Kochi: Famous singer Thoppil Anto (81) passed away. He died at his home in Edappally, Kochi.
Anto was a brilliant genius in film songs, drama songs, and simple songs. Former Union Minister A.C. George, during the liberation struggle, Anto joined the District Congress Committee’s Drama Committee and from there continued his triumphant journey to new worlds.
He became a playback singer in C.J.Thomas’ play ‘Vishavriksham. Later he worked with Mala Mahatma Theaters, Chalakudy Saima Theaters, N.N. Pillai’s Nataka Samithi and Kayamkulam People’s Theaters. Later he also sang in the music of many talents including M.K. Arjunan, Devarajan, and K.J. Joy.
Kochi: The division bench of the Kerala High Court quashed the single bench order reducing the interval between two doses of covishield vaccine to 28 days. The verdict was granted on appeal by the Central Government. The court ruled that the interval of the covishield would be 84 days.
The single bench ordered that those interested should take the second dose after 28 days. The High Court had also directed the Central Government to make necessary changes in the Cowin portal. The order was issued on a petition filed by Kitex Company. The court ruled that the exemption did not apply to free vaccines provided by the government and that the government could decide on the matter.
The Central Government informed the High Court that exemption could not be granted for the 84-day interval between two doses for receiving the Covishield vaccine. The government has set the vaccine interval at 84 days, depending on its effectiveness. The government explained that the exemption for those going abroad was due to an emergency.
Forty-five days after taking the first dose of the vaccine, the health department did not approve the second dose. The petition contends that it is unjust not to allow the vaccination despite the purchase of the covishield vaccine at a cost of Rs. 93 lakh. The state government told the court that the guidelines on vaccination were issued by the Union Ministry of Health.
Chennai: Covid has confirmed two international travelers who arrived in Tamil Nadu. But the state government has denied reports that these are omicron cases.
Health Minister Ma Subramanian said that only if the test results come out can it be confirmed that it is Omicron. He also demanded that social media pay attention to the matter.
The minister said one of the passengers was from Singapore and the other was from the UK with his family. He added that samples had been sent for genetic testing. Omicron is confirmed by genetic testing.
The passenger from Singapore reached Tiruchirappalli at 3.30 am. After confirming Covid he was taken to the hospital for observation. The samples of those in contact with the passengers were also examined.
Thrissur: A gang was arrested for trying to sell a fake gold idol claiming to be a centuries-old gold idol of the Travancore royal family.
The Thrissur City Shadow Police and the Paravatti Police arrested a group of seven persons, including a woman, while trying to sell an idol for Rs. 20 crore.
The suspects were nabbed following a tip-off that an idol worth Rs. 20 crore was for sale at a luxury house in Paravatti Padoor. The arrested are Abdul Majeed from Paravatti Padoor, Geetharani from Tirumala, Thiruvananthapuram, Shaji from Pathanamthitta, Unnikrishnan from Kattanam, Alappuzha, Sujith Raj from Elavally, Jiju from Thrissur West Fort and Anil Kumar from Pull, Thrissur.
The accused were approached by the police through intermediaries to buy the idol worth Rs.15 crore for Rs.10 crore. The accused had said that the pure gold idol was stolen from the Kowdiar palace centuries ago. Accused had alleged that there were cases in the court regarding the ownership of the idol and that it was the idol that was released after depositing Rs 2.5 crore in the court.
The accused had several forged certificates, including a forensic lab report with a forged seal of the Regional Forensic Laboratory, a report by the Archaeological Survey of India confirming the age of the statue, etc with them.
Shaji, the third accused in the case, was introduced to the gang as a priest to explain the significance of the idol. He introduced himself as Brahmadathan Namboothiri. The man, who initially used the same name with the police, later admitted during interrogation that his real name was Shaji. The group was traveling in three luxury cars. These vehicles were also seized by the police. A case has been registered against him at Thrissur Town West station for stealing Rs 18 lakh and gold. There are several fraud cases against another accused Geetharani at various stations in Kerala.
Bhubaneswar: The low-pressure formed in the Bay of Bengal and the Andamans will turn into cyclone Jawad this evening.
The high winds are expected to touch the coast between southern Andhra Pradesh and Odisha by tomorrow morning. Following this, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an alert in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Andhra Pradesh has been warned of heavy rains before the winds hit the coast. A red alert has been declared along the coast.
Fearing that the cyclone would wreak havoc, measures were taken to evacuate people from the coast. The Disaster Management Force is also on the scene. The East Coast Railway has so far canceled 95 trains due to fears of a cyclone. The trains were canceled for three days.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi assessed the preparations for the rescue operation at a review meeting held yesterday. He directed the officials to take all possible steps to ensure the safe evacuation of the people and to restore the essential services immediately in case of any disruption.
Kerala is considered to be unaffected as Andhra Pradesh and Odisha are the destination of the cyclone. No heavy rain warning has been issued yet on the Kerala coast.
New Delhi: The Central Water Commission (CWC) has sought an explanation from Tamil Nadu for opening the Mullaperiyar shutters without warning.
The explanation was sought in connection with the allegation raised by Kerala. Kerala has lodged a complaint against the opening of the Mullaperiyar Dam without warning. The Water Commission has directed the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu to provide a factual explanation. The move by Tamil Nadu is likely to affect preparations related to the dam.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan expressed concern to Tamil Nadu over the unannounced opening of the shutters of the Mullaperiyar Dam. The Chief Minister expressed his concern in a letter sent to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin. The shutters were opened at night and early in the morning without warning. This caused distress to the people living along the river.
In the letter, the CM asked the officials to give adequate warning and instruct the officials to open the shutters even after the consultation. Shutters should only be opened during the day. In the letter, the Chief Minister said that coordinated plans are needed as neighboring states tackle the disasters caused by climate change.
Raising the shutters of the Mullaperiyar spillway in the middle of the night without any warning is causing great concern among the people along the Periyar coast. This morning, Tamil Nadu released water in the same manner without warning.
More than 8000 cubic feet per second of water flowed into the Tamil Nadu Periyar during the night. The highest water release this season was last night. This caused houses on the banks of the Periyar to flood. People took to the streets in protest.
Thiruvalla: Four have been arrested in connection with the murder of CPM Peringara local secretary PB Sandeep Kumar near his house. Jishnu, Nandu, Pramod, and Jinas were arrested. They were apprehended from Alappuzha Karuvatta.
Sandeep was killed in a field near Maypral in Thiruvalla Chathankari around 8 pm last night. Sandeep was stabbed nine times in the chest. The attackers immediately fled the scene. Sandeep has a deep cut on the right side of his chest. Sandeep was rushed to a government hospital in Thiruvalla but succumbed to his injuries. The attackers immediately fled the scene. Sandeep has a deep cut on the right side of his chest. According to the hospital, there were nine stab wounds all over the body.
The local leadership says there have been no recent CPM-linked incidents in the area.
Apsara Serial Actress Wedding Reception Photos – Apsara Ratnakaran wedding reception held at Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram. Many celebrities from malayalam serial industry attended the reception.
Thiruvananthapuram: The employees of KMML, a public sector undertaking under the State Industries Department, will now join KSRTC. The company has decided to join hands with KSRTC without renewing its long-standing contracts with private companies. State Industries Minister P Rajeev said on Facebook that from today, 6 KSRTC buses will be running for the employees of the company.
The new decision is part of the state government’s commitment to public sector protection. Until now, KMML has relied on private bus services for employee travel. The contract with them expired on November 30. It is at this stage that KMML and KSRTC come forward to implement a new concept on an experimental basis. The project, which is being piloted for the next one month, is expected to continue in the future.
