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Wednesday, Jan 19, 2005

Kerala

Kerala

Briefly

State employees to strike work

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM JAN. 18. A joint action council of various service organisations today served a strike notice on the Government demanding pay revision and restoration of all the benefits withdrawn from the employees. The strike will start on February 22, the council said in a statement here. The council said the pay revision was actually due in 2002, but even the process for fixing new pay scales had not been set in motion so far. The benefits withdrawn from the employees soon after the UDF came to power too have not been fully restored. The decision on launching the strike was taken at a meeting of the leaders of service organisations such as the Action Council of State Employees and Teachers, the Adhyapaka-Service Sankhatana Samithi and the Adhyapaka-Service Sankhatana Aikya Vedi. In another statement, the State Employees' and Teachers' Organisation (SETO) said it too would strike work from February 22.

Insurance for milk producers

The Government has allowed the inclusion of producer members of primary dairy cooperative societies in the Janasree Bima Yojana of LIC. It will enable the nominee to get the insured amount of Rs. 20,000 in the event of the natural death of the person. In the event of death due to accident, the heir will get Rs. 50,000. A payment ranging from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 50,000 will be made in case of permanent and complete disability due to accident. Scholarship will be given to the children of such persons studying in classes IX to XII to pursue their education. The annual premium is Rs. 200. The beneficiaries share of half the amount can be paid by the society or the farmer. The remaining amount will be paid as subsidy by the Centre to LIC.

`Textbook of political life'

The Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, has claimed emotional attachment to C. Narayana Pillai's Thriuvithamcoorinte swathanthriya samara charithram. Releasing the reprint of the book brought out after 33 years by the C. Narayana Pillai Foundation by handing over a copy to the Press Club president, V.V.Venugopal, at a function held in Thiruvananthapuram today, he said that it was the only history book which gave a detailed version of the firing without any warning to people who were dispersing peacefully after a civil disobedience meeting in his native place Puthupally when C.P.Ramaswami Aiyer was Dewan of Travancore. Two persons were killed in the firing. It presented correct and factual versions of the political agitations organised during the rule of the Maharajas when a strict censoring of history was in force. He described it as a textbook of his political life and said it should be translated into English. He offered to consider the Foundation's plea for installing a statue of C.Narayana Pillai in the city.

Contributions to relief fund

The South Indian Bank employees today contributed Rs. 20 lakhs to the Chief Minister's Relief Fund for the tsunami victims. The bank's chairman, A. Sethumadhavan, handed over the cheque to the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy. The bank will make another contribution to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund also, the bank said in a press release here. The Kerala Textile Corporation has contributed Rs 3.24 lakhs to the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund. It was handed over to the Industries Minister, V.K. Ebrahim Kunhu, by a delegation from the Coporation led by V.K.Abdul Khader Moulavi, chairman and Jacob Joseph, MD. One day's wages of the employees of KELTEC was also handed over to the Minister by G.M. Nair, Managing Director, and P.R. Nair, company secretary.

Mani criticises CPI(M)

The Kerala Congress(M) leader and Revenue Minister, K.M. Mani, has attributed the "woes of the CPI(M) in Kerala to the failure to revamp the party in accordance with the needs of the times." Mr. Mani, who inaugurated the membership fortnight of Youth Front (M) here today, said while the party went in for reforms in China and West Bengal, Kerala forgot to bring about the changes demanded by the times.

Army recruitment results out

The result of the common entrance examination held at the Army Branch Recruiting Office here on December 26 has been published. As many as 226 candidates have been provisionally selected for enrolment in various soldier categories. An official pressnote issued here today said candidates from the tsunami-hit districts of Kollam and Alappuzha would be considered for early enrolment.

Deportees arrive from the Gulf

Nedumbassery Jan. 18. Twenty Malayalis who were detained in the Gulf for illegal stay arrived here at the Cochin International Airport this morning. They were part of 49 Indians being deported as part of a general amnesty granted by Gulf countries. The deportees, who were mostly from Saudi Arabia, arrived here by an Emirates flight at 2.30 a.m. Spirit seized

PALAKKAD JAN. 18. Excise officials seized 12,670 litres of spirit costing Rs. 25 lakhs from a vehicle at the inter-State Walayar checkpost here on Tuesday. The vehicle, bearing Tamil Nadu registration, was carrying a consignment of glass sheets from Gujarat to Thiruvanathapuram. The team of excise officials led by Assistant Excise Inspector, T.K. Shivadas, seized the vehicle. A case has booked against the owner of the vehicle, Ramaswamy Gaundar.

Mayor to inaugurate painting show

KOLLAM Jan. 18. The Kollam Mayor, Sabita Beegum, will inaugurate an exhibition of paintings by Sylendra Babu at the Christina Art Gallery here on January 19. The artist has been painting since 1991 and twenty-five select paintings will be on show at the exhibition. Though he has participated in several painting exhibitions earlier, this is the first exclusive presentation of his paintings.

Training in disaster management

KOZHIKODE JAN. 18. The Inspector General of Police (North range) Arvind Ranjan has said that the joint efforts of those who have received training in disaster management will go a long way in reducing the impact of a calamity. Mr. Ranjan was speaking at the inauguration of the training programme of the second disaster management team under the aegis of the Trauma Care centre here. As many as 14,400 persons have been provided training in disaster management and first aid in the district by the centre, Trauma Care president and former Superintendent of Police Subbash Babu said.

Money sanctioned

A total of Rs.365 lakhs has been sanctioned for the construction of an approach road to Kothi bridge on the Mukhdar-Payyanakkal road, the State Government informed M.P. Veerendrakumar, MP, here today. The letter to the MP was in response to his letter to the Public Works Minister, M. K. Muneer, seeking to draw the Minister's attention to the difficulties faced by the people living near the bridge, a release from the MP's office said here.

Seminar

PALAKKAD JAN. 18. The two-day seminar on `Ancient thoughts and modern management - a creative Indian response,' organised by Sambodh Foundation, will be inaugurated by V. Ramachandran, vice-chairman, Kerala State Planning Board, at Hotel Sri Chakra on Wednesday.

The valedictory function will be chaired by Palat Mohan Das, Secretary to Government of India, and T.P. Sreenivasan, former Indian Ambassador, on Thursday.

Anniversary

KOTTAYAM JAN. 18. The Municipal Chairman, B. Gopakumar, will inaugurate the annual meeting of Ranjini Sangeetha Sabha at Sreerangom auditorium on January 23. A saxophone kacheri will be presented by Kadri Gopalnath and party.

Train, car collide

KOCHI JAN. 18. The Trivandrum-Kurla Netravati Express (train number 6346) collided with a car at an unmanned level-crossing, near Mararikulam, at 1.30 p.m. today. No one was injured in the accident. The train engine and the car, bearing registration number KRT 5061, were damaged. The Railway Protection Force arrested one person on charges of negligent driving. A case was registered against M. Ravindran of Cherthala, who is driver and owner of the car.

Annual meeting

Painting exhibition

Disaster management

Money sanctioned

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