Mumbai: Thalassemia is the most common genetic based condition globally. The condition may be classified as a hemoglobinopathy which refers to genetic alteration causing structural abnormality in the hemoglobin molecule. Such defects lead to abnormal hemoglobin production and subsequent anemia. Symptom include tiredness, pale skin, bone problems, enlargement of spleen along with delayed growth and complications such as iron overload leading to cardiac, liver and immune system abnormalities.

Thalassemia is monogenic which means that a single causative factor is implicated in pathogenesis of the condition. Mediterranean, Middle East, Southeast Asian regions as well as the Indian subcontinent have reported high incidence of thalassemia as well as carriers of the condition. According to WHO statistics, globally, there are approximately 9 million pregnant carriers annually. About 56,000 new born children have a major thalassemia, including at least 30,000 who need regular transfusions to survive and close to 5500 affected die perinatally. Increasing rates of migration have also led to introduction of such genetic hemoglobinopathies into newer populations. Such new cases represent additional challenge to health services on a global scale.

Thalassemia exists in 2 major forms: namely alpha and beta thalassemia based on the hemoglobin chain that is affected. Other forms include delta and combination/compound heterozygosity variants. Beta thalassemia is further sub classified as beta-thalassemia major, intermediate and minor. Due to high frequency and severity, beta-thalassemia major is considered a major public health problem. This variant causes profound anemia that kills untreated affected children before the age of 3 years.

There is no effective treatment for thalassemia and the only way to prevent the condition is by detection of carriers and spreading awareness among the people about this emerging epidemic. Conventional treatments rely on regular blood transfusion and iron chelation therapy, or bone-marrow transplantation. Nonetheless, the financial burden and adverse effects associated with such therapies outweigh the benefits. Moreover, bone marrow transplantation calls for completely matched donors in order to minimize chance of rejection which is possible in only 25-30% cases. The need of the hour is newer therapeutic modalities that are safe and more effective which will enable affected individuals lead a normal life.

Regenerative medicine and cell based therapy have been studied in management of thalassemia with promising results. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) are present in the bone marrow (along with hematopoietic-blood forming cells) and provide a supportive niche microenvironment to the affected hematopoietic cells. Additionally, MSCs are capable of self renewal and differentiation into various cell types thus have been implicated in maintenance of hematopoietic cells. Another interesting observation pertains to adipose tissue which has been described as an extra-medullary pool of functional hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Adipose derived cells may thus be researched as an additional possible source of hematopoietic cells.

A novel approach to hematopoietic stem cell transplant has been made possible by CliniMacs Prodigy System, which proposes un-matched/partially matched (haploidentical) transplants. Studies using this technology have shown that unrelated-donor stem cell transplantation is an acceptable therapeutic approach in severe thalassemia, especially for patients who are not fully compliant with conventional treatment and do not yet show irreversible severe complications of iron overload. This technology has already benefitted more than 5000 patients worldwide suffering from various hematological conditions.

“We have recently launched the first CliniMacs Prodigy System in India at our center with the hope of being able to effectively treat thalassemic individuals and also those suffering from other hematological disorders, malignancy etc. The aim is to reduce the waiting period for transplants and bring down the rate of mortality among affected individuals”, says Dr. Pradeep Mahajan of StemRx Bioscience Solutions “With a combination of mesenchymal cells for restoration of the bone marrow microenvironment and the CliniMacs Prodigy System, individuals suffering from thalassemia will be able to lead a normal life, free from major side effects associated with conventional modalities of treatment”, concludes Dr. Mahajan.

Rabies causes 59 000 agonizing and painful deaths globally every year with one person dying every nine minute, mostly children and the poor.

Rabies is a viral disease that occurs in more than 150 countries and territories – is usually fatal once symptoms appear. Dog-transmitted rabies accounts for about 99% of human rabies cases with 40% of the victims bitten by suspect rabid animals are children under 15 years of age.

The world’s poorest are the most affected as they cannot afford treatment or transport for care. People’s livelihoods are also affected when livestock get rabies, a loss estimated at over US$ 500 million per year globally.

However, rabies is 100% preventable by ensuring access vaccines and to life-saving treatment following dog bites; and by vaccinating dogs to reduce risks and ultimately to eliminate the disease.

At a high level meeting held in Kathmandu recently, the World Health Organization called upon Member States and partners to accelerate efforts to end rabies.

Eight of the 11 Member countries of WHO South-East Asia Region account for nearly 26 000 rabies deaths, 45% of the global rabies toll, as over 1.5 million people in the Region remain at risk of rabies.

“Human rabies is caused mostly by dogs and can be eliminated by increasing awareness about the disease, vaccinating dogs and most importantly by making the already available life-saving rabies vaccines, medicines, tools and technologies affordable and available to all. We can, and must break the disease cycle and save lives,” Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia, told the global meeting ‘Driving progress towards rabies elimination’ here.

At the meeting, the global rabies partners comprising of WHO, OIE, FAO and UNICEF and rabies endemic countries from Asia-Pacific and Africa, shared and deliberated on measures to fast-track elimination of dog transmitted rabies by 2030.

Countries from Africa and Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Kenya, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, who have assessed access, delivery and distribution of rabies post-exposure prophylaxis, shared outcomes of their studies. These studies were conducted with WHO support to enable GAVI take an informed decision to support rabies vaccines. The rabies endemic countries are seeking GAVI support to improve affordability and access to rabies vaccines for vulnerable populations, of which many are children.

WHO has been advocating for a shift from intramuscular to intradermal rabies vaccination, which is not only 60 to 80% cheaper, but is of shorter treatment regimen of just one week. Most countries in WHO South-East Asia Region are now using intradermal route for anti-rabies vaccines.

At the meeting, Member countries shared initiatives being rolled out as part of the new ‘Zero by 30: The Strategic Plan’, to be launched by WHO and partners to end dog transmitted rabies. The plan centers on One Health approach and addresses the disease in a holistic and cross-sectoral manner.  It aims at preventing and responding to dog-transmitted rabies by improving awareness and education, reducing human rabies risk through expanded dog vaccinations, and improving access to healthcare, medicines and vaccines for populations at risk. The plan calls for generating and measuring impact by implementing proven effective guidelines for rabies control, and encouraging the use of innovative surveillance technologies to monitor progress towards “Zero by 30”.  It also aims at continued stakeholder engagement at all levels to sustain financing for achieving “Zero by 30”.

A social enterprise ‘INKLUDE’ has come up with inclusive education products like books and games for visually impaired children and adults. INKLUDE, which aims to change the way Braille and geometrical shapes are taught to the visually impaired, has launched a wide range of educational and recreational aids which can be used by both non-sighted and sighted children together. 

Children who are visually impaired are more reliant on touch or their tactile sense to experience the world. Unfortunately, braille books and aids available are not inclusive which means it is very difficult for a sighted teacher, parent or even a friend to teach a non-sighted child to read . And when it comes to making them understand shapes and geometry, there are no books available which have proper tactile images. The books being introduced by INKLUDE are integrated with special embossing technique which does not disturb the readability of a sighted reader and at the same time can be read by a visually impaired person by sensing the tactile braille and images through their fingers.

Explaining more on this Puneet Arora, Co-Founder at INKLUDE says “Children with Visual impairement are separated from the mainstream for the simple reason that there are no books or games available for them which can be played with their sighted peers together. A normal braille book is not understood by a sighted person because it appears like a punched dots on a plain sheet of paper has no supporting text printed on them. With INKLUDE’s innovative publication ideas, we can include the non-sighted with sighted. INKLUDE products are truly inclusive which means that the same book or games can be read and played jointly by both, sighted and non-sighted.”

INKLUDE is a brand owned by Chanakya Mudrak, an award winning Delhi based printing company which has invested last five years in R&D in this domain and has worked on some of country’s prestigious inclusive projects like the development of NCERT’s inclusive Children’s exemplar books, Audio-Braille Accesible Menus, Tactile alphabet books and many more such inclusive products which are unique and unprecedented not only in India, but world over. 

INKLUDE is working indefatigably in this direction to encourage and empower visually challenged population of our country and the world, thus enabling them to lead a life of dignity and productivity. INKLUDE lays special emphasis on education and skill development. It aims to send each and every visually challenged child into mainstream school and highly advocates the concept of integrated education for social fulfilment. It ardently focuses on qualitative education and skill development.

New Delhi : Time to clear the stage once again for the house of talent Ms. Runki Goswami, known for her Telegu compositions such as Â“Ni andelasandarilo” and Â“Teen maar beatulakki” and Hindi compositions Â“kabhieajnabithi” and “Ab naahichanda” and also bringing that nostalgia alive by singing Farida Khanum, Salil Choudhury, Geeta Dutt and various others.

Taking the talent baton forward and making India proud,theGurugram-based Music Director and singer will now dazzle the music lover with her spell binding performance but this time on international stage.

With her controlled and mastered vocals, Runki, will set up a majestic mood with her journey from north to south through a myriad of rustic folk songs of India in its original form; thus engaging the international audience in musical expression with multiple language. 

In the upcoming concert in Nehru Centre, India High Commission, London, Runki will celebrate Indian Folk in its original form. This is on the same lines of for her folk performance in India International Centre New Delhi, which garnered huge applause leaving people asking for more. Given that a different dialect is spoken, a new belief and story told in every bend of a kilometre in India, Runki will try and relive some of those which are now either lying latent in the memories of the older generation or left un-nurtured by the new.

Runki has studied folk carefully and believes that folk is primarily author-less and is not about an individual, but people, their culture, lifestyle and belief system which is running through generations and prevalent till date. Moreover folk is not Bollywood which people need to know Therefore this concert is a reflection of her effort to revive and keep true Indian folk music alive not only in India but also on the international platform. The recitals will be the mirror image of the unchanging legacy of different states, their culture, customs, beliefs and faith. Runki will make sure that her music concert is just not about singing, but narrating the history and interpretation of every pastoral folk rendition accompanied by authentic instrumentals.

The upcoming live performance at India High Commission – Nehru Centre London on 30^th May 2018, will surely be enchanting for all music lovers as Runki will musically hop in and out of Indian States with almost 20 folk songs in over 10 different languages.

NEW DELHI: Making a strong pitch for pursuit of terror financing and following the drug money, Minister of State for External Affairs M.J.Akbar on Monday called for global cooperation to eliminate cross-border terrorism as terrorists do not believe in a nation state or nationalism but in faith-based space. 

“We must identify not only the frontline enemy but all its support systems. We must have honest answers to candid questions. Where does terror financing come from? We must follow the drug money. Steps currently being taken by Financial Action Task Force (FATF) are most welcome, and we cannot falter in our pursuit of terror financing. We must cooperate to eliminate cross-border terrorism,” Mr. Akbar said. 

He was participating in the high-level International Conference on Countering Terrorism and Preventing Violent Extremism, hosted by Tajikistan in Dushanbe in cooperation with the UN, OSCE and EU. Mr. Akbar thanked the Tajik Government for preventing radicalized elements from spreading into the Central Asian region and beyond by their historic struggle during the Tajik civil war. 

Mr Akbar said India is fighting terrorism in Afghanistan in many ways – but chief among them is people-oriented development. “Our assistance to Afghanistan is over three billion dollars and includes, at the moment, 116 new projects in 31 provinces,” he told the conference.

Pointing out that there are no short cuts in fighting terrorism, he said terrorists and their sponsors attract the economically vulnerable into their suicide factories through lies, distortion, illusion as well as the ‘romance of regression’.

“We in India face and blunt the threat of radicalization through our shared cultural ethos and an abiding commitment to equality of faith and equitable economic opportunity. In India, every morning begins with the azaan, followed by the temple bells of a mandir, followed by the recitation of the Guru Granth Sahib in a gurdwara, followed, on a Sunday, by the peal of church bells. And because it is India, it is audible,” Mr. Akbar said.

“We are gathered here, friends, to unite and defend our very lives and civilization. We must identify not only the frontline enemy but all its support systems,” he said. 

He said the long war against terrorism must be fought along three dimensions — the battlefield, the battlefield within the mind were seeds of radicalization are being planted and the economic front. He noted that Tajikistan has banned the Islamic Rebirth Party of Tajikistan (IRPT) as a terrorist organization, without ifs and buts. 

India has signed a loan deal worth $ 200 million with the World Bank for the National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan). The loan would help the government in achieving its goal of reducing stunting in children 0-6 years of age from 38.4% to 25% by the year 2022.

The POSHAN (PM’s Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment)Abhiyaan was launched by the Prime Minister on 8^th March 2018 at Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan.

A large component of POSHAN Abhiyaan involves gradual scaling-up of the interventions supported by the ongoing World Bank assisted Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Systems Strengthening and Nutrition Improvement Project (ISSNIP) to all districts in the country over the next 3-year.  The loan will support the first phase scale up to 315 districts across all states and union territories (UTs). 

With a focus on improving the coverage and quality of ICDS nutrition services to pregnant and lactating women and children under 3 years of age, the project will include investments in improving the skills and capacities of ICDS staff and community nutrition workers, instituting mechanisms of community mobilization and behavior change communication, strengthening systems of citizen engagement and grievance redress and establishing mobile technology based tools for improved monitoring and management of services for better outreach to beneficiaries during the critical 1,000 day window for nutrition impact. 

The project will additionally ensure convergence of all nutrition related schemes and provide performance based incentives to states and community nutrition and health workers, facilitating a focus on results.

Health has never been an issue in India. It has not been a priority for the people, and neither has it ever been an election issue – barring an occasional mention in the manifestos of political parties during election time.

It has been the same in the field of journalism. Health is a `beat’ that no one wants to cover – or at least it was so until a decade ago. And, there was a `valid’ reason given for it: A health reporter would never make it to the Editor’s chair. It is still believed that only political reporters make to the top post. Honestly, we have not had any health reporters who have become Editors. But then, we hardly had any dedicated health reporters in major newspapers until recently except a handful of honourable exceptions.  

While some newspapers now have health reporters, regional newspapers still have none despite the fact that health impacts each one of us. Media coverage on public health issues is large event-based, particularly when the news is bad because `good news is no news’ for journalists—at least in the health sector.  Even worse, health news or any social sector news competes with advertisements. A rich advertisement will have a better chance of replacing a health story. 

Under the scenario, the launch of the online version of the `Critical Appraisal Skills’ course for health journalists is a much-needed step in the right direction. 

As a practitioner of journalism specialising in public health, I am aware of the huge gap that exists when it comes to training reporters on health issues. Not many journalism schools have specialised courses on health, hence, this initiative by UNICEF, Oxford University, Indian Institute of Mass Communication and Thomson Reuters Foundation deserves appreciation, and with a hope that the course if adopted by journalism schools and even media houses for better health reporting. 

Having had the privilege of being associated with the course right the beginning, I am privy to the hard work that has gone into producing this valuable document. Beginning with a survey on health reporting in India in 2014 to the launch of the online course, it has been a story of collaborations, agreements and disagreements, days of discussions and deliberations, as well as  involvement of journalism students in the pilot to ensure smooth roll-out. 

When I was asked to contribute, I was a little unsure of what my contribution would be—as were the other journalists– in the entire exercise that began with some lectures on different health issues to the journalism students at IIMC who had opted for Critical Appraisal Skill Programme (CASP) – as the pilot was known then—in addition to their regular academic course. 

As we proceeded with the workshops—led by Nicholas Phythian, Will Church and Royston Martin  from Thomson Reuters Foundation, and Premila Webster and Bharti Kumarvel from Oxford University – ideas emerged and issues cropped up. Every workshop had a new set of participants who brought with them rich experience and regional diversities enriching the deliberations. The entire exercise was a learning experience for the trainers as well. 

By now the course became everyone’s baby! 

After a series of workshops in India and a short training at Oxford University, things started falling in place. By the first half of 2017, the module had more or less taken shape with Nicholas Phythian taking the lead in finalising the course that has been beautifully and simply converged into three modules – critical skills, mother and child and immunisation — from a whole universe of health issues. 

The course has been integrated as a module within all the eight communication streams that the Indian Institute of Mass Communication offers at present.  

The online course is available for entry and mid-level health reporters and aims to enhance the capacities of media representatives to generate factual and non-sensational reports. It has modules on immunisation, mother and child health and critical appraisal. 

UNICEF says evidence shows that a well-researched news story, underpinned with an evidence-based approach can help mitigate any adverse perception about large scale public health initiatives such as the Routine Immunization programmes. It also helps dispel myths and fears and ensures pro-active public participation. Here, media has a critical role to play by way of shaping the conversation.

India has one of the largest immunization programmes in the world, in terms of the number of beneficiaries, geographical coverage and quantities of vaccine used, with nearly 25 million newborns targeted for immunization annually. Over nine million immunization sessions are held across the country to achieve this. However, only 62 per cent of the children in India receive full immunization during the first year of their life.

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee have identified a molecule that has the potential of antiviral activity against chikungunya virus. The antiviral activity achieved around 99 per cent reduction in the virus. At present, there are no drugs or vaccine available in the market to treat chikungunya disease.

The research team led by Prof Shailly Tomar, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Roorkee, used structure-based studies of chikungunya virus specific nsP2 protease to identify molecules — Pep-I and Pep-II — that exhibited protease inhibitory as well as antiviral activity.

Speaking about the importance of this research, Prof. Shailly Tomar said, “The nsP2 protease is a strict viral enzyme meaning it is absent in humans, and thus, is an excellent antiviral drug target for chikungunya virus. We identified a molecule that not only possesses anti-nsP2 activity but also effectively kills the chikungunya virus in the cell based assays.”

One of the two molecules — Pep-I — has higher antiviral activity against chikungunya virus.

Speaking about the future work that is going to be done in this direction, Prof Tomar said, “Derivatives of PeP-I and PeP-I like molecules are being developed that will be tested for their antiviral potential in animal model”

The research was funded by the grant from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and published recently in the Elsevier journal ‘Biochimie 

According to the researchers, any molecule that inhibits nsP2 protease should possess antiviral activity. To test the hypothesis they carried out antiviral studies using cell lines.

World Health Organisation (WHO) has appreciated India’s Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Scheme saying that the availability of clean household energy affects us all and our families and is a key to sustainable development. 

In the last two years 37 million women living below the poverty line were provided free LPG connections to support them to switch to clean household energy use. The country targets to reach 80 million households by 2020.

The WHO has called upon Member countries in its South-East Asia Region to aggressively address the double burden of household and ambient air pollution. The Region accounts for 34% or 2.4 million of the 7 million premature deaths caused by household and ambient air pollution together globally every year.
 
Of the 3.8 million deaths caused by household air pollution globally, the Region accounts for 1.5 million or 40% deaths, and of the 4.2 million global deaths due to ambient (outdoor) air pollution, 1.3 million or 30% are reported from the Region, as per the latest WHO report. 

The All countries in the Region are making efforts to expand availability of clean fuels and technologies, however, over 60% population do not have clean fuel.

The combined effects of household air pollution and ambient air pollution become increasingly hard to address if not tackled early.  The majority of countries in the Region are at early stages of accelerated urbanization and rapid industrialization. Hence, air pollution needs to be brought under control with urgent and effective action at the earliest to stand the best chance to prevent the situation from worsening as development proceeds.

“Though there is progress in the Region as most countries have national action plans for prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, which incorporate measures to address household air pollution, and more and more cities are now measuring air quality,  we need to do much more, and with an urgent and aggressive approach,” said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO South-East Asia.
 
Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are the leading cause of deaths globally and in the Region, and air pollution contributes significantly to NCDs such as cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease and lung cancer.  Cleaning up the air we breathe will help prevent NCDs, particularly among women and vulnerable groups such as children, those already ill and the elderly.

A range of solutions exist. Governments need to invest in effective urban planning with energy-efficient housing and power generation; build safe and affordable public transport systems; improve industry and municipal waste management; eliminate emissions from coal and biomass energy systems; properly manage agricultural waste, forest fires and agro-forestry activities such as charcoal production; and support the transition to exclusive use of clean household energy for cooking, heating and lighting.

Individuals should also contribute by valuing the environment and adopting behavioral changes such as using public transport or ‘soot-free’ vehicles; using clean, low-or no-emission stoves and fuels for cooking; using clean household energies and technologies; and reducing and disposing of household waste in an environmentally sound manner.

The Union Cabinet has approved the mutual recognition agreement (MRA) between the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) and South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA).

Approval of the Cabinet has been granted in respect of Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) between ICAI and SAICA to establish a mutual co-operation framework for the advancement of accounting knowledge, professional and intellectual development, advancing the interests of their respective members and positively contributing to the development of the accounting profession in South Africa and India. 

The ICAI is the second largest professional body of Chartered Accountants in the world, with a strong tradition of service to the Indian economy in public interest. 

The Agreement will facilitate recognition of Indian Accountancy Professionals with local Accountancy qualification in addition to existing ICAI qualification, which will increase their professional avenues in South African markets. Foster strong working relations between the two accounting institutes. Increase mobility of professionals at either end and would herald a new dimension for small and medium businesses in both countries.

MRAs pave the way for recognition of the professional bodies of one country by the other. Regulatory bodies of various professional services like engineering, accountancy and architecture are encouraged to enter into these pacts.

These agreements are part of free trade pacts that India has signed with several regions, including Singapore, Japan, South Korea and Asean.

Strategically it is very important for the ICAI to maintain a close relationship with SAICA will significantly help the Institute to further the interests of its members and strengthen the ICAI brand in the region. The relationship developed over the past few years is strategic in nature and of Mutual benefit. The MRA is likely to lead to greater employment opportunities for the Indian Chartered Accountants in the region and also lead to greater remittances from them to India.

ICAI is a statutory body established by an Act of Parliament of India, The Chartered Accountants Act, 1949′, to regulate the profession of Chartered Accountancy in India. SAICA is the foremost accountancy body in South Africa and one of the leading Institutes in the world. 

In general, a skilled professional from sectors, including medical and accountancy, can currently get a job in other country but signing of such agreements make it more easier to find employment.