Keralam Chief Minister VD Satheesan moved into the Cliff House in Nanthancode, Thiruvananthapuram, on Thursday. The property serves as the official residence of the state's Chief Minister. Satheesan previously resided at the Cantonment House, the residence of the Leader of the Opposition in Keralam Assembly. The Cliff House was formerly occupied by his predecessor, Pinarayi Vijayan.
VD Satheesan's move comes a month after he was sworn in as Keralam's 13th Chief Minister on May 18 at a ceremony at the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, with Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administering the oath of office. His swearing-in followed the Congress-led United Democratic Front's return to power after a decade out of office in the state, with the UDF winning a sweeping 102 of 140 Assembly seats in results declared on May 4, against 35 for the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and three for the BJP.
Since taking office, Satheesan has been active on governance and fiscal matters. Earlier on June 19, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government presented a revised State Budget for 2026-27, paving the way for a "New Age Kerala" (Puthuyuga Keralam) through reforms in health and education, employment generation, social welfare and infrastructure development.
In his maiden Budget address in the Keralam Legislative Assembly, Chief Minister VD Satheesan, who also holds the Finance portfolio, launched a scathing attack on the previous Pinrayi Vijayan-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) administration, accusing it of "deceptive practices" and leaving the state in a "staggering debt trap".
The Revised Budget, which is a modification of the 2026-27 pre-poll Budget presented by the LDF in January this year, envisages revenue receipts of Rs 1,69,646.37 crore and revenue expenditure of Rs 2,05,001.67 crore.
He has also called for an inter-state push against narcotics, seeking enhanced cooperation from Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to dismantle drug trafficking networks under Kerala's "Operation Toofan" campaign. (ANI)
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