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Dr Kunal Saha's wife Anuradha died due to medical negligence in 1998. He pursued the case for 15 years through various consumer courts, MCI, high court until Supreme Court passed a historic order three months back. It not only awarded the highest compensation so far in a medical negligence case but also questioned the treatment of doctors, a first in Indian legal history. Here Dr Saha talks about the shortcomings in present Indian law and his plans to help other victims of medical negligence.

Clinical trials in India have for long been inviting controversy due to lack of transparency and regulatory mechanism. While replying to a question in Rajya Sabha in March 2013, the then Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said 438 deaths took place during clinical trials in 2011 while 668 people died during 2010. While hearing the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Swasthya Adhikar Manch in 2012, the Supreme Court asked the Central government to come up with more stringent regulatory and monitoring set up to stop exploitation

Stem cell industry is playing on the emotions of naïve patients and families promising a future which may not really exist

In January this year, doctors at a corporate hospital in Delhi claimed to have treated an Iraqi patient of paraplegia using stem cells. The patient, who had lost sensation in his lower limb, was said to be able to stand now.

Khamba is a small village on the edge of Amreli district in the south east region of Gujarat. Proximity to the coastline and world famous Gir forest in neighbouring Junagarh district underscores the need for environment protection of the region

Though dust is of trivial significance to us, it kills millions of workers in Indian industries and mines. Silicosis, one of the many lung disorders caused by dust, is not only untreatable but also the commonest and most widespread of all occupational diseases. Exposure to large amount of free silica can pass unnoticed since it is odourless, non-irritant and hence is confused with ordinary dust. The problem is more severe in unorganised industries like slate pencil cutting, stone cutting and agate industry since these are not covered by any legislation.

Tripti Tandon of Lawyers Collective talks to GOI Monitor about a recent case which brought the issue of immunity for drug users  under treatment into limelight

Q: Please tell us about the case of Aatish Suraj in which Supreme Court allowed Indian Harm Reduction Network to intervene?

Thanks to our fast still sedentary lifestyle, there are more medicines than fruits in our baskets and hence a big share of monthly budget is spent on buying them. According to a study published in international journal Lancet, despite living in a welfare state, 78 per cent of the health expenditure is met by Indians from their own pockets. Also 72 per cent of this total expenditure is spent on purchasing drugs. If you think that’s high be prepared for much higher medical bills in near future. The free trade agreement (FTA)

The recent incidents of medical negligence and over pricing have spurred strong criticism of private players with Delhi government cancelling the licence of one hospital. What escapes the eye, however, is the constant support since 1990s that has led to growth of private sector at the cost of affordable government or public healthcare. The only solution is roping in private resources for public health system with regulations.

The controversy related to black money is turning out to be a major embarrasment for the UPA government. However, while Baba Ramdev raises cudgels against the money stashed in foreign banks, nobody seems to care about the  undeclared wealth which exists right here in Indian territory. According to a World Bank study, in 2006-07 black money in India amounted to Rs 15 lakh crores, almost one-fourth of the country’s GDP.

While the number of cases has declined by 60 per cent over 2001, there are concerns that malaria is still being under reported. Other issues include the systemic resistance to drugs which were previously used to limit vector growth. Around 35 countries have been certified to be free of malaria and another 21 on their way to reach their target of zero transmission by the year 2020. In our neighbourhood, Sri Lanka and Maldives have also achieved the malaria-free status and Bhutan will be there soon.