-Economic and Political Weekly The National Democratic Alliance government has constituted the IPR Think Tank which, among other things, is to draft the National Intellectual Property Rights Policy. India may not have a policy per se but it has a strong legislation on IPRs, a functioning patents office and mechanisms to grant patents as well as protect consumer interests. The Think Tank has other issues it needs to address, but is...

-The Hindu Over 95 per cent of patients coming to super-speciality hospitals are at the wrong place and have incurred hardships when they could have been treated at their neighbourhood primary care centre. A number of announcements have been made by the Central and State governments on their intent to offer Universal Health Care (UHC). These welcome developments are timely as India is now rapidly becoming one of the few countries that...

-DNA India's rising affluence and water profligacy could trigger a food crisis very soon At first blush, there is a lot to be cheerful about. India's index of industrial production has resumed its climb. Stalled projects are being dusted and revived. There is a good chance that employment figures, too, will begin rising by the end of the next quarter. Then there is more good news. Per capital GDP (Gross Domestic Product)...

-The Hindu Business Line Report lauds rapid progress in health Indicators, especially in Maharashtra India is making rapid strides in overcoming the problem of malnutrition, with the number of stunted children under the age of five declining by over 10 million, says a ‘Global Nutrition Report'. The "first-ever comprehensive narrative on global health and country-level progress toward reducing malnutrition", brought out by a consortium of nations, organisations, researchers, and academics, covers each of...

-The Hindu Business Line   The Open Government Data initiative is gaining ground, but it needs to be in step with the Central Information Commission Open government data (OGD) is fashionable. Governments and public institutions in Europe and other parts of the globe are making increasing numbers of datasets available to the public by means of national, regional, local or thematic portals, in keeping with their political commitments towards open government and open...