It's official now. At the primary healthcare level, there is no difference in the performance of MBBS doctors with five-and-a-half years' training and non-physician clinicians with three years' training who have been called "legal quacks" by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). This has been demonstrated through a study conducted in Chhattisgarh that compared the performance of different types of clinical care providers at the primary care level. Following the controversy...

India has discussed the possibility of ethanol production with Brazil during the current visit of the Indian Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to the South American giant. A press release issued here by the agriculture ministry Tuesday said that the minister held bilateral meetings with his Brazilian counterpart, Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply Wagner Rossi. 'Both sides discussed the matters of mutual interest including the possibilities of cooperation in production of...

The goal of food for all can be achieved only through sustained efforts in producing, saving and sharing foodgrains. The Supreme Court of India has rendered great service by arousing public, professional and political concern about the co-existence of rotting grain mountains and mounting hungry mouths. In several African countries hunger is increasing because food is either not available in the market, or is too expensive for the poor. Food inflation...

KEY TRENDS   • Maternal Mortality Ratio for India was 370 in 2000, 286 in 2005, 210 in 2010, 158 in 2015 and 145 in 2017. Therefore, the MMRatio for the country decreased by almost 61 percent between 2000 and 2017 *14    • As per the NSS 71st round, among rural females aged 5-29 years, the main reasons for dropping out/ discontinuance were: engagement in domestic activities, not interested in education, financial constraints and marriage. Among rural males aged...

A conflict has risen between the National Advisory Council (NAC), chaired by Ms Sonia Gandhi, and the rural development ministry over the time-frame for completing the BPL census. NAC members N C Saxena and Harsh Mander, in particular, want the head count to be completed by September 2011. The rural development ministry has ruled out the possibility of conducting the census of BPL cardholders within such a short duration. It...