Thiruvananthapuram: With the Northeast monsoon hitting Kerala, the weather department has issued yellow alert in six districts of the state. Heavy rains lashed Ernakulam district, bringing traffic to a halt after the city was inundated with water.
The Indian Meteorological Department predicted heavy rains in the state till November 2 and yellow alert issued for districts like - Kollam, Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha, Kottayam, Idukki and Palakkad.&nbsp;
The weather department has also predicted heavy rains in the state in isolated areas till Wednesday.
Thunderstorm with lighting is very likely to occur in isolated areas of the state from October 30 to November 2.
It may be noted that the Northeast monsoon started over Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal area on Saturday.
With heavy rains and thunderstorms predicted, the state revenue department has warned people to be cautious.&nbsp;
—IANS

With the Northeast monsoon hitting Kerala, the weather department has issued yellow alert in six districts of the state. Heavy rains lashed Ernakulam district, bringing traffic to a halt after the city was inundated with water.

Yellow alert in 6 districts as Northeast monsoon hits Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram (The Hawk): In Kerala, where there are already four international airports, the state government approved on Saturday the acquisition of property for the construction of a fifth airport in the Kottayam district, close to the famous Sabarimala temple.
According to the order from the Revenue Department, 2,570 acres of land between Erumeli South and Manimala will be taken. The proposed airport will be located in the Cheruvally Rubber Estate.
The order states that 307 acres of property must also be purchased outside the rubber estate.
The airport will be 48 kilometres from the airport in Sabarimala airport and have a 3,500-meter runway.
The nodal organisation for all of the preliminary work, including acquiring the property, has been designated as the state-run KSIDC.
The Believers Church, which has its headquarters in Thiruvalla, owns the Cheruvally estate, and the ownership of the estate has long been a source of contention between the various governments.
The state government has consistently denied that this land was originally theirs.
Long-running legal battles regarding the estate's ownership have occurred between the current owners and various state governments.
In 2016, then-Union Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju gave Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan his informal sanction for moving through with plans to construct an airport close to the Sabarimala temple.
There has been a need for an airport to serve the pilgrims travelling to Sabarimala, and under the Oommen Chandy government (2011–2016), a private player's proposal to develop an airport near Aranmula in the Pathanamthitta district became entangled in a number of local concerns.
The Vijayan government terminated the previous approval for the Aranmula airport after taking power in 2016, and a suitable piece of land in the same area has finally been found.
Applications for many clearances will begin after the land is seized.
(Inputs from Agencies)

In Kerala, where there are already four international airports, the state government approved on Saturday the acquisition of property for the construction of a fifth airport in the Kottayam district, close to the famous Sabarimala temple.

Kerala approves land acquisition for airport near Sabarimala temple

Thiruvananthapuram: Two men were killed when a wild buffalo attacked them in Erumeli in Kerala's Kottayam district.

Chackochen was busy reading the day's newspaper at his house on Friday, when a wild buffalo attacked him and he died instantly.

His friend, Thomas who lives next door to Chackochen also was attacked by the buffalo, and despite fighting for his life at the Kottayam Medical College hospital, succumbed to injuries.

Outraged by the attack and the deaths, the locals assembled in large numbers and blamed the forest officials for their callousness in tackling this menace.

Angry protesters took to the main road and blocked traffic.

"Just as people live peacefully in towns and cities, we too have the right to live peacefully. The problem today is in yesteryears our forefathers used to ensure that adequate food is there for the wild animals, such a mechanism is not there now and hence the wild animals stray into human settlement areas," said an angry local.

Anto Antony, the Congress MP of the area said, "Sad are the state of affairs as there seems to be no action to the genuine problems by the authorities.

"Two lives have gone and if lives of human beings have no value, then what's the use of a government? Steps should be taken to tackle this menace and the wild animal should be shot dead," said Antony.

Incidentally, a similar episode was reported in Trissur, when a wild buffalo strayed into an area, but no untoward incident occurred as the wild buffalo was chased away.

Of late the man-animal conflict in Kerala, especially in the areas bordering forests, have increased, and the locals have taken to protests. IANS

Two men were killed when a wild buffalo attacked them in Erumeli in Kerala's Kottayam district.

Two killed in wild buffalo attack in Kerala

Two men were killed when a wild buffalo attacked them in Erumeli in Kerala's Kottayam district.


Thiruvananathapuram: The Union Environment Ministry panel's recommendation to give Standard Terms of Reference (TOR) for airports to the Kerala government's plan to establish a Rs 3411 crore greenfield Sabarimala international airport in Kottayam district is encouraging news.
The EAC of the ministry met in New Delhi last month and made their recommendation for the TOR. According to official sources, this would help the project's proponent, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) Limited, plan and construct an Impact Assessment (EIA) in addition to providing a format and structure for the project.
The proposed airport would be built on a plot of land measuring around 2,570 acres in Erumeli, Kottayam District, also known as the Cheruvally Estate.—Inputs from Agencies

 The Union Environment Ministry panel's recommendation to give Standard Terms of Reference (TOR) for airports to the Kerala government's plan to establish a Rs 3411 crore greenfield Sabarimala international airport in Kottayam district is encouraging news.

Environment Ministry approves Sabarimala airport TOR

Thiruvananthapuram: In an early morning swoop by a team of nine Kerala Police officers at a house in Kottayam on Monday, they had a tough time to ward off around 13 ferocious dogs who were guarding a drug dealer living there.  The trained dogs including Pitbull, Rottweiler and similar breeds were in the house when the police came.  Even though Robin, the drug dealer, managed to escape, the probe team found 13 kg of ganja, according to the Kottayam SP of Police K.Karthik.
“The raid was based on a tip off and our team was on the watch. After getting a search warrant from a local court, the team arrived at the residence. The suspect, however, managed to escape,” said Karthik.  “We understand that this person was a dog trainer and used to run a day care centre for dogs. We have also come to know that he had trained his dogs to attack anyone in khaki colour dress ( police). Our probe to take into custody the person is going on and we will do that,” added Karthik.  The locals were surprised to see a big number of police officials arriving and none had a clue of the ‘drug’ business that was going on, as neighbours felt that it was dog owners who used to frequent and not those who came to buy ganja and other such things. 
—IANS

In an early morning swoop by a team of nine Kerala Police officers at a house in Kottayam on Monday, they had a tough time to ward off around

The Hawk

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Yellow alert in 6 districts as Northeast monsoon hits Kerala

Pankaj Sharma

The Hawk

Tag : Kottayam

Yellow alert in 6 districts as Northeast monsoon hits Kerala

Pankaj Sharma

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