Thiruvananthapuram: The Central Meteorological Department has forecast heavy rains in the state due to low pressure in the northeastern Bay of Bengal. It is likely to rain from tomorrow till the 15th. A yellow alert has been declared in various districts.

The low-pressure area formed this morning is expected to strengthen in the next 48 hours, making it the first extreme low pressure of the season, the Meteorological Department said. North Kerala is likely to receive showers from today. Widespread rains are also expected in Kerala on September 14 and 15.

Meanwhile, the Central Meteorological Department has said that fishing will not be restricted along the Kerala-Karnataka-Lakshadweep coast.

Thiruvananthapuram: Prominent serial actor Ramesh Valiyasala has passed away. He was found hanging in a room at home this morning.

Ramesh Valiyasala, who entered the miniscreen world through drama, was one of the busiest actors in the Malayalam series. Has been active in the serial industry for over 22 years.

He was educated at a Govt. model school. He became active in drama while studying at Arts College, Thiruvananthapuram. After college, he became part of the miniscreen.

Actor Balaji Sharma said that he could not believe Ramesh’s death. Balaji says that they were completely happy when they acted together in ‘Varal’ two days ago and do not know what happened next.

Thiruvananthapuram: Higher Education Minister Prof. R Bindu has said that necessary arrangements will be made for the opening of colleges in the state from October 4. The meeting of all higher education institutions and heads of institutions was convened online. The minister said the general approach was to give classes to students on half of the days off.

Classes are open to final year students from all higher education institutions. Steps will be taken to sanitize the class before the students arrive. The assistance of local bodies and voluntary organizations will be sought for disinfection.

All students should receive at least one dose of the vaccine before classes begin. Based on this, a special vaccination drive will be conducted focusing on institutions. Minister Veena George has said that the health department will make arrangements for this. Heads of institutions were asked to prepare a list of students who had not taken at least one dose of the vaccine.

It has also demanded the formation of a covid vigilance committee at the institutional level. Collectors will be asked to hand over the institutions which are now functioning as CFLTCs. The Minister said that the responsible intervention of the college community is needed.

Thiruvananthapuram: The 26th Kerala International Film Festival will be held from December 10 to 17. The fair will be held only in Thiruvananthapuram, the permanent venue. The fair will be held in December in compliance with the existing covid norms.

The 26th International Film Festival will be held in Thiruvananthapuram from December 10 to 17. Last time the film festival was organized in 4 regions namely Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Thalassery and Palakkad in view of the spread of covid.

IFFK lovers were also disappointed that the fair, which was held in Thiruvananthapuram, was divided into different regions. But this time, movie lovers are eagerly waiting to come together in Thiruvananthapuram for the festival.

The fair will be held in December in compliance with the existing covid norms. Entries for the fair should be submitted online through the website www.iffk.in by September 10, 2021. Films can be submitted to the International Competition category for Indian Cinema, Malayalam Cinema and World Cinema. Films from African, Latin American and Asian countries will be considered for the competition.

Thiruvananthapuram: Health Minister Veena George has said that the test results of five people on the contact list of a 12 – year – old boy who died of Nipah were also negative. So far, 73 samples have been negative.

The test results of the samples taken in the last few days were negative. Of these, four were tested in NIV in Pune and one in a specially set up lab at Kozhikode Medical College. Yesterday, the test results of 22 people were negative.

In Chathamangalam panchayath in Kozhikode district, a house-to-house survey was conducted in all the wards within a three-kilometer radius of the child’s house. The minister added that the survey revealed that there were no unusual fevers or deaths in the area.

Thiruvananthapuram: Transport Minister Antony Raju has said that the vehicle taxes for this financial year have been waived. The vehicle tax for stage and contract carriers have been waived. The vehicle tax is from April 1 to June 30 waived, the minister said.
The move was because of the financial crisis faced by vehicle owners due to the covid epidemic, the minister added.