Measurement Of Employment And Unemployment In India: Some Issues
This paper offers a review of the concepts and definitions used in the NSS Employment-Unemployment Surveys (EUS, for short) which have remained virtually unchanged since they were introduced in the NSS 27th Round (1972-73) based on the analysis and recommendations in the Report of the Expert Group on Unemployment Estimate – better known as the Dantwala Committee Report (GOI, 1970). It also examines critically the employment-unemployment estimates derived/derivable from EUS and the use of such estimates for planning and policy.
Measures of Labour Force Participation and Utilization
The choice of the best measures of labour force, work force and unemployment has been the subject of intense debate in the formulation of employment strategies and preparation of plan documents. A new set of measures based on a concept of Modified Current Weekly Status (MCWS) are suggested in this paper which we believe would be better suited for many purposes than those currently in use. In addition new measures are also suggested for labour time utilisation and underemployment. These measures have been computed by using the data sets of the last three quinquennial rounds of surveys on employment-unemployment undertaken by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) and a comparison with the existing measures has been included in the paper. The principal aim of the paper is to suggest new ways of analyzing labour force data by retaining the identity of the individuals so as to relate the labour force behavior with other socioeconomic characteristics.[NCEUS WP NO 1]
The role of prolactin in andrology: what is new?
Prolactin (PRL) has been long deemed as a hormone involved only in female reproduction. However, PRL is a surprising hormone and, since its identification in the 1970s, its attributed functions have greatly increased. However, its specific role in male health is still widely unknown. Recently, low PRL has been associated with reduced ejaculate and seminal vesicle volume in infertile subjects. In addition, in men consulting for sexual dysfunction, hypoprolactinemia has been associated with erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation, findings further confirmed in the general European population and infertile men. Several metabolic derangements, recapitulating metabolic syndrome, have also been associated with low PRL both in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. In men with sexual dysfunction, followed-up for more than 4 years, low PRL was identified as an independent predictor of the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events. Finally, an association with anxiety or depressive symptoms has been found in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. While a direct role for impaired PRL function in the pathogenesis of these reproductive, sexual, metabolic and psychological disorders is conceivable, the possibility that low PRL is a mirror of an increased dopaminergic or a decreased serotonergic tone cannot be ruled-out. Hyperactivity of the dopaminergic system can explain only a few of the aforementioned findings, whereas a hypo-serotonergic tone fits well with the clinical features associated with low PRL, and there is significant evidence supporting the hypothesis that PRL could be a mirror of serotonin in the brain.