KERALA

Kovalam to soon host tourism promotion meet

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Kovalamwill host a three-day destination promotion meet of major tour operators in the country and other stakeholders in tourism.

The campaign is being organised by SouthKeralahoteliers forum (SKHF) in association with Kerala tourism and tourism professionals club (TPC).

The objectives of the meet include destination promotion, business-to-business (B2B) meets to work out mutually beneficial packages to promote prime destinations in the state.
The visiting tour operators will be taken through the prime spots in Kovalam, Varkala and nearby Poovar as part of the promotion drive.

From a state starved of its own vegetable production,Keralafarmers are taking the first steps to becoming exporters of nadan (locally produced) vegetables. The Kochi-headquartered vegetable and fruits promotion councilKeralam(VFPCK) is channelizing export quality products toWest Asiaand London this Onam.

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What started off as a small step with the export of nendran bananas during Vishu sent via ship to Europe has now led to more farmer clusters joining in for exporting their produce. With around 2.5 lakh horticulturists in the state associated with VFPCK, the agency has already been getting purchase orders for bananas and nadan vegetables.

Kerala needs special industrial regions

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A former additional chief secretary [Industries and IT] to Kerala Goernment suggested some views:

To focus on a few areas, which could contribute toindustrial development, the number one area is . We should use road, rail, inland Navigation, coastal shipping and airways, fully. K-Rail will take care of the goods and passenger transportation. Once inland navigation is completed within five years, the slow-moving, large-volume will move to that, decongesting roads. The movement of hazardous materials and bulk carriers could be shifted to coastal shipping.

Secondly, regarding the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB), we have a long way to go. What has been done in the past is, rightly, that we are trying to give approvals faster. But fundamentally, I have a difference of opinion, because I feel that many of these licences are not necessary. We just need to do three things: A) Remove unwanted approvals, licences, NOCs and restrictions after a review of all requirements of licensing and approvals. B) Procedure for giving these could be simplified. C) The process should be automated, bringing human interaction to a minimum. Singapore Government gives time limits for licences in hours, not days four hours is the time needed for starting a new company there.

One drawback I noticed in EoDB is that we are depending on in-house agencies to deliver these. We need the help of a professional external agency to maintain Software and monitoring systems round the clock. So, EoDB should be done in PPP mode with one of the best professional consultants coming on board.

Kerala’s pro-people’s policies a model for other states: Minister K Rajan

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The welfare model put forward by Kerala is a process directed towards promoting socio-cultural development, and broadening the reach of Education, Health, EMPLOYMENT, and social security, revenue minister K Rajan said on Saturday, adding that it can be a true sustainable model not only in the country but for the world.

The steps taken by Kerala to provide relief to people during Covid-19 showed how a pro-people government could come to their rescue when their life is under threat. Even developed countries failed to provide timely medical aid and other facilities to the common people and lakhs of people lost their lives,” he said.

SilverLine project: Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan seeks Rs 2,150 crore from Centre

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hief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has written to Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeking funds for Silver-Line project. He urged the Centre to allocate Rs 2,150 crore in the upcoming Union budget.

The chief minister, in his letter, said that SilverLine project has been included in the national rail plan and in the budget speech of 2021 the minister had announced in Parliament that all projects included in the national rail plan will be completed by 2030.

This project is in line with the Government of Indias policy and will contribute immensely to the of state. The project is also in line with Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat initiatives aimed at increasing the production capabilities of the country as a whole, wrote the chief minister.

Government exploring possibility of restructuring scale of finance for crops

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The is exploring the possibility of restructuring the scale of finance (SoF) for crops in a scientific manner. The SoF forms the basis for determining the credit for various crops.

The State Agricultural Prices Board (SAPB) on Wednesday organised a consultative meet attended by banks, officials of the National Bank for Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), the State Agriculture department and farmers to discuss the current guidelines and how best the SoF can be redesigned to reflect the cost of cultivation borne by farmers.

The move assumes significance since credit limits under Kisan Credit Card (KCC) and crop Insurance are fixed on the basis of the SoF.

Kerala: Flood led to 28% loss in land use in Achankovil basin

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A study on the impact of the flood in 2018 on land use in Achankovil river basin shows that the flood has damaged a total of 28.15% land use of the area fully or partially.

By comparing land use maps before and after the flood, the study said the mixed crops faced the highest damage of 61.81%, paddy fields 14.79%, fallow lands 14.76% and settlements with mixed tree crops 5.92% loss.

Loss of land use occurred from upstream Achankovil to downstream Veeyapuram area. Proper protection of river bank by vegetation like bamboo is needed for the sustainability of the ecosystem as they support the river bank by preventing the landslide and bank erosion.

Nipah Virus Reported in Kerala

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After more than three years, Kerala reported a case of zoonotic Nipah virus infection.

About Nipah Virus:

The first outbreaks of the Nipah virus amongst humans was mentioned from Malaysia (1998) and Singapore (1999).

It is a zoonotic virus, that means it has been transmitted from animals to human beings.

Fruit bats, often recognized as flying foxes, are regarded to be a natural reservoir of the virus. As we all know, fruit bats spread the virus to other animals such as pigs, dogs, cats, goats, horses and sheep.

Humans get contaminated usually via direct contact with these animals. The virus can additionally be passed on through food contaminated through saliva or urine of these contaminated animals or directly from person-to-person.

Symptoms consist of acute encephalitis and respiratory illnesses

The state government will spend Rs 52.86 crore in thecoir sectorduringOnam, said industries ministerP Rajeev. This will be used for the payment for the procurement of coir throughcoirfed, for procurement of coir products throughcoir corporation, income support scheme and production incentive.

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The minister also inaugurated the welfare pension for two months given by the government through Coir workers welfare board. The government provided for Rs 24.48 crore for this. The pension of Rs 3,200 for the months of July and August are being distributed using this. Around 76,500 workers will get the benefit of this pension, he said.

The minister also said that following the second lockdown, the members of the Coir workers welfare fund board were being distributed an aid of Rs 1,000 each. Already 40,000 workers have got this fund, he said.

The usage of the coconut husk produced in the state has risen to 18%. Currently 35% of the coconut fibre we require is being produced here itself. Efforts are being taken to increase this to 45%, the minister said.

The coir production, which was only 7,000 tonnes in 2015-16, has increased to 25,000 tonnes, he said. This will reach 30,000 tonnes in the future, he said.

Kerala to get Rs 100 cr to set up 28 automated vehicle testing centresKerala would receive Rs 100 crore from the Central Government in order to set up automated vehicle testing centres in Kerala. This support from the Centre is part of making automated fitness testing mandatory for vehicles in India from October 1, 2024.

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The Motor Vehicle Department is to set up 28 testing stations in the State. If the State issues a Government Order to start 14 of the 28 fitness testing stations by September 30, it would receive the first installment of Rs 25 crore.

If at least seven of the fitness centres are operational by September 30, the second installment of Rs 25 crore would also be released.