Volume 13 | Issue 8 |

 Abstract

India's reservation policy, rooted in colonial-era practices and constitutional commitments to social justice, has expanded through legislative and judicial milestones to address historic exclusion. Yet in higher education, quota-based admissions are increasingly criticized for distorting merit allocation, incentivizing category competition, and failing to target present-day deprivation. This paper argues that reservation in admissions now functions as an obstacle to optimal educational outcomes and social mobility. We propose a shift from category-based admission quotas to robust need-based fee concessions and support services, while retaining narrowly tailored safeguards against discrimination. The analysis traces India's reservation history and jurisprudence, evaluates recent developments (EWS, Maratha case), and compares international approaches (United States, Brazil, Malaysia, South Africa, Sri Lanka). We outline a policy blueprint that preserves equality of opportunity through means-tested financing, academic bridges, and anti-bias enforcement rather than blanket quotas.

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 Keywords

Reservation; affirmative action; higher education; EWS; Indra Sawhney; Students for Fair Admissions; fee concession; merit; equity; India; comparative policy.

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The Indian economy has been witnessing a profound transformation in its payment landscape, driven by the rapid adoption of digital payment systems. Over the past decade, technological innovations, policy initiatives, and behavioural shifts have accelerated the move from cash-based transactions to digital modes. Digital payments encompass a variety of platforms such as Unified Payments Interface (UPI), mobile wallets, Aadhaar-enabled Payment Systems (AePS), point-of-sale (PoS) transactions, debit and credit cards, internet banking, and QR code-based payment systems. This paper examines the evolution of digital payments in India, the drivers of their adoption, and their impact on economic growth, financial inclusion, transparency, and cost efficiency. Using secondary data from RBI reports, NPCI statistics, and global studies, the paper analyse the correlation between digital transaction volumes and macroeconomic performance indicators. The findings indicate that while digital payments have led to significant improvements in efficiency and transparency, challenges remain in the form of rural infrastructure gaps, cyber risks, and uneven digital literacy. The paper concludes by offering recommendations for strengthening the digital payments ecosystem to maximize its contribution to the Indian economy.

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 Keywords

Point of sale, Platforms, Financial inclusion, Transparency

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Social welfare is a dynamic process that addresses social problems and how society responds to them. These problems stem from unmet individual needs, such as food, shelter, dignity, status, and affection. When these needs are not fulfilled, they lead to issues like poverty, unemployment, inadequate housing, loneliness, and crime. Social welfare includes both curative and preventive services aimed at assisting the disadvantaged, creating a supportive infrastructure, and promoting overall societal development.

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Social Welfare Administration

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 and The Open Definition

 Abstract

The Indian digital payment ecosystem has undergone a significant transformation in recent years, particularly after the government's Digital India initiatives and demonetization. Among various platforms, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), launched by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016, has emerged as a key driver of retail digital transactions. This study examines the growth, opportunities, and challenges of UPI as a digital payment service in India. Using secondary data from RBI, NPCI, and other published sources, the paper applies a SWOT analysis to assess UPI's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Findings reveal that UPI has experienced exponential growth in both volume and value of transactions, owing to its simplicity, interoperability, and cost-effectiveness. It has significantly enhanced financial inclusion by enabling small businesses and individuals, even in rural areas, to adopt cashless transactions. However, challenges such as cybersecurity risks, transaction failures, limited awareness in rural areas, and dependency on banking infrastructure persist. Opportunities lie in expanding internet penetration, government policies supporting a cash-lite economy, and the widening scope of services such as bill payments, insurance, and overdraft facilities through UPI 2.0. Despite threats from fintech competition and consumer reliance on cash, UPI continues to dominate retail digital payments, contributing over half of India's total digital transactions. The study concludes that UPI is not only a technological innovation but also a strategic instrument to advance financial inclusion and India's transition toward a digital economy.

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 Keywords

UPI, SWOT, Cashless Economy, NPCI

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Corruption is a widespread occurrence in postcolonial nations. The detrimental effects of European colonialism on Africa have been clear through corruption that affected every part of life. Corruption in Nigeria is regarded as a representative case of other African nations. As a result, literary works became important for showing the truth and depicting African communities during and after colonial times. This dissertation examines the issue of corruption in Africa during the post-independence era through Chinua Achebe's African novel, No Longer at Ease (1960). It analyses the author's portrayal of corruption as a postcolonial issue and the postcolonial elements inside his novel. He has not depicted an idealised Africa; rather, he presents a sympathetic yet candid perspective of a nation characterised by its own casualties. Achebe has endeavoured to convey a truthful picture of his society through this book. It focusses on the relationship between the coloniser and the colonised, as well as the main character's struggle within Nigerian society following independence. The book reveals how Achebe thinks that English culture is better than others and how colonialism and western orientalism create false impressions of Nigerians and Obi Okonkwo as corrupt. As a result, these traits have a big effect on the minds of Nigerians, which leads to feelings of inferiority. Achebe uses the problems of the main character, Obi Okonkwo, to show the problem of corruption in this book.

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Corruption, Achebe, Postcolonialism, No Longer at Ease

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Medicinal plants have been used for therapeutic purposes since ancient times, playing a crucial role in healthcare. Approximately 70% of the population in developing countries relies on herbal medicines. Plant-derived compounds are considered safer and non-toxic compared to synthetic products. Traditional Indian Medicine (Ayurveda) and Traditional Chinese Medicine contribute significantly to the global knowledge of therapeutic plants. The World Health Organization identifies 21,000 medicinal plants globally used for medicinal purposes, with 2,500 species in India, 150 of which are used commercially. Herbal medicines are complex mixtures that require understanding of pharmacokinetics to identify bioactive compounds. Medicinal plants are crucial in developing anticancer drugs, with the National Cancer Institute screening about 35,000 plants, 3,000 of which show anticancer activity. Indigofera aspalathoides, widely used in India, possesses anticancer, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor activities. This plant's decoctions are traditionally used to treat cancer, leprosy, and other ailments, demonstrating its significant therapeutic potential.

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Herbal Medicines, Indigofera Aspalathoides, Anticancer activity, Secondary Metabolites & Chemoprevention.

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 and The Open Definition

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This paper has been tried to examine various aspect of the Inter-relationship between educational level and Political awareness among Dalit women in Bihar. Political participation is also an important factor for individual development. Dalit women are traditionally untouchable and depressed class in India According to Verna system they are bottom on the line and are excluded from educational system and property. before independence Dalit women are also excluded from political participation. After Independence; Indian traditional society has undergone a change due to various factors, e.g., urbanisation, changing occupational structure, rising literacy, democratic value system, Constitutional and legal measures for protective discrimination. Government started socially desirable and economically viable developmental measures to protect equality of opportunity of every individual. But all social groups have not benefited equally in last seven decades. Scheduled Castes (Dalit, used in exclusive sense of the term) is designated as 'disadvantaged group' even today. In Bihar, Dalit women are kept away from traditional political process as well as from modern political institutions. The paper is descriptive and analytical in design, based on primary and secondary both sources of data.

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Education, political awareness and Dalit women

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This study explores the impact of Emotional Intelligence (EI) on Job Satisfaction (JS) among professionals in select IT organizations. Recognizing the growing importance of non-technical competencies in workplace performance, the research investigates the relationship between EI and JS, examines the predictive influence of EI on satisfaction levels, and identifies specific EI dimensions that significantly contribute to job satisfaction. A descriptive and analytical methodology was employed, with data collected from 100 IT professionals using standardized instruments--the Wong and Law Emotional Intelligence Scale and Spector's Job Satisfaction Survey. Statistical analysis using SPSS revealed a moderate to high prevalence of EI and JS among respondents. Regression results confirmed a significant positive impact of EI on JS, with EI explaining 34% of the variance. Further dimensional analysis highlighted Regulation of Emotion and Use of Emotion as the strongest predictors of job satisfaction. The findings underscore the strategic value of emotional intelligence in enhancing employee well-being and organizational effectiveness, recommending its integration into HR and leadership development initiatives within the IT sector.

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 Keywords

Emotional Intelligence, Job Satisfaction, Work environment, IT organizations.

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Shelf life determination of pharmaceutical products is a critical process in ensuring drug safety, efficacy, and quality over time. It involves evaluating how a drug product degrades under various environmental conditions and estimating the period during which it remains within acceptable specifications. Stability studies, guided by ICH Q1A (R2) guidelines, are essential in this process and form a key part of regulatory submissions. These studies include real-time and accelerated stability testing, retained sample testing, and cyclic temperature stress testing. Factors like pH and temperature significantly influence the rate of degradation, often illustrated using pH-rate profiles. Forced degradation studies, involving hydrolytic, oxidative, photolytic, and thermal stress, help validate the robustness of stability-indicating analytical methods. Techniques such as HPLC-UV, LC-MS/MS, HPTLC, and others are commonly employed for stability analysis. For estimating shelf life, methods including the FDA-recommended approach, direct and inverse methods, simulation techniques, and the Garrett and Carper model are applied. Together, these methodologies provide a scientific foundation for determining the shelf life of pharmaceutical products, supporting drug development, formulation optimization, and patient safety.

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 Keywords

Self Life Evaluation, Stability Testing, Forced Degradation Testing, PH Rate profile, Solution Kinetics.

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 Abstract

Transport-related accidents within major Indian ports constitute a significant portion of total reportable incidents. A five-year analysis (2015-2019) reveals that, on average, 33% of all reportable accidents are transport-related and not directly linked to cargo handling or dock operations.

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 and The Open Definition

 Keywords

Transport Safety, Major Ports, Dock Safety

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Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 and The Open Definition