INDO-US PROGRAM ON MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH 
 
RELEASE DATE:  April 22, 2003 
 
NOTICE: NOT-HD-03-010 
 
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
 (http://www.nichd.nih.gov/) 
 
The Republic of India and the United States of America share a strong 
commitment to improve the health and well being of women, children, and 
adolescents through the expansion of cooperative biomedical and 
behavioral research. Although the health of women, children, and 
adolescents has improved significantly in both countries, it is 
recognized that important research questions remain to be answered in 
order to achieve additional reductions in morbidity and mortality. 
Building on a 30-year history of maternal and child health research 
cooperation, representatives of India and the United States signed a 
joint statement on June 13, 2000 to enhance this cooperation through an 
expanded program of Maternal and Child Health and Human Development 
Research.  
 
Program Structure  
 
The Indo-U.S. Program on Maternal and Child Health and Human 
Development Research (MCHDR) is administered by a Secretariat 
consisting of staff from the U.S. and Indian nodal agencies. The nodal 
agencies are the U.S. National Institute of Child Health and Human 
Development (NICHD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services, and the Indian Council for 
Medical Research (ICMR) of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. 
Indian collaborating agencies involved in support of this program 
include the Department of Women and Child Development, Ministry of 
Health and Family Welfare, the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of 
Science and Technology, and the National AIDS Control Organization. 
U.S. collaborating agencies include other NIH Institutes and Centers, 
other Department of Health and Human Services agencies, the U.S. Agency 
for International Development (USAID), and the Agricultural Research 
Service (ARS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).  
 
In addition to the Secretariat, the overall scientific goals and 
procedures are overseen by a Joint Working Group (JWG) consisting of 
independent U.S. and Indian investigators and staff from participating 
agencies with expertise covering the range of topics to be addressed by 
the MCHDR program.  
 
Scope of the Program  
 
The goal of the MCHDR program is to "facilitate collaboration on 
maternal and children's health and human development research, in part, 
to contribute to global understanding of the causes of morbidity and 
mortality in women, particularly mothers, children and adolescents." To 
address shared women and children's health and developmental research 
concerns, Indian and U.S. scientists will undertake a coordinated 
program that will involve participation in collaborative, peer-reviewed 
research projects, scientific workshops and conferences, research 
training, and technology transfer. Building on a history of productive 
biomedical and behavioral research collaboration, this cooperation will 
be based on mutual benefit, trust, and a shared commitment to the 
advancement of scientific knowledge and its application to improve 
health.  
 
Specific areas to be addressed within this program include, but are not 
limited to:  
 
o Prevention and treatment of leading causes of maternal, neonatal, and 
pediatric morbidity and mortality (including toxemia, hemorrhage, 
sepsis, birth asphyxia and trauma, accidents, diarrhea and other 
infectious diseases, etc.);  
 
o Prevention and treatment of low birth weight and intrauterine growth 
retardation;  
 
o Maternal and child nutrition and the role of micronutrients in 
healthy child bearing and pediatric and adolescent health and 
development;  
 
o Birth defects, genetic disorders, and developmental research;  
 
o Improved understanding of pathophysiology, prevention, and treatment 
of infectious diseases in women and children, including childhood 
asthma, acute respiratory tract infections, gastrointestinal 
infections, reproductive tract infections, malignancies, and HIV/AIDS;  
 
o Reproductive health including socio-behavioral aspects, birth 
practices, and evaluation of new contraceptives;  
 
o Traditional systems of medicine and practices that have an important 
impact on the health and wellbeing of women, children, and adolescents;  
 
o Emergency obstetric care for miscarriages and other problems of 
pregnancy, including severe preeclampsia, hemorrhage, and embolism;  
 
o Relationship among maternal nutrition, fetal growth/development, and 
degenerative diseases in later life; and  
 
o Analysis, consensus building, and policy formulation on public health 
benefits of new approaches to improve maternal and child health.  
 
Procedures  
 
The MCHDR program will fund supplemental grants to existing NIH-funded 
projects. Priority will be given to investigative collaborations with 
U.S. investigators currently funded by NICHD. Awards to U.S. 
investigators will generally be limited to $50,000 per year in direct 
costs for up to three years. Applications with budgetary requests 
exceeding this amount will be reviewed by the U.S. Secretariat on a 
case-by-case basis for appropriateness. U.S. investigators interested 
in participation in the MCHDR program should contact the US Secretariat 
at the address listed below to request submission materials.  
 
Please note that applications from U.S. investigators for supplemental 
funding to existing grants must be submitted by the grantee institution 
on behalf of the grant's Principal Investigator.  
 
All materials regarding participation in the MCHDR program must be 
submitted to both U.S. and Indian Secretariats. U.S. investigators must 
send inquiries to the U.S. Secretariat at the address listed below; the 
Indian collaborator(s) must submit identical materials to the Indian 
Secretariat at the address listed below. After the initial inquiry has 
been reviewed by both Secrerariats and agreement reached on proposal 
responsiveness to program areas listed above, both U.S. and Indian 
investigators will be provided with instructions for submission of 
proposals that will be jointly evaluated via an ad hoc review conducted 
simultaneously by both U.S. and Indian Secretariats.  
 
The deadline for the submission of full proposal is July 15, 2003. 
ICMR- and NICHD-constituted review panels will review all full 
proposals for scientific merit. Final decisions about funding under the 
MCHDR program will be made by the JWG of the Indo-U.S. MCHDR program.  
 
INQUIRIES  
 
For further information, contact:  
 
U.S. Secretariat MCHDR  
 
Daniel J. Raiten, Ph.D.  
Office of Prevention Research and International Programs  
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development  
National Institutes of Health  
6100 Executive Boulevard, Room 4, MSC 7510  
Bethesda, MD 20892-7510  
Telephone: (301) 435-7568  
Email: raitend@mail.nih.gov  
 
Indian Secretariat MCHDR  
 
N.C. Saxena  
Deputy Director General  
Chief, Division of Reproductive Health and Nutrition  
Indian Council of Medical Research  
Ansari Nagar  
New Delhi 110029

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