The government is expected to notify new rules on food safety in December to regulate manufacture, sale and import of food items. “Ministry has already finalised the rules and regulations for the implementation of the food safety and standards act (FSSA), 2006 and the draft will be notified by December for the public consultation,” the Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Mr Ghu lam Nabi Azad told PTI. This will pave...

The report of the Javid Chowdhury Committee facilitated the resumption, in February 2010, of vaccine production in the three public sector units, one in Himachal Pradesh and the other two in Tamil Nadu. Javid Chowdhury, a former Health Secretary of the Government of India, recommended that the suspension of their licenses for manufacturing vaccines in 2008 should be revoked in the public interest and on the strength of the compliance...

Last month, leaders from 185 countries met in New York to take stock of progress in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) — which include, among other things, eradicating poverty and hunger, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health — that were set in 2000 by the United Nations. The aim was to achieve these goals by 2015. But 10 years down the line, the world is way behind targets in achieving...

In poll time, money is the real honey. Political sources shrugged off the detention of Congress MP Rama Chandra Khuntia at Patna airport yesterday for carrying Rs 12.5 lakh cash. The sources said cash, as with most elections, has been flowing freely in spite of the strict norms of the Election Commission. The BJP, which has often been accused of using money power to “influence” elections — Karnataka being a case in point...

Five years after Right to Information (RTI) Act came into existence, Information Commissioners feel that there should be more transparency in their appointments. A survey conducted by Parivartan , an NGO, among state and central Information Commissioners , the final appellate authorities for RTI Act grievances and complaints, has found that 66% of commissioners surveyed want a transparent selection process. The survey found that Information Commissioners had reservations about the...