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Fire at Brahmapuram waste plant in Kochi set deliberately: UDF in assembly

The still smouldering fire at the Brahmapuram waste plant in Kochi was set "deliberately" to avoid inspection of the site where several years worth of garbage was lying accumulated, Congress-led UDF opposition alleged in the Kerala assembly on Monday. The government, on the other hand, said the fire appeared to have been caused due to the high temperatures in the state, but it was investigating the matter to find out the actual reasons for it. Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state assembly V D Satheesan claimed in the House that the fire has not yet been extinguished or even brought under control and alleged that neither the local administration nor the state government was doing anything to address the serious situation. The poisonous smoke generated from there, which has even entered homes of the areas neighbouring the waste plant, will cause both short and long term health problems for the people there, he contended in his submission in the House. The LoP, also an MLA from Nor

Updated On : 06 Mar 2023 | 4:14 PM IST

Kerala Assembly passes contentious University Laws Bill; UDF boycotts

The Kerala Assembly on Thursday passed the contentious University Laws (Amendment) Bill 2022, which would result in curtailing the powers of the Governor as Chancellor of state universities. The opposition Congress-UDF boycotted the House proceedings before voting alleging that the government was trying to appoint "puppets" of the ruling party in key posts in varsities. Announcing their boycott, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly V D Satheesan said the Bill was an "insult" to the higher education sector of the state. The Bill would affect the autonomy of the universities and would set a wrong precedent in the higher education sector, he charged before walking out of the hall. However, Higher Education Minister R Bindu claimed that the opposition and media's propaganda that the Bill would strip the powers of the Governor was wrong. The Bill was passed at a time when the ruling CPI(M) was facing nepotism charges from opposition parties in connection with the faculty appointment in

Updated On : 01 Sep 2022 | 2:30 PM IST

Kerala Assembly passes Lok Ayukta Bill despite stiff opposition by UDF

Despite stiff opposition raised by the UDF members and their subsequent boycott, the Kerala Assembly on Tuesday passed the controversial Lok Ayukta (Amendment) Bill, which seeks to make the executive the appellate authority over reports by the anti-corruption watchdog. After hours-long heated arguments and debates, the opposition announced their boycott of the day's proceedings saying they did not want to witness the "killing" of the anti-corruption agency using its brute majority in the Assembly. Before walking out of the House, Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan said it was a "black day" in the history of the state Assembly. "The opposition cannot support the attempt made by the government to eliminate and weaken an anti-corruption agency. We are registering our stern opposition against passing this bill...we will fight it tooth and nail," he said. When the Congress-led opposition alleged that the bill, which carries away the rights of the constitutional agency, would weaken the