Spatio-temporal variation in air quality and unexpected pollution levels during the lamp event over the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic†

This study focuses on spatio-temporal variation in air quality caused by the nationwide lamp event of nine minutes named as the "#9 pm 9 min event” during the historic lockdown in the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic across India in the year 2020. Due to the Janta curfew (March 22, 2020) and the lockdown (from March 25 to May 31, 2020), the concentration of pollutants like fine particulate matter (PM2.5), trace gases such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), and carbon monoxide (CO), and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), namely benzene and toluene reduced significantly in the six most polluted cities, i.e., Agra, Ghaziabad, Lucknow, Meerut, Noida and Varanasi in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP), while the concentration of ozone increased. A maximum decline in PM2.5 concentrations was observed in Noida (43%), followed by Ghaziabad (39%), Lucknow (33%), Meerut (25%), Agra (23%) and Varanasi (5%) during phase-1 (P1) of lockdown in comparison with the period before lockdown. Similar to PM2.5, other pollutants also decreased at all sites under consideration. This event (lamp event, #9 pm 9 min event) offered an exclusive opportunity to study the effects of burning oil lamps or candles in an open environment with minimum industrial and vehicular emissions. The decline in pollution levels reversed in the wake of the lamp event, which resulted in a sharp increase in pollutant concentrations, except for ozone levels. PM2.5 mass concentrations were significantly correlated with benzene (0.7) and CO (0.7), whereas toluene was moderately correlated with benzene (0.5). Principal component analysis (PCA) also revealed that increases in the concentrations of PM2.5, NO2, CO, benzene and toluene were largely due to oil-based emissions. The study points out that future policy initiatives should take into account the changes in air quality which were seen during the lamp event. These changes have reinforced the necessity for comprehensive action across all emission sectors to achieve significant air quality improvements. It is also advised that people should strictly follow the guidelines issued by the government during such events. © 2023 The Author(s).

A COVID-19 Vaccine Notifier Android App "CoWin Mitra”

The government of India has launched a web portal to register and schedule appointments for COVID-19 vaccination. This paper illustrates an android app model through which people can get notified about available slots according to their filters (age-group, dose type, vaccine name, centers). The proposed app checks for available slots for every given time in the background. Users can schedule their appointment and also enable/disable notifications at any time in the app. The project is developed in android studio. The data source is API Setu, and for client side, Java, XML, and SQLite are used. Software Development Life Cycle model and testing methods are used during the development process. ER diagram, message sequence chart, and flow chart have been shown for database, some important functions, and development process, respectively. The project developed is highly efficient, lightweight, and user-friendly. © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Anshul Verma, Pradeepika Verma, Kiran Kumar Pattanaik and Lalit Garg;individual chapters, the contributors.

COVID-19: An Insight on the Third Respiratory Global Emergency of the Century

Introduction: COVID-19 presents a global emergency in recent days and as a consequence, the whole world is in a state of war. Continuous efforts by researchers are being made to establish a sound scientific understanding regarding the behavior of the virus and its pathogenesis. Background(s): In recent days, a lot of scientific data are published describing viral transfusion into host cells, compared with SARS-CoV-1, viability of SARS-CoV-2, fatality and diagnosis of infection among infected patients, thereby, motivating to make right decisions in order to treat and mitigate COVID-19. Review Results: Coronaviruses usually affect the respiratory tract and produce symptoms similar to pneumonia with varied complications. The spike protein on the surface of the virus makes the SARS-CoV-2 phylogenetically different from other viruses of the corona family. SARS-CoV-2 has an affinity to angiotensin converting enzyme-2 receptors present on human cells. The fatality of the disease is found to be low, but the severity of the disease might vary from person to person. The incubation period is 14 days but the symptoms like dry cough and high fever are evident around 3-7 days. Already known anti-inflammatory immunomodulators and antiviral drugs are being tested and still under clinical trials. Conclusion(s): In this review, we are providing an insight into emergence of COVID-19, its correlation with SARS-CoV-1 and the interpretation of global data representing the severity of unexpected dangers for humanity. Certain structural aspects and studies determining the viability of novel coronavirus have also been described. Moreover, case studies of recovered infected patients from COVID-19 explain the progression and patients' pathophysiological conditions while suffering from the infection. Clinical Significance: There are many current strategies which are being tried and practiced to over-come this pandemic disease apart from precautionary measures. Although now, some decline has been seen, but the question still remains the same of whether the scientists are approaching towards the clinical solution, or are still in the midstream. This requires more study and intensive research to finally come to a concrete conclusion.Copyright © 2021 Bentham Science Publishers.

Maritime Disruption Impact Evaluation Using Simulation and Big Data Analytics

Disruptions in maritime networks may cause significant financial burden and damage to business. Recently, some international ports have been experiencing unprecedented congestions due to the COVID19 pandemic and other disruptions. It is paramount for the maritime industry to further enhance the capability to assess and predict impacts of disruptions. With more data available from industrial digitization and more advanced technologies developed for big data analytics and simulation, it is possible to build up such capability. In this study, we developed a discrete event simulation model backed with big data analytics for realistic and valid inputs to assess impacts of the Suez Canal blockage to the Port of Singapore. The simulation results reveal an interesting finding that, the blockage occurred in the Suez Canal can hardly cause significant congestion in the Port of Singapore. The work can be extended to evaluate impacts of other types of disruptions, even occurring concurrently. © 2022 IEEE.

COVID-19 And Rule By Decree–A Case Study Of The NCT of Delhi

The article attempts a quantitative as well as a qualitative analysis of the National Capital Territory ("NCT”) of Delhi's legislative productivity in the year 2020. The Legislative Assembly of Delhi produced only one piece of substantive legislation throughout the year, sitting for one of its fewest number of sessions. However, the business of the Government continued to run apace through several subordinate legislations. While most of these pertained to routine matters of day-to-day administration, two primary regulations embodied the entirety of the State's pandemic response on the back of a colonial-era skeleton legislation. The article discusses the constitutional questions of concern raised by such promulgation of subordinate legislations, while acknowledging the backdrop of the emergency nature of the pandemic and the unique power-sharing arrangement in the Constitution of India regarding the National Capital Territory of Delhi. © 2023 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis.

Overview of COVID-19 Pandemic: Its Management and Prevention in Light of the Indian Traditional Medicine System

With the global death toll nearing 3.3 million, India being amongst the top 4 countries, the condition is more than fearsome. World Health Organization (WHO) recommends one doctor per 1000 population ratio, but India lags it by one doctor to 1456 people, which sets a lot of pressure on the healthcare system. Traditional remedies are becoming increasingly popular in India as a re-sult of the lack of a proper medical system. Due to the rich diversity of medicinal herbs and drugs, India has been managing health issues with its 5000 years old medication system. Amidst all this, the traditional medicine system has given relief to plenty of diseases and remains the primary de-fence system against COVID-19. Therefore, COVID-19 is also managed by its different medicinal systems, which are collectively known as the AYUSH regime. It had been a recognized system to tackle diseases in the past. In this mini-review, we performed a deep study of the Indian traditional medicine system in managing the COVID-19 situation.Copyright © 2023 Bentham Science Publishers.

Explaining the revival strategies of Indian MSMEs to mitigate the effects of COVID-19 outbreak

Purpose: Micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) is the kingpin of Indian economy. It contributes to 48% of India's exports and provides employment to 110 million people. As a result, it is critical to evaluate the obstacles, expose them and find a way to overcome the crisis due to the pandemic. The study aims to analyse the impact of financial and non-financial measures for the revival of MSME and its impact on firm sustainability and future opportunity as perceived by MSME owners/heads during the COVID-19 outbreak. Design/methodology/approach: This study, based on a cross-sectional survey of 197 export-oriented Indian MSMEs, attempts to investigate covid crisis mitigation strategies/measures in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. The confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) model was applied to check model fit, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was employed for data analysis. Findings: The results of this study show the financial and non-financial revival measures such as firm revival, marketing training, customer relationship management (CRM), financial incentive and firm support, extending worker social security and financial access and price control positively impact MSMEs' business sustainability and future opportunity as perceived by the respondents that lent good support to the hypothesis. Research limitations/implications: The study emphasizes management in association with government and financial institutions to design short-term as well as long-term strategies that may enhance their sustainability in the market. MSMEs are being forced to reassess their business strategy and modify their operating model as a result of the uncertain/unpredictable climate. Many levels of strategy aid in revitalizing the company and providing future possibilities to move forward if the government schemes positively impact the perception of entrepreneurs. Further, the study identifies the immediate measures to tide over the crisis over this sector and then furnishes recommendations for closing the identified gaps in the present understanding. Originality/value: The impact of COVID-19 on Indian MSMEs and how these MSMEs are dealing with it are highlighted in this paper, which is quite scarce and insufficient to cover the gap. It also provides a comprehensive view of firm sustainability and perceived opportunity among MSMEs. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

The Impact of Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) Lockdown Restrictions on the Criteria Pollutants

Air pollution is accountable for various long-term and short-term respiratory diseases and even deaths. Air pollution is normally associated with a decreasing life expectancy. Governments have been implementing strategies to improve air quality. However, natural events have always played an important role in the concentration of air pollutants. In Australia, the lockdown period followed the Black Summer of 2019-2020 and coincided with the season of prescribed burns. This paper investigates the changes in the concentration of criteria pollutants such as particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and sulphur dioxide. The air quality data for the lockdown period in 2020 was compared with the pre-lockdown period in 2020 and with corresponding periods of previous years from 2016 to 2019. The results were also compared with the post-lockdown scenario of 2020 and 2021 to understand how the concentration levels changed due to behavioural changes and a lack of background events. The results revealed that the COVID-19 restrictions had some impact on the concentration of pollutants;however, the location of monitoring stations played an important role.

Neglected keratitis caused by Exserohilum rostratum from the arid region of north-west India leading to vision loss-a case report

Objectives: To report a case of complete loss of vision due to delay in diagnosis of fungal keratitis caused by Exserohilum rostratum in an immunocompetent patient from the arid area of north-west India. Method(s): A65-year-old femalefarmer was admittedto ophthalmology witha history ofpain, redness, watering, andforeign body sensation in the left eye for 2 months. She had a history of trauma by splinters 2 months back. On ocular examination, a large corneal ulcer of about 7 x8 mm size at 2-8'o' clock position in the left eye was present with diffuse corneal edema. She had no history of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, tuberculosis, COVID-19, and steroid eye drops instillation.There was no relevant previous history of any ocular surgery also. She was negative for hepatitis-B and human immune deficiency virus on serology. All her hematological parameters were within normal limits. Patient was treated with moxifloxacin, carboxy methyl cellulose eye drops, and Neosporin eye ointment for around 2 months at primary health care facilities and later referred to our hospital for further management. Corneal scraping of the patient was sent to our laboratory for potassium hydroxide mount and culture identification. Result(s): Fungus was identified as E. rostratum on the basis of gross, macroscopic, and microscopic morphology. Gram's staining was bacteriologically negative while true fungal hyphae were seen. In KOH mount pigmented, septate, and branched true hyphae were seen. Bacterial culture was reported sterile. Lactophenol cottonblue mount of culturerevealed dematiaceoushyphae alongwith 4-9septate elongated, ellipsoid macro-conidia of 14-90 mum with prominent dark conspicuous hilum and geniculate conidiophore arranged sympodially. On the basis of these characteristics, it was diagnosed as E. rostratum. After the diagnosis patient was switched over to topical natamycin 5% two hourly and oral itraconazole 200 mg BD from moxifloxacin and neosporin.To which the patient responded symptomatically.Ulcer healed in a month leaving behind a lateral scar. However, vision is permanently compromised and the patient is advised for therapeutic penetrating keratoplasty (TPK). Conclusion(s): Exserohilum rostratum is generally regarded as a pathogen in hot and humid climates.However, the isolation of this organism in our area highlights the pathogenic potential of this emerging fungus in arid climates also.Ophthalmologists need to be made aware of the significance of prompt mycological identification to prevent vision loss.

Theoretical and Numerical Analysis of Fractional Order Mathematical Model on Recent COVID-19 Model Using Singular Kernel

This study presents a fractional-order mathematical model of coronavirus. We select COVID-19 model and convert the model into fractional order. Discuss its theoretical and numerical analysis. Firstly, we investigate the existence and uniqueness results using some fixed point theorems for the proposed fractional-order COVID-19 model. Further, we provide the stability analysis with the help of the Hyers-Ulam stability. The fractional operator is used in the Caputo sense. We obtain numerical solutions using famous numerical methods and provide a graphical interpretation using adopted numerical methods. Finally, we compare the above techniques and provide observations according to the obtained solutions. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to The National Academy of Sciences, India.

COVID-19 Detection Using Raw Chest X-Ray Images

COVID-19 has had a lasting effect on the human population around the globe. originating from Wuhan, China, in December 2019, the virus managed to spread worldwide in a short time. Huge waiting time between the detection of symptoms and clinical confirmation of the virus being present in the body has made the virus more fatal;thus, rapid screening of large numbers of suspected patients is essential. Due to inefficiency in pathological testing, alternate ways must be devised to combat these issues. Due to advancements in CAD, integrating radiological images with Artificial Intelligence (AI) can detect the disease accurately. This study proposes a deep learning model for automatic COVID-19 detection using raw Chest X-ray (CXR) images. With 17 convolutional layers, the proposed model is trained to diagnose COVID-19 with an 96.67% accuracy. The model can be used to help the world in numerous ways. © 2022 IEEE.

A real-time model for COVID19 face-mask identification with 'YOLOv4'

At the beginning of 2020 WHO declared COVID19 as an epidemic;healthcare industries experts and academicians from worldwide are working in the directions to surveillance the daily behaviors of the citizens to combat the COVID-19 cases. In India, we thank the government for performing its outperformed active measures and spontaneous compliance to follow the policy of wearing masks when moving out to any public places;it entails active real-time monitoring to supervise the citizens by governments. In this process, real-time face-mask identification is a very challenging task of computer vision. And the absence of accurate datasets for this problem is a critical hard problem to solve. To address this bottleneck, we are proposing our real-time deep learning face-mask identification technique with annotated class labels with bounding boxes which have its real-time application to assist the governments to control and prevent the spread of these epidemics in its supervision. Our model is very robust and effective to classify the real-time images and videos for face mask detection with accuracy and average precision. The proposed model substitutes the manual surveillance with the object detection method using YOLOv4 supported on a deep learning approach to monitor the crowd accurately even if they change their respective locations. The experiment identify or classify the object within any dataset to distinguish the images or videos with two class labels such as 'with-mask' and 'without-mask' with approximately 98.26% accuracy, mAP of 68.28%, recall of 77%, and precision of 57%. © 2022 IEEE.

EFFICACY OF YOGA-BASED BREATHING INTERVENTION IN COVID-19 POSITIVE, POST-COVID AND HEALTH CARE WORKERS: A RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL

SARS-CoV-2 is highly infectious and has ability to mutate into newer, more contagious, and lethal strains. Moreover, presence of comorbidities and low immunity increases the COVID-19 susceptibility and severity. Thus, COVID-19 is challenging to treat and eradicate globally. This increase stress and anxiety among the patients, worsening their condition. Even health care workers (HCWs) are distressed and anxious while managing the COVID-19. Mental stress and depression increases risk of COVID-19. Yogic breathing techniques may be beneficial in improving immunity and reducing stress and anxiety. The present study investigated the effectiveness of short and controlled Yoga-based breathing protocols in COVID-positive, COVID-recovered and HCWs. Study subjects were recruited from Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India from 13th October, 2020 to 7th January 2021. Each group was randomly divided into intervention or yoga group and non-intervention or control group. COVID-positive practiced a 5-min routine and COVID-recovered and HCW practiced 5-min and 18-min routines for 15 days. Pre-post estimation of neuropsychological parameters and heart rate variability and baseline, 7th and 15th day estimation of biochemical parameters, 6-minute walk and 1-minute sit-stand tests were conducted. Based on Ayurveda, Prakriti-type was assessed. WBC count was elevated in COVID-positive intervention (p<0.001) and control groups (p=0.003). WBC count (p=0.002) and D-dimer (p=0.002) was decreased in COVID-recovered intervention. A non-significant reduction in perceived stress and tension was noted in COVID-positive intervention. Tension was reduced and quality of life improved in HCW intervention (p>0.05). The Kapha Prakriti (48.9 %) was dominant among COVID-19 infected (positive and recovered) subjects. Distance covered in 6-min increased after intervention in COVID-positive (p=0.01) and HCW (p=0.002). The covered distance was more after intervention in all groups than control sub-group. COVID-positive intervention group shows reduced heart rate (p>0.05) and high-frequency power (p=0.01). The interventions were capable of improving exercise capacity in patients and HCW and reduced cardiovascular risk in COVID-19. The studied breathing protocol can be integrated for the management of COVID-19 and is beneficial to HCWs.

Clinical Profile of Indoor Covid-19 Patients at a Medical Institute In India: A Retrospective analysis

Background: COVID-19 has caused a very high burden of morbidity and mortality across the world, India being also badly affected. The disease has a wide spectrum ranging from asymptomatic to severe illness and death. Research work on the epidemiological and clinical profile of patients is scarce in India. Objectives: This study was conducted to know the clinico-epidemiological profile of indoor hospitalized Covid 19 patients. Methods: a retrospective analysis (record based) conducted at a designated COVID tertiary care center. Study period-1st August 2020 to 31st October 2020. Study Unit-Laboratory confirmed COVID 19 patients admitted in the hospital. Sample size-All the 894 patients with complete record were included in the study. Results: The mean age was 47.68± 17.62 years. Around 14.1% of the population was asymptomatic. 75.7% were classified as having a mild disease. The cure rate was 82.9% and deaths were reported in 9.4%. More than half of the population was having at-least one co-morbidity. Conclusions: Our findings were similar to findings observed in other studies. A positive significant correlation was noticed between age, duration, clinical severity and outcome of patient. The clinical severity was also found to be associated with age, duration of symptoms and outcome of patient. © 2022, Indian Association of Preventive and Social Medicine. All rights reserved.

Managing supply chains during COVID-19 outbreak: a case of Hong Kong toy manufacturing company

Purpose: This study aims to identify key supply chain challenges and opportunities of the case of Hong Kong toy manufacturing company during the COVID-19 outbreak and develop a comprehensive structural relationship to rank them. Design/methodology/approach: In this study, a toy model company in Hong Kong is considered to discuss about what challenges and opportunities have the biggest impacts on non-necessary goods companies and how to deal with different impacts on entire supply chain flow disruption during COVID-19. A semi-structured interview with five decision-makers from the company was made to give key challenges and opportunities scores. The Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) technique is used to establish the model and rank them afterward to overcome the challenges. Findings: From the data analysis and results, “salary of employee” and “inconvenient transportation” have emerged as top and bottom key challenges respectively. The sequence of organized challenges in the list needs to mitigate one by one in this order to improve the supply chain performance. The “client's orders’ frequency, customer management” and “supplier/partner relationship management” are identified as the top and bottom respectively to develop the opportunities. Research limitations/implications: These key challenges and opportunities are identified as contributing attributes and provide the way to measure to improve production, profits and sustainable growth of the toy manufacturing company during a pandemic. Moreover, it helps to improve the distribution level and good planning with appropriate decision making to manage the supply chain performance considering humanitarian aspects during a pandemic outbreak. Originality/value: The novelty of this study is to identify the key supply chain challenges and opportunities measured by the TOPSIS method to rank them and consider the case of a Hong Kong toy manufacturing company as a case-based approach to measuring its performance during the COVID-19 outbreak. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Adoption of ICTs as an emergent business strategy during and following COVID-19 crisis: evidence from Indian MSMEs

Purpose: This study aims to identify how ICT appeared as an emergent business strategy and to investigate the impact of ICT adoption factors on the perceived benefits of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Design/methodology/approach: A total of 393 responses from Indian small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) were collected for the final analysis. The study presents the partial least-squares structural equation modeling with the Chi-square test and descriptive analysis as a methodology based on numerous independent variables and one dependent variable. Findings: The findings indicate that ICT adoption during and following the COVID-19 pandemic is constant in nature of the enterprise. Moreover, the results indicate that different adoption of ICT factors influence on perceived benefits of organizational performance of Indian MSMEs that lent good support except for the regulatory framework. Research limitations/implications: The implications of the current research help Indian MSMEs to take investment decisions in various technologies that help the organization. Furthermore, managers and practitioners help the organization in deciding which technology adoption factors are more critical to the betterment of the organization. Originality/value: The study found certain ICT adoption factors that have a significant role in organizational performance in Indian MSMEs. Moreover, during COVID-19, investigate ICTs' role as a business strategy. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

E-commerce and Teleworking: business opportunities in the COVID-19 era

Covid-19 pandemic has had a key effect on how people work, hang out, and prepare for the future. This social split has a substantial adverse effect on industries, affecting not just economic disruption but also instability and uncertainty. At the same time, as in any major catastrophe, clean and new ways to reinvent the e-commerce business industry in a brand new light and with a new wind will arise. The variations in the use of new technologies and more in particular the use of innovative online services on the Internet are related to the online business sector where the populace is employed and its level of training. One of the advanced services offered by the e-commerce companies is teleworking. This paper shows the results of a critical analysis of the business opportunities in e-commerce in post Covid-19 world about the practicability of teleworking within business organizations. Teleworking business opportunities in an organisation's practicability is meaningfully explained by the percentage of tasks suitable to teleworking, the employees' participation in task design and programming, the proportion of salespeople in the workforce, the degree of work-location allocation for e-commerce acctiviies, the use of information and communication technologies, and the degree of innovation. Ecommerce in post Covid-19 world and teleworking perceive a greater feasibility than regular workforce. Furthermore, this paper offers, a systemic review about the chronological disturbance due to Covid 19 and its several negative as well as positive effects which can saturate marketplace practice and intellectual study for a long time, providing prospects for long-term influence for researchers working in this area. © The Electrochemical Society

Smart Artificial Intelligence Based Online Proctoring System

Since COVID 19, there have been significant advancements in the field of teaching and learning. Academic institutions are going digital to provide their students more resources. Due to technology, students now have more alternatives to study and improve skills at their own pace. In terms of assessments, there has been a shift toward online tests. The absence of a physical invigilator is perhaps the most significant impediment in online mode. Henceforth, online proctoring services are becoming more popular, and AI-powered proctoring solutions are becoming demanding. In this project, we describe a strategy for avoiding the physical presence of a proctor during the test by developing a multi-modal system. We captured video using a webcam along active window capture. The face of the test taker is identified and analyzed to forecast his emotions. To identify his head pose, his feature points are identified. Furthermore, aspects including a phone, a book, or the presence of another person are detected. This combination of models creates an intelligent rule-based inference system which is capable of determining if any malpractice took place during the examination. © 2022 IEEE.

Third Wave Prediction Analysis for Kerala in India

COVID-19 is spreading widely across the globe right now. India just went through the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic and has lost more than 425,000 people to this pandemic till date. Most of the other countries have gone through the second wave, with some countries experiencing third and fourth waves. In such difficult times, there is a shortage of resources everywhere. Planning is the need of the hour, and all the countries are expanding their resources, keeping future demands in mind. Some of the states of India, like Kerala, are also expecting imminent danger of the third wave. In this study, we are predicting the arrival and peak of the third wave in Kerala. We also provide the mathematical models and theoretical background to reach such expected dates. Prediction of this type helps to suggest the preparation needed to tackle the upcoming disaster. Governments can prepare themselves so that there is minimal damage to life in future. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.