Anti-cancer drug prices revised; consumers to save 3,540cr/year

Anti-cancer drug prices revised; consumers to save 3,540cr/year 

10.11.2026  TIMES AHEMEDABAD

New Delhi: Revised Maximum Retail Prices (MRPs) of 1,364 anti-cancer formulations came into effect Monday, a move projected to save consumers an estimated Rs 3,540.38 crore annually, according to an official release. 

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), functioning under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, capped trade margins on the MRP of 137 anti-cancer drugs based on recommendations submitted on Oct 17, 2026, by an Expert Committee constituted by the directorate general of health services (DGHS), ministry of health & family welfare. 

According to the ministry, 85 pharmaceutical companies reported revised MRPs for 1,364 anti-cancer formulations across 121 drugs as of Nov 8, 2026. Price reductions of over 50% have been reported for 679 brands, with the highest price cut recorded at 96.45%, ministry of chemicals and fertilizers: department of pharmaceuticals said in the release. 

The ministry stated that no chemist or hospital pharmacy is permitted to charge more than the revised MRP. Consumers can verify medicine rates via the revised MRP printed on packs, the ‘Pharma Sahi Daam’ mobile application, or the official NPPA website (nppa.gov.in), it said. Consumers can lodge complaints against instances of overcharging or other pricing-related issues through the Pharma Jan Samadhan portal or contact the NPPA helpline at 1800-111- 255, the release added. PTI

SC: Govt has wide powers to compulsorily retire staff to improve efficiency

SC: Govt has wide powers to compulsorily retire staff to improve efficiency

Dhananjay.Mahapatra @timesofindia.com

10.11.2026

New Delhi: Supreme Court has ruled govt has wide powers to compulsorily retire an employee to improve efficiency of administration and that the person aggrieved cannot challenge such a decision on the ground that other similarly placed employees have not met the same fate.

Upholding Chhattisgarh govt’s decision to compulsorily retire five employees, a bench of Justices Manmohan and Shree Chandrashekhar said the principle of “every person must be heard before being punished”, as enshrined in Article 311(2) of Constitution, is not applicable to cases of compulsory retirement because it is neither punitive nor casts aspersion upon an employee’s conduct.

Justice Manmohan said, “The decision is founded upon the subjective satisfaction of competent authority that the employee’s continued retention in service is no longer conducive to public interest.”

Exective holds power to retire ‘deadwood’ officers: Court Writing the judgment, Justice Manmohan said, “The ultimate assessment as to whether an officer has become ‘dead wood’ or whether his continuance would be detrimental to administrative efficiency falls within the domain of the executive.” Chhattisgarh additional advocate general Rajat Nair said decisions to compulsorily retire the five ‘assistant’ grade officers was arrived at in public interest for maintaining efficiency of administration after a two-tier scrutiny of their performance, efficiency, track records, integrity and annual confidential records. 

When such decisions are challenged by aggrieved employees, courts need to re-appreciate or re-evaluate material considered by authorities. “The court is concerned only with whether relevant material existed, whether such material was taken into consideration by competent authority, and whether the conclusion drawn therefrom is one which a reasonable person could have arrived at. So long as these requirements are satisfied, the court will not substitute its view for that of the authority entrusted with the decision-making process,” the bench said

MEWS TODAY 07.11.2026

 

Monkey runs off with bag, Ngp man falls 150ft to death chasing it

Monkey runs off with bag, Ngp man falls 150ft to death chasing it 

07.11.2026

Bhopal: In a freak incident that turned fatal, a 52-year-old teacher from Nagpur died on Friday morning after falling nearly 150 feet into a gorge at the Priyadarshini View Point at Pachmarhi in Madhya Pradesh’s Narmadapuram district. 

The Priyadarshini point is typically known to pack in early visitors to catch the sunrise. Vijay Nayak was visiting the hill station with 20 schoolchildren and fellow teachers. His father was also part of the group. According to a teacher who witnessed the incident, the group reached the viewpoint around 6.45 am when a monkey snatched Nayak’s bag. 

Nayak climbed over the safety railing to chase the monkey. While trying to retrieve his bag, he lost his balance and plunged into the gorge. Police and local residents launched a rescue operation after being alerted. The team trekked nearly 3 km through difficult terrain to reach him and brought his body up on a stretcher. 

The rescue reportedly took about three and a half hours. His body was brought up around 9.30 am, according to the account provided after the fatal incident. The body was taken to a govt hospital for post-mortem examination and subsequently handed over to his family, who left for Nagpur. TNN

HC refuses to relax 30% cap on in-service docs’ PG admissions

HC refuses to relax 30% cap on in-service docs’ PG admissions 

07.11.2026  TIMES BHOPAL

  

Bhopal/Jabalpur: Madhya Pradesh high court on Thursday extended its stay on admissions of in-service doctors to postgraduate medical courses beyond the 30% quota, rejecting the director of medical education’s (DME) request to relax the restriction. Chief Justice Alpesh Y Kogje and Justice Vivek Jain declined to modify the interim order limiting such admissions to 30% of PG seats in state medical colleges. The restriction thus remains operative. Petitioners Jahnavi Batra and Dr S Singh challenged admissions of inservice doctors under both their reserved quota and the open category, alleging this pushed their selection beyond the prescribed limit. 

They said first-round counselling was complete and the selection list released. Document verification was underway, with counselling scheduled to continue until Nov 10. The petitioners alleged in-service doctors were securing open-category seats, including in soughtafter specialities, despite having a separate quota. Their counsel, Aditya Sanghi, argued candidates appearing for the entrance examination as in-service doctors should be considered only against their designated quota, not opencategory seats. TNN

NMC adds 9,783 PG medical seats; total rises to 68,305

NMC adds 9,783 PG medical seats; total rises to 68,305 

07.11.2026  TIMES BENGALURU

New Delhi: India’s postgraduate medical education system is set for a major expansion, with 9,783 seats being added for the 2026-27 academic year. The increase takes the total approved postgraduate (PG) intake to 68,305, up from 58,522, with govt medical colleges accounting for the largest share of the new seats, reports Anuja Jaiswal. 

Of the additional seats, 4,373 have been added in govt medical colleges, 4,148 in private colleges and 1,262 in deemed universities, Dr M K Ramesh, president of the National Medical Commission’s (NMC) medical assessment and rating board (MARB), told TOI. PG medical seats are spread across several states, with five accounting for a little over half of the national intake. Karnataka has the highest number, with 8,998 approved seats for 2026- 27, followed by Maharashtra with 7,682. Uttar Pradesh has 6,983 seats, Tamil Nadu 6,819 and Telangana 4,417. Together, these five states account for 34,899 seats, or around 51% of the total approved PG broad speciality intake of 68,305.

Explaining the increase, Ramesh said a change in the rules has allowed medical colleges to apply for postgraduate courses much earlier than before. Earlier, colleges could apply to start PG courses only after four-and-a-half years of establishment, when their first MBBS batch had passed out. Under the revised process, they can apply from the second year itself. He also pointed to the sharp rise in the number of medical colleges over the past decade, saying more institutions are now applying to start postgraduate courses. “I have given more to govt colleges,” he said, referring to the larger addition in govt institutions.

Class X, XII board exams from Feb 16; CBSE issues date sheets

Class X, XII board exams from Feb 16; CBSE issues date sheets 

07.11.2026  TIMES CHENNAI

New Delhi: The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Friday released the date sheets for the Class X and XII board examinations for 2027, with both sets of examinations scheduled to begin on Feb 16. The schedules have been announced 101 days before the start of the examinations, giving students more than three months to plan their preparation. 

According to a circular issued by CBSE controller of examinations Sanyam Bhardwaj on Nov 6, over 46.3 lakh students have registered for the 2027 board examinations. This includes more than 26.5 lakh Class X students and over 19.8 lakh Class XII students. While Class X students will appear in 83 subjects, Class XII students will take examinations in 121 subjects. 

All examinations will begin at 10.30 am. CBSE said the date sheets were finalised after the completion of the list of candidates (LOC) submission process by schools and an analysis of the subject combinations opted for by students. Explaining the scheduling process, the board stated: “More than 40,000 subject combinations have been factored in while preparing the date sheets to ensure that examinations of any two subjects opted by a student do not coincide on the same date.” 

The board said adequate gaps had been provided between examinations of subjects commonly offered together in both classes. It added that the tentative schedules of major entrance examinations for Class XII students were also taken into account, with efforts made to conclude the board examinations before the commencement of entrance tests. Times News Network