-Hindustan Times The Centre has decided to slash its share of funds in about 18 social sector schemes including flagship education programme Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) in a cutback that has been criticised by states. The central government and states would contribute equally for programmes such as SSA, Rashtriya Uchchtar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) and Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), a departure from the previous 65%-35% formula. Sources said the department of economic affairs...

-The Hindu Rescuing Maternal and Child Health-only systems, which have become under-resourced and have built a very high-cost but low-performance culture, will be a challenging task. Given the rising burden of non-communicable diseases, there is an increasing demand to build health systems that can address these concerns. However, given how large the unfinished agenda of the Millennium Development Goals is, the Indian government has chosen to stay focussed on Maternal and Child...

-PTI Nearly half of the infant deaths are tied to malnutrition, and 45 per cent occur during the first 28 days of life. Houston: Nearly 5.9 million children will die before their fifth birthday this year mainly of preventable causes, a UN report has warned, though the child mortality rate has fallen by more than 50 per cent since 1990. The mortality rate among children under five has fallen from 12.7 million...

-Economic and Political Weekly The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has made public the National Health Policy 2015 Draft for discussion. The draft is more exhaustive and better organised in its coverage compared to the National Health Policy of 2002. It touches upon contemporary issues of concern, including the rapid emergence of chronic non-communicable diseases. From the latest available evidence, issues crucial to tackling chronic illness in India are discussed. Subrata...

-Tehelka Tired of importing toxic vegetables from Tamil Nadu, Kerala seems to have started a movement in organic vegetable farming It seems vegetables have taken over from water in the ongoing rift between the south Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Having waged a relentless war over the sharing of water from the colonial Mullaperiyar dam for over three decades, the two states have now locked horns over the Quality...