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Background Mental health disorders among adolescents have emerged as a major public health issue in many low and middle-income countries, including India. There is a paucity of research on the determinants of psychological distress, particularly among the poorest girls in the poorest communities. The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence and correlates of different indicators of psychological distress among 13–14 year old low caste girls in rural, south India. Methods Cross-sectional survey of 1191 low caste girls in two districts in north Karnataka, conducted as part of a cluster randomised-control trial. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis assessed correlates of different indicators of psychological distress. Results More than one third of girls (35.1%) reported having no hope for the future. 6.9% reported feeling down, depressed or hopeless in the past 2 weeks. 2.1% reported thinking they would be better off dead or of hurting themselves in some way in the past 2 weeks. 1.6% reported sexual abuse, 8.0% rrecent eve teasing and 6.3% having no parental emotional support. Suicidal ideation was independently associated with sexual abuse (AOR 11.9 (3.0–47.0)) and a lack of parental emotional support (AOR 0.2 (0.1–0.5)). Feeling down, depressed or hopeless was independently associated with recent eve-teasing (AOR 2.9 (1.6–5.4)), a harassing or abusive school environment (AOR 3.9 (1.8–8.2)), being frequently absent (AOR 2.8 (1.5–5.5)) or having dropped out of school (AOR 2.1 (1.0–4.3)), and living in Vijayapura district (AOR 2.5 (1.6–4.1)). Having no hope for the future was independently associated with a range of factors, including recent “eve-teasing” (AOR 1.5 (1.0–2.4)), being engaged (AOR 2.9 (0.9–9.7)), not participating in groups (AOR 0.5 (0.4–0.6)) and a lack of emotional support (AOR 0.6 (0.4–0.7)). Conclusions Rather than being a time of optimism, a third of low caste girls in rural north, Karnataka have limited hope for the future, with some contemplating suicide. As well as having important development benefits, interventions that address the upstream structural and gender-norms based determinants of poor mental health, and provide adolescent services for girls who require treatment and support, should have important benefits for girls’ psychological wellbeing. Trial registration Prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.GovNCT01996241 . November 27, 2013

Thermoplastics, reinforced with lignocellulosic fibers are usually processed at lower temperatures ranging from 100 °C to 160 °C. Further increase in temperature leads to the degradation of the fibers mechanical properties. Camphor soot reinforced coir fibers (CSRCF) based on the osmosis technique were prepared, in this study. Parameters using Design of Experiments (DOE) varied and the process is investigated for varied camphor soot concentrations (0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 wt. %), time (4, 8 and 12 hrs.) and temperature (30, 40 and 50 °C) with three levels for each parameter (L9 Orthogonal array). Relative camphor soot content in the coir fiber (RCSCF) and tensile strength are vital objective functions. Tensile tests were conducted on tensometer according to DOE, and based on analysis of variance (ANOVA). The optimal results from ANOVA were established by charting the main effect plots. The optimal combination of parameters for CSRCF were examined using X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared radiation (FTIR). Further, scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with an energy dispersion spectroscope (EDS) examined and compared neat fibers. The results showed a considerable increase in tensile strength by about 37 % for CSRCF compared to neat fibers. XRD revealed that crystallinity index was slightly reduced for modified fibers. The TGA result reveals that thermal stability of the modified fibers improved by 15 % compared to neat fibers. FTIR analysis revealed that modified fibers experienced peak diminishing in OH, CH stretching and carbonyl groups. The Morphology study of neat and CSRCF were examined using SEM with EDS analysis which revealed 94 % carbonaceous compounds in a cross examination of modified fibers compared to the cross section of a neat coir fiber (64 %).

Rice husk is a byproduct that will tend to amass following harvesting, yet the agricultural waste possesses viable prospects as a nano- silica sustainability source. In this experiment we treated rice husk with acid treatment and alkaline extraction and then treated it with microwave-assisted sol-gel to extract amorphous nano-silica. We analyzed the resulting material using FTIR, XRD, BET, and SEM, and found that it consisted of non- crystalline silica nanoparticles, 0.5 0.5 0.5 m in size with a surface area of 185 m 2/g. We considered its adsorption capacity towards Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions to determine its performance. We changed pH (3 to 7), contact time (until three hours), and metal ion concentrations (10- 100mg/L). The Langmuir isotherm model was best fitting the data. Our silica impregnated 102.4 mg/kg of lead and 87.5 mg/kg of cadmium. It retained more than 85 percent of the original efficiency even after four adsorptiondesorption cycles. The overall yield was about 70%. Traditional methods presuppose more energy and chemicals than the process itself. In total, rice husk silica is a cheap and friendly to the environment adsorbent that is suitable in the removal of heavy metals in water.

Structural Health Assessment (SHA) is a paramount importance in many different professions and industries, such as civil and aviation, where a minute detail is examined. In order to evaluate the state and performance of structure overtime modern sensors, health assessing tools and gadgets, data procuring devices, storage clouds and many more are used. Structure deterioration or collapse can have severe effects, such as reduced strength of structure, safety hazards, revenue losses, and environmental and social interruptions. To study the importance of Structural Health Assessment (SHA) thoroughly in this research paper, an old structure situated at RV college of Engineering, Bengaluru, INDIA was considered for the study. Using health assessment instruments, the structure’s safety is evaluated. Initially, a visual inspection was carried out to check the condition of the structure and the onsite dimension of the tank was measured for modelling. The structure was deteriorated in which one of the columns has experienced a crack. The water tank was tested with few Non-destructive tests to check the details of material, composition, health condition. With these details obtained, the structure was seismically modelled using an analysis software ETABS and checked its safety for the measured parameters by providing load acting on the structure in the onsite condition. The results showed that the structure was not safe for zone 2 seismic analysis and all the 4 columns failed the safety check for the available dimension of column. However, the increase in the dimension of column more than 25% of original dimension showed a good response in which all the column were capable of taking the load without any failure.

In building construction, steel structures are favoured as they have some advantageous properties, such as high strength, light weight and high construction performance. However, there are few disadvantages since steel structures are prone to incremental collapse caused by accidental scenarios in which structural components are weakened or eliminated, leading to structural failure. Many research studies have been carried out on steel frames are generally for single column removal scenario. Since more than single structural members may be affected during accidents, numerous column removal scenarios need to be investigated to assess the progressive collapse of steel frame. This reviews study on how the steel frame structures can be simulated numerically using various finite element software to determine progressive collapse resistance for steel frames for different Progressive Collapse scenarios. It is found that Demand Capacity Ratio (DCR), Dynamic Amplification Factor (DAF) and Robustness Index for the critical points are some of the parameters to check the stability of the steel structures due to Progressive collapse scenario.

The progressive collapse analysis of a reinforced concrete (RC) building occurs when an extreme event arises (vehicle collision, gas explosion, bomb blasts, etc.), which often cause damage to the RC structural frame were a sudden loss of primary structural element takes place or due to the failure of one or more critical structural element leading the structure to partial or entire collapse. The fear of progressive collapse is growing, due to the partial collapse of the 22-story Ronan point apartment in 1968, leading to a gas burst and attacks in Oklahoma City, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in 1995, and the attacks on the world trade center in Lower Manhattan, New York in the year 2001. The trend is now to attain strong buildings which can be operational after such extreme events, especially when the building is occupied by a large number of persons. This paper reviews the progressive collapse study on RC frame structure based on various numerical, analytical, and experimental methods which are reported and discussed in the literature. In comparison with bare RC frame, the advantageous impact of the masonry infill wall on the RC structural frame is summed up against the progressive collapse.

Background Female sex workers (FSWs) are at increased risk of HIV and STIs compared to women in the general population, and frequently experience violence in their working and domestic lives from a variety of perpetrators, which can enhance this risk. While progress has been made in addressing violence by police and clients, little work has been done to understand and prevent violence by intimate partners (IPs) among FSW populations. Methods Samvedana Plus is a multi-level intervention programme that works with FSWs, their IPs, the sex worker community, and the general population, and aims to reduce violence and increase consistent condom use within these ‘intimate’ relationships. The programme involves shifting norms around the acceptability of beating as a form of discipline, challenging gender roles that give men authority over women, and working with men and women to encourage new relationship models based on gender equity and respect. The programme will aim to cover 800 FSWs and their IPs living in 47 villages in Bagalkot district, northern Karnataka. The study is designed to assess two primary outcomes: the proportion of FSWs who report: (i) physical or sexual partner violence; and (ii) consistent condom use in their intimate relationship, within the past 6 months. The evaluation will employ a cluster-randomised controlled trial design, with 50 % of the village clusters ( n  = 24) randomly selected to receive the intervention for the first 24 months and the remaining 50 % ( n  = 23) receiving the intervention thereafter. Statisticians will be blinded to treatment arm allocation. The evaluation will use an adjusted, cluster-level intention to treat analysis, comparing outcomes in intervention and control villages at midline (12 months) and endline (24 months). The evaluation design will involve quantitative and qualitative assessments with (i) all FSWs who report an IP (ii) IPs; and process/ implementation monitoring. Baseline data collection was completed in April 2015, and endline data collection is anticipated in May 2017. Conclusions This is an innovative intervention programme that aims to address violence by IPs as part of HIV prevention programming with FSWs. Reducing violence is expected to reduce vulnerability to HIV acquisition, and help women to work and live without fear of violence. Trial registration Clinical Trials NCT02807259 Jun 24 2016 (retrospectively registered).

Road networks play a essential role in transportation systems at the national, state, and local scenario. Ongoing efforts involve construction of new roads and the enhancement of existing ones to improve the overall efficiency of the transportation system. However, highway construction often results in environmental degradation. A more eco-friendly alternative known as CLSM relies significantly on industrial waste in its production process. CLSM, also known as flowable fill, is a self-compacted cementitious material that exhibits properties between concrete and soil. This paper focuses on evaluating the suitability of CLSM mixes in pavement layers and is prepared by combining ground granulated blast furnace slag, cement, and fine aggregates such as crumb rubber and copper slag sand. Flowability and marsh cone tests were conducted to assess the workability of the mixes. California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) to determine the mechanical properties of hardened CLSM. CBR values obtained for CLSM mixes (UCS range 0.28 – 2.42 MPa) was observed to be more than that of conventional pavement subgrade materials. Adoption of such CLSM mixes for pavement subgrade will lead to sustainable road construction.

Concrete structures are susceptible to a variety of chemical reactions, with AAR and ISA being two of the most common processes that cause structures to deteriorate their durability. Improving the durability of concrete structures is an important and scientific challenge. AAR and ISA are slow processes, becoming noticeable 20 to 30 years after construction. This paper presents fundamental theory and concepts of AAR and ISA in concrete. AAR and ISA are caused due to the reactivity of aggregates along with alkalis and sulphates. Based on the previous research, AAR and ISA are further divided into Alkali Silica Reaction (ASR), Alkali Carbonate Reaction (ACR), Delayed Ettringite Formation (DEF) and Thaumasite Sulphate Attack (TSA). We can detect AAR and ISA with the help of evaluation methods. The aspects of AAR and ISA discussed include source, mechanism, investigations and preventive measures.