Kerala CM flags-in first ever ship into Vizhinjam port
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday flagged-in the first ever ship at the Rs 7,700 crore deep-water international Vizhinjam port here.
Vijayan, joined by Leader of Opposition in the assembly V D Satheesan, Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and various state ministers, waved a green flag signalling the tugboats to push the huge Chinese ship -- Zhen Hua 15 -- from the wharf to the docking yard.
The tugboats pushing the vessel, which carries huge ship-to-shore and yard cranes, also gave it a water salute.
As the vessel touched the dock, firecrackers were burst and balloons released to welcome it.
Hundreds of people, across all age groups, arrived at the port area to see the ship arrive at the dock.
Zhen Hua 15 -- which began its journey from China at the end of August, was scheduled to dock at Vizhinjam on October 4, but its journey got delayed due to bad weather conditions along its route.
On reaching Indian coastal waters, it first went to Mundra port in Gujarat to offload some cranes there and then proceeded towards Vizhinjam.
The Vizhinjam port is being constructed under the public-private partnership model. The Adani Group is the private partner in the development of what will become one of the largest ports in the world, once commissioned.
The project, scheduled to be commissioned in 2019, was delayed due to several issues related to land acquisition.
Vizhinjam witnessed violent protests as fishermen in the area opposed the project, alleging that the port would adversely affect their livelihood.
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Seven arrested in Manipal for ganja, LSD peddling, consumption
Udupi (Karnataka), Aug 18 (PTI): Seven individuals were arrested in Manipal on charges of peddling and consuming narcotics, including ganja and LSD, police said here on Monday.
Four of the accused—Ajish (28), Vipin (32), Bipin (24), and Akhil (26), all from Kerala—were first apprehended after their samples tested positive for ganja consumption. Interrogation revealed that they were being supplied by Manish (34) of Kasaragod.
A raid at Manish’s flat in Vidyaratna Nagar on August 17 recovered 653 grams of ganja, digital scales, a crusher, cash, and a mobile phone. He has been remanded to judicial custody and is counted among the seven arrested.
Separately, a raid on August 16 at a rented room in Ishwara Nagara led to the arrest of Afshin (26) from Kerala and Shivanidhi Acharya (20) of Udupi. Police recovered 1.237 kg of ganja, 0.038 grams of LSD strips, and related paraphernalia.
Investigations indicated that the accused had been targeting both students and migrant workers in Manipal and Mangaluru. The operation was coordinated under the guidance of Udupi Superintendent of Police Hariram Shankar.
