Kerala Cabinet extends tenure of panel probing central agencies

Thiruvananthapuram | The Kerala government on Tuesday extended the tenure of the judicial panel probing charges against central agencies in connection with the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

A cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan decided to extend the tenure of the Justice (Retd) V K Mohan Commission by six months, a statement from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said.

The panel was constituted in 2021 to investigate allegations that central agencies were “derailing the probe” into the gold and dollar smuggling cases.

The tenure of the V K Mohan Commission, which is also investigating the causes of the Tanur boat tragedy in 2023, has been extended for another six months, the statement added.

Among other decisions, the cabinet also approved the establishment of a model degree college in the Wayanad district under the RUSA (Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan) project, offering five new courses.

RUSA is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS), launched in 2013 and operates in mission mode for funding the state government universities and colleges to achieve the aims of equity, access and excellence.

The college will be set up on five acres of land handed over by the General Education Department in Thrissilery village, Mananthavady, the CMO statement added.