Health ministry advisory urges rational use of cough syrups in children after 11 deaths in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Two suspected cases of Nipah virus have been detected in West Bengal, prompting a national outbreak response team to be deployed. The central government is providing full support to the state.
The government on Sunday gave a strong push to upgradation and expansion of healthcare infrastructure, medical education and pharma sector with the Union Budget 2026-27 announcing a slew of steps, including those aimed at making India a global hub for allied healthcare professionals and biopharma manufacturing.
The NCDC has collected water and entomological drug samples from hospitals and other sites in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan where multiple children have died of kidney failure following alleged consumption of contaminated cough syrup.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath asserted that Uttar Pradesh enjoys a clean environment, unlike Delhi, which he likened to a 'gas chamber' due to its pollution levels.
Budget 2026 sticks to fiscal discipline, shuns populist measures despite five key state elections coming up, but ends up rattling stock markets with a higher transaction tax on derivatives trading.
Due to the rising COVID cases, the Centre is conducting mock drills to check facility-level preparedness and has instructed all states to ensure availability of oxygen, isolation beds, ventilators, and essential medicines, official sources had said.
The Union Health Ministry refutes claims linking heart-related deaths to Covid vaccines, citing extensive studies by ICMR and AIIMS.
India's active Covid case tally crossed the 5,000 mark with Kerala remaining the most affected state followed by Gujarat, West Bengal and Delhi, according to the Union health ministry data released on Friday.
A special investigation team (SIT) has been formed in Madhya Pradesh to investigate the deaths of 14 children in Chhindwara, suspected to be linked to a toxic cough syrup. The investigation includes arrests, exhumations, and a ban on the implicated cough syrup.
There are currently no reported cases of Monkeypox in India even though cautionary measures will be put in place to prevent and control the spread of the disease, the Union health ministry said on Saturday.
The state health department teams are conducting door-to-door surveillance in Badhal village, and the medical teams present in the district are monitoring the situation closely. The Medical experts have advised residents not to panic.
The ICMR's network of laboratories will take care of diagnostics and there is enough capability to step up the supply of diagnostic kits if required, they said.
In contrast to Trump's strong warnings, the FDA's current position remains more measured. In a recent letter to physicians, the agency stated that "a causal relationship has not been established" between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and autism, and acknowledged the existence of "contrary studies in the scientific literature."
The Union health ministry has deputed a high-level multi-disciplinary team to Pune to aid state authorities in instituting interventions and managing the spurt in suspected and confirmed cases of Guillain Barre Syndrome (GBS) in the city.
All states have been instructed to ensure availability of oxygen, isolation beds, ventilators and essential medicines in view of rising cases of Covid, official sources said on Wednesday.
'Most pollution boards across the country have unused funds. There is practically no reason why pollution should not be a political priority.'
As of May 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) classifies LF.7 and NB.1.8 subvariants as Variants Under Monitoring, not as Variants of Concern or Variants of Interest. But these are the variants that are reportedly driving the rise in Covid cases in China and parts of Asia.
The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) under the Union health ministry is closely monitoring respiratory and seasonal influenza cases in the country, and is in touch with international agencies, according to official sources.
'It will be an explosion of zoonotic diseases from these places.' 'People will not be able to live or work for kilometres around these places where thousands of street dogs are kept.'
India has reported 59 cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV) and two deaths due to co-morbidities between January 6 and 29, according to Union Minister Prataprao Jadhav. The virus primarily affects young children, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals, leading to respiratory illnesses. The government has taken measures to monitor and control the spread of HMPV cases and create public awareness.
Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, who hails from Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, on Monday spoke with Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan after scores of people including children were hospitalised with an undiagnosed illness.
A series of deaths in a remote village in Rajouri district, Jammu and Kashmir, are not due to any disease, according to the Health Minister. Tests conducted by various institutions, including the ICMR, NCDC, and DRDE, have returned negative results. However, the minister has ordered an investigation into the deaths to determine the cause.
Authorities have sealed three houses belonging to the affected families and shifted 21 their close relatives to government accommodation to be kept under strict monitoring.
The Supreme Court's order to remove stray dogs from Delhi-NCR localities has sparked mixed reactions, with RWAs welcoming the move and animal rights activists raising concerns about implementation and potential harm.
India is closely monitoring cases of Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV), but the Union Health Minister has assured the public there is no cause for worry. The virus, which is not new and has been circulating globally since 2001, has been detected in several states, including Karnataka, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu. The Health Ministry, ICMR, and NCDC are keeping a close watch on the situation in China and neighboring countries, and the WHO is expected to share a report on the matter shortly.
The patient has been isolated at a designated hospital and is currently stable, it said, adding that there is no cause for concern.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh was acting on a batch of pleas against the blanket ban on blood donations by such persons from the LGBTQIA+ community.
The team will assist the state health authorities in instituting public health measures and facilitate operationalisation of requisite control and containment measures, it said.
'Both international cooperation and self-reliance will now acquire new purpose.'
This comes amid a rapid surge in spread of the disease in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and its detection in neighbouring countries as well.
The Union health ministry has also directed airport and port health officers to be vigilant, they said.
The Jharkhand government has sounded an alert after bird flu cases were reported at a veterinary college-based poultry farm in Ranchi. The Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has asked the state to take all measures to contain its spread. Around 150 Guinea fowls died over the past 20 days at the farm. The presence of H5N1, a type of avian influenza A virus, was confirmed in samples sent to the ICAR-National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal.
'The Indian private sector knows how to build and run educational organisations, what is needed is a large dose of removal of restrictions.' 'Government restrictions hold back universities in India from launching medical schools,' argue Ajay Shah and Vijay Kelkar.
It is important to note that neither of the patients have any history of international travel, the ministry underlined.
The Centre on Sunday held a high-level review meeting after a 34-year-old man from the national capital with no history of foreign travel tested positive for the monkeypox virus, making it the fourth case of the disease reported in India.
As cases of 'black fungus' among COVID-19 patients in the country rise to cross 7,000, the Centre on Thursday urged all states and union territories to declare it as a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act to ensure mandatory surveillance to tackle the 'new challenge'.
'Our politicians solely depend on bureaucrats who are unaccountable and follow their own agenda.' 'Our politicians would dare not dream of establishing a DOGE,' argues Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
Do we have enough trained oncologists and medical professionals in India to man these over 4,500 beds in the public sector?
The unrelenting heatwave sweeping large parts of the country has claimed at least 110 lives and left over 40,000 people grappling with suspected heatstroke between March 1 and June 18 this year, health ministry sources said on Thursday.
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