CALICUT, 9 July 2006 — The Kerala Haj Committee has selected 5,575 pilgrims for performing Haj from the state using the official channel this year. Haj Minister Paloli Mohammed Kutty said 14,549 had applied against state’s quota of 5,577 and more are likely to get clearance as the Central Haj Committee is likely to transfer unfilled quotas of other states. Those who were selected include 513 applicants, who missed the chance last time and 3,506 who were above 60 years of age. The rest were selected by drawing lots. A total of 8,972 aspirants are now on the waiting list. The minister said he was not sure how many of them would get a chance since applicants from other states have gone up this time. “I am not optimistic. Maybe we would get an extra 2,500 seats,” he said.
No Need for Embassy Attestation for Job Contracts
Indian workers leaving for the Gulf countries no more need to get their job contracts attested by Indian embassies, according to Protector General of Emigrants Dr. Ranbir Singh. Ranbir, who is here on a directive from the Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi to look into the matter after thousands of jobseekers were reported stranded, said they will now get emigration clearance on simply submitting job contracts attested by their sponsors. The federal regulation, imposed in 2003 as a measure to check thriving illegal recruitments, was not being enforced seriously until large-scale illegal migration using forged documents was unearthed early last month in Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raids on offices of recruiting agencies and Protector of Emigrants office here.
Muslims, Christians Against New Law
The Kerala High Court will hear petitions by two private colleges challenging a new law to regulate the admission and fee structure in self-financing private medical and engineering colleges that the Muslim and Christian bodies termed as “anti-minority”. The petitions want the court to declare the law unconstitutional since it “infringes on the minority rights guaranteed by the constitution”. The law, passed unanimously by the Kerala Assembly, has sparked off a sharp reaction from minorities while the opposition doubted its “ability to stand legal scrutiny”. Inter-Church Council for Education Joint Secretary Fr. Philip Nelpuraparambil said the act was yet another attempt to take away minority rights.
Raining Jumbos as Monsoon Brings Surprises
The monsoon is bringing pleasant surprises to Kerala. This week alone, the state forest department rescued two elephant calves from the gushing monsoon waters. Five days ago forest officials saved an elephant calf from Wayanad and another Wednesday from Nilambur in Malappuram district. Marooned in thick mud and completely exhausted, the first one died two days after its rescue. “This season we received three elephant calves. In heavy rains calves get separated from the herd and slip into surging waters to the plains. Since the forest areas are getting heavy rains this time, we are keeping a strict vigil,” Chief Wildlife Warden P. K. Gopinath said.
Potassium Cyanide Tastes Acrid, Dead Man Solves Mystery
Records say nobody lived to tell what the potassium cyanide tastes like. But police in Kerala have stumbled upon a remarkable piece of information from a person in his dying moments confirming that it does taste acrid. M.P. Prasad, a 32-year-old goldsmith from Cochin, jotted down a few lines about how cyanide was acting on him before the chemical silenced him forever. The doctor who probed the suicide says this may be the only written document to prove the taste of the highly poisonous chemical.
