Kerala Forward

  There was anxiety, excitement, laughter - even tears. Students of the Xth and the XIIth classes were hastening back to school - after the long break of the "Lock down" when they were at home during the Covid Pandemic. The teachers had been struggling - trying to adapt themselves to the new method of online teaching. Now they had to work flat out ensuring "social distancing" in the classrooms that had been deserted for so long. Some parents still desisted from sending their children back to school despite the assurances of the Government. But those who arrived did take utmost care to ensure keeping social distance, washing their hands with disinfectant, and keeping safely apart from one another. Around 2400 schools across the State; and 3000 with higher secondary sections had sprung back to life. The Government guidelines saw to it that the necessary precautions were enforced. At the end of every session, the class rooms were disinfected. Parents had to drop off...

  Starting a business from scratch is not an easy task. Just ask any of the thousands of wannabe business owners who take the plunge into the uncertain world of entrepreneurship every year. Within just a few months of planning, more than half of these business aspirants will drop the plan, a testament to how difficult it is to start a business, let alone sustaining it. For those businessmen in Kerala, however, there is nothing to worry, for the state government has made everything easy for you. Kerala enacted seven new laws and 10 amendments to existing laws, making the state industrial-friendly. If one wants to start an enterprise, they can make it with a single window clearance.                                            Kerala Single Window Interface for Fast and Transparent clearance for industrial projects has been one huge step towards simplifying business procedu...

Are great leaders born or made? The question has indeed split people into three groups: the first of them believe that the brains of best leaders are wired differently when compared to most others; secondly are those who think that leaders are forged in the fires of adversity; and lastly, those who feel that both nature and nurture are essential elements in the recipe for leadership. Of these three schools of thought, the most apt could well be those who think leadership can be taught in classes. And that is why we have the Kerala Youth Leadership Academy (KYLA) rolled out by the State Government.  The KYLA is a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country aimed at empowering the youth across the state to tap their potential and commitment towards social development and governance. Chief Minister PinarayiVijayn inaugurated the programme in September last year. The KYLA has partnered with the Workforce Recovery Programme (WRP) and lays a special focus on people who have been laid o...

Suchitra still trembles with fear, describing the terrible day she lost her dear home two years ago. The 42-year-old widow watched from a distance as a huge hill came off, burying everything on its way. Tons of mud cascaded down the slope, bringing along with it, trees and houses, and blanketing the area with a thick layer of mud and stones.  The landslip completely turned a scenic village into a red lake of mud and stones. Today, as she stands outside her newly-built house, Suchitra is a relieved woman. The government might not have returned everything she had lost, but it has at least built a new home for her.  The Care Home project of the Department of Cooperation has come as a huge relief to thousands of people like Suchitra who were left homeless by the floods and landslides that took place two years ago. The government built 2,000 houses under the project across the state.   The cooperative societies joined hands with organisations like the Uralungal Labo...

  Seated in the chair in the new house in Kanjikkode, Plakkad, migrant worker Sonu beamed from ear to ear. Over the past five years, Sonu has been living in a congested, single room which did not have any basic amenities. But for the first time as a migrant worker, he is enjoying a decent stay, thanks to the Apna Ghar programme rolled out for guest workers.     Toiling hard at the construction site under scorching heat, Sonu has only one thing on his mind- build a house for his family in his native Assam.  While he is carefully walking towards the dream, his living condition in Kerala has been pitiable. Now with the government announcing the completion of Apana Ghar, the migrant workers can lead a life they dream in Kerala too.  A first-of-its-kind initiative, the government completed the venture building a four storey-building with 64 rooms in Kanjikode of Palakkad in 2019. The government completed the project at a cost of Rs 8.5 cr. The Apna Ghar was ...

Health has been a primary concern of human beings since time immemorial. Kerala has for long taken various measures to ensure healthcare for all – from kids to women to people of all ages. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that the e-health scheme– a health department programme rolled out in association with the state IT Mission– has been a well-received social objective in the state.  Under the e-Health project, an ambitious programme implemented by the State government with the help of the World Bank, the government created an electronic health record (EHR) of the people and an end-to-end automation of all the government healthcare institutions along with the integration of an electronic demographic database. A first-of-its-kind initiative, the comprehensive health scheme digitised all government hospitals in the state and then created an integrated healthcare cloud containing healthcare records of all Kerala citizens. Records showed that the project has been a g...

Owning a house is not an easy feat. For many, it takes a lifetime of savings to build one while for others, banks can help out with home loans. In any case, the bulk of people’s wages goes into constructing a house. But, what about those whose dreams of owning a house are beyond their financial capabilities? That is where governments can chip in with financial assistance, and that is exactly what the Kerala government has done through its LIFE Mission programme. The kind gesture from the state brought back smiles to the faces of people who once thought building a house was beyond their reach. The state has, so far, constructed 2.51 lakh houses for its citizens who did not have any fixed abode for long. Those who meet the eligibility for the government assistance can avail the service by applying online.  Under the programme, the applicant will receive Rs 4 lakh for a house, to which the Centre makes a contribution of Rs 72,000 in Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) rural and Rs 1.5...