A high maternal mortality ratio (MMRatio) indicates low status of women in the society apart from poor functioning of the health services delivery system. Recently released data by the Sample Registration System (SRS) bulletin indicates that for the country as a whole the MMRatio has steadily declined from 398.0 in 1997-98 to 122.0 in 2015-17, which is a fall by -69.3 percent. Table-1 shows that India's MMRatio was 398.0 in 1997-98,...

-Livemint.com * Outdated ideas of constructing dams and embankments have increased monsoon floods in India * The attempt to control rivers is the result of a British colonial hangover, even though western countries are moving away from dams In 13 States of India this year, the monsoon appeared in the form of floods. The same happened in the Terai region of Nepal, Karachi and the Neelum valley area in Pakistan, several low-lying districts...

-Down to Earth Minister Prakash Javadekar said draft created misconception among people The Union government was withdrawing the officers’ draft of the Indian Forest Act (IFA), 1927 amendment, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) Prakash Javadekar told reporters on November 15, 2019. Inspector General of Forests (Forest Policy) Noyal Thomas had sent a letter to all States on March 7 this year, seeking their comments on the first draft of the...

-The Indian Express Government has called for import of 1 lakh tonnes of onion to help control rising prices. What has been causing the increase in prices since May, and how far can the new move be expected to reverse the trend? Pune: LAST WEEK, Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, directed the state-owned trading corporation MMTC to import 1 lakh tonnes of onions to help ease...

-The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s advice to State governments to dismantle the Agricultural Produce Market Committees and move on to eNAM (electronic National Agriculture Market) has raised many eyebrows as the three-year-old nascent online platform is still facing teething troubles. Addressing the sixth World Congress on Rural and Agricultural Finance earlier this week, Sitharaman said, “I want to place emphasis on eNAM. We are trying to get the...