Page 27 - Health Ministry

Risk of surge in Mpox cases very low in India at present: Official sources

The risk for an upsurge of Mpox, once known as monkeypox, infection is very low in India at the moment and there is no need to panic, sources in the health ministry said in the wake of WHO declaring the disease a public health emergency of international concern. Official sources said the last case of monkeypox in India was reported from Kerala in March this year. According to official data, 30 laboratory confirmed cases of monkeypox since 2022 have been reported in India since 2022. The health ministry might write to points of entry such as airports, seaports to be alert and vigilant and deal with suspected cases of monkeypox as per the guidelines in terms of isolation and treatment, an official source told PTI. "At the moment, the risk of a surge in monkeypox infection is very low in India and there is no need to panic," the official source said. Union Health Minister J P Nadda is likely to hold a meeting with officials from the ministry, NCDC and ICMR on Saturday. On Wednesday

Centre issues '6-hour FIR' order over violence against health workers

Centre's order came amid massive protests in India, calling for justice in the rape-murder of the 31-year-old junior doctor, whose body was found at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata last

Doctor Murder: FORDA ends stir after meeting Nadda, others won't relent

The Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) on Tuesday said it was calling off its strike over the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata as the Union health minister has accepted their demands. However, the medics at the central government-run AIIMS, the Indira Gandhi Hospital and other resident doctors' associations, including the Federation of All India Medical Associations (FAIMA), said their stir would continue until a central law to curb attacks on medical personnel is implemented and a concrete solution found. A delegation of FORDA met with Union Health Minister J P Nadda at his residence on Tuesday night. The association said the decision to end the strike, effective from Wednesday morning, was taken in the interest of the welfare of patients. In a statement, FORDA said, "A key outcome of the meeting was the health minister's agreement to form a committee with FORDA's involvement to work on the Central Protection Act. The ministry has assured that

Five-member expert team to visit landslide-hit areas in Wayanad today

Expert panel will also recommend suitable land uses for area, Kerala Health Minister Veena George has directed appointment of more psychiatry experts from medical colleges to serve in disaster areas

Doctors' strike to continue as meeting with health ministry inconclusive

The Federation of Resident Doctors' Association on Monday announced the extension of its indefinite strike to protest the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata after their meeting with officials from the Union health ministry here failed to bring out any resolution. Resident doctors of government hospitals across the country went on an indefinite strike on Monday to protest the gruesome incident at the RG Kar Medical College, paralysing elective services including OPDs and non-emergency surgeries. The stir was in response to a call from the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA). "Despite extensive discussions with the Union (health) minister's team, no concrete resolution was reached, leading to the continuation of the strike," a statement released by FORDA here on Monday night said. FORDA President Dr Aviral Mathur said the strike will continue on Tuesday. "I, along with the association members and doctors, met with the Union health minister's team on Monda

Ukraine penetrates Russia's southern border, triggering fierce clashes

Russia's health ministry said 31 civilians, including six children, had been wounded. Smirnov said on Tuesday that five people had been killed

Indian spices not banned by Singapore, Hong Kong, says MoS Anupriya Patel

Indian spices have not been banned by countries like Singapore and Hong Kong, the Ministry of Commerce informed Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. Specific batches of a few spice mixtures exported from India were recalled by the food safety authorities in Hong Kong and Singapore due to the presence of ethylene oxide (EtO) above permissible limits, Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel said in a written reply. As part of its import surveillance, the Singapore Food Agency placed the consignments of spices from the associated brands under Hold-and-Test regime for a period of one month. The Spices Board, under the administrative control of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has taken various steps to meet the varying EtO limits of the importing country. They include mandatory pre-shipment testing of spices being exported to these destinations and issuance of comprehensive guidelines to be followed by exporters to prevent possible EtO contamination at all stages such as procurement of raw

Govt reconstitutes NIPCCD's Executive Council, General Body after 5 decades

The Ministry of Women and Child Development said on Monday it has reconstituted the Executive Council and General Body of the National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD) after more than five decades. The reconstitution was approved during a meeting held here under the chairpersonship of WCD Minister Annpurna Devi. NIPCCD, an autonomous organization under the WCD Ministry, was initially established in 1966 under the Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860. The reconstitution reduces the size of the General Body from 94 to 22 members and the Executive Council from 21 to 13 members, creating a leaner and more efficient structure. The General Body is responsible for formulating overall policies, while the Executive Council manages the administrative affairs of the institute. According to an official statement, Devi emphasized the need for NIPCCD to lead in training field functionaries of the ministry, conducting research and documentation on women and child

Health Minister Nadda urges states to spend more on health infrastructure

Health Minister J P Nadda on Monday urged state governments to spend more on improving healthcare infrastructure and dismissed opposition allegations on reduction of allocations under the PM-Ayushman Bharat Healthcare Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM). Replying to the debate on the demand for grants for the health and family welfare ministry in the Lok Sabha, Nadda listed the increase in number of medical colleges, steps taken for the reduction of out of pocket expenses on healthcare and initiatives for early screening of diseases such as cancer and sickle cell anaemia as achievements of the government. "We don't believe in just making announcements. We believe in effective planning, ensuring last mile delivery, identifying bottlenecks in last mile delivery and taking steps to remove them," the minister said. Nadda dared Trinamool Congress members, who were protesting, to tell the House why the West Bengal government had not shared the dengue registry with the Centre. On opposition

Centre issues first-ever guidelines for seamless transport of human organs

The Union Health Ministry has come out with its first-ever SOPs for seamless transport of human organs through various modes of travel, which will allow airlines carrying them to request the Air Traffic Control for priority take-off and landing and also arrange front-row seats. The Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for organ transplant will serve as a guiding document for those involved in organs transplants across the country and are aimed at ensuring maximum utilisation. "By streamlining organ transport process, we aim to maximise the utilisation of precious organs and offer hope to countless patients awaiting life-saving transplants.These SOPs are a roadmap for organ retrieval and transplant institutions across the country ensuring adherence to best practices and quality standards," Union Health Secretary Apurva Chandra said. A live organ needs to be transported between hospitals when both the organ donor and the organ recipient are in different hospitals either within the same

Govt agencies conducting risk-based inspections of pharma units: Nadda

Over 400 drug manufacturing units, including MSMEs, inspected after high frequency of NQS reports

Heatstroke took 374 lives, over 67,000 cases till Jul 27: Health Ministry

Uttar Pradesh was the worst-hit state, recording 52 deaths, followed by Bihar with 37 deaths. Odisha reported 26 deaths and Delhi 25 deaths

Wayanad landslides: 199 post-mortems conducted so far, says Kerala Govt

In a post on Facebook, Minister George said that additionally, DNA samples of 130 body parts were also taken

Dr Reddy's Laboratories Q1 result: Net profit dips 0.90%, revenue up 13.88%

DRL's growth was primarily driven by the robust performance of the global generics business, particularly in North America and India

No panel formed to cover 70 plus citizens under Ayushman Bharat: Govt

No expert committee has been set up for extending health benefits to cover citizens aged 70 and above under Ayushman Bharat, Union Minister of State for Health Prataprao Jadhav told the Lok Sabha on Friday. He was responding to a question on whether the government proposed to cover citizens aged 70 and above by expanding Ayushman Bharat through the launch of a national health claims exchange and if an expert panel had been set up to strengthen the format of the scheme for the planned expansion. Jadhav, in a written reply, said all members of eligible families, irrespective of age, were covered under Ayushman Bharat - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. The scheme provides health insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to 55 crore individuals, corresponding to 12.34 crore families, he said. "No expert committee has been set up for extending the health benefits to cover senior citizens aged 70 and above," he stated. Responding t

Cancer cases rising, prices of essential drugs kept in check: Nadda

The government makes all efforts to ensure affordable and accessible treatment is available for cancer patients amid a rise in cases in India, Health Minister JP Nadda said on Friday. Replying to supplementary questions during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha, Nadda said the government made all efforts to ensure that affordable and accessible treatment was available to the patients. "The number of cancer cases is going up, it is increasing by almost 2.5 per cent every year," Nadda said. In men, cases of oral and lung cancer are on the up while more women are getting breast cancer, he added. More than 15.5 lakh cancer cases are being registered every year, Nadda said. "There is a list of 131 essential cancer medicines, which are in Schedule 1, (that) are monitored and (their) pricing is decided by the government. These are the commonly used medicines," Nadda said. He said patients cumulatively saved around Rs 294 crore due to this price control. "There are 28 combinations, which ar

3 cancer drugs now exempt from customs duty; X-ray tubes to become cheaper

The Union minister also brought down the customs duty on X-ray tubes used in medical X-ray machines

Budget 2024: Health Ministry's Budget outlay jumps 12.9% to Rs 90,958 crore

The budgetary estimate figures for FY25 include the combined outlay for the two departments under the health ministry: the department of health and family welfare and the department of health research

Need to face up to junk food crisis as study shows 23% Indians overweight

Indians need simple, easy-to-understand, and prominent warning labels, so that their better natures are given a chance to overtake their impulses

Nadda directs FSSAI to waive off registration fee for street food vendors

Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda on Saturday directed food regulator FSSAI to waive a registration fee of Rs 100 for street food vendors and also stressed upon the need to create street food hubs across the country. Nadda chaired a training and awareness programme for around 1,350 street food vendors conducted by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) at Vigyan Bhawan in the national capital. Nadda directed the FSSAI to waive the registration fee of Rs 100 for street food vendors. To encourage vendors and promote more and more registrations, he said FSSAI would waive the Rs 100 registration fee for the street food vendors. At present, the FSSAI charges Rs 100 per annum as a registration fee for petty food business operators, including street food vendors, having turnover of up to Rs 12 lakh annually. FSSAI is providing certificates as well as 'Street Safe' rapid testing kits to all the participating vendors. Nadda urged street food vendors to practicall