KERALA

The Rs 1,367 crore integrated urban regeneration and water transport system (IURWTS), a scheme mooted by the government for the rejuvenation of major canals in the city, is limping.

Though the work on the project was scheduled to begin in September 2020, the project is yet to even get the necessary clearances.

The procedures for land acquisition are to be started. The project funded by KIIFB plans to rejuvenate six major canals in the city and to start through these canals.

Besides the regeneration of the canals, the IURWTS envisages canal Network for inland navigation, tourism and recreational purpose. Boat jetties, bridges and foot overbridges, etc. will have to be constructed.

In a proud moment, the India Reserve Battalion (IRB) at Thrissur, a special unit of the state Police that also trains commandos, has been chosen by the Union Home ministry as the best in its category among those in the southern states.

The IRB, established in 2010, is a reserve unit as well as recruits and trains commandos – a concept that came very late to the state police when compared to several other states. The unit’s achievement is significant given that it competed in its category with established units like the Greyhounds of Andhra Pradesh and that was established at least two decades before IRB.

The unit set up with the Centre’s assistance two divisions -the commandos popularly known as Thunderbolts that have been engaging Maoists in the jungles of the state borders, and the Scorpions, which are regular members who are detailed for emergency law and order duties, VVIP security duties, anti-extremist duties, emergency natural calamity duties, etc. Presently, there are 960 members in the unit, which also includes 300 members under the special operations group (SOGs), 100 newly-carved urban commandos named Avengers and a 50-member team deployed for special security at Padmanabhaswamy Temple in the capital.

A group of scientists has discovered a new plant species in the Idamalakkudy colony in Idukki, which is Home to the Muthuvar tribal Population.

Highlights:

The plant was discovered by a team of scientists from the University of Kerala and the Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical and Research Institute (TBGRI).

Cryptocaria Muthuvariana, a new species of the plant named after the Muthuvar tribal group, has been discovered.

The Muthuvar Traibal community is vital to the forest’s preservation.

For the first time in the state’s HISTORY, a plant species has been named after a local tribe.

The Cryptocarya Muthuvariana tree belongs to the Cryptocarya genus. The tree reaches a height of 10 to 15 metres. It has leaves that aren’t very wide.

Muthuvans were Madurai dynasty’s faithful subjects. When the dynasty was overthrown, the remaining royal members fled to Travancore, Kerala.

While travelling, they took idols of Madurai Meenakshi, the royal family’s goddess. In Tamil Nadu, the word’muthuvar’ is used to refer to the same community.

Muthuvans are one of the country’s oldest tribes. This group is self-sufficient and averse to interacting with outsiders.

Ragi, lemon grass, and cardamom are among the Plants they cultivate.

With a score of 3.39 out of 4, the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) has been re-accredited with an A+ grade by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). This is a jump from the A grade (3.09 score) which was given in 2016.

NAAC is an autonomous body established by theUniversity Grants Commission(UGC) to assess and accredit institutions of higher Education in the country.

The re-accreditation result was declared on Tuesday, three days after the peer team visited the university.

The assessment is based on quantitative and qualitative analyses.

The brief, intense rain spells in a couple of regions in Kerala indicated mini cloudbursts, a factor that also led to casualties, damage and loss of properties, a scientist at the Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT) claimed.

Citing more than 5 cm rain received in two hours in worst affected areas of Idukki and Kottayam districts, S Abhilash of the Department of Atmospheric Sciences, CUSAT said it was a mesoscale mini-cloudburst type of event. Mini cloud bursts are marked by intense short spells which may not exceed 10cm in one hour-a classical definition by India Meteorological Department, he noted.

The government will complete theresurveyprocess usingdigital technologywithin next four years, said revenue ministerK Rajan. The cabinet had decided to sanction Rs 807.98 crore for the resurvey of 1550 villages in the state.

In the first phase, the government will provide Rs 339.438 crore under the RebuildKeralaInitiative (RKI) for the resurvey. The government has also given administrative sanction for Rs 156.173 crore for the second phase, Rs 156.189 crore for the third phase, and Rs 151.186 crore for the last and the final phase, the minister added.

The government will utilise a continuously operating reference station (CORS), real-time kinematic (RTK), drone, Lidar and electronic total station (ETS) for the resurvey depending on the nature of the land.

As per the order issued by therevenue departmentin this regard, the government has formed thestate steering committee, district monitoring and review committee, taluk-level committee and panchayat and urban local monitoring committees, as part of implementing the scheme in the state.

FormerKeralaChief Minister and senior Congress leaderOommen Chandypassed away on Tuesday. He was 79.

In his six-decade-long political career, Oommen Chandy has represented the Puthupally constituency in Kottayam district for more than 50 years. He was the MLA from Puthupally.

KSEBhas bagged the first place in thesurveyconducted byKerala State Industrial Development Corporation(KSIDC) to identify the state-government institutions that have adoptedease of doing businessnorms.

KSEB has won 85 out of 100 marks in the survey. The survey has found out that KSEB was able to ensure hassle-free service to lakhs of consumers with consistency. The performance of the board was assessed through direct interaction with 3,000 select consumers of the state electricity board.

Of late, the board has taken several steps to improve the quality of service by adopting the latest technologies. The service at doorstep programme, 1912 call-centre facility, e-time for scheduling section office visit, self meter-reading facility for consumers, steps taken for easing procedures to apply for power connections were some of the recent consumer-friendly additions of KSEB.