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Aim. The study aims to evaluate the government policy implementation in tackling the global pandemic and framing universal policies for responsible governance. It also measures the impact of training interventions and non-training implications in containing the spread of COVID-19 at the grassroots level. Methods. The samples were drawn empirically from pathological tests conducted over 23 weeks to precisely examine the success of the State Government's approach in lowering COVID-19 mortality and spread. Through trend analysis, the outcome has been predicted. The study establishes a link between acknowledged ideas and government practices, providing insight into how relevant the implementation of planned state-craft programs is. Results. The findings indicated that government-imposed policies account for timely pandemic containment, and even a tiny developing state lacking advanced medical facilities and technology can set an example in combating the epidemic. Conclusions. The temporal analysis is based on the inputs acquired from government publications and other sources, allowing us to assess policy initiatives that encompass training interventions and non-training implications as prioritized by the State Government. The paper shows that a good emergency preparedness and response system is needed to prevent huge losses in any sector. This includes the already-struggling health sector, which India needs to put first to avoid more tragedies.

Diversification into horticulture has become the primary source of livelihood for smallholders. The study analyses trends, theories, settings, constructions, research methods, and findings based on Keynes’ “confidence theory”, the absolute income hypothesis, and the human development index. Using the Theory, Constructs, Characteristics, and Methodology (TCCM) framework, the paper offers a Systematic Literature Review of 67 scholarly research papers with fifty or more citations published between 2000 and 2021 in EBSCO, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases. The study advocates that a Cold Chain must be considered with the intervention of contract farming, government, cooperative or farmer-producer organisations to reap maximum benefits from horticultural production during the off-and-on seasons rather than selling to opportunistic intermediaries. The study also has important implications for future researchers and policy-makers but, most importantly, offers motivation to the investors for safe investment decisions in the cold chain infrastructure development for higher returns to producers cutting across their geographical, sociological, or economic contexts.

Aim. Before COVID-19, training institutions rarely used eLearning to improve Elected Representatives' (ERs) skills in rural development who come from vernacular social and academic backgrounds. Online education has numerous upsides, but there is always some controversy about whether or not every learner will benefit from the same approach. The study was conducted in Tripura, a North-Eastern state of India, examine the efficacy of online training among the ERs responsible for extending the rural local government services to the common people. Methods. This study utilised the qualitative technique of focus group discussion to acquire a comprehensive grasp of the positive and negative opinions of ERs regarding their experiences with online training. Samples were collected from all the districts and all three tiers of rural government. Results. The study is a pioneering work to evaluate views of ERs on e-learning. Lack of technical support, boredom in training sessions, and lack of allowances for internet use, transportation to headquarters for training, and refreshments contributed the trainees' negative experiences. Further, training materials were poorly presented and failed to convey the intended message. Conclusions. This study will enable trainers, administrators, and policymakers to reengineer their andragogic structures of future grassroots online training programmes for higher efficacy. ERs dislike e-learning, and government regulations that favour classroom instruction worsen this issue. Policy initiatives to reconcile demand and supply, such as high-quality capacity building for Rural Local Bodies (RLBs) ERs with vernacular academics, are needed to achieve practical results.