NewsBytes

A Mumbai-based private hospital has launched a dedicated clinic to help individuals make informed decisions about their future medical care in case of serious or unforeseen health circumstances. P D Hinduja Hospital & Medical Research Centre (MRC) in Mahim recently launched a 'Living Will Clinic' in what it said was the first of its kind initiative in the country. Under the initiative, Hinduja Hospital said on Monday it will help patients in preparing legal documents that will enable individuals to outline their preferences for medical treatment in serious or unforeseen health circumstances, ensuring they retain control over future healthcare decisions. The clinic will help individuals articulate and document their healthcare preferences through a legally recognised 'living will', ensuring their decisions are known and respected, even if they may be unable to communicate them later during their medical treatment, the hospital said in a statement.

New British welfare reforms are still expected to push 150,000 people into poverty despite Prime Minister Keir Starmer's  government watering down the measures, according to fresh modelling ahead of a key parliamentary vote. Seeking to quell a rebellion threatened last week, Starmer revised his planned welfare cuts in an attempt to win over more than 100 lawmakers from his own party who had threatened to revolt over the issue in a vote. He amended the bill so that changes to make it tougher to collect some disability and sickness benefits would now apply only to new applicants, while the millions of people who already rely on benefits would no longer be affected. Publishing analysis of the updated policy, the government on Monday estimated that an extra 150,000 people will be pushed into relative poverty in 2030, 40% fewer than the 250,000 forecast to be affected before the changes.

RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said financial stability, like price stability, is a necessary condition for boosting economic growth even as he flagged that structural shifts in the global economy are making policy interventions challenging. "Financial sector regulators remain committed to protecting customers, promoting competition and fostering innovation as they strike the right balance between improving efficiency and growth, and safety and soundness," he said in the foreword to the Financial Stability Report (FSR) for June. According to the Governor, there are many structural shifts that are reshaping the global economy, including growing fragmentation in trade, rapid technological disruption, ongoing climate change and protracted geopolitical hostilities. Malhotra also highlighted that "financial stability, like price stability, is a necessary condition, and not a sufficient one to boost India's potential growth".

Forest fires fanned by high winds and hot, dry weather damaged some holiday homes in Turkiye as a lingering heat wave that has cooked much of Europe led authorities to raise warnings and tourists to find ways to beat the heat. A heat dome hovered over an arc from France, Portugal and Spain to Turkiye, while data from European forecasters suggested other countries were set to broil further in coming days. New highs are expected on Wednesday before rain is forecast to bring respite to some areas later this week.  “Extreme heat is no longer a rare event — it has become the new normal,” tweeted UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres from Seville, Spain, where temperatures were expected to hit 42 Celsius (nearly 108 Fahrenheit) on Monday afternoon.  Reiterating his frequent calls for action to fight climate change, Guterres added: “The planet is getting hotter and more dangerous — no country is immune.” In France, which was almost entirely sweltering in the heatwave on Monday and where air conditioning remains relatively rare, local and national authorities were taking extra effort to care for homeless and elderly people and people working outside. Some tourists were putting off plans for some rigorous outdoor activities.