-Down to Earth   India's first PM born after Independence will face the old problem of poverty eradication India may have its first post-Independence-born prime minister this June. But what difference would it make in terms of the country's development agenda? How will the new prime minister face the challenges that have been there since before Independence? Or, what are the developmental challenges the new prime minister may find difficult to address? Arguably,...

-The Indian Express   Political parties must do more than just pay lip service to universal healthcare in their election manifestos. The governance of the public health sector has become more complex than we imagine. To improve overall health, the sector will have to coordinate and collaborate with other sectors, nationally and regionally, and with several stakeholders. There is no sector that does not have an impact (positive or negative) on public health. What...

-Economic and Political Weekly   What explains the erosion of support for the ruling combine at a time of rising human development indices? Ten years is long enough for an elected government to lose public faith and the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has done much, both in acts of omission and commission, to ensure a steady erosion of support among the electorate. Large-scale corruption, the incompetence of the government in handling many important...

-The New Indian Express There are two well-known sayings about statistics. One is that they are like a bikini, for what they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital. Another quote is: lies, damned lies and statistics. Both of them are perhaps applicable to the latest figures released by the Union ministry of health and family welfare, for they show that Life expectancy in India has gone up by...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: If your child was born in the last couple of years, he or she is likely to live five years more than children born a decade ago. Statistics released by the Union ministry of health and family welfare show that Life expectancy in India has gone up by five years, from 62.3 years for males and 63.9 years for females in 2001-2005 to 67.3 years and 69.6...