The South Asian region, including India, faces an increased prevalence of illicit drug use. Key challenges include rising opioid use, injecting drug use and spread of stimulant use from some pockets to other regions of the country. Challenges faced are poor surveillance, lack of evidence-based and structured prevention programmes, wide treatment gaps and inadequate social capital for reintegration of substance users into society. The drug control efforts in India have resulted in an improved drug offence surveillance system, increased community awareness, a growing network of drug treatment centres and resource-building measures. India has made pioneering efforts in the field of harm reduction in the South Asian region. The steps taken have the potential of applicability across other South Asian, as well as most low- and middle-income, countries around the world.

We surveyed 111 institutions’ practices for screening and decolonization of Staphylococcus aureus in presurgical patients. Institutions commonly utilize universal, targeted, or no decolonization strategies. Frequently reported products were nasal mupirocin, chlorhexidine gluconate bathing, and nasal povidone-iodine. Practice variability indicates opportunities to define optimal strategies.

Redweed is a tropical, erect branched herb, and one of the predominant broadleaf weeds affecting upland crops in the Onattukara Sandy Plains of Kerala, India. Experiments were conducted in a screenhouse in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India, to determine the effects of seed burial depth and seed scarification on emergence indices and growth attributes of redweed. Scarification stimulated emergence and resulted in greater values for emergence indices and seedling parameters. The seedling emergence of redweed was influenced by seed burial depth. Shallow seed burial (2 cm) of scarified and non-scarified seeds resulted in greater seedling length (70 cm and 58 cm, respectively), seedling biomass (0.72 g and 0.48 g, respectively), emergence percentage (60% and 32%, respectively), and greater values for other emergence indices. As the depth of seed burial increased from 2 cm, emergence and seedling biomass decreased, exhibiting lower values for the emergence indices. Correlation and regression studies revealed that seed burial depth of scarified and non-scarified seeds greater than 2 cm had a negative effect on seedling emergence and biomass of redweed. Weed biology studies indicated that redweed displayed notable consistency in its phenological traits, regardless of the location where the seeds were collected, as little ecotype variability was observed. Emergence occurred in 6 d, 50% flowering in 44 d, capsule formation in 56 d, and maturity in 76 d. On average, a single plant produced 277 seeds and had a 100-seed weight of 0.31 g. A stale seedbed with shallow tillage or deep plowing to a depth of 10 cm before sowing can be adopted to reduce the infestation of redweed.

This paper presents a substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) differential antenna for full duplex applications. The proposed antenna consists of two square SIW cavities named as outer and inner. The inner cavity is nested into the outer cavity. The outer cavity is differentially excited with a pair of coaxial feed lines, while the inner square patch is orthogonally excited with another pair of differential coaxial feed lines. This orthogonal feeding arrangement results in high isolation between the differential ports. The modified hybrid TE130/310 mode of the outer cavity radiates through a pair of arc-shaped slots at 9.35 GHz, while the TM01 mode of the inner square patch is responsible for the radiations at 8.65 GHz. The proposed antenna prototype is fabricated and measured for validation. Moreover, the designed antenna has a front-to-back ratio better than 22 dB and measured maximum gain values of 6.1 dBi and 7.6 dBi at 8.65 GHz (Port 2 ON) and 9.35 GHz (Port 1 ON), respectively.

Background: Staphylococcus aureus (SA) is the most common pathogen causing surgical site infections (SSIs). In the past decade, strategies incorporating new SA decolonization products have been implemented to prevent SSIs in surgical patients. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine which pre-operative screening and decolonization strategies are currently utilized in healthcare institutions. Methods: A survey was programmed in REDCap and emailed to members of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America Research Network, the Minnesota chapter of the Association of Practitioners in Infection Control and Epidemiology, and the Minnesota Hospital Association between May-August 2023. We report the prevalence of institutional screening and decolonization strategies and decolonization products used for the prevention of SA SSIs. Results: A total of 153 unique institutions initiated the survey and 111 provided complete data on their institutional screening and decolonization strategies. The most commonly reported strategies included universal decolonization (decolonization of pre-operative patients without screening for carrier status) (n=31, 27.9%), no screening or decolonization (n=24, 21.6%), targeted screening for methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and decolonization based on carrier status (n=24, 21.6%), or MRSA only screening and decolonization (n=11, 9.9%) (Figure 1). Institutions that utilized targeted screening and decolonization strategies frequently reported using nasal mupirocin (n=18, 66.7%MSSA, n=29, 60.4%MRSA), chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) bathing (n=16, 59.3%MSSA, n=28, 58.3%MRSA), and CHG cloths (n=7, 25.9%MSSA, n=14, 29.2%MRSA) (Figure 2). Among the 31 institutions that reported implementing the universal decolonization strategy, CHG bathing (n=18, 58.1%), CHG cloths (n=15, 48.4%), and nasal povidone iodine (n=14, 45.2%) were the most prevalent decolonization products. Additionally, a smaller percentage of institutions used nasal alcohol gel (n=5, 16.1%) for universal decolonization. Conclusion: Compared to the survey we conducted in 2012, we report a new shift towards universal decolonization and a small increase in targeted SA screening and decolonization.1 In the 2012 survey we reported 37% of respondents’ institutions screened pre-operative patients for SA carriage and the majority of those institutions decolonized carriers.1 Universal decolonization was not reported in the 2012 survey.1 We highlight the continued heterogeneity in practice at this time, which may reflect the ongoing uncertainty in optimal decolonization practices and emphasizes the need for future research. References: 1. Kline, S. et al. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2014;35(7):880-882.

For the first time in the Indian subcontinent, a series of royal burials with chariots have been recovered from the Chalcolithic period at the archaeological site Sinauli (29°8′28″N; 77°13′1″E), Baghpat district, western Uttar Pradesh, India. Eight burials were excavated from the site; among them a royal burial with copper decorated legged coffin (lid with a series of anthropomorphic figures) and headgear has also been recovered. Among these remarkable discoveries, three full-sized chariots made of wood and copper, and a sword with a wooden hilt, made this site unique at historical ground. These cultural findings signify that the ancients from this place were involved in warfare. All these recovered exclusive antiquities also proved the sophistication and the high degree of craftsmanship of the artisans. According to the 14C radiocarbon dating and recovered material culture, the site date back to 4000 yr BP (∼2000 BCE) and is thought to belong to Ochre-Coloured Pottery (OCP)/Copper Hoard culture. This culture was believed to develop in the Ganga-Yamuna Doab and was contemporary to the late phase of the Indus civilization. Altogether, the findings indicate that the time period of this culture is plausibly contemporary to Late Indus, Mesopotamian and Greece civilizations.

To investigate the symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection, their dynamics and their discriminatory power for the disease using longitudinally, prospectively collected information reported at the time of their occurrence. We have analysed data from a large phase 3 clinical UK COVID-19 vaccine trial. The alpha variant was the predominant strain. Participants were assessed for SARS-CoV-2 infection via nasal/throat PCR at recruitment, vaccination appointments, and when symptomatic. Statistical techniques were implemented to infer estimates representative of the UK population, accounting for multiple symptomatic episodes associated with one individual. An optimal diagnostic model for SARS-CoV-2 infection was derived. The 4-month prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 was 2.1%; increasing to 19.4% (16.0%–22.7%) in participants reporting loss of appetite and 31.9% (27.1%–36.8%) in those with anosmia/ageusia. The model identified anosmia and/or ageusia, fever, congestion, and cough to be significantly associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Symptoms’ dynamics were vastly different in the two groups; after a slow start peaking later and lasting longer in PCR+ participants, whilst exhibiting a consistent decline in PCR- participants, with, on average, fewer than 3 days of symptoms reported. Anosmia/ageusia peaked late in confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (day 12), indicating a low discrimination power for early disease diagnosis.

Carrot is an important vegetable crop worldwide valued for its fleshy edible roots of varied colours. Owing to its highly cross-pollinated nature and small flower size, cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) is being utilized for hybrid development. Among different types of male sterility, petaloid CMS is widely used for hybrid carrot breeding globally. This study aimed to develop selection criteria for parents in developing heterotic F1 hybrids using CMS lines. A large number of agro-morphological traits and Simple Sequence Repeats (genomic-SSRs) were used to assess the diversity among parental lines. We developed 60 F1 hybrids by crossing four petaloid CMS lines and 15 testers in line × tester mating design and evaluated them in replicated randomized block design trial for four vegetative and 11 economic traits. The mean squares of all the traits in line × tester interactions were significant. The estimates of genetic components of variance indicated predominance of non-additive gene action except for root maturity, root length and core diameter. The hybrids with highest per se performance also had significant positive specific combining ability effects. The root yield and root weight showed highest heterosis percentage (33%). The best performing heterotic hybrids were DCatH-5392, DCatH-700 and DCatH-9892. Correlation between genetic distance and relative heterosis of economic traits indicated no significant association and thus genetic distance could not be used to predict heterosis. As most of the yield-related traits were controlled by non-additive gene action, heterosis breeding could be potentially used along with combining ability analysis to reduce time in selection of best parents and crosses in tropical carrot.

Solute dispersion in Carreau–Yasuda fluid flow in a tube presented in Rana & Murthy (Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A, vol. 472, 2016, p. 20160294) was limited to a steady-state velocity profile due to the nonlinearity associated with the Yasuda parameter $a$ with power-law exponent $n$. This limitation is overcome and the velocity profile is obtained for all values of the Yasuda parameter by using the Lagrange inversion theorem, which admits power series solution for the flow field. An analytical solution for the concentration distribution in the circular tube is obtained for the unsteady and pulsatile flow with $n\leq 1$ and $\alpha <<1$ and the numerical solution is presented for all values of $\alpha$ and $n$. The solute dispersion is analysed analytically using the Sankarasubramanian–Gill generalized dispersion method and also using the Aris–Barton method of moments considering up to fourth-order moments. The solute dispersion is also simulated numerically by using a new class of computationally explicit Runge–Kutta method. The axial mean concentration of the solute is estimated by the exchange, convective and dispersion coefficients. The third- and fourth-order moments give rise to skewness and kurtosis revealing the deviation from the Gaussianity and reduction in the peak of the mean concentration profile at a small time of the solute injection. All time variations of these five moments against flow governing parameters are thoroughly investigated. The flow and dispersion regimes that are derived here for moments provide a good understanding of the solute dispersion in the tube. The increase in the Womersley frequency parameter led to a phase lag at each period. This work is the initiation of estimating the skewness and kurtosis in a non-yield stress fluid flow in a tube.

This article examines whether firms engaged in high levels of voluntary CSR (corporate social responsibility) alter their strategic choices in response to detrimental public policy – specifically India's Companies Act (2013) that mandates qualifying firms to spend 2% of their three-year average net profits on CSR. Drawing on the concept of organizational dormancy, we argue that firm capabilities, political awareness, exposure to political pluralism, and ownership identity may explain choice heterogeneity among these firms. Our key and non-intuitive finding is that even in the absence of discretionary choice in determining optimal CSR expenditure, firms are less likely to choose dormancy and instead embrace and even surpass the stipulations of the law in their CSR contributions. Also, politically aware firms are more likely to opt for dormancy over compliance. Managerial and policy implications are discussed.

Sri Lanka has a history of successfully managing communicable diseases by utilising its extensive public healthcare network of community clinics and public hospitals. This article makes use of Job Demands-Resources theory (JD-R) to examine the impact of COVID-19 on nurses’ working conditions in public and private hospitals in Sri Lanka. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses’ job demands on public hospital wards included long working hours, limited workplace autonomy, minimal medical resources and high workloads caused by understaffing. Private hospital nurses experienced pressure from patients and their families to provide them with discounts on medical bills. Nurses allocated to work on COVID-19 wards experienced additional physical job demands from wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) for lengthy periods on hospital wards in a humid climate. Nurses on COVID-19 wards also experienced increased anxiety that they could transmit the disease to family members. While nurses experienced job resources such as social support from nursing supervisors and other nurses, they reported receiving minimal training in the provision of healthcare to COVID-19 patients. This combination of high job demands and low job resources increased the levels of exhaustion and mental distress experienced by many nurses working on COVID-19 hospital wards.

This paper proposes a novel multi-step broadcast control (MBC) scheme to deploy a group of autonomous mobile agents for accomplishing coverage tasks in a bounded region. Traditional broadcast control (BC) schemes use a one-to-all communication framework to transmit a uniform signal to all agents, making it cost-effective compared with any all-to-all communication-based scheme for a multi-agent system. However, as BC schemes are based on a single-step view of the environment for decision-making, the environment’s varying distribution density is not known immediately to the agents, resulting in suboptimal performance. To overcome this drawback, this paper proposes an MBC scheme, where agents use a predictive multi-step view and are able to detect the varying densities in the environment ahead of time. The local controller output is estimated using a weighted averaging technique which assigns a higher weight to immediate steps; this feature compensates for any decrease in prediction accuracy as the number of steps increases. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed MBC scheme using a coverage task over a region with uneven population density. Compared to existing BC schemes, the proposed MBC scheme shows superior convergence characteristics in task accomplishment and deployment efficiency.

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected treatment services for people with substance use disorders (SUDs). Based on the perspectives of service providers from eight countries, we discuss the impact of the pandemic on SUD treatment services. Although many countries quickly adapted in provision of harm reduction services by changes in policy and service delivery, some went into a forced abstinence-based strategy. Similarly, disruption of abstinence-based approaches such as therapeutic communities has been reported. Global awareness is crucial for responsible management of SUDs during the pandemic, and the development of international health policy guidelines is an urgent need in this area.

Survey data on Indian labour points to a rapid expansion of the care-domestic economy, currently the main employment avenue for urban women. Hitherto, studies on domestic service portray the unequal class structures of master–servant relationships and the escalating phenomenon of live-out and part-time hired help. This article shifts the focus to under-researched, yet increasingly visible, placement agencies, which regulate care-domestic markets and provide diverse services, from specialized ‘patient care’ to the training of subaltern communities. The article discusses how these service providers denote prominent shifts in skill sets, intra-household care arrangements, forms of medical assistance, and new (and old) mechanisms of authority. The ethnography expands our knowledge of everyday mediations around hiring and training between agencies, employers, and care-domestic workers in New Delhi. The article puts forward innovative conceptualizations of service provider approaches through juxtaposing the informal practices of local (or Indian) agencies with formalized and ‘civilizing’ agendas developed by Euro-American intermediaries. The formal–informal dichotomized framework of service provider relationships adds to critical scholarship that contrived dualisms which need historical scaffolding and nuanced engagement. I argue that, while informal and formal approaches appear markedly different for the care-domestic economy, they also overlap. Significantly, both approaches are unjustly weighted against the workers who lack the potential to democratize labour relations. Local agencies reinforce exploitative care-domestic relationships, while Euro-American intermediaries, who espouse modern values, formalization, and civilizing experiments, promulgate punitive regimes and stigmatized futures for their Indian subjects.

Violence against women is a global phenomenon, and intimate partner violence is the most common form of violence faced by women in the world. Around 30% of women in the world, on average, and 33% in India experience intimate partner violence during their lifetime. The main aim of this study was to investigate whether consanguinity protects women from spousal violence. National Family Health Survey 2015–16 (NFHS-4) data were used. The study sample comprised 60,824 currently married women aged 15–49 years. The results of the logistic regression model showed that the likelihood of all types of spousal violence against women was higher among consanguineous unions compared with non-consanguineous unions in India. The association between consanguineous marriage and spousal violence was found to be positive and significant in the southern and eastern regions of India and among Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The association was not significant among Muslims. Differences in socio-cultural norms and practices across the regions of India, and among different socio-cultural groups, can perhaps explain these variations. Women belonging in higher age groups, from Other Backward Castes, those who were working and those with a low level of educational attainment and socioeconomic standing had a higher risk of experiencing intimate partner violence. Couples in a consanguineous marriage should be given adequate counselling to reduce intimate partner violence in India, and similarly culturally diverse countries. This would also help reach Target 5.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.