Thiruvananthapuram, February 11 The Kerala Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, on Wednesday approved a series of major development decisions, with a strong focus on hill area development, Kuttanad region reforms, and industrial expansion.
Prioritizing the state's ecologically sensitive high-range regions, the Cabinet decided to form a Hill Area Development Empowered Committee to strengthen planning and implementation in hilly areas. The Chief Minister will head the committee, with the Agriculture and Forest Ministers as Vice-Chairpersons and the Chief Secretary as Convener, an official release said here.
A key objective of the committee is to implement a "zero-casualty" policy in human-wildlife conflict through the use of modern technology and habitat restoration. Farmers who suffer crop losses due to wildlife attacks will be provided insurance coverage, it said.
The committee will also work to shift the Western Ghats economy from commodity-based activities to value-added production, improve the marketing of agricultural crops and spices, and ensure people-friendly implementation of the Wildlife Protection Act.
While maintaining environmental safeguards, the committee will help clear hurdles for infrastructure projects such as hill highways, ropeways, and airstrips. It will also finalise the boundaries of environmentally sensitive areas and speed up the issuance of land titles in non-forest lands. The committee will meet once every three months.
The Cabinet also approved major changes to the structure and functioning of the Kuttanad Development Coordination Council as part of implementing the second phase of the Kuttanad Package.
A Central Project Processing Unit for Kuttanad Regional Development (CPPU-KRD) will be set up under the State Planning Board to coordinate projects, the release said. The Chief Secretary will act as Convener of the Coordination Council. District-level Implementation and Technical Committees will be formed in Alappuzha, Kottayam, and Pathanamthitta, headed by District Panchayat Presidents with District Collectors as Conveners. These committees will scrutinise project proposals and forward them to the CPPU-KRD, the release said.
District authorities will be empowered to grant administrative sanction for projects up to Rs 5 crore, while inter-district projects will be prepared in consultation with District Planning Committees.
A Kuttanad Cell will be formed in the Planning and Economic Affairs Department at the State-level secretariat to ensure coordination among departments.
Boosting industrial growth, the Cabinet approved a Rs 741-crore expansion project for Kerala Paper Products Limited (KPPL) at Velloor in Kottayam district, under the Industries Department.
The project aims to increase production capacity and diversify products. KPPL was formed after the State government took over the Velloor HNL unit, which was shut down by the Centre in 2019.
The State government will provide Rs 175 crore as equity, while KSIDC will invest Rs 25 crore. The remaining Rs 541 crore will be raised through a consortium of banks. With rising demand driven by e-commerce, retail, and food distribution sectors, the project also seeks to reduce dependence on paper imports from other states. On completion, KPPL is expected to grow into a Rs 1,500-crore turnover enterprise within 24 months, the release said.
The Cabinet also approved Kochi Metro Rail Limited to take a Rs 1,016.24 crore loan from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank for Phase II of the Kochi Metro project, connecting JLN Stadium to Infopark via Kakkanad. KMRL has also been authorised to sign the loan and project agreements with the bank.
