-The Indian Express In Gorakhpur, small successes in understanding - and conquering - the killer disease of children are undercut by a wily virus and administrative bottlenecks Gorakhpur: On August 18, five-year-old Vishal spent the evening playing with friends in Vanjhai village in Gorakhpur district's Bhathat block. He came home irritable, with a slight fever. His mother and grandmother gave him a little milk and sent him to bed. They were not...

-The Times of India There was some grumbling when Indian taxpayers were told in 2004 that they would have to begin paying an education cess of 2%. But the move also inspired a lot of positivity, because of a widely-shared belief that upgrading education is the most effective thing our government can do to lift Indians into affluence. Although it took the Parliament another half decade to enact the Right to...

-The Financial Express Mexico City: The world's happiest people aren't in Qatar, the richest country by most measures. They aren't in Japan, the nation with the highest life expectancy. Canada, with its chart-topping percentage of college graduates, doesn't make the top 10. A poll released yesterday of nearly 150,000 people around the world says seven of the world's 10 countries with the most upbeat attitudes are in Latin America. Many of the seven do...

-The Times of India   Minutes after the Congress demanded relief from the steep hike in petrol price, state-run oil marketers on Thursday indicated they could reduce the price by the month-end if the rupee and international oil prices held steady.  "Current trend indicates that prices can come down," IndianOil chairman R S Butola said. He was speaking just after Congress publicly asked for a reduction in the hike.  "We are genuinely sensitive to...