 19:20 hrs (0.26 lux). The typical mating behaviour of L. lepidophora was investigated. Female beetles began abdominal expansion and contraction, which could indicate that semiochemical secretion has begun. Males then approached, calling out to females. Male raised all of its legs, turned its body ventrally, and became suspended by the genitalia after inserting genitalia into the female abdomen. Copulation lasted an average of 74.60±6.61 minutes. The adult female’s pre-oviposition period, oviposition period, and postoviposition period were 9.56± 2.04 days, 3.72± 2.35 days, and 5.24± 4.67 days, respectively. Female longevity ranged from 11 to 28 days, with an average of 18.52± 4.91 days. The incubation period was 9.56± 2.04 days, with varying fecundity and clutch intervals ranging from 24-48 hours. Experiment on egg laying pattern revealed that females waited an average of 9.56± 2.04 days before oviposition began, after which they began to lay varying numbers of eggs at an average clutch interval of approximately 24-48 hours.

Phosphatase activity of Phosphate Solubilizing Fungi Isolation from Rhizosphere Soil of Medicinal Plants of Shivamogga District

Phosphatases are a group of enzymes which significantly accelerate the release of inorganic phosphate from organically bound phosphate and return to the soil by phosphate solubilizing fungi. Hence for the present study, we focused on the activity of phosphatase. Total 46 fungi were isolated from 55 rhizosphere soils of medicinal plants at Malnad regions of Shivamogga district. Among them, 10 isolates were selected by screening them using their solubilization index ranging from 3.02 to 3.96 and they were further evaluated. The selected 10 isolates showed good results in phosphate solubilization parameters. Decreased pH was observed in culture broth (4.3 to 3.0) from initial pH of 6.89. Amount of acid present in the culture broth (30.01 - 38.08g/L) and concentration of phosphate (70 - 20μg/ml) were recorded. The phosphatases activity was determined on 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th days after incubation at room temperature. Among them, PSF 44 (Aspergillus awamori) showed maximum alkaline phosphatase activity of 0.81, 1.53, 2.15 and 2.38μg PNP liberated/ml/min and acid phosphatases activity of 0.71, 1.34, 2.30 and 2.34μg PNP liberated/ml/min on 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th day respectively after incubation. Hence due to the maximum phosphatase activity and phosphate solubilization capacity of Aspergillus awamori, they can be recommended as phospho-fungal bioinoculum for agricultural field.

Prevalence of rhizome rot complex in major ginger growing regions of Karnataka

Rhizome rot complex is one of the most destructive and economically important diseases of ginger. In this study,a roving survey was conducted during kharif - 2021 to assess the disease incidence of rhizome rot complex in major gingergrowing parts of Karnataka,viz., Haveri, Shivamogga and UttaraKannada districts. Among the various taluk as surveyed,the maximum disease incidence (35.99%) was recorded in Sirsi taluk of Uttara Kannada district and the minimum of21.50 per cent was observed in Byadagi taluk of Haveri district. Among the surveyed districts, the highest incidence of31.62 per cent was observed in Uttara Kannada district followed by Shivamogga district (28.81%) and the minimumincidence was observed in Haveri district (25.45%). Further, from the survey it was revealed that, selection of improperplanting material, poor drainage of fields, mono cropping, lack of crop rotation, indiscriminate use of fertilizers and lack ofknowledge on managing the disease could be the possible reasons for higher occurrence of rhizomerot complex in gingergrowing regions of Karnataka.

“FTIR, Uv- Vis And GCMS Analysis Of Potential Bioactive Compounds From Tinospora Cordifolia And Its Antibacterial Activity”

Medicinal plants are assuming greater importance in the primary health care of individuals and communities in many developing countries. Endophytes are the microorganisms inhabiting the living tissues of plants. Endophytic fungi from medicinal plants have created a huge potential in generating novel drugs. The secondary metabolites and their semi-synthetic derivatives play an important role in anticancer drug therapy. The present study is investigated for the isolation of endophytes from the inner bark of twigs and leaves of Tinospora cordifolia, collected from the Shankaraghatta regions, Shivamogga district of Karnataka and examined as a potential source of anticancer drug lead compound. Bioactive components of Tinospora cordifolia have been evaluated using GCMS, UV-VIS and FTIR and its antibacterial activity. GC-MS analysis revealed the chemical profile of extract of different compound, distinct peak, retention time (RT), molecular formula, molecular weight (MW) and chemical structure. The GC–MS analysis of methanol extracts detected the presence of 30 phytochemical compounds. The UV-VIS profile showed the presence of peaks at 190-500nm revealing the presence of secondary metabolites in T. cordifolia. The results of FTIR analysis confirmed the presence of phenol, alkanes, alkenes, alcohol, aromatic, aliphatic amines and amine compound. The results show that important bioactive compounds present in plant extract and these constituents may be responsible for pharmacological activities.

Determining relationship between core muscle strength and performance parameters of sportspersons at secondary school level

Core muscle ability is detrimental in skill-based fitness for athletes. Core stability and balance are critically important almost for all kinds of sports and activities. Having a strong and stable core muscle can help perform better and avoid injury. Nowadays, physical and technical experts, coaches and athletes at home and abroad have incorporated core strength into strength training, which has a certain effect on the special achievements of each project. Although the media portrays these ideas as truth, the scientific community remains uncertain as to the relationship between core stability and athletic performance. The purpose of the present study was to determine the relationship between core muscle strength and performance parameters of sportspersons at secondary school level of Shivamogga District. The subjects for the present investigation were 41 male inter school level sportspersons from various schools of Shivamogga District, Karnataka. The muscle strength was assessed through 3 tests- The forward medicine ball toss test, the backward medicine ball throw test and the rotational medicine ball throw test. Performance parameters include the following- Power, Speed, Agility, Coordination, Reaction time, Balance, Skill levels and Sports achievement. Pearson product moment correlation coefficient was used to examine the relationship between core muscle strength and selected performance parameters. Core muscle strength is negatively correlated with skill levels of high school sportspersons. Core muscle strength is negatively correlated with sports achievement of high school sportspersons. Core muscle strength is positively correlated with power of high school sportspersons.

Six new additions to algal flora of India

The present study confirms the existence of six species belonging to the class Chrysophyceae (4 species), Xanthophyceae (1 species), and Dinophyceae (1 species) reported for the first time in India from the perennial ponds of Shivamogga District, Karnataka. Further, the systematic account, description, and geographical distribution with collection sites are discussed in details.