-Down to Earth   Quota for free treatment of economically weaker sections in private hospitals under-utilised; less than half of the children referred from government hospitals get treatment in these places Children from the economically weaker sections (EWS) in Delhi are unable to avail treatment at private hospitals despite the fact that these hospitals have reserved beds and out-patient department facilities for people from EWS category. This is the finding of a survey conducted...

-Down to Earth Is India ready to protect itself from the onslaught of food and nutrition industry? India is shouldering a huge burden of malnutrition-in the absence of government figures, a dipstick survey by non-profit HUNGaMA in 2012 suggests that 59 per cent of the country's children could have stunted growth and 42 per cent could be underweight. While the government is still struggling to tackle the problem, the food and nutrition...

-The Times of India SAMBALPUR/BHUBANESWAR: Wails of bereaved mothers filled the wards and corridors of VSS medical College and Hospital on Saturday as nine babies died at the hospital in the past 22 hours. While hospital authorities attributed the deaths to a host of reasons, locals put the blame on long uncontrolled exposure to light therapy at the sick newborn care unit (SNCU). "The high number of deaths is shocking. But the...

-Down to Earth     Rural development minister shares concerns of activists at launch of Lancet series; stresses community role in fight against malnutrition India needs to be careful when it comes to agriculture-based nutrition as it opens the door for advocacy for transgenic food, said Jairam Ramesh, Union rural development minister, at the launch of the Lancet Series on Maternal and Child Nutrition. Ramesh was the chief guest at the programme on June...

-The Economic Times Anshu Prakash is worried about what he calls "mischievous propaganda" by "some people" who he thinks are misleading reporters. The joint secretary at the ministry of health and family welfare starts off by flatly denying that the joint monitoring mission (JMM) set up by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the government of India (GoI) discussed the impending danger of a TB drugs stock-out in August 2012. "There was...