Page 11 - Kerala Govt

Kerala is at forefront of promoting knowledge sector: CM Pinarayi Vijayan

The Chief Minister said that Rs 3,500 crore has been allotted in the latest state budget for research and development

Entire Kerala govt doing politics over financial woes, not Rahul: Venugopal

Venugopal, while speaking to ANI said that Rahul Gandhi is ready to cooperate with the Kerala government for the betterment of the state

Kerala CM moves resolution in assembly against imposition of UCC in country

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday moved a resolution in the state assembly against the BJP-led central government's plan to implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the country. After the resolution was moved by the Chief Minister, several amendments and modifications were suggested by the Congress-led opposition UDF that welcomed the Left government's move. The Chief Minister said the Kerala Legislative Assembly was concerned and dismayed at the Cente's move to impose UCC and termed the action as "unilateral and hasty". The CPI(M)-led government's decision came amid an ongoing campaign against the UCC by both the ruling Left and the opposition UDF in the state, as well as various religious organisations in the state. Both the fronts had organised seminars separately in Kozhikode recently against the UCC, in which the representatives of various religious outfits took part. The Law Commission of India had last month received submissions from the public regarding ..

Centre creating obstacles in Kerala's development: CM Vijayan in Assembly

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday accused the Centre of creating obstacles in the state's development by its various policies like considering loans taken by KIIFB as debt of the state. Speaking in the Assembly, the Chief Minister alleged that the Centre was arbitrarily adding loans taken by the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) to that of the state, resulting in reduction of the borrowing limits of the government. The response from Vijayan in the House came while answering a query regarding projects being funded by KIIFB and their status. He also gave details of the extensive funding of numerous projects in the state across various sectors like infrastructure, roads, fisheries, education and coastal area development among others. The Chief Minister further said that development projects that the state intends to carry out will be done by the government despite "hurdles" created by the Centre. Vijayan said that while the huge borrowings by the ...

Heavy rains lash central, north Kerala districts; three deaths reported

After a brief lull, heavy rains lashed various parts of Kerala with the central and northern districts facing the wrath of the monsoon. Districts authorities in Kozhikode, Wayanad and Kannur declared a holiday for all educational institutions in view of the heavy rains forecast for Monday. The Met department has issued a yellow alert for nine districts of the state- Ernakulam, Idukki, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram and Kasaragod apart from Kozhikode, Wayanad and Kannur. According to government sources, a total of three persons lost their lives on Sunday in various incidents related to rain. Two minor boys, Hadhi and Hashir from Wayanad district lost their lives on Sunday after they suspectedly fell into a water body while on their way to tution class. A youngster drowned in Thrissur district on Sunday. Meanwhile, the state disaster management authority said a few relief camps have been opened in Idukki, Wayanad and Kasaragod districts and as of now, 38 persons have been housed ..

Kerala woman duped of Rs 7.74 lakh via Telegram for work-from-home job

Falling into the trap, the victim believed the scamster was a representative from a genuine organisation with an actual job offer

Kerala approves 14th Five Year Plan approach document to transform economy

The Kerala government on Wednesday approved the approach document for the 14th Five Year Plan (2022-27), which, according to it, aims to transform multiple sectors of the economy and the entire state into a modern society. The document was approved by the state Cabinet, chaired virtually by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who is currently on a tour to the US and Cuba, a statement issued by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said here. According to it, Kerala will continue to focus on areas including health, education, housing, social welfare, social justice, and gender justice, which together will serve as a force for accelerated growth of the productive sectors in the economy. The government said science and technology, higher skills, and skills available in the knowledge economy will be used to enhance the growth of agriculture, allied activities, modern industry, infrastructure development, and income-generating services. The economic policy will be designed to modernise and ...

Union Ministers Rupala, Murugan interact with coastal communities in Kerala

Union Ministers Parshotham Rupala and L Murugan on Saturday took part in various events in Thrissur and Kochi as part of the seventh phase of Central government initiative 'Sagar Parikrama' programme and interacted with the people of the coastal region. They also received petitions from those working in the fisheries sector. The Union Ministers also attended and addressed the 'Sagar Parikrama'- 'Theera Sadas' programme at Thriprayar. Union Fisheries Department, Officer on Special Duty, Abhilaksh Likhi, said the Government of India was committed to the welfare and development of small fishermen in Kerala under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). The PMMSY scheme by the Ministry of Fisheries was launched to bring about ecologically healthy, economically viable, and socially inclusive development of the fisheries sector in India. Likhi said that the Centre was ensuring that the livelihood of the fishers was protected and all necessary steps would be taken for addressing

Report waste dumping on streets and earn up to Rs 2,500 in Kerala

This is part of the 'Malinya Muktham Nava Keralam' campaign to make the state garbage-free

Kerala govt orders vigilance probe against Satheesan in FCRA violation case

The Kerala government has ordered a vigilance probe against Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, V D Satheesan, in a case related to receiving foreign funds from abroad, for a project in his constituency, allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). According to government sources, the order on preliminary vigilance probe is based on the complaint lodged by an action council alleging that foreign funds were received in violation of the FCRA. The inquiry was ordered after verifying the veracity of the claims made in the complaint, sources said. After the 2018 deluge, Satheesan had initiated a project 'Punarjani', to construct houses for those who lost their houses. The complaint sought to investigate the FCRA violations and Satheesan's foreign trips seeking support for the project.

Kerala govt increases working days in state-run schools to 205 from 198

The Kerala General Education Department on Wednesday said there would be a total of 205 working days in state-run schools in the ongoing academic year 2023-24. The decision was taken during a meeting of various teachers' associations convened by General Education Minister V Sivankutty here. During the academic year 2022-23, state-run schools functioned for198 days. The existing rules and court verdicts have suggested that there should be five working days in a week, and Saturdays have been made a working day in selected weeks to ensure this. Though the government had earlier decided to increase the number of working days to 210 during the academic year, it was later revised and fixed at 205, based on the request of teachers' associations, an official statement said. There would be no change in the dates of summer holidays, it said. In the statement, the education department also rejected the propaganda that all Saturdays would now be working days in state schools. Out of the tota

Kerala govt observes World Environment Day, organises Haritha Sabhas

The Kerala government on Monday observed World Environment Day by holding Haritha Sabhas (green assemblies) and launching a campaign against plastic use across the state, among other initiatives. Kicking off the state-level Haritha Sabha, Local Self Government Department minister M B Rajesh said law enforcement needs to be strengthened to make the state garbage-free. Launching the 'Beat Plastic Pollution' campaign, a collaboration of tourism sector stakeholders and local community on World Environment Day, Tourism minister P A Mohammed Riyas said all people are duty-bound to keep the tourism centres in the state clean. Rajesh said awareness campaigns alone would not yield the desired results for the 'State with No Waste' programme. "Even as consistent campaigns and projects focus on waste disposal, total cooperation and support by the public is needed to achieve the target of making Kerala completely garbage-free by March 2024... Also, the rules and legal measures need to be enforc

Kerala govt raises ceiling on purchase of products from startups to Rs 3 cr

The Kerala government has considerably increased the ceiling on purchase of products and services from startups registered with KSUM from Rs 1 crore to Rs 3 crore in its effort to boost the state's startup ecosystem. The raising of the public procurement ceiling on the purchases by government departments, public sector undertakings (PSUs), boards, corporations, and local self-government (LSG) institutions from ventures registered under the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), was announced by it in a statement on Wednesday. KSUM is the nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state. The increase in the monetary ceiling in public procurement will enable more government departments to leverage innovative technology solutions from startups, it said. As per the government order (GO) issued in this regard, the benefits enjoyed by IT-related startups have been extended to non-IT ventures as well, thereby enabling PSUs, boards, ...

Kerala CM releases progress report of LDF government for last 2 years

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday released the progress report of the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government, highlighting its achievements during the last two years

Kerala Minister estimates around Rs 8 cr loss in Kollam drug warehouse fire

Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Thursday said medicines and materials, worth around Rs 8 crore, were destroyed during a fire that gutted a warehouse of the state-run Kerala Medical Services Corporation Limited (KMSCL) in Kollam district last night. The district drug warehouse of KMSCL in Kollam was engulfed in fire on Wednesday night. It was a major supply source for medicines at state-run hospitals and PHCs in the district. There were no casualties in the incident. "The total loss due to the fire is estimated at Rs 8 crore. But the corporation need not suffer this much loss as the medicines are insured," she said. A comprehensive probe would be conducted into the reasons that led to the massive fire, she told reporters here. A scientific investigation report at various levels should be carried out to know how the blaze started, George said.

Will make 'The Kerala Story' tax-free if we there's a proposal: UP dy CM

Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak on Sunday said if there is a proposal, the state government will make the film 'The Kerala Story' tax-free. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on May 5 credited the movie for bringing out terror conspiracies and used it to attack the Congress during an election rally in poll-bound Karnataka. Asked by reporters if the Uttar Pradesh government will make the film tax-free, Pathak, who was campaigning here for the ongoing urban body polls, said, "If a proposal comes, we will do it." "Everyone should see 'The Kerala Story'. I would appeal to all my sisters that they should watch (the film) and understand how atrocities are committed on sisters in a state," he added. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday announced to give tax-free status to 'The Kerala Story' in the state. UP BJP secretary Abhijat Mishra on Saturday organised the screening of the controversial film for around 80 college girls in the city. The BJP

Why has the upcoming movie 'The Kerala Story' courted controversy?

After the trailer of the movie, which showed a burqa-clad woman with the tagline 'Uncovering the truth that was kept hidden' was released, protests erupted in many parts of Kerala

Kerala calls for national consensus on law regarding human-animal conflict

The Kerala government has sought a national level consensus on bringing a legislation to deal with human-animal conflicts, which have been reported across the country. This comes in the wake of increase in cases of man-animal conflict in the state over the past few months. One such case involved a rogue elephant, notorious for breaking into ration shops to steal rice, which earned him the moniker 'Arikomban', and causing damage to human settlements in some areas of Idukki district in Kerala. The tusker was tranquilised on Saturday after months of uncertainty and confusion and was translocated to deep forest inside Periyar Tiger Reserve. Speaking to PTI about the operation, state Forest Minister A K Saseendran said the man-animal conflict is not new to the country and we need a national consensus to deal with the issue. "The man-animal conflict is a rising issue in the country and we need to develop a consensus at national level to formulate a law to deal with such conflicts," ...

Kerala forest dept receives 1st radio collar signal from 'Arikkomban'

The elephant, which is around 37 years old, was darted by a team of forest officials led by Chief Veterinary surgeon of Kerala forest department, Dr. Arun Zachariah on Saturday

Vijayan meets envoys of UAE, Vietnam at Kerala House in Delhi

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday met the Ambassadors of UAE and Vietnam to India and held discussions with them in New Delhi. The CM met Abdulnasser Alshaali and Nguyen Thanh Hai respectively at Kerala House in the national capital, a CMO statement here said. The discussions were held with regard to improving the foreign countries' relationship with the southern state, it said. Chief Secretary V P Joy and Officer on Special Duty Venu Rajamony were present during the meeting, it said. Vijayan had also met Ambassador of Argentina in India, Hugo Javier Gobbi on Thursday. During the meeting, the envoy had presented the Kerala CM with an Argentinian football jersey in the presence of well-known footballer from the state I M Vijayan, a CMO statement added.