R.C.Chandna: Mountain Environment and Natural Resources Management.
Honourable Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, esteemed Vice-Chancellor, respected colleagues, fellow delegates and students I am grateful to the organizers of the 12th Annual Conference of Association of Punjab Geographers for giving me this opportunity to deliver the keynote address to the galaxy of scholars driven from all over India. Since the conference was being hosted by Himachal Pradesh University, located in the midst of Himalayas, it was natural for the organisers to select Mountain Environment and Natural Resources Management as its focal theme for the deliberations. The Himalayas play a key role in the global atmospheric circulation and any alterations in the region's ecological balance has global raminifications.
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Hema Malini, Nageswara Rao, Awol Akmel Yesuf: Global Warming Induced Climatic Shifts – A Case Study of Addis Ababa City, Ethiopia.
Keeping global warming in view, an attempt has been made in this paper to predict future change in the climate of Addis Ababa from the present. Based on earlier studies and IPCC reports rise of temperatures assumed as 2 °C to 6 °C and thermal and moisture regime climates of Addis Ababa were analyzed by using Thornthwaite’s water balance technique (1955) for the present situation of temperatures as well as for the predicted rise of temperatures. The analysis revealed that with the temperature increase by 2 ⁰C there will be no much change in the thermal regime. Hence, the city will experience the same mesothermal (B′2) type of climate which is experiencing at present. However, with the temperature rise by 6 ⁰C, the analysis indicates that the present mild Mesothermal (B′2) climate may become intensified into Mesothermal (B′4) climate. In terms of moisture regime, with 2°C rise in temperature, Addis Ababa will shift to drier side of humid climate (from B′2 to B′1). And with 6 ⁰C rise, Addis Ababa will become more drier than the present and may experience dry sub humid (C2) climate. The study reveals that with global warming the region may experience enormous thermal potential at the same time decline in the moisture potential. Water balance technique which was initiated by Thornthwaite has been employed as a major tool in the study to estimate hydrological elements and climates based on temperature and precipitation of the region. For that purpose, temperature and rainfall data for 41 years (1970-2010) were collected from the weather records of two weather stations located in the city.
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Omvir Singh, Sushila Turkiya: Rainfall Characteristics of Semi-Arid Hisar District in Haryana.
Among all weather parameters, rainfall is the main source of fresh water in all land based ecosystems. Study of rainfall over a long period of time not only reveals general trend of rainfall of a particular place but also helps in understanding its amount, intensity, distribution and other characteristics. Rainfall variability is an inherent challenge for domestic water supply, farming and irrigation in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to analyze rainfall data for a period of last thirty years (1980-2009), collected from standard rain gauge stations of Hisar, Hansi and Adampur in semi-arid Hisar district of Haryana to understand its dependability and variability. The rainfall analysis of Hisar district revealed that mean annual rainfall in the region is less than 300 mm. The variability in annual rainfall distribution in the district is very large (> 40%) with high standard deviations indicating towards low dependability. The annual rainfall variability was observed to be 36% at Hisar followed by 37% at Adampur and 56% at Hansi. The analysis also revealed decreasing trends in annual rainfall at Hisar, Hansi and Adampur. However, the frequency of storms equal to 25 mm of rainfall accounts for 90% of the total rainy days at Hansi followed by 87% at Adampur and 85% at Hisar rain gauge stations. Also, a good number of rainy days in Hisar district provide a sufficient potential for rainwater harvesting. Therefore, to avoid the scarcity of water in the region it becomes mandatory to harvest every falling drop of rain for domestic water supply and farming activities.
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B. R. Thakur: Soil Erosion Assessment in Solani Watershed Using Geospatial Tools.
Soil loss is a global phenomenon. However; the developing countries like India are more prone to this problem because of the inability of their agricultural communities to replace lost soils and nutrients. Soil erosion has direct varying bearing on the soil health and agricultural production in different topographic conditions. The soil erosion rate in the northern Himalayan region varies between 20 to 25 ton/ha/yr which is much higher than the permissible limit. The present study is an endeavour to investigate the soil erosion potential of Solani watershed largely located in the Shiwaliks using geoinformation technologies and Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) model. The study is based on LISS-IV MX (3bands) satellite images of 5.0 m spatial resolution acquired on December 2, 2011, SOI toposheets, rainfall data and soil texture information. The quantitative assessment of soil loss on pixel basis reveals that the average annual soil erosion for Solani watershed is 3.647 t ha-1 year-1. More than 90% of watershed area is found under minimal and low erosion classes largely comprising low height areas. About 5.65% of watershed is under high to extreme erosion risk category (> 10.1 t ha-1 year-1) mostly found in steep slopes and river beds. It necessitates the protection of existing forests and afforestation of steep barren lands and other suitable sites.
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Tejpal,M S Jaglan: Irrigation Development and Depletion of Groundwater Resource in Southwestern Haryana.
Declining availability of water is one of the foremost environmental challenges in the 21st century in India. Due to increased demand of water for food production, continuous fluctuation in precipitation and the drying up of rivers, the demand of groundwater for irrigation is increasing year by year. This paper attempts to provide an insight into the process of irrigation development, its spatio-temporal pattern and consequences of groundwater overexploitation over last three decades in southwestern Haryana. The study reveals that the expansion of irrigation in the region started in 1980s. Spatial diffusion and changing system of irrigation have had some positive impact on the development of agriculture in the study area. But over reliance on groundwater irrigation in the region has resulted in depletion of groundwater resources at an alarming rate which is a matter of great concern. On the other hand, rising water table in some canal commands in northern parts of the study area due to intensive irrigation has caused waterlogging and soil salinity. This situation certainly calls for the concerted efforts for management and conjunctive utilization of surface and ground water resources for sustainable agricultural development in southwestern Haryana.
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Gurinder Kaur, Rashmi: Sex Composition in Punjab: The Role of Son Preference.
Son preference refers to the attitude of people giving more importance to sons than daughters in their families. Such thinking has resulted into the loss of many daughters. Census of India has shown an improvement in child sex ratio in Punjab from 798 in 2001 to 846 in 2011, but the ground realities exhibit sharp contrasting results. The field survey conducted by the authors on 450 couples of two selected settlement units of Punjab presents a very dismal picture of sex ratio. The sex ratio among children of surveyed couples shows very low sex ratio of 691 only against the state average of 846. The present study provides an insight into the seriousness of the issues and fore-sees a serious demographic crisis if such a practice of son preference goes on unabated.
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Karam Singh, S. P. Kaushik: Analysis of Highway Users’ Satisfaction Level about Wayside Facilities Located Along Selected National Highways in Haryana.
Present paper analyzes the attitude of the highway users towards wayside facilities such as hotels, restaurants, dhabas, fuel-filling stations and traffic police stations located along the selected national highways in Haryana. The study is based on sample survey of 13 hotels, 17 restaurants, 82 dhabas, 33 fuel-filling stations and 13 traffic police stations. These are evaluated on the basis of the satisfaction level expressed by 52, 68, 164, 132 and 100 highway users about the above mentioned wayside facilities respectively. The paper is summed up by grouping the Satisfaction Index (Awotana’s Index S.I.) of all the 516 highway users’ to know the overall satisfaction level for all the wayside facilities. It is found that medium level of satisfaction is dominating in respect of overall wayside facilities. High level of satisfaction is attained only in case of those national highways on which traffic is very busy, as a result of which the number of highway users is very large which affects the quantity and quality of wayside facilities. The competition among the facility providers along these roads also improves the quality of a facility. On the contrary, on less busy roads the number of users is low that leads to low number of facilities and hence low competition which results in lowering of quality and consequently low level of satisfaction.
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Sarina Kalia, Nirmala Lalwani: Tourism Industry of Rajasthan: A Geographical Survey.
Rajasthan does not have snow – clad mountains or vast stretches of sea beaches but this north- western state of India exudes a magical charm with the aura of its golden sand dunes and colourful culture, which makes it, the most fascinating and unique basket of attractions for any tourist. Due to undulating landscape flecked with marvellous forts and palaces, lakes, wildlife and bird sanctuaries, fairs and festivals, charming cities, endowed with natural beauty and a great history, tourism is flourishing in Rajasthan. Rajasthan contributes about 7.20 % and 3.54% share in India’s foreign and domestic tourist arrivals respectively. Tourism is one of the most important revenue contributors of the state and accounts for about 15% of the economy of Rajasthan. The tourism industry has the potential to generate foreign exchange earnings, create employment opportunities, promote development in various parts of the state, reduce income disparities among regions, strengthen linkages among many sectors of the national economy and help to alleviate poverty. The Present paper deals with the study of development through the inbound tourist industry of Rajasthan. The study is based on secondary data collected from various departments of the state dealing with tourism activities.
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Map Series-V: R.C. Chandna: Punjab-Haryana Region: Housing Quality-I
The type of material used in housing structures, especially for flooring and roof, determines the quality of housing as bricks are commonly used as wall material in all types of houses both in rural and urban areas. Census of India at its recently compiled census of the country in 2011 has for the first time published detailed data on material used in constructing residential dwellings. The census of India has classified the residential houses into three categories on the basis of quality, namely, good, livable and dilapidated.
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Doctoral Abstract: Vishwa Bandhu Singh: Natural Disasters in Himachal Pradesh: A Micro level Geographical Analysis Using Remote Sensing and GIS
Disasters are inseparable from human kind, their occurrence inevitable. The rise and fall of great civilizations of the past has had direct or indirect links with the failure of the delicate relationship between nature and human kind. Disasters have always raised issues pertaining to human-environment relationships; they now occupy centre stage with worldwide debate over increasing impact of disasters particularly in the light of climate change. There has been a marked rise in natural disaster events during the last century; the closing decade particularly has borne witness to the growing impact of devastating disasters.
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Doctoral Abstract: A K M Anwaruzzaman: Differentials in Fertility by Religion: A Case Study of Darjeeling District
Growth of population and replenishment of human society depend on human fertility i.e. biological replacement and therefore, plays a positive role in the population dynamics. Study of fertility has traditionally been an exclusive filed of demographers and medical/bioscientists. But in the recent years “Saffron Demographers” have utilized 'demographic data to achieve non-demographic objectives'. 'Politicization of fertility' is aimed at pressurizing policy makers to intervene in the private life of a particular community. “Saffron Demographers” have been successful to mislead the common folk with lack of their proper understanding about the dynamics of fertility.
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Doctoral Abstract: Divjot Kaur: Spatial Patterns of the Population Characteristics of Major Religious Groups of India
The present study analyses the population characteristics of each of the major religious groups of India. It is an attempt to obtain a fairly accurate picture of the relative strengths of different religious groups.
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Doctoral Abstract: Deepika Sharma: Biomass Energy Generation in Rajasthan: A Study of Potential and Development in Desert Ecology
Sustainable energy means use of resources in a manner that provides ongoing energy to meet the needs of the current population without compromising the requirements of the future generations. To achieve this balance, energy must be replenished, environmental harms must be minimized and cost must be affordable. Renewable energy forms the basis of sustainable development. It aims to preserve quality of environment and the world natural resource base for future needs and thus preserves the earth's life support system.
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