-The Hindu Says Central, State Governments have taken safety measures The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests and the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board have applied their mind in all clearances and statutorily passed various orders relating to the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP). There is no scope for the Madras High Court to presume that the orders are arbitrary, a Division Bench has held. Passing orders...

-The Hindu A 2012 WHO study ranks India third — behind Myanmar and Bangladesh — among countries that fail to provide health cover to people. A 2011 study reported in The Lancet on ‘Healthcare and equity’ confirms this: every year, at least 39 million people here fall into poverty due to private out-of-pocket health expenditure. A vast majority of Indians do not have access to healthcare or essential drugs. By the...

-PTI Bihar State Human Rights Commission today took suo motu cognizance of Reports in different newspapers about cases of removal of uteruses purportedly under Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna (RSBY). "They (the cases) do not appear to be sporadic incidents; rather they seem to have been done in a systematic manner as if they were the result of conspiracy and part of some racket. The Reports refer to the districts of Saran, Sitamarhi,...

-PTI The Supreme Court today asked the Centre to put in place proper vigilance mechanism to track corruption and leakage of foodgrains in public distribution system. A bench headed by Justice T S Thakur asked the government to file its reply how it intends to check the continuing ills in the implementation of PDS. It said that it will pass order if the government fails to put in place vigilance mechanism. "If you...

-The Hindu An anthology of independent evaluations of MGNREGA shows that it has provided income security, improved health, narrowed the gender gap and created useful assets   In the midst of the debates that prevail in this country over the feasibility of the world’s largest public works programme, the MGNREGA Sameeksha — an anthology of independent research studies and analysis on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, from 2006-2012 — is...