Here are some stories on government efforts to help stimulate positive change: Dialysis centres to tackle shortage The health ministry is planning to open standalone dialysis centres across the country, much like pathological labs, where patients can undergo the life-saving procedure at a minimal rate. In the land of Blyth Tragopan Khonoma, a Naga village [...]

Are you a Young Social Entrepreneur in India? Here is the chance you have been waiting for (from the YSEI blog): Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) is glad to announce a call for proposals to the YSEI Fellowship 2008 (South and East Asia). Youth Social Enterprise Initiative (YSEI) is a high-engagement social venture program for [...]

From Microcapital.org: The Quick Centre, a knowledge sharing platform for microfinance practitioners, went live in February 2008 … Their aim is to serve the larger development community by facilitating the exchange of existing documentation and organizational experiences related to the practice of microfinance in disaster situations. The site advertises best practices on post-disaster microfinance support [...]

Select headlines of interest: Rs.61 crore sought for strengthening road and drainage facilities TIRUCHI: The Tiruchi Corporation has sought Rs.61 crore from the Government for strengthening the roads and drainage network in the city, especially in the suburbs, the Mayor, Sarubala R. Tondaiman, said here on Wednesday. Move to collect toll on State highways HYDERABAD: [...]

Victimized. Marginalized. Stigmatized. Wayward. Downtrodden. Immoral. Vandana is a poor woman in prostitution. But that is not all that she is defined by, although academic discourse may be rife with theories about how she should conceive of her own identity. Vandana defies definition or categorization, for that matter, as I sit comfortably wedged between her [...]

Why is the quality of medical care substandard in India? Is it because of a lack of medical professionals, or the fact that the public sector improperly trains many of them? One paper that has recently been published tries to test out the assumption that the major reason why the quality is generally low is [...]

As mentioned in a previous post entitled, “Treating More than Diarrhea,” the condition of  India’s mentally and physically disabled population, in terms of the provision of basic amenities or medical services, is dismal.  As per official data, India has 21 million disabled people, but non-government agencies are less conservative in their estimate, and place the figure [...]

Headlines of interest: Muslims demand more resource allocation A budgetary allocation for the welfare of minorities in the union budget for the financial year 2008-09 is far short of expectations, say Muslim organisations, who recently held a demonstration in the Indian capital to demand a better deal from the government. Spectre of communalism has many [...]

As an update to a prior post entitled “MBAs without Borders” (MWB), it has been brought to our attention through NextBillion that Agora Partnerships, in collaboration with MWB, has launched a fellowship program that aims to address issues of long-term management, specialization, expertise, and sustainability in the social enterprise sector: The Agora Fellows program is [...]

As brought to our attention by InfoChangeIndia, the phenomenon of urban migration is a multidimensional issue, with social and economic repercussions, both for rural and urban India. As described in an article entitled, “This Land is Ours!”, as a result of urban migration, women in rural communities are undergoing changes in terms of their roles [...]