SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT IN INDIAN PETROLEUM REFINING INDUSTRY

Model development for selection of location for refinery in India and identification of characteristics to be looked into when configuring it and to develop models for integrated supply chain planning for a refinery. Locating and removing inbound, internal and outbound logistic problems in an existing refinery and overall design of a logistic information system for a refinery are the main objectives of the study. A brief description of supply chain management (SCM), elements of SCM and their significance, logistics cost in petroleum industry and its impacts, and dynamics of petroleum its logistic practices are also to be presented. Scope of application of SCM in petroleum refinery will also be discussed. A review of the investigations carried out by earlier researches in the area of supply chain management in general and with specific reference to petroleum refining.

Development of Safety and Quality Management System in Shrimp Farming

Shrimp Aquaculture has provided tremendous opportunity for the economic and social upliftment of rural communities in the coastal areas of our country Over a hundred thousand farmers, of whom about 90% belong to the small and marginal category, are engaged in shrimp farming. Penaeus monodon is the most predominant cultured species in India which is mainly exported to highly sophisticated, quality and safety conscious world markets. Food safety has been of concem to humankind since the dawn of history and the concern about food safety resulted in the evolution of a cost effective, food safety assurance method, the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP). Considering the major contribution of cultured Penaeus monodon to the total shrimp production and the economic losses encountered due to disease outbreak and also because traditional methods of quality control and end point inspection cannot guarantee the safety of our cultured seafood products, it is essential that science based preventive approaches like HACCP and Pre requisite Programmes (PRP) be implemented in our shrimp farming operations. PRP is considered as a support system which provides a solid foundation for HACCP. The safety of postlarvae (PL) supplied for brackish water shrimp farming has also become an issue of concern over the past few years. The quality and safety of hatchery produced seeds have been deteriorating and disease outbreaks have become very common in hatcheries. It is in this context that the necessity for following strict quarantine measures with standards and code of practices becomes significant. Though there were a lot of hue and cry on the need for extending the focus of seafood safety assurance from processing and exporting to the pre-harvest and hatchery rearing phases, an experimental move in this direction has been rare or nil. An integrated management system only can assure the effective control of the quality, hygiene and safety related issues. This study therefore aims at designing a safety and quality management system model for implementation in shrimp farming and hatchery operations by linking the concepts of HACCP and PRP.

Management of Higher Educational Institutions in Kerala

Economists consider education as an investment in man. Education develops human resources necessary for the economic and political growth of any nation. Adam Smith stressed the importance of education and included the acquired and useful activities of all the inhabitants or members of society in his concept of fixed capital.‘ Karl Marx shared with Smith's view when he laid down that the function of education in a socialist society will be to overcome the alienation of the worker from the means of production; while developing the technical skill it will make him a complete man as well as a producer.2 Education is also considered as a powerful instrument for social change. By inculcating moral and spiritual values, it brings changes both in the individual and in the society. It aims at creating a social order founded on the values of freedom, social justice and equal opportunity.3 The objective of this exploratory study is to enquire into the existing system of managing higher educational institutions in Kerala, compare it with the accepted principles of management believed to be applicable to all organisations, and develop a model capable of introducing more effective management practices

A Comparative Study Of The Organisation And Management Of Notihed Markets In Bangladesh With The Organisation And Management Of Regulated Markets In West Bengal India

For improving agricultural marketing, which has been discussed in the previous chapter, the Government has intervened in different ways. The direct regulatory role through the regulation of markets and market practices is one of the ways in which governmental intervention can improve agricultural marketing. This study is an enquiry of the direct regulatory role of the government through regulation of markets and market practices. By restructuring the operational methods and redesigning the existing physical markets, this system gives direct benefit to the cultivating class and protects them from the market manipulations of organised and powerful private traders. If traders do not continue their trade for the time being they will not be affected financially, because they are resourceful or financially solvent. On the other hand, Cultivators must sell their produce immediately after harvesting for the lack of additional facilities or to satisfy other needs for which finance is required. Another important reason is that Cultivators/farmers are not organised and because of lack of their organisation, they sell their produces individually. In this situation, a farmer is helpless when astute traders indulge in manipulations at the time of purchase of the produces. So it is the government's obligation to protect the interest of the farmers. Protection of the farmer/cultivator is necessary not only from the point of social justice but also from that of economic growth. If the farmers are assured of a remunerative or incentive price for their produce, they will get the inspiration to produce more and through more production, economy will be developed and the nation as a whole will be benefitted. This study will examine the management system of the markets through the direct regulatory role played by the governments to control markets and market practices in West Bengal and Bangladesh.

Performance Effectiveness Of Bank Managers: A Study Of Psycho-Social Correlates

The present study by the researcher focuses attention on the problem of performance effectiveness among managers operating in one of the critical and socially important sectors of our economy namely commercial banking. The banking sector is selected for the study due to two reasons. Firstly, commercial banking plays an important role in the country's development. Secondly, for improving the efficiency of the banking system, we need to know more about the performance dynamics of the executives in our banking organizations

Management of Public Road Transport System in Trivandrum City

An efficient passenger road transport system is a boon to any city and an inefficient one its bane. Passenger bus transport operation involves various aspects like passenger convenience, profitability of operation and social, technological and environmental factors. The author’s interest in this area was aroused when he conducted a traffic survey of Trivandrum City in 1979. While some studies on the performance of the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation in specific areas like finance, inventory control etc. have already been made, no study has been made from the operational point of view. The study is also the first one of its kind in dealing with the transportation problems for a second order city like Trivandrum. The objective of this research study is to develop a scientific basis for analysing and understanding the various operational aspects of urban bus transport management like assessing travel demand, depot location, fleet allocation, vehicle scheduling, maintenance etc. The operation of public road transportation in Trivandrum City is analysed on the basis of this theoretical background. The studies made have relevance to any medium sized city in India or even abroad. If not properly managed, deterioration of any public utility system is a natural process and it adversely affects the consumers, the economy and the nation. Making any system more efficient requires careful analysis, judicious decision making and proper implementation. It is hoped that this study will throw some light into the various operational aspects of urban passenger road transport management which can be of some help to make it perform more efficiently

Role of social pressure as a key contributor of materialism and related status consumption

“At resale stores I have seen brand new clothes with original price tag still hanging from the sleeve. Some children have so many toys that they stay frustrated, not knowing which one to pick up for their next amusement. Presumably sensible adults trade in perfectly good cars just to have something shinier and newer. Didn’t us once live productive normal lives, without all these gadgets” [Cunningham (2005)]. During late eighties, nearly forty four percent of the participants, who took part in a consumer survey conducted in the US, responded positively to the question “My closets are filled with still 2 unopened items” [Faber and O’Guinn (1988)]. Reading such excerpts does not greatly surprise us anymore; as such reports have become common now. For many people shopping has moved beyond something that caters to their needs and wants and has become a hobby [Cunningham (2005)], an activity that they engage in to satisfy their hedonistic or pleasure-seeking goals [Ramnathan and Menon(2006), O’Cass and McEween (2004), Faber and O’Guinn (1989)]. Others look at their new possession as something that fills a void in their lives [Belk (1985), Diener et al. (1993)].

Information Dynamics and Knowledge Management in Science & Technology

This paper describes the current information dynamics and its effect in higher education and research in science and technology. Open access movement ,Institutional repositories ,Digital libraries,Knowledge gateways,Blogs,Wikis,and social bookmark tools have rapidly emerged on the web creating a new scenerio that radically changes the knowledge production process such as the creation of information,formats and sources of information,coding and processing ,accessing managing sharing and dissemination of information.The management of knowledge created by academia of Cochin University Of Science And Technology is examined in this challenging context of information dynamics.

Predicted impact of the sea-level rise at VellareColeroon estuarine region of Tamil Nadu coast in India: Mainstreaming adaptation as a coastal zone management option

Low-lying coastal areas are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change as they are highly prone for inundation to SLR (Sea-Level Rise). This study presents an appraisal of the impacts of SLR on the coastal natural resources and its dependent social communities in the low-lying area of VellareColeroon estuarine region of the Tamil Nadu coast, India. Digital Elevation Model (DEM) derived from SRTM 90M (Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission) data, along with GIS (Geographic Information System) techniques are used to identify an area of inundation in the study site. The vulnerability of coastal areas in Vellar-Coleroon estuarine region of Tamil Nadu coast to inundation was calculated based on the projected SLR scenarios of 0.5 m and 1 m. The results demonstrated that about 1570 ha of the LULC (Land use and Land cover) of the study area would be permanently inundated to 0.5 m and 2407 ha for 1 m SLR and has also resulted in the loss of three major coastal natural resources like coastal agriculture, mangroves and aquaculture. It has been identified that six hamlets of the social communities who depend on these resources are at high-risk and vulnerable to 0.5 m SLR and 12 hamlets for 1 m SLR. From the study, it has been emphasized that mainstreaming adaptation options to SLR should be embedded within a coastal zone management and planning effort, which includes all coastal natural resources (ecosystem-based adaptation), and its dependent social communities (community-based adaptation) involved through capacity building

Social Media- A relevant tool for tourism and hospitality marketing

Tourism is an industry which is heavily dependent on marketing. Mouth to mouth communication has played a major role in shaping a number of destinations.This is particularly true in modern parlance.This is social networking phenomenon which is fast spreading over the internet .Many sites provide visitors a lot of freedom to express their views.Promotion of a destination depends lot on conversation and exchange of information over these social networks.This paper analyses the social networking sites their contribution to marketing tourism and hoapitality .The negetive impacts phenomena are also discussed

Solid Waste Management: A Case Study of Arppukara Grama Panchayat Of Kottayam District, Kerala (India)

The rising pressure of Population, together with the constantly changing technologies, and development perspectives, contribute to the ever increasing volumes of wastes in different forms. The solid and liquid wastes generated in the urban areas were considered a burden to the society, and hazardous to the environment. The fact is that the growth of consumerist culture and aimless throwing of refuse by the people created the outbreak of environmental pollution. Unhygienic environment and solid waste accumulation coincided with mosquito breeding which causes, the spread of most epidemics. The rationale behind most of the diseases is the unhygienic pattern followed by the people both in rural and urban areas. As an environmental package, the disposal of solid waste from different sources, such as house holds markets, commercial areas, slaughter houses, hospitals and industries, therefore assumed crucial importance. So as a part of the theory and practice, a study on the area, solid waste management of Arppukara Grama Panchayat of Kottayam district is taken into consideration. The study conducted here proposes, to examine the quality and quantity of the solid waste generated in the panchayat and also it's impact on the existing social, economical, environmental and ecological systems