A group comprising 24 development journalists from 21 countries of Asia, Africa and South America visited the Centre for Community Economics and Development Consultants' Society here over the weekend to get exposure to grassroots work in community mobilisation, poverty alleviation and women's empowerment. The mid-career journalists are attending a four-month course conducted under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation and Special Commonwealth African Assistance Plan of the Ministry of External Affairs...

As the country awaits another central government Budget, there is a growing demand for more financial muscle on several fronts. But, is throwing money at complex problems really a solution? A look at the progress of a crucial program of the government, the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), indicates that money can’t buy everything. One of the biggest bottlenecks facing policy-makers is that of medical personnel. Recently released data by...

For non-compliance, clinical establishments may face fine up to Rs. 5 lakh  Private facilities often refer accident victims to government hospitals to avoid legal hassles All clinical establishments will have to register with State Council The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation Act) Bill, 2010 — approved by the Union Cabinet last month — makes it mandatory for all clinical establishments to provide medical care and treatment to stabilise any person in an...

Rajendra Pachauri, the embattled head of the UN’s climate change panel, clocked up more than half a million miles of air travel in a year and a half as he travelled the world warning of the global warming threat. On his international missions, Pachauri, the chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), called for radical action to stave off environmental disaster. He urged people to eat less meat, pay...

Very little is known generally about operational NGOs that work closely with people on a daily basis. WHILE a good many people in the country know that the Central and State governments have a number of plans and projects to bring about development – not all of them either well-conceived or well administered – they are much less aware of the part played in the overall development process by non-governmental...