Trivandrum Projects & Infrastructure :News

[MINUS]

• Video Link

[MINUS]

Source : Metro Vaartha



Source : Malayala Manorama



Source : Mathrubhumi

[MINUS]

Thiruvananthapuram, April 18:

Oracle India has signed a tripartite agreement with Technopark and Leela Infopark (located inside the Technopark campus) to lease 40,000 sq ft of space to commence operations of its development centre by September this year.

The agreement was signed here on Monday by Air Commodore Jayaraman Ramamoorthy, Vice-President, Real Estate and Facilities, Oracle India; Mr Mervin Alexander, Chief Executive Officer, Technopark; and Mr Venu Krishnan, Executive Director, Leela Infopark.

INDUSTRY POLICY

The ceremony was witnessed by the Chief Minister, Mr V. S. Achuthanandan, and Mr Suresh Kumar, Secretary, IT, Kerala.

Oracle setting shop in the State amounts to recognition of the pro-industry IT policy of the State Government and continuous efforts at attracting investments in the industry, the Chief Minister said.

Oracle currently employs about 28,000 professionals and has a big presence in Bengaluru, Mr Alexander said.

“Thiruvananthapuram represents its first exposure to a tier-II city,” he added.

The company has already initiated a recruitment drive and have identified resources whose training will commence by June in Technopark.

FIRST EXPOSURE

Prior to the new facility gets fully functional at the Leela Infopark, the Oracle development centre will function out of a 3,000-sq ft office at the Park Centre in Technopark.

Mr Alexander also expressed his gratitude to Mr Thomas Kurien, Executive Vice President, Oracle Corporation, for taking the initiative to bring the global IT giant to the State Capital.

Also present on the occasion were Mr Jayanth Joseph, Senior Director, Oracle India; Ms Ishita Roy, Director, Kerala State IT Mission Director; Mr V. J. Jayakumar, Chief Executive Officer, Leela Infopark; and Mr M. Vasudevan, Senior Business Development Manager, Technopark.

Source : Business Line

T blue chip Oracle on Monday signed an agreement to open its first office in Kerala at the Technopark campus in Thiruvananthapuram, officials said.

Its office will be housed at the Leela Infopark building.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan by Oracle official R. Jayaraman and Venu Krishnan of Leela Infotech.

Jayaraman told Achuthanandan that the company was looking forward to the commencement of its Kerala operations.

Achuthanandan said he was happy that one of the world's leading IT firms was setting up a unit in the state.

"The agreement starts from today and it runs for nine years...the present space can accommodate close to 400 professionals," Krishnan told reporters.

Headquartered in Redwood Shores, California, Oracle Corporation specialises in developing and marketing enterprise software products - particularly database management systems.

As of July 2010, the firm employed more than one lakh professionals across the globe.

Leela Infotech has built up space at the Technopark and Kochi Infopark campuses and is the largest private infrastructure builder in the state with over 1.7 million sq ft of space.

The Technopark campus houses more than 200 companies that employ over 30,000 professionals.

Source : NDTV Profit

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA: IT blue chip Oracle on Monday signed an agreement to open its first office in Kerala at the Technopark campus here, officials said.

Its office will be housed at the Leela Infopark building.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan by Oracle official R. Jayaraman and Venu Krishnan of Leela Infotech.

Jayaraman told Achuthanandan that the company was looking forward to the commencement of its Kerala operations.

Achuthanandan said he was happy that one of the world's leading IT firms was setting up a unit in the state.

"The agreement starts from today and it runs for nine years...the present space can accommodate close to 400 professionals," Krishnan told reporters.

Headquartered in Redwood Shores, California, Oracle Corporation specialises in developing and marketing enterprise software products - particularly database management systems.

As of July 2010, the firm employed more than one lakh professionals across the globe.

Leela Infotech has built up space at the Technopark and Kochi Infopark campuses and is the largest private infrastructure builder in the state with over 1.7 million sq ft of space.

The Technopark campus houses more than 200 companies that employ over 30,000 professionals.

Source : CIOL

Thiruvananthapuram: IT blue chip Oracle Monday signed an agreement to open its first office in Kerala at the Technopark campus here, officials said.

Its office will be housed at the Leela Infopark building.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan by Oracle official R. Jayaraman and Venu Krishnan of Leela Infotech.

Jayaraman told Achuthanandan that the company was looking forward to the commencement of its Kerala operations.

Achuthanandan said he was happy that one of the world's leading IT firms was setting up a unit in the state.

"The agreement starts from today and it runs for nine years...the present space can accommodate close to 400 professionals," Krishnan told reporters.

Headquartered in Redwood Shores, California, Oracle Corporation specialises in developing and marketing enterprise software products - particularly database management systems.

As of July 2010, the firm employed more than one lakh professionals across the globe.

Leela Infotech has built up space at the Technopark and Kochi Infopark campuses and is the largest private infrastructure builder in the state with over 1.7 million sq ft of space.

The Technopark campus houses more than 200 companies that employ over 30,000 professionals.

Source : Manorama Online

[MINUS]

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Much to the relief of hundreds of autorickshaw passengers, the authorities have decided to open new pre-paid autorickshaw counters in the city. Four locations have been identified by the authorities to set up the new counters. They are the Thampanoor KSRTC bus station, Pettah Railway Station, Medical College Hospital and East Fort.

The City Police have already embarked on a process of gathering data on licensed autorickshaws which ply in the city to be included in the programme. Presently, there is only one pre-paid autorickshaw counter functioning in the city, at the Central Railway Station.

The police were being flooded with complaints regarding the autorickshaw drivers demanding exorbitant fares and about their rude behaviour towards the passengers. Even though the police took stern measures, including penalising erring drivers, they could not curb the menace. There were even instances in which the victims happened to be judicial officers. A magistrate of the District Court had once filed a complaint against an autorickshaw driver for showered him with abuses.

‘’The move will not only help reduce the number of complaints to a great extent but will also help put a check on autorickshaws that ply on the city roads without permit,’’ said City Police Commissioner Manoj Abraham. It has been a long-pending demand of autorickshaw passengers in the city for opening more pre-paid counters, especially at Pettah and Medical College. This demand will be met with the opening of the new counters, the Commissioner said.

However, the Commissioner said that the public would have to wait more for the opening of a pre-paid autorickshaw counter at the Kochuveli Railway Station where passengers often face the rude behaviour of autorickshaw drivers. Pre-paid counters could be set up at the Kochuveli railway station only with the consent of Southern Railway.

Meanwhile, the autorickshaw drivers in the city are unaware of the move to open new pre-paid counters. The AITUC-led Motor Thozhilali Union general secretary Pattom Sasidharan told ‘City Express’ that the union had not been informed of the move. But he added that they would welcome the move since it will help curb the menace of unlicensed autorickshaws plying in the city.

‘’Drivers of unlicensed autorickshaws behave rudely to the passengers by demanding excess fares. Other drivers too have to suffer the disrepute because of them,’’ Sasidharan said.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: After months of wait, the traffic signal light at PMG Junction is all set to wake up from the long slumber. Maintenance works of the signal are progressing for the past three days.

The signal light at PMG Junction, along with several other traffic signal lights in the city, have been lying idle for several months after the City Corporation and the Road Fund Board failed to renew the contract with Keltron following the expiry of warranty period in 2010. The authorities have been passing the buck each other ever since. Big traffic snarls also became a common phenomena in the city, as traffic on city roads turned to be beyond the control of traffic wardens.

The officials of Keltron, who have the responsibility for the maintenance of the signal light, said that the works were expected to be completed within four days, given the rains do not interrupt the works.

Works are on to convert the light into a solar-powered one. Keltron is also working simultaneously on the maintenance of various signal lights that lie defunct and also installation of new ones in the city.

The work of a new traffic signal light at Ambalamukku is in the final stage. The installation work of another signal lamp at SMC Junction, Vazhuthacaud, will commence in a week, said George Kutty, general manager of the traffic division of Keltron.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

With as many as 82 patents in less than three decades, the biomedical technology wing of Sri Chitra Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) here holds the record for maximum number of patents in the state.

Since 1983 the BMT wing has filed 126 patent applications. As many as 40 applications are pending review at the moment.

The latest one is the oral insulin delivery system which has been developed by Dr Chandra P. Sharma. It is in the evaluation stage and will be subjected to safety testing and clinical trials and the process is likely to be completed by 2012.

From just two to three patent applications a year in the eighties, the number of applications from the institute faculty has now risen to seven to eight.

Most of the patents have been helpful for the medical devices industry particularly in developing and transferring technology for diverse products such as disposable blood bags, heart valve disc, heart valve designs, blood oxygenators, ophthalmic sponge and critical life saving and life supporting devices like artificial heart valves and haemodialysers.

The BMT wing head, Dr G.S. Bhuvaneshwar, who also holds as many as seven patents along with other colleagues, says the institute is planning to expand its faculty soon.

“The idea is to diversify research work,” he said. “As of now we have sanctioned faculty strength of 40 and we intend to increase it to 60 in next two years.”

Dr Bhuvaneshwar has two US, one European and five Indian patents for heart valve disk, heart valve design method, humidification equipment and pressure monitoring device.

Source : Deccan Chronicle

[MINUS]

The Airports Authority of India (AAI) is all set to convert the old international terminal of the Thiruvanathapuram airport into a domestic terminal by giving it a face-lift.

The corporate headquarters of the AAI has approved this proposal forwarded a couple of days ago and tenders would be floated soon for renovation.

Considering the heavy rush at the domestic airport, even the State Government had favoured another domestic terminal.

The old international terminal had been lying idle since the inauguration of the new terminal.

“We are keen to use the building at the earliest,” said the airport director, Mr G. Chandramouli. “The estimates for the work should be ready within 10 to 15 days and the work should start in a couple of months.”

He said the construction of new domestic terminal would take at least three to four years and till then the passengers will be given high-end facilities at renovated old terminal.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

Source : Malayala Manorama

[MINUS]

Source : Mathrubhumi

[MINUS]

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The doubling works in the Mavelikara-Chengannur, Kayamkulam-Cheppad, and Cheppad-Haripad sections and work on platform six at Ernakulam Junction (railway station) will be completed this financial year, Divisional Railway Manager, Rajiv Dutt Sharma has said.

Speaking at the 56th Railway Week celebrations at the Divisional Headquarters here on Thursday, Mr. Sharma said the work on the subway being constructed at Edappally, connecting the new lines with the Vallarpadom yard, was progressing. The two additional pit lines and platforms, coming up at Kochuveli, will reduce congestion at Thiruvananthapuram Central.

Although the division is running short of pit lines, stabling lines, platform lines and path for trains, more and more trains are being introduced. In the last six years, 31 new trains were introduced in this division, he said. The division is handling about 1,600 holiday special trains annually to various destinations and carries about 2.60 lakh of passengers each day.

The division had earmarked Rs.13 crore for passenger amenities during 2010-11. The work on 14 Adarsh stations had been completed. The work on new foot bridges at Thiruvananthapuram Central will be taken up this year. Work on foot bridges were in progress at Eraniel, Kuzhithurai, Valliyoor, Nanguri, and Mayyanad. The work on lift and escalator at Thiruvananthapuram and Chengannur will be completed this year. A launderette each will be commissioned in Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam, Mr. Sharma said. A drinking water plant had been proposed at Cheriyanad on a public-private partnership mode.

Mr. Sharma said a modified signal system will be installed at the Pettah railway station to enable stoppage to incoming mail/express trains there and to avoid long wait at ‘the outer' of the Central station. Six stations will be upgraded as Adarsh stations and unreserved ticketing system (UTS) had been proposed at Mulanthuruthy, Karukutty, Sengulam, Balaramapuram, Kuruppunthara, Kochuveli, and Nemom.

The Divisional Railway Manager said the track renewal train (TRT) could cover 19.557 km this year and the target was 22 km.

Intensive ticket checking with the support of the Railway Protection Force had resulted in substantial growth in ticket-checking earnings. It was Rs.393.15 lakh up to March 2011 as against Rs.345 lakh in the corresponding period last year.

Additional Divisional Railway Manager V. Rajaveen welcomed the gathering. The programme began with a cultural show. As many as 343 individual and 38 group awards were given away at the function. N. Govindan, Senior Divisional Personal Officer, proposed a vote of thanks.

Source : The Hindu

[MINUS]

The Cantonment branch of Canara Bank has opened a ‘locker plaza' with all modern facilities at the first floor of the Spencer Building, M. G. Road here.

The District Collector, Dr Dinesh Arora, inaugurated the facility at a function here on Monday. He also distributed keys of new lockers to customers who have requested for the facility at the Plaza. Lockers shall be allotted to the needy as per request on a priority basis.

The Circle Manager, Canara Bank, Mr T. Sreekanthan; the Deputy General Manager, Mr C. G. Nair, and the Cantonment Branch Assistant General Manager, Mr P. P. Thangavelu, were present on the occasion.

Source : Business Line

[MINUS]

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: Days ago, when enormous sea waves washed away precious lives and wealth in faraway Japan, a wave of panic swept across the residents of the capital city down here too. They had all the reasons to tremble in fear, thanks to their city’s proximity to the Arabian Sea.

But the threat of a tsunami will no longer disturb the city dwellers, as the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, has come up with an innovation that can forecast catastrophes like tsunamis as early as seven days before they hit the shore. The innovation is called Wave Gauge Station, developed by INCOIS in collaboration with the Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS).

The Wave Gauge Station, which is a coastal observation station, is a multi-parameter warning system which is devised to forecast catastrophes like high waves, tsunami and cyclones. The first unit of the station will be opened in the sea off the coastal ward of Valiathura in the city on Wednesday.

Addressing a news conference here on Tuesday, Balakrishnan Nair, Head of the Ocean Sciences and Information Services Group of INCOIS, said that the coastal station will give real-time data on coastal weather conditions, including wave parameters and tides. Another important application of this data which could be of great help to the fishermen community is that it can be used for identifying potential fishing zones. In addition to this, the data will be disseminated to the various scientific communities, research organisations and institutions for research work.

The station comprises of a buoy equipped with machinery for data collection and transmission, which would be deployed in the sea offshore, and an electronic display board installed at the shore that screens the forecast. Both the buoy and display board are connected to the satellite INMARSAT-C, through which the data would be transmitted.

Balakrishnan Nair said that with the implementation of the project, India will enter the list of nations, which includes the United States of America, the United Kingdom and Australia, who have developed their own tsunami warning systems.

Sheela Nair, scientist at CESS and the principal investigator of the project, said that the residents of the coastal villages in the city have been informed of the project through the local body authorities. More awareness campaigns will be conducted after the installation of the coastal station since the project directly affects their lives.

N P Kurian, Director of CESS, who was also present at the news conference, added that coastal observation stations would be set up at more districts in the State during the second phase of the project. INCOIS will establish a Wave Gauge Station at Kozhikode too as part of the project.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) has granted a ‘gold' certification to the IT building of the ongoing phase-III project of Technopark here.

The certificate is given as part of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) India rating System.

This is for the first time that a Technopark facility is being awarded a green building certificate.

The construction activities on the phase-III project are progressing. It will also constitute the largest in the Technopark complex, said Mr Mervin Alexander, Chief Executive Officer, Technopark.

The building has a built-up area of 10 lakh sq.ft.

In fact, the IT building at the phase-III campus has been ‘pre-certified' by the IGBC after a two-level review system considering various factors inherent in the project design and implementation.

The green building facility would be leased out to multiple tenants from around the world and is expected to be operational by the end of this year, Mr Alexander added.

A green building uses less water, optimises energy efficiency, conserves natural resources, generates less waste and provides healthier spaces for occupants, as compared to a conventional building.

The upcoming building will be equipped with energy efficient heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system by usage of variable frequency drives and heat recovery wheels, among others, an official spokesman said.

Water-cooled centrifugal chillers with high coefficient of performance (CoP) will be installed. Cooling system that ensures adequate ventilation and proper filtration can have a positive impact on indoor air quality.

This will not only sustain good health but also enhance productivity of the occupants. Double glazing with low ‘U value' (measure of ability to transfer heat) that resists heat transmission to building interiors will be employed.

Natural lighting will be utilised to the maximum extent. Other control devices include day light sensors and occupancy sensors which help conserve energy. Renewable energy sources would be tapped wherever possible.

The design was conceived by architect Hafeez Contractor in association with consortium partners Iyer and Mahesh of Thiruvananthapuram.

The phase-III campus will be spread over 90 acres, and will feature common facilities ranging from like electrical substation, water distribution system, sewage treatment plant, food courts and shopping malls to a bus station.

One important attraction is the rainwater harvesting facility being set up on the campus.

The pond will have a surface area of 8,500 sq m and a volume of 10,000 cu m. All these facilities have been designed in compliance with the requirements of green buildings.

Land parcels have also been allotted to few companies, including HCL, on the campus. Developmental works by these companies are also progressing.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

Trivandrum: The construction work of the new look bus bays in the city are getting completed at a fast rate. These seven bus bays will be provided with music systems, perhaps a first in the state.


The work will be over in a span of a week or two. The new look bus bays are named ‘Cosmo Shelters’ as a sign of its cosmopolitan culture."The bus bays will have 3 language (Malayalam, English and Hindi) display boards showing the name of the bus stop. This will give a cosmopolitan nature to Trivandrum’s bus stops and will be convenient for the tourists visiting our city. No other city in the country, not even Mumbai has proper 3 language display boards at present,” expressed Anilkumar Pandala, Project Director, City Road Improvement Project (CRIP) undertaken by the Thiruvananthapuram Road Development Company Limited (TRDCL) and Associate VP IL&FS.

The MLA fund of Vijayakumar is being utilised for developing the bus bays. Six bus bays are developed under this scheme in the first phase. These bus stops are in the Kowdiar-Peroorkada Road and Kowdiar-Pattom road and at Sasthamangalam Junction.

The new bays will be modelled on the new model bus bay at the Museum stop. “But as per people’s response, we modified our design for the six new bus bays. So there will be slight modifications in the basic design. So all bus bays will be provided with music systems plausibly connected to FM stations. Once the basic elements are completed, within 2-3 days it will be installed and charged with electric supply. Hence the work will take a maximum of two weeks,” added Anilkumar. Now the city commuters can rest in the shade and enjoy good music while waiting for the bus.

Source : Yentha

[MINUS]

The late-night rail passengers arriving in Thiruvananthapuram by Jan Shatabdi Express will not have to search around for an autorickshaw to reach their destination.

A low-floor AC bus operated by the KSRTC parked on the railway station premises will ply the passengers who would arrive by Jan Shatabdi at 8.50 pm to various points in the city from Thursday.

‘’The bus would operate from the railway station to the Medical College, covering spots like Statue, Palayam, General Hospital, Kesavadasapuram and Kannammoola,” KSRTC managing director (in-charge) S Rajasekharan Nair told Express.

He said that the KSRTC has obtained permission from the Railways to park the bus on the railway station compound, which would mean that the passengers will not have to hover around searching for the bus.

Presently, similar services are being operated from Kochuveli railway station in the early hours plying passengers to the city, which has been receiving a favourable response. The KSRTC is operating a low-floor AC bus every Friday in tandem with a train reaching the station at 3.10 am. In addition, another bus is being operated without schedule - as and when the railway authorities inform the KSRTC about the arrival of a particular train at Kochuveli.

“The transportation problem in the late-night hours has come to our notice. We would explore the possibility of diversifying the late-night or early-hour bus services in other cities like Kozhikode and Ernakulam and, if required, to more towns,” Transport Department principal secretary Tom Jose told Express.

The decision has also come in the wake of increasing atrocities against passengers, especially against women and the vulnerable, who alight at destinations during the late hours.

Presently, 18 AC low-floor buses are being operated in Thiruvananthapuram which will be increased to 20 soon. The state has received 80 low-floor AC buses under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) of the Centre.

Source : Expressbuzz

[MINUS]

Source : Kerala Kaumudi

[MINUS]

Source : Metro Manorama by Malayala Manorama

[MINUS]

Source : Kerala Kaumudi

[MINUS]

Source : Metro Vaartha

[MINUS]

THIRUVANATHAPURAM: Two years ago, the IT company UST Global worked out a magic in the village of Azhinjivakkam, near Chennai.

The dried up, dusty lanes of the village were planted with new saplings. Young girls till then confined to their filth-smelling shacks were given new school uniforms and sent to school.

The old, crumbling huts slowly turned into pretty-looking homes. Small industrial units and computer education centres popped up. All of a sudden, the stinking village inhabited by weary-looking men put on a new look, so fresh and inspiring that an old villager walked up to a tall foreign lady and thanked her in chaste Tamil. ‘’I didn’t understand what he meant exactly. But I could see the happiness on his face which made me feel so good,’’ says Mary Johnson, Director, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), UST Global, who pioneered the ‘Adopt a village programme’ for UST at Azhinjivakkam.

The joy she saw on the faces of innocent villagers in Tamil Nadu has now brought her to the city with the same mission. ‘’UST will adopt two villages, the first one from Thiruvanathapuram and the other from Kochi. The adopted villages will be transformed completely in partnership with the government. The focus will be on three areas; health, environment and education,’’ says Mary.

The project will be implemented on certain criteria. ‘’We are looking for villages that would fit into our framework. We don’t want to walk into a village and create a wrong impression about ourselves. We want to make sure about factors like acceptability and feasibility before zeroing in on a particular village,’’ she says.

The project will be fully realised by December and will be finished within a time frame of 2-3 years or longer depending upon the pace at which the entire scheme works out.

In Thiruvananthapuram, a coastal village is most likely to be adopted and Mary is eager to explain the reason: ‘’When Tsunami hit here in 2004, we visited many affected villages. What we saw was simply devastating. The people told us a thousand tales about how they managed to save themselves from huge waves. They were hungry, tired and helpless. When we offered our help, they simply asked us to walk on so that we would find more deserving people. We were so moved by them and were wondering how people could be so generous and considerate in the face of adversity. We are not sure if things have improved for them and would really like to adopt one such village and bring them back to life.’’

Mary is a bit apprehensive about the official formalities. ‘’We hope that everything will work in our favour, for it is for the good of people only.’’

Once the project turns out to be a success, UST will be expanding the project to other districts as well. ‘’Currently, we are focusing on immunisation programmes in Alappuzha. We would really like to realise our vision in almost every part of the State,’’ she says.

Source : Expressbuzz