Minister for Electricity and Transport Aryadan Mohammed told the Assembly on Thursday that the State government proposed to take up new power generation projects to solve the power shortage in the State in five years. This would include addition of 100 MW by setting up windmills.

Replying to the debate on the demands for grants for Power, Transport and Taxes on Vehicles, the Minister said the State had already drawn up plans to generate 1,200 MW from LNG at a plant to be set up at Cheemeni in Kasaragod district. The Union government would be adding 1,950 MW from the Kayamkulam thermal power station using LNG as fuel. Detailed project reports were being prepared for new hydel projects.

73.75 litres condense to 10 kg, bulk either evaporated or leaked out

Raising environmental and health concerns, officials repacking endosulfan in fresh vessels have found that the pesticide has either leaked out or evaporated from a corroded barrel kept at the Plantation Corporation of Kerala’s (PCK) Cheemeni estate. It came to the notice of the officials of the Pollution Control Board, Hindustan Insecticide Ltd., medical team, and the taskforce appointed by the district administration when they started to repack the banned pesticide on day three of ‘Operation Blossom Spring’ at the PCK warehouse at Cheemeni,

The first phase of the operation ‘Blossom Spring’ (endosulfan detoxification process) started at the Plantation Corporation’s godown in Periya here on Sunday.

The task force entrusted with the work including experts, medicos and other officials reached the spot early in the morning and started the procedure at around 11am and continued till 4.15pm.

Operation Blossom Spring first taken up at Periye

Authorities started the process of detoxifying endosulfan stocked in three warehouses of the Plantation Corporation of Kerala here on Sunday. Operation Blossom Spring was first taken up at the warehouse at Periye, transferring 914.55 litres of the pesticide in six corroded barrels to high-density polyethylene barrels. A team of personnel from Hindustan Insecticide Ltd. and the Kerala State Pollution Control Board and medical experts did the highly delicate transfer.

A two-day national seminar on endosulfan scheduled here from July 14 aims to free the district from all kinds of chemical and hazardous pesticides, P. Karunakaran, MP, has said.

No assurance on demand to write off bank loans

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Tuesday assured the Endosulfan Satyagraha Samithi that steps would be taken to address the problems faced by those suffering from mysterious diseases attributed to the spraying of the pesticide in the district.An eight-member team of the samithi, accompanied by four MLAs from the district, held talks with Mr. Chandy and Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president Ramesh Chennithala in Thiruvananthapuram on some crucial issues, including the need for swift implementation of the relief and rehabilitation package for the victims.

Commission accepts staggered relief payment proposed by State government

The Kerala government has partially complied with the orders of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on payment of compensation to families of those killed due to the effects of pesticide Endosulfan, and those who were physically affected.

Says educated youth can be attracted to create skilled jobs

Introducing modern technology and bringing in educated youth in the primary agriculture sector will help Kerala produce its annual requirement of four million tonnes of rice from the one million hectares of land under paddy in the State, M.S. Swaminathan, visionary agriculture scientist, said here on Sunday.

The district administration will hold awareness classes on the detoxification of huge quantities of endosulfan pesticide kept in godowns of the Plantation Corporation of Kerala.

The classes would be conducted by experts in Pullur-Periye, Kayyur-Cheemeni and Panathady panchayats on May 22 and May 24, official sources here said. The experts would strive to clear all apprehensions of the public regarding the detoxification programme, which was a long standing demand of the people of the affected localities, they said.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) will help transfer endosulfan kept in vessels that have corroded by now in the warehouses of the Plantation Corporation of Kerala in the district to fresh barrels, officials said.

The decision was taken at a meeting convened by District Collector V.N. Jithendran here on Monday. Agriculture Minister K.P. Mohanan was present. The first step to destroy the deadly pesticide, the transfer, to be completed this month, is expected to set at rest a fear among the local people that the old vessels will spring leaks.

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