In the previous news alert, we looked at the under-nutrition problem in the Bundelkhand region in terms of 3 indicators -- proportion of children under 5 years who are stunted (height-for-age); proportion of children under 5 years who are wasted (weight-for-height); and proportion of children under 5 years who are underweight (weight-for-age). However, the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) data also indicates that severe under-nutrition like severe wasting and anaemia among...

-Livemint.com/ HowIndiaLives.com Even as it presses for market reforms in agriculture, the Centre has been actively using the basket of schemes wholly funded by it to widen the social security net for farmers. Expect that to continue in the coming Budget In 2016, the BJP-led government set itself the target to double farmers’ INComes by 2022. An inter-ministerial committee set up to recommend strategies to meet this target highlighted seven sources of...

-NDTV.com The Supreme Court directed the centre to formulate a national model scheme for community kitchens, in consultation with states and other stakeholders New Delhi: The Supreme Court has told the centre to give latest data on the number of people who died due to starvation in the country and frame a national model scheme to combat hunger. During a hearing today, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India NV Ramana...

-The New Indian Express Experts say intervention needed as cases of abuse rose in lockdown CHENNAI: With schools shut and children confined to their houses, activists are concerned about kids’ safety. This is because the number of child sexual harassment cases in Tamil Nadu INCreased during the previous lockdown. Though schools are closed, teachers should regularly interact with students and enquire about their well-being, these activists say. “The number of sexual harassment cases...

-NDTV.com The revised COVID-19 treatment guidelines spelt out the conditions for mild, moderate and severe disease. New Delhi: Doctors should avoid giving steroids to COVID-19 patients, the government has said in its revised clinical guidelines for coronavirus treatment, days after its task force chief expressed regret for the overuse of the drug during the second wave. The revised guidelines said that drugs like steroids can INCrease the risk of a secondary infection like...