1. Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology

2.  To contribute to the advancement of a sound, actionable and measurable evidence- base on inequities in health in India with a view to influencing government and civil society initiatives to prioritize the reduction of health inequities.

3. Would include inter alia  identifying disparities in health and health care across caste, economic status, gender and other relevant axes of social stratification  Enquiring into the proximate and distal factors and mechanisms across multiple levels contributing to health inequities  Examining the intersection of multiple axes of deprivation/oppression in creating and reinforcing inequities

4. Would include inter alia  Studying the outcomes of interventions aimed at reducing health inequities.  Examining how the current trajectory of health governance impacts on accentuating or mitigating health inequities (e.g. position taken vis-à-vis promotion of privatization in health) and on whether and how health equity features as a priority objective for health and health research (e.g. awareness and understanding of policy makers and programme managers on health inequities and their determinants)

5.  Evolving, through a consultative process, a country-relevant- multi-disciplinary research agenda on health inequities  Supporting and promoting research on identified priorities for health inequities in India to expand the breadth and depth of the evidence-base on health inequities in India  Nurturing research capacity in health equity research among young researchers across sectors and disciplines

6.  Engaging in knowledge translation activities throughout the project cycle to increase visibility to health equity concerns among key constituencies such as health equity researchers, policy makers, civil society actors engaged in advocacy for health and for social justice, and media professionals.   In order to achieve (i) to (iv), working in partnership with and forging a community of health equity researchers as well as practitioners across academic disciplines and across academia, policy makers and civil society actors  Enhancing the capacity of Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology as a centre with expertise on cutting-edge, multidisciplinary research on health inequities in India

7. i) Mapping actors and content in health equity research in India across disciplines and sectors ii) Knowledge synthesis exercise iii) Parallel process of consultation on research priorities iv) National seminar: disseminate synthesis and arrive at consensus on research priorities

8. i) Collaborative research involving other public health institutions ii) Research fellowships for Ph.D scholars and fieldwork grants for MPH students studying in Achutha Menon Centre for Health Science Studies

9. i) Training workshops on methodology and on scientific writing for researchers ii) Mentoring for research grantees

10. i) Involving end-users of knowledge such as policy makers and program managers and health advocates in all stages of the initiative ii) Publishing in multiple formats and for a diverse audience iii) Organising and participating in seminars and meetings to disseminate outputs

11. i) Involving a wide array of researchers in the different activities of this initiative ii)Establishing a web-portal and an e- network to reach out to the community of researchers and practitioners involved in bridging the health equity gap

12. i) Establishing partnerships with one or two key Southern institutions engaged in cutting-edge research in health inequities ii) Enhancing AMCHSS’ learning and technological resources