Flipkart’s Expansion in Rural India: Will it be Successful?

Introduction:

Home to 1.4 billion people, India is one of the largest and fastest-growing e-commerce markets in the world. As of January 2022, the country has 658 million internet users. In 2020, 95.3% of internet users in the country, aged between 16 and 64, visited e-commerce websites. More than 70% of users looked up products online, and a similar percentage made an online purchase. Nearly 60 percent of internet users bought products from their smartphones. According to Kearney, online retail accounts for 4%, valued at $4 billion at present, but that would reach 19% by 2030 with a value of $40 billion. 

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The pandemic definitely spurred the growth of online shopping in India, but e-commerce companies are now facing a new challenge. Big cities reached saturation point. In order to grow their businesses, local e-commerce companies must expand in semi-urban and rural areas, but this is a major uphill battle. In this assignment, we shall look into the logistics operation of Flipkart, one of the top Indian e-commerce companies, to try and understand if there is any limitation that is hindering its expansion.

Rural India: The New Frontier for e-Commerce Companies

Before talking about Flipkart logistics, we need to talk a bit about rural India to understand why it is important for the future growth of Indian e-commerce companies.

At present, around 65% of India’s population lives either in rural or semi-urban areas, which will come down to 53.5% by 2040. Currently, rural India plays a pivotal role by contributing 25-30% of the country’s GDP. According to a Bizom report, in the FMCG market, rural consumption increased by 58% YoY, twice the rate of urban consumption.

Despite facing numerous challenges, rural India is growing rapidly. With proper policy implementation, improved infrastructure and better internet infrastructure, the government can overcome many of these challenges, thus unlocking the true potential of the rural economy.

Mobile internet is now more or less available in Tier I and Tier II level Indian cities. Still, a large portion of the country’s rural areas has insufficient internet coverage.

Since 2011, the Government of India (GoI) has been implementing Bharatnet, a megaproject that will bring all the villages in India under broadband internet coverage. The project took off in 2011, and the first phase has been completed, connecting 300,000 villages. The second phase is ongoing, and upon completion, an additional 150,000 villages will be connected.

Along with improved Internet infrastructure, the rising literacy rate will also drive internet penetration and upward economic movement. Both government and non-government organizations are working to educate the rural youth. As of 2021, the literacy rate in rural India reached almost 73.5%, of which 81% were male and 65% were female. As more and more people become well-educated, they will also become tech-savvy. They will increasingly rely on mobile internet to perform daily tasks, such as online shopping, bill payment etc. According to a statement given by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and consulting firm Kantar, the number of internet users in rural India will probably increase more than in urban India by 2025.

All these are indicative of the fact that rural India is the way for the future growth of e-commerce companies.

Flipkart: A Brief Overview

Founded in 2007 by two IIT Delhi graduates, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, Flipkart is one of the top e-commerce companies in India at present. As per the October 2021 report, the online marketplace supported 375,000 sellers. It wanted to increase that number to 420,000 by the end of 2021. According to news reports, on average, the company fulfills two million orders every day. In FY 2020, the company had a Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) of $15 million.

Flipkart Logistics:

The success and future growth of an e-commerce company depend on the range of quality products it can offer to customers at an affordable price and deliver those products on promised time. Realizing this, Flipkart started its own logistics operation in 2010. Over the years, its logistics capabilities have grown. Thanks to all the investment and planning, the company now has a highly sophisticated supply chain that is end-to-end managed. Aside from developing its own logistics, the company also partners with other logistics service providers. Through its logistics, Flipkart delivers products to customers as well as procures products from suppliers and merchants. Flipkart’s operations team works on supply chain, procurement, warehouse management and customer support.

·         Flipkart’s in house logistics capability:

·         Flipkart operates more than 100 warehouses and about 2600 delivery hubs all over India. It has its own logistics subsidiary, eKart Logistics, that handles all its logistics operations.

·         Third party logistics service providers:

·         Flipkart’s in-house logistics handles 60-70% of the order fulfillment while the rest is done through third-party logistics. The company maintains a database of logistics companies and their respective areas of operations. In many places, there are no logistics services. In that case, the company uses India Post. For efficiency, the company allocates slots to different logistics companies when they collect their goods.

Product procurement:

·         Flipkart sources products from different suppliers. It has regional procurement teams that work with local suppliers and a central procurement team. The central team overlooks the entire operation and deals with big suppliers.

·         Based on customer data, Flipkart collects products from suppliers.

·         For fast-moving products, Flipkart collects them from suppliers and delivers them to its customers using its own logistics or third-party logistics partners.

·         For low-selling items or items where the demand fluctuates, the company uses the just-in-time method. In this method, Flipkart procures the product from suppliers only after getting orders from customers. Just-in-time procurement is expensive and has slow growth.

Goods inbound:

·         Flipkart collects the goods from suppliers.

·         After the goods reach the warehouse, employees conduct a quality check.

Storage management:

·         Employees at the warehouse create a list of the products.

·         They also check for pending orders. If 'Yes' then the product is delivered. If 'No' then the product is stored and the product list is updated.

·         An item is labeled “Out of Stock” if it is not available in the warehouse or the vendors cannot supply it within the mentioned time limit.

Goods outbound:

·         A product list is generated.

·         Employees then pick up the products from the shelves.

·         The product is packed to make it tamper-proof, weather-proof, and breakage-proof. 

·         The product is then categorized based on delivery locations.

Order fulfillment Process:

·         After the customer places an order, the Flipkart Operations team checks inventory to see if the product is available in their warehouse or if they have to order it from the supplier.

·         The good is transported to the mother hub and then to the delivery hub.

·         From this delivery hub, last-mile delivery is made either by motorcycle or bicycle or on foot.

·         The customer gets SMS, email, or message from the website.

Delivery:

·         Based on location and product availability, product delivery varies from three days to three weeks.

·         If the product has to be imported from abroad, it might take about three weeks to deliver.

·         If the product is available in the local warehouse, it is delivered in three days.

Mode of transportation:

·         To transport goods at long distances, Flipkart uses air cargo.

·         If the location is close, goods are transported by train or truck.

·         For goods transport in cities, Flipkart uses two-wheelers and bicycles.

Product return and reverse logistics:

·         To gain customers’ trust, Flipkart has a flexible return policy.

·         In case of product replacement, Flipkart returns the product to the supplier and obtains a replacement, which is then delivered to the customer.

·         If the replacement is not possible, Flipkart gives customers store credit or a similar amount they paid to purchase the product. The customer then purchases another product.

·         In many cases, third-party logistics cannot deliver to the address, or the customer changes his mind and does not accept the product. In that case, the product is delivered, and the customer contacts customer support and returns the product. Flipkart then collects the product and processes it on its own expenditure.

Increasing logistic capability:

Better logistics capability makes a big difference for e-commerce companies, but developing such capabilities requires solid planning and a huge investment. Flipkart is well aware of this challenge and has been tackling it head-on since the beginning. The company developed a state-of-the-art system that connects all its operations and ensures smooth data exchange and coordination between different branches.

The company has been investing heavily to improve its storage management and order processing capacity. Since 2019, eKart has been using Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in its warehouses. These robots can sort 4,500 packages every hour.

Last-mile delivery is the single biggest challenge for every e-commerce company in India. Because of unplanned urbanization, many areas do not follow any zoning system or policies. To tackle this problem, Flipkart announced to invest $2.5 billion in logistics in the next 4-5 years. The company will invest in building more warehouses and acquiring delivery vehicles. In addition, the company is also using machine learning technology. The company also partnered with 10,000 local shops that serve as pick-up and drop-off points.

Customer fraud is another big challenge. Flipkart is using a data management system to prevent customer fraud.

Can Flipkart successfully expand into rural areas?

From a business perspective, Flipkart ticks all the right boxes, but expanding into rural areas comes with a whole new set of challenges. Some of the major challenges of rural India are:

Cash-on-Delivery:

In rural India, people still prefer to transact in cash. Last year, CMS Infosystem published a study that revealed that more than 65% of online sales transactions in India happened in the Cash-on-Delivery (CoD) mode. A company spends a lot of money to deliver a product to a customer, but after receiving it, if the customer refuses to purchase the product or makes delays in payment, it affects the company’s business. CoD customers have a high product return probability. During the pandemic, Flipkart temporarily suspended CoD for fear of contacting COVID from cash.

Logistics:

Infrastructure and internet connectivity are still major issues in many rural areas. Many villages are not well connected by roads. Many villages do not have reliable Internet connectivity.

Language and Culture:

As we move further into semi-urban and village areas, local language is spoken more. Keeping this in mind, e-commerce companies have to develop more contents in local languages. This is a serious problem because different languages are spoken in different parts of India.

A deep understanding and appreciation of rural culture are also very much necessary because rural communities are very close. People do business with those they know. They are not very comfortable with outside influence.

How Flipkart will tackle these challenges?

Flipkart is one of the pioneers of CoD in the Indian e-commerce industry. A large number of Indian people do not use credit cards or digital payment systems. The only way to get these people to buy something online was to use CoD. So, Flipkart offered CoD to customers, which became one of the major reasons behind its growth. The company has ample experience and knowledge in handling CoD problems. For this reason, they can easily attract customers from rural areas.

When it comes to tackling the issue of infrastructure, Flipkart is partnering with various regional logistics service providers and local shops. Yes, there will be complexity in product delivery and product sourcing from remote areas, but Flipkart will have to come up with innovative ideas and technologies to successfully navigate those problems. Things will gradually improve in the near future.

In order to enable people located in areas with poor internet connectivity, Flipkart launched Flipkart Lite in 2015. It is a web app that works on low-cost smartphones and sketchy internet connections. The app will allow a person to access the Flipkart marketplace and order products.

In 2019, Flipkart launched Flipkart Samarth, a platform that enables rural artisans, craftsmen and weavers located in remote rural areas sell their products on the Flipkart marketplace. The project is now supporting 950,000 artisans, weavers and craftsmen. It is also working with the government to help rural people. Recently, the Ministry of Rural Development, under its Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana– National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM) program, partnered with Flipkart to sell products made by rural artisans and craftsmen. Flipkart should take more such initiatives in the future. This will help the company to build a better image in rural communities and will motivate people to purchase products from the marketplace in the long run.

Final Thoughts:

The reality is that “Rural India is not prepared for e-commerce.” Villagers are still not used to the idea of paying for a product without touching or feeling it first. It will take a long time and consistent effort from e-commerce companies to develop online shoppers in rural India. Companies that will start earlier will gain the “First Mover Advantage.” Top e-commerce companies like Amazon and Flipkart are very much aware of the potential. So, they are slowly and gradually trying to establish their footholds. They have to come up with strategies that will enable them to achieve people’s trust. Once it gains that trust, people will feel comfortable buying products on its platform. 

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The Impact of Russia-Ukraine Conflict on United Kingdom’s Wheat Supply Chain. What Can be done to lessen this impact?

The United Kingdom produces 80 to 85 percent of the wheat it consumes. Although the country does not import a large amount of wheat, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has an indirect impact on its wheat supply chain.

Already, the country’s economy was reeling from the effects of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic. Food prices increased due to inflation. In December 2021, the United Kingdom saw 30-year high inflation of 5.4%, causing a rise in many food items, petrol, used cars, clothing and furniture. In January this year, the price of staple food items such as margarine, tomatoes and apples increased by 45%.

The pandemic also affected truck drivers in the UK. They were under immense stress. They could not eat or sleep properly. As a result, many truck drivers switched jobs. Before Brexit, people from the continent came to the UK and worked as truck drivers. After Brexit, they left the country, creating a severe shortage. As a result, big stores found it very challenging to offer products to customers last Christmas.

In 2021, UK companies that traded goods to and from Europe were not required to make full customs declarations or go through a rigorous checkout process, but it all changed as 2022 rolled in. Now, these companies have to go through a long and rigorous checking process and submit documents containing details of the goods they are bringing in or out and pay all the tariffs. This has become a very challenging task for many UK importers. A survey conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the Institute of Directors (IoD) revealed that many firms were not aware of these changes. Many UK companies had to readjust their supply chains after Brexit. The December 2021 UK economic report, published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), said that only 7.7% of companies changed their supply chains. 41% of those who did are now using UK suppliers and 11.6% are using more EU suppliers. Overall, 60% of businesses saw a rise in their cost of doing business since Brexit. Nowhere this rise is more visible than in transport and bureaucratic processes.

Against this backdrop, the Russian-Ukraine conflict only made matters more complicated. Even if the war ends tomorrow, things will not return the way they used to be. Western countries imposed major sanctions on Russia and removed it from the Swift messaging system. It means the UK cannot do trade with Russia and Ukraine through traditional routes.

In this emerging geo-political situation, millers and other companies whose products require wheat as one of the major ingredients have to take various short-term and long-term initiatives to ensure the stability of their wheat supply chain.

Wheat Market in the United Kingdom:

Wheat consumption:

Wheat is used to produce flour, which is used to make bread. Aside from bread, many other food items are prepared from flour, including biscuits, cakes, pies, pizzas, pastries, batters, and coatings. 37% of the fiber, 35% of the calcium and 31% of the iron in the UK people’s diet come from flour. In the UK, per person, flour consumption was 59 kg in 2018 and 2019. According to 2019 Kantar data, 99.8% of households in the UK purchased bread. For this reason, wheat is the most grown crop in the United Kingdom. Approximately 1.9 million hectares of land are used to grow this crop. Based on climate and other factors, annual wheat production in the UK ranges from 11 million to 16 million tons per year. 60% of this wheat production is used to produce bread.

The UK is self-sufficient in flour production. The flour milling industry, whose main ingredient is wheat, has a £1.25 billion annual turnover. 32 companies operate 51 mills. Of these, the top four companies produce the lion’s share of the flour. Together, all these companies produce more than 400 different types of flour. They mostly use locally produced wheat. They produce 5 million tons of flour every year. These mills also produce bran, which is consumed by people, and wheat feed that is used to manufacture livestock feeds. Aside from flour, wheat is also used in starch and bioethanol manufacturing. These manufacturers use 1.3 to 1.5 million tons of wheat. 

Wheat Import-Export:

Although it is a small amount, the United Kingdom imports wheat from other countries. According to The Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), in 2019, the United Kingdom imported wheat worth $299 million, making it the 38^th major wheat importer in the world. Primary import destinations include Canada, Germany, France, Latvia and Ukraine. Latvia, Turkey and Ukraine are the fast-growing import markets for wheat for the UK. That same year, the United Kingdom exported wheat worth $243 million, becoming the 17^th largest wheat exporter. The Netherlands, Spain, Ireland, Portugal, and Algeria were major export destinations. 

Russia and Ukraine: Largest Wheat Exporters

Russia and Ukraine are the two largest wheat producers in the world. As per OEC, in 2019, these two countries accounted for more than a quarter of the global wheat export. In the 1980s, the then Soviet Russia was a major wheat importer. After the fall of the USSR, Russia started to become self-sufficient in wheat production. The Russian government allowed farmers to sell their products on the international market. Investment in agriculture technology and infrastructure, coupled with the devaluation of the Russian currency, accelerated this process. In 2001, Russia accounted for only one percent of the global wheat export. That increased to 26.4 percent by 2018. Vietnam, Senegal, the UAE, Sudan, Azerbaijan, Yemen, Nigeria and Bangladesh were the largest buyers of Russian wheat in 2019. Of these countries, Egypt, Turkey and Bangladesh accounted for more than half of Russian wheat export.

Ukraine, on the other hand, is the fifth largest exporter of wheat. As of 2019, the country accounted for seven percent of the global wheat export. 71 percent of Ukraine’s land is devoted to agriculture. Its highly fertile “black soil” makes it suitable for growing a wide range of crops. The country exports its agricultural products to Europe, so aptly named “Bread Basket of Europe.” Ukraine also exports wheat to Indonesia, the Philippines, Tunisia, Thailand, Morocco, South Korea, Spain and Israel. Turkey and Vietnam also import wheat from Ukraine.

Impact of Russia-Ukraine conflict on global wheat supply chain

From the statistics above, it is obvious that any instability in Russia and Ukraine will definitely have a major impact on the global wheat supply chain. After the conflict started, the export of wheat and other cereals from Russia and Ukraine almost came to a halt.

Traders around the world are very much afraid to make any deals that might come under sanction. The price of wheat exceeded the price seen during the food crisis of 2007-2008. Through seaports in the Black Sea, Russia and Ukraine export their products to North African and Middle Eastern countries. Many poor Asian countries also depend on Russia and Ukraine for their wheat. With more than $4 billion expenditure per year, Egypt is the world’s biggest wheat importer. Russia and Ukraine account for 70% of Egypt’s wheat purchase. 80 percent of Lebanon’s wheat comes from Ukraine. Lebanon is already suffering from high wheat price. Somalia and Syria are also suffering.

Turkey is another big buyer. In 2019, 76% of its wheat import worth $1.6 billion came from these two countries. In 2021-2022, Turkey alone purchased 4.5 million metric tons, followed by Egypt with 3.2 million metric tons. Even before the invasion, Turkey saw a high inflation rate of 54.4 percent in February, the highest in the country’s history in the last twenty years. Turkish officials are worried that the price of food will only increase in the near future.

For Middle Eastern and North African countries, the Black Sea route is very cost-effective, and the conflict forced them to import wheat from other leading producers, such as the US and Australia, at a higher cost.

Rising food prices are a major element of political unrest in these countries. During the 2007–2008 food price rise, countries like Haiti and Ivory Coast saw serious protests. Bread prices caused serious political unrest in Egypt over the last fifty years. Grain price rise in 2009-2010 started the Arab Spring.

No one can say when this conflict will stop. Even if it ends tomorrow, the grain crisis will persist because the seeding of the spring crops in Ukraine starts from March. Many people fled the country, and able-bodied men who stayed are fighting against the Russians. So, there is no one left for farming. This will severely hamper their 2022 harvest. Many foreign companies invested in Ukraine’s agriculture. Because of the war, they stopped their operations.

Impact of this conflict on wheat supply chain in the UK

Since the United Kingdom grows most of the wheat it consumes, there is no immediate impact on its supply chain, but the country is not totally immune from the conflict. It is already having an impact in other areas related to wheat production, one of which is fertilizer. At the time of this writing, the price of fertilizers reached £1,000 per ton from about £650 last week. The price of nitrogen fertilizer increased 200% year on year. Farmers, already burdened by the rising cost of fuel, labor and feed, are purchasing fewer fertilizers. The UK produces 40% of its own fertilizer, but the fertilizer manufacturing plants need gas, which is in short supply because of the conflict. Russia is also the top exporter of synthetic fertilizers. The UK imports one-fifth of its urea fertilizer from Russia. After the conflict, Russia restricted exports. Wheat and corn are also used for livestock feed in the UK. Hence, the wheat price rise will also drive up the cost of meat, dairy and eggs.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the UK imported goods worth £10.3 billion from Russia in 2021, equal to 2% of the total value of goods the UK imported from other parts of the world. Of these numbers, one import is oil. The UK imported refined oil worth £3 billion and crude oil worth £1 billion. Other major imports include gas and non-ferrous metals. After the conflict, fuel and gas prices rose sharply not just in the UK but all over Europe. Energy is also necessary for processing wheat and food in different stages. This means the price of bread and other staple items will increase rapidly.

What can be done to lessen this impact?

In an interview with ITV News, Dr. Peter Alexander, lecturer on global food security at the University of Edinburgh, said that the UK government should intensify the production of wheat on existing land and bring more land into agricultural production in order to lessen the impact of the conflict. He also mentioned that bringing more land into agricultural production would also have a negative effect on the environment. Another thing the UK can do is develop trade relationships with other major wheat-producing countries and get into trade agreements with them.

Final Thoughts:

Even though the wheat supply chain in the UK did not see any major disruption, other factors such as rising fuel prices, Brexit and the pandemic contributed to the price rise. If the conflict continues for a longer period of time, it will definitely impact the wheat supply chains of developed countries in various ways.  

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(Accessed: 9 March 2022).

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Love, money and marriage in Sense and Sensibility

Sense and Sensibility is one of the most important novels of Jane Austen, and in this novel, love, money and marriage came up many times. This novel basically tells the story of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne. These two sisters liked each other very much and had a very good relationship, but their characters were totally opposite of each other. However, they fall in love. In love, failure comes first, and then they get married. The financial issues are presented against this backdrop giving the readers a glimpse of contemporary society. Simultaneously, Jane Austen described the women's condition. In that era, love, money and marriage were important for girls, and these were also equally important to men. 

If we want to talk about love, money and marriage in this novel, we should look at the social system of that time. In those days, women did not have any right to inheritance, for which they had to depend on their brothers or other male relatives in case of having no immediate brother. It was the reality of the society of that time, and Jane Austen in almost all her novels has portrayed this reality. In Pride and Prejudice, we can also see the same kind of reality where the women remained under mental stress for not getting any share in the property. In Sense and Sensibility, we can see that Elinor and Marianne became dependent on their brother after the death of their father, and their brother, being influenced by his wife, did not give them any share in the property although he promised on his father’s death bed to look after his sisters. The novel depicts the painful condition of women in 19th-century English society. Although many readers might think that it is a romantic novel, Jane Austen showed the ugly reality of society and the financial worries and problems of women. 

The relationship between Elinor Dashwood and Edward Ferrars, considering from the perspective of love, was good. However, the misfortune of the two is that Edward Ferrars several years ago promised a girl named Lucie Steele that he would marry her, and on the other hand, Edward Ferrars’ mother is a very domineering woman. So, Elinor and Edward split up, and later, fortunately, they met again and got married in the end. On the other hand, Marianne Dashwood first fell in love with John Willoughby, but John Willoughby was a cheater. At the same time, Colonel Brandon fell in love with Marianne Dashwood, but Marianne Dashwood did not like him. Eventually, Marianne Dashwood realizes that men like John Willoughby can be very attractive as lovers, but they are not worthy of being husbands. On the other hand, men like Colonel Brandon may not be ideal as lovers, but they are not bad as husbands. 

The issue of money repeatedly appears throughout the novel several times because Jane Austen tried to show that falling in love is easy. Elinor and Edward like each other. Willoughby also spends a very wonderful time with Marianne, but the reality of money changes everything. When Edward tries to keep his promise to Lucy Steele and decides to marry her, his mother deprives him of property and gives it to his brother. As a result, Edward suddenly finds himself in deep financial trouble. Seeing this condition, Lucy also leaves him, and here we can realize the importance of money at that time. The same can be said about Marianne and Willoughby. It is not that Willoughby did not like Marianne. He liked and would have proposed Marianne had the financial issue not come up. Had Willoughby married Marianne, he would not have gotten anything. Hence, he marries a woman who brings a huge amount of property for him. 

In this novel, we repeatedly see that both men and women who got married thought seriously about money and wealth. The writer beautifully elaborated this matter through Willoughby. Out of greed for money, he married the daughter of a rich businessman and became unhappy in his later years. On the other hand, many parents want their daughters to marry rich men. However, Elinor and Marianne were exceptional. Both of them gave love and affection more priority, for which they became happy. Jane Austen did not say how much Marianne became happy, but there is no doubt that Marianne’s husband, Colonel Brandon, is a good person, and he truly loved Marianne with all her heart. 

The social reality Jane Austen depicted in her novel clearly reveals that women's condition in England was not so good. They were under immense pressure all the time. That is not the condition of present-day England. Now, women in England have more freedom, and at the same time, girls get an equal inheritance in their parents’ property. So, there is no doubt that the condition of England has changed a lot in 200 years. 

A new variety of rice that can produce five crops from one plant

Normally, farmers get only one harvest by planting a paddy once, but now if it is planted once, farmers can harvest five crops throughout the year. Though it sounds unbelievable, such a variety of paddy has been developed by Abed Chaudhury, an Australian expatriate rice researcher and geneticist. Experimental cultivation of this variety of paddy took place at Kanihati village in Hajipur Union under Kulaura Upazila of Moulvibazar district. This paddy variety gives a high yield at a low cost. However, the yield in the later crops is slightly less than in the first crop. But the inventor has claimed that the cumulative production is more than five times higher than traditional rice plants. 

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Abed Chaudhury, who was born in Kanihati village of Kulaura Upazila, moved to Australia with a job after finishing his higher education in agriculture in the United States of America. He spent 20 years doing research on rice genes as the chief rice scientist at the Australian National Rice Research Institute. So far, he has invented almost 300 new varieties of rice. In December 2010, he started researching on 20 varieties of rice in a 25-square-meter cornfield in Kanihati village. Of these, there were foreign varieties such as Chinese paddy, Philippine paddy as well as local varieties.

According to Abed Chaudhury, one paddy plant is giving a yield in four varieties five times. Research on these four varieties has been going on for 10 years. In January this year, these four varieties of Boro paddy were planted on two bighas of land. An adequate amount of urea fertilizer was applied. After proper irrigation and care, plants reaching 85 centimeters to one meter in 110 days bore crops. Later, the paddy was intentionally cut at a height of 35 centimeters from the ground.

In early May, the first harvested crop was produced four tons per hector. Since then, after every 45 days, the yield per hector is from two tons to three tons. All varieties yielded 16 tons per hector.

Scientist Abed Chaudhury said that the varieties were developed by employing two methods. Various high-yielding varieties with local varieties and local hybrid varieties with local varieties have been hybridized. About 10–12 years ago, these were identified as suitable for yielding a second or third time.

He said that usually paddy is planted once and is harvested after 120 days. Boro, Aush and Aman paddies are grown in such a manner. The varieties that I developed were planted as Boro at the beginning of the year. This was followed by a Boro, two Aush and two Aman. Every time we harvested the crop and took it home, the plants grew bigger. This is a landmark result. This time the paddy will be harvested for the fifth time and the plants will be left on the field. Research will be done to get more yields from this plant.

Regarding the five-yield paddy, Abed Chaudhury said, “Earlier, I developed another variety of rice. I also developed a rice variety that is harvested twice; the international media called it ‘Rice Twice’. Many called it ‘Extended life rice.’ This is the first time another variety of rice, which I created, remained in the field throughout the year. The seed of this paddy is to be planted at a distance of 5 cm. As a result, the plant can grow steadily from the soil with a strong stem and more paddy plants can grow from one paddy plant.”

Dr. Mirza Mofazzal Islam, the newly appointed Director General at Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA), an internationally renowned scientist and agriculturalist, stated that it is possible to yield four times in a paddy plant in regeneration method. But it is difficult to get five yields from one paddy.  For this reason, it is not so profitable. It will be more profitable for the farmer to plant other crops. It is better to have the maximum yield twice in one plant. More researches can now be done to increase the yield in this method. 

Sense and Sensibility: Justification of title

Sense and Sensibility is one of the most important works of Jane Austen. It was published in 1811, and it basically tells the story of two sisters named Elinor and Marianne. The novel narrates the events of their lives. They lived in South West England, and the events are thought to be taken place between 1792 and 1797. The central characters of this novel are two sisters. Elinor represents sense and Marianne represents sensibility. 

However, we all need to know the meaning of these two words ‘Sense’ and ‘Sensibility’. Obviously, the meaning of ‘Sensibility’ in the 18th century England is very different from that of our age. In our age, ‘Sensibility’ means wisdom or slowness and stability, but in this title, the word has a negative connotation. On the other hand, Jane Austen uses the word ‘Sense’ in a positive sense, and the word sense means slow, steady, calm. Sensibility, on the other hand, implies someone who is emotional and very hot-headed. Elinor symbolizes sense. She is a very calm and steady-minded woman. Not only because she is the eldest of the three sisters, she is very calm and polite and thinks about everything. She does not fall in head over heels love for anyone. Even after falling in love, she does not lose her wisdom. She calmly accepts her heartbreak. At least, she does not reveal her thoughts to everyone. Elinor Dashwood fell in love with Edward Ferrars and when Edward Ferrars was forced to leave her, she was emotionally traumatized but did not let others understand. 

What we understand by looking at Elinor or what Jane Austen wanted to show is that sense is a bit boring and dull. Just because someone has sense does not mean that he is a happy person. Neither it ensures happiness in life. Elinor fell in love with Edward but loses him unfortunately. In the end, she gets Edward, but she did not apply any tricks or tactics. What happened was that Lucie Steele, the girl Edward was supposed to marry, eloped with his brother and married him. 

On the other hand, younger sister Marianne represents sensibility. She always remains excited and expresses her emotion in front of everyone spontaneously. Marianne falls in love with John Willoughby. John Willoughby looked very handsome and knew a lot about literature and culture. However, he was a cunning and ill-natured person. Marianne is attracted to him easily and never realizes that John Willoughby is a fraud. John Willoughby cheats on her and leaves her to marry a rich girl. As a result, Marianne Dashwood’s heart is broken and she becomes very ill. 

Through Marianne Dashwood, Jane Austen wanted to show that girls should not be that much sensible. It may seem very attractive to men or lively to the eyes of society, but this type of sensibility or the kind of sensible Marianne was can bring extreme danger in a woman’s life. So, Jane Austen wanted to show through the life of Marianne that women should be as calm as possible because the reality is when a man and a woman fall in love, it is the woman who is in a vulnerable position. Had they engaged in physical intercourse, then Marianne would have become pregnant and it would destroy her life. When they broke up without having any physical relationship, Marianne almost died of an illness. On the other hand, John Willoughby marries a much richer girl in the lure of money. 

At the end of the novel, Jane Austen wanted to show that sense triumphed over sensibility. It is because Elinor becomes happy, but we do not come to know if Marianne becomes happy or unhappy. Marianne eventually marries Colonel Brandon whom she once considered too old to be married. So, Marianne learns from her elder sister’s life and develops some sense in herself. 

From the above discussion, it can be said that the title of the novel Sense and Sensibility is very suitable for it represents the lives of two sisters, and the writer gave both these equal importance. Jane Austen, through various events, beautifully described sense and sensibility. 

Harmful effects of smartphones on children

Suppose you have visited a place or been to a concert. Do you get busy taking photos there? Or, do you start counting likes after uploading a photo on your social media account? Many people even lose their minds if they do not get enough ‘likes’ on their posts.

Scientists have named such an addiction to smartphones as “NOMOPHOBIA”. Many people suffer from this problem. Such an excessive addiction to smartphones is creating physical and mental problems alongside decreasing our productivity and creativity. 

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There is no way to deny that smartphone has made our lives easier and in some ways better. Thanks to the smartphone, many official tasks can now be done very easily from anywhere. Such examples are not rare. But when we become too much addicted to smartphones then it becomes a burden for us. We spend hours after hours without any reason.

Let us take a look at some statistics:

BankMyCell, a price comparison site, and The Guardian have published some statistics, which clearly indicate that we are going to face a serious problem.

·         Users check their smartphones 47 times on an average per day, which means they check their smartphones 17,155 times in a year. The number of touches or clicks per day is almost 2700 times.

·         85% of smartphone users use their devices while chatting with family and friends.

·         80% of smartphone users use smartphones in bed before going to sleep.

·         Users of the 18-29 years age group spend three hours on smartphones on an average per day.

This smartphone addiction is not only wasting our valuable time but also causing many physical and mental illnesses. Numerous researches have been conducted on this issue. Researchers showed that smartphone addiction reduces emotion among people, increases anger and frustration and causes insomnia.

A survey conducted in the UK showed that parents’ excessive usage of smartphones has negative impacts on family life. Children are the biggest victims of this addiction. Tablet For School, a UK-based nonprofit organization, reported that smart device addiction reduced sleep among children. Research conducted by a group of American researchers revealed that smartphone addiction hinders their mental development. It is even affecting their social and family life.

Excessive use of smartphones can cause poor vision and myopia or poor eyesight. According to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, blue light from a smartphone screen can cause permanent damage to the retina and push it towards blindness.

Ear problems caused smartphones depend on user's habits. Listening to music at a loud volume using headphones affects the inner ear cells and causes an abnormal attitude in the brain. There is a risk of becoming deaf at some point.

Despite knowing the dangers of the excessive use of a smartphone, many conscious parents are giving smartphones to their children for spending time. Due to the availability of the internet, many children and teenagers are spending their time on social media and playing video games online. Many people are becoming completely addicted to these. For this reason, they are spending six to ten hours a day or more on smartphones. It is creating depression, loss of appetite, exhaustion and also causing harm to their studies. The excessive use of smartphones is having a negative impact on children’s mental health.

Smartphone addiction is as dangerous as drug addiction. A two-minute-long phone call causes hyperactivity in the brains of the children, which lasts in their brain for the next one hour.

The risk of heart attack increases double. The nerve of the user becomes weak. The mood becomes irritable. Blood pressure rises. The body gradually becomes tired and dull; even it disrupts sleep regularly. Radiation from the screen of a smartphone is harmful to the health of adults. It is even more harmful to children. It hampers the development of their brain.

Parents will have to play an important role to stop the excessive use of mobile phones. It is possible to reduce the tendency of children to become addicted to smartphones by giving them time, developing the habit of reading books, motivating them to do creative work, etc.

A smartphone is more than just an electronic device that allows two or more people who are geographically separated to communicate with one another. Rather, its additional features and latest technologies have made it more than a talking machine. Aside from the usual functions, smartphones can now be used to listen to FM radio, play music, take photographs, videos, send voice messages, and so on. We should ensure the proper use of our smartphones and keep them beyond the reach of the young people in our family. Thus, kids will stay out of the influence of smartphones.

Use of imagery in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is the best poem written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. It is a long but highly enjoyable text in English literature and is read by hundreds of thousands of students around the world. This poem has remained alive since it was first published and is one of the most famous poems in English literature. In this poem, the poet S.T. Coleridge has used imagery extensively, and throughout the poem, we can find very good and skilled use of imagery. As a result of this skill of S.T. Coleridge, this poem has become even more enjoyable, and very few poems contain such artistic and grand skill of using imagery at the highest level. “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is the poem that has brought immortality to S.T. Coleridge in the history of English literature.

At times, the images used in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” are strikingly visual. “A painted ship upon a painted ocean” - when we think of these few words from this poem, we can easily imagine the ship in the ocean. The ship is colorful just like the ocean and the description is beautiful.

Coleridge has used sound images too. For example, “cracked and growled” and again when just read these three words aloud, we feel a kind of image that becomes alive in our mind.

Coleridge has drawn extensively from the Bible while using examples in this poem. “Albatross dies by a cross-bow, I beheld a something in the sky, were casting dice,” these are related to the Bible, and there is a Christian moral tone in the poem. There is the issue of crime, punishment and redemption, and God is forgiving. The main message of Jesus Christ is forgiveness, and this forgiveness has been used in a good way by Coleridge in the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”. Coleridge was a scholar, and he studied the Bible very well.

We have seen concrete images described above, but Coleridge was good at using abstract images too. “Fear at my heart”- these four words clearly helped the readers to remember their own experiences from life about fear. The poem has some supernatural elements, and these supernatural elements have been used in a very good way with the use of images. In fact, supernatural elements have been made possible by providing good descriptions and using good images by Coleridge.

The use of imagery in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by S. T. Coleridge often helps a reader to remember the relationship between nature and super nature. Coleridge has shown the supernatural things in a very natural way, and the images often helped him a lot to do the thing.

Perhaps any discussion about the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” will remain incomplete without talking about nature. Although Coleridge has an almost opposite and contrasting view with William Wordsworth about the role of nature in human life, he has described nature in a very good way. At times, his description of nature in “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” clearly reminds us of his place as a great poet in English literature. There is a relationship between humans and nature, and “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” shows us that we cannot totally get separated from nature. We have to respect nature, and we have to love the creatures of God. To give this message, Coleridge has often used clear and concrete images like the albatross hanging on the neck of the ancient mariner. Dead men walking on the ship, and there was water everywhere, but the ancient mariner could not drink anything. All these things have a clear impact on the mind of readers, and the readers can easily imagine them in their minds.

By using images skillfully, Coleridge has created a relationship between the poem and the readers. The readers are constantly not only reading but also imagining. Poetry is the faculty of knowledge that should make our mind sharper, and by using imagery so skillfully, Coleridge has exactly done this in the poem “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner”.