Mumbai: The conclave, titled ‘Change Makers,’ began earlier in the day with tributes to the Wayanad landslide victims. Defence minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the event at the Hotel ‘O by Tamara’. This year’s conclave brought together ‘Changemakers’ from different walks of life. Since its inception in 2017, the Manorama News Conclave has addressed topics ranging from happiness and freedom to a new India. Union minister Suresh Gopi was the chief guest at the closing session at 6 pm.

The defence minister said the last decade was an era of “epochal change” in the country’s economic, cultural and political spheres. Singh painted Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a visionary who could tap into the disenchantment that was so pervasive in the country in 2014 and transform it into positive thinking. He added that certain states were not doing enough for the safety of women in the country. The union minister said this in the context of the Kolkata rape incident.”We have amended laws to provide capital punishment for heinous crimes like rape. This should be implemented with strictness,” the minister said.

Suresh Gopi, who created history by giving the BJP its first elected representative to the Parliament, was modest about his unique accomplishment while delivering his address at the Manorama News Conclave 2024. “The change-maker who bestowed that honour upon my party and my family is not me, it is definitely the people of Thrissur,” said the minister of state for petroleum and natural gas and the ministry of tourism.

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The conclave honoured the stars of the film All We Imagine as Light, which won the Cannes Grand Prix award. The cast, including Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam, Anand Sami, Azeez Nedumangad, and Hridhu Haroon, also engaged in a discussion after being felicitated by Malayala Manorama chief editor Mammen Mathew. While discussing the Hema Committee report, Kani Kusruti lauded WCC and survivors for coming forward and sharing their struggles. “There’s no standardised pay in the film industry. Though it is based on the market value of a market, there should be a margin and contract,” she said. Meanwhile, actor Divya Prabha said the Cannes recognition did not help her gain more opportunities.

Sojan Joseph, the first Malayali MP from the UK, spoke on the ‘Changing face of migration’. Joseph, a mental health nurse who got elected from a constituency in the UK with an 80 per cent native population, wondered whether Kerala had ever fielded a nurse in parliamentary elections.While admitting that there is a right-wing movement against immigration in Europe, Joseph cited a few instances where people sometimes forget to abide by a country’s laws and system.

Thiruvallur MP Sasikanth Senthil, BJP national spokesperson Anil Antony, and SFI all India secretary Dipsita Dhar discussed ‘India: The Voice that Matters’.

Inner Manipur MP and JNU associate professor Bimol Akoijam discussed the ongoing crisis in Manipur at a session of the conclave.

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For the first time in the state’s history, Kerala chief secretary Dr V Venu and chief secretary-designate Dr Sarada Muraleedharan, a husband-and-wife duo, shared the changes they envision. “Sometimes, we push ideas to the government, and they get spurned. We must accept that and move on. They might have a better political vision about the issue,” Sarada Muraleedharan said at the conclave.

Directors Jeo Baby, Chidambaram, and Rahul Sadasivan discuss the transformative shifts that captivate Malayalam cinema and welcome the changes heralded by the release of the Hema Committee report.

Dr Roxy Mathew Koll, a scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune, and recipient of the Vigyan Yuva–Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award, spoke of the need for societal change in tandem with climate change.

Public Accounts Committee chairman and AICC general secretary KC Venugopal, Minister P Rajeeve, and former union minister V Muraleedharan seek answers and ideas on the question, ‘Is Kerala on a changed track?’

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Dr Tom Joseph, director (new initiatives) at Jain University, speaks on the state and higher education standards.

In an interesting twist, Manorama News anchors – Shani Prabhakaran, Nisha Purushothaman and A Ayyappadas – known for their probing questions, will face counter-questions from Speaker AN Shamseer.

The Manorama News Conclave 2024 offered a platform for enlightening discussions and unique activities, bringing together diverse voices and perspectives on India.

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