-The Hindu Tamil Nadu has come to realise in a most tragic manner the high mortality risk faced by preterm babies (those born before 37 completed weeks of gestation), and its unfinished task of saving these lives. Of the 13 neonates who died recently in district hospitals in Dharmapuri and Salem, five were preterm. Both preterm and low birth weight babies have died of the usual causes, such as respiratory...

-The Indian Express The tragedy of several women dying after undergoing sterilisation operations in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh has once again thrown up uncomfortable questions around India's population programme. Although the cases are being investigated and the exact cause of the deaths has not been ascertained, the incident BRIngs to light the abysmal conditions in which women are compelled to accept government-provided contraception. India is a signatory to an agreement at...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: While India has shown considerable improvement in literacy levels in the last 10 years, one in 10 households still doesn't have even a single literate member, shows the Census 2011 data. On the other hand, more than one-third of the households in the country have at least four literate members above the age of seven. According to the data on literacy released on Friday, India has 24.88...

-Down to Earth The proposed Sewerage Master Plan 2031 that promises to end Delhi's drainage troubles underestimates the wastewater volume of the city Delhi is notorious for its overflowing drains and poor sanitation. The situation is so bad that just half of the city's population has sewerage connection. Media reports show that cases of water-borne diseases like cholera are reported more from areas lacking sewerage systems such as Rohini and Shahdara. This...

-The Hindu Adilabad (Telengana): For the shattered families, relief, as envisaged in GO 421 issued in 2004, at best a half-measure. How long does it take for a poor woman to come to grips with her drastically changed reality owing to the sudden and unexpected death of her husband as in the case of a farmer committing suicide? In some cases, it may even be a lifetime. Factors which have influenced farmers to...