Search

A study to understand the throughfall and stemflow chemistry under deodar and oak forests of Garhwal Himalaya was conducted during 2014–2015. Total rainfall during experimental period was 1473.8 mm and estimated interception loss was 34.018% for deodar forest, 24.85% for oak forest. Stemflow represented the minimum proportion of gross rainfall, i.e. 0.321% in deodar forest and 0.463% in oak forest. pH of throughfall and stemflow in both deodar (6.087 and 6.47 respectively) and oak forests (6.75 and 7.03 respectively) was significantly more acidic than the gross rainfall (7.15). Electrical conductivity was recorded higher in deodar stemflow (231.89 μs/cm) and throughfall (102.75 μs/cm) compared to oak forest (172.92 μs/cm and 83.83 μs/cm respectively). Net nutrient leaching and stemflow were considerably higher from oak forest than deodar forest. Oak forest has better water yield capacity than deodar forest as the interception loss was higher in deodar forest. The idea of sustainable agriculture may be possible surrounding such forests as the need for chemical fertilizer and water can be met by the nutrient-rich soil, available soil moisture and surface water. HIGHLIGHTS Oak forest has better water yielding and nutrient deposition capacity than deodar forest.; Climate and its changing condition have influence on rainfall partitioning.; Precipitation input plays significant role in nutrient cycling.; Sustainable agriculture may be possible around such forests as the need for chemical fertilizer and water can be met by nutrient-rich soil, available soil moisture and surface water.

Telecom is one of the highly competitive sectors in contemporary India. Over the past few years a lot of Telecom companies have entered the market. With new companies coming in the market and the amount of competition that it leads it becomes necessary for the company to stay in the forefront of things. Some brands have exited as they were unable to stay in the market due to the pressure of its competitors. The concept of corporate social responsibility though old, has been used very incorrectly over the years. A lot of companies used to do philanthropic work, not because of their ethics or values but to vain the support and loyalty of customers. But overtime this has changed and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has been made mandatory under the law. Here this research tries to study how a company increases its brand equity and stands out amongst its competitors through CSR. The paper tries to understand the vital components of achieving brand equity through various aspects of CSR. This study will be useful for corporate organizations to understand how CSR is just not a waste in the form of a mandate but essentially is a strategic tool to enhance the equity of the brand and create a consumer connect with the brand.

The objective of this paper is to understand how SWIFT has become the monopoly in terms of the digital payment transaction industry. The methodology adapted in this paper is qualitative secondary research case study method. The study undertook a literature review analysis where the literature of more than fifty research papers and reports were analyzed and themes were generated. Hence twelve such themes evolved and then thematic content analysis was executed through grounded theory method. The reliability of the data source mentioned were taken from relevant organizations involved in cross border payments and validation of the reports were done by experts in this field of financial ecosystem. SWIFT still enjoys monopoly in the market in terms of its huge network and the number of banks it partners across 200 + countries in the world. But the new block chain technology launched by Ripple and Bitcoin and other small start-ups has posed a challenge to the existing traditional cross border payment system of SWIFT. Block chain has a peer-to-peer communication with no intermediary network required. It involves a simple transaction charge with the flexibility to share documents over network for better transparency. But SWIFT having a legacy incredibility and trust can ensure more reliable services to the businesses in cross border payments.

Among preventive products, communication of condom usage through diverse advertisements have always occupied the centre stage targeting male audience majorly. The critical observation at the communication trends of these advertisement put forward, the portrayal of condom advertisements have undergone significant changes in the last one decade with the globalization and feminist movements being stronger than before. According to the report “Condom Market”, U.S. demand for condoms is expected to reach USD 1,563.95 million in 2020, growing at a CAGR of 3.5% between 2015 and 2020. A Few studies have tried to gain insight on changing trends and its relation with changing outlook among individuals. The research focusses on the critical analysis of the changing discourses in condom advertisements and understanding its effectiveness with respect to today’s evolved audience. The purpose is to identify whether the condom advertisements have been dynamic enough to capture the changing mind-set of the consumer and measure the extent of impact. For study implementation, quantitative methods are used to explore important parameters from condom communication research and evaluate the changing discourses of condom advertisements in the last one decade. The five parameters that this paper would undertake are: Preparatory behavior (sexual cues); Portrayal of gender; Textual discourses; Visual discourses and Target Audience. The study showed which parameters have undergone change over the last one decade and which have remain constant. Comprehensive study will lead to advertisers in finding feature-efficient way of telling buyers what is for sale. Medical practitioners and health researchers will be benefitted in persuading people with meaningful communication of the preventive products.

Rural communities in developing countries extract provisioning ecosystem services from the natural environment to meet their subsistence needs, generate cash income and create employment opportunities. Caterpillar fungus Ophiocordyceps sinensis, known as yartsagunbu in Tibet and in the literature on this subject, is a medicinal resource extracted by the mountain communities of the Himalaya. Studies of the contribution of the fungus to local livelihoods in the Indian Himalaya are scarce. We investigated trade and harvest and analysed the contribution of caterpillar fungus to household economies in 32 villages in Dhauliganga Valley, Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, in the Western Himalaya. Caterpillar fungus harvesting has become an integral part of local livelihoods in the study area, and on average contributes c. 74% of household cash income. The majority of harvesters perceived that harvesting had become more difficult during 2010–2015 as a result of competition and a decline in abundance of the species. The mean annual per capita harvest declined by 54 pieces during 2011–2015. Increasing harvesting and trade, coupled with the dependency of local communities on the fungus, may result in greater extraction of the resource for short-term economic benefits, and could eventually lead to depletion and ecological damage. Harvesting of the fungus has already created environmental, legal and social challenges, although it has become a lucrative livelihood opportunity. The ongoing decline of the fungus threatens local livelihoods. Good governance and livelihood security should be integrated with biodiversity conservation when devising government policies and plans for sustainable management of the caterpillar fungus.

In vivo, high protein and ion concentrations determine the preferred volumes of cells, organelles, and vesicles. Deformations of their lipid-bilayer membranes by nanoparticle wrapping reduce the interior volumes available to solutes and thus induce large osmotic pressure differences. Osmotic concentration can therefore be an important control parameter for wrapping of nanoparticles. We employ a curvature-elasticity model of the membrane and contact interaction with spherical particles to study their wrapping at initially spherical vesicles. Although the continuous particle-binding transition is independent of the presence of solutes, the discontinuous envelopment transition shifts to higher adhesion strengths and the corresponding energy barrier increases with increasing osmotic concentration. High osmotic concentrations stabilize partial-wrapped, membrane-bound states for both, particle attachment to the inside and the outside. In this regime, wrapping of particles controls membrane tension, with power-law dependencies on osmotic concentration and adhesion strength. For high adhesion strengths, particle wrapping can lead to the opening of mechanosensitive channels in cell membranes and to lysis. Membrane tension-induced stabilization of partial-wrapped states as well as wrapping-induced lysis play important roles not only for desired mechano-bacteriocidal effects of engineered nanomaterials but may also determine viral burst sizes of bacteria and control endocytosis for mammalian cells.

Unraveling the interaction of nanoparticles with living cells is fundamental for nanomedicine and nanotoxicology. Erythrocytes are abundant and serve as model cells with well-characterized properties. Quantitative experiments addressing the binding of carboxylated polystyrene nanoparticles to human erythrocytes reveal saturated adsorption with only sparse (∼2%) coverage of the cell membrane by partial-wrapped nanoparticles. The independence of the adsorbed area on particle size suggests a restricted number of adhesive sites on the membrane. Using a continuum membrane model combined with nanoparticle–membrane adhesion mediated by receptor–ligand bonds, we predict high bond energies and low receptor densities for partial-wrapped particles. With the help of computer simulations, we determine sets of receptor densities, receptor diffusion coefficients, minimal numbers of bound receptors required for multivalent binding, and maximal possible numbers of bound receptors that reproduce the experimental nanopartic...

A study was conducted in an oak forest, to find out the relationship of stand structure, aspect and regeneration of species. Among all disturbance stands the density of banj oak Quercus leucotrichophora A. Camus individuals was peaked at 40–50 cm and 50–60 cm diameter at breast height (DBH) classes and low tree density was observed with the increasing DBH classes. North aspect showed higher density for most of girth classes as compared to south facing aspect. Among all the stands, low seedling density was recorded in undisturbed stand at south facing aspect as compared to the moderately and highly disturbed stands. The tree density of Q. leucotrichophora was higher in the undisturbed stand followed by moderately disturbed and highly disturbed stand. But in case of seedling density the higher density were observed at undisturbed and highly disturbed stand in both of the aspects.

The local folk of Himalaya have natural coexistence with the forests and depend on these bounty natural resources for their livelihood. The present study was carried out on semi-nomadic pastoralist for the study of forest use patterns. The main source of livelihood was found to be homogeneous (pastoralism) within each settlement. The study records 26 tree species preferred for fuelwood consumption. Overall average fuelwood consumption was 20.09 ± 0.7 kg day−1 family−1. The average per capita fuelwood consumption was 2.77 kg day−1. Average fuelwood consumption by very large families is significantly higher than small families. The principal component analysis explain lopping, extraction and anthropogenic activities for biomass extraction as a major factor of disturbance in forests. We also examined the present forest wood consumption rate and its implications in terms of potential deforestation and emission of greenhouse gases. The findings in the paper could form the basis for designing appropriate technologies and management policies in the region.

The targeted promotions and positive WOM were making them popular but the issue of customised service seemed a challenge. Each student had a different set of priorities in terms of travel, stay and food offered. The company wanted to enhance their profits so either the negotiation had to be great or the price to be enhanced. This issue landed them in a dilemma. They wanted to diversify, promote and research all of which required a lot of money. They even thought of diversifying into the senior citizen category. It was a lucrative segment with huge profit margins but with its own set of huge challenges too. So, they are stuck up with a dilemma. Should they negotiate with vendors or should they increase the price of the service package? Should they stick to their current target group of students or diversify to the segment of senior citizens or a completely new segment?

Board meeting was in full swing as an important announcement had been made by Manish Jain, MD FinMen Advisors Pvt. Ltd. ‘We need to get 5,000 clients by 2023’. Management board members look at each other in wonder as they have only 500 clients in 2018. ‘That's a herculean task’, says a board member, ‘Besides, the clients’ fees are reducing in our business'. Manish interrupts to suggest that it is precisely the reason they want to enhance their client base. But the board members were still not convinced. Their questions revolved around whether they are equipped enough in terms of resources and infrastructure to reach to the number suggested by Manish. There were issues in the processes and systems of the company, there were issues in employees taking onus of leading certain verticals in the company, there were no branding exercise in terms of increasing awareness about the company. On the whole, in order to reach 5,000 clients, a total revamp of processes, systems and training employees needed to be given huge emphasis. But does the company have money for revamping all these issues? ‘I don't care’, says Manish, ‘Any client in any industry looking for credit ratings should be our client’. As Manish moves out of the board room, he says to himself that he was well aware of the facts questioned by the board members. But as a person ready to take up challenge and enjoy the perils of it, Manish was not ready to reconsider any of the points raised by the members. He thought whatever has to be done, has to be done to achieve targets set by him. However, sitting in his office and thinking about the future, Manish was still on the same dilemmic question as any employee in his company: how does he achieve the figure of 5,000 clients by 2023?

The length of the debate regarding a new business idea and resource allocation between Ritu Jhajharia, Vinay Chaurasia and Sandeep Poonia on an evening in March 2016, was enough to make the piping hot pasta go cold. After much deliberation, The Rolling Circle, a Mumbai-based marketing firm concentrated on the digital marketing business arena was born with plans of potentially viable business strategies, blueprints of employee and other key resources' allocations, strategies for client procurement and vesting of some amount of investment money in initial pitches. Yet, in the last two plus years, the company has procured 40 plus clients and are looking to finish their account books with Rs. 1 crore revenue in their banks by 2018. Despite initial financial crunch, the company continued to get businesses. One day in February 2018, the resignation of co-founder Vinay Chaurasia was a blow to the foundation of the company. While clocking their best business so far and continuously growing since its inception, The Rolling Circle is now faced with one of the biggest dilemmas in the company lifecycle: in their line of business, there is neither a constant flow of clients nor a stability in terms of the employees working in the organisation; the founding team is grappling with the glaring strategic question of whether they should recruit high-profile employees in the organisation first and then continue onboarding premium clients, or they should first sign with premium clients and then look out for high-profile employees to serve those clients? Who will wait: the client or the employees?

With the rapidly changing times and technology, more and more companies are moving towards brand extensions to acquire a competitive advantage. There are various factors enhancing brand equity while extending the brand into new categories like brand awareness, personality, lifestyle, relationship with the consumers, cultural differences among consumers and demographics. Demographic of a brand is the most important personality characteristic which leads to most easily extractable variables like gender, age and class. Gender plays a significant role in shaping the brand personality of a brand and its subsequent variants. (Levy, 1959). This chapter relies on the relationship between gender based brand personality and brand equity drawn from the study titled “The effect of Brand Gender on Brand Equity”. (Lieven, 2014). This research paper concludes that brand androgyny (masculinity or femininity of the brand) was negatively related to brand associations i.e., brand equity is not influenced by gender associations related to the brand or the product category. So, this chapter explores whether there is a relationship between gender and different variants of the brand. Also, should advertisers design gender focused messages for the different brand variants. The methodology chosen for this research is quantitative in nature. The independent variable in this research is gender and the dependent variable is brand variance. This research paper shows that there is no impact of brand variants on gender. Advertisements need to be designed in a manner that target both males and females psychologically rather that demographically especially gender based.

Syncytial architecture is an evolutionarily-conserved feature of the germline of many species and plays a crucial role in their fertility. However, the mechanism supporting syncytial organization is largely unknown. Here, we identify a corset-like actomyosin structure within the syncytial germline of Caenorhabditis elegans, surrounding the common rachis. Using laser microsurgery, we demonstrate that actomyosin contractility within this structure generates tension both in the plane of the rachis surface and perpendicular to it, opposing membrane tension. Genetic and pharmacological perturbations, as well as mathematical modeling, reveal a balance of forces within the gonad and show how changing the tension within the actomyosin corset impinges on syncytial germline structure, leading, in extreme cases, to sterility. Thus, our work highlights a unique tissue-level cytoskeletal structure, and explains the critical role of actomyosin contractility in the preservation of a functional germline., Germline cells in many species are fused to form a syncytium but the mechanics behind the maintenance of these structures are poorly defined. Here, the authors propose an inner contractile actomyosin corset provides a supportive framework to maintain germline architecture in C. elegans.

Farmers in the Indian Himalayan region have been practicing agroforestry since time immoral. Agroforestry practice complements hill farming and forms the backbone of subsistence agriculture. The present study was carried out in four districts of Garhwal Himalaya. Agroforestry area was demarcated using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System techniques. The information regarding agriculture and tree crop pattern was collected through questionnaire survey and direct observations. The agri-horti-silviculture is very common practice of this region. As compared to geographical area the net sown area is very low with wide variations within study area. A small portion of the net sown area has been utilized for the agroforestry purpose. Topographical factors play a crucial role in utilization of the land for agroforestry purpose. Highest agroforestry area, as well the highest agroforestry land as percentage of total geographical area, was estimated as 2.13 % in one of the district of study area. Within 300–7100 m a.s.l. of study area, maximum agroforestry was found in 1201–1600 m a.s.l. altitudinal zone and in 21°–30° slope. Cropping pattern is dominated by the traditional and low productivity crops, providing basic livelihood for a vast majority of the population. Many farmers in the Garhwal Himalayan areas are struggling to make a livelihood due to lack of other avenues of employment and small land holdings, leading to migration of mountain people toward plains. It is presumed that the rate of migration can be reduced once the agroforestry potential of this area is harnessed at an optimum level.

We theoretically explore fluidization of epithelial tissues by active T1 neighbor exchanges. We show that the geometry of cell-cell junctions encodes important information about the local features of the energy landscape, which we support by an elastic theory of T1 transformations. Using a 3D vertex model, we show that the degree of active noise driving forced cell rearrangements governs the stress-relaxation time-scale of the tissue. We study tissue response to in-plane shear at different time scales. At short time, the tissue behaves as a solid, whereas its long-time fluid behavior can be associated with an effective viscosity which scales with the rate of active T1 transformations. Furthermore, we develop a coarse-grained theory, where we treat the tissue as an active fluid and confirm the results of the vertex model. The impact of cell rearrangements on tissue shape is illustrated by studying axial compression of an epithelial tube.

Significance The development of intercellular cavities (lumens) is a ubiquitous mechanism to form complex tissue structures in organisms. The generation of Ciona Notochord, the formation of Zebrafish vasculature, or the formation of bile canaliculi between hepatic cells constitute a few examples. Lumen growth is governed by water intake that usually results from the creation of a salt concentration difference (osmotic gradients) between the inside and the outside of the lumen. During morphogenesis or in diseases, lumens can also leak due to improper maturation of the cell junctions that seal them. In this paper, we theoretically describe different conditions and dynamical regimes of lumen growth based on the balance of osmotic pressure, fluid intake, and paracellular leak.

Nanoparticles in biological systems encounter lipid-bilayer membranes as barriers. They interact with plasma membranes, membranous organelles, such as the endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi apparatus, the nucleus, and intracellular and extracellular vesicles, such as autophagosomes, lysosomes, and exosomes. Extracellular vesicles have recently attracted particular attention, as they are involved in the transmission of biological signals and as regulators for biological processes. For example, exosomes, small vesicles containing proteins, mRNA, and miRNA, that are released by cells into the extracellular environment, have been suggested to participate in tumor metastasis. Furthermore, vesicles can be applied as targeted-drug-delivery systems. We systematically characterize wrapping of spherical nanoparticles that enter and exit vesicles, depending on particle size, vesicle size, vesicle reduced volume, and membrane spontaneous curvature. We predict the complex wrapping behavior, in particular for large particle-to-vesicle size ratios, where the shape changes of the free membrane contribute significantly to the deformation energy and where nanoparticle wrapping transitions and vesicle shape transitions are coupled. Partial-wrapped membrane-bound particles impose boundary conditions on the membrane that stabilise oblates and stomatocytes for particle entry, and prolates and stomatocytes for particle exit. Our results suggest that nanoparticles may stimulate autophagocytic engulfment, which would facilitate transport of the nanoparticles into lysosomes and would lead to subsequent degradation of nanoparticle-attached proteins.

Biological membranes are both barriers and communication interfaces of cells. Transport across membranes is therefore essential for life. It encompasses both endocytotic and exocytotic processes important for cell function, but also the invasion of cells by parasites and viruses, and targeted drug delivery. Whereas interactions on the molecular scale are important for particles with sizes comparable with the thickness of the membrane, the mechanical properties of the entire membrane determine its interaction with larger particles. We focus here on large particles and parasites and discuss wrapping of single particles by homogeneous and complex membranes. Both solid particles with various shapes as well as soft particles are considered. Membrane-mediated interactions of many particles lead to aggregation and tubulation. Finally, active biological mechanisms are shown to support the invasion of parasites, such as the malaria parasite, and to drive phagocytosis.

This chapter throws light on the impact of gratification factors in visual food communication on consumer decision making. This research has been done with special reference to ‘South Indian Cuisine'. It will be evident that if an eatery promotes and presents these regional foods with a specific strategy, it will attract more consumers than it had expected. People basically relate well to the pictures of food, specifically because in countries like India, emotion is one majorly used appeal by brands to lure their customers. Hence, even in food industry, a person before ordering a particular dish relates to its pictures in the menu or anywhere else because there are certain gratification factors in visual communication of food that connects the consumer with the reason as to why they want to eat a particular dish. The aim of this research is to understand that which particular gratification factor will highly influence which particular south-Indian food item.

This chapter throws light on the impact of digital word-of-mouth on consumer decision making process. The background review for this study elaborates on the growing popularity of social networking sites among users and the necessity for a brand to connect to its existing as well as prospective customers via fashion bloggers and not just through brand owned pages and posts or online ads. Users trust and rely on these fashion bloggers and influencers for their day-to-day intake latest trends, upcoming styles, new brands, and new product offerings. The aim of this research is to find out which is most popular online platform for browsing fashion apparel content and to what extent does digital word-of-mouth impact consumer decision making.

Through litter decomposition enormous amounts of carbon is emitted to the atmosphere. Numerous large-scale decomposition experiments have been conducted focusing on this fundamental soil process in order to understand the controls on the terrestrial carbon transfer to the atmosphere. However, previous studies were mostly based on site-specific litter and methodologies, adding major uncertainty to syntheses, comparisons and meta-analyses across different experiments and sites. In the TeaComposition initiative, the potential litter decomposition is investigated by using standardized substrates (Rooibos and Green tea) for comparison of litter mass loss at 336 sites (ranging from -9 to +26 °C MAT and from 60 to 3113 mm MAP) across different ecosystems. In this study we tested the effect of climate (temperature and moisture), litter type and land-use on early stage decomposition (3 months) across nine biomes. We show that litter quality was the predominant controlling factor in early stage litter decomposition, which explained about 65% of the variability in litter decomposition at a global scale. The effect of climate, on the other hand, was not litter specific and explained

This article examines the perceptions and attitude of the semi-nomadic pastoral community “Van Gujjars” on the use and conservation of natural resources in Corbett Tiger Reserve, India. In this research article, in-depth interview and questionnaire data (n = 340) about demography and perceptions were examined from both qualitative and quantitative information. Respondents have expressed their perception about their own territories, problems, attachments, positive or negative change that occurred during their stay in and around protected area. Respondents overall positive attitudes towards conservation scenarios despite high losses from wildlife while living around protected area suggest that they may support conservation if their livelihood needs are met. Most of the respondents support the concept of conservation, and some respondents have negative attitude towards management authorities, mainly because of restricted access to the forest resources. The study illustrates and suggests a number of options for the viability of resettlement of pastoralist community. A majority of respondents indicated that there is a need for public participation in planning and implementation of resettlement process. Resettlement of Van Gujjar community may be better if exercised with the consensus of all the stakeholders. Resettlement will provide better livelihood opportunity to the pastoral community and enhance the economic status of these people as the educational level increases in time, while also improving habitat recovery leading to better biodiversity conservation. Thus, resettlements could benefit both the pastoral people and the natural resources.

Correction for ‘Wrapping of ellipsoidal nano-particles by fluid membranes’ by Sabyasachi Dasgupta et al., Soft Matter, 2013, 9, 5473–5482.

The present study was conducted in environs of the sacred grove of Garhwal Himalaya, India, with a view to assess the impacts of sacred groves and forests on the quality and quantity of water and also to assess the effect of seasonality on perennial stream quality. Water samples were collected from three randomly selected stream spots of both the sacred grove dominated by deodar (Cedrus deodara) and the non-sacred patch dominated by oak (Quercus leucotrichophora). Water samples from both patches were within the World Health Organization (WHO) standard limits. Based on an already established water quality index, water quality of both patches was safe for domestic and irrigation purposes but needs treatment for drinking purposes. Results of the present study also showed a very prominent impact of forest type as well as management condition on water quality and quantity. The water discharge from an oak forest shows more consistency than the discharge from a deodar forest. Due to the presence of the sacred grove, the area has become the source of good quality water supply during lean season for the surrounding villages. Water quality and quantity differed along with the change in season. The sacred grove and the existing forest leave a great impression on local dwellers, as due to its presence, local dwellers never run out of water supply during the dry season. As a result, the villagers sincerely want to protect the area for the sake of their own well-being.

This article highlights the results of an action research to upgrade mountain farmers of bay leaf (Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm) in Udayapur district of Nepal. Farmers received low prices, lacked market information, capacities, and institutional mechanisms, and were exploited by traders. To address these constraints, three independent but interlinked pro-poor value chain (VC) upgrading strategies comprising VC coordination upgrading and horizontal and vertical contractualization were implemented. Information was collected from focus-group discussions with collectors, traders, and facilitators, and a questionnaire was used to collect pre- and postintervention data (n = 120). VC upgrading strategies improved harvesting practices, increased farmers’ bargaining power, and led to a threefold increase in price, which increased household incomes. Results demonstrated improved terms of participation of farmers and a general increase in market price of bay leaf in Udayapur. The study approach can be up scaled ...

An in-depth understanding of the interface between cells and nanostructures is one of the key challenges for coupling electrically excitable cells and electronic devices. Recently, various 3D nanostructures have been introduced to stimulate and record electrical signals emanating from inside of the cell. Even though such approaches are highly sensitive and scalable, it remains an open question how cells couple to 3D structures, in particular how the engulfment-like processes of nanostructures work. Here, we present a profound study of the cell interface with two widely used nanostructure types, cylindrical pillars with and without a cap. While basic functionality was shown for these approaches before, a systematic investigation linking experimental data with membrane properties was not presented so far. The combination of electron microscopy investigations with a theoretical membrane deformation model allows us to predict the optimal shape and dimensions of 3D nanostructures for cell-chip coupling.

Cultivation of bay leaves (Cinnamomum tamala Nees & Eberm) to fulfil household income needs is a long established practice in Udayapur district of Nepal. The practices adopted by farmers for bay leaf harvesting have not, however, been validated by scientific investigation for their sustainability. To investigate the impacts of harvesting on the yield of branch, leaves and biomass of leaves, a two-year research project was conducted in farm fields at Kopche village of Routa VDC in Udayapur district, Nepal. Four different harvesting treatments, the orientation and the order of branches were taken as independent variables to test their effects on number of branches, leaves and biomass of leaves. Orientation, harvesting treatments and order of branches had a significant effect on the number of branches, but not on the number of leaves or biomass (fresh and dry weight) of leaves in the year of harvest. Between two consecutive harvests there was no significant difference in the number of branches, leaves or biomass. Lower two-thirds portion of the trees produced the largest number of leaves and branches of the fourth order in both years. Therefore, lower two-thirds portion of the trees were suitable for harvesting. Our findings support farmer experience that no change in productivity of leaves is observed when harvesting each year. For long term sustainability, harvesting should be conducted without debarking of trees or damage to branches. Our findings could be extrapolated to and tested in other areas with different access and user rights where the rotation for harvest is fixed or regulated without research evidence.

An investigation was conducted in an Oak forest of Garhwal Himalaya in relation to aspect and altitude. Major dominant tree, shrub and herb species were compared for density, A/F ratio and IVI values. Quercus leucotrichophora, Rhododendron arboreum, Lyonia ovalifolia, Myrica esculanta, Pinus roxburghii, Pyrus pashia, Benthamedia capitata and Lindera pulcherrima were most dominant tree species among all studied altitudes. Q. leucotrochophora showed contagious pattern in the north facing aspect and changed to random pattern in the south facing aspect at upper and middle altitudes. R. arboreum and M. esculanata also showed same changes in their distribution at middle and lower altitudes. In the shrub layer, the contagious pattern was changed to random pattern from north facing aspect to south facing aspect and vice versa. Herb species were mostly recorded in contagious pattern and the change of distribution was found for few species.

This article presents the findings of a study that analysed the Indian Bay Leaf (Cinnamomum tamala) Nees and Eberm value chain (VC) in Uttarakhand, India and Udayapur, Nepal. The results show that bay-leaf VCs are loosely integrated and consist of stakeholders with asymmetrical power relations and different priorities. Traders in India dominate the chains and inappropriate standards lead to the exploitation of small producers and inequity in the chain. Policy measures are suggested for improving co-ordination and competitiveness in the bay-leaf VC which could be applied to the NTFP sector as a whole.

The term “Corporate Social Responsibility” has gained lot of momentum in the last few decades. Several scholars have tried to deconstruct what it actually means and the kind of responsibility corporate organizations have. Carroll’s pyramidal model has made significant contribution to the debate by categorizing corporate social responsibility into four broad dimensions: Economic, Legal, Ethical and Philanthropic. While several scholars have emphasized these four dimensions in different perspectives, the debate seems to remain persistent. This paper looks into different dimensions of corporate social responsibility and tries to deconstruct its primary motive. Through the scanning of literatures available on the definitions of corporate social responsibility concept, this paper tries to understand the focus of such an attempt. It then takes the help of qualitative in-depth interview methodology to understand what the corporate managers in India across sectors feel about corporate social responsibility. This leads to convergence of literature review and in-depth interview findings benefiting both academic and corporate world. The findings suggest that although companies seem to accomplish such responsibility for societal purposes, the ultimate objective is an economically viable model which leads to the sustainability of a corporate organization. A model is suggested based on the above findings.

The present study was conducted for quantitative and qualitative characteristics of floristic diversity at the species level along environmental gradients of major and minor streams of the Bhilangana River in the Tehri District of Garhwal Himalaya. The stratified random sampling design was used for the study purpose. A total of 150 nested quadrats each with a size of 20 m×20 m for tree species and within each major plot, 5 m×5 m and 1 m×1 m sub plots were nested for shrubs and herbaceous species respectively. A total of 212 plant species belonging to 158 genera and 87 families were recorded. On the basis of important value index (IVI), Pinus roxburghii, Rhododendron arboreum, Quercus leucotricophora, Quercus semecarpifolia and Lyonia ovalifolia were dominant tree species within the entire basin area along the stream courses. The Shannon index and Simpson index values recorded for trees, shrubs and herbs were 2.64 (0.13), 1.04 (0.87) and 4.25 (0.019) respectively. This study provides comprehensive information on the species diversity of different vegetation life forms in the riparian zone of the Bhilangana valley.

Non-timber forest product commercialisation requires information on what and who is involved in markets, but this is rarely documented. This paper presents the findings of a study to assess the structure and dynamics of markets for bay leaf (Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm) in Nepal and in Uttarakhand state in India. Data were collected from key informant interviews with stakeholders from the governments of the two countries, research agencies, user groups and traders associations, from focus group discussion involving 100 farmers and district and wholesale level traders, and from stakeholder meeting and interviews with traders using an open-ended questionnaire in the two countries. It was found that of the 2,500 tons of bay leaf traded in Nepal in 2009, 86 % was exported to India. The total size of the bay leaf market in Uttarakhand is estimated at 1,470 tons, with the spice industry as the main consumer. Nepalese bay leaf sustains the demand in Indian markets that were studied. Processing of leaves into essential oil and powder by wholesale traders takes place in Nepal and India respectively, but no regional trade in essential oil was observed. Three quality grades are sold in markets which are not known to the farmers. The bay leaf trade is increasing, creating an opportunity for farmers to engage in its cultivation. There is a need for transferring market information and improving policy implementation to promote transparent and equitable market linkages that enhance benefits to mountain farmers.

The study made an assessment of the floral status of the project site of Kotlibhel hydrolectric project (Stage 1B) at Alaknanda valley in the Ganga river system (India). Study area included two broad zones: Influence (IZ) and Submergence zone (SZ). Influence zone showed higher species richness in all vegetation strata. In the upper layer, there were 26 tree species, middle layer consisted of 32 shrub species and ground layer (understory) contained 41 species. Maximum density in the tree layer (36.4 plants/ha) was found for Haldinia cordifolia in the Influence zone. On the other hand, shrub and herb species showed highest density in the Submergence zone. Highest density of shrubs species was recorded for Ficus hederacea (844.0 plants/ha), while highest density of herbs for Desmodium triflorum (5540.1 plants/ha). Significant differences in Shannon diversity were found between Influence and Submergence zones for shrub and herb species (P

We have studied the quality of surface water in three sacred groves of Garhwal (Uttarakhand, India). The water samples were collected in March–April 2013. Results showed that all water samples conformed to WHO standards for potability. Water of Hariyali Devi recorded the lowest dissolved oxygen and water of Tarkeshwar had the highest hardness. The quality water of Ravigaon was found to be the best among the waters of the three groves. Water from deodardominant forests recorded higher dissolved oxygen, total hardness, calcium and magnesium hardness. The overall drinking water quality of oak-dominated forests was found to be better.

The term “Corporate Social Responsibility” has gained lot of momentum in the last few decades. Carroll's pyramidal model has made significant contribution to the debate by categorizing corporate social responsibility into four broad dimensions: Economic, Legal, Ethical and Philanthropic. This paper looks into different dimensions of corporate social responsibility and tries to deconstruct its primary motive. Through the scanning of literatures on the definitions of corporate social responsibility concept, this paper tries to understand the focus of such an attempt. It then takes the help of qualitative in-depth interview methodology to understand what the corporate managers in India across sectors feel about corporate social responsibility. This leads to convergence of literature review and in-depth interview findings benefiting both academic and corporate world. The findings suggest that although companies seem to accomplish such responsibility for societal purposes, the ultimate objective is an economically viable model which leads to the sustainability of a corporate organization.