-PTI   An elderly resident of Indore has alleged that her husband died in 2010 following a drug trial a government doctor conducted on him without his consent. The doctor in question, Salil Bhargava, denied that he was involved in any “illegal or unethical” drug trials. “We have carried out all the drug trials after getting due consent from the patients for which they were duly insured. We have all records with us in...

If last week’s DNA report on 12 cases of totally drug resistant (TDR) tuberculosis (TB) cases found in PD Hinduja hospital was alarming, there is more reason to worry. The Maharashtra State Anti-Tuberculosis Association affiliated to the directorate of health services at the Centre registered two TDR-TB cases in 2011. Officials from Sewri hospital, one of the largest TB hospitals in Asia, are also getting several TDR-TB cases. While the association lost...

 The Central Information Commission has ordered the Command Hospital to allow RTI applicant Kannan Nambiar to inspect certain records for as many as six hours. Chief Election Commissioner M L Sharma, who issued the directive last week, rejected the contentions of the Command Hospital for denying information to Nambiar under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Nambiar, a medical vendor, had shot in to limelight in December 2010 when on his...

The Bar Council of India (BCI) today announced that lawyers throughout the country would stay off court work on January 20 as a mark of protest against the new education super-regulator proposed by the central government. At a media conference here, chairperson Ashok K. Parija said the BCI had asked all state bar councils to register their protest in ways they “thought fit” but added that most had decided to “abstain...

Stavudine disfigures, affects peripheral nervous system permanently THE National AIDS Control Organisation in November procured in bulk anti-HIV drug stavudine, which is being phased out worldwide. NACO officials unofficially cite funds crunch for depending on the low-cost drug. Stavudine requires less monitoring of patients, they say. NACO provides free treatment to HIV/AIDS patients in the country. In 2010, the WHO had revised its HIV/AIDS treatment protocol and recommended countries to phase out...