Kerala, Netherlands sign MoU for Cosmos Malabaricus project

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Kerala and the Netherlands on Thursday for the Cosmos Malabaricus project which, according to the state government, will help further illustrate the history of the southern state in the 18th century.

The agreement, also for the establishment of paint academies at Kollam and Malappuram, was signed in the presence of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Netherlands Ambassador to India, Marten van den Berg, an official release said here.

The Cosmos Malabaricas project is being implemented by the Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR) under the Department of Higher Education, the National Archives of the Netherlands and the University of Leiden. The project will be completed in six years, it said.

The objective of the "Cosmos Malabaricus" project is to make already digitised Dutch archival material accessible to the widest possible audience, including international and Indian scholars and the people of Kerala through translation and publication of summaries in English.

These records contain a ''treasure trove'' of information regarding the political and military organisations, dynastic developments, economic matters, social and religious aspects of Kerala.

The material is written in classical Dutch language and is available in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Netherlands.

The MoU for the establishment of the Paint Academy was signed by ASAP (Additional Skill Acquisition Programme), Indian Institute of Infrastructure & Construction, Kollam; CREDAI, Kerala and Axo Noble India Limited, the Indian subsidiary of a leading paint and chemical company in the Netherlands.

The paint academy at the IIICC campus at Chavara, Kollam will impart training in painting buildings while the academy at ASAP Skill Sky Park in Thavanur, Malappuram will train in painting vehicles, the release said.

The aim is to train 380 people in the first year.

The Chief Minister said it is our responsibility toward future generations to preserve historical events and documents. Dutch cooperation is also expected in areas such as floriculture and disaster management, he noted.

Vijayan further said Kerala is preparing to become a quality learning centre in the higher education sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Marten van den Berg said the Netherlands has good relations with India, especially Kerala. Cosmos Malabaricus will help understand more about the political, social, economic and cultural history of Kerala, the Ambassador said.

He added that the paint academy would provide employment to more young people.

As part of the Cosmos Malabaricas project, students from Kerala will get an opportunity to do an MA at Leiden University and the students from the Netherlands will get prospects for doing an internship at KCHR.

Various MoUs for Kerala were signed by KCHR Director, Prof G Arunima, ASAP Chairman & Dean, Usha Titus, CREDAI Kerala Representative, S N Raghuchandran Nair, and IIICC Director, Dr B Sunil Kumar.

Labour Minister, Shri V Shivankutty; Higher Education Minister, Dr R Bindu; Chief Secretary, Dr V P Joy; Officer on Special Duty, Venu Rajamani; Deputy Consul General of the Netherlands Hein Login; and senior officials were present on the occasion. Representatives from the Netherlands National Archives and the University of Leiden attended the ceremony online.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)