-The Telegraph Guwahati: Union minister of chemical and fertilizers Ananth Kumar announced here today that the Centre would set up generic medicine units in at least 100 government hospitals in Assam and supply such medicines at 50 to 60 per cent less than the market price. "We will sign a memorandum of understanding with the state government next week and Rs 2.5 lakh will be spent on construction of each unit in...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Union agriculture ministry is probing the circumstances under which a senior government scientist purportedly tried to malign vaccines used to protect livestock from foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks that can threaten India's milk yields. An expert panel from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research has told the agriculture ministry that Bhoj Raj Singh, a microbiologist at an ICAR research centre, has "caused damage" to the reputation of India's foot-and-mouth...

-The Hindu The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employee Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) has generated more rural employment than any other government scheme or private initiative in the history of independent India. At the same time, it has also generated a great deal of controversy over its merits and demerits. It would be fair to say that the policy establishment in the country right now is not favourably disposed towards the MGNREGA, with the...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: As online shopping catches up, you could buy medicines too with a click of the mouse for which the health ministry is evaluating a proposal. The drug Quality regulator is framing guidelines and mechanism to monitor such sale. The proposal is expected to be taken up for discussion in the drugs consultative committee meeting next month, a senior regulatory official said. At present, the Drugs & Cosmetics...

-The Hindu The Modi government is determined to dismantle the two-pronged welfare paradigm. It is now an established fact that one area where the Narendra Modi administration has acted with a sense of purpose, urgency and resolve is in slashing social expenditure. Be it education, health, agriculture, livelihood security, food security, panchayati raj institutions, drinking water or the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes sub-plan, central government funds earmarked for social protection have been cut. The...