-Down to Earth Pollution build up in recent days corresponded with peak traffic hours and freight movement The dense smog enveloping Delhi over the past few days lifted partially on November 6, but it may return with renewed vigour, as the factors causing it remain in force, warned Delhi non-profit Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). CSE has reviewed the magnitude and severity of the smog. Its researchers  say that while every winter,...

-The Times of India Private companies have hijacked the government's flagship scheme to provide food to poor children and their mothers, the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), with contractors in Maharashtra alone controlling Rs 1,000 crore worth of supplies in contravention of Supreme Court orders, a report of the SC commissioners office has said. The SC orders bar contractors from supplying rations under the scheme. It only permits village communities, self-help groups...

-The Indian Express A report submitted in the Supreme Court on Friday indicted the Maharashtra government and Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan over a “close nexus between politicians, contractors and bureaucrats,” facilitating extensive wrongdoings in supply of supplementary nutrition to children through the Central government-sponsored Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS). The report, prepared by the principal adviser to SC-appointed Commissioner Biraj Patnaik, also highlighted that in Uttar Pradesh, supply of supplementary nutrition has...

-The Hindu Health sector outlay tripled to Rs.3-lakh crore Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Saturday that the allocation for the health sector during the 12th Plan had been increased three times over the previous Plan allotment to address complex challenges. The outlay in the 12th Plan had been fixed at Rs. 3-lakh crore, which was 1.95 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product. During the last Plan period, the sector had got...

-The Indian Express Pune: A modest yet consistent decline in the infant mortality rate, especially in six problematic states, is one of the key features of the latest data from the Sample Registration System. Nationwide, the IMR has dropped by three points from 47 infant deaths per 1,000 live births to 44, according to the October 2012 SRS bulletin. It has dropped to 48 from 51 in rural areas , and...