From the bypolls that witnessed vivacious strategies to the Wayanad landslides that sent shockwaves across the country and everything in between, TNIE lists out alphabetically, the important events and issues that caught public attention in 2024
All We Imagine as Light
All We Imagine as Light, directed by Payal Kapadia, tells the story of two Malayali nurses – their lives and struggles in Mumbai. The film won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival. With the film, India featured a contender for the festival's Palme d’Or for the first time in 30 years.
The film also topped Barack Obama’s 2024 film recommendations.
By-polls
The Palakkad, Chelakkara, and Wayanad by-elections led to heated political discussions and allegations. Wayanad elected Congress' Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who became a first-timer in Parliament, while Rahul Mamkootathil secured a record majority in Palakkad. CPM retained Chelakkara.
Cinema
Malayalam cinema became a talking point in the first half of the year with several hit films, including Premalu, Manjummel Boys and Aavesham. Several small-budget films also tasted success towards the end of the year.
Drain death
The death of a 46-year-old sanitation worker, Joy, who went missing while cleaning the Amayizhanchan Thodu (canal) in Thiruvananthapuram on July 13, highlighted the poor management of waterbodies in the state. In Kozhikode, two men died while cleaning the waste water tank of a hotel in July.
These incidents revealed the unscientific methods of drainage cleaning, and how Kerala continues to rely on manual scavenging despite its growth in technology and health sector.
Elephants
Elephants hit the headlines after several people were attacked and killed by pachyderms across the state.
A total of 13 people lost their lives in elephant attacks. Meanwhile, the High Court introduced restrictions on the use of elephants for temple festivals, which stirred statewide protests.
Football
Football in Kerala witnessed an eventful year. The introduction of a home league, ‘Super League Kerala,’ is expected to be a new dawn for Kerala football.
The state government's announcement that Lionel Messi would be part of the World Cup-winning Argentina team's two friendlies scheduled for next year also captured the imagination of the football-loving public. Meanwhile, Kerala Blasters poor run in the Indian Super League forced the management to sack the head coach and assistant coaches.
General Election
For the first time, Kerala elected a BJP candidate to Parliament. Actor-politician Suresh Gopi was elected from the Thrissur constituency.
The release of the Hema Committee report five years after its submission led to several developments, including sexual harassment allegations, director Renjith’s resignation from the State Chalachitra Academy, and dissolution of AMMA executive committee.
IT Sector
The death of Anna Sebastian Perayil stirred up discussions on toxic work culture in the corporate sector. Later, the withdrawal of TECOM from the SmartCity Kochi project generated a political debate in the state.
Judiciary
There were several judicial interventions this year, including orders to remove illegal hoardings from public places. Other milestone orders involved the Hema Committee report, elephant census, minister Saji Cherian, online court and more.
On June 12, a major fire broke out at a residential building in Mangaf, where around 200 migrant workers were staying. As many as 50 workers, including 24 Keralites, were killed in the massive fire outbreak.
Landslide
The Wayanad landslides in the wee hours of July 30 washed away two panchayats – Chooralmala and Mundakkai. The devastating tragedy claimed over 250 lives. More than 100 people are still reported missing.
Munambam
The dispute over the ownership of around 400 acres of land in the Munambam coastal area in Ernakulam district led to protests. The issue affecting more than 600 families arose as their land was claimed by the Waqf Board.
Naveen Babu
The death of Kannur ADM Naveen Babu after he was snubbed at his farewell meeting, led to a political row in the state. P P Divya, the then Kannur district panchayat president, was arrested following the issue.
Orthodox vs Jacobite Church
The dispute between Orthodox and Jacobite factions over the ownership of churches hurt the sentiments of the faithful. Recently, the Supreme Court also sought data on the population of Orthodox and Jacobite groups and directed that status quo be maintained.
Pinarayi & party
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the CPM faced criticism from within and outside the party. MLA P V Anvar came out with allegations against the CM and the LDF ahead of the by-elections.
Question paper
The issues with the NEET and NET exams held in June affected several aspiring students. Later in December, the state government faced criticism following accusations of question paper leak.
Road accidents
Kerala witnessed 40,821 road accidents and 3,168 deaths this year. The accidents that took place in Palakkad and Alappuzha, which claimed the lives of 10 students, were heartbreaking and led to a discussion on road safety in the state.
Seaplane
The seaplane trial flight landed in the Kochi backwaters in November. However, with the move, the state government faced criticism as the Left had opposed the initiative around 10 years ago when the Oommen Chandy government proposed it.
Turncoats
It was just before the Lok Sabha polls in 2024 that Padmaja Venugopal, daughter of the late Congress veteran leader K Karunakaran, joined the BJP, leading to heated political discussions. Just before the Palakkad bypolls, turncoats again became a discussion as P Sarin left the Congress and became LDF candidate in Palakkad, and BJP's Sandeep Varier joined Congress.
Ugly
The dumping of biomedical waste from the Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram in Tamil Nadu's Tirunelveli brought shame to the state as the National Green Tribunal took suo motu cognizance of the matter. The state government later cleared the waste. The Periyar fish kill in May exposed the state's poor waste management.
Vizhinjam
MV San Fernando, the inaugural mothership carrying 1,930 containers from China, arrived at Vizhinjam International Seaport in Thiruvananthapuram in July.
West Nile
The spread of West Nile fever in Palakkad, Thrissur, and Alappuzha districts in the first half of the year raised concerns over public health in the state. The fever affected as many as 29 people, and claimed seven lives.
Xian factor
The BJP continues to woo the Christian community in the state through multiple initiatives. George Kurian, a member of the Syro-Malabar Church, was made Union minister. The BJP leaders' visit to Munambam, which is in the centre of a land dispute, also came in for much discussion. The party has organised Sneha Sandesha Yatra as part of Christmas.
Yellow Army
The Yellow Army (Manjappada) was dissatisfied with the performance of the Kerala Blasters this season and raised concerns with the management. The fan club also staged a protest during a match in December following the poor run.
Zoo
The construction of the zoo in Thrissur’s Puthur, one of the largest in Asia, is almost complete, and the animals are being shifted to the new facility.
