Search

This paper explores the impact of India’s federal architecture, particularly its tax-sharing structure and system of fiscal transfers, on the state of the country’s healthcare. It examines the existing system of intergovernmental transfers and pays particular attention to the Fourteenth Finance Commission’s new devolution framework that has enhanced the previously constrained fiscal spaces of states. This, in turn, will likely have implicat

The Congress, with luck, must have its leader, Sonia Gandhi, back soon or, in the alternative, find some way to keep together the flock which has grown accustomed to the apotheosis of a family. A simple way is to hold party elections, never attempted after the Tirupati session of the Congress in 1993.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can improve various aspects of healthcare. It can help reduce annual expenditure,[1] allow early detection of diseases, provide round-the-clock monitoring for chronic disorders, and help limit the exposure of healthcare professionals in contagious environments. The use of AI in healthcare systems in Africa, in particular, can eliminate inefficiencies such as misdiagnosis, shortage in healthcare workers, and wait and

Climate change poses a significant risk to global food security. Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and shifting precipitation patterns impact food production, disrupting food supply chains, increasing food prices, and diminishing food safety. These effects are particularly apparent in developing countries, where vulnerable populations struggle to access nutritious foods and small farmers face financial challenges. Tackling the impacts

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are making strides in biotechnology and digital health, investing heavily in genomics and AI, even as further research capacity and robust data governance remain essential.

Kerala outbreak sparks calls for improved communication and targeted action

An era of Taliban rule, followed by the 18-year-long war between the United States and the Taliban, has left Afghanistan in massive disorder: the country’s infrastructure is dilapidated, the quality of life is poor, and basic amenities such as healthcare are absent. While the post-Taliban Government of Afghanistan has tried to rebuild the healthcare system, it remains largely dependent on foreign aid. Over the years, India has tried to help reb

The creation of a competent national indicator framework will be central to the tracking — and eventual attainment — of India’s sustainable development goals. Through an analytical study of India’s past efforts relating to the MDGs and its initial preparations for the SDGs, this paper identifies specific hurdles that must be overcome in building a health indicator architecture that is both globally relevant and aligned with national

As the Covid-19 pandemic began to unfold in February, India’s dependence on Chinese inputs for the production of pharmaceutical products was debated intensely. This special report argues that the narrow discussion has fallen short in capturing India’s crucial role in global health as a provider of health-related goods to many developing countries. The report analyses trade data on over 200 categories of health-related goods, and provides quan

Arguably the most ambitious health insurance programme in the world today, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) gives India the chance to transform its healthcare infrastructure. Launched in September 2018 and foreshadowing the general elections of 2019, PMJAY is equal-parts political and economic. It aims to address the healthcare needs of India’s poorest 100 million households and has the potential to deliver what its predecessors ove

India has made progress in digital health, including in telemedicine and creating platforms such as Co-WIN for the COVID-19 vaccination rollout. These initiatives demonstrate the benefits of technology in enhancing the availability and affordability of, and access to healthcare services. This report examines the challenges that continue to stall the reduction of maternal deaths in India. It uses the case of Madhya Pradesh, the sta

The relative prosperity being recorded by the countries of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC)[1] is being confronted by multidimensional challenges brought about by climate change, including in public health. This brief examines the role of regional cooperation in mitigating these negative consequences of global warming. Analysing the national health policies of BIMSTEC countries, this bri

The remedy to overcome India’s healthcare afflictions calls for the amalgamation of data, technology and collaboration.

Mumbai's public healthcare sector is approaching exhaustion. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), despite its untiring efforts to provide affordable healthcare through its general hospitals and peripheral centres.

Across the globe, more than 730 million women report ever having experienced some form of gender-based violence; those in low- and lower-middle-income countries are disproportionately affected. In the past two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has only increased the incidence of violence suffered by women in the hands of their intimate partners, owing to heightened stresses of loss of livelihood, disruption of social and protective networks, a

The rise of AI models that simulate empathy, consciousness, and companionship is creating unforeseen mental health risks, as users increasingly form emotional dependencies on these systems.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has already made inroads into healthcare. The increasing availability of healthcare data has allowed for the deployment of powerful AI techniques to assist drug development as well as clinical practice. These run the gamut from machine learning (ML) techniques that analyse structured data, to natural language processing (NLP) that can extract meaningful information from unstructured data, such as doctors’ notes. Thi

India needs to act now by enhancing its programme effectiveness and reach.

Global health diplomacy, once a cornerstone of soft power and international cooperation, stands at a crossroads. Recent upheavals – such as the US retreat from the World Health Organization – are challenging its role. Amid geopolitical tensions and biological threats, Lakshmy Ramakrishnan explores why global health diplomacy remains indispensable, and how rising powers like China and India can reshape the landscape

Health policy is classically associated with the allocation of resources for healthcare services and the affordability and effectiveness of interventions, and is thereby confined to national strategies. Over the last couple of decades, however, there has been growing awareness about the interlinkages of health policy with key aspects of international relations, including diplomacy, trade, and foreign policy. Similarly, health features as a promin

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, reforming the global health governance system has become a key area of concern for the G20 and other multilateral platforms. This comes at a time when the world has increasingly become volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. As a grouping of developed and developing countries, the G20 must prioritise addressing global health challenges by identifying its direct and indirect determinants. This brief

Efforts are being made on a global scale to improve public health. One of the ini tiatives to attend to the many problems and challenges in the public health sect or is the creation of the Health Impact Fund (HIF).

By some accounts, the economy is doing spectacularly well. At the same time, infrastructure has been deteriorating.

Traditional Indian fermented foods represent a confluence of cultural heritage, nutritional functionality, and environmental sustainability, offering an effective dietary intervention amidst public health and climate-related challenges. Produced through natural or controlled microbial fermentation involving lactic acid bacteria, bifidobacteria, and yeasts, these foods—such as idli (steamed rice cake), dosa (rice and lentil crepe), dahi (curd),

India’s geographical landscape is vast, cultural differences can be sharp, and income disparities are stark in certain regions. Access to healthcare, therefore, is varied and the on-ground gaps and challenges are complex. The NITI Aayog Health Index is an attempt by the current government to formulate a mechanism to monitor at the sub-national level the country’s performance in improving healthcare. This paper uses the findings of the Health

The treatment of mental health disorders is a difficult task due to the highly subjective nature of each case, the varying efficacy of drugs available, and the social stigma associated with mental illness. In India, the treatment gap is steep, but it can be reduced in a number of ways: through concerted efforts by the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries on novel drug development; by leveraging allied technologies such as data science, art

BIMSTEC member states have issued, on occasion, joint statements recognising the importance of holistic public healthcare and the need for alliances. Yet, intra-BIMSTEC collaborations so far have been limited, mostly focused on traditional medicine. Amidst COVID-19, the region’s states have an opportunity to take their health-sector partnerships to a “new normal”.  Given the highly endemic nature of communicable diseases and the porous bor

India and the United States (US) have been cooperating in the health sector since the late 1960s. The cooperation has intensified in the past decade, riding on institutional structures established following the launch of the US-India Health Initiative in 2010. It has seen further expansion since the COVID-19 pandemic, and today covers a wide range of areas including disease prevention and combating infectious diseases, maternal and child

World Health Day: Between 2008 and 2019, only 3 per cent of all 51.6 million sterilisations done in India were vasectomies

The ongoing pandemic of COVID-19 (caused by the novel coronavirus or SARS-CoV-2) has exposed glaring gaps in India’s domestic laws. Absent a rationally structured legislation to fall back on, the Union government in March advised states to invoke the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 to tackle the pandemic in their jurisdictions. The 123-year-old colonial law, however, does not even define what a disease is, let alone an epidemic or a pandemic. Ind

Adolescents comprise a significant proportion of India’s population. Despite improvements in various outcomes, this demographic continues to face serious challenges to their health and well-being, including high levels of teenage pregnancies, low rates of antenatal care checkups for adolescent pregnancies, and lack of safe menstrual practices among adolescent girls. Investing in adolescent health should therefore be a policy priority. This repo