Kerala invites IT firms to shift from Bengaluru, offers ‘abundant water supply’
Kerala's Industries and Law Minister P Rajeev has extended an open invitation to IT firms in Bengaluru, enticing them to consider establishing their operations in Kerala, which boasts abundant water resources unlike the water-strapped Bengaluru.
In an interaction with The Economic Times on Tuesday, March 26, Rajeev emphasized Kerala's readiness to provide IT companies with ample facilities and uninterrupted water supply. He highlighted Kerala's advantage of having 44 rivers, both large and small, ensuring a steady water supply for industrial needs.
Rajeev reiterated his proposition on social media, underscoring Kerala's environmental advantages and its success in attracting environmentally compliant companies. Stressing Kerala's stability in terms of water and air quality, he accentuated the state's appeal to the new wave of environmentally conscious businesses.
The Minister further noted Kerala's burgeoning IT sector, citing the employment of over 10 lakh individuals in tech parks and other IT enterprises across Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, and Kozhikode districts in the past five years alone. He highlighted the growing interest of leading companies in Kerala as a potential investment destination and emphasized the state's robust infrastructure, boasting four international airports, large seaports, and a thriving startup ecosystem.
Meanwhile, Bengaluru continues to grapple with a severe water crisis, exacerbated by poor monsoons and declining groundwater levels. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has implemented stringent measures, including water rationing and restrictions on borewell drilling, due to dwindling water reserves from both the Cauvery River and underground sources.
With Bengaluru heavily reliant on approximately 1,450 MLD of water from the Cauvery River, supplemented by 700 MLD from underground resources, the current water scarcity has led to depleted reservoirs and widespread challenges for industries, institutions, and residents alike.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
A strong magnitude 6.1 earthquake shakes Indonesia's Java Island, felt in Jakarta
Jakarta, Apr 27: A strong magnitude 6.1 earthquake shook the southern part of Indonesia's main island of Java on Saturday, but there were no immediate reports of injury or significant property damage.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck 102 kilometers (63 miles) south of Banjar city at a depth of 68.3 kilometers (42.4 miles). There was no tsunami warning.
High-rises in the capital Jakarta swayed for around a minute and two-story homes shook strongly in the West Java provincial capital of Bandung and in Jakarta's satellite cities of Depok, Tangerang, Bogor and Bekasi. The quake was also felt in other cities in West Java, Yogyakarta and East Java province, according to Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency.
The agency warned of possible aftershocks.
Earthquakes are frequent across the sprawling archipelago nation, but they are rarely felt in Jakarta.
Indonesia, a seismically active archipelago of 270 million people, is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on major geological faults known as the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake in 2022 killed at least 602 people in West Java's Cianjur city. It was the deadliest in Indonesia since a 2018 quake and tsunami in Sulawesi killed more than 4,300 people.
In 2004, an extremely powerful Indian Ocean quake set off a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries, most of them in Indonesia's Aceh province.
