-The Hindustan Times Blood pressure and diabetes will be included for the first time in the National Family Health Survey-4, which covers 17,000 villages and urban units. The project began in May 2012 and the results are expected next year. This year the Survey will be conducted digitally, so data will be out within a year, instead of the usual three years. The 15,000 interviewers and 3,000 senior-level officers will check the...

-Mainstream Weekly Dr Binayak Sen, an internationally renowned medical practitioner and social activist (a leading figure in the People’s Union for Civil Liberties), was incarcerated in Chhattisgarh and held in detention in Raipur having been branded as a Maoist for his activities in defence of poor tribals in the State. He is now out on bail. The following is the text of the Arvind Narayan Das Memorial Lecture he delivered in...

-The Hindustan Times India contributes more hungry people to the world each year than all other countries put together, and despite efforts, new figures suggest that hunger is far from contained - in fact we are worse off than we were more than a decade ago. According to the Global Hunger Index 2012, recently released by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). India's rating was 22.6 in '96, 24.2 in '01...

-The Indian Express Raipur: A nationwide health Survey in jails has found 80 of Chhattisgarh’s prisoners HIV-positive, out of 13,000-odd tested. Prison authorities insist that the inmates had probably arrived already infected, but health authorities don’t rule out the possibility that it was after being jailed that they got infected, with unsafe sex or drug use the likely causes. This has turned into a contentious issue. The health authorities are contemplating distribution...

-The Telegraph Ranchi: Jharkhand resolved to eradicate child labour within the next four years with chief minister Arjun Munda unveiling a comprehensive plan today to eliminate the scourge that has victimised over 4.07 lakh youngsters slogging as ragpickers or errand boys at homes, dhabas or roadside garages. The ambitious goal will be pursued by various departments of the state government in conjunction with International Labour Organisation (ILO) by assigning specific roles at...