-The Times of India PATNA: Bihar's average annual growth rate has been 12% in the last seven fiscal years, one of the highest among all Indian states, on the back of high growth rate achieved in the agriculture and allied sectors. Besides, advancement has also been made in healthcare and education. The state's Economic Survey Report for 2013-14, which was tabled in the assembly on Friday, has concluded this. The summary of...

-Down to Earth Advisory issued by health officials highlights complaints regarding excessive charges and delayed service To make private hospitals and nursing homes in Delhi more patient-friendly, the Aam Adami Party (AAP) government has issued a strict advisory to these establishments. It instructs all such establishments to display charges, compulsorily give primary aid in cases of emergency, and asks them to prescribe generic medicines. In the advisory issued on February 5, health officials...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: It is well known that quality of life greatly varies amongst different states within India. Some states have greater industrial or agricultural output, higher income levels, better educational and health indicators while others are still struggling with backwardness. But what is much less known is that within states too there are wide and astonishing variations. State level averages often hide huge and unconscionable disparity on...

-The Indian Express     Policy design should worry less about public versus private, and more about choice and accountability. The most noteworthy aspect of the Aam Aadmi Party's manifesto is the explicit focus on service delivery. This is what its government will be evaluated on, and attention has shifted from the AAP's political success to how it will deliver on these promises. The ideas below reflect learnings from over a decade of research...

-The Times of India Gujarat's much-touted Chiranjeevi Yojana, launched in 2006 to reduce maternal and infant mortality rates in BPL households, has not had any significant impact, says a new study by Duke University. The programme, which subsidizes the cost of delivery at designated private sector hospitals, has not led to increased probability of institutional child-delivery. Also, analyses of household expenditure of women who used the subsidized delivery scheme in private hospitals...