Anusandhan Trust

This article adds to the growing body of knowledge on the impact of non-financial environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors on long-term financial returns and investigates whether high portfolio ESG improves the quality of equity portfolios in terms of realized returns and risk. A best-in-class positive ESG screening method was deployed using Refinitiv ESG Scores to construct two polarised sets of portfolios, each with three portfolio ESG weightings (i.e., equal, value, and rank weightings). Fifteen years of daily returns from 2005 to end-2019 were analysed for the European continent split into seven regions based on the currency of exchange. Additionally, 2020, the abnormal COVID-19 year, was analysed as an acid test of the ESG alpha hypothesis. Overall, the tests offer empirical evidence that high portfolio ESG has the potential to enhance returns and/or reduce volatility over the long term and thereby improve the quality of portfolios. This evidence signifies the impact of the degree of equity portfolio ESG on performance. The Eurozone was a major exception to the test findings, as were the value weightings. Equal weighting stood out as the most coherent strategy for best-in-class positive ESG screened portfolios, both in terms of volatility and returns. Fama–French modelling yielded interesting region-specific insights for best-in-class positive ESG screening. The UK stood out as the most favourable region for beating the market with best-in-class positive ESG screening in the long run and passed the acid test of ESG outperformance during the identified black swan event for all three portfolio weightings in the short term.

The increasing complexity and scale of cyber threats demand advanced, automated methodologies for extracting actionable cyber threat intelligence (CTI). The automated extraction of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) from unstructured threat reports remains a challenging task, constrained by the scarcity of labeled data, severe class imbalance, semantic variability, and the complexity of multi-class, multi-label learning for fine-grained classification. To address these challenges, this work proposes the Threat Intelligence Extraction Framework (TIEF) designed to autonomously extract Indicators of Compromise (IOCs) from heterogeneous textual threat reports and represent them by the STIX 2.1 standard for standardized sharing. TIEF employs the DistilBERT Base-Uncased model as its backbone, achieving an F1 score of 0.933 for multi-label TTP classification, while operating with 40% fewer parameters than traditional BERT-base models and preserving 97% of their predictive performance. Distinguishing itself from existing methodologies such as TTPDrill, TTPHunter, and TCENet, TIEF incorporates a multi-label classification scheme capable of covering 560 MITRE ATT&CK classes comprising techniques and sub-techniques, thus facilitating a more granular and semantically precise characterization of adversarial behaviors. BERTopic modeling integration enabled the clustering of semantically similar textual segments and captured the variations in threat report narratives. By operationalizing sub-technique-level discrimination, TIEF contributes to context-aware automated threat detection.

Striga hermonthica, an obligate root parasitic weed affecting cereal crops, poses a significant threat to global food security in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Germination of Striga seed largely relies on signaling molecules released by the host roots, mainly strigolactones (SLs). Suicidal germination is an effective strategy for reducing Striga seed banks in infested soils by applying SL analogs in the absence of a host. However, the challenge remains in developing suitably formulated SL analogs for field application. In this report, we assessed the activity of two SL analogs, MP3 and Nijmegen-1, in both granular and liquid formulations in laboratory and greenhouse settings, and conducted mini-field and field trials to evaluate their effectiveness under farmers' conditions, using maize as the host crop in Kenyan agriculture. We observed a significant induction of Striga seed germination reaching up to 56% in laboratory germination bioassays and a reduction in Striga emergence by up to 77% in greenhouse pot studies. In mini- and field trials in different infested fields, we recorded up to 80% and 65% reduction in Striga emergence, respectively. In conclusion, the formulated SL analogs demonstrate significant potential to reduce Striga infestation in maize fields in Kenya and are promising candidates for use by farmers due to their simplicity, ease of handling, stability, and effectiveness.

This article aims to map the journey of disabled people through the ‘pandemic time zone’ across the two waves of COVID-19 in a metropolis of India and how they transcended the ensuing challenges. Using the concepts of Henri Lefebvre, we explore the agency of disabled people living and negotiating their everyday spaces during the pandemic. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with five participants with locomotor disability. Participants with disability reported experiencing challenges in navigating various spaces—at home, in the community and in government structures to transcend barriers to carry out everyday activities. The disruption of daily routines, navigating access and availability of food and altered medical spaces and related access, and lack of opportunities for strengthening social relationships and work productivity access, posed challenges to disabled people. The physical environs, the sociocultural contexts and the politics of impairments influence the intersections between disability, disabled people and their personal, public and political spaces. The advent of COVID-19 has brought in new conditions to these relationships and transactions that have implications for policy and practice.

Background: Sex workers face challenges in terms of health, emotion, financial, and social because of their profession. Great majority of female sex workers tend to self-diagnose and seek over-the-counter medication from pharmacies or use traditional home remedies for sexually transmitted infections treatment rather than to visit health institution. Present study is conducted to understand the challenges faced by female sex workers in seeking health care. Methods: 138 female sex workers aged 18-45 years in urban area of Miraj city and registered with NGO were purposively selected from the reference population. Information was collected on characters like age, education, duration of sex work, place of work, and monthly income, any illness in last one year, treatment taken for the same, place of treatment, and problems encountered in taking treatment etc. by using pre-tested and structured questionnaire and in-depth interview guide. Results: Mean age of the participants was 34.82 ± 6.83 years. Mean duration of sex work was 11.18 years. 68.11% respondents had no formal education. 43.48% participants experienced one or other illness during last one year Challenges faced by the participants in seeking health care at government facilities included-unaware of health care facilities (10.86%), facilities far away from their place of work (15.94%), inconvenient OPD timings (26.08%) and inconvenient location of hospitals (9.42%). Fear of revealing occupation secret (20.28%), fear of result (6.52%) and negative attitude of health worker towards the participants (34.05%) were the obstacles for not seeking health care from government health facilities.

Due to population viability issues, Cheetah brought to India from Africa and their Indian progeny were confined to the enclosures since 2.5 years, and fed with livestock meat and refrained from hunting in the open. Grasslands, savanna or semi-arid habitat in western Indian states of Rajasthan or Gujarat may be more suitable habitat for the African Cheetah subspecies introduction in India than the forested, hilly tracts in the Madhya Pradesh state such as Kuno national park, where their current location. Cheetah mainly dwell or hunt in the plains savanna habitat in Africa. Cheetah diet in Africa mainly consists of Antelopes (grown up weight<50 kg) or small mammals like hare and occasionally livestock such as sheep, goat comprise. Breeding and release of such small mammals in the Cheetah habitat and community participation may be helpful, than the “Chital” i.e. Spotted deer i.e. (full grown weight >80 kg) prevailing and promoted at Kuno presently.

This study focuses on an exploration of the influence on time and cost effectiveness of Human Resource Management (HRM) in the Indian IT companies by elements of Artificial Intelligence (AI), which includes accuracy, automation, real-time responsiveness, computing power, and customization. The lack of empirical research on individual and collective impacts of AI characteristics on operational efficiency remains a fact, although the HR environment is quickly changing under the conditions of the digital revolution. This study examines 300 responses of the tier-1 IT companies HR professionals who responded to the structured quantitative method used in this study. The determination of the predictive relevance is performed with the help of multivariate regression and structural equation modeling (SEM). The results indicate that accuracy (r == 0.418, p << 0.001) and automation (r == 0.208, p << 0.001) are the most considerable factorstors that affect the rise in HR efficiency. The second type of systemis real-time. Conversely, small effects in statistical terms were reported on both aspects of processing capacity and customization, and this implied the functional aspects of AI are of a greater priority than those drilling ancillary enhancements. The findings of the model fit indices (RMSEA = 0.023, CFI = 0.987) testify to a good and reliable model. These findings demonstrate the necessity of specific investments in high-impact elements and can serve as beneficial pieces of information to companies that aim at expanding the usage of AI. This publication forms the foundation of the development of cost-efficient AI-involved HR strategies and contributes to the growing bulk of research on HR based on AI scenery, particularly in developing nations.

Abstract Background: Musculoskeletal disorders, a leading cause of global physical disability, significantly impact the quality of life. Phonophoresis, an ultrasound technique combined with a topical analgesic, is the preferred treatment. Aim: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Phonophoresis using Myostaal Gel, a proprietary polyherbal topical preparation, in acute painful musculoskeletal conditions. Materials and methods: Post Ethics approval, individuals aged 18–45 years with acute painful musculoskeletal conditions, viz. Tendinitis, bursitis, etc. for &lt;12 weeks, approaching the orthopedic outpatient department, were randomized into two groups: Phonophoresis with Myostaal Gel (test) and Ultrasound therapy (control) in a 2:1 ratio. Six sessions, each lasting 10 min at 1.0–1.5 W/cm 2 intensity and 1 MHz frequency, were administered over 2 weeks (three sessions per week). On days 1, 7, 14, and 21 (additionally), pain (numerical pain rating scale [NPRS]), functional outcomes (Patient-Specific Functional Scale), and pressure pain threshold (PPT) by digital pressure algometer were assessed. Friedman test followed by posttest/Wilcoxon matched pairs test/Mann–Whitney tests were applied, significance set at p &lt; 0.05. Results: Out of 82 participants, 61 (38 in the test and 23 in the control group) completed the study. Both groups showed significant pain reduction by day 14, with NPRS scores decreasing from 6 to 4. By day 21, the test group’s score further decreased to 3, while the score of the control group was 4. Functional outcomes improved significantly too from 5 to 6 in both groups by day 14 and further increased to 7 in the test group by day 21, whereas in the control group, it was 6. After completing sessions, pain decreased and functional outcomes improved in the test group but not in the control group on day 21. The PPT was better in the control group on both days: 14 th and 21 st , compared to the test, although nonsignificant. No skin sensitivity was noted in the test group. Although nonsignificant, test group also reported relatively better sleep quality in 17 participants compared to 5 in control group from moderate grade to good. Conclusion: Phonophoresis therapy with Myostaal Gel showed good therapeutic potential for pain relief and functional efficacy in acute musculoskeletal conditions.