Now, a squad to plug leaks in KWA pipelines

Jisha Surya
February 28, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: At last, Kerala water authority (KWA) seems to have learned the prevention-is-better-than-cure lesson. With half of the water being brought from Aruvikkara reservoir getting wasted midway due to leaks and faulty meters affecting billing process for the transmitted water, KWA has formed a leak detection squad to identify and plug leaks in pipes.

Non-revenue water management wing of KWA has formed the squad. The replacement of faulty metres will be launched soon at Kowdiar, which will be extended to other parts of the city as well.

The leak detection squad, which currently has two assistant engineers, two overseers, a plumber and a surveyor, is working based on the complaints. “Our plan is to develop the squad in such a way that it could conduct area-wise regular checking in pipelines,” said K S Praveen, assistant executive engineer, NRW management.

The department has procured four acoustic leak detectors, one metallic pipe locator, three valve detectors and a GPS tracking instrument. KWA is planning to procure more devices for the smooth functioning of the squad.

“Mostly it is difficult to ensure 100% accuracy in detecting the leak. However, with these devices we hope to identify and plug leaks,” Praveen said. The squad currently works during night. “The posts of two assistant engineers are vacant now. We hope to fill them soon,” he added.

To check the extend of loss caused by inaccurate metering the NRW has launched a pilot study to change faulty meters. As a first step 3,000 meters, mostly under non-domestic category, in Kowdiar areas will be replaced with new ones certified by Fluid Control Research Institute in Palakkad.

“During a recent study, we have found that there was a 25% increase in billing when some meters were replaced at a particular area as part of JNNURM project. Based on this, we will replace 3,000 meters in Kowdiar section and will inspect for a period of six months to check whether there is any major difference in billing,” Praveen said.

Currently, KWA has not set any standard for meters. Consumers can buy their choice of meters. In most non-domestic categories meters are often not in working condition. Once the pilot study proves that there is revenue loss due to meter inaccuracy, the KWA might adopt standards for buying meters.

Cut in land price deals residents a blow

Jisha Surya
February 27, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: The district administration has come up with a fresh offer for the people who face eviction on the Mukkola-Karode stretch during the widening of Kazhakkoottam-Karode national highway. After the district administration backtracked from the offer announced in the district level purchase committee (DLPC) meeting, the people were informed the other day that they would get around Rs 3.769 lakh per cent. The amount was finalized by considering a base price of Rs 3.32 lakh per cent and 10% solatium.

The new amount is much lower than the amount announced at the DLPC meet, which was around Rs 5.25 lakh per cent. District collector Biju Prabhakar told TOI that those who have complaints can apply for arbitration. The district collector will be the arbitrator to hear complaints against the amount fixed by special deputy collector. Though the price was finalized for three panchayats –– Kottukal, Kanjiramkulam and Thirupuram–– no decision has been taken on Chenkal and Karode panchayats.

As per the new offer, A class land (land near PWD road) will get Rs 3.769 lakh. B Class (land near panchayat roads) lands will get Rs 3.39 lakh, while C Class (interior regions) will get Rs 3.01 lakh. D Class (marshy lands) will get Rs 2.63 lakh and E class (paddy lands) will get Rs 1.809 lakh.

Action council members said that most of the people will go for arbitration to get a better deal. “We want the district administration to announce price for all panchayats together,” action council chairman V Sudhakaran said.

The people at the area are also miffed by the fact that they were being kept in dark regarding the land acquisition proceedings. “After DLPC, people believed that they could finally get money for their land. Some had borrowed money for huge interest believing that they would get the amount soon. However, the authorities haven’t informed us that the decisions of DLPC have been cancelled,” Sudhakaran said. “Unless the government announces the price for Chenkal and Karode panchayats, we will go for agitation,” he added.

The collector also said that they were yet to finalize base price for Chenkal and Karode regions.

Grab the Golden Opportunity, Learn something New

Jisha Surya
February 18, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) have been a buzz in the global education sector for the past one year. The vast opportunity to learn from the best universities in the world absolutely free of cost, sadly, remains unexplored by the higher education sector in the state. For a few early birds in the state, who are taking the advantage of MOOCs, the online courses are something with focus on knowledge than a certificate.

One of the most popular facilities for online education is Coursera, which offer courses of more than 90 top universities in the world absolutely free of cost. Vipin V S, manager of Pearson Education Services Pvt. Ltd, who did a two-month course on Gamification through Coursera, said of late more and more people are logging into MOOCs which enables people to access courses from best universities at a remote location. “The tutorials were in a video format. I had to submit assignments every week. One of the interesting aspects was an online form, where students can discuss on their subject,” he said.

Most of the subjects taken in Massachusetts Institute of Technology are available free in its open online platform, MIT OpenCourseWare. EdX, another online platform, offers courses from almost 30 top universities.

“Unlike the traditional courses, courses offered through MOOCs are well updated and the best in content. If education is important for you than a certificate, then MOOCs is something for you,” said Mukesh M G, an employee of Technopark, who recently did a diploma in Web Business Development through an online platform Alison. “It was a one-month course. You will be given test after completion of one module. There will be an assessment test after completion of course. If you need certificate, you have to pay according to the course. My diploma certificate could cost around Rs 16,000. I didn’t ask for certificate because my purpose was to know more about web business development,” Mukesh said.

Kerala State Higher Education Council vice chairman T P Sreenivasan said 2013 was year of MOOCs. However, still the universities in Kerala are yet to open up to the scenario. “I haven’t seen are Universities or professors recommending students to take up MOOCs. In a recently organised international seminar, we have conducted sessions on MOOCs for teachers and students,” he said.

V K Adarsh, IT expert and columnist, said that there must be an Open Courseware repository for Universities in the state where students and teachers can upload education resources such as PowerPoint presentations, lectures etc. “There must be an inter-University centre for Open courseware,” he said.

Quality of content, convenience, cost-effectiveness etc… are some of the specialties cited for MOOCs. According to T P Sreenivasan, MOOCs will be more helpful when students are offered credits for doing such courses.

INFO
Coursera.org – Offers more than 600 courses from around 90 top universities in the world. Courses in around 25 subjects are available in 13 languages.

EdX.org - EdX is a non-profit online initiative based in Cambridge, Massachusetts and is governed by MIT and Harvard. It offers more than 140 courses in around 25 subjects

MITOpenCourseware (ocw.mit.edu) – OCW is a web-based publication of virtually all MIT course content. OCW has shared materials from more than 2000 courses of MIT.

Stanford online (online.stanford.edu) - Stanford online offers an array of free online courses taught by Stanford faculty.

Duolingo (duolingo.com) - Duolingo offers completely free language education

CodeAcademy (www.codecademy.com) - CodeAcademy teaches programming and coding in free and interactive lessons.

A complete list of free online courses offered by the best universities is available in MOOC List (www.mooc-list.com)

KWA wakes up late to pongala

Jisha Surya
February 15

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Water Authority (KWA) has convened a meeting a week ago to discuss the implementation of suggestions put forward by the K Jayakumar Commission.

The commission was constituted a year ago after a pipe burst on the eve of Attukal pongala had threatened to disrupt the largest congregation of women in the world.

Though the commission had submitted its report—with suggestions to avoid disruption in water supply—in April 2013, the KWA took up the matter for discussion only last week. Ruling out sabotage, the report had blamed ‘water hammer’ (the sudden pressure buildup in pipeline) for the burst in the main transmission line.

The line had burst simultaneously at Koottapara, Karakulam, Paravoorkonam and Peroorkada. The commission also found that the sudden closure of the valve had resulted in water hammer.

The panel reported that the valves were operated without a broader focus. Instead, it focused only on replenishing water in the tank meant to cater to the pongala needs. The commission blamed that the valves were managed without supervision, and in an unprofessional, insecure and vulnerable manner.

“The manner in which valves are installed and maintained is indeed pathetic. In many places, they are not secured. Anybody with a pipe range can operate the valves. Any miscreant can play havoc with the system. Entry to these valve chambers is neither controlled nor monitored properly. The log system is almost non-existent and even where it exists, its authenticity and credibility is doubtful,” the commission noted.

The managing director of the KWA, Ashok Kumar Singh, recently convened a meeting of his officials and asked them to monitor valves properly. KWA executive engineering Prakash Idicula said a 24-hour monitoring mechanism has been put in place to ensure the safety of valves.

“A four-member team, which would also have an assistant engineer and overseer, will inspect every five-km stretch of pipeline. Three such squads are functioning,” he said.

The officials, however, admitted that the squad was introduced just three days ago. Though the commission had asked to use lock mechanism to keep the valves safe, it was termed unpractical.

Govt gives Rs 66-crore push for NH widening

Jisha Surya
February 12, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: With Lok Sabha elections round the corner, the state government has given technical sanction for Rs 66 crore to widen Karamana-Pravachambalam stretch of the Karamana-Kaliyikkavila stretch. The NH wing of state PWD will upload the tender documents online on Wednesday. Tender is expected to be opened by first week of March.

Though the PWD is rushing to get things done, the election commission is expected to issue notification by the end of this month. “If the election commission issues notification, we have to take the commission’s approval to proceed with the work,” said a senior official of NH wing.

The detailed project report of the phase I of the project from Karamana to Pravachambalam was revised by incorporating suggestions of the technical committee of PWD. The revised DPR has an estimated cost of Rs 66 crore against the initial cost of Rs 74 crore.

Meanwhile, revenue officials are proceeding with land acquisition on the Neeramankara-Pappanamcode stretch. PWD officials said the land acquisition is progressing without any delay. “We could begin works only when 80% of land is acquired,” a PWD official said.

Meanwhile, all is not well with the land acquisition, according to people facing eviction. The Karamana-Kaliyikkavila National Highway Action Council alleged that the disbursal of fund was stuck after new land acquisition policy came into effect. “Now officials said that they are waiting for legal opinion on whether the rates fixed by DLPC will be valid. If there is no clarity in a week, the people will stage a dharna in front of the secretariat,” action council general secretary Mannankal Ramachandran said.

The stone laying ceremony to widen 30km road from Karamana to Kaliyikkavila was held in 2010. However, the project was stuck on land acquisition hurdles. The project got revived recently when the government successfully conducted a district level purchase committee meeting to fix land value.


Busy trade for HC advocates

A recent high court order giving tax exemptions to compensation for land acquired for Kochi Metro project has become a boon for advocates in high court. A number of people, who agreed to give their land for Karamana-Kaliyikkavila project, have moved HC demanding tax exemptions. When around 40 people received favourable court order, advocates have managed to get more and more clients. “Each person is charged between Rs 3,000 and 4,000. Now, people are planning to file group petitions,” said an action council member. He added that the petitions of around 45 people are pending with the court.

Only four slaughter houses offer safe meat

Jisha Surya / TNN
February 10, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: No one can ensure that meat you buy for cooking is safe to eat. The Food Safety officials have closed down nearly 84 slaughter houses in the state. Only four legal slaughter houses in the state have got a clearance. Scores of illegal slaughter houses which work in odd hours have escaped the raid which held last week.

Not just private abattoirs, Food Safety officials closed down slaughter houses operated by local bodies. In Kochi alone, 23 slaughter houses, including the one operated by Corporation in Kaloor, were closed down. In Thiruvananthapuram, all 6 legal abattoirs were closed down.

Slaughter houses working under Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University in Mannuthy, Meat Products of India Limited in Koothattukulam in Ernakulam, Brahmagiri Development Society in Wayanad and a private slaughter house in Palakkad are the few which follow Food Safety and Standard Regulations.

D Sivakumar, Assistant Commissioner, Food Safety enforcement, said that the department decided to close down the abattoirs after they failed to improve conditions after serving notices two months ago. “This is the second raid in two months. None of these abattoirs took mandatory food safety licence. They will be given time to improve condition and take license once they respond to the closure notice,” he said.

However, Food Safety officials could not cover a number of butcher shops were animals are slaughtered illegally during odd hours. “Most of these illegal butcher shops work between 1 am and 4 am. They also change shops often to evade inspection. There is still no record of the number of unauthorised butcher shops in the state,” said a Food Safety official on condition of anonymity. The official said that minimum Rs 25 crore is required to set up a slaughter houses in proper food safety standards.

“Slaughter houses must ensure service of a veterinary surgeon to do anti-mortem and post-mortem of the animal. Meat could be processed only after getting clearance of veterinary surgeon,” said a Food safety official.

Part IV of Schedule II of Food Safety and Standards Regulation sets a 29-point regulation for slaughter houses.

According to Food Safety regulation, the slaughter house must have animal holding yard, lairage, slaughter hall, side halls for hide collection, paunch collection, offals collection, and separation, holding room for suspected carcass, by-product harvesting, refrigeration room etc. “Separate space shall be provided for stunning (Wherever applicable), for collection of blood and for dressing of the carcasses. The slaughtering of an animal shall not be done in the sight of other animals. The dressing of the carcass shall not be done on the floor. Suitable hoists will be provided to hang the carcass before it is eviscerated,” the rules states.

NHAI issues request for proposal for bidders

Jisha Surya
February 10, 2014

Thiruvananthapuram: In a significant move, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) has issued request for proposal for bidders selected for widening of NH bypass from Kazhakkoottam to Mukkola. The five bidders selected by NHAI will be given time till March 21 to submit proposals.

Five companies - KNR Constructions Ltd., Dileep Build Con Ltd., RDS PNC (joint venture), IL&FS Transportation Ltd. and Oriental Structural Engineers Pvt. Ltd.- have been shortlisted by the NHAI after initial screening for construction of the stretch on build-operate-transfer (BOT) basis.

NHAI officials said that the announcement of Lok Sabha elections will not impede the tender process as the project has already been sanctioned by the Union government.

The company, which wins the bid, will have to develop the stretch through public private partnership (PPP) on design, build, finance, operate and transfer (DBFOT) basis. The scope of work includes upgradation and widening of the existing carriageway to four-lane standards. The width of carriageway will be 45 metre.

Recently, the public private partnership approval committee (PPPAC) under the department of economic affairs cleared the proposal for Rs 577-crore project. The PPPAC meeting gave approval for viability gap funding worth Rs 231.18 crore for the project. In VGF, Union government will bear a share of the total project cost. The bidders will be selected based on who needs the least VGF support.

NHAI officials said the entire time period for completion of projects is 36 months.

The widening of Kazhakkoottam-Mukkola stretch has been stuck since 1969. The land acquisition is not a hurdle on the first stretch till Mukkola as the land was acquired for 45 metre widening around 45 years ago.

The NHAI proposal is to develop 43km from Kazhakkoottam to Karode. Though tender process for widening first half of the NH bypass is progressing, land acquisition for next half from Mukkola to Karode is stuck. The decision of state level empowered committee to reject the value fixed by district level purchase committee has become a setback for the land acquisition process on Mukkola-Karode stretch. In protest against the SLEC decision, the NH Bypass action council has staged a protest meeting in front of the secretariat on Friday.