I had the good opportunity today, 12th February, to visit my old school, where I started learning from the 1st class. It is Kara Lower Primary School, in Kannur District. The old students, present students, teachers and the people of the area were celebrating the 116th anniversary of the school. I had studied in this LP school for five years from 1943 onwards. My brothers and sisters, their children and the grand children have all studied first here only.

The school was founded in 1896. It was up to V class . Even after 116 years it is still a Lower Primary School up to IV Class( The state government had decided that the Lower Primary will be up to IV class only). While many schools which came later to High School and Colleges, this  school continued as it is.

The celebration meeting was presided over by Shri  Sajith Master and inaugurated by Shri Purushothaman, an old student and Local Committee Secretary of the CPI(M). A good number of old teachers and students were present. The teachers, former and present were honoured. I was the Chief Guest. I spoke a few minutes on  my school life etc. Com.Karayi Sreedharan, one of our senior leader of BSNLEU and at present AIBDPA and also former Local Secretary of the area was one of the organisers and was present there. It was a happy meeting. In fact it was his pressure due to which I decided to attend the meeting even by cancelling attending the Circle Conference of the BSNL CCWF of W.Bengal Circle, of course after consulting the General Secretary Comrade Tapas Ghosh.

It was a pleasant occasion meeting the old friends and class mates and exchanging news and views and remembering the past. Thanks for the organisers.

CPI(M), party politburo member Pinarayi Vijayan was re-elected unanimously as its Kerala unit secretary by the state conference. Vijayan’s name to the key party post was proposed by Achuthanandan himself. Delegates who attended the meet also unanimously elected an 84-member state committee, five-member control commission and delegates for the party congress to be held in Kozhikode in April, Vijayan and other leaders told reporters here after the meet ended today. An astute politician and skilled organiser, Vijayan came up in politics as a student and youth activist. Born on March 21, 1944 in the Leftist hotbed Pinarayi in Kannur district, Vijayan has been in the forefront of struggles waged by the party in the last few decades. A man of few words, he was elected to the state assembly five times and proved a hard-hitting speaker and gifted debator when his services were required by the party within and outside the legislature. He resigned from the ministry to take up the party assingment as insisted by one-time mentor Achuthanandan in 1998.Later, addressing a press meet at the conclusion of the delegates’ session, Vijayan said pulling down the Oommen Chandy headed UDF ministry through undemocratic means is not on CPI(M)’s agenda in Kerala, but that the party would step up its campaign against the government’s wrong policies. “We are not going to indulge in parliamentary intrigues to topple the ministry. We had made it quite clear after the assembly elections last year and there is no change in that stand,” he said. He termed as “totally absurd” reports in a section of the media that certain portions in the organizational review report presented to the conference had been ‘frozen’ at the intervention of the politburo on a complaint from senior leader V S Achuthanandan. “The report has been unanimously adopted by the conference. There could be some changes here and there and minor additions and deletions. But no change has been effected to its general direction or dilution of the spirit of the content,” he said. The conference also underscored the need to strengthen the Left unity and extend the party’s support base. (Courtsey: Ganashakti)

It is reported that the government has decided to have joint venture in Defence production including foreign companies by the Defence PSUs.. The government claims that through the joint venture country will be getting upgraded technology and production. The details are yet to be known.

With the present available information, it seems that this is also part pf the neo-liberalisation policy and may not be in the interest of the nation considering the security concerns and other connected matters. If so, it has to be opposed and defeated.