One of the great achievements of India is our free and vibrant press. This is an accomplishment of direct relevance to the working of democracy. Authoritarianism flourishes not only by stifling opposition, but also by systematically suppressing information. The survival and flowering of Indian democracy owes a great deal to the freedom and vigour of our press. There are so many occasions when, sitting even in Europe or in America,...

-The Times of India India has found a way to increase the number of doctors specifically to treat cancer. The Union health ministry will soon allow every professor of three disciplines - radiotherapy, medical oncology and surgical oncology - to teach three students as against the existing norm of two. Besides, associate professors across all specialities will be allowed to take two students under their wing as against one as per the...

-The Hindu   Achieving universal health coverage through an equitable system is among the key goals of India's 12th Plan. Within the overall objective of creating an entitlement-based health care system, one of the challenges is access to medicines. The High Level Expert Group instituted by the Planning Commission on Universal Health Coverage underscores serious policy distortions and inefficiencies that stand in the way of making essential medicines accessible to all. A...

After so many wrongs, the Planning Commission may have just got it right. According to leaked accounts, its universal health coverage proposal may become reality as early as the next five-year Plan. Once this policy is in place, India can legitimately enter the club of welfare states through the front door. Now, at last, it has a scheme that is truly inclusive for it includes us all. When implemented, this measure...

India ranks a dismal 134 among 187 countries in terms of human development index in the UNDP's latest Human Development Report. Against this bleak backdrop, the bugle of caution is rightly sounded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in its latest Human Development Report (HDR), released in Copenhagen on November 2 jointly by Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt and UNDP Administrator Helen Clark. As the international community is busy preparing...