Solid waste management is a worldwide problem and it is becoming more and more complicated day by day due to rise in population, industrialization and changes in our life style. Transformation of industrial sludges into vermicompost is of double interest: on the one hand, a waste is converted into value added product, and, on the other, it controls a pollutant that is a consequence of increasing industrialization. Garden waste, kitchen waste and cow dung were subjected to recycle through vermicomposting by using the epigeic earthworm Eisenia fetida under field conditions. The pH, moisture content, total organic carbon, humus, nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in vermicompost was analysed. It was found that moisture content, total organic carbon, humus, nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium was high in cow dung, followed by kitchen waste and garden waste. This study clearly indicates that vermicomposting of garden waste, kitchen waste and cow dung can not only produce a value added produce (vermicomposting) but at the same time reduce the quantity of waste.

ObjectivesTo assess the spectrum of hepatic disorders in AIDS, liver specimens from 171 patients (155 autopsies and 16 biopsies) were reviewed. MethodsA retrospective and prospective study of 171 autopsy and biopsy specimens was carried out at a tertiary level hospital in Mumbai, India. ResultsOf the patients included in the study, 127 (74%) were male and 44 (26%) were female. The heterosexual route was the predominant mode of HIV transmission, identified in 163 (95%) patients. A total of 99 of 171 patients (58%) showed significant pathological lesions, and the most common pathological processes involving the liver appeared to be secondary to infections. None of our patients showed isolated infectious diseases of the liver. The spectrum of liver diseases identified was as follows: tuberculosis in 70 patients (41%), cryptococcosis in eight (5%), cytomegalovirus infection in six (3%), hepatitis B infection in five (3%), candidiasis in one (0.5%), malaria in one (0.5%), cirrhosis in six (3%), amyloidosis in one (0.5%) and primary hepatic lymphoma in one (0.5%). ConclusionsAIDS patients were found to have a high prevalence of underlying hepatic abnormalities. The spectrum of disease among patients with AIDS in India differs from that in developed countries. Our results suggest that hepatic tuberculosis is more common in AIDS than previously recognized, and that liver specimens should be examined routinely for the presence of acid-fast bacilli.

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The Chambal River in India supports a rich variety of fauna and flora including the endangered Ganges River Dolphin and Crocodile. Threats to the continued functioning of the Chambal River as a living system have reached a critical level due to the exponential expansion of human populations. Population status of Crocodiles and Dolphins in a 425 km stretch of the Chambal River was determined by surveys conducted every year during 2007 to 2010. The average number of Dolphins recorded during the surveys was 82.75 ± 09.1 yr−1 with an encounter rate of 0.19 km−1 (range 69–91), Gharial 916.25 ± 91.6 yr−1 with an encounter rate of 2.15 km−1 (range 870–996), and Mugger 235 ± 27.7 yr−1 with an encounter rate of 0.56 km−1 (range 194–301). Increasing demands for sand for development activities and water abstraction for irrigation and energy generation, coupled with mortality in fishing nets, are likely to affect these populations. Recommendations for management and research are made to ensure the effective conservation of these species in the Chambal River.

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