Recent Reports on India

Is this Protection? Analyzing India’s Approach to the Rescue and Reintegration of Children Trafficked for Labor Exploitation

March 2016–FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University

An Investigation into Current Anti-Trafficking Practices in Rajasthan and Bihar by the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University
An Investigation into Current Anti-Trafficking Practices in Rajasthan and Bihar by the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University

This report provides a comprehensive and critical analysis of the Indian government’s efforts to rescue and reintegrate children trafficked for their labor.


When we Raise Our Voice: The Challenge of Eradication Labor Exploitation

March 2016–FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard University

An Evaluation of Community Empowerment Intervention in Uttar Pradesh, India
An Evaluation of Community Empowerment Intervention in Uttar Pradesh, India
This report examines the impact of a multifaceted, sustained, community-based intervention to eradicate forced and bonded labor. Centers on the efforts of Manav Sansadhan Evam Mahila Vikas Sansthan (MSEMVS), a local NGO dedicated to the elimination of exploitative labor practices within low caste, remote communities, home to some of India’s most economically disenfranchised and vulnerable populations.

Quality and Accountability in Healthcare Delivery: Audit Evidence from Primary Care Providers in India

June 2015–World Bank Group

“This paper presents direct evidence on the quality of health care in low-income settings using a unique and original set of audit studies, where standardized patients were presented to a nearly representative sample of rural public and private primary care providers in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Three main findings are reported. First, private providers are mostly unqualified, but they spent more time with patients and completed more items on a checklist of essential history and examination items than public providers, while being no different in their diagnostic and treatment accuracy. Second, the private practices of qualified public sector doctors were identified and the same doctors exerted higher effort and were more likely to provide correct treatment in their private practices. Third, there is a strong positive correlation between provider effort and prices charged in the private sector, whereas there is no correlation between effort and wages in the public sector. The results suggest that market-based accountability in the unregulated private sector may be providing better incentives for provider effort than administrative accountability in the public sector in this setting. While the overall quality of care is low both sectors, the differences in provider effort may partly explain the dominant market share of fee-charging private providers even in the presence of a system of free public healthcare.”


Use of Fixed Dose Combination (FDC) Drugs in India: Central Regulatory Approval and Sales of FDCs Containing Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs), Metformin, or Psychotropic Drugs

May 2015–PLOS Medicine

“There was evidence supporting concerns about FDCs. Metformin excepted, substantial numbers of centrally unapproved formulations for NSAID, anti-depressant/benzodiazepine, and anti-psychotic FDCs were marketed; sales volumes were high. The legal need for central approval of new drugs before manufacture has been in place continuously since 1961, including for FDCs meeting the applicable legal test. Proportions of centrally unapproved formulations after 1 May 2002 did not decrease overall, and no ambiguity was found about states’ licensing powers. Unapproved formulations should be banned immediately, prioritising those withdrawn/banned internationally and undertaking a review of benefits and risks for patients in ceasing or switching to other medicines. Drug laws need to be amended to ensure the safety and effectiveness of medicines marketed in India.”


The Know-Do Gap in Quality of Health Care for Childhood Diarrhea and Pneumonia in Rural India

April 2015–JAMA Pediatrics

“Practitioners performed poorly with vignettes and SPs, with large know-do gaps, especially for childhood diarrhea. Efforts to improve health care for major causes of childhood mortality should emphasize strategies that encourage pediatric health care practitioners to diagnose and manage these conditions correctly through better monitoring and incentives in addition to practitioner training initiatives.”