The Koodathayi serial murders and the arrest of two CPI(M) workers for their alleged Maoist links brought Kozhikode to the national scene in 2019.
The Koodathayi killings, which came to light in October, pertain to the 47-year-old prime suspect, Jolly Joseph, committing six murders after poisoning the victims with cyanide. The victims were her first husband Roy Thomas, his parents Tom Thomas and Annamma Thomas; Sily, wife of Shaju Zacharias, the second husband of Jolly; her two-year-old daughter Alphine, and Annamma’s brother-in-law Mathew Manjadiyil who were eliminated in a span of 14 years.
The arrest of CPI(M) workers in November follows Kerala Thunderbolts, a command force of the Kerala Police, gunning down three Maoists, including a woman, in an encounter in the Attapadi hills of Palakkad. Now, the case has been taken over by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Kochi.
The resurgent monsoon in August claimed the lives of nine persons in separate incidents of landslips, drowning, and electrocution in the district. Four persons were killed in the landslip at Vilangad in Vanimel grama panchayat of Vadakara taluk.
In one of the most severe natural calamities, more than 1.5 lakh persons were either shifted to government-sponsored relief camps or had to be moved to their relatives places. Efforts to re-build the lives of the flood-affected are still on.
A long-awaited event was the Calicut International Airport resuming operation of Haj flights from July. This was after a gap of almost five years. Saudia (Saudi Arabian airlines) operated a total of 35 flights. Another eventful occasion was the rehabilitation of families in Kalluthankadavu colony. The apartment complex built by the Kozhikode Corporation now accommodates 89 families from Kalluthankadavu, 12 in Sathram Colony, and those displaced from Muthalakkulam for the development of Kallai Road.
The city was also witness to anti-CAA protests.
