TRIVANDRUM, 5 February 2006 — As promised by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the recent diaspora meet in Hyderabad, India has revised norms for Pravasi Bharatiya Bima Yojana (PBBY), the insurance scheme that is mandatory for its migrant labor for getting emigration clearance. From Feb. 1, the insurance cover went up to 500,000 rupees from 200,000 for death or permanent disability leading to loss of job while the onetime premium has been increased to 900 from 350 rupees. The family medical insurance coverage will now be applicable for treatment in the country of employment as well. The validity is for two years or period of employment contract, whichever is longer. A minimum of 25,000 rupees would be provided for meeting litigation expenses related to employment, provided it is certified by the authorities in the country where the policyholder works.
Education Meet Opens
The International Education Meet opened in Cochin yesterday amid protests by leftist student and staff unions who alleged sell-off in higher education sector. Nearly 1,000 delegates, both from within the country and abroad, are attending the three-day event. Education Minister E.T. Mohammed Basheer said the meet was aimed at making Kerala a knowledge society and a global destination for students from Singapore, Africa and the Middle East. “This is a forum to discuss our weakness, challenges and opportunities in global education. We have lost a good number of opportunities,” he said.
New Broadcasters
Malayalam newspaper majors Malayala Manorama and Mathrubhumi are among the successful bidders for FM radio stations in Kerala towns. Manorama, which is planning the April launch of its satellite television channel, bagged broadcasting license for Cochin, Calicut, Trichur and Cannanore while Mathrubhumi will entertain listeners in Trivandrum, Cochin, Trichur and Cannanore. Asianet, the visual media market leader that already is into broadcasting in the Gulf, managed to win only two stations—Trichur and Cannanore. The Anil Ambani-controlled Ad Labs also won bids for Cochin and Trivandrum besides Mangalore, Mysore, Pondicherry, Tirunelveli, Tirupati and Vishakhapatnam. The maximum revenue came from Cochin where three channels were auctioned for a total amount of 287.3 million rupees against the state’s total of 691.3 million.
Moulana-Rabeeh Tie-Up
The Moulana Hospital (MH) at Perinthalmanna in Malappuram district has entered into an agreement with the Riyadh-based Rabeeh Health Care Establishment (RHCE) for giving specialist treatment to non-resident Indians and tourists. RHCE has 15 polyclinics spread across Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. Normally, patients who need super-specialty treatment were referred to various hospitals in India. The pact worked out between the two institutions would offer benefits to NRIs to get treatment at lower rates, RHCE and MH authorities told reporters in Calicut.
Shut Up, CPI-M Told
An irritated breakaway Congress leader K. Karunakaran has come strongly against Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M), the second largest constituent of Left Democratic Front (LDF) into which his Democratic Indira Congress-Karunakaran is seeking an entry. “(CPI secretary) Veliyam Bharghavan should shut up. That’s good for the coalition setup,” Karunakaran said in Trichur adding his DIC-K would soon join LDF as a constituent. “He thinks he’s unquestionable leader of Kerala,” he quipped. Reacting to the CPI stand that he was corrupt and responsible for the police excesses during his rule, he said he did not want to disclose everything that happened during 10 years of power-sharing with CPI. He also rejected Bharghavan’s claim that he was bargaining to go back to the Congress.
Mohanlal Film in Row
Mohanlal’s latest hit Thanmatra, released two months ago in Kerala and Gulf centers and still running to packed houses, has kicked up a row. Mohanlal plays an Alzheimer’s patient but Indian Medical Association (IMA) says a number of patients were complaining of memory loss after the release of the film as the character was misrepresented. “The situation is not alarming. But there has been a slight increase of complaints of memory loss after the movie was released,” Dr N. Sulphi, who edits IMA’s journal, said. Thanmatra protagonist fells to the disease at a young age.
