Alappuzha, Jan 9: The houseboat of Nobel Laureate Michael Levitt was blocked in the backwaters here for some time by trade union activists, who were on a nationwide strike against the Centre's "anti-labour" policies on Wednesday.
Michael Levitt, an American-British-Israeli biophysicist and a professor of structural biology at the Stanford University in the United States, said the incident sent a bad message to tourists.
Levitt, who was in Kerala as a state guest, also said he felt as if a bandit had stopped his wife and him at gunpoint. Police said Levitt, who received the 2013 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, was in Alappuzha with his wife and they were stopped by the protesters near Kainakary.
"Being stopped by criminals on the backwaters sends a very bad message to tourists. It is as if a bandit stopped us at gunpoint and delayed us under the threat of force for one hour," Levitt wrote in an email to his tour agent at Kottayam.
In the email, which was later released to the media, he also said the person who blocked them "ignored all arguments that tourists were exempted" from the strike.
"This person, who did this, ignored all arguments that tourists were exempted and that I am a VIP guest of the Kerala government. He was obviously acting, knowing that he was safe from prosecution. Sadly, this makes me fear that India is sinking into lawlessness," Levitt wrote in the email.
The police registered a case after the houseboat owners filed a complaint in this regard.
Reacting to the incident, state Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said the government would take strong action. "Strong action will be taken against those anti-social elements who stopped the boat. Levitt was here as a guest of the state government. The government had made it clear that the tourism industry was exempted from the strike," he said.
Trade union leaders had also announced that the strike would not affect the tourism industry.
Ten trade unions, including the INTUC, the AITUC and the CITU, had called for the nationwide strike to protest against the labour reforms, FDI, disinvestment, corporatisation and privatisation policies of the Centre and press for a 12-point demands of the working class, relating to minimum wage, among others.
Nagpur, Apr 20: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh is planning to conduct cultural and moral science classes for kids every Sunday at 5,000 centres across the country.
Comments
Moral classes for Immoral activities
Oops..Producing some more minor terriorists,,, we have minor cell,,, No issue,, Upon blessing of Saffron Govt,,, documents missing.. as Malegaon blast.. Samajotha blast,,, Release BHAGYA,,,
70% is Hindu population of the nation and if at least 25% are illiterate, still they are more than peace loving community.
However they have at least other 25% educated in them.
The one and only the best solution is target these educated people in conveying the true religion. When they are with you, India will be peaceful country by force.
After sometime it will be peaceful country without force.
Pardon them Lord. These chaddies are ignorant goons. They do not know the fact that what they are doing is selling Bharat maatha to the West.
first of all who are they to teach (rss) ? are they govt? supreme court should stop this kind of nonsense.
INDIAN LAW AND ORDER MUST FOCUS ON THIS CLASSES AND NEED TO TAKE VIDEOS AND CLARIFY,
BEC WE DONT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE TRAINING TO YOUNG CHILDREN
BEC WE DONT WANT ANY TERROR GROUP HERE IN INDIA ...
Cheddis are controlling even our leaders ... We have recognized their cheddi trained MORALS after coming to POWER...
Please DEFINE what is MORALS to YOU>....
Brain washing classes.
RSS and Moral - you must be joking.....where was their moral when they killed Mahatma Gandhi???
Time has come to vanish this terrorist group from INDIA. Hope peace loving INDIANS will do the same very shortly.
Jai Hind
We are seeing what kind of products are coming out from RSS schools. Bajrangdal, VHP, SRS, all immoral rowdies.
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