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Every day, sales representatives experience intense multifaceted emotions that bring along a lot of provocations. Simultaneously, today's customers are more conversant, challenging, and less patient than before, making it difficult for sales representatives to gauge their emotional intelligence. The stiff sales environment further creates mental pressure that disrupts the routine functioning and job satisfaction of sales representatives. This calls for the study of the psychological processes underlying employees' perceptions of satisfaction with their job; which has not been given comprehensive consideration in past research. This paper extends this idea by touching on the origin and progression of emotional intelligence over time and the relational analysis of one of its key sub-sets namely, management of emotions with job satisfaction. For statistical analysis, tools including EFA, CFA, correlation, and linear regression were employed on a sample of 424 respondents based out of the Delhi/National Capital Region (NCR). Empirical analysis indicated a significant and positive association between perceived management of emotions and satisfaction with job of sales representatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to ascertain the perception of hotel managers concerning the expectations of domestic women business travelers (DWBT) through qualitative analysis. This research was performed using synchronous focus group discussions (FGDs) virtually on Microsoft Teams. Participants belonged to the management of 5-star hotels in Delhi and Gurugram (cities in the National Capital Region, India). Transcripts were analyzed thematically using NVivo (Release 1.0) software. The authors have proposed seven core themes associated with female symbols of expectations looked forward to by DWBT from their hotel stay. These are guest room as the expectation of servicescape and design, hotel services as the expectation of comfort, amenities as the expectation of quality and value, hotel security as the expectation of assurance and trust, augmented specials being the expectation of personalization, selection triggers being the expectation of convenience and suitability, and customized meal requirements being the expectation of health and wellbeing. Hospitality marketers may apply strategic planning and decision-making to devise focused communication strategies to accomplish the expectations of this segment. To the best of our knowledge, this research is the first to break new ground to assess findings using synchronous FGDs for understanding the expectations of DWBT from the management perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the impact of second wave of COVID-19 lockdown on environmental noise levels of 25 sites in Delhi city and compares the noise scenario during pre-lockdown, lockdown, and post-lockdown periods. The study utilized the noise monitoring data acquired from 25 real-time ambient noise monitoring stations, installed by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Delhi, at various sites throughout Delhi city. A significant reduction of up to 10 and 3 dB(A) in day and night equivalent noise levels, respectively, had been observed during the lockdown period as compared to the pre-lockdown and post-lockdown periods. The study also revealed that only nine sites, including four industrial and five commercial zone sites, complied with the ambient noise standards during lockdown period, and no silence or residential zone sites complied with the ambient noise standards even during the lockdown period. A roadmap for environmental noise management and control is suggested. The study also reports the community's perception toward the change in acoustic environment of Delhi city during the lockdown period by conducting an environmental noise perception survey. The present study should be helpful in devising noise control action plans and policy interventions for environmental noise management and control in the metropolitan city Delhi, India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL) height is an important parameter in defining the Ventilation Coefficient (VC) of any area. In this work, SODAR (Sound Detection and Ranging) observed data of different echograms for the year 2020 has been used for structure identification. The interpretation of ecograms is often not straight-forward. In this paper, an interpretation of different echograms along with meteorological parameters over Delhi is described. The ecogram structures were interpreted along with VC analysis. It is observed from the structures that during foggy days, VC values vary from day to day in the winter, with daily maximum values occurring between 13:00 and 15:00 h. The daytime values varied significantly from sunrise to sunset, while the night-time values remained relatively stable (200 m²/s). However, due to fog diurnal variation from 16:00 h to 11:00 h, that is from evening to all night and then the next morning until 12:00 h, the atmospheric condition remained stable. At maximal wind speeds, a maximum VC of 1600 m²/s (at 12:00 h) was observed during extended fumigation. With minimal wind speeds and ABL height, a minimum VC of 100 m²/s (at 20:00 h) was observed. However, both VCs were smaller than the optimal VC for 6000 m²/s safe dispersion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to investigate the determinants of organic food buying behaviour in an emerging economy like India, where organic food yet has low market share in spite of its potential. Using the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) as the underlying basis, it attempts to explain the effect of attitude, subjective norms and the perceived behaviour control (PBC) on buying intention towards organic food among respondents in Delhi-National capital region, India. Additionally, it attempts to discriminate functional and constructive attitudes. Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative questionnaire survey approach was used on 306 respondents and multiple linear regression was used to validate the research model. Findings: Attitudes and PBC have a significant positive impact on the intention to purchase organic food. This paper found subjective norms to be weak and barely significant to intention. The results conclude that health motives, past purchase behaviour, knowledge, affordability and trust in organic certification label are the main facilitators in organic food purchase. Primarily, the respondents see buying organic food regularly as being of value and enjoyable to them. A more favourable appearance vs conventional food was negatively related to behavioural intention. Originality/value: This research could aid all stakeholders in the organic food sector, particularly emerging economies like India where the organic market is still nascent. It could be an essential driver to improve customer involvement and thus aid them in the decision-making process to choose organic food over conventional food. It also attempts to establish the usability of TPB in assessing functional attitudes based on constructive attitudes for organic food purchase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholarly analyses of transactions of biological material are often focused on either the moral economy of exchange or the political economy of production. In this paper, I highlight the ambiguities that characterize commercial gamete donations in daily clinical life in In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) hospitals in Delhi through agents' practices of valuation. In Delhi's IVF economy, agents occupy a pivotal role in mediating gamete transactions: not only as traders of biological substances but also as brokers of values. Aligning various regimes of value, they let transactions appear as morally meaningful as well as economically profitable to donors. Agents also make use of polyvalences and frame transactions in distinct lights in negotiations with different participants. It is their mediations and practices of valuation, I argue, that make commercial gamete donations viable and sustain Delhi's intimate IVF economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper highlights the importance of using site-specific shear modulus reduction (G/Gmax versus shear strain, γ) curves and damping ratio (D versus shear strain, γ) curves for ground response analysis. In order to develop comprehensive G/Gmax–γ and D–γ curves (i.e. over a wide range of strain level), two types of apparatus, viz. resonant column and cyclic simple shear, have been used. The case study considered the geological deposits from the river beds of Yamuna River originating from the Himalayan seismic zone of North India. The tests results have been analysed to develop G/Gmax–γ and D–γ curves and compared with standard curves. It has been observed that upper and lower boundaries for the standard curves are remarkably different for the geological deposit under consideration. In order to assess the impact of using standard curves rather than site-specific curves, ground response analysis has been carried out at five sites along the Yamuna River using two types of curves (standard and site-specific developed in this study). The study showed that the amplification of shear waves at these sites based on the experimentally derived curves is much higher as compared to the standard curves. The proposed curves better represent dynamic behaviour of the soil deposits of the region and will provide a realistic response as far as practically possible, for the structures constructed in the states of Haryana and Delhi and nearby areas. It is anticipated that the data presented in this paper will have wide application and usage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The identification and mapping ofdengue epidemics is one of the critical issues in providing better health services and policy development. In this process, multiple physiographic and socio-economic criteria have been taken into consideration. The proposed approach of this paper is to provide a framework for integrating the strengths of Geographic Information System (GIS) based Multi- Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) to reach the most appropriate spatial solutions for the decision-makers. In this paper, the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi was considered for mapping the potential sites for the development of dengue epidemics. For this purpose, various thematic layers were prepared using QGIS software. Five parameters (spatial analysis of Dengue Cases, land surface temperature, landfill sites, water logging, land use/land cover) were examined for mapping dengue epidemics vulnerable zones. The final dengue epidemics vulnerability assessment map reveals that the study area was divided into three different vulnerability regions namely high vulnerable regions - 326.24 sq.km (20.55%), moderate vulnerable regions - 674.25 sq.km (42.48%) and low vulnerable regions - 586.56 sq.km (36.95%). In this paper, the integrated approach of GIS based MCDM is showcased as a major contribution towards the development of effective health care management system (HCMS). This study also provides a new approach for decisionmakers in order to decrease the spatial extent of this chronic disease and also reduce the human health hazard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India's cities face key challenges to improving public health outcomes. First, unequally distributed public resources create insanitary conditions, especially in slums – threatening everyone's health, as suggested by poor child growth even amongst the wealthiest. Second, devolving services to elected bodies works poorly for highly technical services like public health. Third, services are highly fragmented. This paper examines the differences in the organisation and management of municipal services in Chennai and Delhi, two cities with sharply contrasting health indicators. Chennai mitigates these challenges by retaining professional management of service delivery and actively serving vulnerable populations − while services in Delhi are quite constrained. Management and institutional issues have received inadequate attention in the public health literature on developing countries, and the policy lessons from Chennai have wide relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon contemporary academic debates around comparative urbanism combined with theoretical post-colonial re-orientations, this paper focuses on young women's spatial politics and embodied practices designed to pursue gender equality in Delhi. It focuses on the Pinjra Tod ('Break the Hostel Cages') movement, a collective of female students that engages with prefigurative feminist politics to challenge paternalistic logics of surveillance, gendered spatial-temporal control, moral policing and securitisation on university campuses. The Collective works to create spaces of protest, recognition and reflection in order to demand their rights to the city, to roam freely, organise, and dwell in spaces of gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we do research on generating unitary matrices for quantum circuits automatically. We consider that quantum circuits are divided into six types, and the unitary operator expressions for each type are offered. Based on this, we propose an algorithm for computing the circuit unitary matrices in detail. Then, for quantum logic circuits composed of quantum logic gates, a faster method to compute unitary matrices of quantum circuits with truth table is introduced as a supplement. Finally, we apply the proposed algorithm to different reversible benchmark circuits based on NCT library (including NOT gate, Controlled-NOT gate, Toffoli gate) and generalized Toffoli (GT) library and provide our experimental results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper intends to examine Ahmed Ali's Twilight in Delhi from perspective of psychoanalytic theory as proposed by Sigmund Freud. It critically talks about important elements of Freudian psychoanalysis present in the novel. This paper aims to understand internal conflicts, psychological conditions, repressions, sexual desires and dreams of characters especially of the protagonist Mir Nihal, his son Asghar and his wife Bilqeece, who live in colonial India. In addition, research focuses on functioning of id, ego and superego triangle, conscious and unconscious of characters, human sexuality and their dreams. Evaluation is conducted objectively by using textual analysis method. Furthermore, close reading is being used as a technique of drawing conclusion from the data. The findings of the study reveal that Ahmed Ali's characters are psychologically similar, as they all repress desires, have sexual urges, face the rivalry of id and superego and dream what they repress. Freudian interpretation of Asghar's and Bilqeece' dreams and analysis of characters' internal minds reveal their sexual motives and repressed urges as suggested by Freud. In addition, the rivalry of id and super ego is evident in characters' minds as they are caught between two opposite forces throughout the novel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper seeks to examine the role of social pain in the unmaking and remaking of urban subjectivities in a context of cultural change. I argue that doubt and uncertainty generated by shifting cultural boundaries underpins a drive to reassert extant social order, including gendered expectations, generating pain in the unmaking of subjectivities for those who are different or 'other'. In the case of this study, the different are single, middle-aged, women in Delhi, standing outside normative familial structures and forced to answer the question 'what's wrong with you?'. However, everyday practices of repair and 'swallowing' pain could also work to remake a sense of self. Demonstrating invention as well as the politics of pain in their reclamations of space, these 'wrong' women reconfigured subjectivity as a form of cosmopolitanism often defined in opposition to 'parochial' others, particularly male migrant workers and cultural nationalists, who are made to lie beyond imagined urbane boundaries. The mirroring of exclusions highlights Elaine Scarry's work on the incommunicability of pain that results, under conditions of neo-liberal and patriarchal social relations, in both women and working-class men being excluded from city spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyzed two decadal long term (2003–2022) data of AOD and cloud parameters to understand the spatial and temporal variations in aerosol radiative characteristics over a highly polluted urbanized region of Northern India. The aerosol and cloud data were derived at spectral wavelength of 550 nm from the MODIS based Terra/Aqua satellites. Detailed AOD quantitative analysis considering monthly, seasonal and interannual changes was investigated in relation to cloud characteristics and zonal synoptic climatic disturbances. HYSPLIT back trajectory 5-day analysis was made to know the pathways of air masses ending at Delhi region of India. Moreover, we applied Student's t-test to mean Terra AOD and cloud properties to examine and further validate the relationship of aerosol-cloud interaction over the urban tropical Delhi zone close to Himalaya range of Northern India. Results indicated that AODs were found to be increased significantly (> 68%) during the 20 years period of 2003–2022, which might be accounted to continuously increased aerosol pollution in atmosphere. On an annual basis, mean Terra AOD exhibited an increasing trend of ~ 0.0009 per year, whereas seasonal mean AOD was observed to be maximum for winter (~ 0.96) and minimum for summer (~ 0.55), respectively. The correlation coefficient was highest (+ 0.73) between AOD and precipitable water vapor, whereas lowest (− 0.46) between AOD and cloud top pressure (CTP). The findings of AOD and cloud parameters have been compared with the earlier findings made on different Indian cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rising temperatures are mainly associated with wildfires, but the incidence of fire may also increase in the urban context. Yet, fire in Delhi, India, as elsewhere in the towns and cities of the Global South, remains largely invisible, despite the nearly 11 million people each year who are burnt severely enough to require medical attention. This paper focuses on whether summer temperatures in Delhi are rising and whether higher temperatures and lower humidity contribute to a greater number of fires in urban areas. The data strongly suggest a relationship between the warming city, a growing number of summer fires, and mounting temperatures around the world. Delhi, however, is only one example of an urban reality that is common to much of the Global South. Similar questions about the incidence of fire and whether the number is increasing need to be asked of other towns and cities that share the same vulnerabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a study which was done to investigate schoolteachers' discourse on morality. The teachers used three dimensions to construct and present their discourse on morality: food, religion and relationship. These teachers were drawn from different types of private and public schools in Delhi, the capital of India. The teachers considered religion as a defining aspect of their lives and associated morality with it in an intricate manner. They taught in schools that did not impart religious education; however, their own religious beliefs formed a strong and reliable reference point for their professional role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper develops the concept of 'thick time' through podcast experiments that foreground feminist voice, speech and aurality. Drawing upon William Kentridge's notion of 'thick time', this paper draws upon gendered experiences of struggles that are accumulated over generations, reinforced through technologies of timekeeping and time-management, leading to a state of permanent crisis. In particular, it focusses on gendered time through thick descriptions marked by fragmentation and simultaneity and heavy with the struggles of the past, present and future. Using experimentation as a method of examining thick time, I document how the temporalities of an intimate domesticity under crisis unfolds in parallel with the public crisis of a pandemic. Experimentation emerges in podcast training workshops with young women living in resettlement colonies in Delhi's urban peripheries, leading to a series of four podcasts co-produced remotely during the COVID19 lockdown. These podcasts are marked by fragments of speech, poetry, and music by those who are unable to speak to the state or to their families directly. They suggest how entangling the body (as voice, accent and language) with thick descriptions of time is possible through the unwinding, slowing down, rewinding and enriching the experience and significance of time in their lives. The podcasts are marked by repetition, futility, in-betweenness and remarkability, and the paper suggests that podcasts as experiments in value-laden thick descriptions of time can reveal pathways to feminist urban futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) are becoming extremely popular nowadays and every year they spend millions of dollars to attract customers from around the world. The paper focuses on OTAs and aims at determining the influence of demographic characteristics of customers on relationship quality. A descriptive research design was employed. The objectives were achieved by a critical review of documented sources to derive a detailed understanding of the background and subsequently by an analysis of responses gathered from the customers of OTAs in Delhi and the NCR region through a self-administered questionnaire. Statistical analysis was computed using SPSS 21.0 through ANOVA and the results revealed that no significant difference was found in any of the chosen variables of customer demographics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As countries like India improve access to maternal and infant care, the health systems need to develop services that enable all children to thrive. A key demographic which needs to be supported are children with disabilities, such as autism. With an estimated prevalence of one percent, there are over five million young children who need services to support their needs. However, the paucity of specialist care makes access to interventions diffcult. In this context a public health research not-for-profit is evaluating the effectiveness of the task-sharing approach to support the delivery of an evidenced social communication intervention for young children with autism. This paper describes the process of engaging and training the non-specialist frontline Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs), who are embedded within the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare under the Delhi State Health Mission, to deliver a complex intervention for autism to inform the future scalability of services for neurodevelopmental disorders. Methods: The present study describes the process which included (i) engagement meetings, (ii) recruitment, (iii) training, (iv) internship, and (v) competency evaluation. The shortlisted ASHAs received a 7-day classroom training followed by an internship period with practice cases. Finally, competency assessments, comprising of a test of knowledge and skills through role-plays, was administered. Results: Twenty three Primary Urban Health Centers across seven districts of Delhi were approached and 408 ASHAs were engaged in initial meetings. Telephonic screening with 127 ASHAs resulted in 72 ASHAs being selected for in-person interviews. Of the 45 ASHAs who attended, 33 were shortlisted for training and 18 completed it. Fifteen ASHAs entered the internship of which 7 ASHAs achieved competency. Discussion and conclusion: There was significant attrition along the pathway to having a competent non-specialist worker deliver a complex autism intervention. The lessons learnt from this process can inform the possibility of developing a cadre of disability specific frontline health workers who can deliver evidence-based interventions for neurodevelopmental disorders under supervision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Cancer of unknown primary (CUP) origin is cancer in which malignant cancer cells are in the body but the site of cancer where it began is unknown. Detailed incidence and time trends of these cancers, specific to various regions in India is needed. This paper aims to summarize and report the incidence of other and unknown (O&U) cancers across India in 27 population-based cancer registries (PBCRs) and to study the trends among these cancers using joinpoint regression analysis.Methods: Data on the incidence of CUP were obtained from the published reports on 27 PBCRs of the National Cancer Registry Programme (NCRP) of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). A joinpoint regression model was used to analyze the long-term trends of incidence related to CUP based on published data from PBCRs between 1986 and 2014. Annual Percent Change (APC) in incidence rate was estimated for various registries.Results: The northeast region had the highest age-adjusted rate (AAR) for both men (1.76-29.7) and women (1.99-14.68). Age-specific rate (ASR) for both men (39.8-855.7) and women (48.2-470.4) was highest in the northeast region. There is an increase in the incidence rate for all six major registries over the past decade with an exception of women in the Delhi Cancer Registry. There is a decline in incidence rate by 0.14 during 1990-2012 in the female population of the Delhi registry.Conclusion: The increasing incidence trends of CUP is a matter of concern for the healthcare professionals and researchers. There is a need for research and advanced and improved diagnostic tools for the improvement of the status of O&U cancers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A Master Plan in Indian urban scenario has a distinct sanctity of its own acting as the basis of city planning. Delhi was the first city in the country to generate its planning with a Master Plan since 1962 and next with perspectives for 2001 and 2021. Now, the new Master Plan with a perspective for 2041 is in public domain. Master Plan documents are taken as a representative of the intent of planning yet works examining the documentation of planning are not observable in literature. In this paper such an examination is attempted for Delhi's Master Plan of 2041 with reference to the 'Ease of Living Index' (2017) given by the Government of India for measuring the quality of life in Indian cities. The new Plan also advocates to generate a 'Delhi Liveability Index' for the city. The current analysis is done by attempting a qualitative and systematic review of the conceptual aspects of the Plan document with the Index as the basis of examination. The outcomes have been generated through the qualitative review without any personal opinions being incorporated. Findings indicate that the new Master Plan is heavily inclined towards physical planning components and one aspect of the Index is dominating its content. Such an examination can be insightful in generating details on perspectives of a policy document. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Agroalimentaria is the property of Alejandro Antonio Gutierrez Socorro and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The paper evaluates the impact of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on small-scale retailers. The study operationalizes the constructs with the variables: Backend infrastructure in less developed market, employment opportunity, investment capacity of neighborhood stores, investment capacity of big stores of Indian companies, investment capacity of FDI stores, investment capacity of online retailers, growth of neighborhood stores, growth of big stores of Indian companies, growth of FDI stores, growth of online retailers, and Business Environment Factors (BEF). The study was conducted on a sample of 500 respondents in Delhi National Capital Region (NCR). In retrospective, coefficient of investment capacity of FDI stores and growth of FDI stores show significantly negative impact on backend infrastructure in less developed market and employment opportunity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a study of Mullā Farīd and Mullā Ṭayyib, two astronomers active in several North Indian courts in the first half of the seventeenth century. The lives and works of these two brothers illustrate the central role of mathematical astronomy and astrology in the science of the time and its use by Indian Muslim nobility. They also document the familiarity of Indian Muslim scholars with Indic astrology and its practice in Muslim milieux. Mathematical astronomy was very much alive in seventeenth-century Mughal India, and Persian-writing scholars were commenting and revising the astronomical data and mathematics transmitted from the Maragha and Samarqand schools of astronomy. Their intellectual activities are also better understood in the context of the avid interest in occult sciences cultivated by early modern Persianate societies, and more particularly by the Mughal court. Mathematical astronomy was nurtured for the precise purpose of casting horoscopes and creating astrological almanacs. Astrological practices in North-Indian courts, including Delhi, the Mughal imperial capital, were evidently mixed and flavoured with elements from both Islamicate and Indic traditions. Knowledge was widely shared across languages and scientific interests went well beyond religious denominations. Crucially too, the exchange between the Persian and the Sanskrit scholastic worlds was sponsored by Mughal patrons and resulted in scientific translations from one language to the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper explores the factors that induce people of so-called North-East India to collectively identify themselves as Northeasterners. It also examines the factors that lead them to be categorised by others as Northeasterners. This is done against the backdrop of a geometrical error in ascertaining the direction of so-called North-East India with reference to the present national capital, Delhi. The colonial project of categorisation of its subjects in the 'north-east frontier of Bengal' and sustained categorisation and identification of the same in free India is understood within the framework of social identity theory. Theoretically, the paper extends the social identity theory by adding the aspects of social validation and social invalidation to understand the materialisation and non-materialisation, respectively, of perceived social identity with respect to a group. To address the issues arising from the erroneous categorisation of places and people with a colonial arbitrary term 'North-East', the author proposes principles of individualisation and human rights. The principle of individualisation offers a possibility towards respecting the unique individual identity of the constituent groups of so-called North-East India and thus allows the ceasing of violation of human rights of the people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dome is a vital element and a prominent building feature in Islamic Architecture. This paper analyzes the geometrical and philosophical approach to the transition of two types of domes, i.e., square and octagonal base domes. The timeline and region selected for the work are from the 1420s to 1630s of the Indian subcontinent. During the period, it covers three dynasties: Sayyid Dynasty, Lodi Dynasty, and Mughal Dynasty, and their change of approach toward the shapes of domes according to the needs and availability of construction techniques at hand and other factors. Based on the comparison of the domes of four buildings, the evolution of domes and their need for transition is to be presented in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the rising level of air pollution is becoming a cause of serious concern. The situation has reached such an alarming situation that knowing the extent of air pollution well in advance has become an absolute necessity before we step out of our home. An advance prediction can help the urban travellers to know the possibility of enhanced pollution ahead of time at strategic locations of a city and thereby be useful in planning a less polluted route. Different cities of the world have pollutants levels with varied dispersion pattern. As a result, a generic prediction model is needed that can cater to all types of pollutants and which can offer better forecasts of pollution data irrespective of their dispersion levels. In this paper, the authors modelled recurrent neural network (RNN)-based bidirectional long short-term memory (Bi-LSTM) that forecasts pollutants concentration with least RMSE. The model is trained and tested on the pollution data of Delhi, the most polluted capital city in the world for the second consecutive year in 2019. Air pollutants like PM10, PM2.5, NO2, O3, and CO are considered that have a varied dispersion pattern. To test the efficacy of our predictions, the model is tested on real data obtained from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) of India. The performance metrics are also generated to evaluate the performance of the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To reduce the pollution from the atmosphere or polluted cities like the capital city Delhi of India, use of artificial rain is a solution. In this paper, we have proposed and analyzed a nonlinear mathematical model to reduce the pollution level by rain making. In the proposed model five variables are considered, namely; (i) number density of water vapor, (ii) number density of cloud drops, (iii) number density of raindrops, (iv) cumulative concentration of aerosols, and (v) concentration of pollutant particles suspended in the region of consideration. The effect of environmental fluctuations has been studied with the help of Lyapunov functionals. The model is analyzed in the presence of white noise and proved that if rain persists, the pollutants can be totally washed out. It has been observed that the environmental disturbances are not much favorable in such experiments as the presence of environmental disturbance may destabilize the system. It is found that to remove pollutants completely, it is necessary to prevent the formation of pollutants. The simulation is performed to support the analytical findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Passagens: International Review of Political History & Legal Culture is the property of Passagens: International Review of Political History & Legal Culture and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Accurate forecasting of air pollutant PM2.5(particulate matter with diameter less than 2.5 µm) is beneficial to society. However, the non-linear spatio-temporal correlations, multi-feasible forecast values and incomplete training data due to stochasticity make it challenging for discriminative deep learning approaches to forecasting PM2.5 data. In this paper, a generative modeling approach is proposed to overcome the challenges in forecasting PM2.5 data by considering it as an ill-posed inverse problem. To strengthen its applicability, the proposed approach is theoretically validated. Furthermore, based on the proposed generative modeling, an Autoencoder-based generative adversarial network (GAN) named Air-GAN is developed. Air-GAN combines a convolutional neural network- long short-term memory (CNN-LSTM) based Encoder with a conditional Wasserstein GAN (WGAN) to capture non-linear correlations in the data distribution via inverse mapping from the forecast distribution. The condition vector to conditional WGAN is the novelty in Air-GAN, which employs this inverse learning and allows the WGAN's Generator to generate accurate forecast estimates from noise distribution. The condition vector is composed of two elements: (1) the category label of the best correlated meteorological parameter with the PM2.5 data, assigned using an efficient classifier and (2) the output of the CNN-LSTM-based Encoder which is the latent representation of the forecast. The extensive evaluation of Air-GAN for predicting the real-time PM2.5 data of Delhi demonstrates its superior performance with an average inference error of 5.3 µg/m3, which achieves 31.7% improvement over the baseline approaches. The improved performance of Air-GAN demonstrates its efficiency to forecast stochastic PM2.5 data by generalizing to out-of-distribution data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the curation of a month-long public exhibition titled #AanaJaana [#ComingGoing] in one of New Delhi's busiest metro stations, as a form of self-authorship by young women from its digital and urban margins. #AanaJaana [#ComingGoing] is a metaphor for journeys, communications, connections, associations, interceptions, social networks and individual/collective behaviours, that is curated as women 'see' and 'speak' with/through their mobile phones. Using Marie Louise Pratt's notion of 'contact zone', we examine #AanaJaana as a space of encounters that emerges by visually 'composing-with' as well as 'learning-with' the realities and constraints of space, technology and power. Based on self-authorship over a period of 6 months within a 'safe space' of a WhatsApp group of young women living in the urban margins, we draw attention to #AanaJaana as a set of crosscutting networks of power dynamics over women's bodies across the home, mobile phone and the city. #AanaJaana refers to how young women in the margins negotiate the 'freedoms' of moving (aana) in online space with the 'dangers' of going out (jaana) into the city, or the restrictions of entering (aana) online space with the freedom of leaving (jaana) home. We argue first, that #AanaJaana is a space of confinement because of the infrastructural paralysis in the peripheries. Second that it is also at the same time translocally produced by referencing several textual, digital and material spaces of self-realisation. Finally, we argue that #AanaJaana is a space of intertextuality through encounters between emojis, shorthand, voice notes on the mobile phone, with parody and dark humour of their gendered experiences that can transform shame, humiliation and fear into reflection, resistance and agency. The paper concludes that as a polycentric practice, #AanaJaana offers an appropriate metaphor to expand the 'contact zone' in order to decolonise gendered knowledge and power across digital-analogue margins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rapid growth of electric vehicles in India necessitates more power to energize such vehicles. Furthermore, the transport industry emits greenhouse gases, particularly SO2, CO2. The national grid has to supply an enormous amount of power on a daily basis due to the surplus power required to charge these electric vehicles. This paper presents the various hybrid energy system configurations to meet the power requirements of the electric vehicle charging station (EVCS) situated in the northwest region of Delhi, India. The three configurations are: (a) solar photovoltaic/diesel generator/battery-based EVCS, (b) solar photovoltaic/battery-based EVCS, and (c) grid-and-solar photovoltaic-based EVCS. The meta-heuristic techniques are implemented to analyze the technological, financial, and environmental feasibility of the three possible configurations. The optimization algorithm intends to reduce the total net present cost and levelized cost of energy while keeping the value of lack of power supply probability within limits. To confirm the solution quality obtained using modified salp swarm algorithm (MSSA), the popularly used HOMER software, salp swarm algorithm (SSA), and the gray wolf optimization are applied to the same problem, and their outcomes are equated to those attained by the MSSA. MSSA exhibits superior accuracy and robustness based on simulation outcomes. The MSSA performs much better in terms of computation time followed by the SSA and gray wolf optimization. MSSA results in reduced levelized cost of energy values in all three configurations, i.e., USD 0.482/kWh, USD 0.684/kWh, and USD 0.119/kWh in configurations 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Our findings will be useful for researchers in determining the best method for the sizing of energy system components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2020 Indian farm bills have been the subject of much debate and have engendered farmer protests in multiple parts of the country, notably in Singhu and Tikri on the Delhi border. A striking aspect of the protests is the strong and multifaceted involvement of women cutting across age, class and caste divides, and on a scale which is historically unprecedented. This paper focuses on the participation of chiefly Punjabi and Haryanvi women at the Singhu and Tikri sites but also in their home states and explores their varied motivations and modes of participation. The paper also contemplates on whether their participation experience has the potential to transform gender relations both at home and in the public sphere, especially since the majority of the women protesters hail from deeply patriarchal states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The Indian Supreme Court's judgment in Navtej Singh Johar, delivered in September 2018, decriminalizing same-sex relations in India, generated a storm of discussion and debate, in both India and in the world beyond. Apart from its clear and sharp verdict that held that the Indian Constitution protected the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, the decision was also noteworthy because it reversed the Court's own prior judgment, delivered a mere five years before (in 2013), that had upheld the constitutional validity of the law that penalized same-sex relations. In this case comment, we set out the chronology of judicial decisions that led to the final judgment in Navtej Singh Johar: the judgment of the High Court of Delhi in 2009, which first decriminalized same-sex relations, the 2013 judgment of the Indian Supreme Court that reversed it, and the various judicial proceedings that continued to rumble on in the Court--an additional round known as the 'curative hearing', and separate litigation on the constitutional status of the right to privacy. Within this context, the paper then discusses the multiple opinions that were delivered by the Bench in Navtej Singh Johar, and examines the reasons on the basis of which the Court held that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code--insofar as it criminalized same-sex relations between consenting adults--violated the fundamental rights to equality, nondiscrimination, freedom of expression, and life and personal liberty, guaranteed by the Constitution of India. The article will conclude by setting out some possibilities for the way forward, in light of the judgment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attraction and retention of employees is probably the biggest challenge in Civil Aviation Industry, due to the presence of emotional work in their job roles. To win against this challenge, organisations have been focusing on job satisfaction of employees. It has been found in literature that job satisfaction of employees is significantly related to personal, social, interpersonal and organisational factors. Present paper throws light in same direction and has made an attempt to investigate the presence of any association between job satisfaction and demographic variables. Purpose of this paper is to examine the association between job satisfaction and nine demographic variables such as age, gender, marital status, education, sector, job profile, working hours, experience and gross monthly income. Data have been collected from 300 employees working in civil aviation industry at Amritsar and Delhi on different profiles. The Chi-square test has been applied and findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between the level of job satisfaction and six demographic variables such as gender, marital status, sector, job profile, working hours and experience of employee. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper investigates the status of gravitational energy in Newtonian Gravity (NG), developing upon recent work by Dewar and Weatherall. The latter suggest that gravitational energy is a gauge quantity. This is potentially misleading: its gauge status crucially depends on the spacetime setting one adopts. In line with Møller-Nielsen's plea for a motivational approach to symmetries, we supplement Dewar and Weatherall's work by discussing gravitational energy–stress in Newtonian spacetime, Galilean spacetime, Maxwell-Huygens spacetime, and Newton–Cartan Theory (NCT). Although we ultimately concur with Dewar and Weatherall that the notion of gravitational energy is problematic in NCT, our analysis goes beyond their work. The absence of an explicit definition of gravitational energy–stress in NCT somewhat detracts from the force of Dewar and Weatherall's argument. We fill this gap by examining the supposed gauge status of prima facie plausible candidates—NCT analogues of gravitational energy–stress pseudotensors, the Komar mass, and the Bel-Robinson tensor. Our paper further strengthens Dewar and Weatherall's results. In addition, it sheds more light upon the subtle link between sufficiently rich inertial structure and the definability of gravitational energy in NG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to discuss students' assessment of quality related issues in engineering education in India. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses primary survey data of 1,178 undergraduate engineering students in Delhi, India, in 2009-2010. Students' experience and views of four important aspects such as teaching methods used in the classroom, evaluation pattern, skills acquired by students during the course and the involvement of students in different activities other than classroom teaching are discussed using descriptive statistics and correlation to examine the quality issues. Findings: The study finds that the lecture method is still dominant in the teaching and learning of engineering institutions compared to technical demonstration and laboratory work. Around half of the engineering students reported that they had never gone through any field work or industrial visits during their entire program of study. Involvement of students in the activities other than classroom teaching (e.g. working on research projects, attending engineering internships, studying a foreign language and opting for interdisciplinary courses) is more prevalent in government institutions compared to private institutions. The findings suggest that engineering institutions (particularly private colleges) should change their focus from traditional methods of teaching and evaluation of students to interactive methods of learning to improve the quality of technical education in India. Originality/value: The literature reveals that the quality assessment of engineering and technical education in India is largely based on the information collected from stakeholders other than students. Therefore, this study contributes a new dimension to the existing literature by considering students' assessment of the quality of engineering education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to illustrate practical approaches to addressing issues of risk reduction and disaster prevention in urban areas. In addition to exposure to natural hazards, urban areas represent complex risks and vulnerabilities together with complicated governance structures.Design/methodology/approach To address the challenge, SEEDS mobilised a "Disaster Watch Forum" – a citizens' platform that brought citizens together to proactively engage with the local government. With hand-holding support from SEEDS, training by domain experts, internal team building and the forum has become a credible people-based institution addressing issues of risk reduction and prevention.Findings Urban risk reduction has remained a challenging issue with solutions often sought in high investment structural interventions. These have limited impact on the urban poor living in informal areas. This paper reveals "bottom-up" people-based approach that is able to engage with the "system" from "outside". It reveals how people relate to day-to-day risks that affect their lives, making it the stepping stone to address higher order societal risks. Finally, the immense power and energy of youth and children work as local "agents of change". Overall, the work aligns with priorities of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.Research limitations/implications There are three principal implications for further research: with half the world now urbanized, urgent solutions are needed for improving disaster risk governance in cities; taking a "whole of society" approach in addressing a wider canvas of risks; and redirecting investments in urban areas towards managing risks, rather than managing disasters.Practical implications The model illustrated is replicable in urban areas facing risk. It worked well in a population catchment of 50,000 residents; to achieve scale would require enabling a federated structure of several localised forums.Originality/value The paper presents a hands-on experience in building an alternative approach to urban risk reduction. It has required authors to move from "government to governance" model making citizens active stakeholders in proactively addressing their own underlying vulnerabilities that lead to creation of and exacerbation of risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper is to examine a multiple item scale (E-S-Qual) for measuring electronic service quality (e-service quality) of banking in India. This study makes an attempt to ascertain customers' perspectives of eservice quality as well as its dimensions in Indian retail banking context. Methodology- This study adapts the dimensions of eservice quality as proposed by E-S-Qual scale to develop a framework that can be used to measure e-service quality in banking in India. Data is collected through a survey of bank customers in Delhi and NCT region. Findings- The findings suggest that only three (efficiency, privacy and fulfillment) out of four dimensions originally proposed in the E-S-Qual scale, to be significant influencing positively e-service quality in banking. However, system availability is not found significantly affecting e-service quality in banking. Research implications- Based on the understanding of the key e- service quality dimensions and the perception of consumers toward e-service quality, managers may discover methods to improve e-service quality and create loyal customers. Originality/value- This paper adapts E-S-Qual as the basis to measure e-service quality in banking service. This method is more suitable than that of the previous studies that are based on the traditional service quality models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper attempts to understand the production of the city through informality. In particular, informal practices related to the momo (dumpling) industry, concentrated in the “urban village” of Chirag Dilli, are analysed in their dialectic relationship with formal planning and legislation in Delhi. We use a Lefebvrian framework that views city-making as an interaction of formal representations in the form of master plans, etc., informal and formal spatial practices (including momo production and living patterns) and representational (imagined) spaces related to neighbourhoods and the city. Drawing on primary qualitative data, we examine how informality informed the formal planning. The uneven application of state legislation, in turn, fostered particular informal practices (such as momo manufacturing) and the emergence of a distinct urban morphology and of new cohabitation practices. The informal momo industry also altered the representational associations made with both the Chirag Dilli neighbourhood and the city of Delhi. The paper shows how informal practices constantly interact with formal frameworks to co-produce urban space and consequently the city. We argue that informal practices are not necessarily in conflict with formal planning or subverting it, but that they play a central role in their own right for the production of space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water is a prime necessity for the survival and sustenance of all living beings. Over the past few years, the water quality of rivers is adversely affected due to harmful wastes and pollutants. This ever-increasing water pollution is a big matter of concern as it deteriorating the water quality, making it unfit for any type of use. Recently, water quality modelling using machine learning techniques has generated a lot of interest and can be very beneficial in ecological and water resources management. However, they suffer many times from high computational complexity and high prediction error. The good performance of a deep neural network like long short-term memory network (LSTM) has been exploited for the time-series data. In this paper, a deep learning–based Bi-LSTM model (DLBL-WQA) is introduced to forecast the water quality factors of Yamuna River, India. The existing schemes do not perform missing value imputation and focus only on the learning process without including a loss function pertaining to training error. The proposed model shows a novel scheme which includes missing value imputation in the first phase, the second phase generates the feature maps from the given input data, the third phase includes a Bi-LSTM architecture to improve the learning process, and finally, an optimized loss function is applied to reduce the training error. Thus, the proposed model improves forecasting accuracy. Data comprising monthly samples of different water quality factors were collected for 6 years (2013–2019) at several locations in the Delhi region. Experimental results reveal that predicted values of the model and the actual values were in a close agreement and could reveal a future trend. The performance of our model was compared with various state of the art techniques like SVR, random forest, artificial neural network, LSTM, and CNN-LSTM. To check the accuracy, metrics like root mean square errors (RMSE), the mean absolute error (MAE), mean square error (MSE), and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) have been used. Experimental analysis is carried out by measuring the COD and BOD levels. COD analysis reveals the MSE, RMSE, MAE, and MAPE values as 0.015, 0.117, 0.115, and 20.32, respectively, for the Palla region. Similarly, BOD analysis indicates the MSE, RMSE, MAE, and MAPE values as 0.107, 0.108, 0.124, and 18.22, respectively. A comparative analysis reveals that the proposed model outperforms all other models in terms of the best forecasting accuracy and lowest error rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper was to examine the relationship between electronic customer relationship management (E-CRM) and customer satisfaction through the mediating role of customer experience in the banking industry. Design/methodology/approach: The data were collected from customers of 10 banks (5 public and 5 private sector banks) of Delhi, India. In total, 836 useable structured questionnaires were filled, and the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) through AMOS. Findings: The results revealed that customer experience mediated the relationship between E-CRM and customer satisfaction confirming well with the hypothesized model. Research limitations/implications: The model was tested in the domain of banking industry; future results may be conducted in different domains for improving generalizability. A comparative study between public and private sector banks in terms of E-CRM, customer experience and customer satisfaction could also be conducted. Originality/value: The study was the first to unequivocally analyze the influence of the E-CRM on customer satisfaction through customer experience in the banking industry. The study also introduced stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model as a theoretical support to associate E-CRM to customer satisfaction through customer experience. Thus, this study will enhance the current knowledge base and will also aid E-CRM managers amid decision-making process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

History and Archaeology are sister subjects and complement each other though both sciences have different methodology. Archaeology mainly relies on fieldwork for collection of data whereas history is based on the study of documents. Archaeology provides historians concrete facts in the form of material remains to verify their assumptions. The findings of archaeologists help Historiansto build narratives to designate people their due place in history by highlighting their contribution. Today the emphasis on interdisciplinary approach in social sciences is considered a remarkable advancement. History provides many examples where two or more sciences had been combined and masterpieces were produced. Asar-us-Sanadeed is one such glaring example where the author combined the methodology of History and Archaeology and produced a remarkable scholarly work. It is a description of the buildings and monuments of Delhi. This work is valuable as it can contribute to the decolonization of the historical tradition in south Asia rectifying the assumptions of the orientalists of the nineteenth and twentieth century. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan deserves the credit and appreciation for such research. This paper attempts to highlight the reciprocal relationship of both sciences and how Sir Syed Ahmad Khan consciously or unconsciously used the methodology of both sciences to contribute an original work. This paper evaluates the research methodology Sir Syed employed in writing this book. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper focuses on identifying the usage patterns amongst Gen-Z regarding political memes on social media platforms in Delhi, India. Memes have been observed as unconventional ways of expressing political dissent with the rise of the networked society. With the growth in the use of social media platforms as forums for public dialogue and sharing of political opinions, memes are seen to be extensively used not just for creative expression but also in regard to sensitizing a larger virtual community about various political discourses. In the case of the west, the use of political memes by the youth have been observed as informal ways of engaging with different political situations within society and creating an independent space for public forum through social media. Memes which are commonly known as 'idea viruses' have garnered greater acceptability and virality on different social media platforms. They are often considered as a part of the participatory political culture on the internet and are associated with 'networked individualism'. In the case of India, especially regarding Gen-Z, the use of social media is evolving complementary to the different ways of experimenting and engaging with political discourses. Political memes are seen to be used for expressing opinion and engaging with political issues in both conventional and unconventional ways. One of the primary factors seen is the rising level of political awareness due to rising education and socioeconomic status (E-SES). The paper, therefore, seeks to understand the usage patterns of political memes by Gen-Z on social media and whether it complements the model of Data-Knowledge-Action in a networked setup. It also aims to understand the kind of sensitization it is shaping within a larger virtual community of Gen-Z in Delhi, India. The study will utilize a survey method to understand the factors for the widespread popularity of political memes and its impact on the political choices of Gen -Z in Delhi, India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present paper we attempted to explain the relationships among the landuse pattern, levels of air pollutants and bird diversity based on data from 5 sampling sites in Delhi. Five landuse categories -- percent built up area, tree cover, park area and barren area were recognized in the study area. The objective of this study is to find out the effects of landuse changes on air pollution and bird diversity and whether birds can serve as indicator of landuse changes and air pollutants. The levels of six air pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, NOX, SO2, Ozone and Benzene) from the monitoring stations were used. The bird diversity was assessed using conventional measures. All the sites showed remarkable differences with respect to each of the five landuse categories, air pollution levels, and bird diversity. The results suggest that landuse changes influence air pollution and bird diversity and some bird species can be used as indicator of landuse change and air pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In India, National Capital Region (NCR) – Delhi, has various forms of water bodies. However, it is either encroached, highly polluted, or silted over the decades, thereby resulting in less functional status, especially for activities like groundwater recharge, etc. Out of the total of more than 1000 water bodies of comparatively lower size area either completely encroached (18%), converted into the park (9%), non-traceable (4%), or filled with dirty water (11%), etc. By mapping the coordinates of these water bodies, restoration and rejuvenation can be planned which includes community participation, a self-supporting system, etc. for effective and sustainable management of individual water body. This paper briefly discusses the current situation of the surface water availability in Delhi (NCR) that is deprived of water, especially in the post-monsoon season. The present study also suggests the usage of Geographical Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing (RS) technology, for the identification, mapping, etc. that can also be linked with surface water as a continuous resource. This will help in analyzing the catchment area as well as understanding the storage capacity to a certain possible extent. This study also emphasizes the synchronization of government policy with associate laws and their implementation with appropriate and effective management and action of concerned regulatory authority. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]