District accounts for 90% of cases reported in State this year

The Health Department says that it is chalking out a special strategy and action plan for the capital district for tackling the threat of dengue fever, which seems to be assuming alarming proportions year after year in the district. The district has reportedly registered an all-time high number of confirmed dengue cases this year so far, accounting for almost 90 per cent of the cases reported across the State.

In a major step towards adopting a scientific approach in the maintenance of forests in state, the Forests and Wildlife Department has prepared GIS atlases on three wildlife divisions in the state.

The scheme to provide a single mapping platform to the five other wildlife divisions will be completed by the month-end, officials said. The department embarked on the Herculean task of preparing GIS atlases on its 11 wildlife divisions and 25 territories in January, 2012. ‘’Master copies of the atlases on Thiruvananthapuram, Thenmala and Punalur divisions have been prepared besides one prepared on Konni division earlier.

The new blocks will aid further learning and experimentation for students pursing M.Sc. (Integrated) Biotechnology course at the college

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will inaugurate the newly built integrated biotechnology block and the microbial technology block at the College of Agriculture, Vellayani, on Monday. Apart from opening the Centre for Microbial Technology and Microbial Inoculants Production Unit, Mr. Chandy will also release the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accreditation certificate for the pesticide residue analytical laboratory at a function on the college campus.

Rain and festival shopping spree add to waste mounds and stench

The consistent rain over the past couple of days and the Onam festivities have only added to the garbage crisis in the city. The situation at the busy Chala market has become so severe that shop-owners here have started terming it the “next Villapilsala.” V.S. Padmakumar, chairman of the works standing committee of the city Corporation, said on Friday that the local body was awaiting the green signal from the State government to transport waste to Parassala for platform construction.

Elaborate arrangements have been made to monitor restaurants, hotels and other food businesses within the State and also the inflow of food items from outside the State during the festival season, Health Minister V.S. Sivakumar has said.

Special surveillance squads had already been deployed for the purpose in all districts. Checking had been made more stringent in the border check-posts of Amaravila in Thiruvananthapuram district, Aryankavu in Kollam district and Meenakshipuram and Walayar check-posts in Palakkad district, the Minister said on Sunday.

More such units to be set up across the city within three months

Mayor K. Chandrika has said the newly installed e-toilet unit at the Kowdiar Park a significant step in improving the sanitation and health facilities in the city. She was speaking during the inauguration of the first e-toilet set up by the city Corporation , in association with Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation (KELTRON) and city-based Eram Scientific Solutions that designed the unit.

The National Service Scheme (NSS) could not have timed their new initiative better.

At a time when water levels in reservoirs are dipping at an alarming rate and the State is staring at an imminent power crisis due to a far from normal monsoon, the 1.75 lakh NSS volunteers are all set to do their bit for conserving energy. “We will launch our energy conservation programme within a couple of weeks. Preliminary talks have been held with the State government’s Energy Management Centre (EMC) in Thiruvananthapuram,” K. Prakash, State Liaison Officer of Kerala State NSS Cell, told The Hindu.

The power of organised protest prevailed over the Thiruvananthapuram district administration which, after a futile police action here on Friday morning, gave up its attempts to take a truck laden with equipment for a leachate treatment plant to the city Corporation’s solid waste treatment facility here.

Defying prohibitory orders, hundreds of local people and activists of the Vilappil Janakeeya Samithi had gathered in front of the Sreekanda Sastha Temple here right from Friday morning to prevent the movement of machinery or garbage to the treatment plant.

Around Rs.50,300 was collected as fine from defaulters for dumping garbage in public places in the city in the last one week, a statement released by city Corporation has said.

Apart from this, around 71 hotels in the city were issued notice to improve their food safety and hygiene conditions in lightening inspections conducted by the health squads of the Corporation.

The Commissioner of Food Safety has engaged a team in every district, including the representatives of the District Collector, the District Medical Officer, and the Food Safety Officer, to revisit

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