The Integrated Development of Fishing Villages Project will be launched statewide during a function at the Paravoor HMY Ground on Thursday.

Apprehensions are rife over the amount of water to be supplied by the Kerala Water Authority to the city once the Rs 201-crore Maradu Water Treatment Plant is commissioned.

The second phase of the installation of surveillance cameras at waste dump sites will be launched by next month.

According to the officials with the Kerala Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd (SupplyCo), the plan is to install at least 100 kw solar panels on roof tops which will bring down the electricity consumpt

Divya Industries, a company based at Muvattupuzha, has launched a new parking system which makes optimal use of space to accommodate 100 cars in just 11 cents of land.

Kerala has dominated the National Plant Genome Saviour Awards for the second successive year by grabbing the community award as well as the newly-introduced individual awards.

While the Plant Genome saviour Community Award for 2012 was bagged by Palakkad Rice Farming Community, Ciby Kallingal of Pattikkad, Thrissur, and N Vasavan of Pachapoika in Kannur, have won the individual awards for plant genome conservation.

The bio-chemical toilets installed on the public-sector boats in Ernakulam last month is yet to be opened for public.

There was a time when the banks of Chitrapuzha near Irumpanam were blessed by the green and yielding paddy fields.

The supreme court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) started inspecting the wood-based industries including plywood factories and neighbouring localities in Kuttipadam division in Vengola panchayat on Wednesday. The different stakeholders in the industry are considering the visit of the high power committee as a very “significant step”.

The committee is headed by P V Jayakrishnan, the chairman of the CEC and other members include Mahendhra Vyas and M K Muthoo. The committee is assisted by important government officials in the district including RDO, Moovatupuzha, District Medical Officer, Malayatoor DFO, Deputy Director, Panchayat and chief environmental engineer, regional office, Pollution Control Board, Ernakulam.

The trial run of the solar panel installation at the buildings constructed by Kerala Public Works Department (PWD) has been completed and now a project is being prepared for the massive conversion.