If India is becoming a favourite destination for clinical trials, Maharashtra is the hub with Mumbai and Pune accounting for the largest number of clinical trials in the country. Maharashtra alone accounted for well over a quarter of all the clinical trials registered with the clinical trials registry of India till 2010. A study of the trials recorded in the registry, done by the Centre for Studies in Ethics and...

Kerala Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan on Tuesday announced a comprehensive package for relief and remediation of victims of the Endosulfan pesticide in the State. The package includes higher pensions, special education, housing, drinking water supply, rehabilitation, training and employment. Debt relief to the victims' families would also be considered. Mr. Achuthanandan made the announcement after a conference of officials, people's representatives and non-governmental organisations convened to discuss the plight of...

Report reveals the need to reach target levels of coverage for life-saving interventions India has the highest number of pneumonia-related deaths in the world Only three countries reported coverage above the target level of 90 per cent for any vaccine Pneumonia, which is the world's leading infectious killer among children, claims the lives of nearly 1.6 million children under five every year, with more than 3,70,000 or nearly one-quarter of deaths occurring in...

The rail track passing through forest areas in different parts of the country, including Walayar on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border, have become a death trap for the wildlife, particularly elephants. Though a hue and cry is raised every time a tragedy strikes, the deaths of a large number of wild elephants in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Assam and West Bengal remain a burning issue. The recent incidents of train hits in these...

Epidemic declared in Rajnandgaon and Bilaspur districts; 10 dead in Bilaspur State health officials have confirmed the outbreak of a malaria epidemic in Chhattisgarh's Rajnandgaon and Bilaspur districts. While the neighbouring districts of Durg and Koriya have also reported a spurt in malaria cases, officials have embarked on a State-wide intervention programme to contain the disease. Health Secretary Vikas Sheel said 10 people had died of falciparum malaria in Bilaspur thus far,...