NITI AAYOG MEMBER OF HEALTH

The principal secretary to the prime minister, P K Mishra, chaired a meeting to review preparations for the G20 Virtual Summit and the Voice of Global South Summit 2.0. Progress in implementing the G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration was also discussed. Mishra announced the establishment of a high-level monitoring mechanism to oversee its implementation.

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has announced that manufacturers and importers of high-risk medical devices who have applied for a license before September 30 can continue to supply them in the market for another six months. New regulations state that medical devices in the 'class C' and 'class D' categories cannot be sold without a license. Many manufacturers have applied for licenses but have not received them on time. The government's think tank, NITI Aayog, has recommended that all medical devices meet safety and quality standards.

The Delhi High Court has asked a Niti Aayog committee to expedite the process of formulating a policy on an integrated medical system that combines different branches of medicine. The court observed that there is a wealth of knowledge in systems like allopathy, ayurveda, and homeopathy, and it should be examined whether they can be integrated. The court clarified that the issue of integration should be decided by experts. The petitioner argued that an integrated health system would improve the country's doctor to population ratio and strengthen the healthcare sector.

The policy, expected by the end of this year, is expected to lay down of BIS standards for bamboo, food and safety standards certification for bamboo products and geographical indications (GI) tagging to enhance exports opportunities for bamboo.

The Indian economy is projected to grow at around 6.5% in the current fiscal year, according to Arvind Virmani, a member of NITI Aayog. He also stated that the gross household savings ratio in India has consistently increased. Virmani dismissed claims by some US-based economists that India's economic growth is overstated, noting that they lack an understanding of how GDP is constructed.

The Indian government is developing a policy intervention to promote the mass manufacturing of assistive devices. The aim is to incentivize the private sector to undertake research and development (R&D) for this technology and increase production. Additionally, monetary support will be provided to individuals with disabilities to access assistive technology services.

The NITI Aayog in India is developing a policy to improve elderly care in the country. The aim is to have a comprehensive system in place to meet the needs of the growing elderly population, which is expected to reach 300 million people by 2050.

Agricultural economist and NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand has stated that India can export 20-22 million metric tonnes (MMT) of rice without any impact on domestic food security. The government has banned non-basmati white rice exports because the global demand had skyrocketed, and there was concern India could end up exporting over 30 million tonnes.

There is an important subtext, though. This emerging cohort of the middle class is not homogenous. Measured in terms of household incomes, the middle class is stratified. The annual household income of the middle class varies between ₹5 lakh and ₹30 lakh. This intra-middle-class inequality gets amplified when this segment is compared with two other cohorts - destitute (less than ₹1.25 lakh) and wealthy households (more than ₹30 lakh).

The framework, however, exempts a registered veterinary practitioner from any penal action should he/she fail to establish veterinarian-client (animal keeper)-patient (animal) relationship while rendering telemedicine consultation in case of an emergency.

Assam has registered a significant decline of 13.30 percentage points in the number of multi-dimensional poverty, from 32.65 per cent in 2015-16 to 19.35 per cent in 2019-2021. About 46.87 lakh people have escaped multi-dimensional poverty in Assam.

About 135 million Indians have moved out of multidimensional poverty in the past five years, according to India's NITI Aayog. The proportion of poor in the country fell from 24.8% to 14.9% between 2015-16 and 2019-21. Uttar Pradesh saw the highest number of people exiting poverty, followed by Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and West Bengal.

India has significantly reduced multidimensional poverty in the past five years, according to the National Multidimensional Poverty Index, released by NITI Aayog. Out of a population of 1.366 billion, 135 million Indians moved out of multidimensional poverty, with the proportion of poor reducing from 24.8% to 14.9%. Uttar Pradesh saw the highest decline, with 34.3 million people escaping poverty, followed by Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.