Elevated lead, copper levels found in 19 Detroit public schools

Detroit public school children have been forced to switch to bottled water after elevated levels of lead and copper were found at 19 Detroit public schools, or nearly a third of those tested, officials said on Thursday. The results also came the same day Michigan lawmakers extended by four months a state of emergency in Flint, about 70 miles northwest of Detroit, to boost aid to authorities managing a crisis over lead contamination in the city's drinking water. Last month, water fountains at 30 schools in Newark, New Jersey, were shut off due to elevated levels of lead.

India sacks some foreign-funded consultants; health programs may suffer

By Aditya Kalra NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India is firing dozens of foreign-funded health experts working inside the government, seen as part of a broader clampdown to reduce the influence of non-government organizations (NGOs) on policy. A shortage of technical experts has for years forced India to turn to the World Health Organization (WHO) and aid groups like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to manage large-scale public health schemes. Of the nearly 140 people who run India's HIV/AIDS program, 112 are consultants seconded from foreign organizations.