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The current study investigates the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown restrictions on air quality in an industrial town in Himachal Pradesh (HP) (India) and recommends policies and strategies for mitigating air pollution.

The air quality parameters under study are particulate matter₁₀ (PM₁₀), PM_2.5, SO₂ and NO₂. One-way ANOVA with post-hoc analysis and non-parametric Kruskal–Wallis test, and multiple linear regression analysis are used to validate the data analysis results.

The findings indicate that the lockdown and post-lockdown periods affected pollutant levels even after considering the meteorological conditions. Except for SO₂, all other air quality parameters dropped significantly throughout the lockdown period. Further, the industrial and transportation sectors are the primary sources of air pollution in Paonta Sahib.

Future research should include other industrial locations in the state to understand the relationship between regional air pollution levels and climate change. The findings of this study may add to the discussion on the role of adopting clean technologies and also provide directions for future research on improving air quality in the emerging industrial towns in India.

Very few studies have examined how the pandemic-induced lockdowns impacted air pollution levels in emerging industrial towns in India while also considering the confounding meteorological factors.

The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the relationship between working capital management (WCM) efficiency and exogenous variables of the Indian manufacturing sector along with its sub-industries that are involved in export activities.

Panel regression (fixed effects) was used on a sample of 563 Indian manufacturing firms involved in export activities, covering a time period from 2008 to 2018.

Industry-wise results showed a significant relation of leverage, net fixed asset ratio, profitability, asset turnover ratio, total asset growth rate and productivity with cash conversion cycle (CCC).

Firstly, having taken a sample from a developing economy, the results of our study may be generalizable only among developing contexts. Secondly, the time period taken in this study (2008–2018) has witnessed several economic fluctuations such as recession and demonetization which might differ for the firms or countries in normal conditions.

An improved working capital model could advance the firms' performance by reducing the CCC of the firm, thereby creating efficiency in WCM. In addition, the results of this study could be helpful for many stakeholders such as working capital managers, debt holders, investors, financial consultants and others for monitoring the firms.

This study contributes to the existing literature in the relation between WCM efficiency and exogenous variables of the Indian manufacturing firms engaged in the export activities. Moreover, this study is one of the few research studies to investigate this relationship among Indian export firms in different industries, thus filling the gap in similar work done in other countries.

In pursuit of affordable and nutrient-rich food alternatives, the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) emerged as a selected food ink for 3D printing. The purpose of this paper is to harness SCOBY’s potential to create cost-effective and nourishing food options using the innovative technique of 3D printing.

This work presents a comparative analysis of the printability of SCOBY with blends of wheat flour, with a focus on the optimization of process variables such as printing composition, nozzle height, nozzle diameter, printing speed, extrusion motor speed and extrusion rate. Extensive research was carried out to explore the diverse physical, mechanical and rheological properties of food ink.

Among the ratios tested, SCOBY, with SCOBY:wheat flour ratio at 1:0.33 exhibited the highest precision and layer definition when 3D printed at 50 and 60 mm/s printing speeds, 180 rpm motor speed and 0.8 mm nozzle with a 0.005 cm³/s extrusion rate, with minimum alteration in colour.

Food layered manufacturing (FLM) is a novel concept that uses a specialized printer to fabricate edible objects by layering edible materials, such as chocolate, confectionaries and pureed fruits and vegetables. FLM is a disruptive technology that enables the creation of personalized and texture-tailored foods, incorporating desired nutritional values and food quality, using a variety of ingredients and additions. This research highlights the potential of SCOBY as a viable material for 3D food printing applications.

The purpose of the current study is to contribute to the existing body of knowledge by understanding the rationale, benefits and consequences of taxing cryptocurrency transactions. This study investigates where taxation and cryptocurrencies meet from an investment standpoint.

A comprehensive bibliometric study was conducted to offer a thorough examination of the published literature in the last decade pertaining to the intersection of cryptocurrencies and taxation across nations. This study provides an analysis of citation patterns, prominent authors, publication trends and thematic clusters by applying VOSviewer and R-studio.

The results indicate a tendency in the existing literature to address the taxes concerns associated with cryptocurrency transactions. The findings demonstrate that cryptocurrency taxation discrepancies across countries create tax evasion, transaction risks and market uncertainties.

The report provides a theoretical framework for policymakers and financial experts to create a global cryptocurrency tax regime. The study emphasizes the need to incorporate technology start-ups to mitigate public safety and security risks, strengthen financial systems and provide regulators with necessary supervision.

The study provides an extensive on taxation issues such as tax evasion and money laundering in the context of cryptocurrency. There has been no prior effort to explore this research domain so deeply and provide comprehensive details on cryptocurrency.

Kaleidofin was co-founded in 2017 by Puneet Gupta and Sucharita Mukherjee; former CFO and CEO of IFMR (Institute for Financial Management and Research) Holdings Pvt Ltd. As part of their roles at IFMR, Gupta and Mukherjee focused on designing products and developing technology to push for financial inclusion. In their field interactions, the co-founders had an epiphany of the challenges faced by people while trying to save towards important life goals. They saw an opportunity in the large segment of financially under-served people in India and quit their jobs to start Kaleidofin. Kaleidofin was conceptualised as a digital platform that offers customised financial solutions to help customers meet their life goals. The start-up partnered with mutual fund companies for solutions on one hand and network partners (NGOs, microfinance organizations, cooperative banks) on the other for access to their existing customers.

Kaleidofin grew from 50 customers in January 2018 to 15,000 customers by March 2019. Aiming to grow to 1 million customers in the next 30 months Kaleidofin faces a dilemma about its future course. The start-up could continue to grow by expanding its current target segment which is the low-income households and preserve its vision at the risk of increasing costs. The second option would be to look at other potential target segments, such as, middle-income households and risk diluting their vision. The case study highlights the unique customer-centric model of Kaleidofin and the need for start-ups to understand the value proposition of their products/services.

Food delivery apps (FDAs) have altered people's eating behaviour. The convenience of FDAs may cause consumers to order more food than people's level of hunger warrants, leading to food waste. Food waste is a grave societal problem, which, the authors argue, represents the dark side of FDAs. However, the tendency of consumers to order more food than required, or to engage in food over-ordering behaviour, has remained under-explored in the context of FDAs.

This study addresses the gap by examining the antecedents of over-ordering behaviour on FDAs through the theoretical lens of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), which past studies on food waste have also used.

The authors' results confirm the positive association of attitude, subjective norms and leftover reuse intentions with over-ordering behaviour. The moderation effect of age and gender on the relationship between subjective norms with over-ordering is also confirmed.

The study extends classic TPB propositions by incorporating trust and leftover reuse intentions as antecedents and age and gender as moderation variables. The study thus offers useful inferences for theory and practice.

Learning outcomes of this paper are to analyse, record and classify financial transactions; prepare unadjusted trial balance; record the adjustment and closing entries and prepare post-closing trial balance; and prepare financial statements.

The case aims to induce users to draw up financial statements from the details provided. The complete accounting process is covered through solving the case. The case follows a start-up company from its first set of financial transactions to preparing the first set of financial statements. The case will help in application of accounting concepts, principles and the processes for recording transactions and preparation of financial statements.

The case is best suited for senior undergraduate- and graduate-level students of management/business schools in the courses of introductory financial accounting, intermediate accounting and financial reporting.

Teaching notes are available for educators only.

CSS 1: accounting and finance.

The current study tries to better understand the resistance toward food delivery applications (FDAs). This study has adapted the existing criteria to measure different consumer barriers toward FDAs. It also examined the relationships between various consumer barriers, intention to use FDAs and word-of-mouth (WOM).

This study utilized the innovation resistance theory (IRT) and a mixed-method approach comprised of qualitative essays submitted by 125 respondents and primary surveys (N = 366) of FDA users.

Tradition barrier (trust) shared a negative association with use intention, while image barrier (poor customer service) shared a negative association with WOM. The intention to use was positively associated with WOM. Additionally, the study results reveal that image barrier (poor customer experience) and value barrier (poor quality control) were, in fact, positively related to WOM. This study also discusses the managerial and theoretical implications of these findings and the scope for further research on FDAs.

FDAs have revolutionized the food delivery industry and made it more comfortable and convenient for the consumers. However, FDA service providers are facing challenges from both customers and restaurants. Although scholars investigated customer behavior toward FDAs, no prior study has focused on consumer barriers toward FDA usage.

The purpose of this paper is to seek to propose that spiritual traditions of India have enormous wisdom to provide a wholesome spiritual foundation to the modern day management. It can also play a significant role in facilitating the dimensions of workplace spirituality as conceptualized by the western counterparts. The paper does not intend to reinvent the wheel but to present an integrated framework for facilitating workplace spirituality that incorporates the western and the Indian views.

For this study, the authors maintained an open approach. The authors first reviewed the extant literature on workplace spirituality to explore its dimensions. Thereafter, the authors searched for Indian spiritual traditions that can be suggested to have some similarity with the dimensions of workplace spirituality and can further help in facilitating those dimensions at the workplace.

The paper presents an integrated framework that suggests that doctrine of Karma Yoga, tradition of Loksangrah, Guna theory, daivi sampat and Pancha Kosha model can help in facilitating the five dimensions of workplace spirituality specified in the study.

The study proposes five dimensions of workplace spirituality which is not an exhaustive list. These dimensions may be facilitated by a variety of Indian spiritual traditions but this study includes only five specific Indian traditions.

The authors have creatively integrated the eastern and the western knowledge to come up with a framework that enriches the concept of workplace spirituality facilitation.