-Financial Express If patents continue to determine global access to vaccines and drugs, then fighting Covid-19 will remain a distant dream for most countries Vaccines are badly required by the world, as are drugs like Remdesivir and Tocilizumab, and medical equipment like ventilators and oxygen concentrators. A large number of countries, particularly low- and middle-income ones, are struggling to access vaccines, drugs and equipment. There cannot be a more important occasion than the...

-Hindustan Times A rapid and universal vaccination programme is essential to control a surge of this magnitude and time is of the essence — for the virus is not standing still The second wave of Covid-19 is overwhelming India. The official death toll is already inching towards 250,000, but this is almost surely a vast underestimate, as the virus sweeps through rural India and kills many whose deaths will never be captured...

-Leaflet.in Analysing the data for COVID-19 prevalence rates, relative population sizes and vaccine coverage across Indian states, RAVI DUGGAL explains why India needs a better and more scientific vaccine disbursal policy, and how to rampantly boost our vaccine production capacity through compulsory Licensing. —- AS India enters the third phase of its ambitious COVID-19 vaccination drive, many state governments are reporting vaccine shortages and are having to close down some of their vaccination...

-The Hindu It’s the centenary year of amateur radio in the country Some collect stamps. Some coins. Many take to painting or gardening or making handicrafts. There are hundreds of hobbies that are pursued just for enjoyment. Amateur radio, or Ham as it is otherwise called, is a unique hobby. A big attraction is that it allows you to communicate from anywhere: from the top of a mountain or from home, or even...

Quite often it is argued by mainstream economists that a sizeable chunk of the Union Budget every year is wasted because the Government spends that on food and fertiliser subsidies. The burgeoning size of these two subsidies relative to the entire budget as well as the gross domestic product (GDP) is often used to build the argument that economic as well as environmental sustainability of the country is at stake...