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Develops and describes a knowledge‐based systems approach which may be used to highlight the disparity between the essential and/or desirable prerequisites for the implementation of effective master production scheduling (MPS) systems and what actually exists in a given manufacturing environment. Identifies seven high level MPS implementation issues: level of understanding of MPS systems; procedures and responsibilities for MPS creation; planning horizons, time‐buckets and time fences; capacity feasibility of the MPS; dealing with backlogs; adherence to the MPS; and what to master schedule. Asks questions to determine the presence or absence of necessary prerequisites. If a high level prerequisite, relating to procedures and data, is not present, further lower level questions are asked to assess the reasons for its lack, and how it may be provided. This gap analysis approach makes it possible to identify in advance the major problems which must be addressed to ensure the effective implementation of master production scheduling systems.

Taking as a point of departure the edited collection Yaraana (1999), ostensibly the first mainstream publication on gay writing from India, the purpose of this article is to trace the way Indian authors have dealt with the growing visibility of nonnormative sexualities. It suggests that from the start this debate has centered on a dyad between local and culturally specific sexual identities vs its globalized opposite, which is held to threaten regionally specific expressions. The continuing struggle for recognition and equality is revealing for a growing divide between those whose sexuality can rely on growing representation in Indian popular media, and those who feel increasingly marginalized.

This article revisits important texts that were published and publicly accessible in India from 1999 onwards. All the text considered and discussed were accessible outside academic networks and thus, available in mainstream bookstores, produced by Indian authors or long-term residents and available in English. Considering the vast language diversity of India as well as the complexity of gaining access to locally published materials, the analysis does not include texts that are only available in a vernacular language. Besides this, the article benefits from the direct input of key activists and scholars from India working on this topic.

Even if homosexuality has now been decriminalized in India, what emerges from the writing is a concern that globally hegemonic expressions of alternate sexualities might impact, homogenize and eventually eradicate locally specific expressions. Considering socioeconomic equality in India, this raises serious questions about those whose precarious positions may see them further marginalized because of this.

While there have been various overviews and analyses of the fight for decriminalization of homosexuality in India, so far there has not been an analysis how this benefited from a growing awareness and discussion in popularly accessible texts. This analysis also raises concerns that the fight for decriminalization might have negative consequences for those in marginalized positions.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether mining can serve as a pathway for economic development despite the environmental externalities. The extensive literature on the “resource curse” phenomenon at the national level generally finds that economic dependence on mineral resources is associated with lower levels of economic growth. This paper shows that further insight can be obtained by studying micro‐level resource curse because of heterogeneity in institutions, natural resources and economic behaviors.

The paper empirically tests the resource curse hypothesis with data from a stratified random sample of 600 households in 20 villages in the mining district of Keonjhar, Orissa. Household surveys were used to collect data on demography, forest dependence, health and household economics. Using geographical information system (GIS), the household data were integrated with secondary spatial data on land cover and location of mines to construct multiple measures of exposure to iron ore mines.

Microeconometric models demonstrate the multi‐faceted nature of the relationships between mine exposure, forest resources and human welfare. Households closer to mines experience higher incidences of many illnesses, rank lower on indicators of human development and own fewer production assets. They also derive fewer forest benefits because forests are more degraded and less accessible in villages closer to mines.

This analysis remains timely because of on‐going violent conflicts and concern over negative impacts on the welfare of rural populations in the mining areas of India, which is consistent with the notion of a resource curse. The paper's findings on the magnitude of negative impacts can inform the policy discourse (e.g. benefits sharing schemes) related to mining‐led growth.

Price fairness is important amongst construction and engineering consultants because a perceived lack of it engenders unwillingness to pay amongst clients. This can create contractual disputes that negatively impact upon a consultant’s ability to generate sufficient revenue to ensure business continuity and survival. With this in mind, this research aims to analyse the pricing measurement forces needed to attain pricing fairness within a Ghanaian construction cost consultancy practice. Specific objectives are to identify the key variables responsible for price fairness within cost consultant services and to establish any interrelationships between them.

This study leans towards the positivist methodological tradition by adopting a quantitative approach. A survey questionnaire was distributed to a random sample of 79 construction cost consultancies, drawn from a population of 372, who were registered with the Ghana Institution of Surveyors. Hypotheses developed from the literature review were then tested on data collected.

The analysis revealed that fairness of construction cost consultancy services pricing is significantly related to value and affordability, pricing objectives, pricing strategies, taxes and international trade and its effects on inputs for construction cost consultancy services.

The paper advances knowledge by providing a basis for the consideration of pricing forces in the valuing of construction cost consultancy services which hitherto has not been the case.

The purpose of this paper is to explore a new possibility of providing high-temperature stable lead-free interconnections for low-temperature co-fired ceramics (LTCC) hotplate. For gas-sensing application, a temperature range of 200°C-400°C is usually required by the sensing film to detect different gases which imply the requirement of thermally stable interconnects. To observe the effect of parameters influencing power of the device, electro-thermal simulation of LTCC hotplate is also presented. Simulated LTCC hotplate is fabricated using the LTCC technology.

The proposed task is to fabricate LTCC hotplate with interconnects through vertical access. Dedicated via-holes generated on the LTCC hotplate are used to provide the interconnections. These interconnections are based on adherence and bonding mechanism between LTCC and thick film. COMSOL software is used for finite element method (FEM) simulation of the LTCC hotplate structure.

Thermal reliability of these interconnections is tested by continuous operation of hotplate at 350°C for 175 h and cycling durability test performed at 500°C. Additionally, vibration test is also carried out for the hotplate with no damage observed in the interconnections. An optimized firing profile to reproduce these interconnections along with the experimental flowchart is presented.

Research activity includes design and fabrication of LTCC hotplate with metal to thick-film based interconnections through vertical access. Research work on interconnections based on adherence of LTCC and thick film is limited.

A new way of providing lead-free and reliable interconnections will be useful for gas sensor fabricated on LTCC substrate. The FEM results are useful for optimizing the design for developing low-power LTCC hotplate.

Adherence and bonding mechanism between LTCC and thick film can be used to provide interconnections for LTCC devices. Methodology for providing such interconnections is discussed.

After working through the case and assignment questions, students should be able to develop an understanding of how to identify female leadership competencies; analyze social and psychological barriers to developing female leadership; and consider various solutions to build trust in rural settings by overcoming social and psychological barriers.

In 2022, Mrs Anjaria, the Managing Director, and Mr Anjaria, the Chairperson of the Rangoli Group of Institutions in Gandhinagar, Gujarat (India), were facing the challenge of how to empower thousands of females in the preschool venture in the rural area as they could see the impact of their female edupreneurs in the urban area. Both had worked up the ladder in the preschool venture after quitting their professional careers in the corporate world. They now wanted to create female edupreneurs to empower women and bring about social and educational change at the grassroots level. They needed to make an informed decision about how to scale the preschool offerings at rural sites to bring educational change and increase revenue simultaneously; however, they were unsure how to execute this vision into a tangible profit-making social edupreneurial reality. Government preschools (Anganwadis) and social structures in rural Indian contexts were a major consideration. It was important to increase their hiring efforts to empower women with their franchise model. However, issues such as leadership competencies, psycho-socio-cultural barriers, and creating trust in rural economies challenged their vision.

The case is suitable for MBA students or postgraduate-level courses on development communication, business communication, entrepreneurial communication and gender communication seeking to develop female competencies through communication models. This case illustrates how to create trust through communication among female eduprenuers by overcoming social and psychological barriers in rural settings.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CCS 3: Entrepreneurship

According to the logistics performance index, emerging countries such as India are lagging behind developed countries such as Germany, Austria and Switzerland (DACH region). The purpose of this study is to compare and understand the differences in logistics outsourcing outlook in the two regions by considering both manufacturing firms (M-firms) and logistics service providers’ (LSPs) perspectives.

A survey targeting both LSPs and M-firms in DACH and India is conducted. A total of 96 responses were analyzed by using the chi-square test to investigate the differences and alignments in outsourcing motivation, relationship and governance between firms within and across regions.

M-firms in India bear strategic motivations behind outsourcing and those in DACH incline towards costs. LSPs in both regions align with the motivations of M-firms. M-firms in India rely more on LSPs by transferring the ownership of outsourced tasks, as compared to DACH. Both M-firms and LSPs in DACH claim a high level of ownership. However, firms in DACH and India do not differ significantly in terms of outsourcing engagements they seek.

The findings may only be generalized to large firms in India and DACH.

The findings of this study help managers enhance their understanding of the differences between M-firms and LSPs, and also across countries. LSPs in DACH, if they wish to operate successfully in India, will have to adapt to the M-firms strategic motivations and offer higher dependency.

This study is novel, as it investigates differences between India and DACH countries while also including both manufacturers’ and logistics service providers’ perspectives.

Each individual needs to be vaccinated to control the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the shortest possible time. However, the vaccine distribution with an already strained supply chain in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) will not be effective enough to vaccinate all the population in stipulated time. The purpose of this paper is to show that there is a need to revolutionize the vaccine supply chain (VSC) by overcoming the challenges of sustainable vaccine distribution.

An integrated lean, agile and green (LAG) framework is proposed to overcome the challenges of the sustainable vaccine supply chain (SVSC). A hybrid best worst method (BWM)–Measurement of Alternatives and Ranking According to COmpromise Solution (MARCOS) methodology is designed to analyze the challenges and solutions.

The analysis shows that vaccine wastage is the most critical challenge for SVSC, and the coordination among stakeholders is the most significant solution followed by effective management support.

The result of the analysis can help the health care organizations (HCOs) to manage the VSC. The effective vaccination in stipulated time will help control the further spread of the virus, which will result in the normalcy of business and availability of livelihood for millions of people.

To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first study to explore sustainability in VSC by considering the environmental and social impact of vaccination. The LAG-based framework is also a new approach in VSC to find the solution for existing challenges.

The purpose of this paper is to study and develop supply chain structure of traditional Indian agri-fresh food supply chain (AFSC). This paper proposes a mathematical model to design a traditional Indian AFSC to minimize total distribution cost and post-harvest losses in the chain.

This paper formulates two mathematical models to structure and represent the flow of products in the existing chain. First, a three-echelon, multi-period, multi-product, mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model is formulated to minimize the total distribution cost incurred in the chain. Further, the developed formulation is extended by considering the perishability of products in the second model.

A real case study problem of Mandsaur district (India) is solved in LINGO 17.0 package to check the validity of the formulated models. The perishable (second) model of AFSC reports better results in terms of costs and post-harvest losses minimization. The results revealed that 92% of the total distribution cost incurred in the transportation of products from farmers to the hubs.

This paper includes implications for redesigning an existing supply chain network by incorporating an appropriate transportation strategy from farmers to hubs to minimize transportation inefficiency and enhance the profitability of farmers.

The formulated AFSC model would help managers and policymakers to identify optimal locations for hubs where required infrastructure would be developed.

According to the author's best knowledge, this paper is the first to design traditional Indian AFSC by considering the perishability of products.