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Kerala Cabinet sets up 3-member panel

By Our Special Correspondent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM DEC. 11. The Cabinet on Wednesday formed a sub-committee to resolve the dispute between the Orthodox and Jacobite factions of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church with the Finance Minister, K. Sankaranarayanan, as convener.

The Public Works Minister, M. K. Muneer, and the Labour Minister, Babu Divakaran, will be members of the Committee that will hold discussions with the factions.

The Chief Minister, A. K. Antony, told presspersons after a Cabinet meeting that the Church dispute was taking such a turn that the Government could not remain a spectator. The allegations and counter allegations by followers of the same Church created concern among the general public. At several places, it had become a law and order problem. It was unfortunate that the dispute was leading to bloodshed, he said.

The Chief Minister denied that the situation had worsened because of the inaction of the Government. He had held informal discussions with Church leaders and had tried for settlement of the issue through mediators.

Mr. Antony said a committee consisting of the Chief Secretary, Higher Education Secretary and the Health Secretary had been constituted to hold discussions with managements about the fee structure for merit seats in self-financing medical, ayurveda, dental and siddha colleges and facilitate early admission of students.

The Chief Secretary, he said, had been asked to streamline payment of subsidies under the special package announced by the Government to help the agriculture sector last year. The package could not be implemented till now, and subsidies for rubber exports could not be paid to Rubco, Marketfed and Infam on account of procedural problems. The Chief Secretary had also been asked to propose revised norms for payment of the subsidies, including those decided for other crops.

The Chief Minister said he would take up with the Centre the problems faced by agriculture and industrial sectors in the State during his Delhi visit from December 17 to 22. He would also seek restructuring of the tax structure to restrict imports of agricultural products.

Asked about indications being given by the senior Congress leader, K. Karunakaran, that his Ministry would be short-lived, the Chief Minister said none could predict how long something would last.

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