-The Hindu The absence of state accountability is at the core of issues facing tribal communities The Report of the High Level Committee on Socio-Economic, Health and Educational Status of Tribal Communities of India, under the chairmanship of sociologist Virginius Xaxa, was circulated last week. The 431-page report details the situation of tribal communities: Scheduled Tribes, de-notified tribes and particularly vulnerable tribal communities. Taking on board the findings and demands of social...

-Economic and Political Weekly The key to improving the quality of healthcare services in India and reducing costs at the same time can be found by enacting legislation which lays down minimum standards of patient care. In the absence of such standards and the reluctance of health insurance companies to standardise either price or quality, healthcare services continue to be expensive and of doubtful quality. Developing standards of patient care by...

-The Hindu MHA says it will not compromise on national interest After taking action against the international environment group Greenpeace, the government has clamped down on four American NGOs working in the same field - Avaaz, Bank Information Centre (BIC), Sierra Club and 350.org. Over the past month, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to stop all foreign funding into the accounts of these NGOs...

-The Hindu The policy also makes denial of health care an offence The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has suggested making health a fundamental right, similar to education. This key proposal in the draft National Health Policy, 2015, suggests making denial of health an offence. Thirteen years after the previous health policy, the draft, now in the public domain for stakeholders' suggestions and comments, has addressed the issues of universal...

-The Hindustan Times Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh is the worst place to be born in India - and it has been so for more than a decade. For 11th year in a row, the state has registered the highest infant mortality rate in the country, says the latest Sample Registration System report for 2013 released on Sunday by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India. Infant mortality rate is the number of deaths...