NEW DELHI: The Gut Microbiota and Probiotic Science Foundation organised the 16th India Probiotic Symposium on “Gut Microbiome and Probiotics: Impact from Cradle to Centenarians” in New Delhi on March 27-28. According to an official press release, delivering the Chief Guest address, Rajiv Gauba, Member, NITI Aayog, underscored the critical role of the gut microbiome in immunity, metabolism and preventive healthcare. Gauba expressed concern over the rapid shift in dietary habits in India, noting that urbanisation, changing lifestyles and the increasing consumption of ultra-processed and refined foods, often driven by social media and quick commerce platforms, are distancing people from traditional, nutritionally rich diets. He cautioned that these trends could have serious long-term consequences for gut health, highlighting that an estimated 56.4 per cent of India’s disease burden is attributable to unhealthy or imbalanced diets. He further warned that if neglected, “micro-organisms could create macro consequences.” Situating gut health within a wider development context, Gauba described healthcare as the most critical sector for both individual well-being and economic growth. He stated that India’s demographic dividend can only be realised with a healthy workforce and timely preparation for active and healthy ageing as the elderly share of the population rises. He emphasised that investment in health is an investment in Viksit Bharat and cited initiatives such as Ayushman Bharat, PM-JAY, PM Bharatiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, which have significantly strengthened primary healthcare and financial protection. He pointed out that out-of-pocket health expenditure has declined from 62.6 per cent to 39.4 per cent between FY15 and FY22, resulting in savings of over Rs 1.25 lakh crore for households. At the same time, Gauba acknowledged persistent challenges related to access, equity, affordability, quality, patient safety and shortages of skilled healthcare professionals. He emphasised that access to healthcare services continues to be influenced by socio-economic factors. Urging healthcare professionals to play a proactive role, he called for increased prescription of affordable generic medicines and greater use of digital health tools, telemedicine, data analytics, and AI to expand specialist care to underserved communities and act as advocates for those lacking access to quality medical services. Addressing the evolving field of probiotics, Gauba noted that microbiome science has progressed from descriptive studies to mechanistic and translational research. He highlighted emerging frontiers such as next-generation microbiome-based therapeutics, synthetic biology and CRISPR-enabled engineering of probiotic strains with targeted anti-inflammatory and metabolic functions for precision medicine. However, he cautioned against the growing spread of misinformation and misleading advertisements in the probiotics and supplements market, urging clinicians and researchers to use their credibility and media reach to disseminate accurate information, promote healthy dietary habits and champion preventive lifestyles that reduce the need for expensive diagnostics and procedures. Highlighting India’s rich heritage of fermented foods and traditional dietary practices, Gauba stated that the country is uniquely positioned to lead the global probiotic movement by combining traditional knowledge with genomic and microbiome research to develop clinically validated probiotics. He underlined the vast public health potential of probiotics to reduce infectious and chronic disease burdens, improve nutrition and strengthen population immunity. He also stressed that robust collaboration between academia, industry and regulators is essential to translate scientific advances into safe, effective and accessible products. Lauding the participation of young researchers and innovators, Gauba encouraged them to adopt multidisciplinary and evidence-based approaches to address complex health challenges. He expressed confidence that the symposium would catalyse new collaborations and reinforce India’s leadership in the field of microbiome and probiotic science.

NEW DELHI: India on Friday reaffirmed its support for Bangladesh’s pursuit of justice over the atrocities committed by Pakistan during the 1971 military crackdown, saying Islamabad continues to deny its crimes.The remarks came as Bangladesh marked March 25 as Genocide Day, remembering one of the darkest chapters in its history. On that day in 1971, Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight to crush the Bangladeshi nationalist movement.At his weekly media briefing, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We all are aware of the terrible atrocities committed by Pakistan during ‘Operation Searchlight’ in 1971. The genocide involved systematic and targeted murder of millions of innocent Bangladeshi people and mass sexual crimes against women.”“It also forced millions to flee the country and seek shelter in India as refugees. These atrocities shook the conscience of the world. Pakistan however, remains in denial to this very day of its crimes,” he said.Jaiswal said India supports Bangladesh in its “desire for justice”.New Delhi’s remarks came three days after Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman described Operation Searchlight as “one of the most heinous genocides in history” against unarmed Bangladeshi people.In a social media post a day ahead of Genocide Day, Rahman recalled the military crackdown by Pakistani forces.“In the history of freedom-loving Bangladesh, 25 March 1971 remains one of the most disgraceful and brutal days. On that dark night, the Pakistani occupation forces carried out one of the most heinous genocides in history against the unarmed people of Bangladesh in the name of ‘Operation Searchlight’,” he said.Calling it a planned assault, Rahman said the “genocide” of March 25 was a “pre-planned massacre”.India’s victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war, marked by the surrender of over 90,000 Pakistani soldiers on December 16, ended the violence and led to the birth of Bangladesh as an independent country.

CR Kesavan, left, and Rahul Gandhi

NEW DELHI: BJP national spokesperson CR Kesavan on Saturday attacked the Congress in Tamil Nadu, alleging that the party was facing a “deep divide” after MP Jothimani publicly raised concerns over a lack of transparency in constituency selection ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.In a post on X, Kesavan said the developments reflected a larger pattern within the party and also targeted the DMK-Congress alliance in the state.“Rahul Gandhi’s Congress is a deeply divided house and is in total disarray in Tamil Nadu. Their Party MP from TN is now publicly attacking Congress leadership for having no transparency. There is a definite pattern to this. Rahul Gandhi’s point person in the Bihar elections was gheraoed by Congress workers for allegedly selling tickets. This is why the Compromised Congress has lost credibility with people across the country. The opportunistic DMK -Congress alliance is in tatters, and the disaster model DMK Govt’s misrule, which has been one of the worst regimes in the history of Tamil Nadu, will be categorically rejected by the people in the coming elections,” the BJP leader wrote.Kesavan’s remarks came after Jothimani publicly questioned the Congress party’s constituency selection process, alleging that decisions were taken in a “highly secretive manner” and that the welfare of the party had been compromised.“There is absolutely no transparency in the Congress party’s constituency selection. Our view that constituency selection should be done only after transparency and extensive discussion has not been accepted by the responsible leaders. Everything happened in a highly secretive manner. The welfare of the Congress party has been entirely compromised. It is heartbreaking to see a few individuals, who haven’t even bothered to pluck a single feather from the decades-long hard work of genuine Congress party workers like us for the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, now selling it off,” Jothimani wrote on X.She also warned that the party could face serious consequences in Tamil Nadu if the same approach is followed during candidate selection.“One cannot remain silent in the face of this terrible situation without raising questions. The party is not just the responsible leaders, the state president, and the legislative party leader. The sentiments and labour of lakhs of workers are what make the party. We can discuss this in detail once the list is released. If candidate selection is also going to happen with this same selling approach, no one can save the Congress party in Tamil Nadu.“The political developments come as the DMK alliance continues preparations for the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) has announced that its ‘Rising Sun’ symbol will contest in nearly 175 constituencies in the state.So far, the DMK alliance has allotted seats to nine parties, including Congress (28), MDMK (4), IUML (2), MMK (2), KMDK (2), CPI (5), CPM (5), VCK (8), and DMDK (10). A total of 66 seats have been allocated to allies, with seven of them being contested under the DMK symbol.With remaining allocations expected, the DMK will directly contest 168 seats, while allied candidates in seven seats will also contest under the Rising Sun symbol, taking the total to 175 seats under the DMK symbol.Tamil Nadu will go to the polls in a single phase on April 23, with counting scheduled for May 4.

Amit Shah releasing ‘chargesheet’ against TMC

NEW DELHI: Union home minister Amit Shah on Saturday released the BJP’s “charge sheet” against the Trinamool Congress (TMC)-led West Bengal government ahead of assembly polls in the state.Speaking at a press conference in Kolkata, Shah emphasised that the upcoming elections would be a choice between “fear and trust.” He was joined by BJP state president and Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya and Suvendu Adhikari, the leader of opposition in the West Bengal assembly.He criticised chief minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of fostering a “politics of lies, violence, and corruption over the past 15 years.”“Bengal has to choose between fear and trust. For the last 15 years, politics of fear and corruption have been going on. Mamata Banerjee has created a new way of politics by using lies and violence to move her politics forward. The basis of TMC coming to power is lies, fear, and violence. But since 2011, BJP has been fighting against this, and I believe that this time BJP will form the government,” Shah told reporters.He continued, “In today’s press conference, we have come with a chargesheet against the 15 years of rule by the TMC government. This chargesheet is filed against the Mamata Banerjee government on behalf of the people of Bengal, which the BJP is voicing. In a way, the people of Bengal have to decide in the coming elections whether to choose fear or to choose trust.”The senior BJP leader also lauded Suvendu Adhikari for his extensive tour of the state to address key issues.“Elections have been announced. All BJP workers, under the leadership of our state president, have stepped into Bengal with the resolve to form a BJP government. This election in Bengal is also very important for national security. The security of the entire eastern region is connected to Bengal. After the BJP government was formed in Assam, infiltration has almost ended. Now, only one route remains from where infiltrators enter the entire country, and that is Bengal,” he explained.Shah added, “Our opposition leader, Shri Suvendu Adhikari ji, has also toured the entire Bengal before the elections, taking the issues of disorder, anarchy, economic distress, and especially infiltration prevalent in Bengal to every individual.”He further criticised the TMC for failing to deliver on its promise of a “Sonar Bangla,” turning the state into a hub for criminal syndicates and stifling industrial growth, which he described as a “graveyard for industry.”The state will conduct elections in two phases, on April 23 and April 29, with counting of votes for both phases scheduled for May 4. In the first phase, elections will be held across 152 constituencies, while the remaining 142 seats will go to the polls in the second phase.(With ANI inputs)