Thiruvananthapuram: The 24th Kerala International Film Festival begins today. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will inaugurate the Nisagandhi Auditorium at 6 pm. Culture Minister AK Balan will preside over the function. Kadakampally Surendran is the chief guest. Actress Sharada was the guest of honor at the event. The Festival Book Mayor K Sreekumar will release the book to District Panchayat President VK Madhu and the Daily Bulletin VK Prashant MLA and KTDC Chairman M Vijayakumar. The inaugural film ‘Passed by Censor’ will then be screened.
The screening of the films began at 10 am in various theaters. The long line of delegates is evident in front of the theater. The number of seats for the fair is 8998. The largest venue is the Nishagandhi, an open theater with 3500 seats. The main screenings will be shown here, including the midnight screening film Doorlock. The film will be screened on the fourth day of the festival at 12 pm. This year, a special laser phosphor digital projector by Barko Electronics is on display at Nisha Gandhi.
Egyptian director Khairi Beshara is the chairman of the international competition category.
Kochi: Kerala State Job Portal, a unique single-window facility for job-seekers and employers developed by Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE), is conducting a job fair in association with De Paul Institute of Science & Technology (DiST) at DiST campus, Angamaly South, on December 7.
As many as 50 leading companies will be participating in the job fair, seeking the right candidates for 1,500 vacancies.
Major companies attending the job fair include JARO Education, ESAF Bank, Muthoot Financial Corporation, Flowers Group, Zee Keralam, Jio, Oppo, Carnival Group, Nippon Toyota and Popular Hyundai. Those who register in Kerala State Job Portal can attend the job fair. For registration, visit: www.statejobportal.kerala.gov.in.
The job portal functions by leveraging the possibilities of Information Technology, as a pioneering effort to bring together job seekers, employers and other job-providers on a single platform.
The portal gives an opportunity for job seekers to find vacancies from the primary level to the management level. Job providers can find suitable candidates from this portal, which offers the service of social media platform LinkedIn. The website aims to service all types of qualified persons and job seekers from the state, and abroad.
Unlike the usual job portals which address mostly private sector recruitments, the state Job Portal will address all recruitments, including Private, Public sector and semi Government openings, excluding KPSC recruitments.
Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 05: Akshaya centers across the state will make arrangements to do the mustering for the beneficiaries of social security and welfare pensions by reaching their homes, in case they are not in a position to move out.
The instructions in this regard have been given by the Director, Akshaya project.
The relatives of such beneficiaries should submit an application in the prescribed form to the secretary of the local body concerned before December 9. The mustering will be done by the Akshaya officials by reaching the homes of the beneficiaries between December 11 and 15.
This service can be utilized by those who are bed-ridden or finding it hard to go out of homes due to age-related problems, differently-abled and dependents below five years of age.
If the Aadhar linked details of the beneficiary fail to get reflected on the bio-metric machine, the secretary of the local body or the authorized Gazetted Officer can issue the Life Certificate in such cases.
Special district-level camps have also been organized to help beneficiaries, where they can do the mustering by personal appearance. In Thiruvananthapuram, Pathanamthitta, Idukki, Ernakulam, Palakkad, Kozhikode and Kannur districts the camps will be held on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. In Kollam, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Thrissur, Malappuram, Wayanad and Kasaragod the camps will be held on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Hyderabad: The four accused in the Hyderabad rape case has been shot dead by police. A 26-year-old veterinary doctor has been raped and burnt to death in gang-rape case. In the early hours of the morning, the accused tried to escape. The police said the victims were killed in the encounter. Three police officers were also injured. The murder of the accused comes amid strong public outcry over the rape of Hyderabad.
The accused were killed on the spot where the doctor was killed. According to police, the four were taken to the scene in the morning to recreate evidence of the crime. The accused were identified as Mohammed Arif (25), Jolla Naveen (20) and Chintunda Chennakeshavalu (20). The shooting happened around 6:30 p.m.
The doctor’s family welcomed the death of the accused in the encounter. They thanked the police. The doctor’s sister said the incident had created a new pattern.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is set to introduce a regulatory mechanism to secure cash transactions through ATMs in the country. The decision was taken after the credit review meeting. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to bring in restrictions as the number of money fraudulent cases has increased.
But it will be clear at the end of this month just what kind of restrictions will be put in place. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is planning to implement new regulations from January. Most banks rely on third party institutions for ATM services. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has observed that this could lead to theft and fraud of users’ information.
Therefore, the restrictions on banks’ transactions with third party institutions are expected to be higher. The Reserve Bank of India will issue special guidelines later this month on the security of ATM transactions. Scams such as skimming through ATMs have increased in recent years.
MG ZS EV has launched its first electric vehicle, MG. G (Morris Garages) brought the vehicle to India. The zs is assembled at the Halole plant in Gujarat, MG. It also has the distinction of being the first fully electric internet vehicle to reach India.
According to reports, prices of MGZs EVs will be revealed in January. The car features a grille with chrome studs, an LED headlamp and a dual-tone bumper with skid plates.
The interior is in black. The center console includes the infotainment system, dual-zone climate control and the gear changing knob. The Zs Electric is powered by an electric motor with 143 ps of power and 353 Nm of torque. The vehicle has a maximum speed of 140 km per hour. The vehicle can accelerate from zero to 100 km / h in 8.5 seconds.
Thiruvananthapuram: Biking professionals and aficionados from India and abroad will test their endurance and expertise in a most challenging and rugged terrain of the Western Ghats as the 6th edition of MTB (Mountain Bike) Kerala is all set to be held on December 21, 22 at Priyadarshini Tea Environs, Mananthavady in the state’s Wayanad district.
Organised by Kerala government’s Department of Tourism under the aegis of Kerala Adventure Tourism Promotion Society (KATPS), District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) – Wayanad and Cycling Federation of India (CFI), this year’s mega mountain biking event will be more challenging and thrilling, taking the riders through a 5-km stretch at an altitude of 3,000 feet that encompasses terrains like dirt, rock and water.
Famous for the adrenaline rush it offers, MTB Kerala is the first mountain bike race in India to be featured in the MTB race calendar of Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), the Swiss-based world governing body for sports cycling and overseas international competitive cycling events.
“Over the years, the stupendous success of MTB Kerala has placed the state on the global map of mountain biking and also brought into sharp focus its adventure-related facets. It provides an opportunity to all cyclists to be the part of UCI-approved MTB Kerala race and demonstrate power-packed and thrilling performances to captivate viewers,” Tourism Minister Shri Kadakampally Surendran said.
This year’s race will be held in three categories: International Cross Country, National Cross Country – Men, and National Cross Country – Women. An added attraction of the event is that it also includes for the first time an additional race for amateurs, titled ‘Fun & Thrill Challenge’.
For amateurs’ event, the registration fee is Rs. 1,000 per participant, and it can be done online at MTB Kerala website, www.mtbkerala.com. Registration starts on December 5 from 10 am onwards and closes on December 10 at 5 pm. For the ‘Fun & Thrill Challenge’, any amateur cyclist, who can manage to ride on a mountain terrain, may participate.
Fun & Thrill Challenge will have separate category for men and women. Participants who reach in first 25 positions in the qualifying round of a 38-km road cycling competition on December 20 will be selected for the MTB Amateur Championship on December 21. There is no qualification round for women category. The total entry for men for this segment is limited to 100 and 25 for women on first come first serve basis.
The first three positions in the amateurs’ challenge round will qualify for the MTB National Category Championship, to be held on December 22. Participants will have to bring their own MTB cycles and safety equipments.
Registration for international and national participants, free of cost, is already over. Only valid UCI and CFI (Cycling Federation of India) licensed nominees can participate in the national and international competitions. The technical committee will scrutinize the qualification of the riders and those who are qualified will be intimated.
The race is open to both individual riders and teams. As for the prize money, the winner in International Cross Country race will get Rs 150,000 while the first, second, third and fourth runner up will secure Rs 100,000, Rs 50,000, Rs 25,000 and Rs 20,000, respectively.
The winner in National Cross Country – Men race will be awarded a prize money of Rs 100,000 while the first, second and third runner up would be getting Rs. 50,000, Rs 25,000 and Rs 20,000 respectively. As for the National Cross Country – Women event, the winner will be presented Rs 50,000 while the first three runners up will be getting Rs 25,000, Rs 20,000 and Rs 15,000, respectively. The first three winners of ‘Fun & Thrill Challenge’ will also be given cash prize, medals and certificates.
CM Pinarayi Vijayan to address the valedictory session
Thiruvananthapuram: Billed as India’s largest design conclave, the second edition of Kochi Design Week (KDW-2019) will be held from December 12 to 14 at Bolgatty Palace, bringing together experts from across the world to discuss the global trends in design and architecture and position Kerala as an international destination for design companies.
Chief Minister Shri Pinarayi Vijayan will address the valedictory session of the conclave on December 14. Shri. S D Shibulal, Chairman, High Power IT Committee (HPIC) and Co-Founder and Former CEO of Infosys, will inaugurate the event on December 12 at 10am.
The mega event will witness the assemblage of design professionals from India and abroad, heads of various design companies, architects, interior designers, thought leaders, policymakers and government officials besides the general public. The summit is being organised by the Electronics and IT Department of Government of Kerala in association with international bodies such as World Design Organisation (WDO) and Interaction Design Association (IxDA).
The presentations and deliberations will focus on making Kerala a global hub for design companies and the newest trends in design in various domains.
“The summit is being held at a time when there is an increasing awareness that design is an inevitable reality in almost all segments and not a luxury, as it was considered for long,” said Shri M Sivasankar, Secretary, Electronics and IT, Govt. of Kerala, at a press meet here on Wednesday.“One of the aims of the event is to provide design inputs for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in product ecosystem.”
The list of speakers includes top representatives from companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, TATA Elxsi, YouTube, ISCA London, Indigo Airlines, Titan Company and PWC. Oscar-winning sound designer Resul Pookutty will also share his experiences and insights.
The meet assumes added significance as it comes in the backdrop of the state government’s decision to set up a Centre of Excellence for Design in Kochi. Besides attracting big players in the field, it will have facilities to incubate startups and other nascent ventures.
Taking cue from the previous edition of the Design Festival, Silicon Valley-based Lumium Design has started its unit in Kerala. More companies, including social media majors, have shown keen interest in coming to Kerala, and parleys with them are on, Shri Sivasankar said.
Shri Arun Balachandran, CM’s IT Fellow, said around 5,000 delegates and 100-plus speakers are expected to attend the event.
Curated by leading experts, KDW 2019 will chiefly hold sessions on design and architecture, besides holding exhibitions and installations. A food fair, which will exhibit 100 specially chosen items, has also been planned at the venue, highlighting the significance of design in food craft. These popular dishes will be selected from 20 restaurants in and around Kochi.
Another highlight of this year’s event is the charting of an exclusive ‘Design Island’ for the hosting of the annual event and setting up of design installations across Kochi’s high-visibility areas, besides laying special tracks for design architecture and interior designs.
The KDW 2018 had showcased technology options of use in any rebuilding phase as installations for various stakeholders to experience them. There will be free entry for the public after 6pm.
