Professional Documents
Culture Documents
on
Role of Social Thinkers, Scientists, Technocrats And Economists for a Sustainable
Socio-Economic Development of India
RSTESS-2014
On
6th and 7th September
(6th at Srijani & 7th at IE (I) Durgapur, Nehru Ave.)
Organized by:
And
IE(I) Members
Dr. R Sen,CMERI & former Chairman DLC, Mr. Tilak Roy –former Chairman IEI DLC, Mr I. Sengupta
- former Chairman IEI DLC,Prof. S.K.Chatterjee - former Chairman IEI DLC,Mr S.Chiranewal-
former Chairman IEI DLC,Mr A.K. Mukherjee- Past Chairman IEI DLC,Mr Raj Kumar Roy
Committee member IEI DLC, Mr Jahnabi Konar, Committee member IEI DLC,Mr Sanat Kumar
Pal, Committee member IEI DLC, Mr Nirmal Kumar Laha, Committee member IEI DLC,Shri Manik
Nath Bandyopadhyay, Committee member IEI DLC, Mr Subir Kumar Bose, Committee member
IEI DLC, Mr P. K. Roy, Committee member IEI DLC, Mr Ambar Nath Som, Committee member IEI
DLC, MrRajib Chakraborty, Committee member IEI DLC, Mr M K Biswal, Committee member IEI
DLC, Mr Srikanta Mondal, Committee member IEI DLC, Dr C Samajdar, DSP , Mr P K Thakur
,CET SAIL, Dr C Konar, Committee member IEI DLC
WBCUPA Members
Prof Rajdeep Roy BCREC,Dr Sanjeev PandeyB B College,Asansol,Dr Dilip Gorai,Kulti college,Dr
Vinayak Mishra Asansol Girls’ college,Prof Pranshankar Roy Khandra College,Prof Bimal Mondal,
Pandeveswar college, Prof Ranjan Mondal,Michael Madhusudan memorial college,Dr Seema Sen
Durgapur Womens College,Dr. Atanu Banerjee, AEC, Asansol,Dr. Pintu Pal, AEC, Asansol,Dr.
Shouri Banerjee, DIATM, Durgapur,Prof. Amitava Biswas, AIEM, Durgapur,Dr Raj Kumar Samanta
BCREC,Prof S Mukherjee DIATM
15. Waste management in Educational Institutions Dr. Lalan Chandra Mondal1 31-34
Dr. Dilip Gorai2
16. Economics of creativity and innovation for Dr. Debdas Karmakar 35
sustainable development.
17. Graphene-Based Rechargeable Dr. Tapas Kuila, Sanjit Saha, 36-38
Supercapacitor “ A Next Generation Battery Milan Jana, Dr. Pranab Samanta
& Dr. N. C. Murmu
MESSAGE
I am very glad to know that The Institution of Engineers (India), Durgapur Local Centre is organizing
an All India seminar on “Role of Social Thinkers, Scientists, Technocrats And Economists for a Sustainable
Socio-Economic Development of India (RSTESS-2014)” during September 06-07, 2014 in association with
West Bengal College University & Professors’ Association, Burdwan (Industrial) Committee. The theme of
the seminar has been very aptly chosen and I am sure the deliberations at the said seminar will provide
participant with innovative ideas to strengthen the awareness of research community as well as the
Businessman, Academicians, Scholars, Scientist, Sociologists, Economists, people and students on their
respective areas.
I convey my best wishes to the participants and organizer of the important seminar that will be
organizing and wishing the seminar a grand success.
sd/-
(Prof. T. Kumar)
Date: 01.09.2014 Director NIT
Current developmental paradigm is an off shoot of industrial mode of production and the perception of economic
growth. Economic growth is measured by accounting Gross Domestic Product (GDP). All the international bodies
like UN, World Banks recognize it as a standard method of measuring of growth. The current Western concept of
growth economy emerged in an embryonic form during the period of the industrial revolution in Europe. Over the
period, initially through colonialism and later, after the World War II through post colonial economic and cultural
control an obsession towards economic growth has been worldwide. Recently, the direct relation of economic growth
with climate change and global warming is established. The modern ecologists and environmentalists have pointed
out this model of growth economy is tantamount to destruction of nature. Moreover, this destruction is happening in
a very drastic manner. Extractions of the fossil fuels were one of the earliest aggressive exploitation of nature, in a
massive scale. The amount of exploitation is almost triple during last fifty years as compared to the amount of
exploitation occurred in entire history of human civilization. Engineering by profession has become the most prized
occupation. By using technology man invented superior machines so as to facilitate the plundering process in the
name of development. However, technology has made human life more comfortable in many respects and machines
have replaced human labour. It started making gigantic dams over the rivers, erecting high rises, generating electricity
from coal and radioactive materials, making different types fossil fuel-compatible vehicles like motor cars, bus, ships
and aeroplanes. Of late, genetic engineering has emerged as a new branch of biotechnology which manipulates genes
toward commercial interests and incorporates specific genes into an organism not related to its species. Within two
hundred years of industrial revolution, people all over the world face severe environmental crisis like global warming,
environmental pollution, declining of food production, colossal loss of crop biodiversity and rising of human sufferings
in relation to sea of diseases specially cancer and that was the intention of industrialization. All the developmental
projects involve huge amount of monetary investment and these contribute to higher GDP. Many social thinkers
have already started questioning this method of development and pointed out the fallacy in economic methods of
measuring growth (Deb 2009). Deb proposed a Zero Growth economy towards sustainable development in true
sense. The policy-makers, politicians and people of all walks of life have to have an idea about the new growth
paradigm so that a better cohesion between ecology and economy is established.
Eurocentric model of development got spread like a wild fire. Ignoring all the social and cultural compositions,
diverse economic priorities, values and perceptions of development, the statespersons of the Asian countries embraced
it endearingly as a superior model of development in all aspects of life as if there is no alternative. White (1967) has
shown that the very existence of wilderness was an insult to Christianity. Christianity has also taught that nature and
all the creatures existed only to “serve man’s purposes and it is God’s will that man exploits nature for his proper
ends” (ibid: 1205). Thus the anthropocentric development intiated by Europeans justified the killing of indigenous
people and land grabbing . The worth of natural resources seems to remain confined to their instrumental values (Deb
2004).Thereby; a river and underground water are considered as mere source of water for industries, irrigating the
Industrial Agriculture:
India is basically an agrarian country employing more than 60% of her population in agriculture. With the advent of
industrial agriculture, rapid development in fertilizer, pesticides, seed, farm machinery, irrigation equipment went on
along with the selling of the external agricultural inputs among the farmers through subsidy. The Green Revolution
has replaced all the traditional knowledge of agriculture, indigenous seeds, and agricultural equipments in order to
produce more and to earn more. This mode of agricultural production has depleted soil nutrients, soil microbes, earth
worm, moisture, ground water that makes the soil barren. The irrigated summer rice has replaced the area of pulse
and oil seed on which India was self reliant prior to Green Revolution (Shiva 1991). The phenomenon of over
production at the cost of soil and environment does not feed the entire population that it intended to. More than 2 lakh
52 thousand farmers have committed suicide over the last 15 years due to indebtedness in the states like Maharastra,
Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Punjab the home of Green revolution (Sainath 2012).It has been reported that
current agriculture practices including meat industry is responsible of 31% global warming.(Basu et al 2013) On the
contrary, not-so-prosperous eastern states where the revolutionary agriculture in the name of development has not
entered do not experience such genocide. In many parts of Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal
Pradesh etc with pristine environment with lush green forest grow crops very easily with little chemical fertilizer,
organic matter or zero input. They are maintaining true sustainable agriculture for years together without exerting
any drastic effect on agro ecosystem. There are some areas where community farming utilizes local bio resources.
The concept of GDP was first developed by Simon Kuznets for a US Congress report in 1934. After the Bretton
Woods conference in USA during 2-22 July in 1944, GDP became the main tool for measuring a country’s economy.
At that time Gross National Product (GNP) was the preferred estimate, which differed from GDP in that it measured
production by a country’s citizens at home and abroad rather than its ‘resident institutional units’
GDP is defined by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as “an aggregate measure of
production equal to the sum of the gross values added of all resident institutional units engaged in production (plus
any taxes, and minus any subsidies, on products not included in the value of their outputs).”( The Virtues of Ignoring
GDP). GDP can be determined in three ways, all of which should, in principle, give the same result. They are the
production (or output or value added) approach, the income approach, or the expenditure approach. GDP is a measure
of ‘value added’ rather than sales; it adds each firm’s value added (the value of its output minus the value of goods
GDP (Y) is the sum of consumption (C), investment (I), government spending (G) and net exports (X – M).
Y = C + I + G + (X “ M)
Where
C (consumption) is normally the largest GDP component in the economy. These personal expenditures fall under one
of the following categories: durable goods, non-durable goods, and services. Examples include food, rent, jewellery,
gasoline, and medical expenses but do not include the purchase of new housing.
I (investment) include, for instance, business investment in equipment, but do not include exchanges of existing
assets. Examples include construction of a new mine, purchase of software, or purchase of machinery and equipment
for a factory. Spending by households (not government) on new houses is also included in investment. In contrast to
its colloquial meaning, “investment” in GDP does not mean purchases of financial products.
G (government spending) is the sum of government expenditures on final goods and services. It includes salaries of
public servants, purchases of weapons for the military and any investment expenditure by a government. It does not
include any transfer payments, such as social security or unemployment benefits.
X (exports) represents gross exports. GDP captures the amount a country produces, including goods and services
produced for other nations’ consumption, therefore exports are added.
M (imports) represents gross imports. Imports are subtracted since imported goods will be included in the terms G, I,
or C, and must be deducted to avoid counting foreign supply as domestic.
Criticism: Frank Shostak has argued that GDP is an empty abstraction devoid of any link to the real world, and,
therefore, has little or no value in economic analysis (Shostok 2001). Many environmentalists argue that GDP is a
poor measure of social progress because it does not take into account harm to the environment. In 1989 Herman Daly
and John B. Cobb (Daly and Cobb, 1989) developed the Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare (ISEW), which they
proposed as a more valid measure of socio-economic progress, by taking into account various other factors such as
consumption of non-renewable resources and degradation of the environment. All most all the countries following
Eurocentric developmental model invest a lot for the progress. Greater the investment, the greater is the GDP. Thus
a car manufacturing factory or a heavy industry is encouraged and while a cottage industry investing a meager
amount of money is discouraged as the latter will not reflect in the GDP. Asbestos factory in Brazil is a unique
example as shown by Coleman (1994). The expenditure incurred for the treatment of asbestosis developed among the
workers lead to increase in GDP. Even the expenditure incurred for fighting the legal battle for getting the compensation
in the event of death of the workers enhances GDP. Thus the polluting industry like asbestos is a good one as it
enhances GDP. The compensation given to the victims of Bhopal gas tragedy also contributed to GDP. When a living
forest grows by giving oxygen, keeping environment cool, providing shades, giving shelter for many life forms does
Real GDP per capita shows the average income of a country. If Liechtenstein has 0% growth of Real GDP in 2008,
average incomes will remain $118,000. A country like India may have GDP per head of $2,800, with Real GDP
Growth of 6% meaning next year GDP per capita will be around $3,000. But India’s average living standards are
going to be still much lower than Liechtenstein with 0% growth. Economic growth just measures how living standards
are changing.
Costanza et al (2009) compared the above two activities. The figure1 describes the traditional view of economic
activity where the consumer and producer shares goods and services through labour and capital. But in reality there
are natural resources and ecosystem services which are not talked about (Fig 2). Environmentalist and founder of
Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organization (HESCO), Dehradun, Anil Joshi explains how
human activities have disturbed the fragile Himalayan ecosystem. Increasing human activities such as hydro-power
projects, roads, hotels and dharmshalas in the name of development has disturbed fragile ecosystem and has snapped
the spirit of life in the Himalayan region causing calamities. The first public interest litigation (PIL) by HESCO
challenged the concept of GDP as an indicator of economy in the Indian context. GDP does not include the massive
informal economy eked from local ecology. The petition argues that local ecology sustains the maximum number of
people in the state while the GDP-based growth model caters to a small percentage of the population ( Mahapatra
2011).Studies show that after adjusting the environmental cost of growth, India’s nine per cent GDP growth rate will
fall to three per cent.
Economic growth means flow of money but how the money comes and what direction it goes is not a matter of
concern. There are some alternative means to measure growth as against GDP or Gross National Product. The four
main measures for growth namely Ecological Foot Print, Genuine Progress Indicator and Human Development
index and Happiness Index aims to measure towards sustainability. Carbon Foot Print is another important another
measure for growth. The following measures will show higher score provided the state go for sustainable development
in true sense or it can stop destroying the nature.
a) Ecological Foot Prints : The concept and calculation method was developed by Mathis Wackernagel, at the
University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, from 1990–1994. Ecological footprint analysis compares
human demands on nature with the biosphere’s ability to regenerate resources and provide services. It does this by
assessing the biologically productive land and marine area required to produce the resources a population consumes
and absorb the corresponding waste, using prevailing technology. Footprint values at the end of a survey are categorized
for Carbon, Food, Housing, and Goods and Services as well as the total footprint number of Earths needed to sustain
the world’s population at that level of consumption. This approach can also be applied to an activity such as the
manufacturing of a product or driving of a car. This resource accounting is similar to life cycle analysis wherein the
consumption of energy, biomass (food, fiber), building material, water and other resources are converted into a
normalized measure of land area called global hectares (gha).
Per capita ecological footprint (EF), or ecological footprint analysis (EFA), is a means of comparing consumption
and lifestyles, and checking this against nature’s ability to provide for this consumption. The tool can inform policy
by examining to what extent a nation uses more (or less) than is available within its territory or to what extent the
nation’s lifestyle would be replicable worldwide.
Ecological footprint analysis is now widely used around the Earth as an indicator of environmental sustainability. It
can be used to measure and manage the use of resources throughout the economy. It can be used to explore the
sustainability of individual lifestyles, goods and services, organizations, industry sectors, neighborhoods, cities,
regions and nations. In 2007, the average biologically productive area per person worldwide was approximately 1.8
global hectares (gha) per capita. The U.S. footprint per capita was 9.0 gha, and that of Switzerland was 5.6 gha,
while China’s was 1.8 gha.
b) Genuine progress indicator ( GPI) takes fuller account of the health of a nation’s economy by incorporating
environmental and social factors which are not measured by GDP. For instance, some models of GPI decrease in
value when the poverty rate increases. Among the indicators factored into GPI are resource depletion, pollution, and
long-term environmental damage. GDP gains double the amount when pollution is created, since it increases once
upon creation (as a side-effect of some valuable process) and again when the pollution is cleaned up, whereas GPI
counts the initial pollution as a loss rather than a gain, generally equal to the amount it will cost to clean up later
(plus the cost of any negative impact the pollution will have in the mean time). Another movement in economics that
might embrace such data is the attempt to ‘internalize externalities’ - that is, to make companies bear the costs” of
the pollution they create (rather than having the government bear that cost) “by taxing their goods proportionally to
their negative eco-impacts.”
GPI is an attempt to measure whether the environmental impact of the products produced and consumed in a country
is a negative or positive factor in economic health, and also account for the amount of people currently dependent on
the government for support. Comparatively speaking, the relationship between GDP and GPI is analogous to the
relationship between the gross profit of a company and the net profit; the Net Profit is the Gross Profit minus the
costs incurred; the GPI is the GDP (value of all goods and services produced) minus the environmental and social
Calculation
GPI = A + B - C - D + I
The GPI indicator is based on the concept of sustainable income, presented by economist John Hicks (1948). The
sustainable income is the amount a person or an economy can consume during one period without decreasing his or
her consumption during the next period. In the same manner, GPI depicts the state of welfare in the society by taking
into account the ability to maintain welfare on at least the same. In 2004, the U.S. GPI was calculated to be $4.42
trillion. This is in contrast to the 2004 U.S. GDP, which was approximately $10.76 trillion. At least eleven countries
have recalculated their GDP using the GPI. The data for European countries and the U.S. show a steady decline over
the last 30 years.
c) The Human Development Index (HDI) is a composite statistic of life expectancy, education, and income indices
used to rank countries into four tiers of human development. It was created by a Pakistani economist Mahbub ul Haq
and Indian economist Amartya Sen in 1990and was published by the United Nations Development Programme.
In the 2010 Human Development Report a further Inequality-adjusted Human Development Index (IHDI) was
introduced. While the simple HDI remains useful, it stated that “the IHDI is the actual level of human development
(accounting for inequality)” and “the HDI can be viewed as an index of “potential” human development (or the
maximum IHDI that could be achieved if there were no inequality)”. In its 2010 Human Development Report, the
UNDP began using a new method of calculating the HDI. The three indices are:-
10
Human intelligence and machines are not superior to nature. Nature has its own balance and a disturbed
ecosystem will take some time to resile. The illusion of growth through higher GDP is not the measure of true human
development. High growth does not necessarily reduce poverty, feed the hungry people and reduce global warming.
People living below the poverty level are not harming and polluting the nature but they are the worst victims of rising
water level due to global warming in Sundarbans and low lying parts of the world. Priority is to be given on less
polluting industries and adequate measure is to be taken for reducing the environmental pollution in the existing big
industries. Battery operated vehicles may be encouraged to reduce vehicular pollution. Solar power, wind and tidal
energy are the most suitable alternative to conventional electricity. There should be a linkage between economic
11
A large section of Indian population depending on input intensive agriculture need to be sensitized for
sustainable agriculture as it would provide future food security. Natural resources like wind power, solar energy, bio
resources- crop biodiversity in particular are to be harnessed for sustainable production. Instead of encouraging big
dams, small irrigation facilities, rain water harvesting structures may be encouraged. Water prudent crops are to be
grown so that ground water is not depleted further. Cottage and agro based small scale industries employing manual
labour and some little machines may be encouraged as it does not pollute the environment. An agrarian country like
India, may take an approach towards sustainability with emulating the western model of development and India
might have her own developmental model.
Cuba is totally an organic country and Cuban farmers are feeding their people well. The objective of the UN
sponsored International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD)
was to assess impacts of past, present and future agricultural knowledge, science and technology. There were 1000
representatives and 400 scientists from different countries at the final meeting of IAASTD during 7-11 April, 2008
in Johannesburg. The executive summery spoke in favour of organic farming and opined that chemical farming
would not feed the population in the long run. Different assessment on organic farming showed that organic farming
can give more yield, ecological services at a very low cost of cultivation. It also reduces the medical expenses.
Organically produced food is more nutritious as it contain more nutrients and anti cancer compounds like flavonoids.
The prosperity of farmers would come through organic farming.
References:
Basu, R, N., Mandal, A.K. and Roy, S. 2013. Current global agricultural scenario and projected climate change impacts on food security in
the late twenty first century. Indian Biologist 45(1): 1-89.
Coleman, Daniel A, 1994, Ecopolitics: Building a Green Society, New Brunstick, NJ, Rugers University Press, USA
Costanza, Robert and Hert , Masreen, Poswart, Stephen and Johan Talborth,2009, The need for new measure for progress in the Padree
Papers, No 4 , Boston University, The Fedrick, S Padree Centre, Beyond GDP.
Daly, H E and Cobb, J B Jr, 1989, For the Common good, Redirecting the economy towards community, The Environmental, Sustainable
Centre, Boston, Beacon Press.
Deb, D. 2009, .Beyond developmentality constructing inclusive freedom and sustainability. Danish Books, New Delhi.
Human Development Report, The Real Wealth of Nations: Pathways to Human Development (2010) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Human_Development_Index
Shiva, Vandana, 1991, The violence of the green revolution, RFSTE, New Delhi
Mahapatra, Richard, 15 Sep, 2011, True measure of growth, Down To earth , www.downtoearth.org.in
Sainath, P, 29 June, 2013, Farm suicide trends in 2012 remain dismal, The Hindu.
Shostak, Frank, August 23, 2001, What is up with the GDP? , Ludwig Von Mises Institute, Mises.org Archive
White, Jr, Lynn 1967, The Historical roots of our ecological crisis, Science 155: 1203-120
12
: Technical Assistant, Electrical Engineering Department, Durgapur Institute of Advanced Technology and Management, Rajbandh, Durgapur.
2
3
: Senior Technical Assistant , Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department, NSHM Knowledge Campus, Durgapur.
1. Introduction
Economic growth has been at the heart of economic analysis since the first founding documents of
economic theory. Adam Smith treated the economic growth in accordance with “Wealth of Nations”. Growth,
however, should not be considered as an end in itself. The analysis of “Growth” has become very interesting
topic to the Economists worldwide as it has the potential to decrease poverty, increase the standard of living,
support goals such as healthcare and education, and substantially affect the quality of life of the community.
While analyzing the national economies, development is generally distinguished from economic growth
which is generally used to describe how already developed nations further enhance their economies, while
development is not a purely economic phenomenon. Finally, although development is usually defined in a
national context, its widespread realization may necessitate fundamental modification of the international
economic and social system as well.
The transit to a “Green Growth/Economy” faces threefold challenges which are economic, social and
environmental. The most general economic challenges are as follows
1. Decoupling economic growth from environmental stress;
2. More sustainable production and consumption patterns;
3. Addressing environmental related costs;
4. Quality and quantity employment creation.
The social challenges can be summarized as:
1. Building acceptance for a new vision of development;
2. Poverty alleviation and social development;
3. New training and education systems;
4. Change of behavior in producers and consumer.
Lastly, the environmental hazards coming out due to growth of economics are:
1. Resource efficiency and sustainable use of natural resources;
2. Sustainable processes of production/consumption;
3. Energy saving and efficiency programs;
4. Renewable energies and other low carbon alternatives.
Thus, the concept of sustainable development requires countries all over the world to use their natural
resources rationally while pursuing their economic development and at the same time to consider the quality
of environment as a determinant of their societies’ welfare. In the developing world, there is a clear tradeoff
13
Bio -Science
Aspects of
Engineering Bio Chemistry
Economy
Material
Science
14
15
Abstract—In this paper,the Soil Fertility is initially shown to be erosion rate in India increased to the level of 16.35 tons
decreased because of mining of soil nutrients to a large extent.The
problem is identified with present agricultural techniques and tried
per hectare per year from agricultural fields in 1983 [3].
to be solved with a sustainable farming practice. Different aspects Simultaneously in Gujrat continuous use of fertilizer has
of this farming, like cost benefit ratio and yield, are discussed in resulted in loss of soil fertility and decline in farm output to
details. Finally a case study has been presented to elaborate the
possible success of the sustainable farming practice. the extent of 60 to 80% over the past few decades [4].
Keywords—Organic Farming; Soil Nutrient Cycle, Indegenous Similarly intensive rice-wheat system in Punjab causes
Rice Variety, Crop Yeild. serious decline in soil fertility [5]. Now in India average
I. INTRODUCTION food grain production has decreased from 15Kg to 8Kg,
In India food production has increased many folds for last few per Kg of fertilizer use over the period from 1975 to 1990
decades. In comparison with 1955 now we have produced near
about 6 times more paddy and wheat per year [1]. The modern [3], as shown in Fig. 2.
agricultural practice actually is a technological package to increase
grain yield through the application of chemical fertilizer, pesticide
and cultivation of chemical sensitive High Yielding Varieties (HYV) Figure 1. Growth of Fertilizer Application in India[1].
along with irrigation facilities. But under the plethora of food grain
production an uncomfortable question is now haunting both the
concerned agronomist and agro-economist that how long this
production will sustain. It is now established that, our soil fertility
has been reduced drastically and becomes a serious threat to crop
production. Hence in this paper, the problems of present day
agricultural technology in India are discussed in details.
Consequently one effort has been made to discuss alternative
farming practice, which can feed the present generation, but not at
the expense of future generations’ right. One case study has been
presented to elaborate the practical situation of the farming practice.
The paper has been organized with the sections as, ii) Soil Fertility
Problem, iii) Sustainable Agriculture Practice, iv) Cost Benefit
Ratio, v) Food Security through Sustainable Farmingand iii)
Conclusion.
II. SOIL FERTILITY PROBLEM
In the report of 11th five year plan it is stated that” soil
degradation through use of agrochemical is a serious issue that Figure 2. Decrease in food grain production per kg of fertilizer application
over a period of 15 years [3].
need to be addressed on a priority basis during 11 plane. Nearly
th
two third of our farm land are in some way either degraded or Plant receives several elements like potassium (K)
sick and only about one third are in good health [2]. Fig.1 shows magnesium (Mg) molybdenum (Mo) zinc (Zn) etc. from
that the application of chemical fertilizers in agricultural fields the soil, needless to say that the same is true for the crops
has been increased manifold for last few decades. Application also as shown in Table 1 [6] and Table 2 [7]. Animals take
of synthetic fertilizer results in compaction, loss of soil plant as food and in this way those elements are transferred
organisms, loss of water retention capacity of soil, and leads to from plant to animal body; and in the same way from
soil erosion. Soon the soil turns dusty, and susceptible to wind herbivorous to carnivorous animal. Those nutrient elements
and water activities [3]. Thesoil perform several
16
TABLE-2
Absorption of Micronutrients Per Crop-Cycle (gm/Ha.)
Name of the crop Production B Cu Zn Mo Fe Mn
Potato [13.0 ton potatoes & 2.5 tons 31 13 14 1.0 350 18
leafs and stem.]
Wheat [7.2 ton grain & 8.2 ton hay(Kalyansona)] 218 236 383 13.0 3650 580
Dr. R.H. Richharia an eminent rice specialist of India, found I. COST BENEFIT RATIO
two indigenous rice varieties named MOKODO and CHINAR
in Madhya Pradesh, without any chemical input their yield was The summary of a study the finding is given in Table.4[12].
more than that of so called HYV [11]. The study, conducted in four districts in West Bengal, by Dr.
Few indigenous rice varieties, discovered by Dr. Debal Deb, Debal Deb, reveals that multiple cropping with zero chemical
yield more than 5 ton/ ha [3]. But not only grains, organic rice input in the same social and climatic condition, proves to be more
field are productive in many other ways. No comprehensive study economically efficient than chemical based green revolution
exists to estimate the quantity of fish produced in organic paddy farming.
field. From the study based on lands in Burdwan district of West In another study, made by Helmerset. al. in 1984, showed
Bengal, India, it appears that a person can easily gather a that the organic system had the lowest cost of production in
considerable amount of fish, molluscan meat, crab etc. from comparison with chemical farming[12].
organic rice field. In average one can gather about one kilogram There are several reasons for cost reduction in organic farming
of molluscan meat from 2000 sq. ft. of organic paddy field within system. Costs of chemical pesticides are almost eliminated in
15 minutes. The hay of organic paddy is ideal for mushroom multiple cropping and agro forestry due to the pest repellant
cultivation. It is a very good fodder also. Due to low nitrogen properties of different crops, planted intermittently with other
content straw of organic paddy last long and thus it is a very crops. Mulching and cover crops reduce albedo and retain soil
good material for thatch making. moisture, eliminating the need for irrigation water. Cover crop
All the modern varieties give high yield only in ideal condition can also reduce disease incidence through enhanced expression
it can’t tolerate flood, drought, salinity etc. But indigenous of specific gene transcripts and corresponding protein like
varieties have magnificent capability to tolerate all these. There cytokinin receptor kinase. The cost of fertilizer input is also
are varieties which can stand 10 to 15 feet depth of water. Varieties reduced in traditional farming system because the support
like KAGGABATH, TALMUGUR, HAMILTON can tolerate population of soil fungi, nematodes, crustaceans, insects,
salinity. KELAS, NAICHI, BHOOTMURY, are eminent drought millipedes, and earthworms. These organisms, in addition to plant
tolerant varieties [3]. root rhizobial activities recycle nutrients [12].
Yield:
Table.3: Yield Statistics of Folk Rice and Modern HYV [3]. 1. An agricultural equivalent consists of traditional rain fed
Rice Variety Modal No. Panicle 100-Grain Mean farms with multi-storeyed cropping system in Philippines, yielding
of Effective Density Weight Yield more than 49 tons of edible biomass per hectare [12].
Tillerper Hill (gm) (q/ha) 2. Several indigenous rice varieties yield 5 ton / ha, without
Banshtara 8.0 230.0 2.48 48.65 any chemical input, as shown inTable 3, which is greater than
Jugal 10.0 188.2 3.06 52.32 some modern HYV rice.
3. A field experiment was conducted to study the effect of
Kabiraj-sal 12.3 114.0 2.14 53.24
chemical (NPK@ 60:30:30 /40:20:20) and organic (cow dung
Saban-sal 10.7 149.2 3.07 48.28 manure 10 t/ha and rice bran ash 1.6 t/ha ) on three varieties of
Shiuli 12 231.2 3.28 54.43 rice (viz MTU 7029, Kerala Sundari, Radhatilak) in randomized
strip plot design at the Biodiversity Conservation Farm,
MTU-7029 10 140 2.03 47.92
Government of West Bengal , Fulia, Nadia, West Bengal during
kharif season of 2006 to 2009. It is found that MTU 7029 (modern
rice variety) yielded better with inorganic fertilizers than organic
manure, whereas Kerala Sundari (indigenous rice variety) gave
higher yield under organic production system. Among three
varieties Kerala Sundari yielded highest (4.2456 ton /ha) [13].
18
4. Drinkwater et. al. (1988) showed that crop yield In Cuba urban agriculture become an important source of
averages in the organic farm plot that either received vegetable and other food for urban people. In 2003 over
nutrient from cattle manure or from legumes were no 200,000 workers were employed in urban agriculture sector,
different from chemical farm plot [12]. 35000 new jobs having been created over the previous year
amounting to 22% of all new jobs in the Cuban economy
I. FOOD SECURITY THROUGH SUSTAINABLE FARMING [14].
Several authentic data indicates that organic farming The general turn to organic agriculture and the renewed
produce sufficient food in a sustainable manner. A case use of animal traction power (2400 teams of oxen labor in
study can be made with Cuba in this context. the city of Havana) has produced the tremendous savings
of imported energy and other product derived from
Cuba set a brilliant example that how organic farming
petroleum.
can feed the whole nation. Post 1990 disintegration of
By 2000 the country surpassed the pre-crisis levels of
the Soviet Union had resulted in the collapse of Cuban
1989, at the end of 2000, food availability in Cuba reached
exports and imports and the loss of the preferential
daily per capita figures of 2,600 kilo-calories and more than
terms of trade of Cuban sugar for Soviet oil. In addition,
68 grams of proteins.31 FAO considers 2,400 kilo-calories
during this time there has been a tighter U.S. Blockade
per day and 72 grams proteins per day to be an adequate
and increasing U.S. Hostility. By 1993, as Cuban
diet, which we can’t achieve even after 6 decades of Green
production and imports plummeted, the daily intake
Revolution.
of the average Cuban citizen had decreased to 1863
II. CONCLUSION
kilo calories, including 46 grams of protein and 26
From the above discussion we may come to the following
grams of fat, all figures well below FAO recommended
conclusions.
minimums for a healthy diet. To combat it Cuban
administration change conventional farming practice i) The chemical based agricultural system is not at
to organic farming. Cuba has become a gigantic all a sustainable system. If this practice persists it will
laboratory for farming without petroleum and cause a great harm to our soil.
petroleum derivatives. From pest control to fertilization ii) National food security, in its true sense, cannot be
to soil preparation, chemistry is out and biology is in. achieved through chemical based farming, because it
the crop protection institute operate over 220 centers depends upon many foreign input, and absence of any
that provide cheap and plentiful beneficial insects and one of them food production will suffer a lot.
microorganisms that attack plant pests. At hundreds of iii) Organic farming can feed present generation
vermicompost centers, worms are digging through and efficiently and sustainably without causing any harm
then excreting organic west to produce, in 2003 fifteen to future generation.
million tons of natural compost was produced [14].
19
[1] Agricultural Statistics IFFCO New Delhi, in association with Directorate ofEconomics & Statistics, New Delhi.
[2] 11Th Five year plan, GOI.
[3] Deb Debal, Industrial Vs. Ecological Agriculture, Navdanya, RFSTE New Delhi, 2004
[4] Kausik K.K. Sustainable Agriculture : Issue and policy implication. In : K.C. Roy , H.C. Blomquist and I. Hossain (eds),
Development that lasts New Delhi. New Age International. . 1997
[5] Surinder S. Jodhka, The Decline of Agriculture . In Bhoumik S.K. (eds) Reforming Indian Agriculture. SAGE.
[6] Susan E Gebhardt. And Robin G Thomas, “Nutritive Value of Food,” U. S. Department of Agriculture. Agricultural Research
Service Home And Garden Bulletin Number 72.
[7] J.S. Kanowar, “Micronutrient - New dimension in agriculture; Indian Farming,” 18(10), 5-8 (January 1969).
[8] John Bellamy Foster, Marx’s Ecology Materialism and nature, Monthly ReviewFoundation
[9] Singh M.V. Micronutrient Fertility Mapping for Indian Soil, Indian Institute of Soil Science ( ICAR ), 2008.
[10] Food Consumption and Calorie Intake In Contemporary India by Srikanta Chatterjee, Allen Rae, Ranjan Ray.
[11] Walliman Bt Toxin: assessing G M strategies. Science 287:41, 2000.
[12] Deb Debal, Beyond Developmentality, 2009. Daanish Books, Delhi.
[13] Paul Anupam, et. al. Comparetive study on chemical and organic nutrient management of rice during kharif season in Nadia
district of West Bengal, 2011. proceedings of International Symposium on System Intensification Towards Food &
Environmental Security,BCKV, Kalyani WB.
[14] Koont Sinan, Food Security in Cuba,Analytical Monthly Review,January 2004.
20
During the last couple of decades almost one-third of the world population increased its standard of living
significantly. The question which is being asked, simultaneously, whether such significant and fast changes
will be sustainable, if the society continues in its usual ways. It is fast being recognized, in public discussions,
that many of the practices and lifestyles of modern society cannot be sustainable indefinitely. We are fast
depleting our natural resources than the capacity of the planet to provide and accommodate our emissions.
We also notice that a vast majority of the people cannot even meet their basic needs.
Sustainable development is probably the most pressing issue of this century. Sustainable development is the
development of the present without compromising the ability of our future generations to meet their
needs. The overarching goal of sustainable development is in enabling all people throughout the world to
satisfy their basic needs and enjoy better quality of life. It is the process of moving human activities to a
pattern that can be sustained continuously in future. Three dimensions of sustainability are eco-centric
concerns, techno-centric concerns and socio-centric concerns. ‘Techno-centric concerns’, which
encompasses techno-economic system, represents human skills and ingenuity to be employed within the
economic system. ‘Eco-centric concerns’, relate to the ability of the planet to sustain us i.e. water, air and
land. ‘Socio-centric concerns’ are human expectations and aspirations for better quality of life i.e. population
increase and skewed income distribution.
Professional engineers have a significant role to play in sustainability. Sustainable engineering means providing
for human needs and improving quality of life, without compromising, the ability of future generations to
meet their needs. Engineers can contribute to sustainable development by addressing the following issues:
Rising World population leading to higher energy usage which is not sustainable
Reduction of green- house gases
Basic human necessities of food, water, housing and shelter
Transportation need
All-time high material consumption and waste generation
The most critical human need of health
While addressing these issues, engineers have to change the way they have been working keeping in mind the bigger
picture of contributing for the development of the society without adversely affecting the interest of future generations.
In meeting the challenges in the above mentioned areas for sustainable development, various bodies of professional
engineers need to take a lead in guiding and motivating engineers in different fields in decision making for clients,
employers and society which affect sustainability.
There is some excellent leadership by professional organizations such as Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
(IEEE), World Engineering Partnership for Sustainable Development (WEPSD), World Federation of Engineering
Organisation (WFED), and World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), among others to make
sustainable development high priority in engineering and business both in practice and in the education of future
engineers. They are promoting codes of practice education, mentoring programmes, and policy changes that will
encourage the engineering profession to lead this economic revelation.
21
The objective of the Quality Engineering for Sustainability initiative is to improve engineering education in the
global South by supporting ‘hands-on’ training in secondary schools and developing industrial partnerships with
targeted tertiary educational institutions. Some of the universities that will participate in this initiative are:
India (Indian Institutes of Technology in Bombay, Roorkee, Madras, Kharagpur, Delhi and Kanpur)
Vietnam (Vietnamese-German University)
At these tertiary educational facilities, the Quality Engineering for Sustainability initiative will support undergraduate,
graduate and doctorate theses as well as lectures and seminars on a variety of engineering fields, such as water
technology and management, electrical engineering and information technology, environmental engineering and
industrial engineering. Also, through the international corporate ties provided by the German companies, students
from the global South will have opportunities to undertake internships and research contracts.
Engineers provide the bridge between science and society. In this role, engineers must actively promote and participate
in multidisciplinary teams with other professionals, such as: ecologists, economists, medical professionals & doctors,
and sociologists, to effectively address the issues and challenges of sustainable economic development because
engineers working on a global scale will help promote public recognition of the engineers and understating of the
needs and opportunities in today’s fast developing world in order to ensure engineer’s role in a sustainable economic
development.
* Former GM SAIL/DSP
22
Haris (1980) defined decision making as the study of identifying and choosing alternatives based on the values and
references of the decision maker. Making a decision implies that there are alternative choices to be considered, and
in such a case we want not only to identify as many of these alternatives as possible but to choose the one that best fits
with our goals, objectives, desires, values, and so on. According to Baker et al. (2001), decision making should start
with the identification of the decision maker(s) and stakeholder(s) in the decision, reducing the possible disagreement
about problem definition, requirements, goals and criteria. A decision making problem is categorized mainly into two
types: multi-attribute decision making (MADM) problem and multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) problem.
MCDM problems involve a set of alternatives that are evaluated on the basis of set of criteria. MCDM belongs to the
case when we have a finite number of criteria but the number of the feasible alternatives (the ones meeting the
requirements) is infinite. On the contrary, MADM belongs to the case when the number of the criteria and alternatives
is finite, and the alternatives are given explicitly. Among the two decision making problems, MCDM is observed as
the most widely used decision making method.
Decision making problems (Gil-Lafuente & Merigó, 2010) are very common in the literature. There are different
ways and methods for solving the decision process (Liu, 2011; Merigó & Gil-Lafuente, 2010; Zavadskas & Turskis,
2011; Zhou & Chen, 2010; Das & Kar, 2014; Das et al., 2013, Das et al., 2014 ). Usually the method used for solving
the decision problem depends on the available information. For example, when the decision maker has probabilistic
information, he will solve the problem calculating the expected value for each alternative. Thus, he will be in a
problem of decision making under risk environment. However, in other problems the decision maker may not have
probabilistic information. Therefore, he must use another approach
for solving the problem such as the use of the ordered weighted averaging (OWA) operator (Yager, 1988) that reflects
the attitudinal character (degree of optimism) of the decision maker.
The problem has attracted increasing attention in engineering, computer science, economics and operations research:
how should a decision maker make his/her decision when the parameters that define a problem are not fixed / exactly
known? Problem parameters may be subject to uncertainty in many real world problems. This is due to noisy obser-
vations, estimating parameters from a finite number of samples, and over simplification of the problem formulation.
Substantial research shows that neglecting this uncertainty completely and using approximated/guessed parameters
instead can lead to decisions that result in dramatic performance degradation under the true parameters, or even
being infeasible and unstable. These observations motivate the need for methodologies in decision making models
that lead to solutions that are immune to parameter uncertainties.
Robustness is defined as a system’s ability to withstand, i.e., a robust system maintains its functionalities under
conditions of varying internal or external parameters. A solution is robust if it is still feasible and optimal or close to
optimal in changed scenario. A more recent approach to decision making under parameter uncertainty is to make the
decision robust, in which the uncertainty is not stochastic, rather deterministic and set-inclusive. Robust system has
a close relation with fuzzy system. Robust system is mainly useful in uncertain environments and the uncertainties
are well expressed using qualitative terms rather than quantitative approach. Fuzzy system has been proved to be
efficient to deal with uncertainties, where linguistic variables are used to represent the qualitative terms. The fuzzy
set theory offers the possibility to construct decision models with uncertain data. Fuzzy systems use membership
functions to convert the linguistic variables into numerical values.
In real life applications, where problem parameters are uncertain, incorporating robustness in decision making prob-
lem is becoming quite inevitable. There have been only a few studies considering robustness in decision making
problem, where information is presented using fuzzy sets. Decision makers often fail to provide precise opinions/
choices about the set of alternatives due to insufficient information regarding the data set and lack of their expert
23
All realistic MCDM problems often face different kinds of uncertainty, which generally arise from two sources:
stochastic uncertainty related to environmental, economic or technical data, and fuzzy uncertainty related to subjective
judgments and the characteristics of the decision maker (DM). Many of the works on MCDM models under uncertainty
however do not utilize the mixture of the different types of uncertainty for a given problem. They assume the
existence of either only stochastic or only fuzzy uncertainty. Many authors compared stochastic and fuzzy MCDM
methodologies (Inuiguichi and Ramik 2000; Roubens and Teghem 1991; Slowinski and Teghem 1990; Tecle 1992).
One of the differences between fuzzy approach with respect to the stochastic approach exists in the quality of the
input data. Stochastic approach suits the condition in which probabilistic data can be obtained. Fuzzy approach is
appropriate when parameters are subjective and vague. The other difference between stochastic and fuzzy MCDM
approaches is that stochastic MCDM explores all ways to accomplish a task while fuzzy MCDM looks for one best
way to do the job (Buckly 1990). A main difference between stochastic and fuzzy MCDM is that stochastic MCDM
counts all ways to accomplish a task but fuzzy MCDM looks for one best way to do the job (Buckley 1990). To
achieve robust methodology, stochastic nature of a problem must be associated with the fuzziness. In recent years, an
increasing attention has been given to the solving of MCDM problems involving both stochastic and fuzzy uncertainties.
Reference:
Buckly JJ (1990) Stochastic versus possibilistic programming. Fuzzy Sets Syst 34:173–177
Das, S., & Kar, S. (2014). Group decision making in medical system: An intuitionistic fuzzy soft set approach,
Applied Soft Computing, 24, 196–211 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.asoc.2014.06.050
Das, S., Kar, M.B., & Kar, S. (2013). Group Multi Criteria Decision Making using Intuitionistic Multi Fuzzy Sets,
Journal of Uncertainty Analysis and Applications, 1:10, doi:10.1186/2195-5468-1-10
Das, S., Kar, M.B., Pal, T., & Kar, S. (2014). Multiple Attribute Group Decision Making using Interval-Valued
Intuitionistic Fuzzy Soft Matrix, IEEE International Conference on Fuzzy Systems (FUZZ-IEEE), Beijing, July 6-
11, 2014 (in press)
Gil-Lafuente, A. M., & Merigó, J. M. (2010). Computational intelligence in business and economics. Singapore:
World Scientific.
Inuiguichi M, Ramik J (2000) Possibilistic linear programming: a brief review of fuzzy mathematical programming
and a comparison with stochastic programming in portfolio selection problem. Fuzzy Sets Syst 111:3–28
Liu, P. (2011). A weighted aggregation operators multi-attribute group decision making method based on interval-
valued trapezoidal fuzzy numbers. Expert Systems with Applications, 38, 1053–1060.
Merigó, J. M., & Gil-Lafuente, A. M. (2010). New decision making techniques and their application in the selection
of financial products. Information Sciences, 180, 2085–2094.
Roubens M, Teghem Jr J (1991) Comparison of methodologies for fuzzy and stochastic multi objective programming.
Fuzzy Sets Syst 42:119–132
Slowinski R, Teghem Jr J (1990) A comparison study of STRANGE and FLIP. In: Slowinski R, Teghem J (eds)
Stochastic versus fuzzy approaches to multiobjective mathematical programming under uncertainty. Kluwer, Dordrecht,
pp 392–393
Tecle A (1992) Selecting a multi criterion decision making technique for watershed resources management, Water
Resources Bulletin. AWRA 28(1):129–140
Yager, R. R. (1998). Including importances in OWA aggregation using fuzzy systems modelling. IEEE Transactions
on Fuzzy Systems, 6, 286–294.
Zavadskas, E. K., & Turskis, Z. (2011). Multiple criteria decision making (MCDM) methods in economics: An
overview. Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 17, 397–427.
Zhou, L. G., & Chen, H. Y. (2010). Generalized ordered weighted logarithm aggregation operators and their applications
to group decision making. International Journal of Intelligent Systems, 25, 683–707.
24
It has been analyzed that arsenite [As(III)] (H3AsO3, H2AsO31-, HAsO32-) is sixty times more poisonous
and mobile than arsenate [As(V)] (H2AsO41-, HAsO42-) and seventy times more toxic than the methylated
species. So, for domestic uses, it is highly essential to remove As(III) from the groundwater. Several physical
and chemical methods are available for decontamination of arsenic from the ground water supply such as
coagulation, softening, adsorption on alumina, activated carbon, anion exchange, reverse osmosis (RO),
biological treatment, using hardened paste portland cement, composite iron matrix, etc.
Iron containing compounds have immense applications in the soil sedimentation and the groundwater
remediation. They are also known to be highly efficient in spontaneous adsorption and co-precipitation of
As(III) and As(V) species. Small iron oxide or hydroxide particles can be transported effectively by the
ground water. They are easy to inject as sub-colloids (in forms of oxides, hydroxides, or oxyhydroxides)
into contaminated soils, sediments, and aquifers due to large susceptibility to form and exist in a suspension
in an aqueous medium. Large surface area in small particles and high porosity are desired in order to
promoting the surface adsorption capacity and form stable complexes with H2O species from the medium.
The IONPs were synthesized by a simple and cost effective chemical method [4]. Aqueous solutions
were prepared for Fe(NO3)3.9H2O (1 M) and PVA (30 gl-1) by stirring in hot conditions at 60~70C. In this
process, the nitrate solution was added into this solution drop wise with stirring at 60oC for 30 min. After
few hours of ageing at room and ice cooled temperature, ammonia solution was added drop-wise until a gel
appears at 12-14 pH. IONPs were obtained after firing a dried gel (at 80-90C in air) at 300C in air. The
structural and microstructural characterizations of IONPs were done by X-ray diffraction technique and
25
A series of systematic experiments [4] have been performed in optimizing the experimental parameters
for removing traces of arsenic species from contaminated water at room temperature. The conditions involve
variable doses for the adsorbate and adsorbent at selective pH values 2-10. Iron oxide nanoparticles of large
bare surfaces, such as 39 m2/g or still larger as much as possible, have been found to be an effective adsorbent
for the trace removal of As(III) from an arsenic contaminated water. At a specific 4.5-7.5 range of pH, a
maximum As(III) removal capacity of IONPs, i.e., as large as 96% in 60 min of the incubation time (i.e.,
usefully a small practical value), has been worked out from an extremely dilute aqueous As(III) solution such
as 0.25 ppm As(III) as NaAsO2 in water. The As(III) adsorption process onto IONPs occurs to be most efficiently
at a critical dose of 2.0 gl-1 IONPs. The employed IONPs in this As(III)-removal process from a water
medium can be separated easily after the use by using a magnet.
References:
[1] R. Nickson et al. Current Knowledge on the Distribution of Arsenic in Groundwater in Five States of
India. Journal Environ. Sci. Health, Part A, 2007, 42, 1707-1718.
[2] B. K. Mandal et al. Impact of arsenic in foodstuffs on the people living in the arsenic-affected areas
of West Bengal-India. Journal Environ. Sci. Health, Part A, 2007, 42, 1741-1752.
[3] P. L. Smedley et al. A review of the source, behavior and distribution of arsenic in natural waters.
Appl. Geochem. 2002, 17, 517-568.
[4] D. De et al. Iron oxide nanoparticle-assisted arsenic removal from aqueous system. Journal Environ.
Sci. Health, Part A, 2009, 44, 155-162.
26
Abstract
Mining operations generate a lot of wastes that are heaped on the ground covering the adjoining
top soil causing great loss of vegetation as well as that of cultivable land. These mining wastes are
generally termed over burdened dumps (OBDs). There are a number of open coal mines associated
OBD areas in the Raniganj Coalfield Area of Southern part of West Bengal. Sonpur bazari OBD is
one of the largest among them situated at 23 °48"North latitude and 87 °47" East longitudes. With
a very low water holding capacity and lack of nutrients and humus and presence of toxic heavy
metals, the OBD materials are unsuitable for the growth of most plants. However, certain tolerant
varieties still grow naturally even in such harsh environment. A case study was made regarding
the vegetational diversity of the Sonpur bazari over burdened dumps and it was found that the
vegetation gradually increases as we move from fresh dumps to consecutively older dumps. Almost
no vegetation could be seen upto four year old dumps except a few grass species in fragmented
sites. The pioneer vegetation was those of the family of poaceae with Saccharum spontaneum being
most predominant. A few other species of grasses viz., Chrysopogon sp. (vetiver), Alloteropsis sp.,
Echinocloa sp. Paspalidium sp. and Paspalium sp. could also be seen in discrete populations. Members
of Compositae with Chromolaena odorata (Syn=Eupatorium odoratum) being predominant in older
dumps, with their counterparts Vernonia and Sonchus and Senecio etc. However, Saccharum
spontaneum (Kash phool) was dominant vegetation in almost all the OBDs. A few trailers with
Evolvulus nummularius, Evolvulus elsinoides, Tridax procumbens, Oxalis corniculata, Tribulus terrestris,
Rungia parviflora etc were also found in gradually older dumps. Among the other herbs, Cassia
tora, Cassia occidentalis, Tephrosia purpurea etc were moderately present. A few roadside plants also
were found to encroach which include Indoneesiella echioides, Ipoemia quamoclit, Lantana camara,
Indigofera sp. Euphorbia herta, Euphorbia microphylla, Heliotropium indicum, Cleome viscosa, Biophytum
reinwardii, Alternaria sesselis, Achyranthes aspera etc. In more than 8 years older dumps one or a few
members of Dulbergia sisso, Butea monosperma, Ficus religiosa were also seen. Land reclamation is
one of the important aspects when we talk about sustainable development, because it is this most
valuable resource which is dwindling very fast due to population growth. In order to reclaim
waste land, a study of this kind is extremely desirable which will help us to hasten the process of
soil formation by cultivating plants which have greater adaptability in nutritionally poor
environment like that of coal mine over burdened dumps.
27
Abstract:
Speech Synthesis has been widely used in the last four decades. Speech Synthesis is an important technique
of conversion from a given input text to an audible speech. Speech Synthesis is a widely research topic for
the last decades. A method for generating speech from text includes the steps of analyzing the input text and
mapping from a standard text-to-speech database. In this paper the general method for text-to-speech
conversion has been discussed in details. Sentences are composed by variable words. At first the words are
read by recognizing syllables.
Abstract
A digital image contains huge amount of information such as intensity or color of each and every pixel of
the objects and background. The most important of them is the pixels those are lying at the boundaries of
the objects and background pixel. Shape of an object can be clearly measured if the edges between the
object and background are clearly visible.
Edges are not different thing in the image, it is just positions if strong variation in intensity levels in
the consecutive pixel areas. These differences in the intensity levels or the brightness is measured by the
human visual system. So we can say that edges are the position of discontinuity of the image intensity
function. So edge detection is very important thing.
28
Abstract
It is generally believed that cooperative farming or agricultural cooperative societies can act as a propulsive factor
during the process of economic development just because cooperative facilitate the mobilization of surplus both for
reinvestment(capital formation) purposes and for the maintenance of an adequate flow of food for urban consumption.
In this paper we shall try to highlight the role of agricultural cooperative societies in creating direct linkage between
farmers and potato processing industry in West Bengal in post liberalization period. We also discuss the role of
cooperative societies in providing sustainable market to potato farmers in West Bengal.
Key words : cooperative farming , agricultural marketing, processing industry, opportunities, & problems
ABSTRACT
“I promise, I commit to give my new born a better place to reside. My oath to present them a better tomorrow”
-Sukanta Bhattacharya
This motivation should be there even in recent times. With this motivation the famous poet want to say that he
would like to reform the society so that every individual could live in peace, obviously with the development
of society in respect of science and technology.
In this paper we proposed about few strategies of application of science and technology are taken like Go
Green, Promote Renewable Energy Resources, Steady State Economy, Spreading of Science and Technology
Education and Inclusion in Science and Technology Education.
29
himadri80@gmail.com1,arya_mca_05@yahoo.com2,subhabratabiswas56@gmail.com3
Criminal record generally contains personal information about particular person along with the
photograph. To identify any criminal we need some identification regarding the particular person. This
problem aims in detecting criminals through any picture given by eye witness or from any source of
any quality. A filtering algorithm used to upgrade the image and through video surveillance situated
at any local places like airport, railway station connected to the system any persons face found match
with that of the suspected criminal is identified. In today’s newspaper the greatest threat that is
evolving is crime like, robbery , rape which is increasing in rapid rate. Now, because proper technological
support is not available so maximum case remains unsolved and criminals remain unidentified.To
eradicate or lessen this social threat I try to implement this system which will help in tracking
criminals faster.This system after getting image from anywhere like from eyewitnesses or anywhere
else is kept in the database if required by updating it through filtering algorithm and any match made
of images captured by the videos at local places is immediately identified.
ABSTRACT:
The main purpose of this paper is a brief study about the cause of the noise in the image and their mitigation
technique of the noise from the noisy image. Images are often degraded by the noises. Noise removal is an
important task in digital image processing technique. In general noise removal technique has a strong influence
on the improvement of the image quality. In the field of noise reduction several linear and non-linear techniques
are proposed. Linear filtering technique has a disadvantage because it is not able to effectively eliminate
impulse noise as they have a tendency to blur the edges of the image. But non-linear techniques are effectively
able to handle the impulse noise.
30
Abstract:
The Cost to both society and the environment can’t be measured by any scale. So it is our responsibility to
collect and dispose the waste material to preserve both environment and society. Instead of a useless ‘‘waste’’,
we have come to realize that much of what we once threw away can be used again many times over. The
Present article highlights some of the strategies by which educational institution may success in waste
management system. Present article deals with some proposed guidelines, management and education of
waste management in educational institutions.
1. Introduction:
Educational Institutions is a part of the social construction of a community, and define the way we interact
with each other within society. Educational institutions are determined by the cultures and values of that
society, and provide order and stability within society. Educational institutions Plays Significant role for
completing the socialization process, to transmit the central heritage, and also Reformation of Attitudes of
generations. So awareness of Waste management in Educational Institutions is very much important for
students, teachers and all who are in touch with the institutions
Waste management is the “generation, prevention, characterization, monitoring, treatment, handling, reuse
and residual disposition of solid wastes”.[1]
Waste may be in solid and liquid form and according to their property waste can be classified as Biodegradable
and non-biodegradable. According to their effects on human health and environment, waste can be classified
as Hazardous wastes and Non-hazardous waste.
2.1. Education:
The head of unit should seek to promote waste minimization, reuse, waste reduction, segregation, and recycling,
composting and general sanitation in their unit. The Head ofinstitutions shall instruct to it that solid waste
management is included in the school curriculum. Proper solid waste management should be included in the
freshmen orientation program. All units and dormitories should use other information materials like posters,
signage, memo, trainings, etc. The Building Administrators shall regularly inspect the physical components
of the waste management program. Janitorial personnel who fail to comply with proper solid waste
management procedures will not be hired by the college/unit. All janitorial agency personnel are required to
submit a certificate of completion on waste management training by the Waste Management Committee.
31
32
33
5. Conclusion:
Now a day, the study of waste management established itself to interdisciplinary study, and Educational
Institutions composting provides an opportunity for real-world problem solving with cooperative learning
groups. It therefore can motivate students who feel alienated by traditional “science” experiences. Furthermore,
students gain an awareness of individuals’ roles in the world today as they learn about the waste production
and also learn how it can be reduced. Finally, through construction of compost systems, students are empowered
to make a positive change in their world. So the execution of waste management in educational institution is
very much important not only for present time but also for our future generations.
References:
1. Waste Management (2013). [Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/
S0956053X14000269 “Editorial Board/Aims & Scopes”].
————————————
34
Abstract
Sustainable development is certainly a key issue in both developed and developing countries. Innovation
and creativity are essential for sustainable growth and economic development. A change in the economy has
been identified recently, moving from knowledge based activities to creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship
and imagination Of course, the ultimate cause of all innovation is human creativity. But innovation does not
occur in a vacuum; it requires a workable structure of incentives and institutions. Government policies that
foster the right enabling conditions for innovation, and that allow entrepreneurship and markets to flourish,
can provide a climate that encourages innovation and economic growth. Creative employees can really do
wonders. Implementation of creative ideas in the organizations require negligible cost because mostly these
are possible from indigenous resources. But the benefits are multidirectional, like improvement in productivity,
minimization of cost and obvious enhancement of profitability, moreover a smart creative organizational
culture. In today’s rapidly changing globalized world economy institutionalization of creativity and innovation
will provide comparative advantage to the organization and the nation. Role of an industrial economist is to
propagate and promote this concept in every spheres so that gradually a traditional developing economy
transformed in a creative and innovation economy.
35
Email:ncmurmu@gmail.com
The mostly used energy resources such as mineral oil, coal and nuclear fuel cannot be recovered after
consumption. In order to preserve the limited energy supply, the development and storage of renewable
energy have attracted a significant attention to the Engineers and Scientists. Ongoing researches on energy
storage materials have shown that supercapacitor device can provide portable energy sources and advanced
energy storage solutions for application in renewable energy, smart grids, biomass, urban lifestyle devices
and consumer care industries. Conventional rechargeable battery-based energy storage system has limitations
of not allowing a precise estimation of remaining energy, requiring for periodic maintenance and negative
environmental impact due to the use of harmful chemicals. Moreover, the low power density, low life time
and disposal of batteries is a great concern while energy storage. In order to address these problems, a new
approach for the development of self-sustainable systems through the use of graphene-based super-capacitor
for the buffering of solar energy has been proposed. For this, at first a technique for the mass production of
large area monolayer graphene has to be explored followed by the experimental prototype for designing
graphene-based supercapacitor. Table 1 shows a comparative study of supercapacitor and different types of
batteries.
Electrochemical double layer capacitors or supercapacitors are the most promising device to overcome the
limitation of traditional batteries in terms of quick and huge power delivery process. Batteries alone cannot
satisfy the requirements of discharging with a very high energy in very short duration of time and
simultaneously it is not possible to charge the batteries in a few seconds. Supercapacitors can be charged
within a few seconds and can be discharged with very high energy density within a second when desired. For
example a high charging current of H”100 amp is required during braking to stop a vehicle within a few
second. This charging current is out of the range for a battery but not for a supercapacitor. Further it is
necessary to develop the devices with volume and weight as small as possible. The supercapacitor with nano
sized active materials can serve both of these purposes.
Table 1- Battery and supercapacitor characteristics
Operating Temperature o
C -35 to +65 0-45 0-50 300-350 -40 - 60
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Fig. 1 FE-SEM image of the electrode material used in the supercapacitor device
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