Kozhikode

Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM), a premier research and development institute of Government of Kerala is organising a national seminar on 'Mining of River Sand and its Impact on the Environment' at the centre. The two day seminar will be held on February 10 and 11 in 2011. An awareness on river sand mining and its impacts on rivers is essential to understand the serious problems facing in this regard. For the last ten years, Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM) is actively engaged in scientifically assessing the sustainable quantity of minable sand from the northern rivers of Kerala. It is in this context that CWRDM propose to conduct a two day seminar, emphasizing adverse effect of the uncontrolled sand mining along the river courses, a phenomenon which is of special concern to the whole country. The focal theme of the Seminar is to disseminate the adverse impacts of uncontrolled sand mining in the rivers with the ...

Institute of Palliative Medicine (IPM) of Medical College Kozhikode has been selected a Collaborating Centre (CC) of World Health Organisation. IPM is the fifth WHO Collaborating Centre in palliative care in the world and the first in the developing world. IPM has been selected WHOCC considering their long term work in palliative care sector with the collaboration of social organisations, service in helping the destitute and elderly. The work of IPM in the past six years were evaluated by WHO before attaching IPM as a Collaborating Centre. Members of WHO had visited IPM to evaluate the processes directly. World Health Organisation sanctioned the title WHOCC to IPM after they submitted a proposal to the Central government seeking their sanction, informed IPM Director Dr. Suresh Kumar and Secretary Dr. M Geetha in a news release issued here on Thursday. With the new title, responsibilities of IPM also increases. IPM is entrusted to give technical advices to WHO.IPM is also respon...

The first dhow built at the yard of the Centre For Heritage Ship Technologies, Beypore will be handed over to the Department of Tourism. The dhow, under construction at the ship yard at Beypore, will be used for developing waterway cruise to places, those come under Muziris Heritage project of the state government. The dhow or uru will be rowed in the Periyar River and nearby water bodies for tourism purpose. The construction of the dhow is expected to be completed by January and will be handed over to the tourism department by February next year, said KKN Kurup Director General of the Centre For Heritage Studies. The Uru has 45 foot length, 15 foot width and seven foot height. The small model of thousands of year old heritage ships from Beypore can accommodate 30 passengers at a time. The dhow will be bought by the tourism department spending Rs.1 crore, said KKN Kurup. Apart from cushioned seats arranged in two rows, the boat will also have a captain's cabin. The model ...

“If you have a query, suggestion, idea which improves a situation concerning the common good of Kozhikode , you can forward it here directly to collector,” this statement, posted in the website www.actforindia.com is a new initiative by the district administration. Any citizen can visit the website and post their queries and suggestions directly to the district collector by clicking the link 'Let the Collector Know'. Act of India , a novel   initiative by the District Administration aims to bridge the gap between the civil servants and the civil society. Discussion Groups: The website also has discussion groups, where the public can share their opinion on different issues. A discussion group on 'How to use our history and its present trails to the effect of bringing new businesses in Kozhikode ?' has already been started on the website. PROJECTS: Act for India , according to District Collector P B Salim, aims to bring various developmental projects in the district ...

State government inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lakshadweep Island administration for the construction of a 200-metre wharf attached to Beypore port which will act as a dedicated berth for ships from Laskhadweep.   Port Director Dr. Jacob Thomas and Development Commissioner Dr. N Vasanth Kumar inked MoU for Kerala and Lakshadweep Islands respectively.   Inaugurating the function of the Inking of MoU Port Minister V Surendran Pillai said that the state would ink another MoU the next month for the comprehensive development of Beypore Port. “Presently the depth of the port is only four metres which prevents heavier ships from approaching the port. The sea will be dredged to increase the depth to 11-12 metres so that ships with 20,000 DWT can approach the port,”

'SENIOR' Rank for Autos: The city traffic police have also decided give senior title to auto rickshaws and taxis driven by drivers with more than 30 years of experience. The title will be imparted to autos and taxis run by senior drivers against who no criminal case was registered, said the Assistant Commissioner. “ A list of 60 drivers have been prepared of which the eligible will be selected after scrutiny.” The drivers will be honourd by the police and their auto rickshaws will be given the title 'Senior', he added. The police also plan to recommend the sanction of more auto rickshaw permits in the city limit. The suggestion would be presented before the district collector in the next traffic review meeting, said Jayarajan. TOLL-FREE NUMBER FOR TRAFFIC POLICE: Attached to the call centre of the city police, a dedicated toll free number for traffic police also is planned according to officials. This would help immediate intervention of the police in...

Following the model of New Delhi , traffic police here also is planning to report the absence of helmet to the insurance company if the two wheeler riders get injured owing to the absence of helmet, Assistant Commissioner of Police Traffic (North) R K Jayarajan told the reporters here on Thursday. “ Police have been doing their best with checking and awareness programmes to make people aware of the importance of helmet. However, number of persons who violate the law is not showing any remarkable decrease,” said the Assistant Commissioner. People are conscious of insurance schemes but not ready to obey traffic rules, he criticised. Final decision regarding the implementation of the new proposal will be taken after a detailed study, said R K Jayarajan. “We are also seeking the possibilities of suggesting the insurance companies to formulate a new clause regarding insurance claim and use of safety measures including helmet and seatbelt,” he added. In 2010 alone 18,522 persons were fi...

The life of Santha Devi, who died here on Saturday, had a touch of melancholy in it - like some of the songs sung by her late husband Kozhikode Abdul Khader. Tragedy never spared Santha Devi in her eventful life. She had the mortification of seeing her first husband leaving her months after the marriage. And she saw the untimely death of her son. Left alone by the relatives, Santha Devi spent her last days at an Old Age Home. She had to depend on the charity of her well-wishers in her last days. Bouts of diseases that hit her at regular intervals made things difficult for the gifted artiste. It was hard to believe for the new generation in Kozhikode that the frail figure that move around in their midst was a film star. Acting was not a timepass for her, but the only source of income. Towards the fag end of her career,she accepted even insignificant roles as she had no choice. Born to Kulangarathu Kannakurup and Thottthil Karthyayani, Santha Devi had her education at Sabha School in...

Winning e-governance award, ‘Swabhiman’, the prestigious project of the district administration will be expanded to the rural areas in the district. The software-based scheme pioneered by the district administration aims at availing the service of skilled labourers for the household needs. After the successful launch in the city limit, the project will soon be launched at Vadakara and Koyilnady taluks, to help the rural people to meet the shortage of skilled labourers. Two new call centres will be opened at the taluk head quarters to extend the advantage of the project to the rural population. The scheme is expected to be launched in December. With the expansion of the scheme the labourers from rural area also are expected to benefit as they would be able to get job regularly. Presently the benefit is available only to those residing in the Kozhikode Corporation limit. Native labourers will be enrolled to the scheme from Koyilandy and Vadakara shortly, according to officials. The...

A herbal park ‘Vanaparvam,' coming up at Kakkavayal in the Thamarassery Forest Range in the district is all set to infortain the visitors. The herbal park is being set up for the conservation of rare and endangered species of plants are protected in park that spreads over an area of 111.4 hectares. According to official data, there are around 2,300 saplings of various plant species are planted in the area as part of the conservation project. Rare, Endangered and Threatened (RET) species of medicinal plants are protected in the garden with the help of Vana Samrakshana Samithis and families residing in the region. Nearly 1500 saplings belonging to 150 priced medicinal plants are also conserved with the help of residents. A butterfly park will also be set up at Kakkavayal to protect rare butterfly species. Site for the park has been identified and plants those attract butterflies are planted in the park. Besides, bamboo garden with more than 23 species of bamboo plants are also ...

The only archeological museum in is all set to welcome the visitors. With the renovated building and rearranged archeology exhibits, the museum that is situated at East Hill ensures and infortaining journey for the visitors who wants to explore the treasury of knowledge consisting of articles excavated from different parts of the country. Sculpture gallery is a major attraction at the museum. It displays sculptures carved from granite along with 13 hero stones, excavated from the tribal areas of Attappady and parts of Wayanad. These stones along with the idols of Hindu Gods are used for iconography. Statue of Mahaveera found in 11-12 AD is also on display at Pazhassi Raja museum. The museum that was closed for 11 months was reopened here on Friday by A Pradeepkumar MLA, after renovation. Pyriform Burial potteries, megalithic specimen, Bull replica, Lion faced Balustrade are also displayed. The palanquin used by Maharaja of Cochi, Shakthan Thamburan and cannons and cannon balls ar...

Once the capital of the powerful Zamorins and a prominent trade and commerce centre, Kozhikode was the most important region of Malabar in the days gone by. Today, lush green countrysides, serene beaches, historic sites, wildlife sanutaries, rivers, hills, a unique culture and a warm, friendly ambience make Kozhikode a popular destination.