-The Times of India New Delhi: Worried that the recent gang-rape and suicide of an ASHA worker in Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh can jeopardise its ambitious health plans, the Centre has asked states to take proactive measures to ensure security of healthcare workers. The health ministry has suggested states to set up a complaint committee or cell headed by a woman as per Vishaka guidelines in every healthcare facility. Besides, states have also...

Seldom rural citizens get the chance to meet high-level officials who are responsible for delivery of public services and implement pro-poor schemes. But this was made possible thanks to the Accountability Yatra, which is taking place in Rajasthan since December 2015.   It is indeed a rare opportunity to find a District Education Officer (DEO) being asked directly by a simple villager in a public meeting that in how many school...

-PTI The bench also asked the Centre to collect and collate information from drought-hit states on the status of welfare schemes like MGNREGA, National Food security and mid-day meal. The Supreme Court on Monday came down heavily on certain states for not implementing welfare legislation National Food security Act, saying that why a state like Gujarat is not implementing the law passed by Parliament. “What is Parliament doing? Is Gujarat not a...

-Economic and Political Weekly Health and nutrition indicators have improved, but remain unacceptably low. After a hiatus of a decade, we now have up-to-date information on the health and nutrition status of the population. Preliminary results for 13 states and two union territories of the much awaited National Family Health Survey–4 (NFHS–4) which was conducted in 2015–16—the first after NFHS–3 of 2005–06—have just been released. In a welcome development, NFHS–4, for the...

-PTI Mobile phone production in India has reached 100 million with leading companies setting up their manufacturing base in the country, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Saturday. “Today, I am happy to announce that in December, Rs. 1.14 lakh crore investment has come in electronic manufacturing in India. “We have attracted around 15 new mobile plants.” “Earlier in 2014, 68 million (mobile phones) were being manufactured and now 100 million are...