-The Hindu The demand for contraception is projected to grow worldwide from 900 million in 2010 to 962 million in 2015 because of an increased desire for modern family planning methods. Increased investment in family planning will be required to meet the needs of the 233 million women projected to have an unmet need for modern contraceptive methods by 2015, a new survey has suggested. Over 60 per cent of married women in...

-Economic and Political Weekly The proposed legislation on the National Food Security Act has been steadily watered down since it was fi rst mooted in 2009. The Parliamentary Standing Committee that examined the 2011 Bill has disappointingly continued with "targeting". If the government passes the bill incorporating the committee's suggestions, a historic opportunity to combat hunger and malnutrition would be lost. Ankita Aggarwal (aggarwal.ankita87@gmail.com) is a Research Scholar at the Centre for...

-Frontine The finalised chapter on health in the 12th Plan document envisages a large role for the private sector in health care. A chapter on health prepared for the draft 12th Five Year Plan Document in July received a lot of criticism for its limited understanding of universal health care and its diluted commitment to increase public expenditure on health. If the revised version is any indication, there has not been...

-The Indian Express Panchkula: Increasing number of youths indulging in unsafe sex has resulted in 13,500 HIV positive cases being reported in Haryana. According to official figures, among the total of 16,700 HIV positive cases reported in the state, over 13,500 cases have been contracted due to sexual transmission. HIV cases spread through blood transmission and use of infected needles have been significantly low, comprising only 10 per cent of the cases...

-The Hindu Centre buoyed by pilot scheme’s success Encouraged by the response to its pilot scheme on home delivery of Contraceptives by women health workers, the Centre has decided to extend the programme across the country with immediate effect. The initiative of supplying Contraceptives — condoms, oral contraceptive pills (OCP) and emergency contraceptive pills — at home by accredited social health activists (ASHAs) was launched on a pilot basis in 233 districts in...