Health & Sanitation

Child and maternal malnutrition continues to be the most challenging risk factor for health loss in India, according to the Economic Survey for 2017-18.  The Survey noted however that there has been significant improvement in the health status of the individual as life expectancy at birth has increased by approximately 10 years from 1990...

“What would you like to be when you grow up?” asked a teacher to her class of third graders. ‘Doctor’ ‘Engineer’ ‘Pilot’ ‘Shahrukh Khan’, came the answers of the students. No one said, ‘Firefighter’. Not even Manav whose father was one. The job of a firefighter is daring and challenging. It involves risk of accidents,...

Dependence on others for reading and writing is one of the biggest hurdle in the way of education, employment and leading an independent life, especially in case of people living with visual disabilities and low vision.  To empower persons with visual disabilities, the DAISY Consortium has developed the "Simply Reading” app as part of...

Truck drivers in India lead a very unhealthy lifestyle. They are mentally and physically unhealthy many times for being away from family, working long hours and surviving in unhygienic conditions. Truck drivers control 65% of freight traffic in India which is based on road transportation. It is worth an effort to improve their lifestyles...

7 million people across the globe are dying each year from exposure to ambient and household air pollution, says a WHO report. While Delhi remains the most polluted city in the world, an estimated 7 million people across the globe are dying each year from exposure to ambient and household air pollution, World Health Organization...

Inborn Errors of Metabolism (IEM) is a rare genetic (inherited or congenital) disorder, in which the human body cannot properly turn the food into energy for the body consumption. This type of a disorder is usually caused by defects in specific proteins or enzymes that helps breakdown or metabolize the parts of food. Children...

“Milk is very good for you,” said my mother while growing up. “It is important to have milk everyday to have strong body,” she said. Milk and its products have been associated with calcium and protein supplements. In a country where beef is officially banned in 24 of its states, siting it to be inhumane...

Empowering rural women and children is required for the upliftment of their standard of living as well as the overall economic development of the country. An average village worker earns between 30-80 rupees a day. The amount is not enough in today’s market to provide for nutritious meals as well as proper healthcare and...

According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 2015-16, only about 57.6% of the Indian women use sanitary napkins and 62% women in the age group 15-24 years still rely on cloth during periods. A survey by Women Health Organization showed that at least 43% of women have experienced a situation where they did...

The fashion industry gets a bad rap for promoting capitalism and a culture of excess. Fashion designers like Gaurang, Krishna Mehta, Samant Chauhan and Shruti Sancheti are supporting families of traditional weavers and reviving textiles at the same time. They are proving that fashion does have a heart. One such clothing line is Being...

A recent study of wheelchair users highlights the need for investment and innovation in the development of assistive technologies for people with limited mobility.  Nine out of ten (94%) Indian wheelchair users say that they experience pain as a result of their mobility device. The research conducted by ComRes on behalf of Toyota Mobility Foundation,...

India historically has a very low rate of organ donation. Although this number has improved over the past three-four years, the country still has a long way to go. Every year 3,00,000 Indians need an organ transplant, but only 2 to 3% of this demand for new organs is met. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), only about...