OIDA International Journal of Sustainable Development
Open access peer-reviewed journal
Appraisal of knowledge of youth towards energy conservation and efficiency in India: Exploratory research
Gagan Preet Kaur a, Puja Gupta b, Matt Syal c
a,b Department of Resource Management and Design Application, Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi, Delhi, India.
c School of Planning, Design and Construction, Michigan State University, USA.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 11-16, 2014.
Abstract: India is currently facing a mismatch between demand and supply to the tune of 8.5%. Efficient energy management and conservation are found to be the most cost-effective and environmentally benign option to augment the gap between demand and supply. Planning Commission (2012) has estimated, ‘nearly 25,000 MW of capacity creation through efficient energy management is possible in India’. India is a young nation with 30% of the population as a youth; hence this sector can be empowered with knowledge and skills so that they are capable of taking appropriate steps towards the energy management measures. The research focused on prevalent awareness level of youth towards energy and related concepts so that an effective and valid capacity building module for energy management can be developed.
Knowledge and skills of youth towards energy management were studied. The knowledge level towards energy and related issues was seen to be low with, 46.25% of sample scoring average and 33.75% scoring low on the energy conservation and efficiency knowledge test and energy auditing skill test. The prevalent awareness and application level of youth was found to be inadequate. This lack in knowledge is seen as the first roadblock towards changing behaviour and attitude of masses towards energy and its conversation Based on this criteria capacity building programme can be developed to generate awareness not only among youth but also other stakeholders.
Keywords: capacity building; energy crisis; energy conservation; knowledge and skills; youth
Human Rights Approach to Environmental Protection
Puneet Pathak
Centre for Environmental Law, School for Legal Studies and Governance, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, Punjab, India.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 17-24, 2014.
Abstract: Environmental protection and human rights are interrelated, interconnected, and mutually responsive as both of them intended for the well-being of humanity. A safe and healthy environment is the pre-condition for the enjoyment of fundamental human rights. The linkage between these two approaches has recognized in various international and regional instruments, resolutions of the UN subsidiary organization, the outcome documents of international conferences, and the judicial pronouncement of tribunals, which consider the human rights framework as an effective means to achieving the ends of environment protection. Despite the evident relationship between these two, human rights violations and environmental degradation have been treated by most organizations, governments and even academia as unrelated issues. Environmentalists have tended to focus primarily on natural resource preservation without addressing human impacts of environmental abuse. A state of natural imbalance has been developed by many human-centric activities such as the industrialization, urbanization and the large scale exploitation of natural resources damaging the environment led to many serious repercussions on a large scale including Global Warming, drought, flood, environmental Refugees and migration, health issue, Ozone Depletion. Such issues involve not only environmental factors but other factors as well i.e. political, social, economic factors which requires the integration of both approaches to tackle the issues more holistically. The result of looking these two approaches separately is that the victims of environmental degradation are unprotected by the laws and mechanisms established to address human rights abuses. Linking human rights with the environment creates a rights-based approach to environmental protection that places the people harmed by environmental degradation at its center. Articulating the fundamental rights of peoples with respect to the environment creates the opportunity to secure those rights through human rights bodies in an international forum as well as the national tribunals. In this regard, the contribution made by the Indian judiciary for the protection of environment and to provide remedies to the victim of environmental harm by applying the right based approach to environmental protection is a clear example of how the framework of human rights can contribute in the protection of the environment and the very existence of humanity. The concept of sustainable development is very well served to interlink these approaches as it comprising three interrelated dimensions: environmental, economic and social. The present study is intended to describe the interlink between environmental protection and human rights approach by analyzing instruments, initiatives taken by environmental and human rights bodies and the judicial pronouncement of various tribunals. Further, it also evaluates how far the mechanism of human rights is helpful to provide remedies to the victim of environmental degradation and to provide better protection to the global environment.
Keywords: Development, Environment, Human Rights, Sustainable Development
Empowering Stakeholders Towards Better Working Conditions Through Green Factories: An Action Research In India
Gagan Preet Kaur a, Puja Gupta b , Matt Syal c
a,b Department of Resource Management and Design Application,
Lady Irwin College, University of Delhi, Delhi, India.
c LEED®AP, School of Planning, Design and Construction, Michigan State University, USA.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 25-36, 2014.
Abstract: The need for sustainable development is picking up the pace, with one of the major concerns being to provide a healthy environment for citizens to live and work. The Industrial sector has pursued its manufacturing operations without giving much attention to environmental and health issues. This has resulted in an impact on resources, human health and wellbeing. Thus in this context, Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has developed a green factory rating system which can help address issues like energy efficiency, conservation of natural, a betterment of working conditions and enhanced productivity. Its adoption can be accelerated by generating awareness amongst stakeholders of the manufacturing sector to voluntarily adopt green practices for their factory buildings. The research brings out the action-oriented approach followed to generate awareness amongst stakeholders regarding the green factory rating system with special reference to Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ) technologies since it has a major impact on the health and productivity of the workers. Also, newer technologies used for IEQ by operational green factories were also studied in detail.
Newer technologies employed by existing green factories, as revealed by the study were Building flush out, entryway systems, high-efficiency filters and so forth. Taking these as a framework, a training programme was prepared to generate awareness. The training programme, dealt in imparting knowledge on various issues such as sustainable development, green built environment, green factory rating system etc. It consisted of modules assisted with comprehensive tools like presentations, videos, pamphlet, training manual and handouts. The training programme resulted in a change in knowledge and perception of stakeholders which was statistically analyzed. This change helped them to understand and appreciate how their practices and preferences in their factory buildings can contribute to a good working environment thereby leading to a holistic goal of sustainable development. Thus, such interventions can be taken up at a wider scale to motivate community stakeholders to adopt green building guidelines.
Keywords: Green Factory Rating System; Industrial sector; Indoor Environment Quality technologies; sustainable development; training program
Challenges and Strategies for Development in the Changing Scenario
Satpal Singh a, Dalbir Singh b, Devender Sindhu c
a Vikaspath- A Society for Social Development & Research, Rohtak-124001, Haryana, India.
b, c Department of Geography, Pt. NRS Govt. College RohTAK-124001, Haryana, India.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 37-44, 2014.
Abstract: There are numerous of natural resources, gifted by the God to man for his survival. The man has been exploiting the nature for fulfill his needs, since he had come on this earth. The natural resources such as oil, natural gas, coal and other mineral resources are limited in accordance with growing human needs. It is, therefore, require an effective policy for exploiting all these natural resources, so that a position of sustainable development may take place at agricultural and industrial fronts in relation to environment. The paper examines the mode of exploitation the natural resources and the challenges, faced by the man, which is a results of his haphazard actions. Keeping in view the present changing conditions, it requires strengthening. The alternative strategies and conservation policy, so that a balance may be maintained between human action and environment in accordance development oriented changing scenario. It also requires an effective policy for judicious use of natural resources so that the sustainable development policy may facilitate to man healthier and sustainable living. It also require a periodic review of natural resources in relation to development perspective at various development hierarchy. In this context, focus is to be given on short term and long term planning, so that a duly coordination may be established in accordance with prevailing local conditions. In order to meet the challenge of energy crisis, it require an effective formulation of energy policy, so that a ‘sustainable development’ may be taken place through application of the strategies such as a perfect substitute of oil with non-conventional sources of energy. These energy sources should be tapped in accordance with their applicability by replacing the conventional sources with non-conventional sources of energy. The use of bio-based energy is some of sources which can be used as an alternative source of energy which can be a step as strategy for ‘conservation of conventional sources of energy.’ In the present energy crises. Secondly, the strategy for sustainable development’ for renewable natural resources by regenerating the natural resources such as forest resources, reclamation of waste land, water management, change in agricultural practices by using bio-fertilizer, crop-rotation, focus on eco-friendly product like food grain, fruit and vegetable. Only then, we shall be in a position to meet the growing challenge of steady growing ‘unsustainable development position of changing scenario.
Keywords: Natural resources, Judicious use, Challenges, Sustainable Development, Changing Scenario.
Advance Sustainable Development of Children Vis-À-Vis Pending Bills in India
Sunaina a
a Army Institute of Law, Mohali, Punjab, India
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 45-58, 2014
Abstract: Sustainable development is a mode to preserve our earth for our children who are the future of any nation. Our actions of today will determine the future of our children tomorrow. But various problems such as poverty, lack of education, natural resources, malnourishment etc hinder our way of progress and development. There is a need to overcome these challenges irrespective of one’s caste, race, gender, language, religion, origin, financial status, place of birth etc for sustainable development as investment in children today will bear fruitful results tomorrow. The obligation is cast not only on the State but also the people not to encroach upon the rights of the others.
In India, a total of fourteen Bills relating to the rights of the children are pending before the Parliament. Convention on the Rights of the Child was accessed by India on 11 December 1992 and it inter alia undertook to take measures to progressively implement the provisions of article 32 of the Convention, particularly paragraph 2 (a), in accordance with its national legislation and relevant international instruments to which it is a State Party. Article 32 specifically protects children from economic exploitation and prohibits their employment as it interferes with the child’s education, or it can be harmful to his health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development. It specifically deals with providing for a minimum age for admission to employment; appropriate regulation of the hours and conditions of employment and to provide for appropriate penalties or other sanctions to ensure the effective enforcement of the present article.
In relation to Article 32 of the convention the three main proposed Bills namely; Abolition of Child Labour Bill, 2013, The Child Welfare Bill, 2013 and The Child Labour (Prohibition And Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012 will be analysed in the paper along with their repercussions and suggestions.
The age factor of a child in India has been an ambiguous matter as there is disparity in the age of child under different enacted statutes and the pending bills. In certain legislations, a child is considered to be one who is below eighteen years whereas in others, it is below fifteen years, in some, below fourteen years. In the pending bills a further categorization has been made with respect to adolescents as well which further makes the proposed bills in contradiction with the already existing Indian enactments. The paper is an attempt to inter alia cover such anomalies of age and its consequences apart from lack of fund, scope of complete prohibition of employment for children and the extent of compliance with international standards.
The paper will also cover the comparative analysis of provisions of the Constitution of India and the other already existing relevant statutes relating to the rights of the children such as Indian Majority Act 1875, Indian Succession Act 1925, Mines Act 1952, Beedi and Cigar Workers Act 1966, Factories Act 1948, The Children (Pledging of Labour) Act, 1933, Merchant Shipping Act 1958, etc. The paper will also endeavour to cover the observations by the author in the form of repercussions and suggestions and the same will be supported by data gathered from the official websites and publications of the government of India, Journals of national and international repute, parliamentary debates, newspapers etc. The paper will also help the international fraternity in understanding the rights of children in India and their applicability through the prism of international standards set through various international conventions and documents.
Keywords: Age, Bills, Children, Sustainable and Parliament
Coverage of Development News in Newspapers (With special Reference to Rural Areas of Kanpur)
Virendra Kumar Vyas a, Srachna Sachdeva b
a,b JMC, Arts, Mahatma Gandhi Chitrakoot Gramodaya University, Chitrakoot, Satna, MP.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 59-64, 2014.
Abstract: To grow and lead a successful life, it is essential for people to be able to adapt to the changes in the field of social, economic and technological spheres. People not only feel free to talk about the process of development but also sincerely become a part of the development process. For a country to lead its people to growth and sustainable development, it is important that information and knowledge about such changes is made available to them on priority basis. India being a country where more than 70 % of people live in the rural areas and are engaged in cultivation, it is very important that people are provided with the facilities of better living so that they may have a say in the process of sustainable development.
In this respect, the development communication is very crucial which states that in order to achieve overall development, it is important that all the facilities and indexes of progress reach to the grass root level. Development communication is the communication of policies, programs and other facilities for the betterment of the lives of the people. The concept of Development communication is defined by Dr. Nora Quabrel in these words, “Development Communication is the art and science of human communication applied to the speedy transformation of a country and the mass of its people from poverty to a dynamic state of economic growth that makes possible greater social equality and the larger fulfillment of human potential”.
In India, where the main occupation of the people is agriculture, it is essential that the technological tools are open to the reach of the people living in rural areas to make improvements not only in the agriculture field but also serve as an aid to better their lives. Facilities to help the village people to fulfill their ICE needs i.e. the need to be informed, communicated, and educated must be provided by the government so that they could be brought forth to the front row as a torch bearer for a developing India.
Information of their use has to be made available to them by the media. The media which is the cheapest for them and easily available to them is the print media and especially the newspapers. It is important to see how the newspapers are delivering the news which speaks of their problems and also finds solutions to their problems. The research problem is to analyze, evaluate and understand how newspapers are contributing towards the coverage of needs and progress of the rural people, what news about development issues is given in the newspapers.
Keywords: Communication, Development news, Media, News, Sustainable Development
A Scenario of Street Children in Ludhiana City
Khwairakpam Sharmila a, Sukhminder Kaur b
a, b Department of Human Development, College of Home Science,
Punjab Agricultural University, Punjab, India.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 65-71, 2014.
Abstract: Children live and work on the street because their parents are poor, they are orphans, or they have run away from home, often to escape abuse. They are invariably malnourished, receive scant education and medical treatment, and are involved in child labour from an early age. The term street children refer to children for whom the street has become their real home. They are not necessarily being homeless or without families, but live in situations without protection, supervision, or direction from responsible adults. Street children face difficulties in providing themselves with good sources of food, clean drinking water, health care services, toilets and bath facilities, and adequate shelter. They also suffer from absence of parental protection and security; there is a lack of any kind of moral and emotional support. There are a number of factors that lead children to living on the street. One root cause that has been identified is poverty. Problems faced by street children are overwhelming. In addition to living and working in environments that are generally harmful to their well-being, street children face problems such as hunger, lack of adequate shelter, clothes, and other basic needs, as well as lack of (or limited) educational opportunities, health care, and other social services. Observing the present scenario of street children in Ludhiana city, the study aims to determine the working hours of street children spending in street activities. The study was based on 160 street children aged 9-12 years equally distributed over gender by administering a self-structured Interview Schedule. The study was conducted in different locations of Ludhiana city viz, railway station, bus stand, traffic lights, nearby markets etc. Home based street children was purposively selected by using snowball sampling technique. The result of the study highlighted that that boys usually work for longer duration as compared to girls. Major proportion (46.25%) of street children work for 1-6 hours a day in street whereas 28.75 per cent children work for 6-9 hours and 25.00 per cent spent 9-12 hours a day to earn their day to day living. Majority of the children (56.25) were hit by motorbike whereas 18.75 per cent of them were hit by car and 12.50 per cent of the respondent were hit by bicycle and fell down from bus respectively. Information regarding children attending school revealed that out of the 160 street children, 54 respondents were attending school. All of the 54 respondents were reported to be attending government school.
Keywords: Children at risk Child abuse, Homeless children, Street children, vulnerable group.
Violence Against Women and Sustainable Development
Rishika Arora
Law Researcher under Hon’ble Ms. Justice Indermeet Kaur Kochhar, Delhi High Court, India.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 72-77, 2014.
Abstract: History has witnessed vast gender inequalities and development of society cannot be restricted to a particular section of society. When one talks about development and progress it brings within its sphere; well-being and security of society as a whole i.e. inclusive of both men and women. Economic development and progress of a nation is directly proportional to the process of transformation of a society towards its betterment. Gender inequality based on gender biasness is a determinant of power and priority privilege. The world is most unequal for women and girls; they are beaten, tortured and raped at the hands of male chauvinism. And sadly it not only exists within the boundaries of the nation rather it is in its most brutal form in the ‘no man’s land.’ In a country like India where the present-modern society is still under the clutches of patriarchal male dominance, focusing only on laws protecting women within the territorial boundaries of the State is not sufficient to aim towards global sustainability and development. The most atrocious crimes against women take place where the State boundaries end.
Can violence against women be called to be restricted during peace time or confined within the borders or does it spread beyond the boundaries. Vulnerability of the she-gender: is like being in a constant state of war against a woman’s human rights, within the border or across and crossing all cultural boundaries. Crime against women is an existing and ongoing state of war against humanity, it cannot be clubbed in specific spheres, and it ranges from acts of sexual violence to domestic assault to cross border trafficking.
With the incidents as that of Delhi gang rape case; raping and sadistically exploiting a 5 year old and Bijal Patel Rape case the focus has now shifted to re-evaluating and reframing protection of women under the present law based on recommendations from Justice Verma Committee, which was constituted to look into possible amendments of the Criminal Law within the State. The question that the present paper raises is till what extent can only laws protect and safeguard the citizens? With almost half the population feeling insecure can a nation really progress towards development? Can women be called safe in any part of the world? Be it within the boundaries of the State or beyond? Cross-border crimes not just affect the women of the particular Nations at war but it travels beyond the borders and becomes an issue of global concern. Is it the law that governs and safeguards it’s people or is it the executive body regulating the enforcement mechanism that makes any law an effective law. The paper focuses on the various issues relating to sexual-violence faced by women within the boundaries and beyond. In addition to the laws laid down under the International Humanitarian Laws towards protection of women in times of war, the author tries to highlight the missing lacunas in the enforcement of these laws along with solutions to bring a change towards a better tomorrow.
Keywords: Gender Inequality; International Humanitarian Law; Justice Verma Committee Report; Sustainable Development; Violence Against Women.
The Social Construction of Cowpea Variety Development in Ghana: What is missing?
Wilhelmina Quaye a, Joost Jongerden b, George Owusu Essegbey c,
Godfred Frempong d, Guido Ruivenkamp e
a,c,d Science Technology and Policy Research Institute, Accra, Ghana.
b,e Social Science Group, CTC Wageningen University, Netherlands.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 76-91, 2014.
Abstract: This paper investigates how cowpea variety development has been organized over the past 20 years in Ghana using the concept of “Relevant Social Groups” and suggests possibilities of reconstructing cowpea variety designs to meet market demand dynamics. To a large extent, small-scale farmers’ interpretative meanings of what an improved cowpea should be, which are tied to their needs, are addressed in the varietal development process but the same cannot be said for traders, processors and consumers. We conclude that technology utilization informs new design and plays an integral part in constructing demand. Therefore cowpea breeding activities in Ghana should be organized not only around production but also around the dynamics in market demand. Structural constraints to participation among “Relevant Social Groups” with respect to resources, funding and power issues need to be addressed to ensure effective participatory varietal development.
Keywords: Cowpea, development, variety, social groups
Modelling Present Serviceability Rating of Highway using Artificial Neural Network
Oladapo Samson Abiola a, Williams Kehinde Kupolati b
b Department of Civil Engineering, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa.
Volume 07, Issue 01, Pg. 92-99, 2014.
Abstract: Reliable pavement performance prediction models are essential for pavement design and preservation effort. Pavement performance is defined as the serviceability trend of the pavement over a design period of time. Serviceability indicates the ability of the pavement to serve and sustain the demand of the traffic in the existing condition. Pavement condition can be evaluated in four aspects: roughness, surface distress, structural capacity and skid resistance. In the analysis of the results of the road test conducted by American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO), the subjective evaluation of serviceability by users was called the Present Serviceability Rating (PSR). The data used in modelling Pavement Serviceability Index (PSI), as reported by some authors, violate the basic assumptions of linear regression modelling in that it does not follow normal distribution. The objective of this study is to explore the relationship between the subjective Pavement Serviceability Rating (PSR) and objective index called Present Serviceability Index for highway sections in South-East, Nigeria. Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model was used to explore the relationship. The method of rating PSR is based on a five point scale: 0 – 1 (very good); 1 – 2 (good); 2 – 3 (fair); 3 – 4 (critical) and 4 – 5 (poor). International roughness Index (IRI) was converted to Slope Variance (SV). The input variables are rut depth, cracking, patching and SV. Back-propagation of ANN models with different activation function and number of hidden layers were trained and tested. The dataset was randomly split into three subsets, namely training (60 %), testing (20 %) and validation (20 %) for the ANN model. The optimal models were evaluated with respect to forecasting error and coefficient of determination. Both Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) for all predictions are plotted. Considering the architecture (4-18-1) with minimum MAE, RMSE and coefficient of determination, the table and figures show that the topology with one hidden layer with hyperbolic transfer function and hyperbolic transfer function for the output layer is the best. Comparison was made with multiple linear regression model which attempts to obtain a relationship between two or more explanatory variables and a response variable by fitting a linear equation to observed data. The results showed that the coefficient of determination for ANN model is 0.90 compared to 0.34 for regression model; ANN has demonstrated its ability to model non-linear data. This result confirms that the input variables are non-linear, and the ANN has shown to forecast with high degree of accuracy over regression analysis.
Keywords: Artificial neural network; pavement condition; present serviceability index; pavement serviceability rating; roughness.