Delhi Confidential: Inside information

It has been some months since the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare received a certificate from the World Health Organisation (WHO) for having successfully eliminated maternal and neonatal tetanus. But the ministry has been coy about the achievement — officials say it is waiting for an “appropriate occasion” (an announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi). There are hopes that the moment may finally arrive when Modi inaugurates a “call to action to reduce maternal and child mortality” next week.

On Board

Former editor of RSS mouthpiece Seshadri Chari, actor Vikram Gokhale, academician Vartika Nanda, filmwriter Prakash Kapadia and two others are likely to be appointed temporary members of the Prasar Bharati Board. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting referred the six names to the Ministry of Home Affairs for security clearance on Monday.

Uncommon Argument

Are bombs so common in West Bengal? Supreme Court Judge Madan B Lokur was surprised on Monday when a lawyer sought bail for his client on the ground that bombs are “very common” in the state. The lawyer further argued that nobody was seriously injured in the blast which occurred on the day of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation elections this year. Dismissing the plea, Justice Lokur quipped, “You say bombs are common but I am still to see one. And can we allow you to go on hurling bombs only because nobody got killed? You have made some argument unheard of.”

Losing Weight

Amid rising concern about the weight of school bags, the HRD ministry has decided to examine the matter. A key item on the agenda of the Central Advisory Board of Education meeting due on Wednesday is “lightening burden of school children”. The guidelines proposed by the ministry include framing a well-designed timetable, urging parents to buy child-friendly bags, discouraging students from carrying reference books, keeping school bags of children up to class II in the school itself, and starting a system of class libraries.

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