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The present work elucidates miofloral records from the Ganmachidam Formation (late Carboniferous–earliest Permian) of Spiti Valley, Tethyan Himalaya. The Ganmachidam Formation was hitherto considered as unfossiliferous, both for the faunal as well as floral records, and has been subjected to contentious age assessment. The present study has been carried out to find out the microfloral remains, assess the palynostratigraphic status, and the age of the Ganmachidam Formation. From the splintery shale sequence, a rich assemblage of palynomorphs has been recovered, having a dominance of monosaccate pollen grains, namely Parasaccites (Cannanoropollis), Crucisaccites, Divarisaccus, Densipollenites, Maculatasporites, followed by diverse bisaccate pollen grains, namely Scheuringipollenites, Crescentipollenites, Faunipollenites (Protohaploxypinus), Lunatisporites, Striatopodocarpites, Striatites, Rhizomaspora, Primuspollenites, and the spores Callumispora (Punctatisporites) and Calamospora in addition to woody fragments and fungal spores. Three palynoassemblages are identified. The recovered palynocomposition is corroborated with known records of palynomorphs from the Tethyan realm of India and from the late Carboniferous–Early Permian records of contemporaneous sequences across the globe. The composition of these palynoassemblages shows close correlation with the Crucisaccites monoletus Zone and Vittatina costabilis Interval Zone in the northeastern area of the Paraná Basin, Brazil, and lower Barakar palynozone (Scheuringipollenites barakarensis Assemblage Zone) of Peninsular India which indicates the studied section of the Ganmachidam Formation is late Pennsylvanian to early Permian in age. Moreover, occurrences of palynomorphs from the Carboniferous sequences having a glossopterid affinity further strengthen the idea that glossopterids might have originated in Carboniferous time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Secondary education among lower caste adolescent girls living in rural Karnataka, South India, is characterized by high rates of school drop-out and absenteeism. A cross-sectional baseline survey (N=2275) was conducted in 2014 as part of a cluster-randomized control trial among adolescent girls (13-14 year) and their families from marginalized communities in two districts of north Karnataka. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used. Overall, 8.7% girls reported secondary school dropout and 8.1% reported frequent absenteeism (past month). In adjusted analyses, economic factors (household poverty; girls' work-related migration), social norms and practices (child marriage; value of girls' education), and school-related factors (poor learning environment and bullying/harassment at school) were associated with an increased odds of school dropout and absenteeism. Interventions aiming to increase secondary school retention among marginalized girls may require a multi-level approach, with synergistic components that address social, structural and economic determinants of school absenteeism and dropout. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]