It is necessary to have a dramatic increase in the number of rapid tests for COVID-19 conducted on a large number of people and that should become the basis for estimating the morbidity and mortality due to COVID-19, not relying only on hospital reports, says Professor K Srinivasan.
The recent protests by employees of Urban Company and the case of a a Zomato delivery executive who died in a road accident point to the severely straitened condition of gig workers during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Budget 2021 had promised several measures to help the cause of gig economy workers, but most of them are yet to see the light of day. Even after a year, the country's gig workers continue to be without any social security cover or a minimum wage guarantee. "In Budget 2021, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that the government is looking toward including migrant and gig workers for social security benefits," says Srinivas Kotni, managing partner, Lexport, a consulting firm. Parliament had passed the Code on Wages in 2019 and Code on Industrial Relations, Social Security and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions in 2020.
However, students unable to appear in final-year exams in September will get another chance and universities will conduct special exams 'as and when feasible', according to a revised guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
In an order, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla said buses shall be used for transport of such groups of stranded people and these vehicles will be sanitised and will have to follow safe social distancing norms in seating.
'By the time actual action began, it was already too late.' 'The virus was raging.'
On the ground, rural medical infrastructure and more crucially, women's access to reproductive health services is practically non-existent in Uttar Pradesh, reports Geetanjali Krishna.
Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar wanted to raise the issue of financial security for national level athletes in his maiden Rajya Sabha speech, which could not take place due to protests in the Upper House.
Ushering in a big wave of reforms by implementing the four labour codes, setting up the national social security fund to cover over 38 crore informal sector workers and improving the ease of doing business will top the agenda of the labour ministry in the New Year. In a major move, the ministry launched the e-Shram portal on August 26, 2021 for creating a national database of over 38 crore informal sector workers. It will help the government to ensure last-mile delivery of benefits of various social security schemes to the informal-sector workers.
A girl who was set on fire by a person after she did not reciprocate his proposal in Jharkhand's Dumka district succumbed to her burn injuries on Sunday.
I got to know that every referred case for angiography and angioplasty got a kickback of Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000 respectively. Seeing this trend, doctors started paying referring doctors Rs 1 lakh in advance and adjusting it as and when patients came in. This menace slowly spread its tentacles all over the medical field, including radiological diagnostics and biochemistry laboratories. For every test ordered, 20 per cent of the bill was given back to the referring doctor. This led to doctors recommending unnecessary tests. The pharmaceutical companies also saw burgeoning business. Acclaimed doctors were given televisions sets, refrigerators, air conditioners and cars depending upon the prescriptions. General practitioners would prescribe unnecessary drugs, and were given returns in cash. A fascinating excerpt from Dr Upendra Kaul's When The Heart Speaks.
The pandemic is set to become even more challenging, with migrant workers returning home, relaxations in lockdown rules, and the approaching monsoon. However, states are looking at community participation to ramp up testing and home treatment of patients
Issuing a travel advisory, the health ministry also called for passengers with travel history to China, Hong Kong, Republic of Korea, Japan, Italy, Thailand, Singapore, Iran, Malaysia, France, Spain and Germany to undergo self-imposed quarantine for a period of 14 days from the date of their arrival, and their employers to facilitate work-from-home for such employees during this period.
In this weekly self-help series, mental health and life coach Anu Krishna tells you how to take control of your life.
The Congress released a booklet 'Nau saal, Nau sawaal', asking nine questions from Modi. The BJP rejected the Congress' criticism as a 'bundle of lies and mountain of deception' and said the questions are born out of 'pathological hatred' of the PM.
The states need to identify the children in distress through outreach and surveys and prepare a database with a profile of each child, along with the details of their specific needs and requirements, and ensure that the data is uploaded on the Track Child portal.
Union Minister Prakash Javadekar on Tuesday dismissed Bharatiya Janata Party member of Parliament Dilip Gandhi's remarks that all studies linking cancer to tobacco have come from abroad and that there is no Indian survey report to confirm it.
"Though we reiterate our commitment to peace, our defence forces -- the army, the air force and the navy -- are adequately mobilised in a well-coordinated move to thwart any attempt to undermine our security. Our national interest will be protected at all costs. We have also ensured a widespread understanding in the international community of India's firm and principled stand," the President said. India and China are locked in a nearly nine-month long military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
Kerala has recorded 24 cases including two foreign nationals.
Realising, that there was a ground swell of anger against several lower level TMC leaders who were often accused of petty corruption in execution of public welfare schemes, Kishor designed the 'Didi Ke Bolo' (Tell Didi) campaign under which citizens could directly approach Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with their grievances.
'Economic issues do not matter during elections; it is the emotional connect that helps swing votes.'
'Wherever in the world there is political instability, those countries are beset with severe crises today. But India is in a much better position than the rest of the world due to the decisions taken by my government in the national interest,' President Droupadi Murmu said in her address to both Houses of Parliament.
Exploiting the killings to ratchet up the tension in the region and harden negotiating positions with the central government serves nobody, least of all the people of Nagaland. The peace process must not be stalled because of this incident or distracted by calls to repeal the AFSPA, argues Vivek Gumaste.
In this weekly self-help series, mental health and life coach Anu Krishna tells you how to take control of your life.
States and Union Territories have been given the powers for delineation of Red, Green and Orange Zones as per COVID-19 situation, the MHA said. All shops, except those in containment zones and malls, will be allowed to open from Monday with staggered timings during lockdown 4.0, it said.
Pneumonia and diarrhoea have collectively claimed the lives of over three lakh children in India in 2013, posing a major challenge to public health in the country, a report said.
In this weekly self-help series, mental health and life coach Anu Krishna tells you how to take control of your life.
The powerful orator leaves behind the legacy of an easily-accessible leader who played a key role in BJP's emergence in the late 1990s.
Life expectancy at birth improved from 59.7 years in 1990 to 70.3 years in 2016 for women.
Resident Doctors' Association of the AIIMS in Delhi, which earlier decided not to join the strike, announced withdrawal of all non-essential services from noon after a junior doctor at its trauma centre was assaulted in the early hours of Monday.
'Sexual violence against women is not something unique to India but in our parts the victim must also have to contend with other burdens. Such as the notion of 'honour' and its loss,' says Aakar Patel.
Belying all expectations, the Trinamool Congress registreted a landslide victory in West Bengal assembly elections, overcoming the might of the Bharatiya Janata Party after a bitter campaign that had turned into a virtual duel between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"The government has cleared seven names out of the 106 judges and one out of the nine for chief justices, so far. I expect that the government will clear the rest of the names very soon. These appointments will take care of pendency to some extent. I seek the cooperation and support of the Government to enable access to justice and to strengthen democracy," CJI N V Ramana said.
Shivdutt, the child's father, claimed his son was not given proper treatment by the nurse who gave him a wrong injection after which he died.
The Defence Minister said it has been decided to give women permanent commission in the Army, Navy and the Air Force like their male counterparts.
In this weekly self-help series, mental health and life coach Anu Krishna tells you how to take control of your life.
Stepped up public expenditure must be accompanied by focused policies, advises Vinayak Chatterjee.
Here's the full text of President Ram Nath Kovind's address to the nation on the eve of 72nd Republic Day.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently extended a Rs 8,000-crore (Rs 80 billion) central support for building roads in Jammu & Kashmir, Union Cabinet's approval for the big-ticket announcement came in barely 48 hours.
The rate of immunisation is low mainly because of rumours that the vaccines would have a sterilising effect on the children.
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