-The Indian Express Most of the dynamism of the Indian economy comes from its states. They must be given more room to chart their growth trajectories In the euphoria surrounding the election results, it is tempting to avoid facing up to the harsh realities of making development happen. Even for those who characterise the election as "the dawn after the dusk", in the new light of day, India's development challenges remain essentially...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Top cardiologists of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here have decided to start an initiative called the Society for Less Investigative Medicine (SLIM) - a movement that aims to take on the growing menace of excessive medical investigations, starting with cardiology. Several studies across the world have conclusively established that generalized annual health check-ups are unnecessary and add enormously to healthcare costs without...

-The Business Standard   Unlike consumer prices, wholesale inflation provides little comfort If the consumer price index (CPI) numbers for May, released last week, provided some comfort about softening inflation, the wholesale price index (WPI) numbers for the same month, released on Monday, did just the opposite. Headline inflation went up from 5.2 per cent year on year in April to six per cent in May, the highest, by a whisker, since December....

-BBC   It's early morning and local commuters are queuing up for tickets at the Kirti Nagar railway station in the Indian capital, Delhi. Along the tracks, another crowd is gathering - each person on his own, separated by a modest distance. They are among the 48% of Indians who do not have access to proper sanitation. Coming from a slum close-by, they squat among the few trees and bushes along the railway tracks...

-The Indian Express   The Himalayas need special policy attention, given their strategic importance and unique vulnerabilities   The fifth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicted increased global warming, with a 1.5-2.0 degree rise in surface temperature by the end of the 21st century. This will not only make coastal regions vulnerable to sea-level rise but also make the sensitive Himalayan ecosystem more vulnerable. The increase in temperature will...