THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After the lockdown was lifted, there was a noticeable shift in fitness trends, especiallyamong women. People flocked to gyms, tired of being stuck at home during the slump period. And no, it wasnt just a fad. Even now, according to trainers, gym memberships are on the rise. Among this diverse group, homemakers stand out, with brimming enthusiasm. They are trying everything, from boxing to Kalari, and yoga, and thus breaking stereotypes. They make a statement by all this, maki

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Forests and their allure form epic storytelling. They remain as spaces of freedom, of naked beauty of nature, and of soul searching. Probably why meditation retreats and shrines sought the silence of the wilderness. From the early 20th century, Thiruvananthapuram had a space that matched all the above descriptions. It was cut away from the crowd of the city of the early 1900s, stationed in a jungle tract high up a hill in Nettayam. It is here that the majestic stone-built Sri

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Against the backdrop of the increasing number of accidents and deaths at Muthalapozhi harbour , the Kerala State Minority Commission held a special sitting on Friday to take stock of the situation. The commission expressed dissatisfaction with the reports submitted by the deputy director of the fisheries department, the executive engineer of the harbour engineering department, the Anchuthengu coastal station officer on behalf of director of the fisheries department, the secre

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Highlighting the potential risks of communicable diseases due to the heatwave and subsequent summer rains, Health Minister Veena George has laid emphasise on effective collaboration between all the departments. She stressed on conducting thorough cleaning operations with the assistance of local bodies, ensuring sanitation in public areas and hostels as mandated by the Kerala Public Health Act, cleaning wells and drinking water sources. There will be strengthened focus on foo

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In May 2014, Sreejeev was arrested by Parassala police for theft. The suspect died in hospital a few days later. Although his family claimed that he died of custodial torture, police officers held that Sreejeev had consumed poison. Cash-for-query case: Jai Anant Dehadrai asked to appear before CBI on Jan 25 A Police Complaint Authority inquiry in 2016 concluded that the official account was false and that it was a case of custodial death. Despite initially refusing to take up

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A success rate of 96.15% was recorded in Malayalam Missions Neelakurinji senior higher diploma course certificate exam for Class X equivalency, conducted by Pareeksha Bhavan, for children of Malayali expatriates. Of the 156 candidates who registered for the exam from the first batch of the course, 150 passed the exam and earned Class X equivalency. This included 48 boys and 102 girls. While 26 candidates secured an A+ grade, 42 candidates passed with an A grade and 38 were pl

KOCHI: With the central Sarathi portal down for maintenance for a second straight day, driving tests scheduled for Friday were also called off, adding to the number of candidates affected. While the facility is expected to be fully functional only on Monday, the motor vehicles department (MVD) has asked candidates who missed their appointments of the last two days to carry printouts of allotment when they next appear for tests. Candidates who received slots can approach us with printouts. They c

KOCHI: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast extreme heavy rainfall in Pathanamthitta, Kottayam and Idukki districts on May 20 and 21. In its five-day forecast for Kerala, the IMD has issued orange alert for Palakkad and Malappuram districts on Saturday. These districts are expected to receive isolated heavy to very heavy rainfall ranging from 11.5 cm to 20.4 cm. The weather monitor has also issued an orange alert for Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki on Sunday. Rain set to i

KOZHIKODE: The special investigation team on Friday arrested Pantheerankavu domestic violence case accuseds friend P Rajesh who helped him flee from the country. Rajesh, a native of Mankavu, helped the accused Rahul P Gopal leave the country by taking him to Bengaluru from Kozhikode. Kerala: Pantheerankavu domestic violence case accused in Germany, say police The probe team under the leadership of Feroke ACP Saju K Abraham produced Rajesh, who is the fourth accused in the case, at Kozhikode Judi

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Minister for General Education and Labour V Sivankutty has written to Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia seeking his intervention in ensuring monetary compensation to redress the loss suffered by Amrita, who could not meet her husband owing to the Air India Express strike, and her family. Kerala woman couldn't see her husband before death due to Air India strike In the letter, Sivankutty said Amrita, a nursing student residing at Karamana in Thiruvananthapuram

MALAPPURAM: The IUML and its youth and students wings are being panned for purportedly settling a case registered by a woman leader of the Muslim Students Federation (MSF) against a Muslim Youth League (MYL) leader in Kannur. According to an FIR registered at Vengara police station on May 6, MYL Payyanur constituency president Jiyas Velloor threatened the woman leader, saying he would attack her with acid and circulate her morphed pictures. After she turned down Jiyas marriage proposal, he stalk

KOZHIKODE: RMP leader K S Hariharan was released on bail after being arrested for making derogatory comments against CPM leader K K Shailaja and actor Manju Warrier during a political event in Vadakara. The arrest followed a complaint filed by the DYFI with the state police chief, citing misogynistic comments. Hariharans comments had sparked widespread controversy. Upon his release, Hariharan addressed the media, clarifying his position on the incident. He stated that the police recorded his sta

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress leader and then home minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan had reached out to the CPM to end the LDFs 2013 secretariat siege over the solar scandal, said Congress leader Cherian Philip, who was part of the Left camp at the time. Even as the state witnesses a fresh political debate over who took the initiative to settle the solar agitation, Cherians revelation has added a new twist to the entire saga. The new revelations over LDFs secretariat siege seeking the resignat

KOTTAYAM: Over a decade-long power struggle in the Malankara Syrian Knanaya Diocese (Knanaya Jacobites) took a sharp turn on Friday after Patriarch of Antioch Ignatius Aphrem II suspended Kuriakose Mor Severios as Metropolitan and Samudaya Metropolitan of the Knanaya archdiocese. The move, coming amid long-standing disagreements between the chief metropolitan and regional bishops of the Church, is expected to have far-reaching consequences. Soon after news broke of Mor Severios suspension, his s

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Southern Air Command headquarters has opened an inquiry into the incident where four Air Force officials were arrested by the police for engaging in an affray with employees of a city-based hotel. The Air Command in a statement said they have taken serious cognizance of the incident and an inquiry is on to ascertain facts by the Air Forces policy of zero-tolerance to cases of misdemeanour in public places. The Pettah police had registered a case against four Air Force off

KOTTAYAM: An ambitious environmental-protection initiative of the Church of South Indias Central Kerala diocese is setting a commendable example for others to follow. The diocese is taking proactive steps to ensure carbon neutrality within its community. According to Dr Malayil Sabu Koshy Cherian, bishop of the Central Kerala diocese, the goal is to achieve carbon neutrality in all 405 parishes of the church and its affiliated institutions within the next three years. We have come up with a 15-p

ALAPPUZHA: Amid rising divorce cases, dowry deaths and atrocities against women in the state, an estranged couple from Alappuzha has decided to unite after 14 years of divorce. Subrahmanian and Krishnakumari of Sanathanapuram in Alappuzha decided to re-register their marriage after getting the divorce order issued by the Alappuzha Family Court annulled. They took the decision to reunite for the wellbeing of their only daughter Ahalya. Subrahmanian S, of Aswathi Nivas, Sanathanapuram, Alappuzha,

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as Kerala sweltered under a hostile summer, the state significantly under-reported heat-related illnesses, National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) health and climate resilience lead Abhiyant Tiwari has said. In an exclusive interaction with TNIE , Tiwari said only 25% of public healthcare institutions in the state reported such incidents to central authorities. Gujarat, at 95%, leads in reporting of such cases while Telangana comes second with 83%, he said. A le

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Escalating its fight against the state Congress chief, the A group, with the tacit support of a section in the I group, has decided to approach the party high command against K Sudhakarans autocratic style of functioning. Kerala: Sudhakaran cancels lifting of Latheefs suspension The move comes in the wake of Sudhakaran revoking interim Congress state president M M Hassans decision to reinstate A group leader and then KPCC secretary M A Latheef, who was suspended from the prim

KOCHI: The migration of Keralas youth to foreign countries has significant implications for society. While experts are examining the economic and social impacts of the exodus, it has also profoundly affected the states political parties. Their youth and student wings are suffering from a shortage of capable second-generation leaders. This trend has particularly impacted the Kerala Congress factions as young people from Central Kerala, where these parties hold influence, are migrating in large nu

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Unearthing a startling new pattern in cyber crime, the police have found that scamsters have started using honey-trapping methods to get hold of their victims bank accounts and transfer the swindled amount through them. The new modus operandi came to the fore during a probe into the case in which Rs 3.65 lakh was swindled from a Thrissur native. Police had earlier detected that Cambodia-based financial scamsters were behind the operation, which was reported by TNIE. The polic

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau has detected serious irregularities in the functioning of the state food safety department during the statewide raids on its offices on Thursday. Some offices were found giving free training, which is meant for staff of small-scale hotels, to employees of upscale hotels. Irregularities detected in vigilanceraid in offices of food safety department in Kerala Irregularities were also detected in the levying of penalties on firms selling

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The BTech curriculum revision process of APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU) has run into rough weather with a section of the faculty protesting against the reduction in credits awarded to Mathematics in the first four semesters of the course. KTU is the affiliating university of around 142 engineering colleges across the state. Earlier, the overall credit for Mathematics across four semesters was 16 in the current BTech curriculum of KTU, which was adopted in 2019

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If Article 21 of the Constitution states that no person can be deprived of their life or personal liberty unless in accordance with the law, the saga of custodial torture in the state speaks of a deep-seated infringement of basic human rights and dignity. From being spread-eagled in dark rooms and thwacked relentlessly using batons or sticks, to rolling heavy pipes over bodies and beatings with cloth-wrapped iron objects ... the horrors dont stop there. The torture and mental

The Solar scam, that rocked Kerala politics about a decade ago, is back in the headlines after a senior journalist's revelation that CPI (M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) pulled out of its Secretariat siege in 2013 demanding the resignation of then Chief Minister Oommen Chandy for his alleged involvement in the scam, after reaching a deal with the ruling Congress party. It was John Brittas, Rajya Sabha MP, managing director of a pro-CPI (M) news channel and a close confidant of Pinarayi Vijaya

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It is where the sultry heat that gripped the capital some days ago melted away into a misty chill. As dawn breaks on the Vellayani lake every day, walkers can be seen matching pace with the shrill chirp of morning birds. The verdant paddy fields around with the lilting flow of Karamana together create an ambience for a perfect morning. This is heaven for regular morning outers who drive down from the city to fill their lungs and minds with the freshness of the green stretch,

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The sun has fascinated people for ages. For K S Jayadevan, the fascination has led him to spend the last eight years crafting nearly 3,000 poems only about the sun. Known as Surya Kavi, his poems capture its magnificence, power, and impact on our lives through simple words. The poet says this unique hobby came into being quite unexpectedly. Before 2008, the Chengannur natives priorities were more about landing a job. My life took an unexpected turn, much like the character C

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The heavy rainfall that lashed the capital on Thursday afternoon marooned many residential areas and triggered waterlogging on all major roads. The SS Kovil Road near Thampanoor was the worst hit as the extreme showers that lasted for more than two hours caused waterlogging, disrupting vehicle movement. The overflowing waters flooded many houses in the stretch leaving the residents at the receiving end. The stretch continues to face flooding despite the city corporation spend

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The government will set up skill development centres in all colleges in Kerala in the run-up to the transition of all arts and science undergraduate programmes into the four-year mode this year. Higher Education Minister R Bindu announced this on Thursday during the state-level inauguration of an orientation programme on the Four Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUGP) for Plus Two students. The event, organised by the Kerala State Higher Education Council (KSHEC), was held at

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A team of five teachers from the College of Engineering, Muttathara, who emerged victorious in the Hydrogen Hackathon, attended the World Hydrogen Summit, which was held in The Netherlands from May 13 to 15. C Srikanth, Anas S R, Binu Mary Panicker, Abhilash R S, and Shalini M Venugopal, were adjudged winners of the hydrogen hackathon held in February this year, following which they were invited to the summit in Rotterdam. The hackathon focused on fostering innovation in hydr

MALAPPURAM: Taking a firm stance against Samastha, senior leaders of IUML, Panakkad Sadiqali Shihab Thangal and P K Kunhalikutty, decided to keep away from the ceremony to launch the Gulf edition of Suprabhaatham daily, scheduled to be held in Dubai on Saturday. Sources revealed that Sadiqali Thangal made the decision citing Suprabhaathams association with a group of anti-IUML leaders in Samastha, indicating that there was no room for compromise. Though the Suprabhaatham management has included

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The pre-monsoon showers, which brought much-needed relief to the people grappling with the scorching summer, are likely to intensify over the next few days. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast heavy rain ranging from 7cm to more than 20 cm in a span of 24 hours across Kerala from May 18 to 20. It has issued orange alert for Palakkad and Malappuram on May 18; for Pathanamthitta, Alappuzha and Idukki on May 19, and for seven districts Pathanamthitta, Idukk

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Two days into its statewide special drive against criminal gangs and drug peddlers, the state police have so far initiated legal action against 243 people. As per the statement issued by the police, action was taken against 90 people, who were involved in a slew of criminal cases, and 153 others, against whom arrest warrants have been pending. About 53 men have been taken into preventive detention, while five men were booked under the stringent Kerala Anti Social Activities P

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The relatives of Nambi Rajesh, a 40-year-old expatriate whose wife could not meet him in Oman before his death, owing to the Air India Express strike, staged a protest against the airline carrying his body here on Thursday. Woman unable to see hospitalised husband before his death due to AI Express flight cancellations The protest was held in front of the office of Air India SATS (AISATS), a joint venture of the Tata Group that owns Air India Express, at Enchakkal after his b

KOZHIKODE: Another case of medical negligence has emerged from Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, where a surgery was performed on the tongue of a four-year-old girl, who was brought to the hospital for a procedure to remove her sixth finger. Following the incident, the director of medical education suspended associate professor Dr Bijon Johnson, of the paediatric department of the Institute of Maternal and Child Health, pending an inquiry. The family of the child also lodged a complaint with t

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Raising major allegations of corruption and nepotism in the State Television Awards, former secretary of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy Mahesh Panju and senior filmmaker Sasi Kumar Ambalathara have moved the High Court against the Chalachitra Academy. Complaints were made against the State Television Awards 2022, announced on March 6. The case is expected to come up before the High Court for hearing next week. The petition was filed on April 12 against the academy, acad

KOCHI: The Indian Coast Guard coordinated the medical evacuation of a critically-ill British national on board a ship that was on its way from Dubai to Brunei on Thursday. Kenneth Hiller, 62, a crew member of MV Anvil Point, fell ill owing to deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot. The Coast Guard arranged a tele-medicine facility for assessing the mans condition and sent off ICG ship C-410 with a medical team on board for evacuating the patient. Another ship, ICGS Arnvesh, was also diverted towards

KOZHIKODE: The health department officials breathed a sigh of relief on Thursday after the test results of those under observation for amoebic meningoencephalitis turned negative. 5-yr-old girl from Malappuram infected with amoebic meningoencephalitis The tests were held after a 5-year-old girl from Moonniyur in Malappuram was diagnosed with the viral disease on Wednesday. She is battling for life at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital (MCH) on ventilator support. Efforts to source medicine f

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The imminent vacancies to Rajya Sabha from the state seem to be posing a major challenge to the ruling Left front. The ruling front will be able to win two seats while the Opposition UDF will get the third one. Of the two seats, the CPM is likely to take one seat while Left allies CPI, Kerala Congress and RJD have raised demands for the second seat. Both the CPI and KC(M) feel they have a legitimate claim for the RS seat, as their seats are among those falling vacant. Meanwhi

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The influx of tax revenue has offered a temporary relief for the cash-strapped state government, as revenue collection deposits have enabled the state treasury to emerge from overdraft status. Prior to this development, the treasury had been operating under overdraft conditions for almost a week. Despite moving out of overdraft, the treasury is still facing a deficit. As a result, certain restrictions remain in place to limit the outflow of funds. Notably, cheques and bills a

KOZHIKODE: The police probing the Pantheerankavu domestic violence case have got information that the key accused Rahul P Gopal, 29, has left the country. The last location of his mobile phone was spotted in Karnataka. The investigating team led by Feroke ACP Saju K Abraham suspects that the accused reached Bengaluru by road from Kozhikode and went to Singapore from there. We cant confirm the exact location of Rahul right now. We have already issued lookout notices to all airports in the country

MALAPPURAM: The travel of Haj pilgrims from Kerala this year will begin on May 21. Haj flights will depart from three embarkation points in Kerala - Kozhikode, Kannur and Kochi airports. The first Haj flight from Kerala will depart from Kozhikode airport at 12.05 am on May 21. Air India Express flight IX-3011, carrying 166 pilgrims will depart for Jeddah on the first flight. As many as 59 flights, carrying 166 passengers each have been scheduled from Kozhikode. The second and third flights will

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The change of guard in state Congress would not be as easy as detractors of K Sudhakaran think. As discussions over organisational revamp are centred around a change of guard in the KPCC and lack of Christian representation, especially of the Roman Catholic community, the leaders who support Sudhakaran warn about a possible backlash in south and central Kerala where Ezhava and non-Catholics play a key role in electoral politics. There is dissatisfaction in the Sudhakaran fact

KOLLAM: Every regions name carries a rich tapestry of history and untold tales. Much like this, Kollam district, the southern gateway to the backwaters of Kerala, shares a captivating historical bond with Kozhikode district. Despite their distinct geographical identities, a ward named Kollam within the Koyilandy municipality in Kozhikode and another named Kozhikode within the Karunagappally municipality in Kollam share parallel narratives. According to local historians, the Kozhikode ward in Kol

THRISSUR: The Thrissur District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum has directed Britannia Industries based in Whitefield, Bengaluru, and Varakkara-based Chakkiri Royal Bakery to pay an amount of Rs 60,000 as compensation and penalty for selling short-weighed biscuit package. Varakkara native George Thattil bought two packets of Britannia Nutri Choice Thin Arrow Root Biscuits from Chakkiri Royal Bakery on December 4, 2019, paying Rs 40. When he weighed the package, it read 268 g and 249 g while the

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Several electric vehicle owners have levelled serious allegations against the e-mobility app, KeMapp, which acts as a common platform for accessing the services of KSEBs e-charging stations. They accuse the power board of taking advantage of the apps glitches to move crores of rupees in charging fees into the account of a private company. But a senior official belonging to the renewable energy & energy savings (REES) department of KSEB rubbished the claims. Currently, KSEB ha

KOCHI: Switching to firefighting mode after finding itself in an unenviable situation over Rajya Sabha seat allocation within the LDF, the CPM is learnt to have decided to offer its key ally, the Kerala Congress (M), chairmanship of the Kerala Administrative Reforms Commission, a post with cabinet rank once held by V S Achuthanandan. Decision on Rajya Sabha seats set to give LDF a fresh headache In addition, the CPM is also planning to mollify the KC(M) with the promise of an RS seat that will f

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The woman and Child Development Department is setting up turfs to provide safe and engaging spaces to promote recreational activities and sports among children residing in government institutions. As per a survey, around 60% of the children residing in institutions have behavioural issues. The project aims to attend to the children grappling with such problems and self-esteem challenges. The children coming and staying at these institutions have a lot of issues, especially be

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a bid to prioritise the well-being of children who fall foul of the law and those in need of care and protection, the state government has launched a comprehensive five-year action plan aimed at reducing the number of residents in its child-care institutions by 50%. According to official data, Kerala has witnessed a substantial decrease in the number of child-care institutions in recent years, from around 800 facilities housing 50,000 children eight to nine years ago to 51

If you think Aralam in Kannur, a village along the forest fringes of the Kerala border, hogs headlines only for Maoists encounters, you are wrong. The Aralam Farm and the rehabilitation area have unfortunately been in the news for all the wrong reasons with tigers on the prowl and elephants running wild. The Aralam Farm , which was one of the 16 farms under the Farm Corporation of India, has been in the news for long. It has witnessed hundreds of agitations since 1978. A 57-day long strike, seek