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The Hindu
22-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Land survey to begin for proposed Greenfield airport in Erumely and Manimala
Amid concerns over staff shortages and uncertainty surrounding the continued operation of the General Land Acquisition (LA) Tahsildar's office, the Revenue department has initiated physical land survey proceedings in Erumely South and Manimala villages for the proposed greenfield airport project. According to officials, five surveyors have been deployed to kickstart the proceedings, with the physical survey expected to begin next week. The survey is being conducted under the supervision of Deputy Collector Jinu Punnoose. 'A digital survey was already conducted to estimate the land requirements. The upcoming physical survey is expected to be completed within four to six months. Although we had requested eight surveyors, the government has sanctioned only five,' an official said. As per the government order, 1001.873 hectares (approximately 2,475 acres) of land are to be acquired for the project. However, the exact extent and corresponding survey numbers will only be finalised upon the completion of the physical survey. Compensation Following the survey, a basic valuation statement will be prepared, which will later be followed by a detailed valuation report to determine compensation. Residents will be notified in advance regarding the extent of land to be acquired, the official added. In addition to the 2,263-acre Cheruvally estate, parcels of land outside the estate boundaries will also need to be acquired. The final list of land parcels to be acquired will be confirmed once the government issues a notification under Section 19(1) of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (LARR) Act. Currently, the General LA Tehsildar's office under the Revenue Department in Kottayam is handling the survey proceedings. However, the delay in securing continued approval for the office's functioning have created administrative hurdles in the land acquisition process. The government, meanwhile, has initiated steps to establish a dedicated Tahsildar office in either Erumely or Kanjirappally and to appoint a special tahsildar to oversee the administrative coordination of the land acquisition process. STUP Consultants Ltd., appointed by the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), is currently preparing the Detailed Project Report (DPR). On completion, the DPR will be submitted to the KSIDC and subsequently forwarded to the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation for further evaluation.
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
State's first med-tech hub to begin allotment in July
T'puram: Kerala's first dedicated medical devices park is set to become a major hub for the med-tech industry. Located at the Life Science Park in Thonnakkal, Thiruvananthapuram, MedSpark is a joint initiative of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) and the Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST).The park is expected to begin allotting space to major medical device companies starting this July, with full-scale operations slated to commence in Jan 2026, when construction is scheduled for to Dr Praveen KS, CEO of Life Science Park, several reputed players in the medical devices sector have shown strong interest in the project. "Discussions with prominent companies are already under way, although officials have not disclosed names as negotiations are still in progress. The MedSpark project will be a game-changer for the medical device industry in Kerala," Dr Praveen said. "This is the first such park in the state and it will host major medical device manufacturers and incubators. The state has a strong ecosystem in this field, and this initiative will take it to the next level," he of the park includes two five-storey blocks and one single-storey facility. While the initial two blocks were completed by the original contractor, RDS Projects Ltd, work stalled after the firm exited the project. The remaining construction is now being handled by the Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society, with all structural work expected to finish by Jan 2026. Interior works will follow, with tenders already foundation stone for MedSpark was laid in Sept 2020, but delays pushed back the timeline. The project's total cost is estimated at Rs 256 crore, with Rs 156 crore from the state govt and Rs 100 crore from the Centre. Central funds are primarily being used to set up advanced testing labs and related as an integrated ecosystem for the medical devices sector, MedSpark will offer facilities for R&D, testing and evaluation, manufacturing support, innovation, and skill development. Key components include a medical device testing and evaluation centre, a shared R&D hub, a knowledge centre, and units for clinical trials, regulatory assistance, and operational, MedSpark is projected to generate around 1,200 direct jobs and an additional 4,000–5,000 indirect jobs through support services and allied industries. Kerala's existing medical device sector already sees an annual turnover of over Rs 750 crore, with many companies leveraging SCTIMST-developed technologies.
The Hindu
26-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
State comes up with final order to acquire land for Sabarimala airport
The State government has brought out the final order for acquiring land for the Sabarimala Greenfield airport project under the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement (LARR) Act, 2013. The order, issued by Sheeba George, Additional Secretary (Revenue) is in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 11 of the LARR Act and states that a total of 1,001.873 hectares (2,475.68 acres) is required to be acquired for the project in Erumeli South and Manimala villages. This includes 2,263-acre Cheruvally estate, which is currently under the possession of the Ayana Charitable Trust and land located outside the estate. Individuals involved in the land acquisition process are encouraged to raise any grievances within 15 days regarding the updating of land records or titles in relation to the land proposed for acquisition. Objections concerning the area and suitability of the land proposed for acquisition, justification for public purpose and the findings of the Social Impact Assessment report should be submitted within 60 days. 'Any objection or statement which is received after the due date and which does not clearly explain as how the objector is interested in the land, is liable to be summarily rejected,' reads the order. The new order was issued after considering the Social Impact Assessment report, recommendations from the expert committee based on the SIA report and the district Collector's report on it. In the report, the District Collector had stated that the land be acquired under Section 7 (5) of the LARR Act. This is the second time that the State government is going through the land acquisition process as the previous notifications for both the SIA and land acquisition were revoked by the government following objections from the Ayana Charitable Trust (formerly Gospel for Asia) and local residents. They challenged in the court the legitimacy of the initial SIA study, which had been conducted by the Centre for Management Development, citing the organisation's links with the State Industries department. In the next step, the government will begin the official survey of the land as per section 12 and prepare a file of the precise extent of land to be acquired along with its survey numbers. It will be followed by a declaration of the rehabilitation and resettlement (RR) package, as outlined in section 19 (1) of the LARR Act. Stup Consultants Ltd, appointed by the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), is in the process of preparing the detailed project report (DPR) for the project. Once the DPR is completed and submitted to the KSIDC, it will be forwarded to the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation for further review.
