-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 The programme needs to retain the momentum of a movement than that of a litter-cleaning project "Slum districts... consisted of poorly built houses, a deficiency of ventilation and toilets, unpaved narrow streets, mud, and stomach-turning stenches due to the presence of decaying refuse and sewerage. In such conditions, ill health was observably endemic." This is not a description of Indian cities today (though it may well be), but of Britain around...

-FirstPost.com Uncertainty over the supply of subsidised foodgrain to over 19 lakh families in Assam whose livelihoods are linked to work in the tea gardens is threatening to not only spark dissent among workers but has got the industry leaders worried. To understand the impact, consider the case of Deepak Daori and Monica Daori - both workers at Mokalbari Tea Estate in Dibrugarh district. "We are worried that the our monthly ration might...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Cancer is thought to be the great leveler. Whether you are an Indian or a Korean or Icelander, cancer will bring death. But a massive study of 26 million cancer patients over 15 years has shown that survival rates in the 10 most prevalent types of cancer vary hugely across countries. Survival rates in India are quite low for most types of cancer, less than...

-The Times of India PATNA: Though Bihar has witnessed a steady decline in neonatal mortality rate (NMR) in recent years, it accounts for second highest total number of neonatal deaths in India. With NMR at 28, the state accounts for 11 per cent neonatal deaths in the country. NMR is defined as death of infants (within one month of birth) per 1,000 live births. Incidentally, every year around 30 lakh live births...