FLAME University

RESEARCH

UNCOVER QUESTIONS, DISCOVER ANSWERS

Author: Bhargava H., Sharma A., Valadi J.K.

Machine Learning for Bioinformatics. In: Suravajhala P.N. (eds) Your Passport to a Career in Bioinformatics.

Publisher: Springer, Singapore., 2021

Abstract | Links
Machine learning algorithms have gathered the attention of every individual with applications in astronomy, online shopping, social media, medical diagnostics, online trading, smart devices, online education, and so on. These algorithms differ from traditional problem-solving algorithms with the ability to learn from the data without being explicitly programmed. These data exist in different formats and are typically generated from a variety of sources including data from primary or secondary research, image, video, location, geospatial and sensory data (Alonso et al. 2017). The availability of such data not only provides opportunities for data-driven decision making through data analytics but also poses serious challenges in terms of data management and storage. With the advent of cloud computing data management and storage issues can be handled with greater ease and flexibility while the data analytics part can be well addressed by the use of machine learning algorithms.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9544-8_11
Chapter

Author: Rakesh, V.T. and Menon, P.

Pricing Challenge in Servitization: Can Servitization Improve Ecological Sustenance?

Publisher: World Review of Entrepreneurship, Management and Sustainable Development, 2021

Journal | SCOPUS®

Author: Phillott, A. and Rees, A.F.

Sea Turtles in the Middle East and South Asia Region: MTSG Annual Regional Report 2020.

Publisher: IUCN-SSC Marine Turtle Specialist Group, 2021

Links
https://www.iucn-mtsg.org/regional-reports
Report |   | |

Author: Phillot, A.

Fishers' Ecological Knowledge About Sea Turtles in Coastal Waters: A Case Study in Vengurla, India

Publisher: Chelonian Conservation and Biology, 2021

Abstract | Links
Five species of sea turtle—the green (Chelonia mydas), hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata), leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), loggerhead (Caretta caretta), and olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea)—feed in the coastal waters of India, nest on the mainland and island beaches, and are an important component of India's natural and sociocultural heritage. Sea turtles spend most of their life cycle at sea, so structured studies of the biology of nonnesting populations are challenging. However, fishers' ecological knowledge (FEK) could indicate sea turtle distribution, abundance, and population trends. Structured interviews with 93 male fishers at Sagareshwar Beach, Vengurla, in the Sindhudurg District of Maharashtra revealed observations of all 5 sea turtle species in local waters. Importantly, this was the first known record of loggerhead turtles for the Sindhudurg District of the state coastline and added to infrequent records of leatherback turtles over the previous 20 yrs. Observations were more common at a time when adult turtles are likely to be courting and mating, although this behavior was not observed. Fishers did not contribute ecological knowledge about sea turtle distribution from the waters they fished, potentially because of the method used to collect information on maps or reluctance to indicate areas fished. Estimates of abundance were widely disparate, but perceived decreases in the size of local populations were common among respondents. Outcomes of our study suggest that the FEK of small-scale coastal fishers operating in even a small area is of value in identifying potential areas for focused investigations on in-water populations of sea turtles.
https://doi.org/10.2744/CCB-1455.1
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q1

Author: Phillot, A., Kale, N., Unhale, A.

Are Sea Turtle Hatcheries in India Following Best Practices?

Publisher: Herpetological Conservation & Biology, 2021

Abstract | Links
States and territories of India have long relocated sea turtle eggs to hatcheries for protection against threats including depredation and illegal take. We compared the practices of egg collection, transport, and incubation, and hatchling handling, holding, and release from 36 hatcheries with recognized best practices. Selfreported practices reflected some best practices, including replacing substrate annually and limiting nest density, but other practices, such as time interval between oviposition and reburial of eggs in the hatchery, were outside recommendations. Analysis of data sets showed that clutches incubated in hatcheries have comparable hatching success to unprotected in situ clutches when a higher hatching success would be expected with conservation effort. This finding, in combination with hatchlings being held after emergence and often in conditions that are likely to reduce fitness, indicates that some hatcheries may be limited in their potential effectiveness as an ex situ conservation strategy. Shading and/or watering nests to mitigate potentially high nest temperatures without monitoring temperature is also of concern, and we recommend the two be combined as a best practice. Hatchery personnel would benefit from regular opportunities to ensure ongoing understanding of sea turtle biology in relation to best hatchery practices and resources to ensure best practices can be implemented. Hatchling production would be better assessed by a permit (Non-Governmental Organizations and volunteer groups) and departmental (Forest Department) requirement for annual reporting of hatching and emergence success using accurate protocols. We also encourage that in situ protection of sea turtle eggs be considered in appropriate locations.
http://www.herpconbio.org/Volume_16/Issue_3/Phillott_etal_2021.pdf
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Pathak, P., Tripathi, A., Shankar, A.

SMART STREETS AND SMART CITY ? A CASE STUDY OF PUNE?S ITI ROAD

Publisher: Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, 2021

Abstract | Links
Improving walkability is an important aspect to consider, given growing urbanization in India and globally. Walkability has been studied as an outcome of the built environment and linked with better health outcomes and completeness of transportation network. In India, the Smart City Mission has considered improvement of non-motorized transport via projects like Smart Streets. This study is an attempt to look at one such smart street in Pune where a stretch of road segment was redesigned to facilitate pedestrian movement. This being a pilot attempt for the future street redesigning, a qualitative assessment is presented here depicting pros and cons of the same. Our initial findings indicate that despite its many obvious shortcomings at the moment, a dedicated walkability and Smart Street infrastructure is a welcome step in creating sustainable, equitable and inclusive smart cities of the future.
http://www.um.ase.ro/no164/2.pdf
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Chakrabarti, D., Shinde, S., Chaudhry, S.

Teaching non-written communication skills to MBA students through evaluated exercises

Publisher: Journal of Organizational Behavior Education, 2021

Abstract | Links
Communication skills are a fundamental requirement to effectively carry out job responsibilities. In this paper, we explain the process by which a course on non-written communication skills for management students in India was designed and delivered. The course objectives, expected learning outcomes, content, pedagogy and evaluation are described. The group and individual exercises for evaluating skills of presentation, listening, group discussion, public speaking and personal interview are also discussed. Through this paper, the importance of a structured pattern of activities, relevant procedure for evaluation, explicit instructions, and a detailed feedback mechanism for an effective learning of non-written communication skills are highlighted. The unique contribution of the paper is in helping faculty plan pedagogy for a basic course on business communication. The course has stood out in terms of its exclusive focus on evaluated exercises, time and attention devoted to feedback and relevance of the content to the management field.
https://www.neilsonjournals.com/JOBE/JOBEpromos/Smitaetal14p.pdf
Journal |  ABDC C | SCOPUS®

Author: Chakrabarti, D.

Research findings on green human resource management practices in India-A systematic review

Publisher: International conference on technologies for smart green connected society, 2021

Abstract | Links
"Increasing importance towards adopting sustainable work practices in organizations led to a new area of specialization within the people management function – “Green HRM”. Many organizations in India have already incorporated green practices within their overall human resource management process, policies and practices. Because of the regulatory or competitive pressure, more and more organizations are learning to integrate green practices with their core HR functions, like staffing, employee development, performance management, reward management, employee engagement. In this proposed research, we will attempt to evaluate the status of Green HRM practices in corporate India, as depicted already in published research work. To identify relevant research articles/papers, we will use Google Scholar as our source. We will use the key words/phrases “Green Human Resource Management”, “Sustainable Human Resource Management”, and “India” for our search. From the list of articles appearing from keyword search, we will select the articles in peer reviewed academic journals or papers presented in international conferences for our analysis. We will not limit the findings by year of publication/presentation. We will collect the full text of the articles and papers from Google Scholar, Ebsco, Emerald, and Proquest databases. We will then proceed with a systematic review of all the documents. After a critical review of the collected articles, we will present our findings classified into the following themes: a) Use of a theoretical model/concept/framework for the study, b) Implementation of practices in different areas within HR function, c) Possible outcome or consequence of the practices within the organization. We will also highlight any other important thread that might emerge from the review process (e.g. possible difference in application across organizations as per industry or sector, ownership pattern, size, etc.). We will identify the areas which require enhanced research focus in near future, in terms of theoretical foundation, use of sample, and methodology. India has the second largest population in the world and it is one of the most important emerging economies. At present, it is ranked as the fifth largest economy in the world and anticipated to grow at an impressive rate when the economy revives after the pandemic. At the same time, like most developed countries, India is framing and implementing policies on sustainable development in view of the concerns regarding climate change and its consequences. Our research will be important to evaluate the established findings on Green HRM from a critical point of view. We expect to present critical achievements as well as shortcomings in the Indian context and offer directions for future research in this area, in view of its growing importance."
https://spast.org/techrep/article/view/1826
Conference

Author: Mal, H., Singh, A., Paliwal,M.

Acceptance and usability of e-governance services rendered by Indian Government: The Indian citizen perspective

Publisher: Electronic Government, an International Journal, 2021

Abstract | Links
E-governance services rendered by central to local governments and citizens were the need of the hour during the pandemic (COVID 19). Citizens explored many e-governance services during the pandemic, making it easier for them to use various e-governance services. During COVID-19, the importance of e-governance initiatives for an ordinary person in our country has seen a paradigm shift in applicability and acceptance. The study examined the acceptance and usability of e-governance services offered by the Indian Government, particularly during the pandemic. The authors adapted an extended UMEGA model with five variables. The study also highlights the magnitude of citizens’ trust for adopting e-governance services in times of crisis, ultimately leading the nation towards sustainable development. The study started with the problem identification through literature which eventually gave rise to the research questions. The researchers further adapted scales from previous research and collected data on the Likert scale using Google form.
https://doi.org/10.1504/EG.2024.10049774
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q3

Author: Mal, H., Varma, M., Chellappan, P., Singh, R.

Comparative analysis of piped natural gas with liquified petroleum gas with regards to safety and environment

Publisher: AIP Conference Proceedings, 2021

Abstract | Links
In the current global scenario, safety of life and protection of the environment is equally, if not more important, than preservation of energy resources. Just as it is critical to ensure that natural resources are put into best use before it goes back to the environment, it is of paramount importance to ensure optimum utilization of these natural resources in a safe way so as to enrich and protect human life, property and environment. It is a pity that so much of efforts, hard work, money and time are invested in getting these natural resources to the surface and later, it is not utilized effectively because of lack of awareness among people. On these very lines, the Government of India had launched the Smart City project and all the major metropolitan cities were selected for this project, one of the essential criteria being the implementation of piped natural gas supply in these cities. The idea was to do away with LPG cylinders, thereby reducing casualties from related accidents, prevent pollution and reduce traffic congestion caused by cylinder-laden trucks moving around the cities. About a year ago, the Central Government of India had sanctioned a huge amount for the project of piped natural gas for the major cities, formed the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Body with their plans and regulations in place, but the completion of this project has been at a snail’s pace in most cities. The problem discussed in this research paper is about the lack of public awareness regarding safety aspects and benefits of using piped natural gas as compared to the use of LPG cylinders, thereby resulting in the failure or delay in the implementation of the PNG system in most cities.
doi.org/10.1063/5.0072617
Journal |  SCOPUS®

Author: Mal, H., Idnani, S., Adil, M.H., Kolte, A.

Economic Policy Uncertainty and Investors? Sentiment?an Indian Perspective

Publisher: International Journal of Emerging Markets, 2021

Abstract | Links
This paper aims to understand the effect of a change in Economic Policy Uncertainty (EPU) of India and the USA on investors' sentiment in the Indian context, consisting of Sensex returns and volatility index (Vix).
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOEM-04-2021-0567
Journal |  ABDC B | SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Chowdhury, J.R

Elite status, market linkages, and contributions to collective goods: Evidence from a Survey and Public Goods Experiments

Publisher: The Journal of Development Studies, 2021

Abstract | Links
Cooperation is particularly important in the management of common resources where the user rights of individuals are collective. We used a one-shot public goods experiment to construct a measure of social capital, based on ‘multilateral’ cooperative behaviour, where each participant had free-riding incentives. This study was conducted in four rural villages of Odisha in India in the course of a project studying irrigation. Participants were male farmers from different social groups. Combining survey data with the artefactual field experiments, we examined how an individual’s willingness to contribute to the collective good was affected by social and economic characteristics, and political connections to the local administrative unit. The results suggest interesting differences in cooperation: in the less remote villages, farmers were less cooperative on average compared to farmers living in more remote villages. Furthermore, we found that wealthy and influential farmers invested less in the provision of a public good, reducing the likelihood of successful collective action. The findings are relevant both to the ‘collective action in the commons’ discourse and the literature on using experimental methods to deal with an individual’s true preferences for a public good.
https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2021.1969011
Journal |  ABDC : A | SCOPUS® | Q1

Author: Mahapatra, M.S., Shenoy, D.

Lean maintenance index: a measure of leanness in maintenance organizations

Publisher: Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, 2021

Abstract | Links
Maintenance organizations continue to be under pressure to systematically eliminate maintenance wastes and deliver services that their customers value. To this end, maintenance managers are implementing lean maintenance practices. But how does one consistently estimate the leanness of these practices in their organization? The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for a metrics – referred to as the lean maintenance index (LMI) that can help managers estimate the leanness of maintenance practices.
https://doi.org/10.1108/JQME-08-2020-0083
Journal |  ABDC B | SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Mahapatra, M.S., Banerjee, S., Pal, B.

A Social Distancing-Based Facility Location Approach for Combating COVID-19

Publisher: 21st International Conference on Computational Science and its Applications, 2021

Abstract | Links
In this paper, we introduce and study the problem of facility location along with the notion of ‘social distancing’. The input to the problem is the road network of a city where the nodes are the residential zones, edges are the road segments connecting the zones along with their respective distance. We also have the information about the population at each zone, different types of facilities to be opened and in which number, and their respective demands in each zone. The goal of the problem is to locate the facilities such that the people can be served and at the same time the total social distancing is maximized. We formally call this problem as the SOCIAL DISTANCING-BASED FACILITY LOCATION PROBLEM. We mathematically quantify social distancing for a given allocation of facilities and proposed an optimization model. As the problem is NP-Hard, we propose a simulation-based and heuristic approach for solving this problem. A detailed analysis of both methods has been done. We perform an extensive set of experiments with synthetic datasets. From the results, we observe that the proposed heuristic approach leads to a better allocation compared to the simulation-based approach.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-86970-0_11
Conference

Author: Yadav, N., Verma, S., Chikhalkar, R.

eWOM, destination preference and consumer involvement?a stimulus-organism-response (SOR) lens

Publisher: Tourism Review, 2021

Abstract | Links
"This study aims to examine the moderated-mediation impact of consumer involvement and destination preference on travel intentions. Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) and elaboration likelihood model (ELM) guided the conceptual framework of this study. Design/methodology/approach Churchill’s (1979) guidelines instrumentalize the scientific development and validation of measurement scales for data collection. The authors used higher-order multivariate analyzes such as structural equation modeling (SEM) and the Hayes process model for evaluating the hypotheses. The study uses Bauer et al. (2006) method to assess the conditional indirect effects of Electronic word of mouth (eWOM) on travel intention through destination preference at varying levels of consumer involvement. Findings SOR and ELM model successfully explained the moderated-mediation effect of eWOM, consumer involvement and destination preference in influencing the travel intentions. Results broaden the applicability of SOR and ELM in tourism marketing. Results indicate that consumer involvement moderated the direct and indirect influence of eWOM on travel intention via destination preference, such that the eWOM influence in shaping travel intention is stronger for highly involved consumers. Research limitations/implications The present study broadens the applicability of integrated SOR and ELM models to explain the moderated-mediation network between eWOM and travel intentions. Study findings offer new avenues to tourism marketers for the magnified effect of eWOM for promoting tourism. Tourism marketers may use customer journeys to build destination preference through organic information exchange with prospective travelers. Future researchers and practitioners can build prescriptive and predictive models based on altered levels of consumer involvement. Originality/value Present study pioneers in examining the interactive effect of moderated mediation network of consumer involvement and destination preference in shaping the travel intention. Grounded in SOR and ELM model, the present study is a trailblazer to offer the integrated moderated-mediation model between eWOM, destination preference, consumer involvement and travel intention."
https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-10-2020-0506
Journal |  ABDC B | SCOPUS® | Q1

Author: Yadav, N., Verma, S., Chikhalkar, R.

An integrated measure of eWOM usefulness in the leisure travel: conceptualisation, scale development, and validation

Publisher: Journal of Marketing Communications, 2021

Abstract | Links
Internet access and social media led to an astronomical spike in eWOM. Tourism is an information-intensive industry, and travelers frequently use eWOM for travel decisions. Nevertheless, there is a lack of an integrated scale to measure the eWOM Usefulness for influencing cognitive, affective, and conative attitudes in leisure travel. The present study develops and validates an eWOM usefulness scale using the scientific scale development process to fill the research gap. A two-stage study (study 1: EFA; study 2: Measurement Model Assessment – CFA) confirmed the reliability and validity of the scale. Findings suggested the role of eWOM volume, eWOM valence, argument quality, and source credibility in eWOM usefulness. This study is a forerunner in using the stimulus organism response (SOR) lens to explain eWOM usefulness in leisure travel.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2021.2004442
Journal |  ABDC B | SCOPUS® | Q1

Author: Gandhi, P., Agrawal, A. Khare, P.

Women empowerment through entrepreneurship: case study of a social entrepreneurial intervention in rural India

Publisher: International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 2021

Abstract | Links
"Purpose The purpose of this study is to explore how social entrepreneurship empowers women and how it influences the existing gender based intersectionalities in the society. This paper is based on a single case study of a social entrepreneurial startup called “Pahal,” which used social entrepreneurial strategies to encourage women to engage in economic activities, which helped them in gaining economic empowerment. Design/methodology/approach The researcher alongside the social entrepreneur visited the field for eight months from August 2016 to March 2017 and interviewed multiple stakeholder-employees (as partners) of the social enterprise. This study was done by conducting interviews with all the stakeholders in all the three social entrepreneurial phases, i.e. pre-Pahal, during-Pahal and after-Pahal. The interviews and observations were recorded and analysed using social entrepreneurial lens and intersectionality. Findings “Pahal Initiative” – is a social entrepreneurial intervention that helped the women in the household to start a food delivery business with the support of the social entrepreneur. Consequently, women gained confidence and self-respect. The attitude of men in the household changed when the women in the household generated additional income. It impacted their position and status which led to an increase in their participation in decision-making in the household and economic independence. The women become more interactive and expressive in a predominantly patriarchal household. Within one year, the entrepreneur had to stop the Pahal initiative. Then, this study observed and recorded that this event curtailed the economic activities undertaken by the women in their village and their social status reverted to what it was before the initiative. Practical implications First, social entrepreneurial strategies lead to economic value creation and lead overall socio-economic gains. Second, social entrepreneurial strategies address the problems of patriarchy and gender discrimination. Third, economic activities undertaken by women changed the social perceptions of the family members towards women in the families. Social implications From this case study, one observes that social entrepreneurship has a strong potential to bring about social and economic change. This study helps policymakers and non-governmental organisations to solve poverty and gender discrimination related problems using social entrepreneurial strategies. Originality/value This study uses social entrepreneurial intervention to understand and bring about change in the socio-economic status of women in rural India. This study uses an intersectionality lens to make sense of the data, reality and reflects on how intersectional positions are altered when women are economically empowered either through training or through a proper organisation or both."
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOA-03-2021-2659
Journal |  ABDC B | SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Gandhi, P., Bapat, D. Shankar, A.

Psychosocial Perspectives on Dementia care in the Indian Context

Publisher: Springer, 2021

Abstract | Links
Dementia is set to be one of the most pressing chronic health challenges for India in the years to come. Culture, family systems, and socioeconomic resources are factors that play an important role in determining the nature and level of care received by an individual with dementia. An understanding of psychosocial perspectives on caregiving for neurodegenerative diseases is vital to devising and implementing policy that is grounded in a holistic understanding of the condition. Through exploration of these facets of caregiving, the authors highlight the experience of family carers, and argue for a greater contribution of the state in the care of individuals with dementia in India.
https://link.springer.com/referenceworkentry/10.1007/978-981-16-1914-4_35-1
Chapter |  SCOPUS®

Author: Pathak, P., Tripathi, A., Shankar, A.

SMART STREETS AND SMART CITY ? A CASE STUDY OF PUNE?S ITI ROAD

Publisher: Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, 2021

Abstract | Links
Improving walkability is an important aspect to consider, given growing urbanization in India and globally. Walkability has been studied as an outcome of the built environment and linked with better health outcomes and completeness of transportation network. In India, the Smart City Mission has considered improvement of non-motorized transport via projects like Smart Streets. This study is an attempt to look at one such smart street in Pune where a stretch of road segment was redesigned to facilitate pedestrian movement. This being a pilot attempt for the future street redesigning, a qualitative assessment is presented here depicting pros and cons of the same. Our initial findings indicate that despite its many obvious shortcomings at the moment, a dedicated walkability and Smart Street infrastructure is a welcome step in creating sustainable, equitable and inclusive smart cities of the future.
http://www.um.ase.ro/no164/2.pdf
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q2

Author: Menon, P., Samaddar, K., Aparna, K.H.

Towards Globalisation of B-Schools: Best Practices for Sustainable Higher Education

Publisher: International Journal of Business and Globalisation, 2021

Abstract | Links
Higher education today contributes to economic, social and human development. The quality and focus of higher education decide the quality of the workforce in businesses. Prominent frameworks in higher education like Humboldtian model of higher education, responsible research and innovation (RRI) framework and Wals and Jickling model have been synthesised to find newer meaning in this space. This paper content analyses 18 interviews of leaders from top-ranking B-schools that were published in a leading business magazine. Focus on international collaboration, industry exposure and encouraging entrepreneurship, emphasis on innovative and quality learning atmosphere, focus on research, nurturing socially responsible global leaders, women in higher education and leadership, and shaping young managers who are conversant with digital transformation were the seven best practices identified by this study for sustainable higher education. Corroborating with existing frameworks, this study provides direction to B-schools, policymakers and scholars in the area of sustainable higher education.
https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBG.2021.10034688
Journal |  SCOPUS® | Q3