Table 1 Characteristics of study sites

Indore^a

Sardarpur, Dhar

Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences, Indore

Tribal

Predominantly tribal population, and agrarian society. Very poor connectivity by road.

Junagadh^a

Junagadh, Gujrat

Aga Khan Health Services, Mumbai

Rural

Primarily rural with conservative social practices.

Pondicherry^a

Pondicherry, Puducherry

Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences, Puducherry

Urban

Urban and coastal site with fairly good public health infrastructure available.

Shimla^a

Mashobra, Himachal Pradesh

Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla

Rural

A predominantly agrarian population in a hilly terrain; sparsely populated villages.

Tanda^a

Bharmour, Himachal Pradesh

Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda

Tribal

Predominantly tribal with agriculture as primary occupation.

Bhubaneswar

Kalahandi, Bhawanipatna

Regional Medical Research Centres, Bhubaneswar

Tribal

Predominantly tribal population with major tribes of Kondhas and Souras. The primary occupation is agriculture

Utnoor, Adilabad

National Institute of Nutrition, Hyderabad

Tribal

Predominantly tribal dominated population. The main occupation is agriculture

Jodhpur

Kotra

Desert Medicines Research Centre, Jodhpur

Tribal

Primarily tribal site, with hilly terrain. The main occupation is agriculture

Ranchi & Patna

Ratu & Namkum

Rajendra Memorial Research Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna (in collaboration with Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences , Ranchi)

Tribal

Primarily tribal population with agriculture as main occupation.

Dibrugarh

Dibrugarh

Regional Medical Research Centre, North East Region

Tribal

Predominantly tribal population and mostly tea garden workers.