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Monday, Jul 19, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Briefly

CPI(M) march flagged off

KOZHIKODE JULY 18. A warm reception was accorded at the mofussil bus stand here today to the leaders of the CPI(M) and its feeder organisations from Wayanad district who are on a Secretariat march. The march was flagged off by the former MLA, Varghese Vaidyar, at Kalpetta in Wayanad district this morning. The march is being organised to urge the State Government to take adequate steps to prevent the suicide of farmers, waive farm loans and to distribute land to the landless Adivasis. The prominent leaders of the Karshaka Sanghom, the Kerala State Karshaka Thozhilali Union, the Adivasi Kshema Samithy and the Mahila Association are leading the march.

Relay hunger strike

The Airports Authority of India Employees Joint Forum (AAIEJF), an umbrella organisation of various associations of employees and unions of executives, has decided to go on a relay hunger strike at the Karipur airport, near Kozhikode, from Monday against the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government's move to privatise airports. The Left Democratic Front (LDF) convener, Paloli Mohammed Kutty, would inaugurate the strike in front of the domestic terminal building at the airport at 9-30 a.m. on July 19, the forum's Karipur airport branch convener, M.P. Nair, said in a press release here today. The relay hunger strike was the first phase of the agitation programme chalked by the forum. Different unions had come on a common platform for coordinating the agitation at the national level, Mr. Nair added.

Plea to probe corruption

THRISSUR JULY 18. Three unions of the Guruvayur Devaswom employees have demanded probe into the allegations of corruption in the selection of students for the management quota in the college and school under the Devaswom. In separate statements issued here today, the Guruvayur Devaswom Employees Congress, the Guruvayur Devaswom Employees Association and the Guruvayur Devaswom Employees Organisation alleged that there were widespread reports that some of the Devaswom Committee members were taking bribe for selecting students for the management quota. Earlier, the children of the Devaswom employees and Hindu students used to get priority in the management quota. Now, the students were being selected in violation of the convention, they said. They demanded that the Devaswom Minister makes a direct inquiry be made into the corruption charge.

Vigilance inquiry sought

The Kerala Aided Higher Secondary Teachers' Association (KAHSTA) has demanded that the Chief Minister, A.K. Antony, order a Vigilance probe into what they termed as "large-scale financial corruption'' behind the announcement of the Education Minister, Nalakath Soopy, to allow "unqualified" headmasters who are principals of Higher Secondary Schools (HSS) to continue in their posts. The association said that the announcement was contrary to the Supreme Court verdict and Higher Secondary special rules. According to special rules, higher secondary school teachers having the required qualification were to be made principals and those not having it are to appointed as headmaster.

Flight delayed

NEDUMBASSERY JULY 18. Indian Airlines passengers bound for Sharjah were stranded at the airport for hours today, as the flight got indefinitely delayed due to a technical snag. Flight IC 595 was originally scheduled to fly to Sharjah last night. But the flight from Sharjah was cancelled and the 135 passengers were moved to nearby hotels. The passengers checked in early this morning as the flight was scheduled to leave at 2.30 a.m. But the flight arrived two hours after the scheduled hour; it was further delayed owing to some technical snag and was rescheduled for 12.25 p.m. The agitated passengers protested over not being served food and the airline authorities served them breakfast. Later, the flight was cancelled and the passengers were sent by a special aircraft flown in from Chennai at 1.15 p.m.

`Arrest sandalwood thieves'

ALAPPUZHA JULY 18. The Alappuzha MLA, K.C. Venugopal, has demanded the constitution of a special investigation team of the police to bring to book those behind the theft of sandalwood trees from the Alappuzha beach. . He said that the police needed to be more alert in preventing incidents of sandalwood theft. Mr. Venugopal asked the district Superintendent of Police to ensure that the culprits were arrested without delay.

RJD to lead agitation

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM JULY 18. The Kerala unit of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) will lead an agitation of the backward communities to press the demand for special recruitment based on the recommendations of the Narendran Commission.

A meeting of the leaders of the backward communities to be held in Kochi on July 31 would finalise the mode of agitation, the party State president, T.S. Balakrishnan told reporters here on Saturday. Welcoming the stand of the former KPCC president, K. Muraleedharan, that special recruitment for the backward communities should be made to ensure reservation in Government services, he asked the CPI(M) to clarify its stand on the issue. Reacting to the statement of the NSS leaders that not even a single MLA would win the next Assembly elections if the Commission report was implemented, he said that it was a challenge to the democratic set-up. He alleged that the IUML had been cheating the Muslims all these years as the report had mentioned that it was the Muslim community that had lost the maximum number of posts in Government service and in the public sector units. — UNI

`Illam Nira' festival

THRISSUR JULY 18. The `Illam Nira' festival was held at the Thiruvambady temple here today with the traditional fervour. The rituals began with the Melsanthi, Sukumaran Namboodirippad, bringing the `Nelkkathir' (paddy panicles) covered in `Pattu' to the temple. It was then taken around the sanctum sanctorum in a procession with the accompaniment of percussion concerts. Later, some panicles were installed at the walls of sanctum sanctorum and the remaining portions were distributed to the devotees.

Silver Jubilee celebrations

The Silver Jubilee celebrations of the Guruvayur campus of the Rashtriya Sanskrit Sansthan began on Friday. According to a release here today, national seminars, cultural and literary competitions would be held during the year-long celebrations. The Guruvayur campus of the Sansthan, now located at Puranattukara, near here, was founded by the renowned Sanskrit scholar, P.T. Kuriakkose Master, in 1909 at Pavaratty. It was taken over by the Government of India on July 16, 1979.

School inaugurated

ALAPPUZHA JULY 18. The Minister for the Welfare of Scheduled and Backward Communities, M.A. Kuttappan, today inaugurated the Ambedkar Memorial Model Residential School at Punnapra here. Inaugurating the school, the Minister said that the intellectual development of the students belonging to backward communities was essential for their progress. D. Sugathan, MLA, presided over the function. Those who offered felicitations included the MLA, K.K. Shaju, and the District Collector, K.M. Ramanandan.

Memorial lecture

THALASSERY JULY 18. A lecture on poetry will be held to commemorate the late Malayalam poet and teacher, G. Kumara Pillai, here on July 20 under the auspices of the English Department of the Government Brennen College and the alumni of the department. The organisers said the literary critic and former Calicut University English Department head, R. Vishwanathan, would deliver the lecture on Metapoetry. They said the teachers who had served in the English Department of the college, including Vishnu Narayanan Namboodiri, Madhukar Rao and Elizabeth George, would be honoured at another function. A two-day national seminar would be held in August, they said.

Silver Jubilee celebrations

School inaugurated

KGMCTA president

KOTTAYAM July 18. T.U. Sukumaran, professor of Paediatrics, Medical College, Kottayam, is the new president of Kerala Medical College Teachers'

Association (KGMCTA). He was elected at the just-concluded State conference of the association. He had earlier served as the superintendent of the Institute of Child Health.

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