Kerala is a small state in the south west corner of India. Its total area is 38,863 sq. km which is only 1.20% of the total of India. Kerala attracted the notice of people in other parts of India even from time immemorial.
Kerala has 31,838,619 people according to the 2001 census, which is nearly 3.44 per cent of the country's population. Her population density is 819 persons per sq.km., the third in India and clocks at thrice the national average. The sex-ratio recorded in this census is 1058 females per 1000 males.
Kerala stands in the forefront of Indian states in the matter of literacy and education. According to the census of 1991 the rate of literacy in Kerala is 94.59 per cent. This literacy rate is more than double that of the country. It is significant that Kerala is almost on a par with the most advanced countries of the world in point of literacy.
Major plantations in kerala are tea, coffee, rubber, cardamom and other spices.
Cashew, coconut, areca nut, cassava, banana, rice, ginger, pepper, sugarcane, and vegetables of different varieties are also grown. The lowland or the coastal area, which is made up of the river deltas, backwaters, and the shore of the Arabian Sea, is essentially a land of coconut and rice. Fisheries and Coir industry constitute the major industries of this area.
The pressure on land in Kerala is the highest in India and the state's economy continues to be dominantly agrarian. The annual per capita income in state at current prices has risen to Rs. 19,461 in the year 1999-2000 from RS 5,065 in 1992-93. Coir: Backwaters and the inland waterways nourishes the coir industry, which is the oldest traditional cottage industry in the state.
Agriculture dominates the Keralite economy. However, Kerala's Human Development Index and standard of living statistics are the best in India. Indeed, in select development indices, Kerala rivals many developed countries. This seeming paradox — low GDP and productivity figures juxtaposed with relatively high development figures — is often dubbed the "Kerala Phenomenon" or the "Kerala Model" of development by economists, political scientists, and sociologists. This phenomenon arises mainly from Kerala's unusually strong service sector.
Kerala's economy can be best described as a democratic socialist welfare economy. However, Kerala's emphasis on equitable distribution of resources has resulted in slow economic progress compared to neighboring states. Relatively few major corporations and manufacturing plants are headquartered in Kerala. Remittances from Keralites working abroad, mainly in the Middle East, make up over 20% of State Domestic Product (SDP). Because of this Kerala Economy is sometimes called as "Money Order Economy".
Key Initiatives / Information
The objectives of the Conference are to facilitate knowledge flow by working with international organisations through bi-lateral/multi-lateral cooperation mechanisms, know the effects of high technology on internal security; forging partnerships for collaborative research and product development with Indian industry and interacting with the government to establish policy. The conference shall pave way for collaborative industrial product development, exploring new markets and mutual investment opportunities. The conference could play a vital role in understanding the current security requirements with reference to businesses and other societal requirements.
CII established the College Excellence Cluster Programme in Southern Region to enable high frequency, qualitative interaction between academic institutions and industry. This platform aims to bridge the various gaps between academia and create a model through which colleges can work with industry and provide students, teachers and the college community with an exposure to current industry environment and practices. This initiative would allow the colleges to benchmark themselves and engage with industry. This could also provide colleges with an opportunity to involve themselves in projects, research and development with industry thereby strengthening their institution and providing industry with value addition in the form of academic research.
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) established in India an Industrial Subcontracting and Partnership EXchange (SPX) in 2007. SPX is a technical information and matchmaking centre for industrial subcontracting, supply chain management and partnerships between buyers and suppliers, aiming at optimizing the manufacturing capacities and capabilities of the affiliated enterprises.
CII is partnering with UNIDO’s Consolidated Project for SME Development in India. It is an Italian Funded Project implemented by UNIDO in partnership with the Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). The project in Southern Region on Investment and Technology Promotion focuses on three sectors: Auto components, Leather and Footwear.
Consulting / Advisory Services
CII assist member companies towards preparation of Project Proposals using the Company Project Profile (CPP) Software developed by UNIDO for associations. It covers all the critical parameters that are required in a project proposal that are sought by the evaluators. It is a tool standardized by UNIDO after long years of experience in the international market.
CII offers Feasibility Analysis and Reporting Services for MSMEs to enable MSMEs to prepare proposals for funding or Joint Ventures. This service is being provided using a Computer model for Feasibility Analysis and Reporting (COMFAR) software developed by UNDO. This software permits the user to simulate the short- and long-term financial and economic situation of investment projects. The software facilitates the analysis of industrial as well as non-industrial projects, whether new investments, rehabilitations, expansions, joint venture or privatization projects.
CII News Update
CII Southern Region would focus on the theme - “Accelerating Growth - Conscious Competitiveness” for the year 2013-14 said, Mr B Santhanam, Chairman, CII – Southern Region while addressing his maiden Press Conference in Chennai on 2 May 2013.
Mr Santhanam said that CII-Southern Region’s agenda.....
MR B SANTHANAM, CHAIRMAN
MR NAVAS MEERAN, DEPUTY CHAIRMAN
Hyderabad, March 23, 2013. Mr B Santhanam, Managing Director, Saint-Gobain Glass India Ltd, Chennai has been elected as the Chairman of CII – Southern Region for the year 2013 -14. His name was announced at the first meeting of the r.....
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Kerala organized the 25th Kerala State Level Quality Circle Competition on 7 November 2012 at Kochi. Mr A K Nair, Past Chairman, CII Kerala inaugurated the QC Competition. 12 Quality Circles from CII Member companies in Kerala participated at this competition......
CII Kerala organized Kerala Skills Conclave 2012 focusing on the theme bridging the Skill Gap held on 22nd August, 2012 at Thiruvananthapuram. In his presidential address, Mr S Ramadorai, Advisor to the Prime Minister on National Skill Development Council said that collective action for skill devel.....
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is all set to form a Centre of Excellence on Innovation, Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship in Kerala. CII would organise 14 sectoral conferences during Emerging Kerala 2012 – a Global Connect Initiative scheduled to be held from 12-14 September 2012 at Koch.....
CII Kerala organized the ‘Convention on Women Leadership’ at Kochi, which was attended by representatives from Corporates, Academia, Faculty, Researchers, CEOs, Analysts, Strategic Planners, Auditors, HR Professionals, Consultants, Business Planners and Students across Universities and Colleges. .....
Interactive Session on Power Sector in Kerala 1500 Hrs: 08 May 2012: Hotel Taj Gateway: Kochi Confederation of Indian Industry, (CII) Kerala organized an Interactive Session on Power Sector in Kerala at The Gateway Hotel, Kochi. The Session was inaugurated by Mr Aryadan Mohammed, Hon’ble Minister f.....
Outreach Session on Free Trade Agreements (FTA) 1100 Hrs: 11 April 2012: Hotel Dream Cochin: Kochi Confederation of Indian Industry, (CII) Kerala organized an Outreach Session on Free Trade Agreements (FTA) at Hotel Dream, Kochi yesterday. The Session was inaugurated by Mr A K Tripathy, Hon’ble Joi.....
The two-day fest, organised by Baby John Foundation and Confederation of Indian Industry under the leadership of Minister for Labour, Mr. Shibu Baby John focused on the youth in and around Chavara. Thousands of unemployed youth thronged the venues of the Job Fest held in Government Boys High School.....
The seventh edition of Technopreneur, the annual flagship event of YI Net of Government Model Engineering College, Thrikkakakara was held in the IMA House, Kaloor on 17th March, Saturday. Technopreneur is a one-day symposium which provides platform for the youth to interact with eminent personaliti.....
CII Awards & Recognitions
The Leadership and Excellence Award in Environment Health & Safety (EHS) Award was instituted in the year 2002. The aim is to recognize, motivate and facilitate corporates to adopt innovative practices in EHS.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (SR) through its Education Sub-Committee, launched the first edition of Innovator 2009 on 12th February 2010 at Hotel Le Royal Meridien, Chennai. The Sub Committee initiated this unique event this year under the Chairmanship of Dr R Mahadevan, Group Technology Director, India Pistons Ltd. Innovator is a competition aimed at identifying and showcasing the innovative ideas of college students from Technical, Business and Social streams in the Southern Region. It is a three stage project centric contest designed to test the technical/business and social concepts, presentation and creative skills of the participants.
Confederation of Indian Industry (Southern Region) has launched the Eighth edition of the "Leadership and Excellence Award in Environment Health & Safety (EHS) for the year 2009" in cooperation with SHRIRAM EPC Limited.
The EHS Award was instituted in the year 2002 and it has been grand success every year and has received tremendous response from the industries in the Southern Region.
QC Circles play a very important role in involving a wide cross section of employees for improving quality within an organization through participation. In an effort to spread the awareness of the need to Total Quality Management among membership in the Southern Region, CII has been conducting the Quality Circle Convention in the southern region for the last 22 years. The Regional Convention, which is an annual feature, is a build-up of the State Conventions that take place throughout the year as part of CII’s continuous thrust towards strengthening the quality movement in India. The convention provides a unique opportunity to motivate Workers to form Quality Circles within the organization and facilitates the exchange of ideas and sharing of experiences on various approaches to problem solving through Quality Circles. Each team participating at the convention would be make presentations of their QC Stories to the jury. The first three winners at the Regional Competitions would participate in the CII National QC Circle Convention.
5S is a five-step technique for creating and maintaining a good housekeeping at workplace, which makes it free of clutter, well-organized and clean. Once fully implemented, the 5S process can increase morale, create positive impressions on customers and increase efficiency and organization. The effect of 5S on continuous improvement can lead to less waste, better quality and faster lead times. All of which make an organization more profitable and competitive in the market place.
Kaizen (Japanese for "improvement" or "change for the better") is a philosophy or set of practices that focus on continuous improvement of processes in manufacturing, engineering, supporting business processes, and management. The Kaizen concept stimulates productivity improvement as an ongoing process in companies. The Kaizen Competition of CII Southern Region is organized every year to recognize and encourage member companies which give importance to continuous improvements through Kaizens. The competition is conducted for operators and supervisors of member companies from manufacturing and service sectors. In order to encourage competitiveness through Kaizens among small scale industries, a special recognition is given for the best small scale organization which participates in the competition. The competition awards member companies who have adopted Kaizens not only at the shop floor but also from the office area, scrap yard, stores etc.

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