ANNOUNCEMENTS
Lucknow: The School of Management Sciences (SMS), Lucknow, organised a two-day national conference focusing on sustainable business approaches for a collective future.
At the collaborative event with the Indian Society for Training & Development (ISTD) and the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) , institute director Ashish Bhatnagar said, "Sustainability is not an option, it is a necessity."
Speakers, including former chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh R Ramani, former director of IIM Kozhikode Krishna Kumar, and TERI SAS New Delhi Associate Professor, Shruti Sharma Rana, led discussions on sustainable finance, circular economy, and ESG practices. TNN
Read MoreProminent environmental experts have challenged the Central Pollution Control Board's (CPCB) report declaring Triveni Sangam water unfit for bathing during the Mahakumbh. The experts argue CPCB report is incomplete citing missing data on nitrates and phosphates.
New Delhi: Prominent environment experts have countered Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report claiming poor quality of water at Mahakumbh. The CPCB report said that Triveni Sangam water is not fit for bathing. The CPCB cites high levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD) in the water.
Prof Umesh Kumar Singh, who teaches at Centre of Environmental Science at the University of Allahabad, said that water at Sangam is fit for taking a bath keeping in view the current set of data.
‘CPCB needs to work more’
“A few days back, the Centre Pollution Control Board (CPCB) report stated increased levels of faecal coliform (bacteria) in the water. I believe that the CPCB needs to work more on the report because their data is not complete,” Professor Singh said. “The level of nitrates and phosphates are missing from the report. The level of dissolved oxygen in the water, as shown in the report, is good. And on the basis of the current data, I can say that the water at Triveni Sangam is fit for taking a bath,” Professor Umesh Singh told ANI.
“Report very inconsistent”
Similarly, another professor RK Ranjan termed CPCB report “very inconsistent”. According to RK Ranjan, who is Associate Professor Central University of South Bihar, the Central Pollution Control Board data is very inconsistent and to conclude that water is unsafe to bathe in would be to say things in haste.
He added, “There is not enough data to conclude that the waters in Prayagraj are not safe to bathe in. Similar data can be seen from Garhmukteshwar, Gazipur, Buxar and Patna. There could be many reasons for this to happen. Among others one reason behind this is when a large number of people bathe in the same waters. It also matters from where and when the sample of water is taken.”
“Coliform bacteria is nothing new”
Dr. Amit Kumar Mishra, another environmental scientist from JNU, also holds the same opinion. Mishra says the presence of coliform bacteria is nothing new and called for new data set.
I would say we need more data sets, we need more measurements. There is a huge number of population which is taking bath at Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj. If you talk about the coliform bacteria, it is nothing new. If you see the data of the Shashi Snan peaks, you will see that the E.Coli bacteria peaks at that time. So, I would say that we need more data sets, we need more parameters, we need more monitoring stations, especially down the stream,” Amit Kumar Mishra said.
Prof. Chander Kumar Singh of TERI School of Advanced Studies also said that many parameters are not present in the CPBC report.
“In the CPCB report available, many parameters are not present. I believe better information can be given if more data and facts come out,” Prof. Chander argued.
https://x.com/ANI/status/1892903056926486548
| Date | News Title | Source |
| 25-March-2025 | How water green credits can fu... | Hindustan Times (Opinion) |
| 23-February-2025 | Sustainable biz practices disc... | The Times of India (Online) |
| 21-February-2025 | Sangam fit for bath’, Enviro... | News9 (Online) |
| 12-February-2025 | A role for India in South-Sout... | The Hindu (Online) |
| 02-December-2024 | ICAR Findings Show 34% Decline... | ETV Bharat (Online) |
| 28-October-2024 | German Vice Chancellor Dr. Hab... | Indian Chemical News (Online) |
| 14-October-2024 | Climate action is the hot new ... | The Print (Online) |
| 04-October-2024 | Turning carbon into opportunit... | Deccan Herald (Online) |
| 25-September-2024 | University of Leeds and TERI S... | APN News (Online) |
| 08-August-2024 | Teaching climate change: Globa... | Careers360 (Online) |
People in rural India spent more on medical expenses compared to those living in urban areas in 2022-2023.
Sukanya Das and Megha Jacob
After over a decade, on February 24, the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) published the Factsheet of the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey of 2022-2023. It is anticipated that the comprehensive survey report will be released later.
This panel survey's main goal is to prepare the budget shares of various commodity categories in total consumption for studying price indices, particularly the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for rural and urban areas, by analysing the data gathered.
The survey data is often utilised to build statistical indicators pertaining to social consumption and well-being, inequality, and living standards of the population. This latest survey covering 261,746 households across all states and Union Territories was conducted from August 2022 to July 2023.
Many population-based surveys such as the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey, employ the monthly per capita consumption expenditure (MPCE), a direct indicator of living standards in poor nations, to explain differences in social outcomes based on the economic status of the population. The majority of developing nations use conventional consumption surveys conducted on a regular basis to assess the distribution of living standards, poverty, and inequality. Numerous questions about consumption are frequently gathered by these population-based consumption surveys.
The previous consumption survey was undertaken in 2011-2012. This survey coupled with the 71st and 75th rounds of the health survey (2014 and 2018) by the NSSO has given policymakers insights on healthcare expenditures of households and health indicators. Since the all-India household expenditure was released only recently, one can expect the latest health survey to be conducted and released soon.
It’s interesting to note that although the share of Out-of-Pocket Expenditure (OOPE) in the total health expenditure declined from 62.6 per cent to 47.1 per cent between 2014-2015 to 2019-2020, the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey of 2022-2023 shows a rise in medical (hospitalisation) expenses as a percentage of the MPCE from 2.15 per cent to 2.31 per cent, and also a similar rise in medical (non-hospitalisation expenses) from 4.5 per cent to 4.66 per cent as a percentage of the MPCE in rural India between 2011-2012 and 2022-2023. In urban India, the survey shows a decline in medical (hospitalisation) expenses as a percentage of the MPCE from 1.96 per cent to 1.89 per cent, but a rise in medical (non-hospitalisation expenses) from 3.58 per cent to 3.96 per cent as a percentage of the MPCE in the same time period.
In general, people in rural India spent more on medical expenses (6.96 per cent share of the total MPCE) compared to those living in the urban areas (5.85 per cent share of the total MPCE) in 2022-2023. When the survey is undertaken, the medical (hospitalisation) expenses are calculated for a household during the last one-year time period. These include medicine; doctor's/surgeon's fees; hospital & nursing home charges; X-ray, ECG, pathological tests, etc. and other medical expenses.
The medical (non-hospitalisation expenses) are calculated for a household during the last 30 days’ time period. These include medicine; doctor's/surgeon's fee; X-ray, ECG, pathological test, etc.; family planning devices and other medical expenses.
While analysing health spending by households, the survey also looks at expenditure for purchase (including repair and maintenance) of medical equipment for domestic use during the last 365 days, and the extent of utilisation of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Yojana (Ayushman Bharat) or any other state-specific public health scheme by households between 2022-2023. More disaggregated data is needed to analyse questions like how the recent health policies shaped peoples’ healthcare choices, especially post-Covid-19.
The MOSPI factsheet is a welcome move as it’s expected to help policymakers understand the health expenditure of Indian households in recent times in the rural and urban areas of the nation.
Sukanya Das is Professor, Department of Policy and Management Studies, and Dean (Research & Partnerships), Teri School of Advanced Studies, New Delhi.
Megha Jacob is Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, Jesus and Mary College, University of Delhi)
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.
(Published 28 February 2024, 05:19 IST)
