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The study deals with the optimization of paddy residue management technologies for the management of paddy straw in combine harvested fields. The study emphasizes paddy straw management under different techniques (Retention, Incorporation and Removal of straw) with the use of different combinations of machinery. The research was conducted at farmer's field Dabra, Hisar, Haryana during 2017–18. The objective of the research was to evaluate techno-economic feasibility of different options of machinery. According to the results of the trials, the M4 (Combine harvester with SMS + Reversible mould board plough + Rotavator + Seed drill) had the greatest fuel consumption of 53.12 l/ha. M2 (Combine harvester with SMS + Spatial till drill) had the lowest fuel consumption of 22.29 l/ha. The lowest cost of operation of 63.32 `/q was found in treatment M2. Highest unit cost operation of 140.52 `/q was found in M9 (Traditional combine + Stubble shaver + Hay rake + Straw baler + Disc harrow (2 pass) + Planker + Seed drill). The benefit-cost ratio was found to be highest in traditional combine (1.99) and lowest in zero-till drill (1.11). Treatment-wise, benefit-ratio ratio was found maximum in treatment M10 (1.80) and minimum in M5 (1.50). According to the findings of study, residue retention technology is found better in comparison to straw incorporation and straw removal.

Conservation and conventional tillage directly affects soil environment for crop production. Conservation tillage provides a layer of crop residue which increases soil fertility, soil erosion, leaching of fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides into the ground water. Studies conducted in different climate zones showed that no-tillage resulted in acidification of surface layer when continued for several years compared to conventional tillage. Some study shows Conservation tillage enhance water infiltration rate and reduce moisture evaporation from soil, while some other study stated slower water infiltration rate in no tillage soil then on tilled. surface tillage and no tillage instead of conventional tillage are to control soil erosion, enhance crop performance, and use energy more efficiently. Decomposition of crop residues kept on the soil surface possibly release allele-chemicals which further strengthen the inhibitory effects on weed seed germination and early growth and development of weed plant. As with impact of tillage on root distribution, no-tillage causes greater and deeper water accumulation in the soil profile and greater root growth. Higher labor, animal or equipment requirement is a major drawback of conventional tillage. Conservational tillage allows elimination of several operations, depending on the conservation tillage systems used. Observation of numerous studies reveals that zero-tillage is superior to conventional tillage resulting in higher yields. Similarly several studies reveals that crops grown under zero tillage have yields as similar as or better than those grown under conventional tillage.

Potential methane-oxidizing-plant growth-promoting yeast was isolated and characterized during 2017-18 at the ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. Yeast isolates belonging to the genus Meyerozyma guilliermondii were isolated from five major flooded paddy growing regions of India. Among all the isolates, Meyerozyma guilliermondii KAS-143 efficiently oxidized methane up to 57.64% ± 0.83 in 6 d under in vitro conditions. It also produced a significant quantity of phytohormone IAA and solubilized P, K, and Zn. Meyerozyma guilliermondii KAS-143 can be used for devolving potential inoculants for flooded paddy which can not only promote plant growth but also simultaneously reduce methane emission by its oxidation.

As an agricultural state, Haryana (India) produces about six million metric tons (mt) of rice straw every year from rice cultivation. Currently, rice straw is either burned or ploughed into the field without being turned into a functional product. Burning of paddy straw pollutes the air, results in green house gas emission, particulate matter (2.5 and 10 µm) emission, considerable losses on the properties of the soil, soil nutrients, organic matter, productivity and biodiversity, and on and off-farm humans and animals’ health. The biochemically and functionally specified potential for optimal alternative use of the rice straw of 13 most widely produced rice varieties from Haryana’s eastern and western agro-climate zones was undertaken. Pusa-1401 variety had the highest cellulose (46.55%) and silica content (13.70%), while Pusa-1718 had hemicellulose (28.25%) and lignin (11.60%), respectively. Maximum nitrogen (0.81%), phosphorus (0.32%) and potassium (2.78%) were found in rice variety Pusa-1509, Pusa-1401 and Rice-6129. The findings seemed to be statistically significant (p

Microorganisms act as both the source and sink of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, thus making a significant contribution to the environment as an important driver of climate change. The rhizosphere and phyllosphere of plants growing in natural (mangroves) and artificial wetlands (flooded agricultural ecosystems) harbor methane-utilizing bacteria that oxidize methane at the source and reduce its net flux. For several decades, microorganisms have been used as biofertilizers to promote plant growth. However, now their role in reducing net methane flux, especially from flooded agricultural ecosystems is gaining momentum globally. Research in this context has mainly focused on taxonomic aspects related to methanotrophy among diverse bacterial genera, and environmental factors that govern methane utilization in natural and artificial wetland ecosystems. In the last few decades, concerted efforts have been made to develop multifunctional microbial inoculants that can oxidize methane and alleviate greenhouse gas emissions, as well as promote plant growth. In this context, combinations of taxonomic groups commonly found in rice paddies and those used as biofertilizers are being explored. This review deals with methanotrophy among diverse bacterial domains, factors influencing methane-utilizing ability, and explores the potential of novel methane-utilizing microbial consortia with plant growth-promoting traits in flooded ecosystems.

Quetiapine Fumarate is potent, and the daily therapeutic dose can be delivered easily across the skin with the help of permeation enhancers. Quetiapine Fumarate-loaded transdermal patches were prepared by solvent evaporation technique. Various formulation parameters, excipients, and their combinations were optimized to get thin, translucent, smooth, stable, and high permeable character patches. A total number of 10 formulations were prepared. All formulations were subjected to various physicochemical evaluations. Three different formulations were prepared and F1, F2, and F3. Various physicochemical studies were carried out and found no significant difference between the three batches. The in vitro release study showed 74.29%, 82.73%, and 77.27%, respectively, up to 24 h. From the results, F2 has been selected as an optimized formulation and evaluated for skin irritation test. The results revealed that there is no irritation produced. The stability study results showed that there is no significant change from its initial nature till the period of three months in both temperatures. Quetiapine Fumarate Transdermal Patch F2 has achieved the goal of extended-release, cost-effectiveness, lowering the dose and frequency of drug administration, and thus may improve patient compliance.

In India, most of root crop is harvested manually and it consumes high labour and time for harvesting. The optimization of a tractor operated digger was evaluated at farmer’s field for the carrot crop. The digger was optimized for forward speeds of 2.2, 2.7 and 3.2 km h-1 and the rake angles of blade as 170, 200 and 230. The parameters viz., digging efficiency, undug, cut, bruised and exposed percentage was optimized as per the experiment. The performance of the digger was found to be best at a speed of 2.2 km/ hr and blade angle of 23 degree with a The digging efficiency, cut percentage, exposed percentage and bruised percentage of carrot crop was found to be 100 , 46.2, 92.12 and 28 %, respectively. The capacity of the machine was 0.18 ha/h. The break-even point for digger was 35.14 hour per year. The payback period of digger was 0.24 year.

Background: COVID-19 and tuberculosis (TB) are infectious diseases that predominantly affect the respiratory system with common symptoms, such as cough, fever, and shortness of breath, making them dual burdens. Methods: This review will discuss the characteristics of the coexistence of TB and new infectious illnesses to provide a framework for addressing the current epidemic. Currently, there are no clear and significant data on COVID-19 infection in TB patients, they may not respond appropriately to drug therapy and may have worse treatment outcomes, especially if their TB treatment is interrupted. Due to emergence, measurements should be taken to minimize TB and COVID-19 transmission in communal settings and health care institutions were created. For both TB and COVID-19, accurate diagnostic testing and well-designed, and established therapeutic strategies are required for effective treatment. Results: Several health care organizations and networks have specimen transit methods that can be utilized to diagnose and monitor the etiology and progression of COVID 19 and perform contact tracing in developed and underdeveloped nations. Furthermore, patients and health care programs could benefit from increased use of digital health technology, which could improve communication, counseling, treatment, and information management, along with other capabilities to improve health care. Conclusions: Patients with COVID-19 pulmonary/respiratory problems may seek treatment from respiratory physicians, pulmonologists, TB experts, and even primary health care workers. To have prophylactic and therapeutic strategies against COVID-19, TB patients should take the appropriate health care measures recommended by health care professionals/government officials and maintain their TB therapy as indicated.

Kresoxim-methyl residue in green chilli and soil was estimated using gas chromatography equipped with microelectron capture detector (µECD, 63Ni) and analytical method was validated. The method sho...

For better performance and durability of tractor and machinery during field operations, it is necessary to select a proper matching machine/implement. The purpose of the study was to analyse the effect on parameters affecting to power requirement of power take-off (P.T.O) for rotary tiller, development of mathematical modelling and validation of the model under field conditions. Three different regression models (multiple linear regression, weighted least squares and stepwise regression) were used to predict the P.T.O power requirement. All three developed models were observed significant at 1% level with R2 value of 0.945, 0.984 and 0.940 for three models respectively. Correlation analysis was performed and all the parameters expressed positive correlation in relation to P.T.O power requirement. Speed of operation, moisture content, depth of cut, working width, peripheral velocity, number of blades and weight of rotary tiller were shown linear relation with P.T.O power requirement. L shaped blades consumed more power than the J and C shaped blades. Hard soil consumed more power followed by medium and light soil. The Mean Absolute Percentage Error (MAPE) ranged in reasonable limit for all three models. Based on higher R2 value, weighted least square regression model was found to be the best fit model for prediction of P.T.O power requirement of rotary tiller.

The effect of synthesised IONPs employing a nontoxic leaf extract of Azadirachta indica as a reducing, capping, and stabilizing agent for increasing biogas and methane output from cattle manure during anaerobic digestion (AD) was investigated in this study. Furthermore, the UV-visible spectra examination of the synthesized nanoparticles revealed a high peak at 432 nm. Using a transmission electron microscope, the average particle size of IONPs observed was 30–80 nm, with irregular, ultra-small, semi-spherical shapes that were slightly aggregated and well-distributed. IONPs had a polydisparity index (PDI) of 219 nm and a zeta potential of −27.0 mV. A set of six bio-digesters were fabricated and tested to see how varying concentrations of IONPs (9, 12, 15, 18, and 21 mg/L) influenced biogas, methane output, and effluent chemical composition from AD at mesophilic temperatures (35 ± 2 °C). With 18 mg/L IONPs, the maximum specific biogas and methane production were 136.74 L/g of volatile solids (VS) and 64.5%, respectively, compared to the control (p < 0.05), which provided only 107.09 L/g and 51.4%, respectively. Biogas and methane production increased by 27.6% and 25.4%, respectively using 18 mg/L IONPs as compared to control. In all treatments, the pH of the effluent was increased, while total volatile fatty acids, total solids, volatile solids, organic carbon content, and dehydrogenase activity decreased. Total solid degradation was highest (43.1%) in cattle manure + 18 mg/L IONPs (T5). According to the results, the IONPs enhanced the yield of biogas and methane when compared with controls.

Glaucoma is an ocular condition characterized by elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Conventional treatments of glaucoma face poor corneal permeability and bioavailability. To address these issues, a nanoemulsion in situ gel of Timolol maleate was developed in this study by adding the polymer Carbopol 934p. Using Carbopol 934p, a novel ophthalmic pH-induced nanoemulsion in situ gel was formulated. The formulation was liquid at pH 4 and quickly gelled when the pH was raised to 7.4 (Lacrimal pH). The pH-triggered in situ gelling mechanism demonstrated continuous drug release over a 24 h cycle. A total of nine trial formulations were prepared (NEI1–NEI9) and subjected to various physicochemical and in vitro evaluations. According to the in vitro release kinetics, the drug release of Timolol maleate nanoemulsion in situ gel NEI5 followed zero-order kinetics, with a release exponent value of 0.902, indicating that the mechanism of release was non-Fickian diffusion regulated. In vivo results showed that Timolol maleate nanoemulsion in situ gel NEI5 provided a better-sustained release of the drug, compared with the Timolet OD eye drops. The formulation is stable in storage, with no distinguishable change in appearance, physical properties, quality, and percentage drug release. NEI5 also reduces drug administration frequency, which improves patient compliance. Timolol maleate nanoemulsion in situ gel NEI5 achieved the goal of controlled drug delivery with extended-release and cost-effectiveness, lowering the dosage and frequency of drug administration, and thus may improve patient compliance. In conclusion, the stable nanoemulsion in situ gel of Timolol maleate NEI5 decreases intraocular pressure (IOP) over a prolonged period.

Plants have evolved several adaptive strategies through physiological changes in response to herbivore attacks. Plant secondary metabolites (PSMs) are synthesized to provide defensive functions and regulate defense signaling pathways to safeguard plants against herbivores. Herbivore injury initiates complex reactions which ultimately lead to synthesis and accumulation of PSMs. The biosynthesis of these metabolites is regulated by the interplay of signaling molecules comprising phytohormones. Plant volatile metabolites are released upon herbivore attack and are capable of directly inducing or priming hormonal defense signaling pathways. Secondary metabolites enable plants to quickly detect herbivore attacks and respond in a timely way in a rapidly changing scenario of pest and environment. Several studies have suggested that the potential for adaptation and/or resistance by insect herbivores to secondary metabolites is limited. These metabolites cause direct toxicity to insect pests, stimulate antixenosis mechanisms in plants to insect herbivores, and, by recruiting herbivore natural enemies, indirectly protect the plants. Herbivores adapt to secondary metabolites by the up/down regulation of sensory genes, and sequestration or detoxification of toxic metabolites. PSMs modulate multi-trophic interactions involving host plants, herbivores, natural enemies and pollinators. Although the role of secondary metabolites in plant-pollinator interplay has been little explored, several reports suggest that both plants and pollinators are mutually benefited. Molecular insights into the regulatory proteins and genes involved in the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites will pave the way for the metabolic engineering of biosynthetic pathway intermediates for improving plant tolerance to herbivores. This review throws light on the role of PSMs in modulating multi-trophic interactions, contributing to the knowledge of plant-herbivore interactions to enable their management in an eco-friendly and sustainable manner.

Glaucoma is an ocular condition characterized by elevated intraocular pressure (IOP). Conventional treatments of glaucoma face poor corneal permeability and bioavailability. To address these issues, a nanoemulsion in situ gel of Timolol maleate was developed in this study by adding the polymer Carbopol 934p. Using Carbopol 934p, a novel ophthalmic pH-induced nanoemulsion in situ gel was formulated. The formulation was liquid at pH 4 and quickly gelled when the pH was raised to 7.4 (Lacrimal pH). The pH-triggered in situ gelling mechanism demonstrated continuous drug release over a 24 h cycle. A total of nine trial formulations were prepared (NEI

This study aimed to evaluate the root crop digger for digging of the potato crop at the farmer’s field. The digger was tested at three levels of forward speeds (2.3, 2.8 and 3.3 kmh-1) and three levels of rake angles (170, 200, and 230). The experiment was replicated three times for the performance parameters of exposed,undug, cut, bruised percentage and the digging efficiency. The best performance of the digger was obtained at forward speed 2.3 km h-1 and blade angle 230 for potato crop at which the exposed, undug, cut, bruised percentage and the digging efficiency was found to be 90.62,2.10, 1.71, 2.48 and 97.90 per cent, respectively. About 54% savings in cost of digging could be achieved using digger compared to manual digging involving labour.

Linear modal analysis based on the spatio-temporal harmonic representation of acoustic fluctuations is a well-known reduced order method to predict combustion instability frequencies. However, a limitation of this method is that it is only applicable to domains with homogeneous mean properties. The Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) method facilitates the development of approximate analytical solutions to the one-dimensional (1-D) acoustic wave equation in domains with inhomogeneous mean properties. The “classical” form of the WKB solution to the wave equation is based on the assumption of high frequency (or, short wavelength), and is applicable to uniform cross-section ducts with a mean temperature gradient, but no mean flow. Subsequently, the WKB method was extended to include uniform mean velocity as well. In the current study, we derive a WKB-type solution to the generalized Helmholtz equation in quasi 1-D ducts with non-uniform cross-sectional areas and inhomogeneities in mean flow properties such as the velocity, temperature, density, and pressure. The WKB solution is applicable under the assumptions of high frequency and slowly varying mean properties. In deriving this solution, a novel approach has been developed to relate the first and second spatial derivatives of the axial velocity fluctuations to the pressure fluctuations (and its derivatives). A second WKB-type solution (referred to as the WKB2 solution) is also obtained by relaxing the slowly-varying mean property assumption, but retaining the high frequency approximation. Thirdly, the Helmholtz equation for pressure is solved numerically without invoking the two WKB assumptions. The WKB, WKB2 and numerical solutions are compared for a number of cases involving combinations of non-uniform duct areas and axially varying mean properties. Finally, we apply the WKB solution to predict the longitudinal combustion instabilities in a 1-D combustor characterized by a sudden expansion, with uniform mean flow in each of the two ducts comprising the combustor, and a linear temperature profile downstream of a compact, planar flame.

Methane utilizing bacteria (MUB) are known to inhabit the flooded paddy ecosystem where they play an important role in regulating net methane (CH4) emission. We hypothesize that efficient MUB having plant growth-promoting (PGP) attributes can be used for developing novel bio-inoculant for flooded paddy ecosystem which might not only reduce methane emission but also assist in improving the plant growth parameters. Hence, soil and plant samples were collected from the phyllosphere, rhizosphere, and non-rhizosphere of five rice-growing regions of India at the tillering stage and investigated for efficient methane-oxidizing and PGP bacteria. Based on the monooxygenase activity and percent methane utilization on NMS medium with methane as the sole C source, 123 isolates were identified and grouped phylogenetically into 13 bacteria and 2 yeast genera. Among different regions, a significantly higher number of isolates were obtained from lowland flooded paddy ecosystems of Aduthurai (33.33%) followed by Ernakulum (20.33%) and Brahmaputra valley (19.51%) as compared to upland irrigated regions of Gaya (17.07%) and Varanasi (8.94%). Among sub-samples, a significantly higher number of isolates were found inhabiting the phyllosphere (58.54%) followed by non-rhizosphere (25.20%) and rhizosphere (15.45%). Significantly higher utilization of methane and PGP attributes were observed in 30 isolates belonging to genera Hyphomicrobium, Burkholderia, Methylobacterium, Paenibacillus, Pseudomonas, Rahnella, and Meyerozyma. M. oryzae MNL7 showed significantly better growth with 74.33% of CH4 utilization at the rate of 302.9 ± 5.58 and exhibited half-maximal growth rate, Ks of 1.92 ± 0.092 mg CH4 L−1. Besides the ability to utilize CH4, P. polymyxa MaAL70 possessed PGP attributes such as solubilization of P, K, and Zn, fixation of atmospheric N and production of indole acetic acid (IAA). Both these promising isolates can be explored in the future for developing novel biofertilizers for flooded paddies.

The atmospheric methane concentration is increasing rapidly at the rate of around 10 ppb/year. A concerted effort is required to reduce methane emission. Methanotrophs possess methane monooxygenase enzyme system and can consume a major portion of the methane produced in the environment. These microbes play a major role in the single-carbon-driven microbial food web. Microbial interaction is an important component of microbial ecology studies, and its role in community functioning and various biogeochemical cycles still remains unclear. A synergistic interaction occurs between the methanotrophs and non-methane-utilizing methylotrophs (NUM) in the natural ecosystem. The intermediates produced by the methanotrophs can be used as a carbon source by the NUM and support its existence. On the other hand, NUM consumes toxic intermediates like methanol and formaldehyde of the methanotrophs and prolongs their growth. The consumption of the intermediates (methanol, formaldehyde and formate) of the methane utilization pathway by methylotrophs as a result of cross-feeding enhances the methane utilization rate of that ecosystem. Co-inoculation of methanotrophs and NUM in the natural habitat particularly paddy ecosystem can aid in the reduction of net methane emission. This chapter highlights the role of microbial interactions, particularly between methanotrophs and methylotrophs, that can be harnessed to mitigate methane emission from the methane-rich environment.

The modern agriculture is negatively affected due to the rapid exploitation of natural resources, indiscriminate use of pesticide application, and frequent weather events influenced by climate change. Biocontrol action is a significant tool for IPM, offers alternative management techniques that are safer for human and environmental health. It is also worth noting that biological control has worked in a versatile manner in different agricultural management systems and with different types of disease causing organisms existing in the nature. Several key pests and invasive pests were successfully controlled with the application of biological agents. Although biopesticides very slowly replace the use of pesticide that may be due to biopesticide exploration and application range. In India the main challenge for biopesticide is related to their shelf life, narrow host range for pathogens, variation in the lab to land performances, economic regulation, etc. Integrated approach will be beneficial for biopesticide application for this private and government sectors that come together with farmers to the village level and to build confidence in the use of biopesticides.

Microbes are constituting elements of the soil environment and their abundance, enzymatic activity, degradation process, and biodiversity indicate the balance in the agro-ecological system. It is necessary to keep strengthening the scientific basis of modern agriculture because pesticides may be purposefully used only if their persistence, bioaccumulation, and toxicity in agro-ecosystems are strictly controlled. The use of agrochemicals, such as chemical fertilisers and pesticides, is important in modern crop management strategies (mainly insecticides and herbicides). Pesticide poisoning affects three million people worldwide, according to the WHO. Long-term and indiscriminate pesticide use has serious negative consequences for soil microbes, the nutrient cycle, the decomposition process, and the atmosphere, resulting in long-term negative consequences for food stability, human health, and the environment. Pesticide application can alter microbial diversity, which can be detrimental to plant growth and development by decreasing nutrient availability or disrupting the nutrient cycle. Therefore, the qualitative, innovative, and demand-driven pest management is the need of the hour. Hence, this chapter covers the positive and negative consequences of pesticides on microbes and their environment and current issues about the extensive use of pesticides.

Methane utilizing bacteria (MUB) are known to inhabit the flooded paddy ecosystem where they play an important role in regulating net methane (CH

The absence of scalable and economically viable alternatives for managing residues coupled with shorter planting window and growing labour shortages and energy prices requires a sustainable solution for the crop residue management in northern India.&nbsp, As per &ldquo, Need of the Hour&rdquo, the present research work focused on physical, mechanical, and morphological characterizations of wheat, which will help in further design of the low-cost straw combine. For this purpose, two varieties of wheat (HD-2967 and WH-1105) were used for the present study, as these are the prevalent varieties of Haryana state. The straw specimens were collected at harvesting period from a farmer&rsquo, s field, which is located at a longitude of 75.64 and latitude of 29.15. The physical characterization of the crops was conducted on the basis of diameter, length, and thickness of nodes of straws. In contrast, the mechanical characterizations was performed by calculating the tensile and shear strength of the straws. The morphological analysis was performed by using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). The energy dispersive spectroscopy was performed to analyse the presence of constituting elements of straw. The statistical analysis showed that moisture content in the straw had a significant effect on tensile strength and shear strength.

Methane (CH4) emission in rice fields is greatly influenced by the type and quantity of nitrogenous fertilizer used. The net methane emission from paddy fields is also influenced by the activity of methane utilizing bacteria, which inhabit the flooded paddy ecosystem. Efficient methane utilizing and plant growth promoting bacteria Methylobacterium oryzae MNL7 and Paenibacillus polymyxa MaAL70, respectively were co-inoculated along with different nitrogenous fertilizer combinations in flooded paddy to assess their impact on cumulative methane emission and crop growth promotion. Co-inoculation significantly influenced the plant growth parameters of paddy, resulting in an increase in grain yield by 14.04, 11.08, and 12.38% in treatments receiving Urea, Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP) + Urea, or farm yard manure (FYM), over their respective un-inoculated plots. Significant improvement in the rice grain nutrient quality in term of crude protein, Fe and Zn content was observed as a result of bacterial co-inoculation in FYM fertilized plots as compared to Urea and DAP+ Urea fertilized plots. Significantly higher cumulative methane emission of 63.39 kg ha−1 was observed in uninoculated plots fertilized with FYM treatment as compared to Urea (33.83 kg ha−1) and DAP+Urea (31.66 kg ha−1) treatments. Bacterial co-inoculation significantly reduced the cumulative methane emission by 12.03, 11.47 and 6.92% in Urea, DAP+Urea, and FYM fertilized plots over their respective uninoculated treatments. Among the different fertilizer treatments, bacterial co-inoculation with urea application performed significantly better in reducing cumulative methane emission. These findings suggest that methane utilizing bacteria which also possess plant growth promoting trait can be explored for developing a novel biofertilizer for flooded paddies, as they can aid in managing both the overall methane emission and enhancing crop yield.

The sugarcane cultivation and sugar industry in India plays a vital role towards socio-economic development in the rural areas by mobilizing rural resources and generating higher income and employment opportunities. About 7.5 per cent of the rural population, covering about 45 million sugarcane farmers, their dependents and a large number of agricultural labour are involved in sugarcane cultivation, harvesting and ancillary activities. There are about nine States in India where sugarcane is grown on a large extent of area. There are a number of varieties that are grown in India depending on the suitability of the soil. The area, output and yield and sugarcane cultivation is subjected to fluctuate in response to policies of the government and also conditions of cultivation. Sugarcane is a labour intensive crop and shortage of labour and unavailability of labour at reasonable rate is the major concern in sugarcane cultivation. To combat the paucity of labour, mechanized sugarcane cultivation is the only option to carry out all the operations in time. The next phase of revolution in Indian agriculture is bound to come through the use of improved agricultural machinery suiting to local conditions. The performance evaluation of sugarcane handling equipments like tractor front mounted sugarcane loader, tractor operated sugarcane billets collector cum unloader and tractor PTO operated sugarcane trash shredder were conducted at Farm Machinery Testing Centre, CCSHAU, Hisar and the performance has been found to be satisfactory. Concerted efforts are required to formulate a strategy for mechanising sugarcane production in India with the sole aim of increasing production and productivity per unit time, area and input at reduced cost of unit operation to survive in the highly competitive international sugar market.

INTRODUCTION: Respiratory drug delivery is a surprisingly complex process with a number of physical and biological challenges. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is a scientific simulation technique that is capable of providing spatially and temporally resolved predictions of many aspects related to respiratory drug delivery from initial aerosol formation through respiratory cellular drug absorption. AREAS COVERED: This review article focuses on CFD-based deposition modeling applied to pharmaceutical aerosols. Areas covered include the development of new complete-airway CFD deposition models and the application of these models to develop a next generation of respiratory drug delivery strategies. EXPERT OPINION: Complete-airway deposition modeling is a valuable research tool that can improve our understanding of pharmaceutical aerosol delivery and is already supporting medical hypotheses, such as the expected under-treatment of the small airways in asthma. These complete-airway models are also being used to advance next generation aerosol delivery strategies, like controlled condensational growth. We envision future applications of CFD deposition modeling to reduce the need for human subject testing in developing new devices and formulations, to help establish bioequivalence for the accelerated approval of generic inhalers, and to provide valuable new insights related to drug dissolution and clearance leading to microdosimetry maps of drug absorption.

Trash burning is a major problem in sugarcane to overcome this, a sugarcane trash chopper cum spreader was tested at farmer’s field for its performance and economic feasibility. The chopper cum spreader was tested at five levels of moisture content of trash (13.2, 14, 15.15, 16.6, and 18.8% db) and five levels of operationalspeed (2.6, 2.8, 2.9, 3.1, and 3.4 km/h). The performance of the sugarcane trash chopper cum spreader heavily depends on moisture content and speed of operation. The maximum field capacity (0.43ha/h) was obtained at a speed of 3.2 km/h, but maximum shredding efficiency (90.40%) was found at a speed of 2.9 km/h. Maximumuniformity coefficient (0.95) and shredding capacity (4.31 t/h) was obtained at a speed of 2.9 km/h and at a moisture content of 13.13%. Maximum trash lifting efficiency (93.95%) was observed at a speed of 2.76 km/h and at a moisture content of 13.13%. The cost of operation was Rs. 2015/ha with B: C ratio of 1.5. The break-even point ofthe chopper cum spreader was 17.7 ha and payback of the machine was 1.3 years if operated for 250 h/year. The energy consumption of machine was calculated to be 1327.7 MJ ha-1. The optimum performance of sugarcane trash chopper cum spreader was obtained at a moisture content of 13.13% (M5) and forward speed of 2.9 km h-1 (V3). The sugarcane trash chopper cum spreader may be recommended for chopping of sugarcane trash for mulching to avoid burning of trash and conserving natural resources.

Background: To assess the effectiveness of planned teaching programme on practice of post natal exercises among mothers who have undergone Lower segment cesarean section (L.S.C.S) in selected hospital at Bangalore. Methods: compare the practice scores of postnatal exercises among LSCS mothers between control group and experimental group. Results: Results shows that in post test the control group had inadequate practice score with a mean of 16.33%, standard deviation of 9.44 and mean percentage of 19.60 % where as in post test the experimental group there was a significant mean practice score gain of 39.84 % and standard deviation of 12.58 and mean percentage 79.67 % with a differences of 60.07 %. Conclusions: Significant difference was found between control and experimental group practice score of mothers in all areas of post natal exercises.