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Cereal crops are the most important grain crops and are extensively cultivated around the world due to their nutritional value, fodder, and biofuel production. The significant increase in cereal grain yield is primarily attributed to the application of inorganic nitrogenous fertilizer. But the inefficient utilization of the fertilizer leads to leftover N, which has a negative impact on human health and the environment. Hence, a pressing priority is to enhance nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in crop cultivation through improved management practices. Additionally, it is important to assess how NUE interacts with the plant characteristics. NUE depends on the absorption and distribution of nitrogen through enhanced root architecture and transporters, processing, and remobilization within storage organs. Moreover, NUE is determined by N distribution across roots, stems, leaves, grains, photosynthetic capacity, and leaf senescence. Information on the scope of exploitable genetic variability and their genetic control is needed to increase NUE through genetic modifications. In this review, we provide an integrated approach that combines agronomy, physiology, genetics, and genomics for a comprehensive understanding of the critical components involved in NUE. This understanding is crucial for developing crop management practices and identifying promising key genetic factors to improve NUE in cereals.

Safer sexual practice is essential for improving women’s reproductive and sexual health outcomes. The goal of this study is to identify the contributing factors influencing safer sexual negotiations (SSN) through the application of machine learning algorithms. The algorithms include logistic regression (LR), random forest, Naïve Bayes, linear discriminant analysis, classification and regression trees, support vector machines (SVM), and K-nearest neighbors. This study utilized data from the 2017-18 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey, encompassing 19,457 married women within the ages of 15–49 years. The analysis reveals that the SVM algorithm achieved the highest classification accuracy (99.66%), along with high sensitivity (99.98%) and the lowest specificity. Conversely, the LR model produced the highest area under the curve statistics (0.6699), indicating good performance in distinguishing SSN among married women. The outcome illustrated that women’s autonomy, engagement with financial institutions, educational attainment, and their partner’s education play a significant role in SSN with their partners. The findings highlight the significance of empowering women, enhancing reproductive health awareness, and improving socio-economic conditions and education to encourage SSN. The government needs to consider all these risk factors to promote greater SSN for preventing sexually transmitted diseases among women in Bangladesh.

This paper's fundamental objective is to conduct a systematic literature review on burnout and sustainable coping mechanisms among human service sectors. Researchers have conducted an inclusive examination of 4,592 studies from PubMed, Taylor & Francis, Science Direct, WoS, and Scopus. Organisational factors (working hours, workload, and relationship with co-workers, supervisor support, job time, insecurity, etc.) and individual factors (professional inefficiency, emotion, clients, the complexity of the task, and resources) are the major causes of burnout. It has significant adverse effects on both employees and organisations in the human service sector. Many symptoms, i.e., emotional exhaustion, depersonalisation, and de-accomplishment, have been observed before experiencing emotional, behavioural, and physical burnout. Finally, both the individual and organisational effective measures can avoid burnout. The study's findings might work as a guideline for both employees and organisations to keep the level minimum or prevent burnout.

Data on carbon footprint of potato are scanty in Bangladesh and in many other countries in the globe, although it is an important crop. Both life cycle-based (LCB) and field scaled measured (FSM) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were considered for determination of carbon footprint for Bangladesh compared to top 20 potato producing countries in the world. Carbon footprint was 0.16 kg CO2eq kg−1(LCB) for producing potato in Bangladesh. Fertilizers and irrigation water managements were the dominant inputs for GHG emissions in Bangladesh. Based on available data sources, GHG emission was the highest in USA (13206 kg CO2eq ha−1) followed by Germany (6210.93 kg CO2eq ha−1). The position of Bangladesh was fifth (4619 kg CO2eq ha−1) considering LCB estimates and 12th (1279 kg CO2eq ha−1) as FSM basis. Considering total potato areas, China was the top emitter (13.75 million tons, MT CO2eq) followed by India (7.35 MT CO2eq) and the position of Bangladesh was 6th (LCB). Apparently, there could be carbon sequestration based on FSM data, but net emission takes place when LCB assessment is considered. Total GHG emissions from potato-based cropping patterns and evaluating their total balances can provide a real scenario of net ecosystem carbon balance (NECB) in Bangladesh and in other countries having similar environments. Fertilizer and water management, choice of cultivar, tillage system, and sowing time need to be fine-tuned along with adoption of suitable crop rotations for reducing GHG emission during potato cultivation.

Despite the importance of porous titanium oxide (PA-TiO2) in diverse functional applications, very little information is available on the compatible mechanical properties for potential biomedical applications. In this study, PA-TiO2foam was synthesized using space-holding powder metallurgy and sintering methods to produce interconnected opened-cell structure with surface morphology of mountain-like features associated with the extensive rift valley system. Three different types of PA-TiO2foams with porosities of 35–52% and mean pore diameter of 190–210 μm were fabricated for evaluating the effect of porosity on mechanical properties of bulk PA-TiO2. The modulus of elasticity of PA-TiO2foams exhibited in the range of 45–262 MPa which was within the range of modulus of elasticity of human cancellous bone. Cytotoxicity test is performed in vitro analysis to observe the effect of cell toxicity to produce osteointegration when used as implantable materials. There was no cytotoxicity effect found and remarkable cell growth was observed for human cancerous (HeLa) cell line. However, there was no cytotoxicity effect found and cell growth was not observed for Vero cell line. This study suggested that PA-TiO2facilitates cell growth without spreading toxicity and has mechanical properties of cancellous bone. Hence, it has potential application as implant and medical devices in biomedical applications.

This article examines the migration of international students to the Gulf Coop-eration Council (GCC) states from a comparative perspective. Over the past few decades, the GCC states have made significant investments in their education sec-tor, leading to notable improvements in educational infrastructure and quality, the establishment of new universities and knowledge parks, as well as the emergence of international university branches. Consequently, this transformation has attracted a growing number of international students to the Gulf region, including non-national resident students and foreign students arriving in the Gulf specifically for educational purposes. Student migration entails more than just entering a host country; it also involves university admissions policies, tuition fees, scholarship programs, immigration status and the pathways available for employment after graduation. Therefore, this article delves into the intricate aspects of student migration to the GCC states, shedding light on migration patterns, student compositions, admissions processes, financial considerations and integration into the Gulf labour market. The findings of this study indicate that the GCC states have made some headway in managing international student migration. However, there is still a need for the development of a comprehensive student migration policy that fully capitalises on the benefits of student migration to promote economic development in the Gulf states.

Microbial-induced carbonate precipitation (MICP) and enzyme-induced carbonate precipitation (EICP) are two bio-cementation techniques, which are relatively new methods of ground improvement. While both techniques share some similarities, they can exhibit different overall behaviours due to the differences in urease enzyme sources and treatment methods. This paper presented 40 unconfined compressive strength (UCS) tests of MICP and EICP treated sand specimens with similar average calcium carbonate (CaCO3) content subjected to cycles of wetting-drying (WD), freezing-thawing (FT) and elevated temperature (fire resistance test – FR and thermogravimetric analysis – TG). The average CaCO3content after a certain number of WD or FT cycles (ACn) and their corresponding UCS (qn) reduced while the mass loss increased. The EICP treated sand specimens appeared to exhibit a lower resistance to WD and FT cycles than MICP treated specimens possibly due to the presence of unbonded or loosely bonded CaCO3within the soil matrix, which was subsequently removed during the wetting (during WD) or thawing (during FT) process. FR test and TG analysis showed a significant loss of mass and reduction in CaCO3content with increased temperatures, possibly due to the thermal decomposition of CaCO3. A complete deterioration of the MICP and EICP treated sand specimens was observed for temperatures above 600 °C. The observed behaviours are complex and theoretical understanding is far behind to develop a constitutive model to predict qn. Therefore, a multi-objective evolutionary genetic algorithm (GA) that deals with pseudo-polynomial structures, known as evolutionary polynomial regression (EPR), was used to seek three choices from millions of polynomial models. The best EPR model produced an excellent prediction of qnwith a minimum sum of squares error (SSE) of 2.392, mean squared error (MSE) of 0.075, root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.273 and a maximum coefficient of determination of 0.939.

This study assesses flood inundation, impacts, and susceptibility zones in northeastern Bangladesh during the 2022 flood. The region is highly vulnerable to recurrent flooding Due to its geographic position and climate change impacts. The Sentinel-1 SAR data on the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform was used to generate flooded areas using a simple change detection technique with thresholding. This analysis was further supported by incorporating cropland, population, national highway, and DEM datasets for a comprehensive damage assessment. Findings show that 55.76 % (10,993.09 km2) of the area was inundated, impacting 10.69 million people and causing severe displacement and health hazards. Sylhet, Kishoreganj, and Brahmanbaria districts were the most affected, with 2.73 million impacted in Sylhet alone. Additionally, 67.87 % of agricultural land was flooded, particularly in Sunamganj, and 43.38 % of national highways (535.08 km2) were damaged. A flood susceptibility zonation map identified high-susceptibility areas like central Sunamganj and parts of Kishoreganj to assist authorities in resource allocation and mitigation. The flood extent model achieved strong predictive accuracy (AUC: 0.97 % RF, 0.96 % LR, and 0.94 % DT), providing crucial insights for regional flood management and guiding communities with limited modeling capacities.

A new Shear Stress Transport (SST) k-ωmodel is devised to integrate salient features of both the non-transitional SST k-ωmodel and correlation-based γ-Reθtransition model. An exceptionally simplified approach is applied to extend the New SST (NSST) model capabilities toward transition/non-transition predictions. Bradshaw’s stress-intensity factor Rb=-uv¯/kcan be parameterized with the wall-distance dependent Reynolds numberRey=ky/v; however, as the Reyis replaced by a “flow-structure-adaptive” parameterRμ=vT/v, the resulting Rbis capable of capturing various transition phenomena naturally. The prospective stress-intensity parameter Rb=Rb(Rey,Rμ)is incorporated in the constitutive relations for eddy-viscosity vTand production termPk. The proposed formulation is intrinsically plausible, having a dramatic impact on the prediction of bypass, separation-induced and natural transitions together with non-transitional flows. An extra viscous-production term Pklimis added with the k-equation to ensure proper generation of kat the viscous sublayer when computing separation-induced transition over a Low-Reynolds Number (LRN) airfoil. Results demonstrate that the NSST k-ωmodel maintains an excellent consistency with both SST k-ωand γ-Reθmodels.

The application of unbonded post-tensioning (PT) in structural walls has led to the development of advanced self-centring (rocking) shear wall systems that has significant advantages, including accelerated construction due to the incorporation of prefabricated elements and segmental construction for different materials (e.g., concrete, masonry, and timber), reduced residual drifts, and little damage upon extreme seismic and wind loads. Concrete, masonry, and timber are often used for the construction of unbonded PT structural wall systems. Despite extensive research since the 1980s, there are no well-established design guidelines available on the shear wall configuration with the required energy dissipation system, joint’s locations and acceptance criteria for shear sliding, confinement, seismic performance factors, PT loss, PT force range and residual drifts of shear walls subjected to lateral loads. In this research a comprehensive state-of-the-art literature review was performed on self-centring shear wall system. An extensive study was carried out to collect a database of 100 concrete, masonry, and self-centring shear wall tests from the literature. The established database was then used to review shear walls’ configurations, material, and components to benchmark requirements applicable for design purposes. The behaviour of concrete, masonry and timber shear walls were compared and critically analysed. The general behaviour, force-displacement performance of the walls, ductility, and seismic response factors, were critically reviewed and analysed for different self-centring wall systems to understand the effect of different parameters including configurations of the walls, material used for construction of the wall (concrete, masonry, timber) and axial stress ratio. The outcome of this research can be used to better understand the behaviour of self-centring wall system in order to develop design guidelines for such walls.

The fundamental objective of this paper is to know the students' perceptions about online learning (OL) during COVID-19 in Sylhet division, Bangladesh. The non-probability technique (purposive sampling) has been used to collect the data. We purposively selected 25 students who are currently pursuing either undergraduate or masters at private universities in Sylhet, Bangladesh. After getting the feedback from nine students, it was found that the similar types of answers (saturation point) were coming. Thus, these 11 students are considered as sample size. The findings showed that online learning is effective for higher education in Bangladesh though it has some barriers. Besides, faculty members need to play a more important role in online learning during COVID-19 because an efficient teacher must know the ways of online learning better than anyone to complete the academic activities. From the findings of this study, the university authority, UGC and Ministry of Education will be able to know the students' perceptions towards the online learning.

Introduction: Soft drinks, defined as liquids with added sugar and artificial flavorings, have become increasingly popular among the people of Bangladesh, especially among the young. The everyday consumption of soft drinks by adolescents is a poor lifestyle decision that requires special attention to guarantee a healthy existence. Objective: The main objective of this study is to measure the soft drink consumption pattern and identify the perceptions associated with the consumption of soft drinks among university students. Methods: A cross-sectional study with a convenience sample (n= 450) was conducted among the university students of Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University (MBSTU) using a self-administered questionnaire through a face-to-face interview method. The obtained information was analyzed in five distinct segments as univariate analysis, bivariate analysis, multivariate analysis, machine learning (ML) algorithm, and factor analysis. Result: A large number of students were high consumers, which means they consumed 1 or more liters of soft drinks per week. The perceptions were significantly associated with soft drink consumption level, and most of the perceptions had a significant effect on the consumption level. The performance accuracy was 82%, with sensitivity of 90%, specificity of 66%, and precision of 84%. Factor analysis showed that all of the perceptions were loaded into four factors. Conclusion: High soft drink intake among university students is correlated with other hazardous lifestyle choices. Students should be aware of the high consumption of soft drinks and should focus on healthy drinks. Government should take initiatives to improve the marketability of healthy drinks.

Graphical Abstract:

The fundamental objective of this paper is to test the effects of burnout on the intention to leave among the employees of public commercial banks in Bangladesh. Simple random sampling techniques with 249 employees have been taken as the sample size in this paper. The AMOS and SPSS software have been used for data analysis. It is found that burnout explained 49% variance in turnover intention (R2= 0.49), and significant positive effects of burnout has been found on turnover intention (β = 0.07, p < 0.000). The assumptions of two theories (social exchange and JD-R theory) of this study are relevant to the banking environment of Bangladesh. In practical application, banking authorities can be made aware of the approaches that can minimise the rate of intention to leave of bank employees and increase the awareness of the negative effects of burnout.

Bangladesh is one of the most vulnerable countries to natural disasters such as droughts in the world. The pre-monsoon Ausrice in Bangladesh depends on rainfall and is threatened by increasing droughts. However, limited information on the changes in Ausrice as well as droughts hamper our understanding of the country’s agricultural resilience and adaption to droughts. Here, we collected all the official statistical data of Ausrice at the district level from 1980 to 2018, and examined the interannual variations of area, yield, and production. The results showed both area and production of Ausrice decreased significantly (61.58×103ha yr−1and 17.21 ×103M. tons yr−1, respectively), while yield increased significantly (0.03 M. tons ha−1yr−1). We also found a significantly increasing trend of droughts in 88% of area based on the Palmer Drought Severity Index (PDSI) data, especially in those rainfed agricultural areas. Moreover, we found significant positive correlations between PDSI and Ausrice area (production) in 33 (25) out of 64 districts. There is hardly a relationship between PDSI and yield, likely due to the improved management and increasing irrigated areas. Implementing continuous drought monitoring, combined irrigation (surface and groundwater) systems, and conservation and precision agriculture are highly recommended in these drought-prone districts to ensure food security in Bangladesh.

Purpose: The study aims to examine the independence and effectiveness of the Shariah department officers of the Islamic banks in Bangladesh as the Shariah supervisory board (SSB) provides the annual Shariah report and Shariah resolutions based on the reports of the Shariah department officers. Design/methodology/approach: The study applied a qualitative case study to achieve the research objectives. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with the regulators, Shariah supervisory boards, Shariah department executives, and experts from the central bank and Islamic banks of Bangladesh. Findings: The study illustrates that Shariah department officers/Shariah officers in Bangladesh seem to lack independence and decision-making authority in accomplishing ex-post Shariah governance functions (i.e. Shariah audit, Shariah compliance and Shariah review) as well as ensuring Shariah compliance. The Shariah officers cannot work spontaneously on practical issues without any interference. The Shariah officers also have to answer to the management regarding their Shariah functions and are not allowed to come up with any opinions without the authority’s authorization. Research limitations/implications: The study has significant contributions to the central bank and Islamic banks in Bangladesh. This research suggests that regulators, SSB, and Islamic banks should focus on ensuring Shariah compliance and protecting the independence of Shariah department officers as they are mainly related to practical monitoring of Shariah issues. It also suggests that Shariah department officers should directly report to SSB rather than the management regarding Shariah’s compliance and audit issues. Originality/value: This study is unique in the context of Bangladesh and the global context as a whole for Shariah department officers.

Road safety research in developing countries has evolved in two categories: (a) crash frequency prediction modeling and (b) injury severity analysis. In injury severity analysis, the focus is to identify the influential factors for different injury severity categories. However, limited research has been undertaken in this domain, especially to assess the injury severity of the occupants of unconventional vehicles (UVOs) (including both human-pulled and engine-operated vehicles). This study investigates the injury severity of UVOs in Dhaka, Bangladesh adopting a hybrid of latent segments and random parameters logit (LSRPL) models. The model is developed utilizing police-reported collision records for the years 2011–2015. The LSRPL model captures multi-dimensional heterogeneity by allocating victims into discrete latent segments (i.e., inter-segment heterogeneity) and allowing a continuous distribution of parameters within the segments (i.e., intra-segment heterogeneity). The model is estimated for two segments using victim and crash attributes, where segment one is lower risk and segment two is higher risk. The model results suggest that victim and driver profiles, crash attributes, environmental factors, road network attributes, transportation infrastructure, and land use attributes influence the injury severity of UVOs. The model confirms the existence of significant inter-segment heterogeneity. For example, mid-block crashes are more likely to result in severe injury in higher-risk segments, and less likely to result in severe injury in lower-risk segments. The model further confirms intra-segment heterogeneity for areas with higher levels of mixed land use. For example, for mid-block crashes, higher mixed land use shows a significantly lower mean in high-risk segments, revealing lower likelihood of sustaining severe injury.

Collecting data using an appropriate sampling technique is a challenging task for a researcher to do. The researchers will be unable to collect data from all possible situations, which will preclude them from answering the study’s research questions in their current form. In light of the enormous number and variety of sampling techniques/methods available, the researcher must be knowledgeable about the differences to select the most appropriate sampling technique/method for the specific study under consideration. In this context, this study also looks into the basic concepts in probability sampling, kinds of probability sampling techniques with their advantages and disadvantages. Social science researchers will benefit from this study since it will assist them in choosing the most suitable probability sampling technique(s) for completing their research smoothly and successfully.

Conservation of amphibians relies on the knowledge of the diversity and distribution patterns. To date, there is a lack of information on the diversity and distribution patterns of amphibians in some regions of Bangladesh, particularly the Northwest and Central areas. Thus, to contribute to the present knowledge on amphibians of Bangladesh, we surveyed nine districts from the Northwest and Central regions of Bangladesh between 2017 and 2019 and evaluated the patterns of species richness and habitat preference. Furthermore, we compiled a list of the amphibian species for Bangladesh and summarized the conservation status. The results revealed the presence of 19 amphibian species from the Northwest and Central regions, with range extensions for five species. Diversity analyses showed that the agricultural field had the highest number of species. An updated inventory of the amphibians of Bangladesh shows the presence of at least 62 species belonging to two orders, eight families, and 34 genera. Of the amphibians in Bangladesh, 26.0% are placed under International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)-threatened category, 43.0% least concern, 8.0% data deficient, and 23.0% are not accessed by the IUCN. Our study improved knowledge on the diversity and distribution of amphibians in Bangladesh as well as offered recommendations for improved conservation policies.

Islands are one of the fragmented ecosystems that cover an extensive range of microhabitats for diverse wildlife fauna. Biodiversity of this unique ecosystem tends to continuous degradation due to various natural and man-made pressure that primarily necessitates the assessment of the current status of species diversity for taking initiatives to protect the insular fauna. We conducted a survey-based study to assess the vertebrate wildlife diversity in Sandwip Island of Bangladesh in alpha and beta levels including abundance, and distribution pattern. The island harboured a total of 151 species of wildlife, including birds (119 spp.), amphibians (14 spp.), reptiles (13 spp.) and the least abundant mammals (5 spp.). According to the Shannon–Wiener index of the wild vertebrate community, the rural areas contained the highest species diversity (H′ = 3.79), while the Pielou index indicated that the semi-urban areas had relatively higher (0.876) species evenness. Species turnover significantly varied among rural, semi-urban and urban sites (Analysis of Similarity test, R = 0.40, P = 0.0001). Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) plot also revealed different species compositions between major three sites. The dendrogram of cluster analysis produced larger species clusters for grasslands, agricultural lands and homestead microhabitats. Sixty-seven species showed the highest clumped distribution pattern. This baseline data signifies the rich biodiversity of the island and has implications for prioritizing conservation measures to protect the insular fauna of Bangladesh.

Purpose: Rice covers most of the cropping area in Bangladesh which is mostly a labor-intensive crop. The conventional approach of rice transplanting is labor-intensive and requires hardship. Mechanization in transplanting is needed to make agriculture economical due to labor shortage and high wages of laborers. Cost-effective and easy to use, a mechanical rice transplanter is an excellent choice. Rice transplanting issues, technological limitations in the adoption of mechanical transplanter, and future research to make mechanical transplanter more user-friendly are summarized in this paper. Methods: The articles were gathered and reviewed using search engines like Google Scholar, Scopus, Science Direct, Springer Link, Wiley Online, Taylor & Francis Online, Academia, and Research Gate. Indexed journals, conference proceedings, academic presentations, and thesis/dissertations are all included in this study’s scope. Results: Maintaining the soil’s physical qualities is thought to aid in crop management and increase output. Although mechanical transplanters are more effective than their manual counterparts, they are not yet widely used due to factors such as expensive startup costs, a lack of experience in developing mat-type nurseries, and farmers’ weak financial conditions. When attempting to grow rice using mechanical transplants, it may be helpful to employ strategies including instructing technical competence, guaranteeing timely availability, boosting custom recruitment, and offering government incentives. Conclusions: A mechanized rice transplanter may be a viable option to alleviate labor shortages and minimize farm operating costs. However, slower acceptance is attributed to the difficulty of cultivating paddy nurseries on trays and mats, as well as inadequate reaction from stakeholders, as mechanical rice transplanters are not widely used yet. Farmers would be more likely to plant seedlings in beds or trays if they could do so easily. Many landowners can benefit from the assistance of an entrepreneur in planting paddy at the same time. It is possible to increase the rate at which existing rice transplanter machines are put into use by providing adequate on-the-job training to relevant stakeholders in nursery preparation processes and planting machine handling. Bangladesh needs a rice transplanter that is both low-cost and simple to use. A low-cost, semi-automatic rice transplanter could be a solution for mitigating labor shortages and reducing farm operating expenses.

Temperature is one of the most important environmental factors influencing plant growth, development and yield while diurnal temperature range (DTR) is an important climate indicator. In this study, the temporal trends and spatial patterns of DTR fluctuations over the last 35 years (1981–2015) in Bangladesh are examined. The annual mean DTR of Bangladesh has progressively increased over the last few decades and the increasing amplitude is shown to have spatial and seasonal trends. Seasonal and spatial as well as interregional changes in DTR for the four regions of northwestern, northeastern, southwestern and southeastern are investigated. Seasonal DTR trends show a decreasing with a rate of -0.03 °C/decade in winter and an increase in pre-monsoon (0.13 °C/decade), monsoon (0.17 °C/decade) and post-monsoon (0.11 °C/decade). Southeastern region in DTR has increased significantly out of four regions but the other three regions have decreased. Monsoon season (June–September) has shown a significant increase in DTR in all regions. DTR is observed to decrease significantly in the winter season for both northwest and northeast regions, and has also decreased significantly/non-significantly for the pre-monsoon season for the northwest/northeast region. Similarly, post-monsoon (October–November) seasons have experienced smaller increases in DTR for all regions except southwest regions where it has decreased. The temporal trends and regional patterns of daily maximum and minimum temperatures are also examined to get insight into DTR alterations. A significant increasing trend of 0.24, 0.14, and 0.10 °C/decade has been observed in mean maximum (TMAX), mean minimum (TMIN) and diurnal temperature range (DTR; TMAX–TMIN), respectively, during the period of analysis. These results reveal important information about wheat vulnerability in these regions due to climate change and to develop adaptation strategies.

Purpose: This paper aims to assess the performance of achieving the targets of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by aligning with the recent initiatives taken by different ministries and divisions in Bangladesh. It also examines the institutional challenges associated with the implementation of SDGs. Design/methodology/approach: Both primary and secondary data were analysed by applying different techniques. The initiatives taken by various ministries and divisions of Bangladesh resonated partially with 84 targets of SDGs. Findings: Ambiguous mandates of different ministries and divisions have caused overlapping jurisdiction, followed by conflicts of interest and lack of cohesion. Inaccurate stakeholder analysis, data unavailability, lack of competency and accountability, and a top-down policy approach can be considered as the major institutional bottlenecks in achieving SDGs. Originality/value: This paper advocates revising the map to incorporate the right stakeholders to avoid erroneous monitoring, evaluation, and finally, inaccurate reporting. The reallocation of business for ministries and divisions is warranted to abolish jurisdictional overlapping and conflict of interests and make SDGs friendly. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic recession, Bangladesh may be able to multiply its achievement with the same resources and efforts by addressing those drawbacks.

This research paper has tried to attend to the thought-provoking issues about mediation analysis (MA) using covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM) with setting an example that is work family balance (WFB) may mediate (full, partial or no) the relationship between work-family conflict (W to FC and F to WC) and job satisfaction (JS). Notably, the emphasis is on four critical burning aspects regarding current literature on MA with the necessary commands and interpretations. Based on informed decisions, updating of knowledge from the present citations included will provide benefits of carrying out a proper study by researchers. Consciousness concerning the challenges and uses of the CB-SEM as an analytical tool for MA in the social and behavioural sciences and its significance at later time is for better appreciation of the technique. Besides the rationalisation as a method for analysing research data, the study introduced practical examples to enhance the application of the method further.

The main objective of this paper is to provide the literature support for implementing innovative teaching methods with the help of information technology (IT) in entrepreneurship education (EE). A semi-systematic analysis of literature review has been used for this study. Different opinions, views and frameworks of entrepreneurship education and teaching methods have been found from many works. The study specifically finds some methods using IT (team-based or group project, problem-based learning, project-based learning, business plan development, entrepreneurship survey, presentations, simulation, incubation and others) are the most popular in entrepreneurship education around the world. This study will contribute to teachers, students and institutions to understand the entrepreneurship education and IT-based curriculum. The major limitations of the study are the inclusion of only review study and not using meta-analysis. More study needs to explore the areas to clarify proper utilisation of IT in innovative teaching methods for entrepreneurship education.

This paper reports on an experimental study on a new self-centring retaining wall system. Four post-tensioned segmental retaining walls (PSRWs) were experimentally tested. Each of the walls was constructed using seven T-shaped concrete segments with a dry stack. The walls were tested under incrementally increasing cyclic lateral load. The effect of the wall height, levels of post-tensioning (PT) force, and bonded versus unbonded condition of PT reinforcement on the structural behavior of the PSRWs was investigated. The results showed that such PSRWs are structurally adequate for water retaining structures. According to the results, increasing the wall height decreases initial strength but increases the deformation capacity of the wall. The larger deformation capacity and ductility of PSRW make it a suitable structural system for fluctuating loads or deformation, e.g., seawall. It was also found that increasing the PT force increases the wall’s stiffness; however, reduces its ductility. The residual drift and the extent of damage of the unbonded PSRWs were significantly smaller than those of the bonded ones. Results suggest that this newly developed self-centring retaining wall can be a suitable structural system to retain lateral loads. Due to its unique deformation capacity and self-centring behavior, it can potentially be used for seawall application.

Purpose: Prior studies on Islamic finance provide a limited linkage between organizational theory and the complex Shariah governance framework embraced by Islamic banks worldwide. This paper aims to show the relevance of the application of “institutional theory” in the Shariah governance framework of Islamic banks. Design/methodology/approach: This study applied library research to investigate the application of institutional theory in the Shariah governance framework of Islamic banks. The authors also critically reviewed prior empirical and review papers for accomplishing the research objectives. Findings: Based on the critical review, the authors found that institutional theory is the most influential in progressing Shariah governance as it contributes toward the organizational image, helps to achieve religious legitimacy, and inspires a more robust regulatory environment. In addition, a well-designed Shariah governance framework is driven by institutional theory and that could assist in providing guidelines, strategies and procedures for Islamic banks to better conduct; monitor and control their social, religious and accountability obligations. The authors also highlighted the societal, economic and legal environment of Islamic banks in relation to the propositions of institutional theory. They emphasize that a well-designed Shariah governance framework driven by institutional theory could assist in providing guidelines, strategies and procedures for Islamic banks to better conduct, monitor and control their social, religious and accountability obligations. Research limitations/implications: This study highlights institutional theory to serve best the development of operational strategies and structures of Islamic banks including the roles, functions and powers of the various stakeholders including regulators and those involved in the Shariah governance process of Islamic banks. The authors recognize the institutional theory to perform a key role in enriching the structural framework of Islamic Financial Institutions. This study is heavily dependent on prior research rather than empirical investigations. The authors did not cover other Islamic finance areas (such as Islamic insurance, Islamic microfinance and Halal industries). Thus, future researchers can apply institutional theory in Shariah governance practices and implementations of setting up rules by the regulators and respective institutions. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that attempts to show the importance of the application of institutional theory in Shariah governance of Islamic Banks. Thus, this study, therefore, adding a novel dimension to the literature by arguing why institutional theory, is more pronounced (as compared to the other theoretical frameworks) in the formation and discharge of the roles, powers and functions by the different governance organs (such as regulators, the board of directors, management and Shariah supervisory board) operating in this unique corporate governance landscape.

Plant-derived natural products have shown beneficial effects in many diseases associated with liver. The present study aimed to appraise the effects of Trichosanthes dioica(TD) peel extract on oxidative stress, inflammation as well as fibrosis exhibited by the ovariectomized rats in which hepatic damage had been induced by the administration of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). The CCl4administration in the ovariectomized rats elevated the plasma ALT, AST, and ALP level in comparison with the control while TD peel extract showed significant reduction of those activities. Besides, oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation also increased in CCl4-treated rats. TD peel extract significantly reduced the oxidative stress marker's concentration and improved the catalase and SOD activities in CCl4-administered ovariectomized rats. These results suggest that TD peel extract is capable of protecting the liver from CCl4induced damage through preventing oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, inflammation, fibrosis and boosting the diminished cellular antioxidant defense.

ABSTRACTLocal migrant organization is an emerging phenomenon in many emigrant countries, where such an organization is formed and run by current or former migrants and engages in a range of philanthropic activities for community development. Research on migrant organizations tends to focus either on immigrant organizations located in the host countries or on transnational migrant organizations engaged in diaspora philanthropy with origin country. Contrary to mainstream research on migrant organizations, this paper looks at the local migrant organizations and their engagements in emigrant countries through a case study in India. Drawing on selected local migrant organizations that cater to healthcare needs in India, this paper investigates how they evolve and mobilize resources, what sort of healthcare activities they are carrying out, and how such collective efforts are contributing to the healthcare needs for the underserved community. This study reports that local migrant organizations tend to be small and resource-poor, but they reach out to the Indian periphery and serve the underprivileged sections of the society.

•About 280,000 tons of fabric dyes are emitted to the industrial effluents annually.•These synthetic dyes are hazardous for aquatic environment and public health.•Biodegradation of such non-degradable colorants can be an eco-friendly approach.•Two MG dye degrading bacteria had been identified by RAPD and 16S rRNA sequencing.•These bacteria of Enterobacterspp. can degrade 100% Malachite Green dye (15 mg/L).