The recommendations of the Planning Commission’s High Level Expert Group on Access to Universal Healthcare are significant because they make explicit the need to contextualise health within the rights. However, the problem with the report is that it does not ask why many of the same recommendations that were made by previous committees have not been implemented. The HLEG neither recognises the problems, constraints and compulsions at the national, state...

-The Hindu   Recent searches conducted by officials of Union Home Ministry on the premises of the Tuticorin Roman Catholic Bishop's official premises in the backdrop of the ongoing anti-Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project protests have yielded information about the influx of foreign funds to the tune of Rs. 54 crore to two non-governmental organisations, Union Minister V. Narayanasamy has said. “These two NGOs are being administered by RC Bishop of Tuticorin Diocese Rt....

The Planning Commission and the finance ministry are at odds over the accounting of plan and non-plan schemes in the budget.  While the finance ministry is pushing for inclusion of more than 10 non-plan schemes in the planned budget for the next financial year, the Planning Commission is resisting the move as it would eat into the share of existing schemes. The commission's reluctance follows an expected cut or flat allocation...

Agriculture sector undergoes a historic change as livestock surpasses the economy of food grain Policy makers in India are finally acknowledging a structural shift in the agriculture sector they have been noticing for a decade. Economic contribution of livestock is today more than that of food grain crops. Traditionally, of the three components of the sector—crops, livestock and fisheries—crops drove the growth, and food grains are a major part of it....

-Express News Service   Diversion of huge funds from tribal area sub-plan (TASP) provisions for implementation of projects in other areas has been opposed by the Opposition political parties. The issue was also raised several times by tribal legislators cutting across party lines in different sessions of the Assembly. The Comptroller and Audit General (CAG) has taken exception to large-scale diversion of funds from the TASP to other projects in its latest report...