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It started as a “he said, she said” story. In 2012, a Columbia University sophomore named Emma Sulkowicz had sex with a student from her class, Paul Nungesser. She claimed it was rape. He said the sex had been consensual. Sulkowicz filed a complaint with the university, which found Nungesser not responsible. A year-and-a-half later, she filed a police report, but after a few months stopped talking to the authorities. But the drama was only just beginning. Sulkowicz began carrying a 50-pound mattress around campus, a representation of her version of the experience, which she also turned into her senior arts thesis, a project entitled “Mattress Performance (Carry That Weight)”. Under the self-imposed rules of the project, she had to carry the mattress wherever she went on campus, until Nungesser was no longer there.Columbia didn’t expel Nungesser, since its own investigation found that he had done nothing wrong. But it also didn’t stop him from being hounded and ostracised as he found himself the subject of rape protest rallies, warning leaflets, and campus taunts. A month before both students received their degrees in 2015, Nungesser sued Columbia for violating Title IX, a 1972 law that was set up to deal with gender discrimination in public education. His lawyer, Andrew T Miltenberg, claimed Columbia had enabled the accuser’s gender-based harassment. This summer, the university settled with Nungesser, and issued a statement admitting that it had been “very difficult” for him following the investigation. The whole episode might have been marvelled at, and then forgotten, if it had been happening in isolation. But it wasn’t. Since Title IX was passed, it has been used to argue a broader and broader number of cases of sexual harassment and assault. A storyline that American campuses were havens for sexual predators began to take hold, fuelled by a much-publicised study claiming that one out of every five women on campus had been sexually assaulted. The study was criticised for all sorts of reasons, from its methodology to what actually counted as sexual assault (not just rape but unwanted kissing or groping, whether it happened on or off campus). It was also belied by federal crime statistics that show violent assault to be on the decline, as well as myriad other studies that found minuscule rates of reported sexual assault on campus. Nevertheless, worries grew, and hit fever pitch in 2011, with the then President Obama’s Department of Education advising all colleges to “take immediate and effective steps to end sexual harassment and sexual violence”, or risk losing federal funding. The result has, of course, been a dramatic increase in investigations (more than 200 schools are being examined for Title IX violations), as well as the growth of a cottage industry of consultants and administrators whose job it is to police the growing campus culture wars.Yet many schools were already losing funding — and not because of President Barack Obama’s mandate. Indeed, that’s how I became interested in the story of the campus culture wars to begin with. I’m a business and economics columnist; I rarely write about cultural issues or (thankfully) psycho-sexual dramas playing out on campuses. But in the course of researching the burgeoning student debt bubble in the US, I discovered that one of the key reasons for the run up in debt had been eroding support for student fees on the part of individual states. While federal support for higher education has remained relatively steady during the past few decades, state support has been falling in large part because of the tax revolt waged by Grover Norquist and backed by the Koch brothers and other rich conservative donors.Such conservatives have been able to sell moderate Republicans on tax cuts that will defund the very state universities where many of their children go, in large part by portraying these places as havens of liberal excess and the sort of extreme identity politics that are anathema to conservatives and to an increasing number of Democrats. They have a point. As sexual paranoia on campus has grown, so have accusations of racism, ageism and every other kind of bias on campus. Certainly, both racism and sexism exist on campus. There have been numerous scandals in recent years at schools such as Baylor, Stanford, and Florida State. A campus culture of excess drinking, often encouraged by the fraternity and sorority systems, doesn’t help matters. But the protests over a “rape culture” and widespread racism within US universities have taken on a fervour that seems oddly incongruous with statistics.Campuses are more diverse than they’ve ever been, and there are now more women than men in US higher education. Meanwhile, the protests themselves have an anti-intellectual tenor that has begun to worry many observers. During the past few years, students and academics have demanded conservative speakers and even liberals who don’t spout the party line not be allowed to lecture on campus, in some cases citing psychological research to argue that their words could induce psychological stress that was tantamount to physical violence. Books and lectures that might offend various sensibilities now come with “trigger” warnings. Professors are being directed to ask students in the beginning of each new class which pronoun they prefer to be addressed by. In the summer of 2015, a wave of campus protests broke out at dozens of schools from the University of Missouri to Yale, with students pushing universities to implement even broader policies designed to keep them “safer” from offence (eg micro-aggression training seminars that teach how to discuss race and gender “properly”; additional college-funded research centres focused on issues of identity).A rally at Yale University in 2015, the year campus protests began to skyrocket © AP Since then, there has been a backlash against individual professors that seems only a step or two away from a Cultural Revolution-style shame circle. A professor at Yale whose wife had suggested that the school should lighten up on its policy of official caution against Halloween costumes that involve “cultural appropriation” or potentially hurtful stereotypes (Cowboys and Indians? Princess Jasmine? It’s hard to know what might run afoul of the rules) was encircled by dozens of students screaming that he was “disgusting” and “shouldn’t sleep at night”. A lecturer at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington had to be escorted off campus by police after an angry mob of students interrupted his class. His crime? He had questioned the idea that the school should put in place “equity justification and explanations” for all new hires (he worried race and gender would take precedence over other criteria). When the college’s president met students to discuss the issue, he was shouted down by profanity and told to “shut up”. “It’s the meltdown of a major American institution,” says NYU sociology professor Jonathan Haidt, who has co-founded a non-profit group, Heterodox Academy, to advocate for viewpoint diversity and free inquiry on US campuses. While Haidt is a centrist who has never voted for a Republican, he is disturbed by the culling of conservative voices on campuses. As his website notes, the number of Republican academics has been falling since the mid-1990s; the 14 per cent that still exist work mainly in engineering and professional schools (the same trend can be observed in higher education in the UK). “There’s an almost religious quality to many of the protests,” he notes, with chanting, ritual incantations, and an utter lack of space for dissent. The bottom line seems to be that the Enlightenment ideals of debate, discussion, and argument based on evidence and persuasion are under pressure in American universities. It’s one thing to protest, of course, but it’s quite another to call for a ban on speakers whose ideas one doesn’t like, or to bully professors or students with opposing views. So why are universities, which are probably the most liberal institutions in America, allowing such illiberal behaviour?The answer seems to lie in a murky mix of New Left identity politics, the ascent of a generation of students raised in a culture of intense individualism, and the rise of social media as an amplifier to it all. New research by social psychologist Jean Twenge shows that “iGen”, the generation that came of age with the internet and began entering college a few years ago, has higher levels of anxiety and depression than previous generations, and seems less able to cope with the challenges of life. Students aren’t fighting for fewer intrusions, but rather demanding institutions keep them ‘safe’ The reasons for that may include everything from helicopter parenting to the narcissistic pressures of social media. But the upshot is that protection, rather than freedom, seems to be the new goal for students, which is a startling contrast with previous generations, for whom college was a place to push boundaries and even to engage in somewhat transgressive behaviour. Students these days aren’t fighting for fewer intrusions on their lives by institutions, but rather demanding that institutions keep them “safe” by crafting ever more black-and-white rules to help them navigate the grey in what they perceive to be a dangerous world. The result of it all is the narrowing of the scope for the kind of robust intellectual debate that people go to college for. “The anti-intellectualism of all this is really disturbing,” says Laura Kipnis, a media studies professor at Northwestern who lit a powder keg under the debate last year with her book, Unwanted Advances: Sexual Paranoia Comes to Campus. This argues that not only has the definition of what constitutes sexual harassment been dramatically expanded, but that the campus women’s movement has been hijacked by a kind of feminist paternalism that is taking women back to the 19th century, by putting them on a pedestal and fretting over their ability to consent to sexual activity and, if so, how. (On that note, it’s hard to think of anything less sexy or more infantilising than, say, Oberlin College’s red light/green light code that requires students to ask permission each time they want to kiss or touch their partner’s body.) Often times, Kipnis notes, the students that go in for this black-and-white, institutionally run system, “seem to come in with no sense of history, no sense of the struggles of the past, from the Berkeley Free Speech movement to the feminist fight to achieve sexual freedom and autonomy”.The result is the narrowing of the scope for the kind of robust intellectual debate that people go to college for Kipnis and many other academics blame administrators for helping to foster the culture wars, in part to justify their own jobs, which have proliferated in recent years, as fully tenured professorships and educational resources in general have fallen. It’s the new job description of the college bureaucracy, after all, to keep students “safe”. In one of the most heated current culture battles, at Harvard College, top administrators rather than students have led a campaign to outlaw exclusive single-gender organisations, including a number of old-line men’s social clubs. First, they tried to ban the clubs on the grounds that they were bastions of sexual malfeasance (unsuccessfully — there’s no evidence to prove that assault is any more common in single-sex men’s clubs than in co-ed dorms). Now, the school is requiring every incoming Harvard freshman to sign an oath promising never to join one of these social clubs, and if they lapse, they’ll be forbidden from representing Harvard as a captain of a sports team, an elected leader of their class, or recipient of Harvard’s backing for a Rhodes Scholarship and other graduate honours. A number of the clubs have launched legal counter-attacks and, ironically, one (the old-line Fly Club) is being represented by Harvey Silverglate, a former board member and president of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. “Harvard’s idea of diversity,” he says dismissively, “is for everyone to look different and think alike.” The recent protests in Charlottesville, Virginia, which turned violent, costing one young woman her life, are only the latest and most tragic example of how high the stakes have become in the culture wars. What’s happening on campuses is just a leading indicator for the country at large, which seems all but literally at war with itself.The state of California, recently instituted a ban on taxpayer-funded travel to Texas; left-leaning state legislators didn’t want to support any interaction with a state that questions gay marriage or transgender rights. On the flip side, Candice Jackson, the head of President Trump’s Office for Civil Rights, recently enraged liberals by saying that “90 per cent” of campus sexual assault accusations “fall into the category of ‘we were both drunk’ ”. Emma Sulkowicz, a senior visual arts student at Columbia University, carries a mattress in protest at the university's lack of action after she reported being raped during her sophomore year in 2014 © Getty Images Yet even as the culture wars rage on, there are a few wise voices on the left that have begun to call for a sensible middle ground. Van Jones, the Democratic commentator and a former adviser to President Obama, has been speaking on college campuses about the importance of free speech, and the need for students to embrace all forms of diversity — including cognitive diversity. When asked how students should react to speakers that they find ideologically offensive, he said, “I don’t want to you to be safe, ideologically. I don’t want you to be safe emotionally. I want you to be strong. That’s different. I’m not going to take all the weights out of the gym; that’s the whole point of the gym.”Ironically, Betsy DeVos, President Trump’s controversial education secretary (a woman who has taken flak for her support of gun rights and charter schools) may have struck something of a middle ground. She has called for the public to weigh in about the issue of Title IX and the potential problems with due process, to the Education Department. The outcome may be a revisiting of the Obama-era process around college assault or discrimination, with rules that could require more transparency on the part of schools regarding investigation, and/or more proof of guilt before the accused can be expelled. “Any school that refuses to take seriously a student who reports sexual misconduct is one that discriminates,” she said recently. “And any school that uses a system biased towards finding a student responsible for sexual misconduct also commits discrimination.”

A2A;Kerala’s tradition of anti-incumbency has arguably been the result of poor performance in office by a series of governments hobbled by the state’s all-pervasive and dysfunctional politics. This time, however, the outgoing UDF government led by Oommen Chandy is campaigning on a remarkable record of achievement. No single five-year government in Kerala’s history has achieved so much in a single term. Source: UDF’s Impressive Record May Drive its Comeback in Kerala: TharoorKochi MetroKochi Metro is an under-construction metro system for the city of Kochi in Kerala, India. The first phase is being set up at an estimated cost of₹5181 crore (US$770 million)Vizhinjam International Sea PortVizhinjam International Seaport is a proposed port by the Arabian Sea at Thiruvananthapuram in India. The total project expenditure is pegged at ₹ 6595 crores over three phases and is proposed to follow the landlord port model with a view to catering to passenger, container and other clean cargo.Kannur International AirportKannur International Airport (IATA: -, ICAO: VOKN) (Malayalam: കണ്ണൂർ അന്താരാഷ്ട്ര വിമാനത്താവളം) is an upcoming International Airport under construction at Mattanur in Kannur District, 25 kilometers from the citiesKannur and Thalassery, in the state of Kerala, India. It is being built on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model by the Kannur International Airport Ltd (KIAL).Once completed it will be the fourth and largest international airport in Kerala after Calicut, Cochin and Trivandrum making it the only state in India to have four international airports. Kannur International Airport will be the second greenfield airport to be set up in Kerala. The project is spread over 2,000 acres (810 ha).Proposed Bullet Train ServiceThe first phase of study regarding the Thiruvananthapuram-Kannur high-speed rail corridor project has been completed. The study conducted by DMRC says...Read more at: TVM-Kannur high-speed rail: 430 km in 145 minutesJana Samparka programmeUnfazed by the grim political challenges awaiting the Congress-led UDF in the Lok Sabha polls, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has been visiting several places the state with his 'Mass Contact Programme' by directly engaging with people, mostly the less privileged, and pulling crowds.The second phase of the unique outreach campaign, which won the UN award for public service in July, has already seen Mr Chandy meeting hundreds of people in four districts and the exercise is to be completed by the year-end covering the remaining 10 districts. In the three editions of Chief Minister's Mass Contact Programme, a total of 7.89 lakh petitions were resolved, out of a total of 12.5 lakh. In 2011, out of the 5.45 lakh petitions, 2.97 lakh were resolved; in 2013, out of the 3.21 lakh petitions, 3.20 lakh were resolved and in 2015, out of the 3.83 lakh petitions, 1.72 lakh were resolved. The programme received the 2013 UNPS award.CM's Distress Relief FundTill December 31, 2015, Rs 540 crore has been disbursed through the Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund and Rs 6.27 crore disbursed to people outside Kerala. It was just Rs 120.24 crore that was disbursed during the period 2006-11.Karunya lotteryRaised Rs 1,200 crore and enabled the government to provide treatment to 23 lakh patients, including free care for cancer patients, a first in India; subsidised medicines for the less well off; and proper supply of medicines to government hospitals and dispensaries. Dozens of welfare schemes abound in other areas, including 35 kilos of free rice to those living below the poverty line.Up to Rs 2 lakh is given as treatment assistance. The income from Karunya Plus was also made part of this fund. The returns from the sale of lotteries in Kerala in 2010-11 were Rs 557 crore, which touched Rs 5445 crore in 2014-15. The commission of lottery sellers has been raised to 26%.Amballoor Electronic ParkAmballoor is located about 25 km from Ernakulam city. It is located along the Ernakulam - Thalayolaparambu main road. The site for the proposed project is a marshy area full of weeds and coconut palms. Only 10 families reside in this area.First of Its Kind in StateElectronic Park will be the first of its kind facility in the state. The park is being envisaged as an electronic hub to promote the manufacture and assembly of hardware, as well as the supporting infrastructure.Trivandrum AND Kozhikode Light MetroIn 12 June 2013, the State Cabinet gave clearance for an agreement to be signed between KMCL and DMRC. The DMRC will receive 3.25% of the ₹55.81 billion (₹ 35.90 billion for Thiruvananthapuram and ₹ 19.91 billion for Kozhikode) in general consultant fees. The agreement was signed on 19 June 2013. DMRC appointed interim consultant of the Rs 6728 crore Light Metro rail projects at Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram. DPR submitted to Union government for approval. Kerala Rapid Transit Corporation formed for the implementation of the project.Economic growth higher than national averageBased on current price, Kerala's economic growth has been 17% compared to the national growth rate of 17.5%. In 2011-12, Kerala registered 17% (India 15%), in 2012-13 it was 13% (India 13.3%), 2013-14 it was 13.4% (India 11.5%) and in 2014-15, Kerala registered a growth rate of 12.3% compared to the national growth rate of 10.50%.PSC AppointmentsAppointments to 1,39,192 persons through PSC till October 31, 2015, which is an all time record. After a gap of five years, 1182 differently-abled were given jobs. 1950 differently-abled persons, who were in service for 179 days from 1999 to 2003 by creating 2677 supernumerary posts.16 Medical CollegesAfter 35 years, the number of medical colleges in the State has risen to 16 from 5. New medical colleges started in Manjeri, Idukki and Palakkad. Cochin Cooperative Medical College has been taken over by the government. Work progressing on medical colleges in Thiruvananthapuram, Konni, Kasaragod, Wayanad and Harippad. Steps taken for the takeover of Pariyaram Medical College and for the elevation of Parippally ESI Hospital in Kollam to medical college. New dental colleges started at Alappuzha and Thrissur. Total number of MBBS seats risen from 900 to 1250.Rs 1156 crore for providing 585 medicines free of costIncluding 69 medicines for the treatment of cancer, 585 medicines are given free of cost to all category of patients at government run hospitals. Already Rs 1156 crore has been spent for the purpose. 39 Karunya pharmacies started to check prices of medicines and medicines sold at reduced prices of 20 to 93 per cent.Comprehensive Healthcare SchemeWith an objective to bring various healthcare assistance schemes under one roof, families with annual income of less than rupees three lakhs will come under the Comprehensive Healthcare Scheme, announced in the State Budget for 2015-16. Through a smart card, beneficiary can avail of assistance up to Rs 2 lakhs and would benefit 42 lakh families.Welfare Pensions Worth Rs 15,911 croreFour types of welfare pensions from the department of social justice worth Rs 14,400 crore; eight types of pensions from the department of Labour worth Rs 1511 crore and the farmer’s pension from the department of Agriculture worth Rs 400 crore have been disbursed. Pension from Social Justice Department goes to more than 32 lakh people. Welfare pensions are disbursed by the 18th of every month. An average of Rs 240 crore is spent through local self-government bodies for the disbursal of welfare pensions and Rs 14,400 crore spent in a five-year period. Per month Rs 600 is spend on all categories of labour pensions and reaches 17.60 lakh beneficiaries. In 2013, disbursal of farmer’s pension to small and medium scale began at the rate of Rs 600 per farmer above the age of 60. Total beneficiaries in this category stand at 3.35 lakh and Rs 400 crore spent within a period of two years.Strong Social Welfare Measures2546 persons were given treatment and 1922 persons follow-up treatment under the free cancer treatment scheme for children up to 18 years. Project ‘Thalolam’, providing free treatment to seriously ill children of up to 18 years was implemented in 15 hospitals. 8146 new persons were provided free treatment and 2355 persons follow-up treatment.Persons assisting bedridden patients round-the-clock are being provided monthly financial assistance through the project – Aswasa Kiranam. There are 63,544 beneficiaries in this category. It was just 680 persons when this government assumed office. The aim is to provide assistance to 90,000 in the current financial year.Free Cancer TreatmentFree cancer treatment through the Sukritham project is now available at RCC Thiruvananthapuram, Malabar Cancer Centre, medical colleges at Thiruvananthapuram, Alalppuzha, Kottayam, Thrissur, Kozhikode and General Hospital Ernakulam. RCC secured the NABL accreditation through a Rs 117 crore expansion programme. Cancer institute and research centre is getting ready in Kochi. Mammogram unit started at General Hospital Thiruvananthapuram. Facilities for cancer treatment made available in all districts of Kerala.Mother and ChildImplemented free delivery related treatment and neonatal care up to 30 days, under the Mother and Child project. Newborn screening to detect genetic disorders and 59 neonatal care centres started at 59 hospitals. Started school health programme that provides treatment and medicines to 48 lakh students in 13,270 schools.17,000 to benefit from teachers’ packageThe new teachers’ package will benefit 17,000 recognized aided teachers serving in regular posts till March 31, 2015.Neera ProductionFarmers given permission to tap alcohol-free Neera from coconut trees after amending the 112-year-old Abkari laws. Licence issued to 173 coconut producing federations and three pilot Neera production centres sanctioned under Kerala Agriculture University. State Coconut Development Corporation is in charge of marketing. By tapping Neera, an average monthly income of Rs 2100 is expected from a coconut tree.42,225 acres of land to tribal people Project‘Aasikkum Bhoom’ (the desired land) has provided land ranging from 25 cents to one acre. 524 landless scheduled tribe families were given 184 acre of land through the project. In the TRDM rehabilitation programme of landless scheduled tribes 6814 families were given 8971 acre of land. Based on ‘Right to Forest Land Act’ 25,649 persons residing in the forests were given possession certificates and 33,070 acres of land provided.Subsidy of Rs 837.27 crore for checking price hikeGovernment was able to check rise in prices of essential commodities by distributing them at subsidized rates. Compared to Rs 344.31 crore given as subsidy to Supplyco during the period of the previous government, the subsidy amount has been Rs 538.37 crore during the period of the current government. Rice was also included in the subsidized category of items in 2014-15 and 95,188 metric tons of rice was distributed at reduced price. Rs 44.4 crore was given to Horticorp for the supply of vegetables at reduced rates.Currently, through the 20,428 outlets of Nanma Stores under the ConsumerFed, 10 essential commodities are being distributed at 20% less the rate in the open market. ConsumerFed has already been provided Rs 254.50 crore compared to the Rs 117.71 crore given by the previous government.Rs 300 crore for 15,000 Coastal Houses15,000 houses built free of cost to homeless fishermen in the State. Rs 300 crore was provided for the purpose. Flats were also provided to 450 fishermen families for which Rs 48.75 crore was spent. Financial assistance for house construction hiked from Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh, which will be provided as 100% subsidy.3.86 lakh petitions resolved at revenue adaalatOf the 4.72 lakh petitions received at the revenue adalats held in all districts of the State, 3.86 lakh were resolved. Orders also issued for effecting mutation the next day itself, following the registration of land. Earlier, this was allowed only after a period of 30 days from the date of registration.2132 Arrested in 'Operation Kubera'14,155 raids were conducted and 2132 persons arrested as part of 'Operation Kubera' meant for nabbing privately run loan mafia. Rs 466 lakh was seized as part of the operation. The government also launched focused operations that included 'Operation Suraksha' for checking the activities of thugs and anti-social elements; 'Subha Yatra 2015' for creating awareness on traffic rules; 'Operation Vatsalya' for tracing missing children and 'Operation Clean Campus' for preventing use of narcotic drugs inside campuses.Land Provided to 10,271 FamiliesThree cents of land each were provided to 10,271 families, under the 'Zero Landless' scheme. Districts of Kannur, Kasaragod and Idukki became the first in the country to become 'zero landless'. Phase II of the scheme is progressing.Title Deed to 1.24 lakh PersonsTitle deeds given to 1.24 lakh persons within a period of four years, compared to Rs 84,606 title deeds during the period of the previous government.IT Exports Touch Rs 15,000 CroreIT sector in Kerala has grown to the extent of direct employment to one lakh persons and income generation of Rs 15,000 crore from IT exports. It was just Rs 3000 crores worth IT exports when the UDF government came to power in 2011. The annual income on rentals from Technopark and InfoPark is now Rs 70 crore. With the commissioning of phase 1 of SmartCity and CyberPark, IT exports from Kerala would reach Rs 18,000 crore in 2016 and two lakh direct employment.Number One in MSMEs in the CountryKerala topped the nation in terms of number of enterprises and employment generation in a national survey of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, based on population and land area. During the period 2006-11, only a total of 31,995 MSME units were registered and 2.23 lakh job opportunities and an investment of only Rs 3247.11 crore, compared to the last four financial years that saw 51,899 new MSMEs, 2.97 employment opportunities and investment of Rs 8225.05 crore.SC Medical CollegeFor the first time in the country, a medical college was started under the department of Scheduled Caste in Palakkad in 2014-15. Rs 24.33 crore was spent for project. Of the total admissions, 70% is for scheduled caste students and 2% for students belonging to the scheduled tribe.35th National GamesKerala won acclaim for organizing the 35th National Games in a commendable manner. 1.52 crore people took part in 'Run Kerala Run' a publicity campaign held at 7000 centres in Kerala, which found a place in the Limca Book of World Records. As part of the national games, nine playfields were built and 17 got modernized. For the first-time in India a green-field stadium was built through public-private partnership in Thiruvananthapuram. All medal winners of Kerala were given cash awards and jobs.Domestic Milk Production Increased by 83.08%Achieved 83.08% increase in domestic milk production. State's milk production in 2011 was 67% of the domestic demand. Stability ensured for milk price and steps taken to check price of fodder. Year-long subsidy provided to farmers for purchasing fodder. Production of milk has reached 11 lakh litres from 6.42 lakh litres five years ago. The daily import of milk by Milma from neighbouring States in 2010-11 has come down from 6.5 lakh litres to 2.2 lakh litres.Timely Interventions in NRK IssuesGovernment helped 3835 persons who were stranded in strife torn countries like Iraq, Libya and Yemen to return home safely, for which Rs 1.43 crore was spent. Provided assistance to Malayalees during floods in Jammu Kashmir, Uttarakhand and for their safe return back home.Free Power Supply to Life-Support UsersPeople on life-support systems are being provided with free-of-cost power supply. Power connection given to houses of less than 100 sq m on lands not under anyone's possession. Consumer given the choice for purchasing meters directly from the manufacturer for avoiding the meter rent to KSEB.LED Bulbs at Token RatesTwo LED bulb of nine watts, costing Rs 400 each are being given to households at a token rate of Rs 95.Four By-Passes @ Rs 1466 croreFour by-passes worth Rs 1466 crore are nearing completion. Completed the 28.1 km long, Rs 145 crore Kozhikode by-pass in 18 months. By-passes in Alappuzha (Rs 348.43 crore), Kollam (Rs 352.05 crore) and Thiruvananthapuram (Rs 621 crore) are fast progressing. Rs 1824 crore sanctioned for renovation of roads in 2016.28 More Municipalities28 panchayats that have attained urban characteristics made municipalities and Kannur municipality elevated to corporation. 15 B grade municipalities elevated to A grade and 17 C grade municipalities to B grade.1.75 crore Digital CertificatesAs part of Project e-District, 1.75 crore digital certificates issued till December 10, 2015. 24 types of certificates are issued online by the Revenue department. All the 14 districts of Kerala are included in the 50 e-Districts in India. Completed the procedure for providing 1 GB connectivity in all grama panchayats, making Kerala the first digital State in India.Emerging KeralaWork has commenced on 56 projects, worth Rs 32,137 crore that were submitted during the global investor meet - Emerging Kerala. Of these projects, 14 projects of Rs 23,334 crore are under the department of Industries. Projects like BPCL Downstream, Kochi Petrochemical Park, Poly Isobutene project, BioNutra Park, Biomedical Devices Hub are some of the projects that would add to the outlook of Kerala in future. Already, projects like the joint venture by Mercedes Benz and the department of Higher Education, Bosch and department of Higher Education, Kids Lab by BASF India and the department of Science and Technology have started.Massive Participation in Start-UpsThe Start-Up village at Kalamassery in Kochi has become a role model for rest of the country. Within a short period, student and youth entrepreneurs have come up with 7000 odd concepts and have registered at the Start-Up Village. These young entrepreneurs are provided 4% grace marks and 20 per cent relaxation in attendance. During 2014-15 the turnover of start-ups from IT and IT related ventures was Rs 7.84 crore. Basic facilities for the start-ups were provided through government IT parks and Micro, Medium and Small-Scale clusters.Rs 20 lakh Loan to Young Entrepreneurs'Young Entrepreneurship Summit' held to assist youth with innovative industrial ventures to become young entrepreneurs and 'We Mission' meet held for the first time in India for women. Angel fund was formed to create initial capital and Seed fund to give additional assistance to young entrepreneurs. Incubation Centers were formed in colleges to realize the business concepts of students. For encouraging young entrepreneurs, Kerala State Entrepreneur Development Mission was formed. Already 2,834 ventures have been selected for the Rs 20 lakh interest-free loan scheme. 5000 persons were given training. Financial assistance provided to 650 ventures, out of which 450 have become fully functional. This scheme has provided direct jobs to 3000 persons and indirectly to almost the same number.Rs 220 crore National WaterwayThe 205 km Kollam-Kottappuram National Waterway, the only one in the State is getting ready for inauguration. For commencing the transportation of goods, Rs 150 lakh has been sanctioned for the construction of permanent berths at Udyogamandal and Chavara. The whole project is of Rs 220 crore.Rs 24,000 crore for PanchayatsRs 24,000 crore from Panchayat Plan fund provided to panchayats, which is an all-time record. For its activities in decentralization of power and empowerment of democracy, at the national level, Kerala stood second in 2011-12 and 2013-14, third in 2012-13 and took the first spot in 2014-15. Kollam district panchayat bagged the national award for the comprehensive welfare and development activities. Idukki and Veliyanadu block panchayats; Nadaapuram, Kaviyur, Marangattupally, Maneedu and Iraviperur grama panchayaths also won national awards. Kerala also won the national award for digitization of grama panchayats.Rs 3000 crore Japan drinking Water ProjectThe Rs 3000 crore Japan Drinking Water Project has been implemented successfully in Thriuvananthapuram, Meenadu (Kollam), Cherthala, Kozhikode and Pattuvam (Kannur). 41 lakh people are getting the benefit.4.5 Crore TouristsState Tourism Department is placed second in terms of contribution to the State’s GDP, which is 10%. In 2011-14, the State received 4.53 crore tourists and earned an income of Rs 87,754 crore.Backward Classes Development Department, CorporationsBackward Classes Development Department, Backward Classes Development Corporation, Backward Classes Commission and Minority Commission and Kerala State Welfare Corporation for Forward Communities Limited to promote the comprehensive development and welfare of the economically backward sections among the forward communities of Kerala were formed. Loans worth Rs 1003.83 crore were disbursed by Backward Classes Development Corporation to 1.40 lakh people. Converted Christian Development Commission under the Backward Classes Development Department gave loans to the tune of Rs 28.09 crore to 10,534 people.Rs 6082 crore Through AswasAswas project was launched with the objectives of reducing loan arrears due to Cooperative Societies and Banks and also to provide relief to those struggling with loan repayment. Through the project, Rs 6082.19 crore was collected in terms of arrears and benefits of Rs 935.14 crore provided to loanees.Three Flyovers Worth Rs 212 croreNearing completion are the flyovers at Palarivattom (Rs 72.60 crore) and at Edappally (Rs 108.77 crore). The Rs 30.17 crore Kanjikuzhi flyover in Kottayam town will be completed in 18 months' time.245 Bridges of Rs 1600 croreConstruction of 245 bridges in different districts has been completed for which Rs 1600 was spent. The tenure of the current government witnessed the construction of maximum number of bridges in the State.Rs 2,403 crore KSTP Phase IIReceived World Bank assistance for the Rs 2,403 crore Phase II project of KSTP. Under this project, nine roads of 363 km is being developed as per international standards. They are Kasaragod-Kanhangad, Pilathara-Pappinissery, Thalassery-Valavupara, Thiruvalla by-pass, Chengannur-Ettumannur, Ponkunnam-Thodupuzha, Punalur-Ponkunnam and Perumbilavu-Perinthalmanna. The project will be over by September 2018.Construction of Six Major Roads of Rs 3,272 croreConstruction of Ramapuram-Nalambalam Darshanam road (Rs 50.75 crore), KanjikuzhiVettathukavala-Karukachal road (Rs 45.35 crore), Karamana-Kaliyikkavila NH (Rs 263 crore), Kuttippuram-Puthuponnani road (Rs 54.22 crore), Vallarpadam-Kozhikode coastal road (Rs 117.14 crore), Airport-Seaport road (Rs 216.97 crore) roads have become an asset to Kerala's basic development.Rs 100 crore Sewerage Plant at MuttatharaA Rs 100 crore sewerage treatment plant with capacity of 107 MLD has started functioning at Muttathara in Thiruvananthapuram. Steps are being taken to start plants at Kozhikode, Kochi and Kollam. Work on the first Septage Treatment Plant in the country has been completed at Brahmapuram in Kochi.Plastic Wastes at Rs TwoClean Kerala Company has been formed for the collection and processing of wastes. Kerala is the first State in the country to collect plastic wastes and e-wastes by giving money. Steps are being taken to start the first plastic processing plant in Kochi Corporation. Clean Kerala Company is collecting plastic wastes at a rate of Rs 2 per kg and e wastes at a rate of Rs 25 per kg. So far, 150 ton e-waste and 134 ton plastic waste have been collected. Discarded CFL bulbs, CDs and tube lights are also collected.Online Payment of Electricity BillAll section offices of KSEB Ltd have been computerized. Centralized Customer Care and Call Centre started for the consumers to register complaints and to get essential information. Online payment system provided for payment of electricity bills. Provided internet based remittance of electricity bills in all section offices.Electricity reaches 1.7 lakh rural homes1.7 lakh rural houses provided electricity connection through Rajiv Gandhi Rural Electrification Scheme. 65,659 houses that come under the BPL category were given free of cost electricity connection. Rs 201.64 crore has been spent for the project.Record Financial Assistance to Public SectorAn all-time record financial assistance of Rs 899.90 crore has been sanctioned to 44 public sector undertakings under the Industrial department. e-Tender and e-Payment facilities introduced. Procedure completed for implementing e-Auction system in public sector undertakings.Rs 6,510 crore Spent on MNREGSMarked changes affected in the rural sector by spending Rs 6,510 crore through MNREGS. Each year, an average of 17 lakh families got employment. During 2006-11, the amount spent was just Rs 1508 crore. Work-time re-scheduled from 9 am to 5 pm. and the daily wage of Rs 150 was raised to Rs 227 in 2011. Assistance for education of children and gifts during Onam season were also provided to the families of workers by the government. Electronic Fund Management System introduced in all grama panchayats to credit wages of labourers directly to their bank accounts.Three lakh New Pipe ConnectionsThree lakh new pipe connections provided. Drinking water made available through 2.07 lakh publics taps. The target is to provide 4.19 lakh new connections this year.Paddy Procurement: 1.5 lakh Farmers to BenefitAchieved good progress in paddy procurement. In 2014-15, 5.50 tons of paddy was procured from 1.25 lakh farmers. Support price of paddy became Rs 21.50. 1.25 lakh farmers got the benefit.Raw Coconut ProcurementFor the first time in the State, a record 70213.69 tons of raw coconut was procured by KERAFED. For units that undertakes processing of raw coconut to copra, apart from the price of coconut the government is giving Rs 500 as financial assistance for a quintal of copra. The procurement price of raw coconut is Rs 25.Compensation to Crops Damaged by Wild AnimalsCompensation to crops damaged by wild animals can be given four times. The maximum is Rs 75,000/- Treatment assistance to those injured in wild animal attack has been raised to Rs 75,000. Sanction has been given to kill wild boars that destroy crops, subject to certain conditions.Stamp Duty: Benefits Worth Rs 1800 croreThe Stamp duty for partition, release, gift and settlement deeds executed between family members have been reduced to Rs 1000 and registration fees reduced by 1%. This will benefit 49 lakh people by Rs 1800 crore in terms of Stamp duty and Rs 300 crore in terms of registration fees.Undervaluation: Benefit of Rs 403 croreOne-time settlement scheme was implemented to settle arrear undervaluation cases. All undervaluation cases of title deeds involving land transactions of less than five cents in panchayats have been exempted. This will benefit about two lakh people by Rs 100 crore. 1,31,111 undervaluation cases were settled through one-time settlement scheme by paying a token amount as fee, which benefited that much number of families by Rs 303 crore.Motorized Tri-Scooters to 5010 PersonsMotorized Tri-Scooters were given to 5010 persons through the State Handicapped Persons’ Welfare Corporation and LSGs. Janani and Jathik, two mobile phone applications that utilizes GIS to monitor the health of newborn babies in Attapadi was introduced.Schemes for Endosulfan VictimsThose endosulfan victims who are getting disability pension from LSGs are given Rs 1700 per month and Rs 2200 to those who are not getting pension. Other endosulfan victims, suffering health issues are given monthly financial assistance of Rs 1200. Students in families affected by endosulfan are given Rs 2000, Rs 3000 and Rs 4000 as assistance for studying up to Plus Two. A special fund has also been sanctioned by Kasaragod district collector for the treatment of these students. Rs 51.30 crore has been sanctioned to the district collector for giving compensation of up to Rs 5 lakhs to victims of endosulfan.Hearing Ability to 581Cochlear implantation surgery done on 620 children through the Sruthi Tharangam project. The inability to hear was identified in these children at a very young age and got included in the project. The government gives Rs 5.10 lakh for a cochlear implantation surgery.Classical Language Status and University for MalayalamMalayalam University started at Thunchan Parambu and achieved Classical Language Status for Malayalam. Malayalam language got this status along with Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Sanskrit. Viswa Malayala Mahotsavam celebrated after 34 years.Technology UniversityKerala Technological University set up under the department of Technical Education. All engineering colleges in the State are members of this University. 50,000 students will get the benefit.Police UniversityNational University for Police Sciences and Security Studies started. Graduate and postgraduate courses will be conducted on subjects related to police. Facilities for research will also be provided.Sree Narayana Studies in School SyllabusSree Narayana studies have been included in Malayalam and Social Science text books of class seven. In connection with the centenary celebrations of Daiva Dasakam of Sree Narayana Guru, the prayer song was published bearing the picture of the Guru. A topical book to evaluate the visionary values of Daiva Dasakam published. Rs 4 crore has been sanctioned to Sivagiri Sreenarayana Dharmasangham Trust for the constructing of a Convention Centre.720 new busesA subsidiary corporation by the name of KURTC started and 320 buses sanctioned. Purchase order given for buying 400 buses in the next phase. Bus terminals at Thiruvananthapuram, Thiruvalla and Kozhikode were commissioned on BOT basis. 10 multi-axle Volvo buses have been rolled out for service by spending Rs 10 crore. ePayment system and courier service started.See Kuttanad Double Decker'See Kuttanad' service started by using two double-decker passenger-cum-tourist boats that can accommodate 90 persons each. 45 steel boats are currently in operation. Bio toilet facility provided on passenger boats.Zoological ParkZoological Park is turning into a reality in Thrissur. e-Auction facility introduced for auctioning of wood. 390.50 lakh saplings distributed as per Haritha Keralam project. Kutti Vanam project started. 700 posts of tribal watchmen created and appointment given.215 core for SettlementsFor the development of 436 Scheduled Caste settlements in which 50 or more families are living, Rs 215 crore has been sanctioned at the rate of Rs 1 crore each for developing 215 settlements. So far Rs 94.42 crore has been spent and development activities at 25% of the settlements completed.Rs 665 crore for Buying Land; Rs 568 crore for House ConstructionThe financial help that is being given to the landless and homeless belonging to the SC category has been increased from Rs 75,000 to Rs 3.75 lakh in rural areas, Rs 90,000 to Rs 4.50 lakh in municipal areas and Rs One lakh to Rs 6 lakh in Corporation areas. Assistance for construction of houses increased from Rs One lakh to Rs Three lakh. Installments of grants given at a lower rate to beneficiaries earlier have been given remaining installments at higher rate. Rs 664.86 crore was given to 29,465 families for buying land and Rs 568.33 crore to 24,141 families for construction of new houses.Rs 43 crore for 43 Model ColoniesThe Model Colony project for which Rs One crore is being spent for one ST colony has so far come up with 43 model colonies at a cost of Rs 43 crore.Janani Janmaraksha SchemeThe scheme provides pregnant women belonging to ST community and lactating mothers with monthly financial assistance of Rs.1000, starting from the third month of pregnancy and up to 12 months after delivery has so far benefited 11,000 persons. Debt Relief To 12,216 Persons Loans worth Rs 140 crore, taken by 12,216 persons belonging to the ST category from banks and various other institutions had been written off. These were loans of up to Rs One lakh, pending payment as on 01-04-2014.Snehaveedu to 30,308By combining the general housing project of ST Development department, housing project using HUDCO loan, Indira Awas Yojana project of Rural Development department and the housing project of panchayats, the amount for constructing 30,308 houses under the comprehensive housing project, started in 2015-16 was increased from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 3.5 lakh.Package for Primitive TribesThe package for primitive tribes worth Rs 148 crore saw 8001 persons getting the benefit of land, house, basic facilities and livelihood. 12 New Taluks, 31 New Villages 12 taluks and 31 villages were newly formed. Manjeswaram, Vellarikundu, Iritti, Thamarassery, Kondotti, Pattambi, Chalakkudy, Idukki, Konni, Kattakada, Varkala and Punalur are the new taluks.Title Deed for Revenue LandSteps taken to amend laws for providing title deeds to people who are living in revenue land for years. This will be completed within the tenure of this government.Coastal Ship TransportationCostal ship transportation project started. Commenced merchant ship service from Kollam, Beypore, Azheekal ports to ports in other States. As part of the project, ships transporting one ton of cargo will be given an incentive of Rs 1 for a km and Rs 1 for a km for passengers. Ponnani has become the first PPP port in the State.CIAL - Total Solar Powered AirportCIAL has become the first airport in the world to totally run on solar power. Work on the new Rs 1000 crore international terminal has begun. It has registered a record increase in terms of passengers and cargo.Debt Relief ProjectsRelaxed interest rate to those who repay short term agriculture loans without default, debt relief projects to members of SC / ST who have taken loans from cooperative societies and banks and special debt relief project for fishermen implemented.Rs 300 crore Cancer Care CentreRs 300 crore cancer care centre, equipped with the most modern of facilities, coming up in Kozhikode district at the initiative of cooperative bank. Flat complex is also coming up in Thiruvananthapuram.Vegetable Farming in 90,533 HectaresArea of vegetable farming increased from 42,447 hectares in 2011-12 to 90,533 hectares in 2014-15. Production also increased from 8.25 lakh tons to 15.32 lakh tons. Vegetable farming carried out on commercial basis through 2479 clusters of farmers in 12,400 hectares of land. 22 lakh vegetable seed kits were distributed to school students and women free of cost and achieved vegetable farming in household premises.Vigilant KeralaVigilant Kerala project started with public participation to combat corruption. Welcome to Vigilant Kerala Web Portal started as part of the project. If convinced that there is conviction in a government project or work then that can be post on website. Facility in place at Vigilance and Anti Corruption Bureau for receiving complaints through social media.Jail ChapatiChapati making unit started at Thiruvananthapuram Central Prison and food processing units started at Thiruvananthapuram, Kannur, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kollam and Kozhikode prisons for providing quality food to the public at rates lower than the market rates. The income from this was Rs 8 crore in 2014. Rs 26 crore solar projects of 1078 KW capacity implemented at different prisons. CCTV system provided at Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Kannur and Ernakulam prisons at a cost of Rs 4.20 crore.Water Tax: 7253 Complaints RedressedIn the adalats that were conducted in all districts of the State, 7253 complaints related to arrears in water tax were resolved.Rs 1769 crore Rural Drinking Water ProjectUnder the rural drinking water project, 209 projects, estimated at Rs 1769 crore are being implemented and that too in a manner that a person gets 70 liters of drinking water per day. Taking into account the outstanding implementation of accelerated rural drinking water projects, Kerala Water Authority received an additional amount of Rs 169.70 crore from the Central government.Pipes Worth Rs 445 croreRs 445.37 crore spent for laying quality pipes. Use of concrete and AC pipes avoided. The diameter of drinking water pipes in the city area has been fixed at 150 mm and 80 mm in rural areas. The new drinking water projects should only use MS (mild steel), DI, PVC, PE pipes. PVC pipes should not be used where the diameter exceeds 160 mm. This new pipe policy has been formulated to prevent bursting of pipes. As part of the measures to prevent pipe bursts, Mild Steel pipes were laid from Aruvikkara to Peroorkada, replacing the old ones.22 Arts and Science CollegesFor the first time in the history of Kerala, 22 Arts and Science colleges were started in the government sector. 320 courses were also sanctioned in government-aided colleges.IITIndian Institute of Technology will come up in an area of 400 acres at Kanjikode in Palakkad District.Rajiv Gandhi Knowledge Centre for Career Studies and ResearchRajiv Gandhi Knowledge Centre for Career Studies and Research formed for the education and training of fishermen children and youth in the coastal area.22,300 Students Admitted to Plus Two62 government higher secondary schools and 167 aided higher secondary schools sanctioned. 22,300 students given admission to plus two courses in the 110 newly allotted 110 batches in the government sector and 336 in the aided sector.Aided Status to Buds SchoolsAided status given to special schools that are having strength of more than 100 students including Buds schools. In-principal approval has been given for granting aided status to special schools having strength of more than 50 students.Italian Marines to Abide by Indian LawsThe two Italian marines who shot dead fishermen off the Kerala coast were eventually made to abide by Indian laws and face trial in India.Kerala Model HealthcareKerala has become the first State in India to have Allopathy, Ayurveda and Homoeo hospitals in all panchayats. Kerala has also become a totally Ayurveda State by starting Ayurvedic treatment centers in all panchayats. Department of Ayush formed by coordinating the treatment streams of Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy. Permanent Ayurvedic treatment centers were started at 77 places where the treatment was not available. 343 posts were created for this and postings done. 110 Homoeo dispensaries started and 446 new posts created and postings done.Rs 61 crore for Sabarimala Master PlanWorks worth Rs 61.27 completed as part of Sabarimala Master Plan, which is meant for providing basic facilities. Rs 10 crore given for Zero Waste Sabarimala project. Waste processing plant started at Sannidhanam. Works of walkway canopy, eight queue complexes and underpass from Pamba to Sannidhanam completed. Swami Ayyappan road readied for tractors to ply. Arogyabhavan at Pamba, Rs 523 crore renovation and repair of roads to Sabarimala undertaken. Rs 7 crore new bridge at Kanamala for making travel from Erumeli to Pampa easy and Rs 8.14 crore worth roads (14 m wide) with sidewalks at Nilakkal, facility for parking more than 10,000 vehicles, water-tank of 10 lakh liter capacity and two bore wells constructed. The roads to Sabarimala were renovated by spending 518 crore in connection with the pilgrimage season. Works of major roads leading to Sabarimala (75.2km) under heavy maintenance scheme and with five years guarantee were completed. These roads were constructed under heavy maintenance project which has a guarantee of 5 years. 124 km roads were renovated with a guarantee of three years.Centres for Imparting SkillStarted, the Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence, the nodal agency for providing skill excellence to the youth. Under this, Nursing Institute for Career Enhancement and Centre for Excellence in International Security at Thiruvananthapuram and Enlightened Skills Programme in Oil and Rig stated at Angamali. Indian Institute of Infrastructure and Construction started functioning at Chavara in Kollam. IIIC would soon start to function for making labourers skilled for undertaking model construction works of high standards at Chavara.Benefit to 10 lakh WorkersMore than half a century old Kerala Shops and Commercial Establishment Law and Rules amended in a timely manner. There are norms in the law for providing experience certificate to workers / employees, appointment order and hostel facility, which are to be given by the owner. The new law ensures crèche facility for the children of women workers, retiring room, clean toilets, seating facility inside retiring rooms and facility to deposit sanitary napkins. About 10 lakh workers will benefit through this amendment.Three Welfare Projects for WorkersAbout 10 lakh plantation workers, 2.5 lakh coir workers has been included in the Aam Admi Beema Yojana, which ensures comprehensive insurance protection from accidents to the families of workers in the unorganized sector. Rs 75,000 for death due to accident and permanent disability, Rs 30,000 for natural death and Rs 37,500 for partial disability are being given. Scholarships are also given to the children of those enrolled in the project and studying from classes 9 to 12 (including ITI), the amount being Rs 1200 per month. CHIS Plus project has been implemented for giving an additional amount of Rs 70,000, apart from the Rs 30,000 given for treatment of serious illnesses. This is for members of Comprehensive Health Insurance, meant for treatment assistance. Implemented Sanjeevani scheme for giving financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh to the descendants in the event of accidental death of a family head, who is a member of the Comprehensive Health Insurance and CHIS plus schemes.Minimum Wages RevisedWages were revised on two occasions in the plantation sector and were the highest increase in the history of the State. The new rates for rubber, coffee, tea and cardamom are Rs 381, Rs 301 and Rs 330 respectively. Wages were revised in the cashew sector too. Fair wages were also revised for the motor workers. Steps are being taken at a fast pace to renew minimum wages in all labour sectors that have completed its term. Minimum wages renewed in 16 labour sectors. In addition five new labour sectors included in the list of minimum wages.Nokku Kooli abolishedNokku Kooli has been banned State-wide. Complaints can be registered by calling the call centre number 155214 or the toll-free number 180042555214.Eleven Autonomous CollegesEleven autonomous colleges started in the State. Autonomous status awarded to Thiruvananthapuram Mar Ivanios College, Kollam Fathima Matha College, Changanassery S B, Sacred Heart, Maharajas College, St Theresa's College, Rajagiri College, Farook College, MES Mambadu, St Josephs Devagiri and St Thomas Thrissur. Over a period of time, these colleges can start new courses. In future, they will become autonomous universities. They can prepare syllabus, conduct exams and can announce results independently. Autonomous colleges will get aid from UGC.Wages Protection SystemWages protection system implemented for giving wages through banks to workers employed in different private sectors. Kerala is the first state to implement such a project. The officials of Labour department can now monitor online whether the wages as prescribed by the law are reaching the workers.Five Projects for Construction of HousesKerala State Housing Board freed from the loan liability to HUDCO by paying Rs 730.67 crore inclusive of interest. Five projects Saphalyam, Santhwanam, Sayoojyam, Saubhagyam and Grihasree were formulated to provide houses to the people belonging to all sections. The Budget share for the housing sector in these five projects was Rs 2,077.65 crore during 2010-11. This was increased to RS 3,259 crore during 2014-15. 2064 persons belonging to lower income group having 2 or 3 cents of land as their own has been given assistance for construction of homes ranging from 30 sq m to 60 sq m, under the Grihasree housing project. Rs 55.59 crore given to 8,235 houses under M N Laksham Veedu reconstruction project and 218 houses reconstructed at Bangladesh colony at Rs 15 crore. 216 flats under Saphalyam project for constructing flats to those belonging to the weaker sections at Chathannur in Kollam, Chelannur in Kozhikode, Chottanikkara in Ernakulam, Puthukadu in Thrissur are under construction. 500 more flats will be constructed in the second phase.Major LawsRight to Service Act: This law ensures that the public gets the required service within a stipulated period of time.Healthcare Service Persons and Healthcare Service Institutions (Prevention of violence) Act: Intended to prevent violence against healthcare service personnel and prevention of violence and property loss of healthcare service institutions.Kerala Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act: Law for banning exorbitant interest rates on loans and for giving rigorous punishment for taking excess interest. More effective measures for the protection of river banks and for checking sand mining.Kerala Lifts and Escalators Act: For the erection, maintenance and security of lifts and escalators in Kerala.Thunchath Ezhuthachan Malayalam University Law: For the establishment of Malayalam University to enrich the studies and research on Malayalam language, literature and culture.State Minority Commission Act: Formation of the commission for the educational progress, welfare, protection and empowerment of minorities.State Youth Commission Act: Formation of a commission for the preparation of projects for making the youth well educated, empowerment and also for the protection of the rights of youth.Kerala Anti-Social (prevention) Activities Amendment Act: Amendment to make KAPA more rigorous and flawless.Fish Seed Law: Law to check production quality, marketing and storage of of fish seeds. CESS on KSRTC tickets to provide more facilities for commuters and for the social security of employees. Law to protect the interests of investors in different financial institutions.Devaswom Recruitment Board Law: Law to form a recruitment board for making appointments to various posts.APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University Law: Law pertaining to the formation of Science and Technology University to encourage scientific and technological education.Real Estate Regulation Law: Law for the formation of a regulatory authority for controlling and supporting the real estate sector.Expatriate Indians (Keralites) Commission Act: Law for the formation of a commission to protect the interests and welfare of the expatriate Keralites inside the State. Law for the formation of a State Commission for forward communities. Law that allows PSC to undertake University postings.Malayalam Language (propagation and enrichment) Bill: Law that ensures adaptation of Malayalam as the official language, its usage at all levels and its propagation, enrichment and sustenance.100-Day MagicOut of the 107 programmes announced 102 could be completed within 100 days. 24x7 Call Centre, Disclosure of Personal Assets, Whistle Blower System, Settlement of Moolampilli, Chengara struggles and Enhanced security to Padmanbha Swamy temple were implemented successfully.Seven Streams ProjectsSeven-Stream Projects were implemented following the 100-day magic of the government. Seven paths were announced to attain the aim of development and care. The Seven-Stream Projects were announced on 17 November 2011. A total of 664 projects were announced under the seven streams. 91.71% of the projects have been achieved.RecognitionsCM’s Jana Samparka Paripadi received the UN Award for Public Service in 2013. It was for the first time that a chief minister in the country was selected for this prestigious award.CM’s Website received the Web Ratna Award of the Union government in 2012. Kerala received the IBN 7 Diamond State Award for its performance in the fields of education, health, environment and poverty alleviation.India Today State of the States Award in 2013 for achieving outstanding growth in the fields of education, macro economics, agriculture, consumer market and investment.Kerala received the first prize of the Union government in 2014-15 for its performance in decentralization of power and empowerment of democracy. The responsible tourism project implemented at Kumarakom won the Ulysses Prize, known as the Oscar in tourism sector.The publicity event ‘Run Kerala Run’ a mass run for National Game witnessed the participation of 1.52 crore people and earned a place in the Limca Book of World Records. The mass run was arranged at 7000 centers across Kerala.Kerala has continuously received the Energy Award from 2012 instituted by the Ministry of Power.Kerala also received the India Power Award in 2014 and the award of the Ministry of Power in 2015 for implementing the most number of Pico hydro electricity project.Courtesy: Achievements of UDF Government in Kerala : Ready Reckoner

I was born to a set of parents who believed knowledge and ethics are more important than money or status. I am a hardcore Bihari (i.e. I belong to one of the most poor states in India) who, thanks to his school and his teachers, could read,speak and write good English. I also don’t have any major achievements or certificates to claim any accomplishments. Like most of Biharis, who aspire to become Engineers, I too wrote my Engineering Entrance Exams (JEE and AIEEE back in 2001–2002…for the uninitiated, in India you need to write one of these exams to get into an engineering school of repute). Could not clear anything in the first attempt. I lost hope and was going to get admission in Delhi University. However, there was a divine intervention in that plan, in the form of a School friend (who is now an integral part of my life and who’s success is beyond my comprehension). He suggested that we drop a year, study together and crack these engineering entrance examinations. 4 months later, putting in close to 18 hours a day of studies, we had completed the entire course required for the exams, and were acing most of the mock tests. Ultimately, he went to IIT Kanpur (top engineering school in India), while I went to BIT, Mesra(amongst the top 15 engineering schools in India).For 4 years at college, I indulged myself into alcohol, weed, smoke, hooliganism, LAN gaming, basically anything except studies. Mind you, the branch of engineering I had got was not much sought after - Production Engineering. My Dad got to know about my habits in the 8th semester, and stopped all my funding. I lost family’s trust and financial backing and had to survive for 4 months doing odd tuition jobs (did not tell this to my friends in college out of shame). During the campus placements, banking on my communication skills and the ability to think on my feet/dodge the questions (an art I had mastered during the vivas of my courses), I did not even prepare for interviews. Result - I am rejected by most of the companies, most of which are mass recruiters . 70% of the batch-mates are placed, while I am still jobless. Somehow managed to get into a IT/ITES giant (at that time), on a very average pay package.Being the youngest in the family with 2 elder sisters who were doing quite well in their careers (as an IAS officer and a fashion designer from NIFT, respectively), I felt I had no liabilities or obligations, and even on the ₹ 16,000 a month salary bought a Royal Enfield Thunderbird on loan, and when the salary increased to ₹ 27,000 per month bought a 3rd hand Opel Corsa, again on loan. I had unnecessary clothes, unnecessary gadgets, unnecessary restaurant bills and obviously unnecessary and detrimental credit card bills. I was spending more than I was earning. Borrowing money from one friend to repay the other. Oh! Also, when in 2008, my younger sister (but still elder to me) was getting married, my dad asked me for ₹ 3,00,000. I did not even have ₹ 3,000 in my account and already had 2 different loans running. I called up one of my childhood friends (to whom quite a few of us turn to when we are facing dire straits). I wanted to ask “how do I say No to my dad?”. I had lost all my shame. But…Guess what? That friend, first scolds me, shaming me that - is this the day you were raised for by your parents? And the next day goes to my home (he happened to be in the home town then) and delivers the cash from his account to my dad, without even letting me know. He told my dad that I had sent this money. I was able to pay him off only in 2012, but I am, to this date, still indebted.Moving on, On 7th January 2009, the CEO of my employment organization self-declares one of the biggest corporate scams of India. While the country and the stock markets were dealing with the shock and horror, I was contemplating jail time for non-payment of debts. I almost lost my job. My dad had retired and was living on his pension, my sisters were married and I could not ask them for money. I had already borrowed a lot from my friends. I was shattered that day. Also, somehow that day changed my life as well. I walked all the way back to my rented flat, about a couple of hours walk, and while I was crossing a bridge over a river, I even contemplated suicide. But, I am not that weak.I had written GMAT in November the year before, just because everyone was writing some or the other MBA entrance examination, and also because my then girlfriend (and now wife) had gotten into Symbiosis for doing her MBA. I obviously had not got a decent score to get into top universities, however the score was still ‘OK’ enough to get me into an above average UK school with about 20% scholarship. All my flatmates and their friends, were soliciting me not to go, that this was not a wise decision (it was tormenting going through all those unsolicited advice). I was willing to take the risk, however. I decided to go for it, on that day - 7th January 2009. I had the support of all my family and friends. It would also help running away from all the credit card debt. I was able to settle some of the loans by selling the bike and the car, but was still in huge debts with credit cards (it took me next 5 years to settle them all). I had got the education loan only because my dad’s house was mortgaged, and thankfully there was no CIBIL in India then. However, I had lost credibility.30th September/1st October, 2009, I am flying to London from Kolkata via Mumbai. My dad is there to drop me at the airport. I fly off, while my Dad meets with an accident on GT Road. I get the news only about 4 hours after I had landed in London. I had lost my Dad. A friend in UK who had got the news before me, put me on a flight back to India within another 4 hours. I also get to learn that since the fees have already been paid in full, University could not refund it, and the best they can do is allow me to join next year. I had already resigned from my job. My mom was going to be alone. I would have to pay the interest on education loan for an extra year. There was no source of income. The only house my Mom had was mortgaged. There were meager savings for Mom to survive on. Dad’s rituals need to be performed. If I don’t join by 9th October the University will automatically defer my joining to next year. There were so many questions, but the answer came in my Mom’s strength. She collected herself, asked us to perform the last rites according to the rituals of “Arya Samaj” which takes 3 days instead of 13′ and head back to UK on 8th October. I have not come across a stronger woman in my life.Back in UK, by the time I join the classes, everyone had built a good rapport with everyone else. I felt like a little outcast, initially, with shaved head and a “tikki”, remaining to the confines of a corner seat in the class. I took shelter with the same college friend who had helped me travel back to India. His support helped me build some confidence back. Also, I was living in the University’s accommodation which was a lot more dearer than renting a place with 3–4 other students. I make my case and get a refund from the University, and move into a house with other classmates. In the process of shifting, I manage to lose my passport, and I lost my beliefs, especially in Luck. I believed in lady luck, a lot, back then, and used to credit or curse her for anything and everything. Not anymore. Usually getting another passport issued from Consulate General of India’s office is a 2 week process in UK and getting the student visa stamped again is an additional 2 weeks. But, Leicestershire constabulary had changed their rules regarding registering a complaint for loss/theft of 3rd party IDs on that very day, also since my passport was issued from Patna while I now belonged to Jharkhand my Police Verification Report was becoming a case study for bureaucrats in India. I did not wish to trouble my family any further, and decided against informing them about this fight. So, even after 4 months and a gazillion trips to CGI office, I did not have a passport. Eventually the Constables from Leicester and my (now ex-IAS) sister came to my rescue and got me my passport, 130 days after I had lost it.I had decided that I will not get in to part time jobs and concentrate on studies to get a good job in UK and repay the education loan. The “studying” plan went for a toss, when I was able to score very good marks in the 1st trimester ( I must have been among a few toppers but no such list was prepared officially), and I got back to what I was famous for doing in college - alcohol, smoke, weed, partying and what not. My love life was also suffering, as my (then) girlfriend (and now wife) thought I was going astray. I was not. I am a one-woman-man. yet, the physical distance brought some distance in our relationship as well, and I would spend hours consoling her over Skype. I will not go into the details of the struggles I had to face in my love life, as that is not relevant to this question. Anyways, amidst all this, I still manage to get good scores in the 2nd trimester as well. A professor also sought my permission to use one of my assignments as example for future batches. I just hoped to get a decent job after the end of the course. I even managed to get an internship (only one from the MBA class of 84 students) for 6 months at the University which was approved by HMRC (which meant paying no taxes) and paid £1000 a month, which was just enough to survive and compensate for the shenanigans I had gone through earlier in the year. I was relentless in finding jobs, during the internship as well. After some - 9 months (including 3 months of joblessness), 1500 applications, 50 telephonic interviews, 20 face-to-face interviews and 3 Assessment Centers, I was still jobless. I had no money left.As a pattern in this answer, another friend comes to my rescue. I stay at his flat, rent free for 3 months, he introduces me to a messiah - who mentors me for jobs in UK, and by July 2011, had 3 job offers in my hand (in one day). But the day before I had these 3 offers does need a mention. I was appearing for an interview in Edinburgh, and the return travel itself cost me £60. I had £40 left in my account after that. My mom had ₹ 40,000 in her account and we still had a debt of over ₹ 20,00,000. I could not borrow anymore money from the friend I was living with, without being sure of the repayment source. I landed in Edinburgh bus station at 8am, the interview was at 12pm, the venue was 4.5 miles (more than 7kms) away. I could not spend any money on transport or food. I walked those 4.5 miles, reached well in time, gave a solid interview, walked all the way back, did not have food, and slept on the bench of the bus station, as the return bus was at 10pm. I had not felt as helpless as I felt that day, ever. But by the time I reach my friend’s flat in London, the next morning, I had offer from State Street (the interview in Edinburgh), CitiBank and Santander (interviews I had taken earlier).Some struggles in love life later…for the next 6 years, everything was hunky-dory. I had married the love of my life, went for a honeymoon to Maldives, repaid my education loan in just 2 years and made dad’s house lien free, bought another 3 BHK flat for my Mom, bought my Mom a new car, bought ourselves a 4.5 BHK flat in Pune, was driving a Range Rover, had holidayed in over 15 countries, owned an Omega Seamaster, was traveling Business Class on my own expenses…in short, I was living a luxurious life. I was blessed with a daughter, my Mom and my in-laws traveled and lived with us in UK and got to experience the luxuries , and everyone fell in love with the place. All this was possible ONLY because of my wife. She was earning as much as I did, and stood as pillar without who’s support nothing would have been possible. I was also debt free by the end of 2014, and have remained so, till date.But, I guess, I am not the kinds who like to settle. The burning desire to leave everything behind and make a living in India was always there. I was always on the look out for different avenues to go back to India. I was given an offer by my builder friend in 2015 to join him as a working partner in a construction business. I made that a exit gateway from UK, and after floating the LLP in 2016, returned to India in 2017. Again, I was advised not to do so, by everyone in UK. A couple of years more in UK, and I could have had an Indefinite Leave to Remain. Yet, I decided to follow my guts, convince my wife and garner her support to return. The market situation in India had changed by the time I arrived and the business was not doing good. We had to shut doors by September 2017. I worked on some other business ideas only to fail in them too. My wife did not land a job till January 2018, and I too went back to corporate job in January 2018. We were both not very happy in the situation we were in. We somehow were not prepared to handle India, although, we had made it a point that we will not compromise on standard of living and take any steps back (we had a 3BHK flat to live temporarily in, a BMW X1, a Suzuki Ignis, a Renegade Commando, holidayed thrice in Goa, and in Munnar and Alleppy, and in Seychelles). But…After 2 to 3 incidences of losing my dignity and getting beaten up (by fists of hooligans) and loosing a little more than ₹ 10,00,00 in attempts to establish ourselves in India, we decided to make things right elsewhere. After exploring a few options, we immigrated to Canada in September 2018.Again, after a month of struggling to find jobs and accommodation, we are living a decent life. We both have decent jobs in decent work environments with decent pays. We are living in a Condo in the heart of downtown Toronto. We have a Mercedes GLA. And are now again working towards building a life here.So here’s list of the Lessons I learnt:Take risks - Sometimes we get so involved in building the backup/fail-safe/security net, that we completely lose sight of the focal point/the original objective, for which we were building that safety net. taking risks will only make you richer, either in your objectives or in your experiences.Trust more than you doubt - most of the people you meet , AND the instincts you have, are trustworthy. Just because a minuscule few cheated or a couple of your gut instincts turned wrong, doesn’t mean you should ignore the majority. People are good. Instincts help.Financial Planning - This is the most important subject that needs to be taught in schools. We learn partial differential equations, but nothing about managing our finances - which has much more practical implications in life. Since it is not taught, and everyone has to learn it the hard way, my recommendation is, start preparing a simple income and expense report for yourself from the day you earn your first penny.Make friends - and trust them. You will not regret.Stay happy, Stay unsatisfied - taking the liberty of building on from what Steve Jobs said “stay hungry, stay foolish”…I believe we should be happy with what we have, but never be satisfied. There is a subtle difference and this statement requires pondering.Every problem has at least 3 different solutions - don’t be bogged down by problems. Once you understand the problem, concentrate on the solution. You will definitely find one.If you think you have hit the rock bottom of your life, the only way left to go is …Up. -I think this is self explanatory.Never say die - You will always find something to hang on to and keep afloat and moving forward…just need to clear your vision and look for it.AND, the most important lesson in my life -Thought become things - If you can hold something in your mind long enough and with enough conviction, you will be able to hold it in your hand. Be it material or immaterial, you will have it, if you attract it. Everything in your life happens because of you and what you have attracted. No one else has any control on your life, at least try and not give them that power.Disclaimers:I am not “successful” yet, but have had a fair share of struggles which have made me, in my opinion, much wiser and have given me a lot more clarity in life.This is not a glorification or gratification attempt, but just an overview of some circumstances I had to go throughAfter I finished writing the answer (which I had to cut short a lot and remove a lot of other struggles which were not significant enough to mention), I have reversed the order in which it was written originally. I now have the lessons I learned on the bottom, and the struggles above them. These lessons were not making much of an impact being at the top.