kerala tourism shadows
An outbreak of Nipah virus in parts of Kozhikode may affect tourism in Kerala. This comes as the travel industry is in post-pandemic recovery mode.
Stakeholders are concerned the virus will cast a pall over the upcoming season, which usually starts in September. They feel the Kerala Tourism Board needs to take some confidence-building measures, such as clarifying that the virus outbreak is localized and that the rest of the state is safe to travel. There is also a need to improve hygiene in public places and restore normalcy at airports where there are no special health checks to encourage tourist arrivals.
Not a stand-up comedian
Pawan Goenka, chairman of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s Steering Committee for Promotion of Local Value Addition and Exports (SCALE), had to do some extra talking recently. “My job now is very difficult. I have to keep talking until the minister comes here and he has not yet started from home,” he said at an event (the last session of the Siam Congress).
Goenka was referring to Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, who arrived more than an hour and a half late for the meeting. Goenka, who spoke for more than thirty minutes, finally learned that the minister was still five minutes away, to which he said: “I can’t joke, I am not a stand-up comedian. If anyone is here, he/she is welcome to come here.”
Promote localization
Zoho CEO Sridhar Vembu is an evangelist for localization. Addressing the 11th convocation ceremony of the Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing in Kanchipuram, he told the example of a simple nail clipper to send a strong message to the graduates about how India is heavily dependent on foreign technology. and machinery.
If you go to a local store and buy nail clippers, he said, it won’t say “Made in India,” but “Made in South Korean,” “Made in China,” “Taiwan” or “In Japan.” This is because the steel used to make nail clippers is not simple. Automated machinery for making nail clippers is not simple. The machinery used to make nail clippers is very complex. There are many such examples. Vembu, who was recently appointed Chairman of the Board of Directors of Kancheepuram IIITDM, said that it is committed to technological and critical research and development, invention, re-invention and rediscovery.
Trading Barb
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BRS) and the Congress, which are gearing up for the Telangana elections, have a new target to fight against. The latest notice issued by the Enforcement Directorate to K Kavitha, daughter of BRS leader and Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, has triggered a debate between the two parties.
She was responding to senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh’s statement that Kavitha should focus on her ED case instead of criticizing Rahul Gandhi. (At a recent meeting, she called Rahul Gandhi an outdated leader.) Kavitha lashed out at Ramesh, who wanted to know about the National Herald case against Sonia Gandhi and What happened to Rahul Gandhi’s ER case. “It seems there is an understanding between the BJP and the Congress,” she said.