High alert in Kerala after Kochi blast

September 26th, 2009 KOCHI - Kerala Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan Saturday called for the central government to take up the security of the coasts. "The need of the hour is that the centre should take up the security of the coast.

September 18th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Louis Cruises India, a subsidiary of one of the world's leading cruise operators Louis Cruises, launched its operations in India with Kochi as its home port. Louis Cruises India managing director Oneil Khosa has signed an agreement with Kerala Tourism Director M.

September 14th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Kerala State Industrial Development Corp (KSIDC), the investment promotion agency of the state government, has tied up with Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) for developing gas pipeline infrastructure. The partnership will lead to attracting investments to the tune of Rs.8,500 crore in the state, officials said.

July 29th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The Kerala government will host a day-long workshop Aug 1 to find ways and means to tackle cyber crimes against women, state Social Welfare Minister P.K. Sreemathi said here Wednesday.

July 22nd, 2009 KOCHI - The Kerala police Wednesday claimed to have arrested a top bomb-making expert and busted a terrorist gang active in the state since 2004. Manoj Abraham, Kochi Police Commissioner said Abdul Halim is an expert in making time bombs.

July 11th, 2009 KOCHI - The pipe bomb blast at the Kochi collectorate Friday was a planned one, police said Saturday. The explosion took place around 3.10 p.m.

July 3rd, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Kerala got a fair share of the budgetary proposals of Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee tabled in parliament Friday. The small southern state which had long complained of being "neglected" by successive railways ministers got eight new trains, two new railway lines and a railway medical college.

June 30th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The Kerala State Industrial Development Corp (KSDIC) has tied up with Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Ltd (FACT) to set up a world class trade and exhibition centre in Kochi at an investment of Rs.250 crore, it was announced Tuesday. KSDIC said in a statement that it would form a joint venture with FACT to execute the project.

May 22nd, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The Kochi-based Muthoot Pappachan group, that has interests in financial services, hospitality, infrastructure and wind power, is investing Rs.750 crore (Rs.7.5 billion/$159 million) in seven hotel properties in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, as well as more than 100 service apartments here. 'In Kerala, we will undertake four premium hotel projects near Kovalam, Alapuzha, Bekal in Kasargode district and Kochi,' Group managing director John Muthoot told IANS.

May 15th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Hospitality major Leela Group will soon open a Rs.100 crore state-of-the-art IT campus in the Technopark here, a top group official said. 'The building is almost ready and we will open the campus very soon,' V.J.

May 13th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - A team from the newly-formed anti-terror squad (ATS) in Kerala arrived at People's Democratic Party (PDP) supremo Abdul Nazir Maudany's house in Kochi to record his statement, but the meet lasted several hours. The team led by ATS chief, Deputy Inspector General of Police T.K.

March 30th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Kochi, Kerala's commercial hub, was on alert after intelligence reports indicated that a terror gang was possibly heading towards the city, a police official said Monday. Inspector General of Police Arun Kumar Sinha, however, denied media reports that it was a gang of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and that they had arrived on the coast near Shertallai, near Alappuzha, and were heading towards Kochi.

January 19th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - The Kerala government Tuesday approved the proposed Rs.3,048-crore (Rs.30.48-billion) Kochi Metro Rail project and sanctioned Rs.5 million to set up an office at Kochi. 'Th project will be on similar lines to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.

January 4th, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - A team of the vigilance department raided the office of the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) Monday, three days after a corruption case was registered against the sports body, a senior official said. The raid began around 11 a.m.

January 1st, 2009 THIRUVANANTHAPURAM - Kerala Home Minister Kodiyeri Blakrishnan Friday said the police force has been directed to use computers extensively so that law and order issues can be tackled more efficiently. The decision to use computers at all police stations was taken at a meeting between Balakrishnan and the top brass of the state police.