Chief minister Oommen Chandy inaugurated the 12 MWp (megawatt peak) solar power plant at the Cochin International Airport Ltd (Cial) on Tuesday.
The plant, comprising 46,150 solar panels laid across 45 acres in the cargo complex, will enable Cochin airport to produce 50,000 to 60,000 units of solar power every day for its operations. Airport authorities claimed that this would technically makes the airport ‘absolutely power neutral’.
Cial first ventured into solar power sector in March 2013 when they installed a 100 kWp (kilowatt peak) solar plant on the rooftop of the arrival terminal. Installed by the Kolkata-based Vikram Solar Private Ltd, the plant was a trendsetter in the field of grid-connected solar energy (one without any battery storage) in Kerala.
Later, they installed a 1 MWp solar power plant partly on the rooftop and partly on the ground in the aircraft maintenance hangar facility on the airport premises. This plant was installed by Emvee Photovoltaic Power Pvt Ltd and is the first megawatt-scale installation of solar PV system in Kerala.
After commissioning these plants, Cial has so far saved more than 550MT of CO2 emission. Over the next 25 years, this green power project will avoid carbon dioxide emissions from coal fired power plants by more than three lakh metric tonnes, which is equivalent to planting 30 lakh trees.
Cial is now in the process of setting up a 12MWp solar PV plant as part of its green initiatives. This will come up in an area of about 45 acres near the international cargo premises. The work has been awarded to Bosch Ltd and is expected to generate around 48,000 units per day. Along with the electricity generated from the existing 1.10 MWp plants, this would be sufficient to meet the power requirement of the airport, officials said.
Later in the day, the annual general body meeting of Cial approved the recommendation of director board to give a dividend of 21% to all its shareholders. The total earning of Cial in 2014-15 was Rs 413.96 crore, an increase of 19.69% compared with the previous year. The airport made a profit of Rs 144.58 crore in 2014-15, which is 16.25% compared with the previous year. The number of passengers touched 64 lakhs. “The new international terminal will become functional by 2016,” added Chandy, who is also the chairman of Cial.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kochi / August 31st, 2015
“Uncommon Sense: The Life and Architecture of Laurie Baker”, a feature film on the architect that is being made by his grandson Vineet Radhakrishnan (in picture), captures the essence of Baker, the man and his outlook.
The trailer of Vineet Radhakrishnan’s film on his grandfather Laurie Baker gives fascinating glimpses into the celebrated architect’s work and design philosophy.
Sunlight streams in through the window in Laurence (Laurie) Wilfred Baker’s home at Nalanchira in Thiruvananthapuram. The chiaroscuro catches your attention. Baker chuckles with childlike pleasure, explaining how the grill in the window is made of recycled metal parts such as a discarded bicycle wheel and a clutch plate.
That one frame from a six-minute preview (www.lauriebaker.net) of Uncommon Sense: The Life and Architecture of Laurie Baker, a feature film on Baker that is being made by his grandson Vineet Radhakrishnan, captures the essence of Baker, the man and his outlook.
“Although there have been several articles and a few short films on my grandfather, never has a feature film been made on him. I have always felt that the long movie format was most suited to explore and understand the layered and interlinked narratives of his architectural work, his remarkable personal story, and unique life philosophy,” says Vineet in an e-mail interview. Baker lived in Thiruvananthapuram from 1970 to 2007 and drew the blueprint for a school of architecture that derived its aesthetics and inspiration from local building material and vernacular building techniques.
The main block and library of the Centre for Development Studies, designed by Laurie Baker, in Thiruvananthapuram. Photo: Special Arrangement
Vineet, who has postgraduate degrees from IIT-Delhi and INSEAD, France, says that the greatest influence in his life has been his grandfather. Vineet is a fine art and fashion photographer. The trailer of the film, released online, gives glimpses of the film — interviews with leading architects and proud owners of Baker homes, poetic shots of Baker’s buildings and, best of all, vintage shots of Baker himself talking about his philosophy and his insistence on eco-friendly architecture. The film is likely to be released in October. Excerpts from an interview:
What is the story behind the movie on one of the most important architectural inspirations in the world?
In late 2013, after completing my MBA, I did some candid introspection, and realised that if I didn’t make the film then it probably would never happen, especially since I was going back to a comfortable corporate job. So I gave up the job, and started planning the film. I have been a professional photographer for several years, so many skills translated to film shooting and I ended up, partly out of necessity, becoming not just the director but also the cinematographer and shooting all of the footage, with a friend assisting at times. We spent the next year travelling across India, re-discovering and filming Baker buildings and interviewing a variety of people who knew him in one way or the other.
What is it that you plan to cover in the film — Baker the man or Baker the architect ?
Laurie Baker’s architecture exists because of Laurie Baker the man, and because of his rather particular ideals, motivations and approach to life, his environment and to his fellow human beings. So I don’t think it’s possible to separate the two. The movie will let the common man who appreciates Baker the man, understand the beauty of his architecture better and also let the architectural student or practitioner who understands the technical building aspects see why Baker built the way he did, what he built, and equally importantly why he chose to forgo the projects he did.
How best do you plan to capture his ‘small is beautiful’ philosophy and drive for sustainability?
I feel Baker’s life itself is the most powerful illustration of these ideas, because he put into practice all of these concepts, every time he designed or constructed a building whether it was his own house, a house for a fisherman, a relatively more affluent client or a large institutional building. If we have captured his life well in the film, the message should be quite apparent.
What is the most important thing you learned from your grandfather and what is the feature in his buildings that really captures Baker’s aesthetics best?
Never did I feel that it was a strain for him or my grandmother to live the life they did, or make the unconventional choices they did. Fame, money, and social conventions did not matter. I admire them most for the courage of their convictions. His sense of proportion and balance, always avoiding cluttered façades and over-design, reflects his attitude to life.
What is the best way to continue his legacy of sustainable architecture and how can his buildings be preserved for posterity?
Rather than preserving his buildings for posterity, I believe, the attempt (an approach he would have liked) should be to preserve his questioning conscience: to not accept ways of doing things just because everyone says that’s how it is done and to respect nature and stand up against wastefulness and deceit.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National / by Saraswathy Nagarajan / August 27th, 2015
Minister for Fisheries K. Babu has said that the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS) will popularise vannamei shrimp farming across the State.
In his inaugural address at the two-day training and aqua-expo on the prospects of Litopenaeus Vannamei, an exotic white shrimp, here on Thursday, Mr. Babu urged the shrimp farmers to speed up the process of ushering in a vannamei revolution in the State.
Compared to the other States in the country, we are very late to earn profits out of vannamei culture, the Minister said.
He said that KUFOS would organise training programme in each districts to spread vannamei shrimp farming.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Special Correspondent / Kochi – August 21st, 2015
The nearly five-century old Mattancherry Palace, a major tourist destination, may soon be raised to the status of Taj Mahal and Konark Sun Temple if a proposal by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Kerala circle, is accepted.
ASI, Kerala circle, Thrissur, has approached the New Delhi office requesting them to grant the coveted ‘Adarsh’ monument tag under the Adarsh Smarak Yojana to Mattancherry Palace aka Dutch Palace.
“We have submitted a proposal to the head office to award the ‘Adarsh’ monument tag to Mattancherry Palace. This will help us to get financial support from the Central government for maintaining and enhancing the facilities in the palace. This is the only monument in Kerala for which we have approached the head office for the tag,” said an ASI official.
The central government has accorded the tag to 25 monuments, including the Red Fort and Qutab Minar, out of 3,680 protected monuments of ASI. In Kerala, there are 26 protected monuments, including Mattancherry Palace and St Francis Church and the former is the top crowd puller under the ASI .
“We wrote to the head office considering the flow of tourists, including foreigners, to the palace. If we get the tag, we can develop many facilities for visitors such as Wi-Fi connectivity in the palace. This will help to raise the profile of the monument,” the ASI official said.
Facilities such as washrooms, drinking water, signboard, cafeteria, audio-visual centres, interpretation centres and encroachment-free areas will be provided by the ASI under the tag.
Nearly a thousand people visit the palace every day to see the mural paintings and historical artefacts exhibited there. Currently, there are no facilities available for visitors coming to the palace as the monument is situated on the land owned by Cochin Devaswom Board (CDB). The Pazhayannur Bhagavathy Temple is also situated near the Palace.
The dispute between the CDB and ASI over setting up a fence in between the palace and temple stopped the archaeology department from setting up facilities for visitors.
As per archaeology rules, new construction is prohibited in 100m around the heritage structure. Later, both parties discussed the issue and explored possibilities of setting up a fence in between the palace and temple without a construction.
“We have sent our engineer to the monument to look into the prospect of setting up a fence. We hope to sort out the issue in a month, but there is no response from CDB,” an official said.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kochi / by T C Sreemol, TNN / August 20th, 2015
The Chinese ambassador to India, Le Yucheng, on Sunday visited the Chinese fishing nets at Fort Kochi. He took part in casting the fishing nets and raised the hopes of several fishermen who are looking to the Chinese government to protect and preserve these nets.
However, the ambassador was non-committal. He said that the nets reminded him of the Chinese explorer, Zheng He, who is believed to have visited Kerala six times.
“I will surely promote tourist flow from China to Kerala. Wait for a few months, and I assure you that thousands of Chinese tourists will be heading your way,” said the ambassador. Last year, a Chinese embassy team that visited Kochi had offered help to restore the aged fishing nets that dot the shoreline of Kochi. However, the offer was declined by the Kochi corporation.
“With this visit, we hope that he would grant some funds for the restoration of nets as most of them are now being made from metal rather than traditional teak wood. Authorities also don’t seem to care about it any more,” said Hansel Joseph, a fisherman.
The Chinese fishing nets are facing a threat as authorities, including the Heritage Conservation Society, DTPC and Kochi corporation, have turned a blind eye to its plight. Many of them were removed recently.
On the second day of his official visit to Kerala, Le Yucheng visited other popular sites in Fort Kochi. “Kochi is rich with culture and heritage and I was told that it would be a shame not to visit these places,” he said.
The ambassador, who received an invitation to visit Kerala from chief secretary Jiji Thomson, arrived at Kumarakom on Friday along with a four-member team. His official tour of Fort Kochi began from the Dutch Palace and Jewish Synagogue in Mattancherry, following which he visited St Francis Church and the iconic Chinese fishing nets. He was also presented with a replica of the ‘cheenavala’.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / News Home> City> Kochi / by TNN / August 10th, 2015
In order to boost the prospects of Kerala’s tourism, which eyes the Chinese market, those at the helm should explore the potential historical links that connect the State with China, said Chinese Ambassador to India Le Yucheng.
He was speaking to mediapersons on the sidelines of an interaction with Chief Minister Oommen Chandy here on Monday.
“A range of topics were covered in the interaction with the CM. We have chalked out an in-depth plan to boost the tourism prospects of Kerala in China. Marketing strategies for the same have already been discussed with Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson when he visited China. In a short period of time, a high-level team from China will visit Kerala to look into the investment venues, including the tourism sector,” said Yucheng.
Stressing the need to explore the historical links, he said there were many links that connected Kerala with China. “Of them, the Chinese fishing net stands first. The snake-boat race and Kerala’s martial art ‘kalaripayattu’ have had their Chinese connections. The common factor lies in food also. My point is that these linkages have to be explored for the good, which will attract Chinese tourists to Kerala,” he said.
According to Yucheng, 5,000 Chinese tourists visited the State last year. “The goal is to raise the figure to 50,000, and then to 500,000. But, spirited efforts are needed to reach that goal,” Pointed out the Ambassador, adding that he had put forth certain suggestions before the CM for attracting Chinese tourists.
The suggestions include conduct of boat races, martial arts events, investment meets, entertainment programmes and conferences, among others.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Kochi / by Express News Service / August 11th, 2015
The first “China Ready” hotel in God’s Own country to cater to the needs of Chinese tourists is getting ready at Kundanoor in Kochi.
As much as 80 per cent the work mandatory for Chinese accreditation is over at the 267-room five star deluxe Crowne Plaza belonging to Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG), Sanjay Kaushik, general manager of the property told The Hindu .
The hotel will have trained personnel who can communicate to the tourists in Chinese, UnionPay payment facility on the lines of RuPay, Mandarin speaking personnel on call 24×7.
Authentic Chinese breakfast, lunch and dinner will be offered in the restaurants attached to the hotel. The menu card will also be in Chinese language for the benefit of the guests. Television in the hotel rooms where the Chinese tourists will be put up will have access to Chinese channels.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Thiruvananthapuram / by Special Correspondent / Thiruvananthapuram – August 03rd, 2015
K P P Nambiar, renowned technocrat and founding chairman of Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (Keltron), will be cremated in his native village Kalliassery on Thursday. He died of age-related illnesses on Tuesday evening in his Bangalore residence, where he had settled after leaving Kerala.
Later, after a brief stint abroad, he returned to India on the invitation of the then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru. Later he came to Kerala on the state government’s request and played a pivotal role in the setting up of Keltron in 1973. While establishing Keltron, Nambiar chose his native place for establishing a major unit.
“Keltron was actually a dream project for Nambiar and he put in lot of energy to realize his dream,” reminisced writer and activist Karivellur Murali, who was a store manager in the Keltron unit in the district. “Though the unit in Kannur, which he set up along with the headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, is the biggest capacitor manufacturer in Asia and known for its quality, Keltron is unable to market it properly due to the policies of the central government,” he said, adding that it would have been a different story for the ailing enterprise had he been there at the helm of Keltron.
Nambiar’s dreams were not limited to electronics. “When Keltron’s component making unit was established in Kannur, he was concerned about the power problems here and wanted to set up a power project,” said industrialist and exporter C Jayachandran.
“He had even identified 190 acres at Irinavu for the project. However, there was stiff opposition from residents and politicians and meanwhile the business partner for the project, Enron, also got entangled in controversies and it ultimately killed the project. The land was later identified for the Indian Coast Guard Academy.
He had big dreams for Kannur but it did not take off because the community and political leadership failed to understand his vision,” he said.
In a sense, his decision to leave Kerala was a political statement on the state of affairs here, feel those who knew him. Though Kannur University conferred him with DLitt in August 2013, Nambiar could not make it and the honour was received by his wife Umadevi.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kozhikode / TNN / July 02nd, 2015
The fab lab at the Startup Village in Kochi. — PHOTO: BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT / The Hindu
MIT’s digital fabrication laboratory makes its way to Kochi
Imagine this. What if there was a device that lets you record your emotional outbursts like screams and later release them in the same degree?
Well, a student from the University in Sunderland, despite her very little coding and engineering experience came up with an innovative portable device called scream body, which effectively allows one to record the scream and release it later.
The innovation was made possible by the digital fabrication laboratory, a concept developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The amazing world of fab lab, as it is globally known and, which has by now popularised the slogan ‘anyone can make anything’, has come to the city. Startup Village, the telecom incubator, has set up a fab lab spread over 2,600 sq.ft in its campus at Kalamassery through the Kerala Startup Mission (formerly T-TBI).
MIT professor Neil Gershenfeld, who pioneered the concept of fab lab, was in the city on Tuesday. A second such facility in the State has been proposed at Technopark in Thiruvananthapuram.
“To put it very simply, fab lab is a mini factory of sorts where anyone can work on an idea and build a prototype, which would then help to figure out potential market for the product,” said Pranav Kumar Suresh, CEO, Startup Village. Experts from MIT will train a group of 10-12 selected hands for a week at Startup Village on the functioning of the fab lab.
The fab lab has already been equipped with a slew of equipment including shopbot (a do-all tool for precision cutting, carving, drilling or machining), laser cutter, milling machines, 3D printers moulding machines, mini furnaces, systems, desktops and relevant software.
Mr. Suresh said that though they propose to make the facility accessible to school students in the near future, the present focus is on college students and young startups. Hardware startups and even staff from smaller companies can also make use of the fab lab. “It’s not a complicated set up and involves a brief learning curve where after those interested can undergo online fab academy courses,” said Mr. Suresh. Since only 10 teams can work in the fab lab at a time, the Startup Village is planning to draw up a calendar to make the facility accessible to all.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by M.P. Praveen / Kochi – June 18th, 2015
Fr Paul Arackal who is credited as the first person who took steps to organize the fishermen community in the state, died of age related illness at Chethi near here on Wednesday. He was 80.
His funeral will be held at the St Antony’s church Chennaveli near here at 3pm on Friday.
His mortal remains will be kept at his family home at Chethi from 8am on Friday for the public to pay their last respects.
He was the third son of Joseph and Esther of Arackal house of Perunnoormangalam near Chethi. He was ordained a priest by Pope Paul VI in 1964.
He served as the assistant vicar and later also as the vicar of the St Andrews Basilica at Arthunkal.
He also served as the vicar at St Joseph Church at Punnapara, Arogyamatha Church at Saudi near Kochi and St Francis Xavier’s Church at Kandakadavu, and also as the chaplin at St Joseph Church, Thanki.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Kozhikode / TNN / April 23rd, 2015
