-The Hindu The World Health Organisation (WHO) has put in place a mechanism to define counterfeit medical products. The set of definitions of sub-standard, spurious, falsely labelled, falsified and counterfeit products will be globally accepted and help to bring about uniformity in identifying such drugs, without interrupting worldwide supplies. The decision to establish a member state mechanism was taken at the World Health Assembly, the WHO's policymaking body, at a meeting held recently. The...

-The Economic Times At a time when the government is desperately trying to take growth to remote tribal-dominated areas, it has found that a key link in the chain - voluntary organisations - has been malfunctioning. Random surveys, conducted by the tribal affairs ministry, have unearthed how over the years NGOs had been getting grants from the Centre for tribal welfare and the money was being misused to make private residences.  The...

-The Hindustan Times The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probing the multi-crore National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scam on Saturday registered a fresh case relating to selective appointment of more than 100 chief medical officers (CMOs) in 72 districts of Uttar Pradesh. The appointments — in total disregard of rules — were made by then ministers Babu Singh Kushwaha and Anant Kumar Mishra in collusion with private contractors to ensure that...

-The Telegraph Dispur has decided to provide free treatment to children below 12 years who are suffering from blood cancer or leukaemia. Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma today said Dispur was working on the project and hoped to launch it on Independence Day. He told this correspondent that considering the huge cost of treatment for leukaemia, the government was also considering free treatment for adults below poverty line and subsidised rates for those...

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA)'s plan to introduce a Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism for 13 items of minor forest produce (MFP) has been approved by the Planning Commission. Sources in the Ministry told The Hindu that a detailed financial proposal would be sent to the Expenditure Finance Committee of the Finance Ministry by June 7 after which it would go to the Cabinet. Union Minister Kishore Chandra Deo, who...