New berth for Tuticorin port

Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport & Highways T.R. Baalu has approved the construction of a new berth at North breakwater at the Tuticorin port.

North Cargo Berth 1 will cost Rs.40 crore. It will add a capacity of 2.93 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) to the port and help ease congestion in handling bulk/dusty cargoes in the existing berths.

Since it will enable the port to handle coal vessels of 65,000 to 75,000 dead weight tonnage (DWT) with a maximum draft of 12.8 metres,

Mr. Baalu has expressed the hope that the new berth will help meet the growing demand for handling bulk cargo in the coming years.

The Minister said the new birth will be especially useful for cargo meant for the proposed thermal power plant at Tuticorin to be set up by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board and M/s Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd.

Presently, the Tuticorin port boasts of seven cargo berths, one container terminal, one oil jetty, two coal jetties and two shallow draft berths.

Private firms urged to file employment returns

The Directorate of Employment and Training has urged the private establishments in the district to file the employment returns (ER) in the prescribed forms before November 30, if they had not furnished them so far.

K. Kalaiselvan, District Employment Officer, said that the forms are available at the office of District Employment Officer at Koramballam or the organisations could download them from the official web site of the directorate, www.employment.tn.gov.in.

The filled-in forms should be submitted to the office of the District Employment Officer before the stipulated deadline to avoid any action under Compulsory Notification of Vacancies (CNV) Act, 1959.

“The filing was made mandatory since data submitted would play a vital role in the formulation of national policy on education, employment and training,” he said.

Mr. Kalaiselvan said that the data pertaining to number of persons employed at an establishment (both men and women separately) should be filed in the ER-I form, while the type of occupations and qualification of persons should be mentioned in the ER-II forms.

While ER-I should be filed during every quarter of a calendar year, ER-II should be filed once in two years.

The Employment Market Information (EMI) unit, a research and analysis wing, functioning at the office of District Employment Officer here, would compile and sent the entire data to the Planning Commission of India through the Directorate at the state level and Director General of Employment and Training at the national level.

Mr. Kalaiselvan said that the data submitted by the private firms would be used only for statistical purposes and hence the organisations need not have to be skeptical in filing the employment returns.

He said that the entire 381 government establishments (both departments and quasi government organisations) in the district filed the returns when a similar exercise was carried out during last calendar year to identify the status quo on employment in the government sector.

Source : The Hindu

Induction programme for students studying German

Indira Gandhi National Open University is organising an induction programme for the new students taking German language course.

The event will be held on Saturday at 9.30 a.m. at the IGNOU Regional Centre, CIT Campus, Taramani. Rudiger Punzet of Goethe Institut, Max Mueller Bhavan and Renu Bhardwaj, Director, School of Humanities, IGNOU, New Delhi, will participate in the programme. The students will be briefed on the structure of the programme and assignments. Course material will also be distributed.

Inductions for students in Tiruchi, Madurai, Coimbatore, Salem and Tuticorin will also be held at their respective study centres.

Tuticorin Port trust to conducts elocution contest

The Tuticorin Port Trust conducted an elocution competition on Thursday (November 15) for college students as part of the Vigilance Awareness Week celebrations organised at the port.

M Mathisekaran, chief vigilance officer, Tuticorin Port Trust, said that the competition was held on the topic ‘Role of youth towards elimination of corruption’. He said a ‘pattimantram’ was conducted on Tuesday evening to mark the Week celebrations. The Awareness Week which commenced on November 12 concluded on November 16.

TN seeks to double exports to $30 bn by 2011

The Tamil Nadu Government on Monday announced a new industrial policy seeking to double exports from the state to 30 billion dollars by 2011 that would create 10 lakh additional jobs.

The Industrial Policy 2007, released by Chief Minister M Karunanidhi here, seeks to generate a total of 20 lakh jobs by 2011, raise manufacturing sector's contribution to state GDP from 21 per cent to 27 per cent, improve competitiveness and efficiency of SMEs and agriculture-based industries.

"As work on the Sethusamudram channel is in progress, the state government would take up with the Government of India upgradation of Tuticorin port into a modern deep water hub port," it said.

Also, the state would provide all facilitation and support for early implementation of modernisation and expansion plans for Chennai airport.

The state would also follow-up with the Centre the issue of upgradation of Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Tuticorin and Coimbatore airports to handle wide-bodied aircraft.

A land bank of 10,000 acres for industrial parks would be developed across the state over the next five years with quality infrastructure facilities, including social infrastructure like skill development centres, housing, business centres, restaurants, financial services, schools and hospitals.

The land bank would be developed only in dry and barren areas and prime agricultural land would be avoided, the policy stated.

Source: Economic Times

Proposed Office for Sterlite Industries Tuticorin

The Proposed Office for Sterlite Industries Tuticorin

Recently Sterlite Industries changed their registered office from Maharashtra to Tuticorin.

Minister inspects the construction of fish market in Tuticorin

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan conducted an inspection at the V.O.C. Market here on Monday to review the progress of renovation work taken up by municipal administration there on an outlay of Rs.18 lakh.

Of the total project cost, Rs.13 lakh was taken from the Tuticorin MLA’s Constituency Development Fund and the rest from the municipal exchequer.

Ms. Jeevan said that as part of the project, cement flooring would be made on the selling space and sheds provided to fish vendors.

Facilities to drain waste water and to remove garbage would be set up to maintain a hygienic environment on the market premises.

The approach roads to the market to a length of 450 metre would be upgraded into cement concrete road. Later she inspected the site near Washers’ Colony, where a lifting station was proposed as part of the underground sewerage scheme to be established by the municipality here.

Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam, Municipal Commissioner R. Lakshmi and Municipal Engineer S.A. Rajagopal were present.

Official sources said that the municipal administration would give a fillip to e-governance at a cost of Rs.27.23 lakh during this fiscal. As part of the project, a laptop computer, 10 desktop computers, 10 printers and an equal number of UPS, would be procured.

The electronic data processing room at the municipal office would be refurbished.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin based Mercantile Bank opens two branches

The Tamilnad Mercantile Bank Limited has opened its 195th and 196th branches recently.

A release from TMBL head office here said that the Minister for Social Welfare, Poongothai, inaugurated the 195th branch at Sholinganallur in Kancheepuram district.

Meanwhile, B. Ramachandra Adityan, ex-director of TMBL, opened the 196th branch and 75th ATM at Shenkottai.

G. Narayanamoorthy, Chief Executive Officer, TMBL, said that the bank opened the branch at Shenkottai to give a fillip to timber exporters and to improve Forex revenue of the bank.

He said that the bank had become a member of National Financial Switch, which would enable the customer’s to withdraw money from ATMs of 25 other member banks of NFS.

He said that the bank would bear the cash withdrawing charges at NFS ATMs for its SB premium customers and the current account customers who had maintained an average balance of Rs.25,000 and above.

Research club opened in Tuticorin

A ‘Research Club’ established by Annammal College of Education for Women was inaugurated by D. Kumaran, Head, Department of Education, Madras University, here on Saturday.

He explained the concepts such as refining knowledge, discovering knowledge and solving problems in higher education, on which any research thrived.

A seminar was conducted on ‘Preparation and validation of research tools’ as part of the inaugural ceremony.

A. Fibyraj, principal of the college, said that the club would conduct an array of seminars during the current academic year to enthuse the school students to take up innovative research projects. M. Anisha Devi, E.P. Tessy and S. Guru, lecturers, were appointed coordinators of the club.

Upgrading of Tuticorin municipality proposed

The long awaited dream of residents here to have their town attaining the status of Corporation is likely to be materialised as the municipal administration has prepared a proposal for upgrading.

According to official sources, the document would be sent to the Government in a week.

The draft prepared by the administration has suggested merger of municipality with local bodies situated adjacent to the municipal limits.

The move has been necessitated, owing to the fact that municipality alone does not have adequate population or revenue to attain the Corporation status.

Sources said that to get the status of Corporation, the population should be more than five lakh and annual revenue from taxes like professional, property taxes, rentals and license fees, should exceed Rs.30 crore.

Presently, the population in the Tuticorin town (municipal limits) stands at 2,16,058 as per 2001 census and the income is just Rs.18 crore.

Accordingly, the proposal has suggested merger of a total of 28 village panchayats extending from Swaminatham situated North West, Tharuvaikulam situated North East, Mudivaithanenthal at South East to Pazhayakayal village panchayat situated south, all spreading over an area of 353.07 sq km.

The amalgamation will take the population to 4,36,094, close to the stipulated benchmark.

“This will not be a hindrance from getting the Corporation status considering that the figures were based on census taken about six years ago and the population will surely have crossed five lakh mark by now,” sources said.

Similarly, the proposed merger will peg the revenue at about Rs.26 crore. “It is okay since there is a considerable increment in the revenue of municipality and the village panchayats that are to be merged,” sources pointed out.

Sources said that once the municipality became a Corporation, there would be a greater inflow of grants under various schemes, which was essential to improve infrastructure to commensurate exponential growth expected in Tuticorin once the Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project would be commissioned next year.

Source: The Hindu

TN urged to share 50 pc of project cost for double laning from Villupuram to Tuticorin

The Tamil Nadu Government has been requested to share 50 per cent of the cost of the project for doubling and electrification of the railway line between Villupuram and Tuticorin, Union Minister of State for Railways R.Velu said here on Wednesday.

Talking to reporters after inaugurating the Divisional Train Enquiry and Passenger information system,he said the Planning commission had found the project unviable.But when the volume of passenger traffic in the section was mentioned, it agreed to sanction the project provided the state government agreed to bear 50 percent of the cost, he said.

Doubling and electrification had been completed upto Villupuram. Doubling and electrification had been completed in Kerala and Karnataka states,and only this portion was left out in Tamil Nadu.

He said the Dindigul-Madurai Doubling and BG-Conversion work would be completed before March 31 next. The critical portion of the work including Vaigai bridge construction would be completed by this year.

He said a new railway terminal would be coming up in north madurai at a cost of Rs.12 crore.Besides,platforms were being extended in Madurai junction to accommodate 24 bogies.The Tuticorin-Mysore train would get five additional bogies after 'pit-line' work, which was going on at Tuticorin, was completed for the maintenance of the train.The frequency of the Manmad-Tirupati express would be increased twice a week shortly.

Source: The Hindu

Need to establish more container freight stations in Tuticorin

More number of container freight stations (CFS) should be established to commensurate the exponential growth in containerised cargo movement taking place in the country over the last decade, according to K. Suresh, Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust.

Inaugurating the Container Freight Station established by the Vilsons Group of Companies in Tuticorin on an outlay of Rs.2 crore at a function held on Monday, he said that the container movement in the State registered 33 per cent growth during the first quarter of this fiscal vis-À-vis the corresponding period last fiscal.

He urged the operators of CFS to modernise the yards with equipments such as fork lifts and gantry cranes to facilitate faster movement and efficient handling of containers, rather than considering the facility as a mere transit point in the freight movement chain.

In his address, A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust, said that the port plans to establish an additional container terminal on built, operate, transfer (BoT) mode during this fiscal to catapult Tuticorin as a major cargo handling port on the eastern coast of the country.

He reiterated the need for infrastructure development in the hinterland of the port in proportion with the increasing trade volume.

Mr. Subbiah said that the port administration had submitted a report to the Central Government suggesting establishment of ‘backbone freight corridors’ connecting Erode with cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad and Nagpur during the first phase.

This would facilitate easier movement of goods by rail from central India to the port here.

The corridor would also help expand the hinterland of the port and the container traffic through the port would witness a boom.

Joe Villavarayar, chairman of Vilson CFS, said that the station was equipped with warehouse area of 20,000 sq.ft., fork lifts, escort crane, trailers and fool proof security system.

“We plan to handle 3,000 TEUs of containers a month and the capacity would be increased in phased manner,” he added.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Port traffic volume up

The Tuticorin Port has seen a rise in traffic volume after it announced changes through “Trade Notice” to handle deep draught vessels at anchorage beyond the permissible draught of 10.7 metres.Mr A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust, in a statement here said that enthused by the amendment, importers brought a coal and a coke vessel carrying 53,106 tonnes and 46,759 tonnes respectively with draught of 12.5 metres and 12 metres and handled part cargo at the anchorage using self-propelled barges till the vessel reached 10.7 metres and the balance cargo was handled at the berth directly.

He said for the first time a dunpeas vessel mv. ‘Bei Hai’ with a parcel size of 43,497 tonnes, drawing 11.45 m draught, was handled at the port anchorage on October 8.

The vessel discharged 4,500 tonnes at the anchorage to self-propelled barges to reach 10.7 m draught and the cargo was further unloaded at Zone ‘B’. This performance was achieved in spite of intermittent rain during the course of handling. The port had provided all necessary infrastructural support such as transit storage and warehousing. The cargo was imported from Australia.

Source: BusinessLine

Talent search examination held in Tuticorin

A talent search examination jointly organised by State Bank of India and Sakthi Vinayakar Hindu Vidyalaya was held on the school premises in Tuticorin on 28th October.

The test was conducted to identify brilliant students and to extend educational loans to them for pursuing higher studies as per the norms set by SBI.

The knowledge of students in Science, History, Geography, Mathematics, Computer Science, General Aptitude, Literature and English was tested in the examination. The tests were conducted in two categories. The students studying in Standard VI to IX were pooled into Category ‘A’, while pupils in Standard X to XII were allocated into Category ‘B’.

A total of 1,200 students (836 in Category ‘A’ and 364 in ‘B’) from 13 schools in the district took part in the event. The results would be declared on a later date.

The winner and runner up in each of the section would get Rs.1,000 and Rs.750 respectively.

A rolling cup would be given to the winners in each of the groups provided they score more than 50 per cent. If the candidates scored more than 60 per cent, they would get a bonus cash award of Rs.500 along with the rolling cup.

‘Orissa Art and Craft Fair’ begins in Tuticorin

A 12-day ‘Orissa Art and Craft Fair’ organized by Utkal Hastasilpa Society, Bhubaneswar, got off to a colourful start at Ramaiah Mahal on 27th October.

An extensive gamut of handloom and handicraft products prepared by traditional artisans from different parts of the country, are on display at attractive prices.

Some of Orissa’s hand woven textiles like saris, which are unparalleled in range and style, are available in a wide range of prices catering to the needs of different sections of society.

Sambalpuri, Bichitrapuri, Bomkei, Pittol and Maniabandhi saris’, priced between Rs.300 and Rs.3,000, have a distinctive elegance about them with its unusual patterns and vibrant yet subtle blend of colours.

Attractive kurtas for men from Jaipur (Rs.180 to Rs.240) and churidars from Punjab made of handloom fabric with embellishments on it (Rs.360 to Rs.1,200), are available.

A good collection of curtains for doors and windows, stitched by artisans from Ludhiana on cotton fabrics, and bed sheets from Haryana and Rajasthan, is offered at tempting prices. Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan inaugurated the expo.

Heavy Rain Lashes Tuticorin

Heavy rain is continuing in various parts of Tuticorin.

A house collapsed and one goat was killed at Aadinathapuram village under Tiruchendur taluk in Tuticorin district on Friday. The goat was killed after a compound wall caved in. The district received a total rainfall of 408.4 mm in the last 24 hours ending at 8 a.m. on Friday.

Following is the rainfall recorded ( in mm) by various rain gauge stations during the period: Tiruchendur 3; Kayalpattinam 5; Kulasekarapattinam 2; Vilathikulam 24; Kadalkudi 24; Soorangudi 12; Kayathar 101; Kadambur 52; Kazhugumalai 17; Kovilpatti 4.2; Ottapidaram 11; Maniyachi 59; Keezha Arasadi 3; Vedanatham 2; Ettayapuram 24; Sattankulam 5; Srivaikundam 52 and Tuticorin Harbour 8.2.

Bank of Baroda's Exporters meet in Tuticorin

The Bank of Baroda organised an exporters’ meet in Tuticorin on 26th October evening to elucidate salient features of various export- friendly products promoted by the organisation and to answer queries of their clients pertaining to schemes.

Interacting with exporters, D. Sarkar, General Manager (Southern Zone), said that the exporters having confirmed export orders or having letter of credit from a recognised bank could avail export credit facilities offered by the bank.

“We are offering pre-shipment and post-shipment credits to exporters from the country through rupee-denominated loans as well as foreign currency loans,” he added.

To arrange tailor-made solutions for loan syndication, the bank has opened Regional Syndication Centres (RSCs) in Dubai, London and Singapore. He said that a new on-site ATM would be installed in Tuticorin shortly.

He called upon the exporters to make use of Core Banking Solution facilities offered by the bank in about 1,800 branches in the country and abroad.

Tuticorin BSNL introduces a series of special offers

The Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has introduced a series of special offers for its customers in Tuticorin, in connection with the Navarathri and Deepavali festivals.

Official sources said that individual customers could now get landline or WiLL (Wireless in Local Loop) connection on payment of just Rs.100.

Those who opt for the offer will be given a prepaid card or a post-paid connection without activation charges being levied for them.

As value addition, they will also be allocated an account to access internet free for 25 hours, a caller ID facility worth Rs.50 and an attractive tele-shoppe bag.

In the case of companies, security deposits will not be levied, if the firms apply for a minimum of five mobile, landline or WiLL connections.

The entire offer is valid till November 11.

To help the special offers ‘reach’ the customers, the BSNL conducted a ‘Navarathri telephone mela’ across the district starting at Chidambara Nagar and Mudivaithanendal scheduled on October 22.

The mela was held at at Krishnarajapuram, Kurumbur and Seidunganallur on October 24.

It will be followed by phone galas at Kayalpattinam, Sattankulam, Sonakkanvilai, Srivaikundam, Maniyandi and Kodiankulam on October 25 and at Tuticorin Harbour and Vallanadu on October 26.

The landline and prepaid mobile connections will be provided immediately, if the customers books connection through this melas.

The BSNL has released ‘Call Now’ STD and ISD cards in different denominations of Rs.100, Rs.300, Rs.500, Rs.1,000 and Rs.2,000.

The validity of ‘Call now’ cards in the denomination of Rs.100 will be one month. For other denominations validity has been set at three months.

Using these cards, customers can make local or STD calls to the BSNL network at the rate of Re.1 per minute. For calls made to landline or mobile phone functioning under other networks, Rs.1.50 to Rs.2 will be charged.

Tuticorin Chemists and druggists’ association plea to Government

Members of Tuticorin Chemists and Druggists Association observed a fast in Tuticorin on 23rd October, to press their charter of demands.

According to the agitators, the authorities concerned should not allow the entry of multi-national companies and foreign investment into the retail pharmaceutical sector.

They also wanted the Government to simplify the Value Added Tax (VAT) procedures in the sector immediately.

M. Murugesan, N. Iyankannu and S. Veerabadran, president, secretary and treasurer of the association, respectively, and senior office bearers, S. Karuppiah, E. Arumugam, R.S.P. Gopal and A. Alagarsamy, spoke.

Later the agitators submitted a memorandum to Collector R. Palaniyandi seeking expeditious implementation of their demands.

Green turtle washed ashore

The carcass of a turtle spotted by scientists of the Fisheries College and Research Institute at the Valinokkam coast near Tuticorin a few days ago, was identified as that of ‘Chelonia Mydas,’ a marine green turtle.

It was traced by the FCRI team. The turtle measured 1.2 m in length, 0.75 m in breadth and weighed 25 kg.

CII Workshop conducted in Tuticorin

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Madurai Zone, conducted a workshop on ‘Managing customer service and relations’ in Tuticorin City on 18th October, to enhance the skills and capacity of executives at various levels in industrial units.

Delivering the keynote address, M.M. Balasubrahmaniam, Director, Centre for Organisation and Professional Excellence (COPE), Chennai, said that industry people should give utmost care to improve relations with their customers, if they had to widen their business repertoire.

According to him, customer satisfaction and customer retention was important considering that supply of any particular consumer item was seven times the demand after liberalisation and globalisation set foot in the country.

Satisfied customers would become ‘unpaid salesmen’ of a product provided the customer care services were excellent, as they would propagate his good experience to larger sections of the society.

Conversations over telephone with the customers should be carried out carefully since a company executive was forced to rely on the voice alone without the ‘support’ of body language. Listening skills should be developed if any firm wanted to cater to the changing needs of its customers comprehensively.

Mr. Balasubrahmaniam asked the companies to ‘delight’ the customers by providing them with sundry services that gives value addition to the products and customer relations.

R. Ramasubramanian, chairman, CII (Tuticorin district) and R Edwin Samuel , convener (logistics panel), CII (Madurai zone), spoke.

A total of 48 executives representing 16 companies attended.

Applications invited for award for SHG

The Tuticorin district administration has invited applications from Self-Help Groups and Panchayat Level Federations in the district for Manimegalai Award instituted by the Department of Rural Development.

Official sources said that five best PLFs and 10 best SHGs at the state level would get cash awards of Rs.1 lakh and Rs.50,000 each, respectively. Likewise, one best PLF and three best SHGs at the district level would get Rs.50,000 and Rs.10,000 each, respectively.

As regards eligibility criteria, sources said that SHGs should have been in operation for at least four years, if they had to be considered for the award.

The groups should also have been graded by Mahilar Thittam twice based on the credit rating. Similarly, PLFs would be eligible to contest for the award only if it was functioning for a minimum of two years.

All the SHGs functioning in the respective panchayats should be the part of PLFs, if that particular PLF should qualify for the award.

Sources said that the applications should be forwarded at the earliest to the office of Project Officer of Mahilar Thittam functioning at the Collectorate.

Security beefed up in Tuticorin

The police beefed up security in Tuticorin City and other parts of the district, on 12th October following the bomb blast at the dargah of Sufi saint Khwaja Moinudin Chishti at Ajmer in Rajasthan.

Superintendent of Police Deepak Motibhai Damor said security was beefed up near worship places.

TWAD Employees General body meeting held in Tuticorin

The State general body meeting of Central Organisation of Tamil Nadu Water and Drainage Board Employees was held here on 13th October.

The meeting resolved to carry out a signature campaign against the move to privatise water supply schemes. We would submit a memorandum signed by 10 lakh people to the government, V. Kumar, State Assistant General Secretary, Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), said. The Government must fill about 7,000 vacancies in the TWAD Board. Services of 4,564 contract labourers deployed must be confirmed.

Bonus must be raised from 8.3 per cent last year to 25 per cent.

Faults at thermal plants affect power generation in TN

Power generation has come down by 1,000 MW in Tamil Nadu due to the technical faults at the thermal plants at Neyveli, Tuticorin and North Chennai, Tamil Nadu Electricity minister Arcot N Veerasamy has said.

Two units in Neyveli plant, one in Tuticorin and another in North Chennai were under repair, affecting power generation to the tune of 1,000 MW, he told reporters.

Round-the-clock repair works were going on and in another three days power distribution would be streamlined, he said.

'1977' Shooting begins in Tuticorin

The shooting for Sarath Kumar starrer '1977' commenced at Tuticorin. The movie stars Sarath and Namitha together again after films like 'Chanakya' and 'Aei'.

With his recent release 'Nam Nadu' doing an average business, Sarath Kumar is keen to making his forthcoming movies count at the box office. The actor will have his next 'Vaitheeswaran' release tentatively for Deepavali.

According to Sarath,’ '1977' is an action-packed movie with a strong message for the society. I was impressed when I heard the storyline and readily agreed to do the movie'.

Sarath Kumar, who floated his own political party, is also gearing up to hold the maiden State-level conference of his party, 'All India Makkal Samathuva Katchi', very soon.

Source: IndiaGlitz

Forest Week celebrations concluded in Tuticorin

Forest Week celebrations, organised by the Department of Forests, concluded with a glittering closing ceremony here on 12th October.

Rampati Kushwaha, Conservator of Forests, Tirunelveli, distributed prizes to winners of cultural competitions conducted for students.

Forest rangers, forest watchers, administrative staff and forest guards, who had put in meritorious service during this year, were honoured on the occasion. L. Nadhan, District Forest Officer, was present.

TMB to become clearing banker for MCX

Tuticorin-based Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB) has entered into an agreement with Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) to become its clearing banker.

The tie-up paves the way for brokers to open accounts for settlement purpose. Through this alliance, the bank wants to increase its fee-based income and no-cost deposits, the bank said in a statement.

MCX is an independent and de-mutualised multi-commodity exchange which deals in products such as gold, oil, metals, fiber, pulses, spices, energy and plantations.

TMB has already become a clearing banker for NCDEX (National Commodities Derivative Exchange), thus becoming the only private sector bank in the country to act as clearing banker for both the exchanges.

The agreement was signed by TMB Managing Director and CEO G Narayanmoorthy and MCX deputy Managing Director Joseph Massey.

Source: EconomicTimes

Buckle Canal to be revived at a cost of Rs.25 crore in Tuticorin

The municipal administration here has come out with an ‘interim detailed project report’ to revive the glory of historic Buckle canal passing through the heart of the town, where free flow of water is blocked now.

The report, which was prepared with the technical assistance from Wilbur Smith Associates Private Limited, Chennai, envisage improvement of the 5.88 km long waterway starting from ‘Mundram Mile’ and ends at the ‘Gulf of Mannar’, on an estimated outlay of Rs.25 crore.

The canal which was constructed by the Britons to drain the rainwater into the sea to prevent flooding of the town, has been dying for the last few decades owing to indiscriminate dumping of solid wastes into it.

Official sources told The Hindu that the document was drafted after making scientific assessment of deficiencies of the existing features and alignment of the canal.

A manuscript suggests methodology to overcome the inadequacies pertaining to environment, topography, hydrology, traffic bottlenecks and social parameters.

The study has suggested a constant width of 12.9 metre all through the course of canal by carrying out deweeding, desilting and removal of encroachments.

According to the report, 224 permanent and 196 temporary encroached structures have come up along the canal over the last few years.

“Presently, the width of canal varies from 6 metre to 28.8 metre at different points,” sources said.

Sources said that new minor bridges and causeways would be constructed at 11 places as part of the scheme.

Landscaping will be established and roads will be constructed alongside the canal to beautify its surroundings.

Once the project has been completed, fencing will be provided to prevent solid waste being dumped into the canal and thereby help the canal to retain its aesthetic look. Municipal sources said the project would generate proper drainage facilities and would avoid hardships to the residents owing to inundation.

Source: The Hindu

Precision farming to be introduced at a cost of Rs.16.76 lakh in Tuticorin

Precision farming, a relatively new ‘agriculture management philosophy’, will be introduced in the Tuticorin district by the Department of Horticulture during the current fiscal on an outlay of Rs.16.76 lakh allocated by the Central Government.

The project is aimed at doubling the productivity of hybrid varities of vegetable crops like bhendi, tomato and brinjal.

Mr.S. Sundaram Pillai, Assistant Director of Horticulture, said that the concept would be implemented over 20 hectares of farm in a selected block covering about 30 to 35 farmers.

As part of the scheme, farm development and farm management activities would be taken up from agronomical, technical, environmental and economical perspectives.

Mr. Pillai said that hybrid seeds of bhendi, tomato and brinjal worth Rs 10,000 would be distributed free to beneficiaries for every hectare of land holding.

They would also be provided with water soluble fertilizers like NPK (Nitrogen Phosphorous and Potassium) costing Rs.30,000, and plant protection chemicals worth Rs.10,000, for each hectare.

Under the project, financial assistance at the rate of Rs 28,800 per hectare would be extended to farmers to establish drip irrigation system.

“The facility will optimize the yield with limited use of water and nutrients,” he added.

Owing to use of lesser quantity of water, fertilizers applied at the roots would not be washed away quickly.

A team of resource persons from Agricultural College and Research Institute (ACRI) at Killikulam near here, a constituent college of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, would give technical assistance to the farmers on precision farming methodology at each stage of crop raising.

The farmers would be taught on soil and weather conditions, forewarning of pest attacks and weather mapping.

BSNL Employees Stage Demonstration in Tuticorin

The telecom employees affiliated to Joint Forum of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited Unions/Associations staged a demonstration in front of their General Manager’s office in Tuticorin on 11th October, to pres their charter of demands.

J. Linga Bhaskar, president of the forum, said that the authorities concerned should take steps to procure gadgets to establish third generation Global System for Mobile communication lines at the earliest.

The BSNL should be granted ‘Navaratna’ status, as the organisation was graded ‘excellent’ for the past two years and ‘very good’ during this year.

The decision to increase the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in private telecom companies should be cancelled. The Access Digital Charges and Universal Service Obligation fund should not be phased out.

Mr. Bhaskar said that the stipulation which asks the BSNL to pay the balance sum to the Government if pension amount was computed more than 60 per cent of the total payment by the organisation towards dividend, license fee, corporate tax, excise duty and service tax, should be cancelled.

The forum wanted the Government to take quick action to ensure absorption of entire Group ‘A’ and Indian Telecom Service officers into the BSNL fold. “Presently, most of them are stuck with the Department of Telecommunications even seven years after BSNL was constituted in 2000 and are now working for BSNL on deputation basis, which was affecting the growth, development and expansion of the firm,” he said.

The Government should grant the merger of 50 per cent of DA with the basic pay with effect from January 1, 2004. About 150 employees took part in the agitation.

Risk management system for Tuticorin Customs

Pursuant to the decision of Central Board of Excise and Customs to introduce the ‘Risk Management System’ in major customs locations, where the ‘Indian Customs Electronic Data Interchange System (ICES)’ is operational, the Tuticorin Customs launched the RMS on 9th October.

According to the Commissioner of Customs, Tuticorin, D.P. Singh, the ever-increasing volumes of international trade pose formidable challenge to the Customs. Hence the traditional approach of scrutinizing every document and examining every consignment will only increase the workload. Moreover, there is always a need to reduce the ‘dwell time’ of cargo at the ports and also to reduce the transaction costs in order to enhance the competitiveness of the Indian businesses. At this juncture, advancements in the field of information technology have come to the rescue of the Customs in the form of RMS, “which is expected to strike a balance between facilitation and enforcement and to promote a culture of compliance”.

With the introduction of RMS, the present practice of routine assessment, concurrent audit and examination of all Bills of Entry will be discontinued and focus will be on the quality assessment, examination and Post Clearance Audit of Bills of Entry selected by RMS Bills of Entry and Import General Manifest filed electronically in ICES through the service centre or the Indian Customs and Central Excise Electronic Commerce/Electronic Data interchange (EC/EDI) Gateway will be transmitted to RMS.

It will process the data through a series of steps and produce an electronic output for the ICES. This output will determine whether the Bills of Entry will be taken up for action, appraisement or examination or both or be cleared after payment of duty and out of charge given directly without any assessment and examination. The short of levy, if any, detected during the Post Clearance Audit to be done within 48 hours of clearance of goods, will be recovered from the importers as per law, Mr. Singh said.

The Joint Commissioner, Tuticorin Customs will be the administrator of the RMS and he will be available at 0461 – 2352078 or jagan@tuticorincustoms.org

The Additional Director General (Systems), Mumbai, B. Bhattacharya, launched the system.

Over 7000 works to be carried out at a cost of Rs.56.32 crore in Tuticorin

Collector R. Palaniyandi has said that the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) would execute 7,308 infrastructure development works on a total outlay of Rs.56.32 crore in the district during this financial year.

Speaking to reporters at the grievance day meeting in Tuticorin Collectorate on Monday, he said that of the total allocation, Rs.14.75 crore earmarked under Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana would be utilised to provide additional employment in rural areas as also food security, alongside creation of durable community, social and economic infrastructure.

Under the scheme, anganwadi buildings, bus shelters, causeways, cremation sheds, retaining walls, concrete roads, water bound macadam roads, drainage facilities, drinking water supply and buildings for Public Distribution System (PDS) outlets would be established.

A total of 2,376 houses would be constructed and 528 kuchha houses would be upgraded under Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) at a total cost of Rs.9.45 crore for people from SC/ST community, freed bonded labourers and non SC/ST persons living below the poverty line. Of the total allocation under IAY for the fiscal, 40 per cent would be used towards construction of dwelling units for beneficiaries from non SC/ST category.

He said that sanitation facilities in mofussil areas would be enhanced at a cost of Rs.19.7 lakh under Restructured Central Rural Sanitation Programme. As part of the project, individual household latrines, school toilets, community sanitary complexes and anganwadi toilets would be set up at 55 places. The remaining amount (of the total outlay) would be used to establish biogas units, free houses for beedi workers, street lights and community centres.

Later, he gave away a solatium of Rs.1.45 lakh to the kin of K. Murugesh Kumar, who died in harness while employed as a supervisor at TASMC outlet situated at Seidunganallur near here recently. Likewise, the Collector distributed an accident relief of Rs.84,209 to another TASMAC employee, K. Balamurugan, who was injured in an accident recently.

Sterlite bags ‘Qual Tech Prize-2007’

The Tuticorin Based Sterlite Industries Limited has bagged ‘Qual Tech Prize-2007’ instituted by Qimpro College Mumbai recently. The award was given for the company’s innovative project on ‘recovery of nickel from electrolyte stream’.

Vikram Patni, head of SIL production unit at Sylvasa, and his team, received the award from Alka Mitra, General Manager of Reliance Industries, at Mumbai, recently.

FCRI to develop ‘cell line’ from clown fish

The Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) in association with the National Centre for Cell Sciences, Pune, will carry out a three-year research project using a grant of Rs.42.73 lakh from the Centre, to develop ‘cell line’ from clown fish for first time. Dr.V.K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, said that the development of cell lines from clown fish would help the scientific fraternity to monitor viral diseases in marine ornamental fishes in a systematic manner.

A research team comprising Rosalind George, Riji John (both associate professors at FCRI) and Ramesh R Bhonde, Milind Patole (both scientists at NCCS), will first develop primary cell cultures from brain, fin, caudal peduncle and kidney of juvenile clown fish collected from the Gulf of Mannar.

The primary cultures will then be subjected to various sub-culturing procedures in different types of cell culture media to develop permanent cell lines.

“During the third phase of the study, characterisation of the newly developed cell line in terms of growth, karyotyping and cryopreservation will be carried out using standard protocols,” the Dean said.

The susceptibility to different fish viruses and isolation of fish viruses using the developed cell lines will be examined.

Dr. Venkataramani said that new fish cell line would be of great importance for the development of diagnostics and vaccines for viral diseases which might emerge periodically in cultural systems.

Besides, cell line will be helpful to produce diagnostic reagents like monoclonal antibodies or nucleic acid probes and to conduct eco-toxicity screening.

It can also be applied in biomedical research for screening pharmacological and therapeutic substances.

The Dean said that development of more and more cell lines from different fish species looks to be the need of the hour to carry out in –depth toxicological studies, carcinogenesis, cellular physiology, gene transfer and genetic regulation.

SHG Women get training in Baking

A 13-day training programme organised to enhance the skill of women members of self-help groups under Micro Enterprise Development Programme (MEDP) of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) concluded in Tuticorin on 6th October.

Thirty women from six SHGs received hands-on training in the preparation of bakery products at the Food Processing Centre operated by the V.O. Chidambaram Educational Trust. They learnt making of different types of biscuits, jams, juices, puffs and cakes.

R. Bharat Kumar, Assistant General Manager of NABARD, said that the MEDP was aimed at augmenting the skills and entrepreneurial qualities of members of ‘matured SHGs’ (those groups which were in existence for more than three years) and thereby enhance their income generation capabilities.

“The objective was achieved through short duration, location- specific training and capacity building programmes,” he added.

Tuticorin port to get Electronic Data Interface

An Electronic Data Interface (EDI) would become operational in the Tuticorin port soon, enabling speedy use of port services.

The EDI system, costing Rs 90 lakh, would be installed before December 21, Subbiah, Deputy Chairman Tuticorin Port Trust said addressing the golden jubilee celebrations of Tuticorin Custom House Agents Association (TCHAA).

The system envisages reducing the transaction time for port-users, he said.

On the port's future plans, he said it aims at handling 50 million tonnes by 2012 and 100 million tonnes by 2021.

The Joint Commissioner of the Port Trust, Jeganathan, laid the foundation stone for the Association's new building.

TCHAA's website was also launched at the function.

Hoardings Removed in Tuticorin City

The municipal administration conducted an eviction drive in various parts of the town for the second consecutive day on 5th october.

A total of 19 digital hoardings were removed from West Great Cotton Road and Beach Road.

The drive was conducted by a team led by Municipal Town Planning Officer, M. Rakkappan.

Tuticorin Port sets new Record in handling cargo

The Tuticorin Port Trust has handled 10.032 million tonnes of cargo during the first half of the current financial year.

A. Subbiah, deputy chairman, TPT, said that the performance was 17.98 per cent higher vis-À-vis accomplishment during the corresponding period last fiscal.

He attributed the achievement to handling of more thermal coal, containerised cargo, fertilizers like urea, fertilizer raw materials like rock phosphate, timber and copper concentrate than the pervious fiscal.

According to him, the TPT has taken proactive measures to achieve the annual cargo handling target of 20.3 million tonnes set by the Ministry of Shipping for the port.

“A trade promotion meeting was organised in Chennai recently and issued notices for handling cargo at anchorage,” he said.

The TPT now plans to hold a series of trade promotion meetings and road shows in the coming months to attract more cargo through the port.

Mr. Subbiah said that mechanised handling of timber logs was introduced to improve productivity.

Evening courts opened in Tuticorin

An evening court was introduced in the Thoothukudi district on 3rd October. The court will function at the District Court Complex in Tuticorin city.

Delivering the inaugural address, Principal District Judge B. Gokul Doss said that the introduction of evening court would be of immense help to reduce the case backlog. The court would deal with cases pertaining to minor offences.

The court sources said that two magistrates, S. Sasirekha and T.V. Hemanantha Kumar, were allotted to the evening court on a rotation basis.

Sources added that of the 5,544 cases filed before the judicial magistrates at the district headquarters, 5,422 were disposed during last year.

Likewise, 4,828 cases were disposed of the total 5,095 cases filed before the same magistrates during this year till September-end.

Superintendent of Police Deepak Motibhai Damor said that the evening courts, which were introduced for the first time in Gujarat, were a step towards ensuring speedy justice to common man.

He reiterated the need to popularize innovative methods like video conferencing in the trial process.

Collector R. Palaniyandi was present.

Skill development training for coastal youth in Tuticorin

A skill development training on different trades organised by the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust and Government Polytechnic College, Tuticorin, for youth living in the coastal areas, commenced in Tuticorin on 3rd October.

Official sources said that the training was aimed at enhancing the employment potential of the youth thereby reducing their dependency on marine resources for livelihood.

The training was imparted in computer, welding, auto CAD ( Computer Aided Desgining) in civil engineering and mechanical engineering applications, computerized numerical control lathe works and earth mover operation. All the training programmes expect that of computer course would be completed in three months.

The computer training, which covers usage of MS Word, Excel, Power Point, Tally and Internet, would be given over six months.

A total of 162 youth from 67 coastal villages attended the training.

V.K. Malkani, chief conservator of forests, inaugurated the programme. V.K. Venkataramani, dean, Fisheries College and Research Institute, M. Madasamy, project officer of Mahilar Thittam, and A. Nagarajan, Principal, Government Polytechnic College, were present.

Sun TV to launch FM stations at Tuticorin

Sun TV Network Ltd has announced the launch of FM radio stations at Madurai and Tuticorin under the Suryan FM brand from October 5 through its subsidiary, Kal Radio Ltd.

These stations can be heard at 93.5 MHz frequency in Madurai and Tuticorin.

The total number of operational FM Stations of the Sun TV group now goes up to 11; it already operates FM stations at Chennai, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli, Visakhapatnam, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar and Tirupati.

Sun TV holds licences for 45 FM radio stations across India and will be one of the largest radio broadcasters in India when all remaining 34 stations becomes operational.

Source: Business Line

Khadi discount sale begins in Tuticorin

Collector R. Palaniyandi inaugurated the Deepavali discount sale of khadi products sold by Tamil Nadu Khadi and Village Industries Board (TNKVIB) at a function held in Tuticorin on 2nd October.

Official sources said that the board had planned to achieve a target of Rs.90 lakh during this Deepavali season through discount sale of shirts, saris, soaps, dhotis, towels and bedspread through its five ‘khadi kraft’ outlets at Kovilpatti, Tuticorin, Tiruchendur, Nazareth and Nagalapuram.

A 30 per cent discount was being offered on khadi cotton and khadi polyester cloth materials, while 20 per cent discount was given on khadi silk saris.

The discount sales will end on November 7. During the last Deepavali , products worth Rs.86.33 lakh were sold in the district against a target of Rs.91.68 lakh, sources said. Dr. Palaniyandi said that yarn worth Rs. 2.72 lakh was produced by the TNKVIB in the district during the last fiscal through its centres at Mudalur, Ottapidaram, Mookkuperi and Pandarachettivilai.

Similarly, 2,237 metre of khadi fabrics was weaved at the units in Tuticorin and Kulasekarapattinam last fiscal.

District Revenue Officer P. Anbarasu, Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam, Assistant Khadi Officer S. Muthusamy and Special Officer of Palmgur Federation K. Rathnakumar were present.

Modern slaughterhouse coming up in Tuticorin

The Tuticorin city is set to have its first modern slaughterhouse soon. The facility being built by the municipal administration here on an outlay of Rs. 20 lakh is expected to be commissioned during the third quarter of this fiscal.

The Municipal Commissioner, R. Lakshmi, said that the modern abattoir was planned to supply meat of goats and sheep produced as per the food production standards prescribed by the Government to customers.

“Modernisation of meat establishments has become mandatory to prevent hazards to health of humans. It will help to slaughter the animals in a humane manner and handle the meat hygienically,” she added.

The slaughterhouse will have an entrance and an exit to facilitate the entry of animals at one end and the removal of dressed carcasses and offal through the other end.

The other features of the edifice include a ‘holding pen’ to keep awaiting animals, non-slippery floor, hide store to preserve the skin of animals till they were despatched to tanneries, offal room, storeroom, slaughter hall, hanging hall and delivery hall.

A floor space of at least three square feet will be provided to each of the animals brought to the slaughterhouse.

Ms. Lakshmi said that a ‘condemned meat room’ would be set up inside the building to keep the organ, meat or whole carcass, which were found to be unfit for human consumption during the inspection of dead animals conducted immediately after the slaughtering.

According to her, special care would be taken to ensure that no animal which was pregnant or having an offspring of less than three months old would be slaughtered. The goats and sheep below three months of age too would be spared from slaughtering.

Steps would be made in such a manner to ensure that no animal would be slaughtered in sight of another animal.

Bankers’ performance evaluated

The 55th district-level review meeting for bankers convened by the Lead Bank (State Bank of India) here on Wednesday evening, evaluated the performance of banks during the first quarter vis-À-vis annual credit plan targets set for the district.

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, who chaired the meeting, said that the overall achievement of banks for the first quarter of this fiscal against the proportional ACP targets for the corresponding period was not satisfactory.

Though the service sector achieved 152.22 per cent of the target, agriculture and industry sectors attained only 70.34 and 17.93 per cent of the targets.

He said that the credit to deposit (CD) ratio stood at 84.06 at the end of first quarter, which was more than the Reserve Bank of India norms of 60.

“The high ratio was an indicator of healthy ground level disbursement and also reflective of growth in credit flow to small and medium enterprises as well as service sectors,” he added.

Similarly, priority sector advances to total advances ratio and agricultural advances to total advances ratio stood at 60.64 and 26.45 per cent, more than the RBI norms of 40 and 18 respectively.

However, weaker sector advances to priority sector advances ratio was below the RBI norms of 25.

R. Bharat Kumar, Assistant General Manager of National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, and senior managers of various banks were present.

Public hearing on Rs.4,000-cr. Power Plant held in Tuticorin

The Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board, on 29th September, conducted a public hearing on the two 500 MW power plants to be established by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) here on an outlay of Rs. 4,000 crore.

The meeting chaired by the Collector, R. Palaniyandi, elicited the views of local people on the proposed project. Explaining the salient features of the project and its benefits to the public, R. Ganapathy Sankaran, Superintending Engineer (Project and Environment), TNEB, said that the plants would help bridge the gap between the demand and supply of power in the State.

The plants would come up on 130 hectares of land near the existing 2 X 1,050 MW Tuticorin Thermal Power Station.

Of the total area, 80 hectares would be utilised for the establishment of main plants, cool water pipe line, conveyor belt for carrying coal and housing colony for employees. The remaining area would be used to set up an ash dyke for the disposal of wet slurry.

The coal requirement for the project was computed as 5.6 million tonne per annum, considering 6,000 hours of operation.

Answering the environmental concerns raised during the hearing, N. Sasikumar, Executive Director (Projects), TNEB, said that of the total project cost, about Rs. 400 crore was earmarked for pollution control.

He assured that fly ash generated would not be disposed into the sea; rather the eject (fly ash) would be supplied to construction industry.

He said that high efficiency precipitators would be used to reduce the emission of suspended particulate matter (SPM). To bring down air pollution arising from sulphur dioxide, coal with low sulphur content (0.4 percent) would be used. The generators and turbines used inside the plant would be fitted with silencers to reduce noise pollution.

Mr Sasikumar said that employment opportunities for local people, and health and educational facilities in the area would be improved by the commissioning of the project.

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan and District Environment Engineer of TNPCB S. Shanmugasundaram were present.

Demonstration against Shifting of EB bill Counter in Tuticorin

The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) cadres staged a demonstration in Tuticorin on 24th september, to protest the recent shifting of electricity bill counter for Tuticorin Urban (West) consumers to a new location.

P. Puviraj, district secretary, DYFI, said that shifting of the counter from Chidamabra Nagar to Caldwell Colony was an “incorrect” decision taken by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board since the customers covered under Urban (West) are located at Kurinji Nagar, Viswapuram, Jebanagar, Yogeeswarar Colony, and Netaji Nagar, which were far away from Caldwell Colony.

The agitators demanded that the counter should be shifted to a location adjacent to the New Bus stand on Tuticorin-Ettayapuram road.

Chennai – Tuticorin special train

Southern Railway will operate special trains between Chennai Egmore and Tuticorin during October to clear the extra rush of passengers for Ramzan/Pooja festivals:


Chennai Egmore – Tuticorin – Chennai Egmore (weekly) Specials:


T.No.0633 Chennai Egmore – Tuticorin Special will leave Chennai Egmore at 22.45 hrs. on Saturdays from October 6 to 27 and arrive Tuticorin at 12.15 hrs. the next day.


T.No.0634 Tuticorin – Chennai Egmore Special will leave Tuticorin at 21.15 hrs. on Sundays from October 7 to 28 and arrive Chennai Egmore at 10.00 hrs. the next day.


The composition of the trains will be 1 AC 2-tier, 1 AC 3-tier, 10 Sleeper Class, 4 General Second Class and 2 luggage-cum-brake van coaches.


The trains will stop at Tambaram, Chengalpattu, Tindivanam, Villupuram, Vriddhachalam, Tiruchchirappalli, Dindigul, Madurai, Virudhunagar, Sattur, Kovilpatti and Vanchi Maniyachchi. T.No. 0634 will stop at Mambalam also.


Advance reservation for the above trains has commenced on September 29, according to a Southern Railway press release.

SC/ST hostel students go on an indefinite fast

Inmates at the student’s hostel established by the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department near New Bus Stand on Tuticorin-Ettayapuram highway for SC/STs started an indefinite fast in Tuticorin on 27th September.

They were protesting the “infrastructural weaknesses” on the premises.

The students said that despite repeated representations made to the officials concerned, hygiene and sanitation needs were not taken care of properly.

New Technology developed by Tuticorin Directorate of Fisheries Extension

A technology developed by the Directorate of Fisheries Extension, Tuticorin for mass production of artemia, a live food for ornamental fish, is rendering value-addition to salt pan owners.

The new procedure was recently tested successfully at the salt pan of Ayya Prince, owner of Sri Sankara Salt Farm, at Puthalam in Kanyakumari district.

The Directorate, coming under the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, gave away indigenous strains of artemia to the entrepreneur after he was imparted training in outdoor culture of the organism.

J. Daniel Jameson, Director of the Directorate, told The Hindu here that Mr. Prince was advised to limit the stocking density of artemia to 2 lakh for every 1,000-square metre plot.

The salinity variation of the water was initially kept between 70 and 80 parts per thousand (ppt). The artemia was then fed with Dunaniella, a green algae, found in the salt pans. “As the salinity rises to 130 ppt once the pan was exposed to radiation from the sunlight, the artemia start laying eggs,” Dr. Jameson said.

Mr. Prince harvested 3.5 kg of artemia cyst (containing seven crore cysts), which fetched him Rs. 3,500. Artemia contains 53 per cent of protein and 15 per cent of fat.

The culture of artemia would purify the brine media in the pans as the organism fed on suspended matters, waste and live planktons of 50 micron in size, helping the entrepreneurs produce salt free of impurities.

Contests on tourism held in Tuticorin

The Department of Tourism in association with the V.O. Chidambaram College, Tuticorin, conducted inter-collegiate cultural competitions in Tuticorin on 25th September, as part of World Tourism Day celebrations. Essay, quiz and elocution contests were held on the theme of ‘Tourism opens door for women’.

About 50 students from Annammal College of Education for Women, Tuticorin, K.R. College of Arts and Science, Kovilpatti, A.P.C. Mahalaxmi College for Women, Tuticorin, S.S. Duraiswamy Nadar Mariammal College, Kovilpatti, Sri Kumara Gurupara Swamigal Arts College, Srivaikundam, Govindammal Aditanar College, Tuticorin, and V.O.C. College, Tuticorin, took part in the event. T. Chellappa, District Tourism Officer, said that prizes to the winners will be distributed today.

‘CEO summit’ held in Tuticorin

A three-day training programme on ‘CEO summit’ organised by Pearl City Academy for Leadership and Management Skills, concluded in Tuticorin on 22nd September.

The programme was aimed at enhancing skills of chief executive officers of industrial units.

Ramesh Batavia, trainer and motivator from Bangalore, delivered lectures on ‘leadership styles’, ‘productive teams’, ‘working environment’, ‘delegation vs abdication’ , ‘powerful leadership’, ‘achievement is everything’ and ‘making happiness a habit’.

CEOs from Chennai, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Kovilpatti, Rajapalayam, Dindigul, Virudhunagar and Rajapalayam attended.

Earlier, K. Subburaj, chairman, Cethar Vessels, inaugurated the event.

Three infiltration wells commissioned in Tuticorin

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan on Saturday commissioned three infiltration wells and a submersible pump established by the Tuticorin municipal administration along the Tamiraparani basin.

Official sources said the wells, each having a diameter of 4.5 metres and a depth of 6 metres and the pump with a capacity of 7.5 Horse Power, were set up on a total outlay of Rs.40 lakh allocated from the municipal exchequer.

With this, an additional 4.74 million litres of water a day would be supplied to the town.

Presently, the municipality supplies 21 million litres a day drawn from the six infiltration wells situated adjacent to the Tamiraparani.

A 40 HP motor would be established at Rajaji Park here to enhance supply of water to the overhead tank situated near the New Bus Stand on Tuticorin-Ettayapuram road, the sources said.

Likewise, plans are in the offing to rejuvenate the water scheme established in the town during 1932, which has been remaining defunct for sometime.

A 175 HP motor would be established to revive the project, so as to supply another 6 million litres of water a day to the town, the sources said.

Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam, Commissioner R. Lakshmi, Junior Engineer M. Saravannan and Senior Town Planning Officer M. Rakkappan were present.

Agricultural Video conferencing introduced in Tuticorin

The Department of Agriculture has introduced video conferencing in the district linking the office of the Joint Director in Tuticorin with the head office in Chennai.

It will facilitate online review of the performance pertaining to productivity targets.

In a first video conferencing meeting held this week, Joint Director of Agriculture M. Mohandas briefed the Agriculture Production Commissioner on paddy that was raised on 4,085 ha, millet on 22 ha, pulses on 1,448 ha, cotton on 614 ha and oil seeds on 741 ha during the current fiscal till August 31.

He said 7,925 tonnes of paddy, 554 tonne of millets, 250 tonne of oilseeds and 415 tonne of cotton were produced during the first five months of this fiscal.

Mr. Mohandas said that to augment productivity, 21 tonnes of paddy seeds, 11.3 tonnes of pulse seeds and three tonnes of millet seeds had been distributed to farmers at subsidized rate between April 1 and August 31.

Similarly, 1,512 tonnes of nitrogen, 902 tonnes of phosphorous, 1,034 tonnes of potash (all fertilizers) and 10,000 liters of plant protection chemicals were given away to farmers during the same period at subsidized rate.

Deputy Director of Agriculture Gandhirajan Agriculture Officer I. Joseph and members of Tamil Nadu Farm women in Agri Business and Extension groups were present.

Latest technology in farm sector disseminated

A mega ‘Kissan mela’ organised by Agricultural Technology Management Agency was held in Tuticorin on 22nd Saturday.

Official sources said that the fair was arranged to disseminate technological advances in the agricultural sector to the farmers and to make them aware of the role of high quality inputs in enhancing productivity of crops.

In all, 17 stalls were established by various departments, research institutes and private firms to showcase certified seeds, agricultural implements, fertilizers and government schemes.

V. Subramanian, chief scientist, Agricultural Research Station, Kovilpatti, explained features of KC-3 variety of cotton developed by the station recently to visitors and how it was suited for rainfed conditions.

He said that use of the type would yield a lint length of 26.4 mm and a ginning percentage of 37.

The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University deciphered the importance of pre-monsoon sowing for raising cotton, sorghum, pulses, maize and sunflower.

The expo also gave an insight into the agronomy practices such as furrow system to conserve soil moisture.

The stall set up by the Department of Sericulture explained the process involved in manufacturing ‘twisted silk.’

The veterinarians from Department of Animal Husbandry explained the steps to combat diseases among the cattle.

The Pepsico India Holdings Private Limited elucidated the methodology to extract sap from seaweeds, which could be used to enhance plant growth.

Earlier, Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan inaugurated the mela and distributed certified seed, hand sprayers and coconut seedlings to farmers under various government-sponsored schemes.

Collector R. Palaniyandi, Joint Director of Agriculture M. Mohanados, Superintendent of Police Deepak Motibhai Damor and officials participated.

Minister inaugurates additional bus services

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan flagged off additional bus services in different stretches across the district here on 22nd September.

The additional shuttle services would ply on Vilathikulam-Tiruchendur, Koramballam- Siluvaipatti, Tuticorin-Mappilayoorani, Muthiapuram-Collectorate, Thermal Power Station-Tuticorin town, Tuticorin-Vagaikulam (via Mudivaithanenthal) and Tuticorin-Nazareth (via Malavaraianatham, Chenkulam and Vellamadom) sectors.

Ms. Jeevan said that a water cooler and a separate office for the time-keeper would be established at the Old Bus stand here, as part of augmenting the amenities.

Similarly, a bus shelter exclusively for minibuses would be built at the new bus stand on Tuticorin-Ettayapuram highway.

“The capital required for these development works would be taken from the Tuticorin MLA’s constituency development fund,” the Minister said.

G. Paulraj, General Manager (Tirunelveli region), Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation, said that the average fuel efficiency of buses in the region (i.e.) Tirunelveli region presently was standing at 5.20 km. Likewise, operational efficiency of the region had touched 102 per cent during the current financial year. He said that plans were in the offing to introduce two ultra deluxe buses in Tiruchendur-Chennai sector before the end of the third quarter of this fiscal. D.J. Selvakumar, Divisional Manager (Tuticorin), TNSTC, was present.

Two flyovers to be constructed in Tuticorin

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, held talks with a team of top railway officials from the Madurai Division of Southern Railways in Tuticorin on 18th, as part of efforts to ease traffic congestion at the railway level-crossings across the district.

Regarding the traffic congestion in Tuticorin City owing to closure of three railway gates, Mr. Hemant Kumar, Divisional Railway Manager, Southern Railways (Madurai Division), said that the Railways had decided to build flyovers at Railway Gates No: 1 and 2 on a cost sharing basis with the State Government.

“The construction of the road overbridge (ROB) at Railway Gate No: 3 have been fast nearing completion,” he said. Mr. Kumar added that the newly constructed railway gate (Gate No: 4) would be commissioned shortly, as soon as the necessary sanction was accorded by the office of Commissioner of Railway Safety (Bangalore circle). Once the Gate No: 4 was opened for the traffic, the Gate No: 3 would be closed to facilitate the completion of ROB project there.

Mr. Kumar said that as part of beautification of Tuticorin railway station, greenery would be established on the premises and entrance to the station would be widened.

He said that the division had finally forwarded the proposal to the authorities concerned to establish ‘cement concrete aprons’ beneath the sleepers at tracks laid at the platforms in the Tuticorin station.

Rs.6-crore slum works planned in Tuticorin City

Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam has said that the administration will take up works on an outlay of Rs.6 crore during the current financial year under the Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme in the Tuticorin city.

Speaking at a municipal council meeting on Friday, she said the project was aimed at ameliorating the living standards of urban slum dwellers at select localities by providing adequate shelter and basic infrastructure to them at Sundervelpuram, Polpettai, Kandasamypuram, Cruzpuram, Threspuram, Krishnarajapuram and K.V.K. Nagar.

Ms. Thangam said that repair works would be carried out and stormwater drains built along five road stretches on a total outlay of Rs.31.25 lakh before the end of the current fiscal.

Commissioner R. Lakshmi and Engineer S.A. Rajagopal were present.

Freedom Fighter Memorial Innagurated in Tuticorin

Speaker R. Avudaiappan inaugurated new memorials for freedom fighters Vellaiya Thevan and Veeran Sundaralinga Devendran at Vallanad and Governagiri near Tuticorin City, respectively, on 20th and 21st of September.

Each of the memorials was constructed by the Public Works Department at a cost of Rs 25 lakh.

Official sources said that the edifices would be maintained by the Department of Information and Public Relations.

The memorial for Vellaiya Thevan having a plinth area of 231.2 square metre was built on a 41 cent plot. Neatly trimmed lawns were established on the premises to add beauty to the tourism spot.

Likewise, the cenotaph of Veeran Sundaralinga Devendran, a warrior and deputy army chief for Veerapandia Kattabomman, was constructed on a 49 cent tract.

Minister for Information Parithi Ellamvazhuthi said that the Government would consider the public requests to set up libraries at the memorials of freedom fighters.

Mr. Avudaiappan disbursed welfare assistance worth Rs.12.5 lakh allocated under various government-sponsored schemes to 383 beneficiaries.

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan, Director of Public Relations A. Chittaranjan Mohandoss, Collector R. Palaniyandi, Secretary of Tamil Development, Religious Endowments and Information Department D. Rajendran and District Public Relations Officer S.R. Sarathy participated .

Perfomance of Tuticorin Courts Reviewed

P. Jyothimani, the Judge of the Madras High Court, conducted an inspection at the Tuticorin District court complex on 21st September.

He reviewed the performance of various courts functioning at the complex pertaining to parameters such as pending and disposed cases.

The judge also studied the infrastructure available in the court for both the judges and the lawyers. The Principal District Judge, Gokul Das, the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mary Anzalam, the Judicial Magistrates, Sasirekha and Hemant Kumar, the Fast Track Court Judges, Ramachandran and Krishnan, were present. Later, he was felicitated by the Tuticorin Bar Association at a function held at Thanpadu Uppu Sangam auditorium here.

Industrial Exhibition in Tuticorin City

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan inaugurated a three-day mega industrial exhibition jointly organised by the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Institute, Government of India, and Thoothukudi District Tiny and Small Scale Industries Association here on Friday.

K. Nehruprakash, general secretary of the association, said that the main objective of the expo was to bring small and medium enterprises, government organisations, public sector units and industrial units on a common platform for business promotion and to identify competitive vendors.

A total of 120 exhibitors from Korea, Belgium, Germany, Singapore and India are taking part in the event.

Tourism Promotion Activities for Rs.1.06 crore in Tuticorin

Tuticorin district is home to several historically important places. Among them, the heritage towns of Kulasekarapattinam and Ettayapuram will get a facelift before the end of this financial year, as Department of Tourism is set to take up tourism promotion activities at these places on a total outlay of Rs.1.06 crore.

Official sources said that as part of the project, a park would be established at the historic Kulasekarapattinam town at Rs.44 lakh, to augment recreational activities along the beach. The town once boasted a minor port having commerce with Sri Lanka. The port lost its importance with the development of a major port in Tuticorin. The borough is also known for the popular ‘Dasara festival.’ Of the total cost allocated for setting up the park, Rs.11.55 lakh will be earmarked to establish ornamental structures like statues and artificial mountains in the park. Garden and elegantly trimmed lawn will be built at Rs.6.30 lakh. A amount of Rs.2 lakh from the allocation would be utilised to establish play materials like swings and slides for children and Rs.4.05 lakh to provide drinking water as well as toilet facilities to the visitors. A compound wall for the park will be constructed at Rs.5.10 lakh and illuminations will be installed at the recreation area at a cost of Rs.7.05 lakh. The remaining amount will be used for the establishment of a black top road (approach road) to connect the park to the nearest arterial road, to a length of about one kilometre.

The tourism potential of Ettayapuram, the town which houses the memorial and ‘illam’ (home) of the great poet Subramaniya Bharatiar, will be augmented at a cost of Rs.62 lakh. The project works to be taken up under the package include establishment of a rest shed, drainage facilities and improvement of water supply as well as roads in the town.

Advani gets warm welcome in Tuticorin

The former Deputy Prime Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader, Lal Krishna Advani, was accorded a warm reception by the party cadres at the Tuticorin airport at Vagaikulam on 18th September.

He was at the airport on a transit enroute to Tirunelveli. The senior leaders of the party’s State unit, Pon. Radhakrishnan (State vice-president), M. R. Kanagaraj (State observer), V. Rengarajan (District president) and S. Thirunavukarasar (ex-MP) garlanded Mr. Advani and honoured him with a shawl. The entire reception was held amidst tight police security owing to threat perceptions.

The Inspector General of Police, Sanjiv Kumar, Deputy Inspector Generals of Police, P. Kannapan and K.C. Mahali, and the Superintendent of Police, Deepak Motibhai Damor, supervised the security. Mr. Advani proceeded to Tirunelveli by car for attending a rally.

Audit on Tuticorin-Maniyachi railway section

A high-level team of Railway officials, led by the Chief Safety Officer of Southern Railway, M.C. Murali, conducted an audit on Tuticorin-Maniyachi section on 18th Sept., to ascertain that safety norms were followed according to the stipulated guidelines.

Interacting with the officials, Mr. Murali reiterated the need to phase out the unmanned railway level-crossings to reduce accidents.

“We have set plans to remove about 100 of the total 1,200 unmanned crossings situated under the jurisdiction of Southern Railway by either constructing road over-bridges or limited use subways (meant for light motor vehicles and two-wheelers) at those spots, during this fiscal,” he said.

According to him, a total of 51 ‘limited use subways’ would be established by the Southern Railway during the current financial year. He said that the railway administration has been operating a state-of-the-art ‘accident relief machinery’.

“We are periodically conducting mock drills to check the efficiency of the machinery,” he added.

He said that once the gauge conversions were over, more trains are bound to come to Tuticorin.

D.K. Nayak, Additional Divisional Railway Manager (ADRM), Southern Railway (Madurai), said that the division was exploring the possibility of setting up a ‘24-bogey’ pit lane in Tuticorin.

The capacity of the present pit lane here having a capacity to hold 18 bogies, is now being upgraded to hold 21 bogies.

The Chief Track Engineer, P.K. Mishra, the Chief Signal and Telecommunications Engineer, T. Yadaiah, the Chief Electrical Service Engineer, R.P. Udayakumar, the Divisional Engineer, Robert Rajasekaran, and the Chief Rolling Stock Engineer, Kabir Ahmed, all of Southern Railways, were present during the inspection.

Final photo electoral rolls released in Tuticorin

The Collector, R Palaniyandi, released the ‘final photo electoral rolls-2007’ for six of the seven Assembly constituencies in the Tuticorin district, at a function held at the office of Revenue Divisional Officer in Tuticorin on 18th September.

The rolls were published after making inclusions in the draft photo electoral rolls published in the district on May 25.

Speaking to reporters, Dr. Palaniyandi said that the photo electoral rolls for Kovilpatti constituency would be published on September 20, after verification of a few more data. He said that according to final photo electoral rolls, there were 1,24,804 electors in Vilathikulam, 1,11,656 in Ottapidaram, 1,16,205 in Sattankulam, 1,36,913 in Tiruchendur, 1,12,300 in Srivaikundam, and 1,96,859 in Tuticorin Assembly segments.

“The final rolls showed an increase in the number of electors in all the six constituencies vis-À-vis the voters figured in the draft photo electoral rolls,” he said.

Assembly segment-wise, number of electors increased by 2.05 percent in Vilathikulam, 1.9 percent in Ottapidaram, one percent in Sattankulam, 1.8 percent in Tiruchendur, 1.58 percent in Srivaikundam and 3.05 percent in Tuticorin.

Dr. Palaniyandi said that the final photo rolls would be available at Collectorate, offices of Revenue Divisional Officers, municipal offices, taluk offices and polling stations for verification of electors.

The District Revenue Officer, P Anbarasu, the RDO (Tuticorin sub-division), P Kalaimani, the Tahsildar (Tuticorin taluk), K. Velusamy and the Tahsildar (elections), N B Nagarajan, were present.

Tuticorin Port plans Rs 5,310 crore expansion

Tuticorin Port plans a major expansion involving investments of around Rs 5,310 crore to create additional capacity and infrastructure on the back of growing industrial activity and meeting capacity demands from the trade.

The port is planning to augment its capacity from the existing 20.55 million tonnes to 40.60 million tonnes through an Inner Harbour Development Programme.

This envisages construction of a coal berth, development of a container terminal, construction of new berths and development activities like dock basin dredging to cater to 12.8-metre draft vessels at a cost of Rs 961.75 crore, according to A Subbiah, deputy chairman, Tuticorin Port.

The port, through a futuristic Outer Harbour Development Programme, is also planning to create additional capacity of 37.5 million tonnes by 2012-end and would aim for 43.7 million tonnes by 2017. The plan is estimated at an outlay of Rs 4,350 crore, Subbiah added.

Garments and textile exporters and importers of machinery in Tirupur, Karur and Salem regions are using Tuticorin Port for their import and export activities since the port has direct connectivity to American and European ports, besides ports in East Asia and South-east Asia.

Tuticorin Port handled 18.70 million tonnes of cargo during 2006-07, registering 9 per cent growth over previous year’s figures of 17.14 million tonnes. Container traffic stood at 377,000 TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) as compared to 321,000 TEUs in the previous fiscal, registering growth of 17 per cent.

For the current fiscal, the port has set a target of 20.05 million tonnes of cargo traffic and 400,000 TEUs.

The operating income of the port was Rs 183.05 crore for 2006-07 as compared to Rs 159.04 crore the previous year. Profit after tax (PAT) was Rs 88.76 crore, up 39 per cent over Rs 63.76 crore in the previous fiscal.

With the expected completion of the Sethusamudram project in 2008, ports on the east coast and west coast of the country are expected to use Tuticorin Port as a transhipment hub, resulting in its emergence as a hub container port in near future, a Tuticorin Port statement said.

Considering the business potential and increasing industrial activity in the region, CII has opened its district office in Tuticorin, inaugurated on Saturday by MS Srinivasan, secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.

At the launch of CII office, Srinivasan hinted that Tuticorin, being a major port on the east cost of the country, would gain in a big way with the Centre’s increasing attention on East Asian economies.

Source: Business Standard

Expansion Planned at Tuticorin Port

Tuticorin Port in India is reportedly planning a major expansion to create significant additional capacity and infrastructure on the back of growing demand.

According to reports in the Indian media, the port is planning to augment capacity from 20.55 million tonnes per annum to 40.60 million tonnes through the so-called Inner Harbour Development Programme.

This envisages construction of a coal berth, development of a container terminal, construction of new berths and dock basin dredging to cater to 12.8m draft vessels.

In the longer term, the port is also planning an Outer Harbour Development Programme, which would create further additional capacity of 37.5 million tonnes by 2012.

Source: Dredging News

Tuticorin set for economic growth, feel experts

The port town of Tuticorin, located in one of the less-developed regions of Tamil Nadu, is set to see significant economic growth on the back of changing focus of India’s engagement with the world, improving infrastructure and increasing entrepreneurial activity in the region, according to panelists at a recent seminar.

Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas secretary MS Srinivasan said the underdevelopment of Tuticorin Port’s hinterland and the union government’s ‘Look West’ policy till recently had kept the port and the region from achieving its full potential. “Now, the centre of gravity has shifted from west to east, and this augurs well for Tuticorin,” he said. He was speaking at the Explore Export 2007 Conference, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry in Tuticorin on Saturday.

He said, in the past, the lack of development in the hinterland slowed down growth of the port, which otherwise had a lot of advantages. “Ideally, the hinterland should feed into port and the port in turn would feed into the hinterland,” he added. This in turn was because of lack of infrastructure — especially, good roads, which had a direct impact on development of the areas around.

Containerisation of cargo could also help in faster development, Mr Srinivasan said. India took time to containerise. Even now, while 70% of goods movement is containerised globally, it’s 30-35% in India.

Mr A Subbiah, deputy chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust said, in order to meet the growing needs of users, the port is planning to augment its capacity from the existing 20.55 million tonnes to 40.60 million tonnes through an Inner Harbour Development Programme. This would envisage construction of a coal berth, development of a container terminal, construction of new berths and development activities such as dredging of dock basin to cater to 12.8-metre draught vessels at a cost of Rs 961.75 crores.

The port is planning to create additional capacity of 37.5 million tonnes by end 2012 and would aim for 43.7 million tones by 2017 through the Outer Harbour Development Programme to be implemented at an outlay of Rs 4,350 crore, he said.

Manikam Ramaswami, vice-chairman, CII — Tamil Nadu State Council and CMD, Loyal Textile Mills said infrastructure was key to support growth . This is in the context of the growing demands from global retailers and narrowing lead times for delivery. Power is another constraint. Cost of power in Tamil Nadu is two times than that of other Asian countries.

According to a survey by CII, there were 300-500 trippings a year in the state outside Chennai, he said.
Dr R Palaniyandi, district collector of Tuticorin said there was immense potential for agro processing, wind mill generation, biomass gasifiers and tourism in the Tuticorin district.

Source: Economic Times

Two 1000MW Powerplants at Tuticorin

The Tamil Nadu Government has approved the setting up of four merchant power plants with a total generating capacity of 6,000 MW. These plants are to come up along the coast – one each at Cuddalore and Nagapattinam, and two near Tuticorin, according to official sources.

According to the sources, the projects that have been approved are – UDI Infrastructure (2,000 MW at Cuddalore), Tridem (2,000 MW, Nagapattinam), Coastal Gen (1,000 MW, Tuticorin) and Free City (1,000 MW, Manappadu near Tuticorin).

Merchant power plants, unlike other power plants that sign power purchase agreements with utilities, compete for customers and absorb the full market risk. Typically, according to the Power Ministry, the risk of a merchant power plant is carried on the balance sheet of the promoter.

CCC has Tuticorin SEZ approval, waiting for notification

Consolidated Construction Consortium plans to raise Rs 188 crore in their IPO with a price band offer of Rs 460-510. S Sivaramakrishnan, MD, Consolidated Construction Consortium said that the company is already geographically spread across six regions with offices in Pune, Kolkatta and Delhi to cover the North, West and East region. He added that though presently, South India is leading the order book, they hope to balance it out over the years.

Talking about their proposed food processing SEZ near Tuticorin port, he said that they are working on the master plan. He added that the approval has been obtained and they are waiting for the notification.

Excerpts of CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with S Sivaramakrishnan:

Q1: Your order book as on July 31 2007 which is stated at 2050 is about 2.5 times your FY07 sales. What sort of an order book position do you see at the end of FY08 vis-a-vis the kind of revenues you will do for the same?
A: I am constrained to speak on the future. Otherwise we hope to get the same kind of growth, upto 40-50% growth.

Q2: Your fixed price contracts, can you tell us how much that gives you as a percentage of your order book and how much does it give you as a percentage of your overall revenues?
A: Our fixed price contract is hardly about 10% of our overall order. For all the rest, we have the escalation past through, it’s there available.

Q3: Also your exposure to South India, at this point in time what percentage of your total order book position comes in from South India and how are you looking to diversify?
A: Right now we have already geographically spread across six regions. We already have offices in Pune, Kolkatta and Delhi, to cover the North, West and the East. Right now our Delhi regions are already picking up large orders.

In that surrounding Delhi region about six states we have already working Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, UP we are already working apart from Delhi itself. The Kolkata region is already started picking up order from Bhubaneshwar and Kolkata.

So geographically, yes presently South India is leading the order book. But we hope to balance out over the years.

Q: Specific word on your SEZ and plans you are looking to setup a food processing SEZ. Could you tell us what area of land and what are the plans in terms of investments for the same?
A: Basically it’s that we have already acquired 358 acres near Tuticorin port. It’s exclusively for food processing. We are just working on the master plan. We are yet to get the notification, the approval has come and the notification is likely to come later. So we are discussing with our master plan consultants.

Source: MoneyControl.com

Tuticorin announces expansion

The Indian port of Tuticorin has announced a $1.3 billion building project to help it meet an expected growth in traffic.

Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT) officials say the plans include the construction of a new coal berth and the development of a new container terminal from an existing berth.

The project is scheduled to boost cargo handling capacity from 20.55 million metric tonnes (mt) per year to 40.60 million mt through an Inner Harbour Development Programme.

According to TPT deputy chairman A Subbiah, a future Outer Harbour Development Programme is also being planned to create additional cargo handling capacity of 37.5 million mt by 2012 and 43.7 million mt by 2017.

Key sectors using Tuticorin port are garment and textile exporters and importers of machinery in the Tirupur, Karur and Salem regions.

Tuticorin gives them direct links to the United States and to European and Asian ports.

According to the TPT, the Sethusamudram shipping canal project is expected to be completed next year and ports on both the east and west coast are expected to use Tuticorin port as a transshipment hub.

The Sethusamudram shipping canal project plans to provide a continuous navigable sea route around the Indian peninsula.

The project is expected to boost economic development of the coastal state of Tamil Nadu.

Meanwhile, 2006-07 figures show that Tuticorin port handled 18.70 million tonnes of cargo, a 9% growth year-on-year.

Container throughput for the same period grew 17% to 377,000 twenty-foot equivalent units.

Source: PortWorld

Tuticorin Malayalis come together for ‘Onam’ celebrations

Traditional dance performances and folk arts of Kerala, comedy skits, a sumptuous ‘Onasadhya’ (feast), dazzles of ‘kasavu mundu’ and ‘kasavu saris’ and cultural programmes encapsulated Onam celebrations of the Malayali fraternity in the city on 9th September.

The Kerala Samajam, which organised the 32nd edition of Onam festival at Roopavathi Palace Thirumana Mandapam, ensured that the celebrations had a stamp of zeal and fervour to make the Malayalis here touch the home base. Comedy numbers and film songs presented by a group of television and cine artistes from Thiruvananthapuram formed the part of the celebrations.

A group of students from Annammal College of Education for Women, Tuticorin, who hail from Kerala, took the audience down the memory lane to their childhood days in the neighbouring State with the presentation of ‘Thiruvathirakali’ and ‘Onam songs.’

The ‘Onasadhya’ offered on the occasion captivated the foodies. Rice was the main course, supplemented by dishes such as curries, ‘upperies’ (fried food), pickles, ‘pappadams’ and ‘payasams.’ The feast was prepared by cooks brought from Paravoor in Kerala.

“The annual Onam celebration gives an opportunity for Malayalis staying in various places across the town to congregate at one place,” tells P. George Thomas, secretary of Kerala Samajam.

Anti-Tobacco Rally in Tuticorin

National Cadet Corps officers and cadets took out a rally in the city on 9th September, to create awareness among the public on the ill effects of using tobacco for smoking and chewing.

M. Kasturi Thangam, chairperson, Tuticorin municipality, flagged off the rally in front of the Tamil Nadu Maritime Academy on Beach Road.

F. Benny Morais, troop commander, NCC (Naval unit), and senior NCC officers, Lieutenant Kumaraswamy, Sub-Lieutenant Jessie, Second Officer Nirmala and Third Officer, Santinal, were present.

The NCC cadets of V.O. Chidambaram College, St. Mary’s College for Women, St. Lasalle Boys Higher Secondary School, Holy Cross Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School, and St.Joseph’s Girls Higher Secondary School, constituted the rally.

4 Sri Lankan fishermen arrested

The Coast Guard on 8th Sept. arrested four Sri Lankans who were fishing in the Indian waters without proper documents.

The Coast Guard sources said Jute Limus Appuwami (45), Antony Sunil Appuwami (41), Francis Nimal Apwani (33), and P.Selvin (35) were arrested about 45 nautical miles southeast off Manapadu, near Tuticorin. The mechanised boat was also seized.

A workshop on ecological sanitation conducted in Tuticorin

A workshop on ‘ecological sanitation for Tuticorin’ organised by Eco Solutions, a non-governmental organisation based at Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala was held in the City on 8th September.

The programme was aimed at sensitising the different stakeholders including various government departments involved in sanitation projects on the importance of sanitation as an eco-solution.

Paul Calvert, Director, Eco Solutions, explained the functioning of dry compost urine-diverting toilet systems developed by the group, which were installed across the country under Ecosan project. “We have established 550 such toilet systems in Tuticorin district so far.”

According to him, the eco-toilets would destroy pathogens by keeping them contained until they were destroyed.

Besides, the system would help recycle human urine and faeces as fertilizers. He said that eco-toilets would minimise the usage of water since ash, soil, lime or biomass residues were used to cover fresh faeces and leave them odourless, thus enhancing water security in the country. The covering layer would aid decomposition or dehydration and kill the germs in the faeces.

Joint Director of Health S. Subbulakshmi, the Personal Assistant (Agriculture) to Collector Chandrasekaran and senior officials from health and allied departments attended the programme.

The participants were taken out on a field visit to villages in the district where eco-toilets had been established to demonstrate their functioning.

‘Explore Export-2007’ conference held in Tuticorin

Inaugurating ‘Explore Export-2007,’ a conference organised in Tuticorin, by the Confederation of Indian Industry’s Madurai Zone to promote Tuticorin as an export hub, Mr. M. S. Srinivasan, Secretary, Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said that the country should enhance the containerised movement of cargo/goods to reduce the cost and time of transport.

He said the country needed to create exclusive cargo corridors for easier movement of goods from and to the ports. “We are lagging the rest of the globe in evolving cargo corridors by at least 10-12 years.”
Manickam Ramaswami, vice-chairman, CII, Tamil Nadu, said though the State was attracting a lot of investment recently, the industrial competitiveness was substantially affected by the poor quality and quantity of power. Furthermore, the cost of power was high. The increasing labour cost also affected the State’s industrial competitiveness. “The time has come to make a comprehensive study to analyse the components of labour cost.” V. Dharmarajan, deputy general manager, Export Credit Guarantee Corporation, explained the risk factors involved in export transactions.

CII Office opened in Tuticorin

On 8th September, Mr. M. S. Srinivasan, Secretary, Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, inaugurated the Tuticorin office of the CII at Millerpuram. Mr. V. Ramasubramanian, is chairman of the Tuticorin branch.

Minister inspects site for boat club in Tuticorin

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan on Saturday inspected the site proposed for the establishment of a boat club by the municipal administration at Roche Park on Beach Road in tuticorin City.

Ms. Jeevan said that the establishment of the boat club and development of the park would be carried out on a total estimated outlay of Rs.95 lakh.

“The municipal administration and the Department of Tourism will bear the project cost equally,” she added.

The proposed boat club will have four boats to take the tourists for pleasure rides along a two km stretch of inshore waters.

As regards the development of the park, sources said that good quality grass would be grown to beautify the landscape.

Later, Ms. Jeevan also visited site identified for the establishment of a road at Kurinji Nagar on an outlay of Rs.15 lakh.

Municipal Commissioner R. Lakhsmi, Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam, and Municipal Engineer S.A. Rajagopal were present during the inspection.

Erode-Nagpur rail freight corridor to help Tuticorin Port Services

Authorities of the Tuticorin Port Trust have suggested that the railways create a ‘backbone freight corridor’ connecting Erode with Nagpur, to facilitate goods movement from central India to the port.

The proposal is made in a ‘business plan’ prepared by the TPT for the overall development of trade volumes through the port.

A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust, said that such a corridor would help expand the hinterland of the port beyond Bangalore. The dedicated rail corridor would reduce the time delays in transportation of goods to and from the port, which was essential to attract more users here.

Mr. Subbiah said a corridor between Erode and Nagpur would help the Chennai and Kochi ports too in terms of augmenting their export-import trade.

At the Tuticorin port, he said that inner harbour development works, including the creation of a coal berth, the conversion of Berth 8 into a container terminal, the construction of Berth 9, the structural upgrading of the coal jetty and the dredging of the basin to cater to 12.8 m draught vessels would be carried out at an estimated cost of Rs. 961.75 crore.

Security Management System for Tuticorin Port

A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust, said that installation of an Integrated Security Management System (ISMS) proposed at the Tuticorin port on an outlay of Rs. 1.3 crore was expected to commence before the end of the this year.

Tuticorin port poised for handling more logs

Two sets of hydraulic grabs and specially-designed loaders have been commissioned at the Tuticorin port to handle logs, for the first time.

A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust, said that the equipment were procured by St John’s Freight Systems, Tuticorin, in line with the decision taken at the port safety committee meeting recently.

According to him, these machines would bring about a sea change in the handling of logs by ensuring safety of dock workers, besides improving the productivity by leaps and bounds. The mechanised handling system would facilitate quick turnaround time of ships and attract more volume of logs and timber through the port, he said.

T. Johnson, Managing Director, St John’s Freight Systems, said that the equipment were imported at a cost of Rs. 3 crore. While the hydraulic grabs were acquired from Germany, the loaders were purchased from Sweden.

“We plan to handle about 4,000 tonnes of logs on an average a day, registering 125 percent increase over the manual handling techniques,” Mr Johnson said.

'Muslim Women Aid Society’ to be set up in Tuticorin

The Department of Backward Classes and Minorities Welfare is all set to establish a ‘Muslim Women Aid Society’ in the Tuticorin district this month to uplift the destitute Muslim women educationally and economically.

According to sources, the society will be registered shortly under the Societies Registration Act and it will function as a non-governmental organisation.

The activities of the society will be managed by a governing body headed by the Collector, who will be the ex-officio president of the society.

The Project Officer of Tamil Nadu Women Development Corporation will be the ex-officio vice-president and the District Backward Class and Minorities Welfare Officer, will be the ex-officio treasurer.

The other members of the governing body include a honorary secretary, two honorary joint secretaries and three honorary members, all nominated by the Collector from among the Muslim community for one year.

Source: The Hindu

Foreign students donate books to St.Lasalle School in Tuticorin City

Three students from Raffles Institution, a school in Singapore, turned good Samaritans for St. Lasalle Higher Secondary School in Tuticorin City.

M. Jerald, J. Jonathan and D. Lizheng handed over 1,500 books to the library at the local school during the first phase of the ‘window to outside world’ project mooted by them, on Friday (7th Sept.'07).

They plan to donate a total of 10,000 books under different stages. The trio started collecting books for the local school here when they heard that the library of the school was in need of funds to expand the library. The school library had only 3,000 books in its kitty prior to the donation.

The team members collected the books with the help of their friends, companies and non-governmental organisations back in their native land. They said that three major Singapore-based companies sponsored the procurement of books.

820 persons screened at medical camp in Tuticorin

The 100th free medical camp organised by the Department of Health in the Tuticorin district under "Varumun Kappom Thittam" was held at Koramballam, in the Suburbs of Tuticorin City on 6th Sept.

A total of 820 persons were screened for various diseases by doctors specialised in ophthalmology, cardiology, orthopaedics, ENT, Siddha medicines, and dermatology among other branches of medicine.

Collector R. Palaniyandi said 89,297 persons were screened during the first 99 camps in the district.

Of them, 1,247 were referred for advanced treatment to institutions such as Tuticorin Medical College and Hospital.

A total of 1,046 patients, who had attended the camps under Varumun Kappom Thittam, had availed follow-up treatment.

Mr. Palaniyandi said Rs. 3,05,187 worth of medicines were distributed. “Of this, Rs.1,65,190 were distributed through 59 camps in Tuticorin Health Unit District limits, and the rest through 40 camps in Kovilpatti HUD limits.”The ECG was carried out on a total of 3,274 persons and ultra sound scan on 2,972 persons at these camps. S. Uma, Deputy Director of Health Services, coordinated the proceedings.

Tuticorin to host 'TIE-2007' expo

"TIE-2007", a national level buyer-seller meet cum exhibition, will be held for the first time in Tuticorin City of Tamil Nadu from September 21 to 23.

TIE 2007 is an ideal platform for machinery, equipment, technology suppliers and service providers to market their products in south Tamilnadu. TUTICORIN is the gate way of Tamilnadu with numerous large and small scale industries.

The objective of TIE-2007 was to bring MSMEs, industries, government departments and PSUs under a common platform for business promotion and to showcase the strength and competitiveness of the MSMEs.

Top executives from the big companies, small and medium scale industries in Tuticorin & south Tamilnadu will be visiting the event.

The expo would be organised by the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development Institute, in association with the Tuticorin District Tiny and Small Scale Industries Association (THUDITSIA).

Besides small and micro industries, large scale industries, both from the public and private sector, would participate in the meet, MSME Director Sivagnanam told reporters.

Profile for exhibit include Forklift, Crushers, Wind Mill, Wire Mesh, Bio Gasifies, Textile, Garment Industry, Solar Equipments, Vibratory Screens, Boilers & Spares, All kinds of Cranes, All Kinds of Pumps, Welding Equipments, Industrial Instrumentation, CAD/ CAM Machinery, Blowers and Compressors, Saw Mill & Wood Working, Food processing Equipments, Concrete Blocks Machinery.

About 126 stalls would be put up at the expo, which was expected to attract 10,000 visitors and generate a business of about Rs 20 to Rs 30 crore.

Venue : Alagar Mahal

Organizer:
Thoothukudi District Tiny & Small Scale Industries Association (THUDITSSIA)
15/C, D.S.A Complex, Nandagopalapuram West,
Tuticorin, India.
Tel: +(91)-(461)-2336005
Complex, Nandagopalapuram West,Tuticorin, India.Tel: +(91)-(461)-2336005

Dedicated textile cargo handling facilities at Tuticorin Port

The Union government is reportedly considering setting up dedicated textile cargo handling facilities at major international seaports and airports.

The government, along with the export promotion councils, has already identified certain international seaports and airports for the purpose, an official source said.

Such facilities are planned for apparel export and import cargoes at Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP), Mumbai Port, Chennai Port and Tuticorin Port.

International airports at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore may also have dedicated textile cargo handling facilities, the official disclosed.

The move follows directions from a group of Ministers (GoM) which was formed to promote the growth of the textile industry.

The GoM included the Agriculture Minister, Mr Sharad Pawar, the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, the Textile Minister, Mr Shankarsinh Vaghela, and the Commerce Minister, Mr Kamal Nath.

Sical to set up empty container yard at Tuticorin

Sical Distriparks is setting up an empty container yard at Tuticorin. The bhoomi pooja for the development of the yard was performed in Tuticorin on August 31.

Commenting on the new venture, Mr L. R. Sridhar, Wholetime Director and CEO of Sical Distriparks Ltd, said that the new facility would be the most modern and operational by January 2008.

Sical’s objective of setting up the yard is to cater to growing demand of empties repositioning at Tuticorin. With current volumes at 15,000 TEUs, Sical’s facility would cater to a third of the market requirements, which is 5,000 TEUs per month.

Currently, Sical manages a CWC container freight station (CFS) at Tuticorin which has a capacity of 26,000 TEUs per annum, which is 12 per cent of the port’s volumes.

To cater to the growing demand at the port, Sical will be setting up an additional CFS, which will have a capacity of 30,000 TEUs per annum by 2009-10.

When the new facilities come up, Sical will increase its market share to 15 per cent of the port’s volumes.

Mr R. Dhandapani, Vice-President of Sical Distriparks Ltd, was also present during the occasion.

V.O.C. Birthday celebrated in Tuticorin

The birth anniversary of the great freedom fighter V.O.Chidambaram was celebrated across the district with grandeur on Wednesday.

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, garlanded the statue of V.O. Chidambaram on Ayyalu Naicker Street here. He recollected the deeds of V.O.Chidambaram as a freedom fighter, lawyer and a trade union leader. Born on September 5, 1872 at Ottapidaram in the district, Vulaganathan Ottapidaram Chidambaram holds the credit for launching the first indigenous steam navigation company, which ran a shipping service between Tuticorin and Colombo.

The dignitaries present remembered Chidambaram’s contribution as a lawyer who often pleaded for the poor, at times turning up in the cases where his father appeared for the affluent.

The Project Officer of Mahilar Thittam, M. Madasamy, and the president of V.O.C Statue Formation and Maintenance Committee, P. Vedanayakam, were present.

A. Subbiah, Deputy Chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust, paid homage to V.O. Chidambaram, as part of the celebrations organized by the TPT.

Sweets were distributed to students at Harbor School and port employees. At a seminar organized by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Association, resources persons spoke on the literary works of Chidambaram.

BSNL commissions WiLL-BSC in Tuticorin

Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited has commissioned a ‘Wireless in Local Loop Base Station Controller’ (WiLL-BSC) here to enhance the quality of telephone connectivity in the district.

N.R. Natarajan, General Manager, BSNL, said that the BSC would function on the latest Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology, enabling the transmission of data through ‘spread spectrum’ modulation in which information takes larger bandwidth.

“This application ensures superior performance for personal communication systems in any ‘interference dominated’ environment,” he said.

With the introduction of WiLL-BSC, broadband services up to a speed of 600 kbps could now be provided in WiLL telephone connections too. “We have now decided to give 10,000 more WiLL connections in the district with the establishment of the BSC,” he said adding that “at present, there are 12,000 WiLL connections”.

He said that plans were in the offing to increase the capacity of WiLL connections by another 3,000 before the end of the third quarter of this financial year.

To widen the broadband network, a 32-connection capacity broadband exchange was set up at Servaikaranmadom near Tuticorin City recently. “Customers in the area could submit their applications immediately to obtain broadband connections,” the GM said.

Coastal Security measures reviewed

Director General of Coast Guard Rustom Faramroze Contractor on Monday reviewed measures taken by the Coast Guard station in Tuticorin to protect the marine environment in the Gulf of Mannar.

The security extended to the coral reef islands, offshore installations and other structures within the maritime zone were examined.

Mr.Contractor studied the operational preparedness of the Coast Guard fleet stationed in the Tuticorin port. He carried out assessment on board patrol vessels, Aruna Asaf Ali and Naiki Devi.

Ansaldo to set up boiler facility in Tuticorin

AnsaldoCaldaie Boilers India Pvt. Ltd plans to set up a power generation equipment manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu for boilers with capacities up to 660MW.

“The facility, apart from boilers, will also take care of piping fabrication and special alloys. By mid next year, we expect it to be in operational mode,” said A. Manjunath, executive director, technical and sales, AnsaldoCaldaie.

He declined to comment on the investments required for the project.

This facility is expected to help the Indian power sector, which has been reeling under a supply shortfall for power generation equipment.

India is expected to miss the target of adding 78,577MW of power generation capacity by 2012 because of shortage of equipment.

The target has been set by the government in an effort to ensure that the country has enough power to meet the needs of an expanding economy.

The power ministry is of the view that Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel), the country’s largest manufacturer of power generation equipment, does not have the capacity to meet the huge Plan targets and it would require manufacturers such as Ansaldo to fill the gap.

The Ansaldo facility, to be set up at Tuticorin, will cater to the domestic and the export markets. “The availability of the port facility will help us to cater to the export markets,” Manjunath added.

“The Tuticorin facility would house their heat recovery steam generators up to 260MW and 660MW super-critical parameter-based units, where they have established themselves worldwide with their proven technology,” said Abhishek Puri, an analyst with ASK Securities.
AnsaldoCaldaie Boilers India Pvt. Ltd is a joint venture between AnsaldoCaldaie of Italy and GB Engineering of India. It has engineering offices in Chennai and Trichy and fabrication facilities in Trichy.

AnsaldoCaldaie specializes in the design, manufacture and supply of utility boilers, heat recovery steam generators, and biomass and waste to energy boilers.

India has a power generation capacity of 135,006MW, which is not sufficient for the second fastest growing major economy in the world.

Source: LiveMint.com

Trade bodies applaud PSA Sical for normalizing Tuticorin Container Terminal operations

Trade bodies at Tuticorin have hailed PSA Sical’s decision to serve the trade with full efficiency and reliability. Following this, operations at the Tuticorin Container Terminal (TCT) returned to normalcy.

PSA Sical had assured the shipping community that it would serve the ex-im trade with full efficiency and reliability.

In a joint press release, TCHAA, TSAA, ICCI and AICCI expressed their sincere gratitude to the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Dr M. Karunanidhi, and the Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Mr T. R. Baalu, for intervening in the issue and finding a suitable solution.

They also thanked Mr K. Suresh, Chairman in charge of Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT), for his timely action.

The trade bodies also urged the government to take up the issue of pending projects like the development of eighth berth, second container terminal, deepening of the port to 12.8 metres, mechanization of coal handling equipment, etc., without any further loss of time.

Since many upcoming projects like Neyveli Lignite Corporation’s thermal power plant, further expansion of the existing Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) project and titanium project are expected to add to the improved productivity of the port.

In this context, the infrastructure facilities like four-laning of Tuticorin-Tirunelveli road and Tuticorin-Madurai road, expansion of the existing runway at Tuticorin airport should be taken up expeditiously, the release said.

Besides, they also sought another Air Deccan service to Tuticorin in the late evening hours.

Tuticorin Port proves mettle in anchorage operations

With the handling of m.v. Elpida S, Tuticorin Port has commenced its anchorage operations and proved its potential to handle deep-draught vessels that need over 10.7-metre draught at anchorage, says a press release issued by the Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT).

Availing of the new facility offered by the Port, Seapol Shipping Pvt. Ltd, Tuticorin, nominated a collier, m.v. Elpida S, with a parcel of 53,106 tonnes of coal, which arrived with a draught of 12.46 m on August 10.

The Port thus successfully handled its first coal vessel from August 10 to 12.

The Indonesian coal was imported by Coastal Energy, Chennai. The lighterage operation was effected by deploying two self-propelled barges of 1,000-tonne and 1,200-tonne capacities. After successful lightering of about 8,720 tonnes of cargo, the vessel reached the permissible draught of 10.7 m and berthed alongside VOC Berth No.III for full and final discharge of cargo.

On successful completion of both anchorage and alongside operations, the collier sailed off on August 16.

The introduction of anchorage operations at Tuticorin Port saves the ‘dead freight’ payable to vessels calling at the Port and facilitates handling of Panamax vessels without any pre-berthing detention.

TPT had planned to handle deep-draught vessels at the anchorage, subject to certain conditions, which were amplified in a ‘trade notice’ dated July 5 and supplemented with an earlier notice dated March 22.

L&T to raise Rs 2,800cr, build shipyard

Larsen & Toubro (L&T), the country’s biggest construction and engineering company, announced it would raise Rs 2,800 crore ($700 million) through a global depository issue (GDR), most of which will be used to build a new shipyard.

The proposed equity sale would take place at Luxembourg Stock Exchange, Chairman A M Naik told shareholders at the company’s 62nd annual general meeting. The company had offered two bonus issues – one 3:5 in 1986 and 1:1 last year.

The fund will be used to part finance L&T’s capital expenditure of Rs 4,500 crore this year. Of this, about Rs 2,000 crore will be utilised for setting up the shipyard on 500 acres.

The company is also seeking a yen-denominated loan equivalent to $200 million (Rs 800 crore) from Barclays Plc, HSBC Holdings Plc and Citigroup Inc, according to bankers.

“We have shortlisted two sites, one in Gujarat and another in Tamil Nadu, for the shipyard. We will announce the exact location next month,” Naik said.

L&T is one among four companies that is keen to build two mega shipyards of international standard. The other companies are Korean STX, Shapoorji Pallonji and Bharti Shipyard.

A report earlier this month quoted a government official as saying that the shipping ministry had identified Kakinada, Ennore and Tuticorin on the east coast and Mundra and Pipavav on the west coast.

L&T is also joining the special economic zone (SEZ) bandwagon. It has decided to set up two SEZs. Naik said the engineering services SEZ would come up in Vadodara. The other one would come up near the company’s proposed shipbuilding facility.

Source: Business Standard

FICCI favours southern freight corridor

For Tamil Nadu, the conclave suggested a ‘Beach express’ along the East Coast. To link Tiruvanmiyur to Mahabalipuram in the first phase, this service could ultimately connect Puducherry and run up to Kanyakumari, incidentally also linking up the minor ports with Chennai on the one side and Tuticorin (Thoothukudi) on the other.

‘Raghupathy paid for inability to resolve Tuticorin port crisis’

Sethusamudram channel project chief N.K. Raghupathy who was asked to go on leave by the shipping ministry may well have paid a price for his inability to resolve a stand-off with container terminal operator PSA Sical Terminals Ltd, as chairman of the Tuticorin Port Trust, his other responsibility. PSA Sical is a joint venture between Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) and local company South India Corp. (Agencies) Ltd (Sical).

People close to the development who did not wish to be identified say that the tension between the terminal operator and the port may have contributed to his being asked to go on leave, much as other reasons related to the Sethusamudram project that envisages dredging Adams Bridge between India and Sri Lanka to allow passage of ships. The people and shipping ministry officials familiar with the matter say that Raghupathy had taken a “rigid view” on revision of tariff for the operator.
Shipping minister T.R. Baalu could not be contacted for his comments and Raghupathy was unavailable for comments as his cell phone was switched off.

PSA Sical operates the container terminal at Tuticorin port. Tariffs at this Central government-owned port are set by the Tariff Authority on Major Ports (TAMP). In response to an application last year from PSA Sical to allow it to increase tariffs, TAMP had reduced tariffs. PSA Sical had then approached the courts that stayed tariffs at the original rate. The case is still before the courts. Meanwhile, last month, PSA Sical had said it was reducing its service infrastructure at the port to the minimum mandated in its agreement with the government. This would have resulted in delays for ships calling at the port to load and unload cargo. PSA Sical subsequently decided to revert to full capacity last week.

For almost two weeks, though, the operator did lower service capacity at the port and some ships stayed berthed for longer periods. Some cargo was also diverted to neighbouring ports such as Colombo in Sri Lanka.

One person who is close to the discussions between the shipping ministry, the port authorities, and port operator said that Raghupathy had insisted that PSA Sical do business on TAMP’s terms. “The minister wanted the issue to be resolved at the earliest so that port operations would not be affected. But the issue dragged on,” this person said. A Sical executive who did not wish to be identified said that the situation had demanded that the former chairman take some proactive measures to resolve the crisis. However, a senior government official who did not want to be named said that there was not much that Raghupathy could have done as chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust to defuse the crisis.

“There is no way that the port chairman could have done anything other than implementing the TAMP order. There is no provision for revision of the concession agreement,” said an expert on the port sector who did not want to be named.

Source: LiveMint.com

Tuticorin Port celebrates 33rd anniversary of declaration as Major Port

The Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT) on July 31 celebrated its 33rd anniversary of becoming a Major Port in a grand way. The Port was declared as the 10th Major Port in the country in June 1974.

The Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Ms V. Radhika Selvi, was the chief guest at the function held to mark the anniversary. Mr M. Appadurai, MP, and Mr R. Dhanushkodi Athithan, MP, were the guests of honour.

Mr A. Subbiah, IAS, Deputy Chairman of TPT, welcomed the gathering.

Addressing the gathering, Mr K. Suresh, IAS, Chairman of the Chennai Port Trust and now also in charge of TPT, said that Tuticorin Port, which was stepping into its 34th year of operations as a Major Port, had registered considerable growth in all parameters. It had also achieved remarkable growth on the container shipping front. With all infrastructure developments at the Port on the upswing, it was now gearing up for a big makeover in the coming days, he announced.

Later, Ms Radhika Selvi distributed TPT’s awards for excellence in traffic performance during 2006-07 to steamer agents and stevedores on the occasion.

Members from TPT unions, TPT CHLP unions, Tuticorin Ship Agents’ Association, Tuticorin Steamer Agents’ Association, Tuticorin All India Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Tuticorin Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry participated in the function.

Mr J. P. Joe Villavarayar, President of the Tuticorin Ship Agents’ Association, also graced the event.

Tuticorin Coast Guard to get new Patrol vessel with Helicopter

Karunanidhi said he had already drawn the Prime Minister's for stationing of an offshore patrol vessel with an helicopter at Tuticorin under the exclusive control of the Coast Guard (Eastern Command) to operate in the Gulf of Mannar and the Indian Ocean.

He also wanted infrastructure facilities for refuelling at Tuticorin Airport. The Coast Guard should be permitted to use the facility, he added.

Skill development training by the National Child Labour Project Concludes

A month-long skill development training by the National Child Labour Project (NCLP) to about 1,300 rescued child labourers studying at 33 special schools functioning in the district, concluded on 24th April.

M. Nallaperumal, Project Director, NCLP, told that the children were given training on different trades such as embroidery, tailoring, carpentry and manufacturing of bouquet, baskets, soap powder, soft toys, cleaning powder and dolls.

"Specially trained master trainers imparted coaching to the children, to help them merge with the mainstream of life once they completed their formal education," he added.

He said that a total of 507 child labourers were rescued in the district since 2003-04. Mr. Nallaperumal said that the NCLP has evolved new strategies to eradicate child labour in `homes and hospitality' sector during the current financial year.

Tuticorin to seek drought aid, Rs. 4.24 crore sought to overcome drinking water issue

The district administration has chalked out a "contingency plan" seeking drought relief to the tune of Rs. 4.24 crore from the State Government to overcome drinking water problem in 408 village panchayats during summer this fiscal.

Collector R. Palaniyandi said that the plan document was prepared based on an analysis carried out in the village panchayats spread over 12 panchayat unions, with emphasis on habitations/areas where rainfall was less in 2006 vis-à-vis 2005.

The plan proposes establishment of 277 new borewells at a cost of Rs. 1.05 crore, 50 power pumps and water distribution facilities at Rs. 1.88 crore, extension of pipelines from existing water supply systems to drought hit areas at Rs 44.95 lakh, construction of service reservoirs at Rs 61.6 lakh and rejuvenation of unused borewells at Rs 24.16 lakh to augment drinking water supply to village panchayats.

Of the 277 new wells, 56 were planned at Karungulam block to cover 31 village panchayats, which was followed by 49 wells for 44 panchayats under Pudur block, 37 for 24 panchayats under Sattankulam block and 28 wells for 45 village panchayats under Kayathar block.

The remaining would come up at village panchayats under Srivaikundam, Alwarthirunageri, Udangudi, Kovilpatti, Ottapidaram and Vilathikulam blocks.

As regards establishing power pumps, the Collector said that the administration had proposed for 12 numbers covering 25 village panchayats in Tuticorin block, 13 for Kayathar block, seven for Sattankulam block, six for Karungulam, four for Ottapidaram, three for Vilathikulam, two each for Pudur and Tiruchendur, and one for Srivaikundam block.

Overhead tanks were planned at Sattankulam (13 numbers), Karungulam (6), Pudur (5) and Srivaikundam (2).

Dr. Palaniyandi said that infrastructure development work would be taken up at 82 village panchayats under the Anaithu Grama Anna Marumalarchi Thittam during the current fiscal on an outlay of Rs. 20 lakh for each panchayat.

The alumni of Municipal Middle School on North Bhathirakaliamman Koil Street in Tuticorin City, who passed out between 1952 and 1959, joined again on the school premises after almost five decades at a `reminiscence meeting' on Sunday.

Of the 124 students, who came out of the school during the period, 85 turned up for the first reunion meeting. 9 teachers of the period were present in the occasion.

At the get-together, the `students' floated an alumni association under the initiative of A.H. Balakrishnan, an alumnus.

During the last 25 years, enrolment came down heavily.

"Presently, the school had only 100 students against a strength of 900 students studied in an academic year three decades ago," an alumna said.

The association had set plans to set up corpus funds to carry out infrastructure development works in the school in association with the Department of Education to attract more students to the school.

A musical extravaganza and dance performances by 10 visually challenged artistes of Fani Crosby Melodies troupe, marked the cultural programmes conducted by the Jesus Cares Ministries, a Coimbatore-based organisation, in Tuticorin City on 21st April.

Started with `Ithuvare seytha seyalkalkake... ', the troupe sang a total of 12 Christian devotional songs.

Other major numbers included `Darsanam Tharavendum... .'.

Albert (keyboard), Muthukumar (keyboard), Marisamy (tabla) and Dharmaraja (rhythm pad), scored background music to the vocal of Bheemaraja, Sheela Remijious, Lakshmi and Thangamari.

While Govindan performed `karakattom', Rakesh did enthral the audience with his folk dance numbers.

Thangamari, who sang beautiful numbers, proved that she was a good dancer too with her Bharatanatyam sequences.

Students perform Bharatanatyam and vocal concerts in Tuticorin

Cultural programmes and martial art display marked the annual day celebrations of the Government Music School and Jawahar Bal Bhavan in Tuticorin on 21st April.

Students of the school performed Bharatanatyam and vocal concerts, while the wards at Jawahar Bal Bhavan came out with dance numbers and did karate performance.

Teachers at the school, Sivakama Selvi, Selvakumari, E Mubarak and Raviraj, co-ordinated the events.

The Collector R. Palaniyandi distributed certificates to the students of the school and Jawahar Bal Bhavan, who finished winners in the cultural and sports competitions conducted recently.

Sivakalai, headmistress of the school and programme officer of Jawahar Bal Bhavan, said admission to certificate courses in various music and dance classes offered by the school would commence on June 1.

The candidates aged between 12 and 25 years could enrol for the courses.

Scholarships would be offered to students belonging to Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and SC/ST categories.

"For more details on courses, interested candidates should contact the office at phone number 9443810926," she said.

Whale washed ashore in Tuticorin

The carcass of a whale washed ashore at Veppalodai coast near here on Sunday evening, was identified as a `Sperm Whale' by a team of scientists from the Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) on April 16th.

The study by C. B. T. Rajagopalasamy and N. Jayakumar, professors at FCRI, revealed that the whale had died at least four days ago and hence the species was identified using external characteristics.

V. K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, said the whale belonging to the family of `Physeteridae' had a length of 10 metres and weighed 20 tonnes.

The entire functional teeth, numbering 22 pairs, were in the lower jaw, and the upper jaw has sockets to fit in those teeth.

Regarding the cause of death, Dr. Venkataramani said that the whale might have entered the inshore waters here abundant in juvenile fishes such as sardines, anchovies and cuttle fish.

"Since its body was damaged extensively, there was a possibility of collision with a ship or a boat and getting stranded in the inshore waters which is not deep," he said.

According to him, remote sensing methods should be applied to locate and save the whales, which get stranded in the Gulf of Mannar, since it is an endangered species.

202 houses handed over to tsunami victims in Tuticorin

A total of 202 permanent houses, constructed by Development Promotion Group (DPG), a Chennai-based non-governmental organisation, on an outlay of Rs. 4.64 crore at Ceylon Colony and Azhagapuri near here, were handed over to tsunami victims of Terespuram and Madhavan Nair Colony on Saturday.

The Minister for Animal Husbandry, Geetha Jeevan, handed over the keys of the houses to the beneficiaries in the presence of the District Collector, R. Palaniyandi.

Each house, with a plinth area of 416 sq.ft., has been constructed at a cost of Rs. 2.30 lakh with a hall, a bedroom, a kitchen, a toilet, a sit-out and a staircase. While Diakonie Emergency Aid, Germany financed the construction of 134 houses, Church Development Services, Germany, funded for 58 houses. The Association of Confederation of Credit Unions, Bangkok, assisted the construction of remaining 10 houses.

Besides providing land for the project, the district administration has constructed an overhead tank with a capacity of 30,000 litres and erected 10 public taps.

According to the Chief Executive Officer, DPG, R. Bhakther Solomon, his organisation, which established 14 self-help groups among the 202 beneficiary families and disbursed Rs. 1.50 lakh as micro-finance, had distributed fishnets worth Rs. 5 lakh. Besides, the DPG was running a childcare centre with 25 children and a tailoring training unit with 20 girl trainees.

"Construction of a small community hall, strengthening of SHGs with additional training and micro-credit, establishment of a garment production unit will be taken up in the new residential colony in the coming months," Mr. Solomon said.

Source: The Hindu

4,858 acres of land identified for free distribution

The administration has identified 4,858.65 acres of wasteland spread over eight taluks for free distribution to landless agricultural labourers at the rate of two acres per person as announced by the State Government, says Collector R. Palaniyandi.

Speaking to mediapersons here on Monday, he said that 83 special teams comprising officials from the departments of revenue, agriculture and its allied departments identified the land meant for distribution.

Of the total 4,858.65 acres identified, 1,094.18 acres falls under Kovilpatti taluk, 386.99 acres under Sattankulam taluk, 37.48 acres under Tiruchendur taluk, 54.88 acres under Srivaikundam taluk, 35.03 acres under Tuticorin taluk, 1,311 acres under Ettayapuram taluk, 1,560.34 acres under Ottapidaram taluk and 378.01 acres under Vilathikulam taluk.

The process was on to identify the beneficiaries and the distribution would begin on August 15.

Tuticorin school gets `virtual classroom'

An `interactive virtual classroom' via an U.S. satellite was launched at Sakthi Vinayagar Hindu Vidyalaya School in Tuticorin City on 9th April.

This was the first time that the concept was introduced at a school in the district, said K. Palanisamy, school secretary. The system would aid students to interact with education experts in New Delhi and Chennai. The facility was installed in association with Everonn Systems India, New Delhi," Mr Palanisamy said.

Presently, students of Standards XI and XII could attend sessions in Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology. "There will be four 40-minute sessions every day. The facility, expected to improve the students' communication skills and general knowledge, would be extended to other classes during the ensuing academic year in a phased manner Plans were afoot to arrange interactions between students and resource persons from Coimbatore and Madurai too.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Port Trust to focus on infrastructure development

Projects to the tune of Rs. 109.66 crore to be taken up this fiscal.

The Tuticorin Port Trust would focus on infrastructure development, traffic improvement and human resources development to improve overall performance during the current fiscal, its Chairman, N.K. Raghupathy, has said. he said that infrastructure development worth Rs. 109.66 crore would be taken up this fiscal.

Of the total cost, Rs. 50 crore would be earmarked towards dredging at Inner Harbour to increase draught to 12.8 metres, Rs. 5 crore each for procurement of a tug and improvement of roads, Rs. 20 crore towards construction of Berth 9, Rs. 5 crore for replacement of few cranes and Rs. 4.6 core for other continuing schemes. The remaining amount would be utilised for contribution to the equity of Sethusamudram Corporation Limited and National Highways Authority of India.

Mr. Raghupathy said that Outer Harbour would be developed at an estimated cost of Rs. 4,000 crore.

"We have forwarded a proposal to the Centre seeking `in principle' approval for short listing of bidders for the Outer Harbour Development project," he added. Construction of North Cargo berth planned on captive basis for Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) is expected to be completed before December 31, 2008. "The entire cost of project to the tune of Rs. 40 crore would be borne by NLC," he said. "

TDFA clinches title

Tuticorin District Football Association lifted the Vinothakumar Memorial Trophy defeating Reserve Bank of India, Chennai 5-4 via sudden death in the final of the 31st annual State-level football tournament held in Sivakasi on 8th April. At the regulation time, the teams were locked goalless.

In the tiebreaker, the teams scored four goals each. Bruston, Praveen, Naveen and Dinesh scored for Tuticorin while Kannan, Rajan, Madhuvarman, and Devanathan scored for Reserve Bank. In the sudden death, Muppidari succeeded for Tuticorin, while Dinakaran failed to convert for the bankmen.

National Maritime Day celebrated in Tuticorin

The Tuticorin Port Trust celebrated the National Maritime Day with pomp and gaiety on Thursday, to commemorate the maiden voyage of S S Loyalty, India's first merchant vessel, from Mumbai to London on April 5, 1919.

In a function held at Berth 8, tugs and pilot launches of the port displayed their prowess.

The tugs that graced the `sail past' function included the recently procured M T Tuticorin, with a 45 tonne Bollard Pull capacity, from Tebma Shipyards.

The others were M T Pearl City (10 Tonne Bollard Pull capacity), M T Thiruvalluvar (32 Tonne Bollard Pull), M T Indira Gandhi (30 Tonnes Bollard Pull Capacity).

The pilot launches that attended the show were Veera Vanchi and M L Tuticorin.

Cultural programmes and games were organised to mark this occasion.

Amritavalli Raghupathy, wife of the Chairman of Tuticorin Port Trust, N. K. Raghupathy, gave away the prizes to the winners of cultural and literary competitions conducted as part of the National Maritime Day celebrations for school children.

Earlier, Ms. Raghupathy placed a wreath at the memorial of sailors who died in harness, in the City.

Source: The Hindu

MECON bags 2 x 500 MW Power plant contract in Tuticorin

The Public Sector, Metallurgical and Engineering Consultants (MECON), has bagged contracts for 2 x 500 Mega Watt (MW) Power Plant in Tuticorin,Tamil Nadu (TN), which is being promoted jointly by the Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) and the State's Electricity Board.

MECON would provide detailed engineering and consultancy from concept to commissioning for two units of 500 MW each to be set up at Tuticorin.

Earlier, MECON had provided similar service to the NLC for their 2 x 210 MW expansion programme which was successfully completed in 2003.

With the rising business in power sector, MECON is preparing a road map to develop its strategic business unit further.

The power plant division at Ranchi is being augmented with more resources and latest design softwares to facilitate better and timely services to the valued customers.

Source: Daily India

Night landing facility for Tuticorin Airport

Night landing facility at the airport here is set to become a reality, as the Airports Authority of India plans to install Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) and runway lights on an outlay of Rs 1.25 crore.

The installation of PAPI, at a cost of Rs. 25 lakh, is nearing completion and the gadget will become functional before April 15. AAI sources said that it would aid pilots for a safe and accurate final approach to the runway.

The system consists of four boxes of lights, kept on both sides of the runway.

Each box of lights will be equipped with an optical apparatus that splits the light output into red and white segments. Depending on the angle of approach, the lights in the gadget will appear either red or white to the pilot. K. Ramalingam, Regional Executive Director, AAI, said that runway lights would be installed at a cost of about Rs. One crore.

The establishment of night landing facility will enable commencement of late evening flights from here, to suit the convenience of a large section of passengers.

3 new flyovers in Tuticorin City and more new trains

Union Minister of State for Railways R. Velu has said that the Railway Ministry would consider introducing more trains to Tuticorin once the double laning work between Madurai and Dindigul was completed towards the end of current fiscal.

On 6th April, he said that at present, the track on the sector (62 km) was utilised about 130 percent of its capacity between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. the following day and hence new overnight train services could not be operated to Tuticorin.

Ruling out the possibility of shifting Tuticorin railway station to Milavittan, he said that projects worth Rs 2.06 crore are already in the pipeline to augment the facilities in the station.

Besides, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation would establish a budget hotel just outside the building.

"In all, we are planning 100 such budget hotels across the country in a phased manner,' he said.

Work on the road over bridge in progress at railway gate no. 3 would be completed before December 31.

Similar flyovers would be constructed at gates 1 and 2 on a cost-sharing basis with the State Government.

Gauge conversion between Tuticorin and Tirunelveli would be completed before September 30.

Similarly, conversion of tracks between Quilon and Punalur to broad gauge would be over this fiscal.

"We are planning to convert the entire meter gauge in the State to broad gauge over the next few years," he said. Earlier, Mr. Velu assessed the progress of construction of road over bridge at railway gate no. 3 and inspected the development works under way at the railway station.

The Divisional Railway Manager, Hemant Kumar, the Collector, R. Palaniyandi, the Divisional Railway Engineer, Robert Rajasekharan, and senior railway officials were present.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Port sets Record in Handling of Containers in 2006-2007

Tuticorin Port has been registering a consistent growth rate in handling of cargo and containers over the years. During 2006-07 the Port has handled 3,77,102 TEUs against 3,21,060 TEUs of containers handled during the corresponding period of the previous year, registering a growth rate of 17.46%. This is the highest volume of handled containers in a year in the history of the Port.

Further, Tuticorin Port handled 40,018 TEUs of containers in March 2007. This is the highest number of containers handled in a single month. The previous record was 36,215 TEUs of containers handled in August 2006. On 31.03.2007, Tuticorin Port created another record in container handling by handling 2717 TEUs of containers in a single ship (m.v.Tiger Sky). This is the highest volume of containers handled in a single ship.

Handling of containers in Tuticorin Port commenced in the year 1999 and a volume of 121 TEUs was handled in the first year. At that time, there was no dedicated berth for container vessels and the containers were handled by the ship's cranes only. As a result, the stay of the container vessel at berth was longer and about 12 to 15 containers were handled per hour / per crane. It took nearly three days to complete a container vessel. However, from 1999 onwards, a dedicated berth for a container vessel is allotted and gantry cranes are used for loading / unloading of containers. Following this initiative taken by the Port, the productivity of the container vessels increased to a large extent and the present per hour handling of 25 to 27 containers per hour / per crane is comparable to the International stand. Three gantry cranes and eight yard gantry cranes are being used now. The vessel's stay at berth has been considerably reduced now and on an average, a container vessel is handled in 15 hrs. The pre-berthing detention of container vessel on Port account is NIL. Following the various initiatives taken by the Port, the volume of containers handled at Tuticorin Port has increased from 2,12,925 TEUs in 2002-03 to 3,77,102 TEUs in 2006-07. During the last five years the number of containers handled in the Port has increased by 1,35,823 TEUs, registering a growth rate of 77.11 %.

A recent study carried out by some students of the Wharton Business School, USA, under the aegis of the Planning Commission of India has ranked Tuticorin Port Trust's container handling facilities as the best in India comparable to International Container Port such as Hongkong and Singapore in overall efficiency taking into account parameters such as technical efficiency, storage, scale efficiency.

In order to increase the volume of containers handled through the Port, the Port has taken various initiatives. The Harbour basin including the container berth was dredged from 8.24m to 10.7m in 1999 at a cost of Rs.216.90 crores. This has facilitated calling of mainline container vessels at Tuticorin Port regularly. In order to promote calling of mainline vessels at Tuticorin Port, an incentive in vessel related charges of 65% was offered. This resulted in reduction in cost of handling and quick delivery of containers to different parts of the World. The users were immensely benefitted. The garment and textile exporters and the importers of machinery from Tirupur, Karur and Salem regions are using Tuticorin Port for their import and export as Tuticorin Port has direct connectivity to American and European Ports in addition to the Far East Ports.

The handling capacity of the existing container terminal has almost reached a saturation point. To meet the future requirement, Berth No.8 will be converted as the second container terminal at a cost of Rs.150 crores. This will increase the container handling capacity of the Port by 4 lakh TEUs. Further, in the Inner Harbour Development, to be taken up shortly, the existing draft of 10.7m will be increased to 12.8m at an estimated cost of Rs.442 crores. With the expected completion of Sethusamudram Project in 2008, the Ports on the East Coast and West Coast will increasingly use Tuticorin Port as a Transhipment Hub Port and Tuticorin Port is expected to emerge as a Hub Container Port in the near future.

Shri N.K.Raghupahty, IAS, Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust congratulated the Container Terminal Operator, Port Users, Port Officers, Employees and Cargo Handling Labouers for achieving an all time high record in handling of containers and wished that with the concerted efforts of every one, Tuticorin Port would achieve more laurels in the coming years.

Source: Tuticorin Port

Tuticorin Port Signs MOU regarding fourlanning of NH-7A

As a part of providing improvement to the road connectivity of Tuticorin Port a Memorandum of Understanding was signed on 26.03.2007 among the National Highway Authority of India, Tuticorin Port Trust and Tuticorin Port Road Company Limited, New Delhi, the Special Purpose Vehicle of the project.

The agreement envisages four laning of existing two lines of Tirunelveli – Tuticorin road from 4/0 Km to Km 51/2 of National Highways 7A. The equity capital of Tuticorin Port for the Project is to the extend of 11 % of the total project cost of Rs.231.20 Crores or Rs.25 Crores whichever is less. A cheque for Rs.5 Crores was handed over by Chairman, Port Trust to the Chief General Manager of National Highways.

Source: Tuticorin Port

Census indicates rise in blackbuck population

The results of the three-day census carried out by the Department of Forests in the Blackbuck Sanctuary at Vallanadu here from March 30 to April 1, showed an increase in Black Buck population.

L. Nadhan, District Forest Officer, said the survey found 25 blackbucks vis-à-vis 23 animals traced during the last Census held in 2006. Of the 25 blackbucks, three were male, 20 were female and the rest were adolescents.

The compilation of statistics in the survey showed that the sanctuary houses 11 jackals, 15 black naped hares, 27 peacocks, 7 jungle cats, 5 pangolins (ant eater), 16 monitor lizards, 2 pythons, 14 mongooses, 9 vultures and 7 crested hawk eagles, apart from the blackbucks.

The final figures were evolved by the census team, comprising 10 forest officials, two scientists and 24 volunteers, after carrying out the survey using line transect and water hole methods.

Mr. Nadhan said that plans were afoot to increase the area coverage under grassland in the sanctuary to provide more quantity of fodder to the blackbucks.

"Presently, grassland coverage stands at about 15 per cent of the total 1,600 acres," he said, adding that it would be increased to 30 per cent over the next five years.

Besides, fruit yielding `Ficus Infectoria' and `Ficus Tinctoria' tree saplings would be planted on the rocky surfaces inside the sanctuary to attract more birds.

"Arrival of different species of birds would change the microclimate in the sanctuary for good," he added.

Appeal to Stop work on nuclear plant

The Anti-Nuclear Confederation of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry (ANCTP) has urged the authorities concerned to stop work on the nuclear power plant at Koodankulam (Tirunelveli district).

The project is economically unviable and poses serious threat to safety, it has said.

An appeal was made after the confederation conducted a "people's public hearing" here on Friday to elicit views of residents of Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari.

Sandeep Pandey, a Magsasay Award winner in 2002 and alumnus of IIT Kanpur, said, "It is a pity that countries like that of ours are after nuclear power at a time when developed nations are giving up nuclear projects.

"Besides, a few nations have declared their land as `nuclear free zones,' as the projects were found dangerous and expensive. There are plenty of alternatives to produce energy at a cheaper cost," he said.

Mr. Pandey cited the example of Australia, which did not have a single reactor in its territory though the nation has a lot of uranium resources.

"The country was able to produce 5,000 MW of electricity per annum tapping wind in the last 10 years. However, we are still to cross 3000 MW capacity through atomic energy in the last five decades," he said.

India should be leading the demand for a nuclear-free South Asia. G. Anton Gomez, convener of ANCTP, said that radiations from the plant would affect five million people residing in the southern districts of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

Gilbert Rodrigo, advisor, ANCTP, said that commemorating `Chernobyl Day,' the confederation would hold a rally at Nagercoil on April 26 to ask the Centre to stop the project at Koodankulam.

Call to raise marine resources

"Concerted efforts involving different stakeholders are the need of hour to enhance marine resources in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), extending to 200 nautical miles from Indian coastline," H. Mohammed Kasim, Principal Scientist, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, has said.

Dr. Kasim was inaugurating a two-day workshop on `Biodiversity and conservation strategies on the threatened and endangered species of the Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere,' organised by Fisheries College and Research Institute here on Thursday.

He said that artificial reefs should be deployed in large numbers and sea ranching of various marine species should be carried out to increase the resources depleted through "over exploitation."

Fish potential along the EEZ was yet to be tapped fully as fishermen mostly restricted their activities to inshore waters.

"Though it was estimated that the region had a potential of 3.94 million tonnes per annum, we catch only 2.7 million tonnes of fish," he said.

Of the 2.7 million tonnes caught every year, 2.2 million was captured from the inshore waters.

Hence, fishermen should venture more into deep sea, which has valuable pelagic fish species such as tuna, marlins, oceanic squads and bill fishV.K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, said that use of coracles should be regulated in and around coral reef islands in the Gulf of Mannar to prevent depletion of ornamental fish resources.

"Fishermen who happened to catch the juveniles of angels, damsels, scorpion and wrasse, all ornamental fish species, should return them into the sea to sustain their population," he said.

Dr. Kasim released a training manual for the participants at the workshop.

About 30 lecturers, officials from forest and Fisheries Department and students, from across the State, were taking part in the workshop.

The programme, which was sponsored by the Tamil Nadu State Land Use Board, concluded on 30th March.

Source: The Hindu

Boilers made in Tuticorin to be shipped to Sharjah

Assembled boilers manufactured in Tuticorin are getting ready to be exported through the port here.

On 1st April, two boilers each measuring a length of 16 metres, a height of 8 metres, and weighing 105 tonnes, manufactured by a private unit here were moved from its yard premises to the port.

They were shipped to the Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) in the United Arab Emirates, on April 4.

"The boilers are will used in a desalination plant set up by the SEWA," said B. Pattabhiraman, managing director, G B Engineering Limited, which produced the boilers.

The boilers were transported from the yard to the port on a truck with 10 hydraulic axles and 80 tyres.

The police regulated the traffic along the route and the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board switched off overhead transmission systems, wherever it was needed, to ensure smooth transportation of boilers to the port.

Source: The Hindu

Black Buck Sanctuary to be Enhanced at Rs 7 Lakhs

The Department of Forest said that works are under way to augment facilities at the Black Buck Sanctuary, near Tuticorin on an outlay of Rs seven lakh sanctioned by the Centre.

Under the project, fencing to a length of three km would be repaired at a cost of Rs 4.5 lakh and height of one of the three watchtowers would be increased by 14 metres at Rs 1.5 lakh.

The remaining amount would be utilised towards improving ponds inside the sanctuary.

Slip coach sought from Tuticorin

The Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry has urged the Railway authorities to provide a "slip coach" for Tuticorin passengers at Vanchi Maniyachi near here for the new Nagercoil-Coimbatore train proposed in the railway budget.

In a memorandum submitted to the General Manager of Southern Railway, the Secretary, D.R. Kodeeswaran, said that a coach from Tuticorin, when added to the main train, would provide consolation to the people, who were denied of services connecting their town with Coimbatore.

Inspector General of Police inaugurates workshop in Tuticorin

Inspector General of Police (South Zone) Sanjeev Kumar has said that security threats to a country or an organisation should not be viewed in isolation. It should be thwarted through concerted efforts of various stakeholders.

He was inaugurating a workshop on `Changing security threat perception' organised by Heavy Water Plant, Tuticorin, a unit under the Department of Atomic Energy, in Tuticorin on 28th March.

Mr. Kumar said that a better "integrated approach" should be evolved by intelligence agencies such as Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) to tackle cross border terrorism.

The agencies should join hands to compile information on security threats they gathered from different sources, instead of trying to compete with one another.

"This would avoid duplication of information," he said.

Security agencies should be vigilant in southern districts of Tuticorin and Tirunelveli as a lot of vital installations such as Heavy Water Plant, Coast Guard station and Port are present in Tuticorin and Nuclear Power Plant is fast coming up at Koodankulam (Tirunelveli district).

Mr. Kumar said that security along Tuticorin and Ramanthapuram districts were tightened in the wake of recent developments in Sri Lanka.

"We have formed 21 special squads in Tuticorin district and 16 more in Ramanathapuram district to prevent smuggling of contraband to Sri Lanka and infiltration," he said.

Besides, plans are afoot to establish a total of five marine police stations in Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Ramanathapuram and Kanyakumari districts.

"They will come up at Tharuvaikulam (Tuticorin), Koodankulam (Tirunelveli), Devipattinam and Mandapam (Ramanthapuram) and Coalchel (Kanyakumari)," he said.

The police are maintaining a tight vigil at the refugee camps in Tuticorin and Ramanathapuram districts.

The General Manager of HWP, Tuticorin, V.V.S. Rama Rao, said that security has become complex in the wake of technological revolution.

"Though high security measures at vital installations might cause some displeasure among certain sections of people, it is essential for the economic growth of the country."

Source: The Hindu

Reliance Gas Pipeline to Conncet Chennai - Tuticorin

Reliance Industries Ltd., plans to build two gas pipelines in southern India, the government said on Friday, that could help the energy explorer supply gas from its deep-sea fields to retail consumers.

The petrochemicals to oil refiner aims to produce 80 million cubic metres of gas a day (mmscmd) by mid-2008 from its two fields in the prolific Krishna Godavari basin.

Oil Ministry said in an advertisement on Friday that Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure Ltd., a group firm, had submitted a proposal to lay a 670 km pipeline from Chennai to Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu.

It also wants to build another 660 km pipeline from Chennai to Mangalore in the neighbouring state of Karnataka, via Bangalore, the ministry said.

The advertisements in local newspapers did not disclose the cost of the two projects, and a Reliance spokesman could not give details immediately.

Reliance is already constructing a 1,400 km pipeline to transport natural gas from the deep-sea fields off India's east coast to the western regions of the country.

Earlier this month, P.M.S. Prasad, head of Reliance's oil and gas business, said the company planned to build city gas distribution networks in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and West Bengal.

The Oil Ministry said the two new projects were to be developed on a common carrier basis, making it mandatory for Reliance to offer 33 percent of each pipeline's total capacity to other firms.

"The interested party would have to enter into a take or pay contract or any other mutually agreeable contract with the owner for usage of the proposed pipeline," the ministry said.

India produces 95 mmscmd of gas and the government expects this to rise to more than 190 mmscmd by 2009 after a series of gas finds off the east coast, including by Reliance, come on stream.

Source: Reuters India

Tax collection for vehicles from today

The Department of Transport will collect taxes for vehicles under non transport category (two-wheelers, cars, jeeps, vehicles fitted with rigs and three-wheelers used for personal purpose) for the next fiscal (2007-08) from March 26 to April 10.

P. Muruganandam, Regional Transport Officer (RTO), told reporters that the taxes would be collected between 10 a.m. and 1.30 p.m., on all working days including Saturdays.

Meanwhile, the office of RTO here would remain closed on Sundays and on Mahaveer Jayanthi (March 31) and on Good Friday (April 6), which fall during the collection period. He said the taxes would be collected at treasuries and sub-treasuries in the district too. The non-transport vehicles, which have completed 15 years from the date of its registration, should remit an additional tax called `green tax', if not paid.

In the case of vehicles bearing other State registrations, Motor Vehicle Tax would be accepted only after the ownership of the registration of vehicle was transferred or it was changed to the address of the vehicle owner residing in Tamil Nadu.

Mr. Muruganandam said that tax of vehicles fitted with air compressors would be collected only at the office of the RTO or at its `unit offices'.

Owners of non transport vehicles, who were remitting annual tax, could opt for `life time tax', if they wished. The RTO said that special register would be maintained for the collection of annual tax and green tax.

"Entire details pertaining to a particular vehicle such as class of vehicle, date of registration, validity of registration certificate, period up to which tax and green tax were paid and address of the registered owner, would be entered in these special registers for future reference," he said.

Source: The Hindu

SSLC Examinations begin

The Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) examination commenced in Tuticorin district on 22nd March.

A total of 19,859 students (9,639 boys and 10,220 girls) wrote the examination at 78 centres in the district.

Of them, 12,635 students (6,012 boys and 6,623 girls) took the examination at 51 centres in Tuticorin Educational District and the remaining, 7,224 (3,627 boys and 3,597 girls) appeared at 27 centres under Kovilpatti Educational District.

A total of 54 standing and mobile squads inspected the examination centres across the district to check for malpractice.

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, conducted a lightning inspection at Subbiah Vidyalayam Girls Higher Secondary School, to check the arrangements made by the Department of Education.

Tuticorin City Solid waste management project to be augmented

The Tuticorin City municipal council meeting held on 21st March, decided to augment the ongoing solid waste management project on an outlay of Rs.8.5 crore during the next financial year.

Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam said: "The administration would establish lights, compound wall and introduce windrows method of waste treatment, at the compost yard situated at Tharuvaikulam all at a cost of Rs 1.95 crore."

Besides, sanitary landfills would be set up on 15-acre plot situated inside the 25 acre-compost yard at Rs.3.80 crore.

A total of 300 tricycles would be purchased at Rs.84.6 lakh.

The remaining amount would be utilised to buy 25 bins. "Of the total project cost envisaged, Rs.6.8 crore would be obtained as grants from the Central Government, Rs.85 lakh as the State Government grants and the remaining Rs 85 lakhs would be taken from the corpus earmarked under the urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns," Ms. Thangam said.

Source: The Hindu

Sterlite to Expand to 2 lakh tonne Cu capacity

The UK based Vedanta group flagship Sterlite Industries, which recently completed its capacity expansion at the copper smelter in Tuticorin from 3 lakh tonne to 4 lakh tonne by debottlenecking, is looking at further enhancing its capacity by another 2 lakh tonne.

“We are currently doing a feasibility study to understand the viability of expanding the capacity at Tuticorin,” said Agarwal.

The smelting and refining costs at Tuticorin are one of the lowest worldwide. The expansion is expected to further help in reducing the costs of production.

The group has a substantial presence in copper globally. Around 30% of the group’s turnover comes from overseas, most of which is accounted for by copper.

Source: Financial Express

Summer special trains for Tuticorin announced

The following summer special trains have been introduced from April to June to meet passenger rush,

Train no.0615 Chennai Egmore-Tuticorin (weekly specials) will leave from Egmore at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays and arrive at Tuticorin at 6.45 a.m. on Wednesdays.

Train no.0616 will leave from Tuticorin at 3 p.m. on Wednesdays and reach Egmore at 4.30 a.m. on Thursdays.

Advance reservation for the trains will commence on March 18, according to a railway press release.

357 Villagers receive certificates for vocational training by Tuticorin Port Trust

N.K. Raghupathy, Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust, distributed certificates to 357 people from coastal villages in the Tuticorin district, who have successfully completed the vocational and skill training courses conducted by the Sethusamudram Corporation Limited.

The courses were conducted by the corporation under its Coastal Community Development Programme (CCDP) to offset the impact of Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project on residents of coastal villages.

The villagers were trained in tailoring, computers, cosmetic treatments and hairdressing, with the help of four non-governmental organisations, sources said.

The CCDP in toto provide livelihood opportunities to people of 328 coastal villages in Tuticorin, Ramanthapuram, Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, Tanjavur and Pudukottai districts.

Mr Raghupathy also gave away goats, sewing machines and wet grinders to 25 women from coastal hamlets, at the function.

357 Villagers receive certificates for vocational training by Tuticorin Port Trust

N.K. Raghupathy, Chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust, distributed certificates to 357 people from coastal villages in the Tuticorin district, who have successfully completed the vocational and skill training courses conducted by the Sethusamudram Corporation Limited.

The courses were conducted by the corporation under its Coastal Community Development Programme (CCDP) to offset the impact of Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project on residents of coastal villages.

The villagers were trained in tailoring, computers, cosmetic treatments and hairdressing, with the help of four non-governmental organisations, sources said.

The CCDP in toto provide livelihood opportunities to people of 328 coastal villages in Tuticorin, Ramanthapuram, Nagapattinam, Tiruvarur, Tanjavur and Pudukottai districts.

Mr Raghupathy also gave away goats, sewing machines and wet grinders to 25 women from coastal hamlets, at the function.

Annammal College of Education for Women Celebrated 45th College Day

Plays, folk and classical dance performance by students marked the 45th College Day celebrations of Annammal College of Education for Women,Tuticorin held on 16th March.

A. Francis, principal, V.O. Chidambaram College, who was the chief guest, gave away certificates to toppers of B.Ed. and M.Ed. courses conducted by the college during 2005-06.

Motorbike rally with 1000 Policemen to creat Awareness for Wearing Helmet

A motorbike rally organised by the district police administration, in Tuticorin on 17th March, to generate awareness of the importance of wearing helmets, created a good impact among two-wheelers in the City.

Led by the Superintendent of Police, John Nicholson, 1000-odd policemen, all wearing helmets, took out a rally from the District Police Office (DPO) to Victoria Extension Road, through W.G.C. Road, Ettayapuram road and important commercial areas in the town covering a distance of about 20 km.

It culminated on the office premises of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.

The policemen held placards on their two-wheelers, carrying messages like `wear a helmet, save a priceless life', `lullaby brings sleep to a child, helmet brings long life to humans'.

Some other messages displayed were `Helmet is to the head what a reservoir is to agriculture crops' and `Helmet save our lives like Dharma save the mankind'.

Mr. John Nicholson interacted with school children at each of these points and explained the road safety norms to them.

Official sources said that the awareness rally gained significance considering the increase in number of fatal accidents in the district during the last few years.

Of the total 234 fatal accidents reported in the district in 2006, two-wheelers were involved in 46 cases.

The Deputy Inspector General of Police (Tirunelveli range), K.C. Mahali, told The Hindu that about 25 per cent of them involved in these 46 cases died of head injuries.

"Had the victims worn helmets, their lives could have been saved," he said.

Source: the Hindu

Fisheries institute's effort to boost crab population

The Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) here has sea ranched 8 lakh larvae of `Scylla serrata', a species of mud crab, into the Gulf of Mannar (GoM) at Kaswari Island near Tuticorin on 17th March.

It was done under a project sponsored by the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, which was aimed at enhancing the mud crab population in the Mannar.

V.K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, told The Hindu that the larvae of Scylla serrata were reared at the Marine Biological Laboratory of the FCRI.

"A mother crab weighing 910 gram and a male crab weighing 1.1 kilogram were bred in a fibre-reinforced plastic tank of 1,000 litre capacity and the larvae produced were grown to a length of 0.4 mm under the laboratory condition, before it was sea ranched," he said.

According to him, sea ranching is the most effective solution to augment the stock of mud crab resources in the GoM, which was fast depleting in the last few years owing to various reasons.

He said that at present, the export of marine crab products fetch foreign exchange to the tune of Rs.57.5 crore to the national exchequer

"To protect the mud crab population, use of traps should be restricted in the region particularly in the peak spawning season starting from March to July every year," Dr Venkataramani said.

Besides, the fishermen should be educated to return the live berried females, caught in the net, into the sea, to sustain the crab resources.

Source: The Hindu

The Reality of Adam's Bridge Revealed

Adam's Bridge is not a man made structure rather it's a geological phenomenon, according to N. Ramanujam, Head, Post Graduate Department of Geology and Research Centre, V.O. Chidambaram College, Tuticorin.

He was reacting to both political and apolitical statements made by different sections , relating Adam's Bridge to the epic "Ramayana."

He said that Adam's Bridge is only a chain of shoals between the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar, created by sedimentation owing to long shore currents.

Explaining the bridge's geological history, he said both the Palk Strait and the GoM were once part of the Cauvery basin, which was formed during the separation of India and Antarctica about 70 million years ago during the `Gondwana period.'

They were combined till a ridge was formed in the region owing to thinning of earth's crust. The development of this ridge augmented the coral growth in the region.

"The coral cover acted as a `sand trapper' leading to the formation of Rameswaram Island," Dr. Ramanujam said.

The long shore currents on the southern side of island created a discontinuous shoreline eastward from Dhanuskodi to Talaimannar, which's the Adam's Bridge.

He dispelled the fears of a few environmentalists and non-governmental organisations that destruction of Adam's Bridge to facilitate the implementation of Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project (SSCP) would create geological imbalance in the region.

"Considering that Adam's Bridge is just sedimentary deposits, its removal will not create any geological imbalance," he said.

Dr. Ramanujam ruled out any impact of the SSCP on the fragile eco-system in the GoM.

"Since the dredging was mainly carried out in Palk Strait, which was far away from the valued environmental assets in the GoM biosphere's buffer zone, coral reef eco system will not be affected," he said.

Source: The Hindu

Conservation of lobsters Emphasized

The Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI), Tuticorin conducted a workshop, funded by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, on `Conservation of lobsters in the Gulf of Mannar' on 17th March.

Resources persons from FCRI took classes on topics such as lobster resources along Tuticorin coast, taxonomy and identification of lobsters, breeding techniques, production of lobster seeds and present stock biomass of lobsters in the Gulf of Mannar.

According to V. K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, there was an urgent need to conserve the lobsters in the Mannar since its population was fast diminishing over the last five years. He said the fishermen should put back egg-bearing lobsters, caught in the nets, into the sea to enhance its production.

"Every stakeholder should try to prevent the destruction of coral beds in the Gulf of Mannar, In all, 30 fish traders, entrepreneurs, forest department staff and members of various eco development clubs constituted by the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust, participated.

Source: The Hindu

Madurai - Tuticorin Railway line to be Electrified next Year

Speaking to journalists at Vellore Cantonment on Sunday, Union Railway Minister for the State R Velu said that the ministry would upgrade 334 stations in the country. Electrification of the tracks would be given priority in the Tenth Five Year Plan, he said and added ‘‘According to the prime objective of the Five Year Plan, the ministry has given approval for the electrification of 167 km in Villupuram-Tiruchy route.’’

The 147 km Tiruchy-Madurai would be given approval in this fiscal, while that of Madurai-Tuticorin and Maniyatchi-Nagercoil railway lines would be given approval in the coming years, he said.

Programme held to explain conservation techniques

The Minister for Animal Husbandry, P. Geetha Jeevan, inaugurated a workshop on `Conservation of marine resources in Gulf of Mannar,' organised by the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust (GOMBRT) in Tuticorin on 9th March.

The programme was organised to explain conservation techniques to members of eco development committees functioning in 67 coastal villages in the district.

J.K. Patterson Edward, director, Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute, affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, said that destructive fishing techniques and over exploitation had reduced live coral cover in the region in the last decade.

"Already, reefs over 32 sqkm were degraded," he said.

Similarly, pearl oyster beds and sea cucumbers had been reduced over the last few years, owing to indiscriminate harvesting.

Though awareness among the coastal community had gone up in the past five years, they are yet to give importance to "sustainable harvest."

"A survey conducted along Tuticorin coast in 2001 said that only 29 per cent men and three per cent women know about the importance of corals on fishery production," he said.

However, during a similar survey in 2004, it was found that 80 per cent men and 20 per cent women had gained knowledge on corals.

Ms. Jeevan released a manual, a booklet and a compact disc, which contained details about the status of marine resources in the Mannar region.

The materials tell the readers about endangered creatures, the hunting of which is now prohibited under Wildlife Protection Act.

The Minister also distributed fishing nets to 25 villagers from Pazhayakayal and disbursed revolving fund assistance to the tune of Rs. 2.6 lakh to 13 self-help groups.

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, and senior forest officials V.K. Melkani, L. Nadhan, V. Naganathan and S. Shembagamoorthy were present.

Seminar on Career Guidance held in Tuticorin

A seminar-cum-exhibition on career guidance was organised by the Department of Employment and Training at Bishop Caldwell College here on 8th March.

The programme was conducted to provide information to undergraduate and postgraduate students about various career opportunities and courses available.

Inaugurating the programme, Collector R. Palaniyandi said that students should develop communication skills along with technical knowledge to get into well-paid jobs.

The youth should always aim higher rather than being content with a university degree.

"It is time that we enrolled more students into higher education stream as only 10 percent of the children aged between 18 and 23 years in the country have opted for higher studies," he said.

K. Suganthi, Commercial Tax Officer, and Kalaiselvan, District Employment Officer, explained on how to prepare for competitive examinations such as Civil Services Examination conducted to select candidates to Indian Administrative Service and Indian Police Service.

The students were also told about financial assistance available under schemes such as Prime Minister's Rozgar Yojana, which offer loans to educated unemployed youth.

A.C.G. Venantius, Chairman, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Tuticorin branch, answered queries on Chartered Accountancy course.

Information on various career were displayed at an exhibition.

Admission procedure to enter National Defence Academy at Khadakwasla near Pune and Indian Military Academy at Dehradun, were explained.

Details on various value-added courses offered by polytechnics in costume designing were provided.

Source: The Hindu

St. Mary's College celebrates 59th College Day

"The youth should never end the learning process with their college days. They should constantly try to amass knowledge, information and wisdom for overall development," Cynthia Pandian, Vice-Chancellor, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, has said.

She was speaking at the 59th College Day celebrations at St. Mary's College here on Wednesday.

Ms. Pandian said that there was a paradigm shift in the objective of education as the nation entered 21st century.

"While we were providing education to prepare students for economic growth in the last century, the focus had shifted to human development," she said. "Every individual should have the wealth of wisdom in him.

Students are now expected to `create' knowledge by synthesising and interpreting the information gathered through Internet and other mass media. Application of knowledge will give birth to wisdom," Ms. Pandian said.

Human development involves improvement of not only technical and manufacturing skills, but also soft skills such as communication, decision-making and problem solving.

Quoting Henry Ford, she said that those who quit learning would become "old," whether he was 20 or 80.

She called upon the students to think beyond geographical boundaries to make them better employable. "Never confine career options to the jurisdiction of a town or a State," Ms. Pandian said.

More women should take up higher education, which was a requirement for 70 per cent of the jobs available in the present day.

"At present, only 40 percent of girl students, who had completed higher secondary school education in the region, were found to have enrolled in colleges under M.S. University," she said.

As opportunities are plenty, it is a pity that only two per cent of women are placed in professional jobs.

Arulananda Mary, college Principal, spoke.

Source: The Hindu

`Samskrita Sandhya' held at Tuticorin

The Tuticorin chapter of `Samskrita Bharati,' a movement with Delhi as headquarters, conducted `Samskrita Sandhya' at Annammal College of Education here recently.

It was intended to popularise Sanskrit as a language for national integration.

Delivering keynote address, N. Sriram, State organiser of Samskrita Bharathi, said that it is a myth that Sanskrit was difficult to learn.

He explained the importance of the language as a tool to explore resource materials from ancient periods.

"Sanskrit was even the `lingua franca' of our country, many centuries ago," he said.

Plays and dances in Sanskrit were conducted. A. Joycilin Shermila, Principal, Annammal College Of Education For Women, distributed certificates to candidates, who successfully completed Sanskrit courses conducted last year.

Source: The Hindu

New study to save marine resources

The Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Trust (GOMBRT) will tie-up with research institutions to carry out studies for better conservation of resources in the Gulf of Mannar and its future management during 2007.

The Chief Conservator of Forests, V.K. Melkani, said here on Friday that the GOMBRT would come out with a comprehensive inventory on the potential of marine wealth through the research.

"Studies on inventory would be carried out with technical assistance from universities in the State, Fisheries Colleges and Research Institute and Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute, both in Tuticorin, and Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute," he said.

The proposed inventory would contain details pertaining to fishery potential, habitat of pearl oysters, area coverage of sea grass and population details of endangered aquatic creatures such as dugong dugon (sea cow).

It would also have statistics related to environmental issues such as quantity of effluents flowing in every day.

The groundwork on inventory preparation would commence in April.

Mr. Melkani said that the GOMBRT would disburse about Rs. four crore as revolving fund assistance to people staying in 222 coastal hamlets spread over Tuticorin and Ramanathapuram districts this year (2007).

"It is to enhance their livelihood activities and reduce dependency on marine resources in the Mannar biosphere," he said.

The fund was allocated to the trust by United Nations Development Programme-Global Environmental Facility.

Mr. Melkani said that the State Government would come out with a detailed management plan before May 31 to conserve and enhance the marine resources in the reserve.

The draft plan was being prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun. It would be ready before March 31.

The final document would include a new monitoring protocol to review the implementation of Wildlife Protection Act.

It would also highlight techniques to be followed to restore the damaged coral reef ecosystem, if any.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Railway station gets SBI Kisoks

State Bank of India (SBI) and the Madurai Division of Southern Railway signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) here on Wednesday to install Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) at eight railway stations for the convenience of the public.

Briefing presspersons, N. Sadasivam, Deputy General Manager, SBI, said the ATMs would be installed at Madurai, Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Dindigul, Virudhunagar, Kovilpatti, Kodaikanal Road and Ambathurai railway stations within a month. Efforts were on to set up ATMs at Karaikudi and Manapparai.

The bank also plans to set up Internet ticketing kiosks as an additional service to passengers at Madurai, Tirunelveli, Dindigul, Virudhunagar and Tuticorin stations.

Divisional Railway Manager Hemant Kumar said more than 45,000 passengers were using the services of the Madurai Division every day. Madurai Junction alone catered to more than 11,000 commuters each day. He appealed to the bank to consider installing `point of sales swiping machines' in Tuticorin railway station to ensure hassle-free freight transaction.

Source: The Hindu

Plea to expedite flyover work in Tuticorin

The members of Tuticorin People's Co-ordination Committee, a consortium of various movements and passengers associations, staged a demonstration in front of the Tuticorin railway station on 6th March.

They were urging the authorities concerned not to shift the railway station to Milavittan, situated on the outskirts of the town, to reduce the traffic blocks caused due to the closure of railway gate at Ettayapuram road.

"The officials should take steps to expedite the construction of the flyover in the segment, rather than shift the station altogether," they pointed out.

According to the agitators, shifting of the station would pose hardship to passengers since Milavittan was not properly connected to the town by road.

A.P.C.V. Shanmugam, secretary of Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, led the agitation.

Source: The Hindu

IOB Chennai wins Sterlite Trophy in Tuticorin

Eastern Railway (women) recovered from a first set loss to KSEB, Thiruvananthapuram, to take the next three and the match and won a berth in the super league of the national volleyball league championship in Kochi.

The railway women overcame KSEB 23-25, 25-22, 25-21, 25-22 in the last match of the four-team women's league (preliminary III) for the team's third win and the Sterlite Trophy here last night.

In the men's section, IOB Chennai won the Sterlite Trophy prevailing over ONGC, Dehra Dun, 25-21, 20-25, 25-19, 25-20.

Source: Chennai Online

Le Royal Meridien, 5 Star Hotel in Tuticorin

Appu Hotels, which owns Le Royal Meridien (part of the US-based Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide), Chennai, is in the process of setting up 5 Star Hotel in Tuticorin.

The company is still scouting for land in Tuticorin for its new hotel, for which investment figures have not yet been finalised. The Tuticorin hotel will have 150 rooms.The company is planning to employ about 200 people in Tuticorin.

Nalina Saravanan, director- operations, Le Royal Meridien, Chennai said this in a recent press release.

Seminar on `Value Added Tax' held in Tuticorin

The Department of Information and Public Relations organised a seminar on `Value Added Tax' in Tuticorin on Saturday(3rd,March) evening. This was part of the multi-media campaign launched by the district administration to highlight the achievements of the State Government.

Interacting with industrialists and the general public, S. Sukumaran, Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, said that a sum of Rs. 11 crore was generated as VAT revenue from Tirunelveli division, comprising Tuticorin, Tirunelveli, Virudhunagar and Kanyakumari districts during January this year, the first month of its inception.

A total of Rs. 22 crore was utilised as input tax credit by registered dealers during January, of which input tax credit availed from the opening stock stood at Rs. 16 crore and the remaining from purchase. "As traders were allowed to take credit of input tax paid at the time of purchase, VAT will not have any cascading effect on prices," he said. V. Balusamy, Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, explained how VAT was beneficial to the traders because of its transparency. "It has been proven in the countries, where VAT was implemented, that there was a heavy flow of revenue to the Government," he said.

The introduction of VAT has facilitated a simplified compounding tax system for the traders who have a turnover less than Rs 50 lakh per annum, by which only 0.5 percent was levied as tax.

The rates of interest under VAT are fixed at one percent, four per cent and 12.5 percent on goods eligible for input tax credit.

A full-fledged VAT is in essence an ad valorem tax levied on the supply chain from production to distribution and retail.

D.R. Kodeeswaran, Secretary, Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tuticorin, and A. Deivanayakam, Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, took part in the discussion.

Source: The Hindu

Police raid Lankan refugee camps in Tuticorin

Special police teams carried out lightning search operations at several refugee camps sheltering Sri Lankan refugees in Tuticorin on 2nd March.

Several hundred policemen led by Deputy Inspector General Christopher Nelson carried out the search operation at the refugee camps which housed Lankan Tamil refugees. Policemen interrogated suspicious persons and carried out the head count in every camp wherever the search was done.

The belongings of the refugees were also thoroughly checked by the police teams and they were severely warned not to get involved in covert activities and allow the LTTE suspects to infiltrate into the camps, reports said. Around two-thousand refugees are sheltered at Ramdas Nagar, Thappathi and Kulathuvaipatti camps in the Tutticorin area.

The search operations at the Lankan refugee camps were carried out following the recent arrests of three LTTE suspects who were hiding in refugee camps.

Source: Sunday Observer, Sri Lankan Newspaper

`Creativity and innovation' - training programme held in Tuticorin

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Madurai Zone, organised a training programme on `Creativity and innovation' for the executives/managers of industrial firms in Tuticorin on 1st March. Delivering the keynote address, Muthian Ramanathan, Director (training), Mind Dynamics Centre, Chennai, said that creative people are the need of the hour at a time when liberalisation, globalisation and privatisation had become synonymous with industrial transformation.

"Business managers should understand that it is not enough to be efficient and possess the ability to solve problems. They should also be creative to build durable and profitable advantages over their opponents," he said. To remain creative, one had to be constantly imaginative and should have a quest for novelty. "It is a myth to consider that creativity would come by itself during emergency. A creative person would always challenge status quo and confront assumptions," he said.

According to him, entrepreneurs and product managers should try to improve their products even if it is good, like the Japanese style of management. "This would help them thwart competition from surprise quarters."

13,557 students appear for Plus Two examination in Tuticorin

The `Higher Secondary Public Examination 2007' commenced at 50 centres in the Tuticorin district on 1st March.

Of this, 36 centres were located under Tuticorin educational district and remaining under Kovilpatti educational district.

Speaking to presspersons, the Collector, R. Palaniyandi, said that a total of 13, 557 students appeared for the examination and of them, 7,438 were girls.

As many as 9,470 students (4,162 boys and 5,308 girls) wrote the examinations at centres situated under Tuticorin educational district.

The Education Department had constituted 27 flying squads to check for malpractices and ensure smooth conduct of the examinations.

Of them, 13 squads comprising three members each would function in Tuticorin educational district, while 14 squads having two members each would operate in Kovilpatti educational district.

Earlier in the day, Mr. Palaniyandi conducted a lightning inspection at Caldwell Higher Secondary School. He told the Chief Educational Officer, P. David Balasingh, to ensure that the question papers reached the centres from the 11 `custodian points,' where they were stored under security, well ahead of the start of the examinations.

Boat race organised in Tuticorin

The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam cadres celebrated the 59th birthday of party General Secretary Jayalalithaa with pomp and gaiety in Tuticorin on 4th March.

Celebrations began in the morning with cadres breaking 59 coconuts on the beach road.

A boat race and swimming competition were conducted at the inshore waters at Threspuram, one of the busiest fishing hamlets in the State.

In all, 14 country boats fitted with motors took part in the race. Each boat, having three to seven fishermen in it, covered a distance of seven miles.

As many as 72 people participated in the swimming competition. The prizes were distributed by the former Minister, Anitha Radhakrishnan. N. Chinnadurai, Chairman of District Panchayat, and N. Suresh Kumar, municipal councillor, were present.

Source: The Hindu

Cultural competition held in V.O.C. College, Tuticorin

A university-level inter-collegiate cultural competition titled `Sangaram,' organised by the Students Federation of India (SFI), was conducted V.O. Chidamabaram College premises in Tuticorin on 3rd March. In all, students from 17 colleges affiliated to Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, took part in the competitions held under seven categories. A Francis, Principal, V.O.C. College, inaugurated the event.

Tuticorin airport to get Night landing facility soon

Glen Dickson, airport-in-charge of Tuticorin Airport, has said that plans were afoot to introduce night landing facilities in Tuticorin Airport as part of augmenting the operational infrastructure and sustaining the commercial viability of the Tuticorin airport.

Interacting with industrialists at a programme organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Tuticorin on 27th February, Mr. Dickson said that gadgets such as Precision Approach Path Indicator (PAPI) and runway lighting would be established shortly to help aircraft land safely during nights.

Plans are made to expand the runway from the present 1,350 metres to 1,800 metres once the required land is acquired. This would facilitate landing of bigger aircraft in the Tuticorin Airport. At present, smaller aircraft such as ATR-72 were operating from the airport.

Tuticorin Port Trust's new record

The Tuticorin Port Trust has handled 3,22,255 TEUs (Twentifoot Equivalent Unit) of containers in the current financial year till February 16, surpassing 3,21,060 TEUs of containers handled during the entire last fiscal, registering 15.63 percent growth.

Official sources said that this was the highest volume of containers handled in the history of the port.

Similarly, the port has handled 156.82 lakh tonnes of cargo between April 1 and February 16 this fiscal, against 151.78 lakh tonnes of cargo handled during the corresponding period during the last financial year, registering a growth of 5.04 lakh tonnes.

Road Safety Patrol members honoured in Tuticorin

The Deputy Inspector General of Police, Tirunelveli Range, Kanhu Charan Mahali, disbursed awards and certificates to outstanding members of Road Safety Patrol teams in Tuticorin on 24th February.

The function was organised with the objective of encouraging the school students, who contribute a lot in streamlining traffic system in the town by becoming the members of Road Safety Patrol teams. The Deputy Inspector General of Police thanked the students for their role in regulating vehicular traffic.

National Volleyball league championship to be held in Tuticorin

Tuticorin is one of the three centres, for conducting the preliminary round-1 in the National Volleyball league championship for men and women this year. The other two centres will be Hindalco, Renukoot (U.P) and Payyanoor Kerala.

The National league volleyball championship (Preliminary Round - 3) will be conducted at the temporary stadium at the Seena Vaana Government High School ground, Tuticorin from Feb. 27 to March 4.

Six teams in the men's section and four in women's section are taking part in the six-day championship.

The teams:

Men: ONGC, Dehra Dun, Punjab Police, IOB Chennai, Southern Railway, Chennai, The Muthoott group, Kerala and Jatra, Jatra Surt Sangha, Kerala.

Women: KSEB Thiruvananthapuram, Eastern Railway, Dr. Sivanthi Club, Chennai and Karnataka Police.

Action sought against cable operators in Tuticorin

Members of the Tuticorin Cinema Theatre Owners Association today submitted a memorandum to the Superintendent of Police, Sandeep Rai Rathore, demanding action against the cable operators who indulge in telecasting films violating the Copyrights Act.

The TCTOA members, who met Mr Rathore at the District Police Office (DPO), pointed out that due to the illegal telecast of latest films, viewers preferred to stay in the luxury of their homes to watch the movies rather than spend ticket fares, leaving the theatres wore deserted look on many occasions. ``As a result, the profit of theatres gets eroded and the owners are finding it difficult to remit the entertainment tax'', they told the police official.

The members asked the SP to take action against the erring cable operators and initiate measures to curb the availability of VCDs in the open market.

Rare Crab Species `Corystes cassivelaunus,' found in Tuticorin

The Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) here has recorded `Corystes cassivelaunus,' a reddish brown `masked crab,' for the first time along the Indian coast in the Gulf of Mannar.

Belonging to the family of Corystidae, the species was traced by a team headed by T. Vaitheeswaran, a research fellow at the institute, at a depth of 100 metres. They were conducting an underwater survey to assess crab biodiversity in the Gulf of Mannar this week.

"The crab found was a female, measuring four cm weighing nine gm. It was identified by its elongated oval carapace, which is brown in colour," V.K. Venkataramani, FCRI Dean said.

The species is usually found in temperate waters along British and French coast. "It lays eggs on sandy beaches and feeds on invertebrates such as polychaete worms and bivalve mollusks," he said.

The females carry eggs for about 10 months and have the capability to reproduce for several years.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Municipal Council meeting held on Thursday

Noisy scenes and boycott by the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam councillors marred the proceedings of the Tuticorin Municipal Council meeting on Thursday.

Commotion began when the Chairperson, R. Kasturi Thangam, sought permission of the council to submit a memorandum to the authorities concerned for shifting the Tuticorin Railway Station to Milavittan.

"Shifting of the station will avoid traffic congestion in the town during the closure of three railway gates," she said.

Twelve AIADMK councillors, led by N. Suresh Kumar (Ward 8), protested the move saying that instead of shifting the station, flyovers should be constructed over the gates.

"Shifting is not feasible, considering logistic difficulties," the councillors said.

When Ms. Thangam refused to heed to their views, the AIADMK councillors boycotted the proceedings. They tore copies of the council's resolution to protest the "autocratic" governance of the municipal administration.

Tension prevailed for a while outside the hall as the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam councillors came out and got into a wordy duel with them. The police intervened and eased the tension.

Earlier, Ms. Thangam told the council that infrastructure development works at a cost of Rs 83.42 lakh, earmarked under the 12th State Finance Commission, would be taken up during the current fiscal.

Of the total amount, Rs. 26.85 lakh would be utilised to strengthen Kandasamypuram Main Road, South Cotton Road, Krishnarajapuram Fifth Street and Boopalrayapuram Sixth Street.

The remaining amount would be used to purchase a dumper placer, a weighing machine and garbage bins, all part of efforts to strengthen the ongoing solid waste management project and to settle outstanding dues to the Electricity Board.

Source: The Hindu

Workshop on interview techniques conducted in Tuticorin

A workshop on `Interview techniques' organised by the Annammal College of Education for Women was held on its premises in Tuticorin recently.

Resource person N. Rajalingam, faculty, Department of Management, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, explained the groundwork to be done by a candidate before facing an interview board. He also spoke on the `dos' and `don'ts' while preparaing curriculum vitae and how it could be readied to impress an interviewer.

Jewellers Protest in Tuticorin

Jewellery shops in the Tuticorin City closed thier Jewellery Shops on Thursday to protest police enquiry against a jeweller for getting goods from a "thief" . They said that the police took the owner of a shop to Thermal Nagar Police Station "unnecessarily and behaved in a rude manner." According to the police, he was taken to the station as he refused to give back the stolen goods.

Special medical camp conducted in Tuticorin

The Department of Health conducted a special medical camp under the `Varumun Kappom' scheme at Tuticorin on Friday.

It was organised to provide comprehensive health check up to the people residing in the jurisdiction of Mapillayoorani Primary Health Centre.

The Minister for Animal Husbandry, P. Geetha Jeevan, the Collector, R. Palaniyandi and the Deputy Director of Health Services, S. Uma, supervised the proceedings at the camp.

A team of 20 doctors and 30 para-medical staff examined about 700 people for communicable and non-communicable diseases. Minor ailments were attended to.

Blood and urine tests were carried out and modern gadgets such as semi auto analysers were used. Pregnant women underwent tests on ultra sonogram to check for abnormalities.

As many as 45 electro cardio gram tests were conducted. Ms. Uma said that allopathic medicines worth Rs. 7,500 and siddha medicines worth Rs. 1,800 were distributed free of cost.

Referral and follow up camps would be held at institutions such as Tuticorin Medical College and Hospital and Government Hospitals at taluk headquarters.

The entire data collected from the camp would be computerised and used for planning purposes.

Official sources said that a total of 252 camps would be organised in the district under the `Varumun Kappom' scheme before March 31, 2009.

Source: The Hindu

3.5 lakh larvae sea ranched in Tuticorin

A total of 3.5 lakh larvae of `Panulirus homarus,' a spiny lobster species, was sea ranched into the Gulf of Mannar by Fisheries College and Research Institute in Tuticorin on Friday.

The ranching was carried out by the institute as part of a Union Ministry of Environment and Forests-funded project titled `Conservation of lobsters in the Gulf of Mannar region.'

The lobsters were reared at the institute's marine biological laboratory by C.B.T. Rajagopalasamy and B. Srikrishnadhas, both from the Department of Fisheries Biology and Capture Fisheries, FCRI.

"A female lobster weighing 500 gm and a male lobster weighing 600 gm were bred in a fibre-reinforced plastic tank of 1,000 litre capacity and the larvae produced were grown to a length of 2 mm., before it was sea ranched," V.K. Venkataramani, FCRI Dean said.

Sea ranching of lobsters would enhance its population in the region, which was fast diminishing since 2002.

He told the fishermen to put back egg-bearing lobsters, caught in the nets, into sea to augment its production. "Every stakeholder should make efforts to prevent the destruction of coral beds in the Gulf of Mannar, which too caused the depletion of lobsters," he added.

Source: The Hindu

Inter-collegiate quiz held at Tuticorin

An inter-collegiate quiz competition for undergraduate students of Manonmaniam Sundaranar University was conducted by A.P.C. Veerabahu Endowment for Science and Technology at V.O.C. College in Tuticorin on Wednesday.

The team from Mallankara Catholic College, Kaliyikkavilai, represented by J. Shameel and S. Ajeesha, won. The team from G. Venkataswamy Naidu College, Kovilpatti, represented by G. Rajendran and N. Mohammed Ghouse, finished second.

The team from A.P.C. Mahalaxmi College for Women, Tuticorin, comprising C. Navukkarasi and A. Deena Mahalakshmi, finished third.

In all, 17 colleges took part in the competition.

G. Sukumar, Associate Professor of Micro Biology at Fisheries College and Research Institute, was the quizmaster.

Four held for attempt to smuggle sea cucumbers from Tuticorin

The police on 20th Feb. arrested four persons who were attempting to smuggle huge quantities of sea cucumbers, gastropods and starfish to Sri Lanka via Rameswaram.

Three motorised country boats, two cars, two motorcycles, 250 kg of `beche-de-mer' (dried processed sea cucumber), 250 kg of live sea cucumber, 172 gastropods, 300 litres of diesel, six LPG cylinders and 10 mobile phone sets, totally worth Rs.16 lakh, were seized from the accused.

According to experts, sea cucumbers, believed to have aphrodisiac properties, are widely used in Southeast Asian countries for preparing a health soup. A kilogram of sea cucumber fetched $50 in the international market.

Superintendent of Police John Nicholson told reporters that a police patrol team nabbed the accused from Threspuram shore. "Their interrogation revealed they were working for Meeraza and had transported contraband posing a threat to national security to Rameswaram. From there it was handed over to middlemen enroute to Sri Lanka."

The police are now on the look out for Meeraza, his accomplice Kannan and a "prominent" person of Ramanathapuram district.

Mr. Nicholson said patrolling had been strengthened along the 120-km coastline in the district. "We have established 11 coastal check-posts, besides five check-posts set up by the Coast Guard, to prevent infiltration and smuggling of goods to Sri Lanka."

Source: The Hindu

Workshop on English skills held in Tuticorin

A two-day workshop on `Techniques to improve skills in English' conducted by the Department of Education for teachers of Standards IX and X at Government and Government aided schools, concluded at Subbiah Vidyalayam Girls Higher Secondary School in Tuticorin on 17th Feb.

Interacting with the participants, Susan Sylvan, a retired language teacher from California, explained the salient features of `brain-based' education techniques followed in the U.S.

"Teachers should make use of the brain functions effectively to make learning more convenient," she said. Teachers should prepare the students for the classes by telling them what they would be taught for the day, before the commencement of any session, like preparing ground to plant a seed.

She called upon the teachers to develop the senses of children by asking them to change a poem into a sentence of prose that summarises what the author said.

The teachers should promote the value of English as a link language, which in turn would help the youth when they had to communicate with the outside world.

About 80 teachers attended the workshop.

70-year Old Man on World Bicycle Tour Visits Tuticorin

A 70-year old native of Rome on a world tour on bicycle, reached Tuticorin on 19th Feb.morning after covering 75,000 kms.

Januriver started his bicycle tour from Rome in 2000 and would end it in Beijing in 2008, the venue of next Olympics, after covering 73 countries, a release from the district sports department said.

In India he would be covering 4,500 kms spread across four states -- Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, kerala and Maharashtra.

He had arrived in Chennai on January 24. He left Tuticorin today to Tiruchendur and then to Nagercoil, on his way to Kerala.

Source: Zee News

Rs 500 crore SSN Institutions in Tuticorin

The Chennai-based SSN (Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar) Institutions will invest Rs 500 crore on building educational campuses in Tuticorin.

The campus at Tuticorin costing Rs 500 crore is proposed by academic year 2009. "It will come up on 1,000 acres of land that they've planned to acquire. The center would focus on providing under graduate and graduate courses in science, maths, physics, economics and law.

SSN Educational and Charitable Trust, which controls the institution, was founded by Mr Shiv Nadar (Founder of the HCL group and Chairman of HCL Technologies).All the proposed projects would be financed by SSN Trust.

The trust had applied for Deemed University status in June 2006 and expects to get it by academic year 2007.

Excerpts from Hindu Business Line

Mock drill on disaster management held in Tuticorin

The Fire and Rescue Services Department conducted a mock drill on disaster management techniques was held in Tuticorin on 15th February, to create awareness of the methods, which should be followed, at the time of calamities such as tsunami, earthquake and cyclone.

The drill named Service and Rescue was held at the Fishermen Colony near the sea adjacent to the Tuticorin Port Trust Guest House.

A team of officials led by R. G. Jeyakanthan, District Fire Officer, demonstrated the steps that should be followed as soon as the region received warning on tsunami.

The firemen exhibited techniques involved in evacuation of large number of people including children, aged persons and physically challenged people, quickly. They showed how to rescue people as well boats that got washed away by tidal waves using ropes.

Search and rescue techniques that should be adopted to save lives of people from debris, soon after an earthquake, was also displayed.

New facilities at Tuticorin fisheries college inaugurated

The Vice-Chancellor of Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, N. Balaraman, on Wednesday inaugurated a biotechnology laboratory, 20 larvae rearing tanks, an examination hall and a training centre for coastal aquaculture, at the Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI) here.

Mr. Balaraman also inaugurated a training programme on aquaculture techniques for 60 women members of self-help groups functioning at Tharuivaikulam and Anandamadam Pacheri.

FCRI Dean V.K. Venkataramani said that the tanks were established at a cost of Rs 10 lakh. They would rear larvae of shrimps, marine ornamental fish and fin fish on a large.

The training centre for aquaculture was set up on an outlay of Rs. eight lakh using funds allocated by the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India, and District Rural Development Agency.

"It's to disseminate aquaculture technologies such as crab and lobster fattening, seaweed culture and shrimp brood stock maintenance to potential entrepreneurs and members of various SHGs," Professor and Head of Maritech Research Centre at FCRI, S. Felix, said.

Source: The Hindu

New seafood processing unit to come up at Tuticorin Fisheries College

The Fisheries College and Research Institute will establish a production-cum-demonstration unit for `seafood processing and value-addition' on its premises here at a cost of Rs.45.5 lakhs allocated by the Indian Council for Agricultural Research, New Delhi, before the end of the current fiscal.

Of the project cost, Rs.5.5 lakh will be utilised for construction of the building and Rs.30 lakh for the establishment of cold storage, a water purification plant, a power washer, an effluent treatment plant, an air blast freezer and food processors. The rest will be earmarked for purchase of glassware, chemicals and packaging material.

50 kg of seahorses seized, 3 arrested in Tuticorin

Thalamuthunagar police seized about 50 kg of seahorses on Monday and registered cases against three persons in this connection.

The capture and sale of hippocampus, the endangered marine organism commonly known as seahorse, is banned under the Wildlife Act.

Police said nine others, including a cinema house owner, have been detained on suspicion and are being interrogated.

It is suspected that the consignment of seahorses was to be smuggled to Sri Lanka through Thoothukudi.

Police had earlier conducted an intensive search in the area based on a tip-off and recovered 10 kg of seahorses. They arrested Muthuravi (27) of Indiranagar in Thoothukudi and based on information furnished by him arrested two others - Saravanan (27) of Thalamuthunagar and Muthukutty (48) of Thermal Nagar Camp-I, Thoothukudi.

A total of four sacks containing 40 kg of preserved seahorses was also recovered from the duo.

According to SP Y John Nicholson, police are on the lookout for M K Muhaideen (45) of Kayalpattinam, who is alleged to have links with the accused.

The seized consignment is reported to be worth Rs 15 lakh in the international market.

Source: NewIndPress

FCI puts Tuticorin Port in dock

The Food Corporation of India, Thoothukudi, recently sought diversion of a ship carrying wheat imports for it to the Chennai Port from the Tuticorin Port. The communication had some accusing fingers pointed at the TPT.

In his message to the FCI Executive Director (South), the Assistant General Manager of the corporation recommended diversion of the vessel mv YICK WING from Tuticorin Port to Chennai Port “...due to the active North East Monsoon, non-availability of required covered accommodation at Tuticorin Port, including a transit shed, and the non-cooperation of the port trust authorities to FCI.”

It was also stated that the TPT was adamant on imposing Penal Berth Hire charges on the FCI stevedoring contractor, though the vessel was discharged within the ‘free time’.

The communication was forwarded to the FCI headquarters in New Delhi with some additions.

The Executive Director, in his message, stated that the TPT lacked covered storage facilities and added: “The vessel can be unloaded in Chennai Port without any difficulty as we are getting the required help and cooperation from the Chennai Port Trust authorities.”

These messages from the FCI officials prompted the Tenkasi MP, M Appadurai, to write to the Union Minister for Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution. Later, the MP too sought an order to divert the vessel to the Chennai Port, “considering the ground realities”.

Meanwhile, M/s Vicnivaas, a stevedoring agency, also came out complaining of the lack of storage facilities at the Tuticorin Port. According to sources in the company, the TPT management recently dismantled a shed that was on the land the company had taken on lease but failed to renew.

While the company defined the act as one borne out of personal enmity, the absence of the shed certainly did not help the TPT.

When this website's newspaper’s correspondent contacted TPT chairman N K Regupathy for his comments, he received a stock reply, “I am busy”.

However, a TPT official, requesting anonymity, told this website's newspaper that the letters by FCI-Thoothukudi and Tenkasi MP Appadurai had not come to the notice of the TPT authorities.

On the allegations about the lack of covered storage facilities at the port, the officer said the port had six godowns and two transit sheds that would be judiciously allotted among the private cargo handling agencies and the FCI.

Normally only about 20-30 percent of the storage space available at the port was in constant use, aided by prompt clearance of stored cargo. Nevertheless, this year a problem arose due to the bulk arrival of 6.21 lakh tonnes of wheat imported by the FCI during the last five months of 2006 as against the nil import of wheat during the same period the previous year.

The cargo took up 80 percent of the storage space and had not been cleared due to which TPT had to levy Penal Berth Hire on the stevedoring agency, explained the officer.

Commenting on the removal of the storage shed erected by Vicnivaas, the official clarified that it was only a temporary shed.

The structure was pulled down as the company’s licence period had expired and as per the port rules, while surrendering the land, the licensee should remove any temporary structure on it, the official said.

He, however, admitted that the FCI allegations should be given serious consideration as it could affect the business volume of Tuticorin port.

Source: New Ind Press

Orissa Art and Craft Fair inaugurated in Tuticorin

Municipal Chairperson R. Kasturi Thangam, inaugurated a 11-day Orissa Art and Craft Fair organised by the Utkal Hastasilpa Society, here on Saturday.

The fair offers a wide range of handloom and handicraft items from across the country, for all age groups and `pockets'.

Sarees priced between Rs.300 and Rs.1,500 have been exhibited in bold and unusual patterns with a subtle blend of colours.

The traditional Sambalpur sari is being offered at Rs 1,500.

Colourful Rajasthani and Kashmiri churidhars are available from Rs.300 to Rs 400.

The beautiful folk paintings from Orissa known as `Patachitra' (canvas-picture), which can adorn the walls, are offered in the range of Rs.200 to Rs.1,200.

The entire paintings have mythological theme.

In the handicraft section, wood-carvings from Saharanpur, brass work from Moradabad and madhubani painting from Bihar, are exhibited.

Gem stone paintings from Rajasthan, priced at Rs.300, look gorgeous.

Exquisite dresses from Rajasthan and Haryana, for both men and women, along with bed-spreads and door curtains are also available at the fair.

The stone carvings and palm leaf engravings made by the artisans from Orissa, are the other attractions.

"Stone carvings were made by craftsmen, who are the descendents of the builders of Jagannath and Konark temples in Orissa," says Bhagyarathi Jadhav, manager of the fair.

Interface between farmers, financial institutions

Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) organised an interface between farmers and financial institutions here on Friday to augment agriculture and allied activities in the district.

Representatives of Farmer's Clubs formed by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Suguna Poultry Farms Limited, and officials from NABARD and IOB, attended the programme.

K. Venkatesan, Zonal Manager, Suguna Poultry Farms Limited, explained the salient features and merits of contract farming in poultry sector, as well as the scope of poultry business in the country, to enthuse the farmers from this region to take up poultry rearing on a large scale.

He told them the `dos' and `donts' that farmers needed to be aware when they take up poultry rearing business.

In return, members of FCs at Aathanoor, Eppothumvendran, Sawyerpuram and Athimarapatti villages, told Mr. Venkatesan about their desire to supply maize cultivated by them on a massive scale here to the industry as poultry feed.

G. Venugopal, senior regional manager, IOB, said that interface of the kind would help the farmers and the banks since the latter would be able to improve their priority sector lending performance along with the new business tie-up.

R. Bharat Kumar, Assistant General Manager, NABARD, was present.

Source: The Hindu

Minister disburses welfare assistance in Tuticorin

Minister for Animal Husbandry P. Geetha Jeevan distributed welfare assistance worth Rs. 30.20 lakh to 199 beneficiaries at a function held at Collectorate here on Friday.

Of them, 190 persons received marriage assistance of Rs. 15,000 each under the Moovalar Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Memorial Marriage Assistance Scheme, eight couples got aid to the tune of Rs. 20,000 each under the Inter-caste Marriage Assistance Scheme and one received Rs. 10,000 under E.V.R. Maniammaiyar Memorial Marriage Assistance Scheme.

Ms. Jeevan said so far during the current fiscal, Rs. 92.55 lakh was disbursed as marriage assistance to 617 beneficiaries. Similarly, Rs. 5.40 lakh was given away to 28 couples, who had preformed inter-caste marriage, Rs. 10,000 to a widow for her remarriage and Rs. 2.7 lakh for the marriage of 27 orphan girls during the current financial year.

Collector R. Palaniyandi was present. Later at another function, she gave away free cycles to 104 students and educational assistance worth Rs. 2.37 lakh to 264 children in tsunami affected region.

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Fishermen meet Collector

Fishermen from Threspuram met the Collector R. Palaniyandi and the Superintendent of Police John Nicholson on Friday and asked them to take steps to reduce the `exorbitant' commission levied by auctioneers on the fish catch from them.

Around 500 fishermen owning country boats were on strike since Thursday, to protest the recent decision by the auctioneers to increase the commission on the catch from 6.25 per cent to 10 per cent. The fishermen wanted the auctioneers to stop the practice of taking away large quantity of fish from the catch as `gift' and subsequently selling it for high prices, rather than using it at their respective households.

Fishermen said they would keep off from the sea till the Collector finds an amicable solution to their problems.

Source: The Hindu

108.35 acres of wasteland to be developed in Tuticorin

The district administration will develop 108.35 acres of wasteland, distributed to 71 landless farm labourers under free land scheme, into cultivable land, adopting a `cluster-based' approach before the end of current fiscal.

The area identified under the project, situated at Kovilpatti, Ettayapuram and Sattankulam blocks, was divided into nine clusters, with each bunch having land spread over 10 to 16.75 acres, owned by a group of six to 14 farmers.

"In the first phase, we had taken up the conversion of wasteland at four clusters identified at Chettikurichi and Cinnamalaikundru, and during the final phase development works would be carried out at five clusters situated at Pidaneri, Manchanayakanpatti and Nambipuram villages," Collector R. Palaniyandi told The Hindu .

Of the Rs. 27.01 lakh earmarked for the cluster-based activities, Rs. 3.37 lakh would be utilised for land development, Rs. 2.74 lakh for planting various crops, Rs. 7.18 lakh for establishment of borewells at the rate of one for every cluster, Rs. 5.70 lakh for setting up irrigation systems, and Rs. 8 lakh for construction of two open wells at Nambipuram under Ettayapuram block.

"Under land development component, we would shape the land after clearing the entire wildly grown Prosophis Juliflora plants and plough it using tillers before planting the crops," said N. Pandiarajan, Project Officer, District Watershed Development Agency.

To augment irrigation, micro irrigation systems would be established, once the water sources like wells were constructed.

Dr. Palaniyandi said that cluster-based approach to develop land would be useful to farmers for judiciously using water resources and increasing profitability."

Source: The Hindu

Tuticorin Fishermen keep off sea

About 500-odd fishermen owning country boats at Threspuram, one of the busiest fishing hamlets in the state, kept themselves off from the sea here on Thursday. They were protesting against the exorbitant commission levied by the auctioneers operating at the fishing landing centre situated in Tuticorin.

According to the fishermen, the auctioneers had increased the commission on the catch from 6.25 per cent to 10 per cent recently.

Medical negligence kills woman in Tuticorin

In a case of sheer medical callousness, a woman who was admitted at a government hospital in Tamil Nadu for a surgery lost her life as she waited for over four hours for the surgeon to turn up.

Subiah's wife needed a laparotomy and the best address the poor carpenter knew was the government medical college hospital in Tuticorin.

He could not afford Rs 25, 000 that any private hospital would charge for the surgery.

But on the day of the operation the surgeon who was to operate upon Subiah's wife just did not turn up even four hours after the appointed time.

Left unattended, the patient died of excruciating pain.

"We need justice. We poor people can go only to the government hospital. We can't go to private hospitals," said Ramaselvi, victim's daughter-in-law.

So far, no action has been taken against the doctor.

The hospital claims that the surgeon was very much on the campus that day but decided to postpone the surgery after the patient's condition worsened.

But there's no explanation on why the surgeon did not visit the waiting patient or inform the family.

When NDTV took up the issue with state health minister, he promised action against the guilty.

"We've asked them to probe and give a report to me and the district collector. We will take action against whoever is found responsible," said K K S S R Ramachandran, Health Minister.

While for poor patients the government hospital is the only resort. Sadly, for some doctors, saving poor lives seem to be not a priority.

Source: NDTV

Chief Electoral Officer, Naresh Gupta reviews preparatory work in Tuticorin

Chief Electoral Officer, Naresh Gupta, has said that the ongoing exercise of photographing voters for preparation of photo electoral rolls in the district would be completed during the first week of April and the draft rolls would be published in the middle of April.

Speaking to reporters here on Thursday soon after reviewing the works for preparation of photo poll rolls, he said 83 per cent of the work was over.

The exercise of deleting the names of electors who were either dead or migrated to other districts, and those who did not reside at the addresses given in the list, published on September 27, 2006, was on and the process would be completed in another 15 days.

"It was expected that about seven per cent of names of electors found in the list would be deleted," he said. "Once the deletion process was completed, the coverage of photo electoral rolls would touch 90 per cent in the district."

The figure was expected to scale further up to 95 per cent at the time of publishing the draft photo poll rolls in mid-April, since steps would be taken to photograph the left-out voters too, as far as possible.

Revenue Divisional Officers of Tuticorin, Tiruchendur and Kovilpatti sub-divisions, S. Karunanidhi, Maruthanayakam and Sudalmani Pandian, respectively took part in the meeting.

Source: The Hindu

Peaceful polling in Tuticorin district

Polling for the posts of two village panchayat presidents, three village panchayat ward members and one town panchayat ward member in the district ended on Thursday.

A total of 55.4 per cent of electors exercised their franchise in the byelections held for the posts of presidents and ward members of village panchayats, while 84.7 percent of electors cast their votes to elect the ward member at Eral Town Panchayat.

Segmentwise, 73.1 per cent of the total 2,267 electors went to the polling station to elect the president of Meerankulam village panchayat and 50.2 per cent cast their votes to elect the president of Kulasekarapattinam village panchayat.

In the polls held to the posts of ward members at Padmanama Mangalam, Umarikadu and Tharuvaikulam village panchayats, 36.4 per cent, 66.3 per cent and 48.7 per cent electors exercised their franchise.

The counting is slated for February 9.

Official sources said that a total of 20 candidates were elected to the posts of village panchayat ward members, being the only candidates in the contest.

Similarly, Subbammal and Dhandayuthapani were elected to the posts of presidents of Paraikootam (Ottapidaram block) and Sivagnanapuram (Vilathikulam block) village panchayats, unopposed.

No election was held at ward number one of Moolakarai village panchayat under Tiruchendur block, since there was no contestant in the fray.

Source: The Hindu

French luxury liner Visits Tuticorin port

Giving a fillip to tourism in the region, m.v. Le Levant, a French luxury cruise liner, arrived with 64 tourists (59 Americans, one German, three Britons and an Indian) and 53 crew members onboard, at Tuticorin port on 5th January.

Designed for elite group of discerning cruise travellers, the 100-metre long vessel was equipped with 45 cabins over five decks and it has a shallow draught of 3.5 metres, allowing her to move close to the shore and sail through inland waterways.

The Tuticorin Port Trust officials gave a red carpet welcome to the tourists at the berth.

The entire visitors then embarked upon a sightseeing trip to historic and ancient places in Madurai in luxury coaches, en route to Chennai.

The tourists will board the vessel back at Chennai on February 8 and the voyage will continue to Visakhapattinam and Paradip, before culminating the trip at Kolkatta on February 14.Of the 64 tourists arrived here, 53 had boarded the ship when it touched the Indian coast at Mumbai on January 29, after it had sailed in from Muscat.

Judge from Germany visits Tuticorin to gain an insight into judicial system

Raimund Scherr, a judge from the constitutional court of Germany, completed a two-day visit to the Tuticorin city on Monday, as part of a project to study the judicial and criminal justice system in this part of the country.

He made a surprise visit to the North police station on Sunday and exchanged information with the police officials.

The Deputy Superintendent of Police (Town sub-division), Mohammed Ghori, explained to the German judge how a First Information Report (FIR) was registered soon after the occurrence of a crime.

Mr. Scherr told the police officials that top priority was given to human rights by the police and the judicial system in Germany.

He explained to them the procedures followed in the criminal justice system there.

On Monday morning, he visited the District Court complex and Tuticorin Bar Association office and interacted with the District Judge P. Gokul Das, Chief Judicial Magistrate Prabhudas, Judicial Magistrates and senior lawyers.

Shobana dazzles Tuticorin with eclectic performance

With a vibrant dance performance, Shobana, a national-award winning actress and danseuse, kept the audience spellbound at Abirami Mahal here on Sunday.


A disciple of Chitra Visweswaran and Padma Subramaniam, she presented a blend of dance forms at `Dance Fusion,' a programme organised by Kerala Samajam, Tuticorin chapter.

The programme started with a performance titled `Anjali' with music composed by violin maestros Ganesh and Kumaresh. Ms Shobana and her troupe followed it with a few numbers describing Shiva.

The recital of traditional `Kailasavasa Varnam,' with the lyrics in Malayalam, was eclectic and the dancers performed it with consummate ease. A powerful inner rhythm guiding her, Shobana recited `Shyama', one of her offerings.

The one-and-a-half hour show ended with a dance played to the tune of `Vande Mataram,' composed by A. R. Rahman.

According to Kerala Samajam sources, a major portion of the earnings from the show will be utilised for social causes.

Source: The Hindu

1,172 free TV sets to be distributed in Tuticorin

Collector R. Palaniyandi has said that the administration had made elaborate arrangements for the second phase of free distribution of colour television sets in the district from February 15.

Speaking to presspersons in Tuticorin on Monday, he said that a 1,172 television sets would be distributed to the poor from one village panchayat at each of the seven Assembly constituencies in the district.

Of the 1,172 beneficiaries identified, 94 were from Rajavinkoil village panchayat (Ottapidaram constituency), 116 from Kumarasakkanapuram (Vilathikulam), 185 from Sinthalakarai (Kovilpatti), 155 from Alikudi (Sattankulam), 159 from Vadakusilukai (Srivaikundam), 104 from Melapudukudi (Tiruchendur) and 359 were from Mullakadu (Tuticorin).

In the subsequent months, we have planned to distribute colour television sets at a rate of 7,000 sets a month, to reach the target of 80,000 envisaged for the district, before December 31," Dr. Palaniyandi said.

On the selection of beneficiaries, he said that the TVs were distributed to ration card holders who did not own a colour television set.

Besides, the beneficiary should be a resident of a village panchayat having power and cable TV connection.

The Collector said that 4,900 free Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) connections would be distributed under `free gas connection scheme' in the district on February 25, as part of the second phase of distribution.

Of them, 700 persons from Tuticorin taluk and 600 each from Srivaikundam, Tiruchendur, Sattankulam, Kovilpatti, Vilathikulam, Ottapidaram and Ettayapuram taluks, would receive the connection and stove.

Under the third phase of distribution, 2,486 poor persons, who face hardships in cooking by using kerosene and firewood, would be benefited.

Later, the Collector gave away welfare assistance worth Rs 35,000 to three beneficiaries, under various government schemes, at the grievance day meeting at the Collectorate.

Source: The Hindu

Team from Japan visits Tuticorin

A five-member technical team from Pan Pacific Copper, Japan, visited the Tuticorin City recently to study the industrial practices followed here.

They held an interaction with top officials from Sterlite Copper, an industrial house situated at SIPCOT Industrial Estate off Tuticorin-Madurai Highway.

Kishore Kumar, Chief Executive Officer of Sterlite Industries (I) Limited, explained to foreign delegates the safety, quality, human resources and environment norms followed by the company to comply with international market specifications.

In return, the Japanese team shared their experience in the manufacturing of refined copper and precious metals since the company was established by Nippon Mining and Metals and Mitsui Mining and Smelting in October 2000.They explained how the firm tapped the potential for copper in East Asia as the demand rose in tandem with the economic development of the region over the last few years.

Diamond jubilee celebration of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute held in Tuticorin

A yearlong diamond jubilee celebration of Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), under the Union Ministry of Agriculture, commenced in Tuticorin recently .

The institute organised an exhibition on its premises to elucidate the culture of pearl and oyster, seed production of sea cucumbers and marine biodiversity of the Gulf of Mannar to college and schools students.

Different varieties of ornamental fish such as groupers and cat fish, along with sponges and corals, were displayed. The marine aquarium on the premises was thrown open to visitors. The institute plans to conduct quiz and elocution competitions for children and hold `brainstorming' sessions to disseminate information on marine creatures through out the year.

The Principal Scientist at CMFRI, P. Muthiah, said that the institute would intensify research to develop technologies for breeding and seed production of groupers, ornamental fish and sea breams in the diamond jubilee year.

Besides, plans are afoot to strengthen the database on marine fish landings through enhanced surveys.

Hostels for SC, ST students opened in Tuticorin

The Minister for Adi Dravidar Welfare, A. Tamilarasi, laid the foundation stone for two community halls and inaugurated four hostels for SC/ST students in various parts of the district on 3rd January.

Official sources said that the community halls, coming up at Adi Dravidar colonies in Muthammalpuram and Ottudanpatti, would be established on an outlay of Rs six lakh each.

The Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation (TAHDCO) would complete the construction of both the halls during the first quarter of the next fiscal (2007-08), the sources said. Of the four new hostel buildings opened, one each was established at Chillankulam and M.K.Nagar, and two at Subbammalpuram, all under Ottapidaram taluk. The Minister for Animal Husbandry, P. Geetha Jeevan, the Collector, R. Palaniyandi, and the Secretary (Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare) to the Government, P.A. Ramiah, were present.

`Fisfest' - Inter-collegiate cultural fest held in Tuticorin

The 10th inter-collegiate cultural competitions, `Fisfest', conducted by Fisheries College and Research Institute, Tuticorin concluded on 2nd January.

In all, 250 students from 13 colleges took part in the event. Competitions were held in vocal, group dance, instrumental music, flower arrangement, rangoli and painting.

Kamaraj College of Engineering and Technology, Virudhunagar, and M.D.T. Hindu College, Tirunelveli, bagged the overall first and second prizes.

Janani of Kamaraj College of Engineering and Technology, Virudhunagar, and Franklin of M.D.T. Hindu College, Tirunelveli, were adjudged `Miss Fisfest' and `Mr. Fisfest' respectively for bagging the maximum number of individual titles.

A. Christian, Managing Director, Britto Seafoods, distributed prizes. V.K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, was present.

New Buses from Tuticorin connecting Coimbatore, Salem and Tirupur flagged off

3 Buses to Conect Tuticorin with Coimbatore, Salem and Tirupur, at a cost of Rs.11 lakhs each.

The Minister for Animal Husbandry, P. Geetha Jeevan, flagged off four new bus services of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) and State Express Transport Corporation (SETC) at the Tuticorin New Bus Stand yesterday.

Three of the services are being operated by TNSTC from Tuticorin to Coimbatore, Salem and Tirupur daily in both directions. Newly built buses, each costing Rs 11 lakh, have been brought in.

The other daily service, operated by SETC on ultra deluxe bus, is between Eral near here to Chennai via Tuticorin, Aruppukottai, Madurai, Tiruchi, Ulundurpet and Villupuram.

Official sources said that the tariff for Tuticorin-Salem service (via Aruppukotai, Madurai, Dindigul, Karur and Namakkal) was fixed at Rs. 130, while Coimbatore bound passengers would be charged Rs. 117. The fare from Tuticorin to Tirupur was fixed at Rs 106.

Ms. Jeevan said that about 25 demands of bus passengers and various trade associations in the district pertaining to new services and extension of existing services were redressed by the State Government in the last eight months.

R. Palaniyandi, Collector, complimented the TNSTC, Tirunelveli Division, for improving the average fuel efficiency from 4.15 km for every litre of diesel to 5.15 km during the current fiscal.

Manonmaniam Sundaranar University conducts workshop on career guidance in Tuticorin

The Manonmaniam Sundaranar University conducted a workshop on `Personal effectiveness, healthcare and career guidance,' at V.O.C. College, yesterday, as part of human resource development programme for the youth.

Interacting with students from different colleges, X. Rosary Mary, Director, Department of Youth Welfare at the varsity, stressed upon the need for a paradigm shift from efficiency to effectiveness for overall growth of human beings, especially youth.

"What's the use of a person possessing efficiency in abundance without knowing how to use it effectively," she said, adding that, "effectiveness implies awareness of where one is heading."

Ms. Mary explained the concept of `theme centred interaction' (TCI), a participatory learning method to facilitate personality development.

Resource persons from different walks of life took classes on `career guidance' and `healthcare' during the afternoon session.

Students from 21 colleges affiliated to Manomaniam Sundaranar University attended the workshop. Certificates were distributed at the valedictory.

GOvernment Employees protest to withdraw false cases

Members of Tamil Nadu Government Employees Association, Tamil Nadu Revenue Officials' Association and Tamil Nadu Rural Development Officers Association, staged a demonstration in front of the Collectorate in Tuticorin, yesterday. They were protesting against "foisting of cases" by the police against a few revenue officials. They alleged that the police took up a case against M. Natarajan and Saminathan, based on "false complaints" lodged by a few lawyers at Tiruchendur.

They appealed to the Collector to intervene and take steps to withdraw the "false cases" against the officials. About 200 people took part in the agitation.

IBM Research centre to come up at Kovilpatti

The multi-national computer giant, IBM, and National Engineering College, have signed an agreement on Thursday to establish a Centre of Excellence for IBM web sphere software at Kovilpatti.

The centre will be established under the umbrella of IBM Academic Initiative, a global exercise launched by the company to groom computer talent.

College authorities said that the centre would create opportunities for students to carry out research in emerging areas of information technology.

According to the pact, both parties will form a steering committee to work closely with educators to teach students the skills required to keep themselves abreast of changes in the sector.

The centre will focus on web technologies and train students on high-end systems. A three-day international conference on `Advances in electronics and communications, organised by the National Engineering College, commenced on its premises on Thursday.

Goerg Boeck from Berlin University of Technology explained the development of RF-CMOS technologies, RF-architectures and re-configurability principles for mobile communication.About 30 scientists from New Delhi, Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune and Dehra Dun presented research papers on the inaugural day on various topics such as real time emulation for embedded system validation, multi user detection for continuous speech using quantum signal processing and voice controlled power wheelchair.

"With NASSCOM-Mckinsey report-2006 predicting a shortfall of more than five lakh technically skilled professionals by 2010, it is important for the industry to contribute to the growth of high-end technical education in the country and hence the decision to forge relationship with the college," said R. Dhamodaran, director, Software Group and Developer Relations, IBM India.

Tuticorin Railway Station to be upgraded at Rs. 1 Crore

Hemant Kumar, Divisional Manager, Southern Railway (Madurai division), has said that the Tuticorin railway station would be upgraded to a `model station', enhancing the infrastructure facilities by leaps and bounds.

Interacting with a group of industrialists, organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Tuticorin, recently, he said that new facilities like foot over-bridge connecting the first and second platforms, a VIP lounge and a waiting hall, among others, would be established at an `estimated outlay' of Rs.1 crore to help the station attain the status.

On the plea of industrialists to have an overnight train connecting Tuticorin with Coimbatore, he said the request would be considered only after the double laning work between Madurai and Dindigul was completed.

"Presently, the track on the sector was utilised 125 per cent of its capacity between 8 p.m. and 7 a.m., the following day, and hence there was no possibility of introducing a new train," he told them.

When some industrialists pointed out the `pathetic' condition of the majority of coaches used of Pearl City Express (Tuticorin to Chennai Egmore), whereas good coaches were used in other trains originating from the division, the Divisional Manager said "we are not showing any step motherly attitude to the passengers here".

"At the moment, coach requirement was far exceeding the production. We are expecting more new coaches, since plans are afoot to augment coach production at the Integral Coach Factory, Chennai, and the Rail Coach Factory, Kapurthala, besides a new coach production unit in the country," he said.

Replying to the suggestion by D.R. Kodeeswaran, secretary, ICCIT, for more ticket counters at Tuticorin railway station, Mr Kumar said "if it was found that a reservation clerk was handling more than 200 requisitions/applications per shift, we would allot more counters".

On the demand for a change in the departure time of Pearl City Express on its return journey from Chennai Egmore to Tuticorin, he said the division had already suggested the Southern Railway head quarters in this regard.

Move to conserve lobster in the Gulf of Mannar

Five lakh larvae of `Panulirus Homarus,' a spiny lobster species, reared by the Fisheries College and Research Institute (FCRI), a constituent college of Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, were sea ranched into the Gulf of Mannar at Tuticorin on 26th January.

Dr.V.K. Venkataramani, Dean, FCRI, said "sea ranching was carried out as part of a Centre-funded research project titled `Conservation of Lobster in the Gulf of Mannar', since it's the most effective solution for enhancing the spiny lobster stock. Spiny lobster resources were fast depleting in the Gulf of Mannar region owing to unscientific fishing techniques.

According to him, lobster catch in Tuticorin coast fell to 41 tonnes in 2004 from 169 tonnes recorded in 2002.

On the breeding techniques adopted by the institute, Dr. Venkataramani said that a mother lobster weighed 600 grams and a male lobster weighed 700 grams, were allowed to bred in a specially made Fibre Reinforced Plastic (FRP) tank of 1,000 litre capacity at the Marine Biological Laboratory at the institute.

A team of scientists at the institute comprising C.B.T. Rajagopalasamy, B. Srikrishnadhas and T. Vaitheeswaran, monitored the growth of the newly bred larve, till it reached 3 mm under laboratory conditions, before sea ranching it.

Dr. Venkataramani appealed to the fishermen to release back the egg bearing lobsters caught in the `lobster nets' or `trawl nets', into the sea, to enhance the production of lobsters.

Delay in environmental clearance slowed down progress of port

N. K. Raghupathy, chairman, Tuticorin Port Trust (TPT), has said that delay in according environmental clearance to the infrastructural developments during the last two years, to meet the increasing volume of cargo traffic, has a bit slowed down the progress of the port.

Mr. Raghupathy said that the TPT managed to register growth continuously for the last five fiscals and record cargo traffic to the tune of 171 lakh tonnes handled during 2005-06 fiscal. The net surplus during the last five years has increased from around Rs.40 crore in 2001-02 to about Rs.100 crore in 2006-07.

According to him, the Centre should quickly clear the entire development projects envisaged for the augmentation of port facilities here during the XI Five Year Plan, to help the port to remain competitive in the changing global trade scenario. The Chairman said the Union Minister for Shipping, T.R. Baalu, has announced investment of around Rs.7,000 crore for the development of port during the 11th plan period.

Collector tells banks to grant loans to youth

The Collector, R. Palaniyandi, asked the banks in the district to take steps to expedite disbursal of loan to unemployed youth under Prime Minister's Rozgar Yojana (PMRY).

"A total of 112 requests had been pending with various banks as on December 31, 2006," he said.

Mr. Palaniyandi was reviewing the performance of the banks during the first three quarters of the current fiscal at the 101st Standing Committee Meeting of District Consultative Committee for Banking Development.

The meeting was organised by the lead bank (State Bank of India) here on Wednesday.

Under Swarnajayanthi Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY), credit-linked subsidy was disbursed to 224 self-help groups of the total 319 applications sent to the banks, he said.

Mr. Palaniyandi directed the banks concerned to expedite the disbursal of loans to 42 physically challenged persons, who sought credit for economic activities under the SGSY scheme.

Under the land purchase scheme of Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing Development Corporation (TAHDCO), credit was sanctioned to 73 of the 161 applications sent to the banks.

Loans had been sanctioned to a total of 582 SC/ST persons under TAHDCO scheme to start business ventures. "Banks should process the remaining applications at the earliest," he said.

Source: The Hindu

Groynes planned along three coastal hamlets

Groynes are the boulders placed by humans that jut out to sea to capture sand and form a beach. Found to be ineffective because they only cause erosion on the opposite side of the rock wall.

The Public Works Department (PWD) will put up groynes at three coastal hamlets in the southern districts of Tuticorin, Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari. This will be on a total outlay of Rs 15.18 crore from the State exchequer to protect the villages from sea erosion.

Official sources said that the groynes would come up at Threspuram in Tuticorin district, one of the busiest fishing hamlets in the State, Idinthakarai in Tirunelveli district and Enayam Puthanthurai in Kanyakumari district.

The construction would commence next fiscal (2007-08) and be completed within 12 months.

Of the total cost, Rs 6.41 crore was earmarked for Threspuram, Rs 5.62 crore for Idinthakarai and Rs 3.15 crore for Kanyakumari district.

Stones of different sizes would be used for the construction, making it permeable. It would be laid in `bedding,' `core,' `armour' and `toe mount' layers, complying with international standards.

These structures, resembling hockey sticks, would deflect high velocity currents, the sources said.

The PWD would conduct numerical model, bathymetric and physical model studies at the three places prior to the commencement of work, to study tidal effect and depth of the sea. The structures would be configured based on the findings.

Sources also said that they were seeking expertise from Department of Ocean Engineering at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, to carry out the study.

Source: The Hindu