The agitation against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant can be seen as a case of activism gone berserk. The high-octane drama against the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) in Tamil Nadu has wound down. The seven-month-long agitation led by the People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) at Idinthakarai village in Tirunelveli district, demanding the closure of the ready-to-be commissioned project, ended on March 27 when S.P. Udayakumar, PMANE convener, called off...

A problem of plenty is looming as by June 1, an estimated 12 million tonnes of foodgrain will have to be stored in the open in "kutcha plinths" with a bountiful Rabi harvest and procurement of 65 million tonnes of grain boosting food stocks to record levels. With states like Madhya Pradesh - apart from the wheat baskets of Punjab and Haryana - delivering bonus yields, food stocks are expected to...

-The Hindu   The Centre's move to introduce an experimental universal health package in at least one district per State under the National Rural Health Mission, with access to free generic drugs, is a welcome measure. But the larger mission to provide free essential medicines to all citizens need not await the results of such pilot studies. It should be rolled out for poor and non-poor alike quickly. There is no time...

The Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council has suggested a complex combination of three pricing models to fix retail prices of 348 essential drugs to balance industry's concerns and public health. The proposal, however, has drawn the ire of drug makers who say it is a watered down version of the health ministry's proposals. The council has proposed that for medicines facing "insufficient competition" or a monopoly-like situation, the retail price should...

-The Times of India Nagaland Police allegedly used fictitious bills to withdraw Rs 4 crore for the procurement of 1,750 fire extinguishers, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India said in its annual report tabled in the recently-concluded Nagaland budget session. The report said that the government had sanctioned the funds under major heads-arms and ammunitions-on the basis of the proposal submitted by the office of DGP, Kohima. The office of...