This paper analyses levels of women's malnutrition in India over the seven years between 1998-99 and 2005-06, based on the National Family Health Survey. During a period of higher growth and a reasonable pace of reduction in poverty, malnutrition especially iron-deficiency anaemia has increased among women from disadvantaged social and economic groups. The adverse influence of maternal malnutrition extends beyond maternal mortality to causing intrauterine growth retardation, child malnutrition and an increasing prevalence of chronic diseases.

The sanatorium was central to tuberculosis treatment in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The long-drawn nature of treatment and the highly infectious nature of the disease made the sanatorium regimen effective and popular before antibiotics entered the scene. The sanatorium was not just a hospital, it was a social world

A gross imbalance in the World Trade Organisation proposals in agriculture and industry explains why the latest attempt in July to achieve a breakthrough in the Doha round collapsed. The US demand that developing countries institute a stringent special safeguard mechanism in agriculture that would make it different for developing countries to protect themselves against import surges was not the only obstacle.

Bridging the infrastructure gap by promoting public private partnerships has become the preferred mode for the execution of public projects. The government needs to develop the necessary capability to handle the large number of PPP projects that are to be taken up during the Eleventh Plan.

This article presents a case study of a successful Community-led Total Sanitation Campaign from Bhiwani district in Haryana. Social acceptance of hygienic sanitation practices has led to enormous benefits for the village community.

One reason for the increase in world food prices is that of food consumption, especially in developing countries. Another is the demand for cereals and food crops to produce biofuels. Which is the more dominant factor that can explain this surge?

Is urban public transport subsidised more than its private counterpart? Through a case study of urban transport in Pune, this article demonstrates that car and two-wheeler users receive larger subsidies than bus users when all costs imposed by transport modes are considered.

Official hostility to social audits of the rural employment guarantee scheme takes an ugly turn in Jharkhand. (Editorial)

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has embarked on a grand project of four- and/or six-laning of the existing roads to a target of 14,000 km, especially the east-west and north-south corridors. This is a good thing because the country needs proper roads for its development and road construction provides employment. This aspect of development, nevertheless, is also harmful if not managed carefully, because road development requires the basic ingredient of land. People may be displaced or otherwise adversely affected due to land acquisition. (Letters)

This paper presents new evidence on the links between public infrastructure provisioning and time allocation related to the water sector in India. Using time-use data, the analysis reveals that worsening public infrastructure affects market work with evident gender differentials. The results also suggest that the access to public infrastructure can lead to substitution effects in time allocation between unpaid work and market work.