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On 25 January 2008, India's first female president, Pratibha Patel, voiced an appeal on the eve of the country's 59th Republic Day, echoing concerns about the need to reconcile economic growth with social inclusion in society. India's impressive economic growth, she noted, was not yet allowing the underprivileged and disadvantaged sections of Indian society to find a place to enjoy" the sunshine of the country's growth and development." 1 India's galloping economic growth therefore clearly and urgendy needs to be tempered by policies created to address concerns of equity and inclusiveness. Some of this disquiet is reflected in the low status of health achievements in India. Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen has convincingly argued that the health achievements of a given society are a better signal of social well being than any conventional macroeconomic measure. 2 In addition to overall health achievements, how …