CPM stalwart V S Achuthanandan passed away on July 21 at the age of 101, leaving an indelible imprint on not just the Communist movement’s political markings, but on every milestone woven into the state’s socio-cultural fabric.
Poverty eradication sustained?
On November 1, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan declared Kerala free of extreme poverty— making it the first state in the country to achieve the status. Though the nature of the announcement, with Mammootty in attendance, made it seem as much a PR moment as a policy milestone, the state government deserves credit for making a sustained effort to identify extremely poor families.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar succeeded K Surendran as the state’s new BJP chief. Initially branded an ‘outsider ’, Rajeev emerged as a power player after the party’s victory in T’Puram corporation.
The Malayalam film fraternity came together to pay rich tributes to actor, screenwriter, and director Sreenivasan, whose satirical films reshaped popular cinema and made generations laugh.
Gold-clad plates being removed from the sanctum sanctorum of the Sabarimala temple as part of the SIT probe into the alleged misappropriation and sale of gold, carried out by falsifying records to show them as copper during refurbishment in 2019, exposing systemic fraud and potential links to smuggling rings.
Fierce sea surges and relentless coastal erosion have displaced dozens of fisher families, laying bare the vulnerability of Kerala’s 590-km-long shoreline. According to various studies, over 55% of Kerala’s coastline is at risk of erosion.
There has also been a staggering loss of 647 acres of coastal land along a 58-km stretch in Thiruvananthapuram district alone over the past 14 years, highlighting the urgent need for effective coastal protection measures in the state
From the start, the state government’s Messi project was riddled with confusion, shifting sponsors, and half-baked plans that kept fans guessing whether Argentine superstar Lionel Messi would ever set foot in the state. The anticipation, however, ended in vain.
The AMMA made history, electing Shwetha Menon as its president — the first woman to hold the post in the film body’s 30-year history
A stray dog stands atop a boundary wall marked with civic poll campaign graffiti and posters, capturing a striking contrast between the feverish political outreach across the state and the persistent issue of stray dog menace, which continues to trouble the public.
Last respects being offered by the family of N Ramachandran, a 65-year-old Kochi native who was among the 26 civilians killed in the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 this year
Mundakkai natives Radha and Pathumma embrace at Puthumala graveyard on the first anniversary of the devastating Mundakkai-Chooralmala landslides in Wayanad. The day was marked by sombre remembrances, prayers, and reflections on the tragedy that struck on July 30, 2024, claiming over 298 lives
Mother Eliswa, the first nun of the Catholic Church in Kerala, was elevated to the rank of blessed in November. It was on April 14 that Pope Francis approved a miracle attributed to the intercession of Mother Eliswa
People throng the Ernakulam District and Principal Sessions Court premises following the acquittal of Dileep in the actor assault case after the prosecution failed to establish conspiracy charge against him. Six accused were convicted.
The lynching of Ramnarayan Baghel, a migrant worker from Chhattisgarh, on suspicion of theft at Walayar in Palakkad sits uneasily with Kerala’s image as a fully literate state.
Ramnarayan’s wife, Lalitha, breaks down on seeing his body. This is the 5th lynching of a migrant in the state in the past decade
Kochi-Muziris Biennale began in December, featuring 22 venues and seven collaterals, significantly widening the socio-historical as well as political footprints of the new-age art exhibition